Parish Forums
We invite you to explore our shared faith through Parish Forums throughout the year. On Sundays at 10 a.m. we meet in the Elizabethan Room to discuss a variety of topics.
Parish Forums in Advent. Advent is a time when we recall–especially but not only at the beginning of the season–that the Christ who came as a child at Bethlehem will come on the clouds in majesty, bearing his “glorious scars”, to judge the world. The spirituality of Advent is, among other things, an apocalyptic spirituality. Our Parish Forums for Advent will explore this connection.
Nov. 30: Apocalypticism–An Overview
From around 200 BC to around 200 AD, Jewish and Christian writers produced “apocalypses”, meaning “revelations”. They revealed that behind the world’s turmoil lay a deeper conflict between the spiritual forces of good and evil, a conflict that would be resolved in the fullness of time. These ideas could be found in the Book of Daniel, the Book Revelation, the Book of Enoch, II Esdras, and elsewhere. They also pervade the Synoptic Gospels, but in rather different form. This forum will give an overview of apocalypticism in the ancient world.
Facilitated by Richard Kieckhefer
Dec. 7: “A New Heaven and a New Earth”
The Second Epistle of Peter promises that in the end there will be “new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.” The Book of Revelation, too, speaks of “a new heaven and a new earth” as something to look forward to–an earth irrigated by a stream of heavenly water, alongside which will be trees whose leaves are “for the healing of the nations.” What does this all mean? If it is symbolic, what does it symbolize? What is the relationship between the upheaval that comes first and the renewal that is promised to follow?
Facilitated by Jimmy Haring
Dec. 14: Hoping for the Apocalypse
We live in apocalyptic times; on that we can all agree. But what exactly does it mean? Why do some Christians long for the Apocalypse (as we all claim to do in Advent), while others dread it or pooh-pooh the idea? Throughout Christian history, excitable roosters have crowed about the coming millennial dawn, while wise old owls have hooted in derision. This forum will explore some historic moments of apocalyptic hope and their disappointment, ending with our own times. Can humans do anything to speed the coming apocalypse, or must we simply wait upon God’s good pleasure?
Facilitated by Barbara Newman