Embracing an Adult Faith: Marcus Borg on What It Means to Be Christian
As a result of Eric's invitation to the congregation, several of us met each of five Wednesday evenings for discussion guided by a DVD presentation and a "study book" (a heavyweight term for a booklet of very accessible material). Marcus Borg, Canon Theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, Oregon, produced the material for these five sessions, whose themes were: God; Jesus; Salvation; Practice; and Community.
We were encouraged to undertake some preparatory work before each session, and we rotated responsibility for facilitating our discussions. Each session involved listening to Marcus Borg's comments and pursuing one of several suggested optional approaches to discussing the evening's theme. On a couple of evenings we listened to the DVD-recorded comments of participants in discussions led by Marcus Borg.
Clearly we were a diverse group - yet we were able to create a safe environment for wide ranging discussions. Refreshments each evening supported our fellowship.
One hour (7 - 8pm) seemed too short to do justice to the discussions, yet one hour comfortably fitted into our lives. It seemed particularly tricky to listen fully and responsively to individual viewpoints/issues while managing our time to allow all to participate to their liking, let alone to cover the subject matter appropriately!
There were both negative and positive reactions from the group as a whole as to how helpful Borg's curriculum or his presentations were to our exploration of some key aspects of Christianity. But the series certainly opened up the subjects.
A consensus emerged around wanting to look at this series as dipping our toes into the water of an adult formation activity that we hoped would be ongoing. There was a shared feeling that we wanted to go further into the water, and we look forward to being a part of making this happen.
Embracing an Adult Faith: Marcus Borg on What It Means to Be Christian