Adults

Winter Studies at St. Francis Church

(Led by the Rector, Rich Simpson)

Two Congregations - One Holy Book: Discovering the Bible: A New Generation: Seven Thursdays (October 6 to November 17) from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. at St. Clare House. Co-led by the Rev. Rich Simpson, Rector at St. Francis Episcopal and the Rev. Dan Wilfrid, Senior Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran. This joint Bible study began last fall with the Old Testament; this year we move on to the New Testament.  For those continuing, the same Kerygma guide (which is a 30-session course) will be used.  For those who are joining in this time around, the cost of that guide is $30.  The New Testament study will continue in the spring, but for now the commitment we seek is only for the seven sessions offered this fall.

Song of Songs Interfaith Bible Study: Tuesday mornings in October from 10:00 - 11:30 a.m. at St. Clare House

Early on in my ministry at St. Francis, I was asked to teach through the Worcester Institue of Senior Education (WISE) - Worcester's version of Elderhostel.  I made some good friends there doing Bible Study but a few years back I decided to take a break from it.  What I offered to do, instead, was to open up a daytime Bible Study at St. Clare House to the wider ecumenical and interfaith community.  Over the past few years we have met for short sessions (usually four to six weeks in a row) to read Biblical texts together.  About half of the group have been from St. Francis and the other half have been a mix of Reform and Conservative Jews from various Worcester congregations.  We learn a lot about the texts we read, and about each other, as Christians and Jews trying to be faithful in a multi-cultural context.

This year we are going to be reading Song of Songs (aka Song of Solomon) together - the Bible's only love poetry.  In spite of the claim of it being by Solomon, in truth we know little about when, where, or under what circumstances it was composed but like love itself, it transcends time.  Usually it has been read allegorically by both Christians and Jews (i.e. that Christ or God, respectively, are the bridegroom and alternatively that the Church or Israel, is the bride.)  We'll explore that a bit as well as some alterntive readings.  It is pretty risque material, with at least a PG-13 rating - so be forewarned.  It should be fun!

 

Adult Catechumenal Program: Each year, in addition to the youth in our parish who are confirmed at the Bishop's Visit, there are adults who can be either confirmed or received by the Bishop into the Episcopal Church. The details of which group a person falls into have to do with which part of the Body of Christ one is coming from: those who come from "historic" denominations such as the Roman Catholic Church, who were confirmed by a Bishop get "received." Those who come from Protestant denominations where confirmation is celebrated by the local pastor are "confirmed." Either way, the preparation is the same. There is a third group as well, and this includes people who were confirmed at a young age in The Episcopal Church who feel they would like to re-commit as adults: these persons can re-affirm their commitment to Christ publicly after a time of preparation. (See pages 418-419 in The Book of Common Prayer)

Education for Ministry - Efm: For adults interested in a more in-depth program of Bible study and theological reflection, St. Francis offers the Education for Ministry program known as EfM.  EfM is a program of theological education-at-a-distance of the School of Theology of the University of the South at Sewanee.  This course covers the basics of theological education in the Old and New Testaments, church history, liturgy, and theology.  The class meets weekly from September to May.  Students sign up one year at a time for this four-year program, and it is not necessary to commit to all four years.  The program grants a certificate at the completion of the four years and 18 Continuing Education Units for each year's work.  For more information contact Robin Carlo at rcarlo5@mac.com or check out the program website at www.sewanee.edu/EfM.