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+ Back to School
+ Adult Education: So Much to Learn, So Little Time!
+ Church School
+ DOE Search
+ Education for Ministry
+ Education and Spiritual Life
+ Music
Martha A. Hart, Deacon
"O, Eternal God, bless all schools, colleges and universities, that they may be lively centers for sound learning, new discovery and the pursuit of wisdom; and grant that those who teach and those who learn may find you to be the source of all truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen." (BCP, p. 824)
This beautiful prayer helps heighten the excitement in the air when September rolls around each year! College students have returned, the orange buses are running, stores are filled with school supplies, and traffic is everywhere! The newspapers today, as I write, include the Back to School Section. In our parish, church school and adult classes are set to begin. I have always thought of September as back to school month even though the doors of most area schools open a couple of weeks earlier.
I was amused at a recent conversation with our grandchildren who reluctantly agreed they were ready for school to start. When Grandpa announced that he, too, was looking forward to starting classes (at the Duke Institute for Learning in Retirement), our almost first-grader said emphatically, "Grandpa, you are too old to go to school!" Out of the mouths of babes!
This parish is blessed with quality educational offerings that are ours for the taking. They are described in the insert to this issue of "Cross Roads." Along with wonderfully creative and dedicated church school teachers for our children and young people, we are blessed also with grown-ups with gifts to enrich us all. I encourage everyone to participate in a Bible study, a class, a retreat, a seminar, workshop, or prayer group. We, of course, learn in many ways and from many experiences in our Christian formation journey. No one is ever too old to go to school!
One of my favorite collects which comes to mind each fall season is this:
"Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen." (BCP, p. 236)
Herbert O'Driscoll, priest and author,laments in his book of meditations on the collects, "Prayers for the Breaking of Bread," that the mainline churches must acknowledge the loss of knowledge of scripture in contemporary life. He believes that the decline in biblical literacy is "a loss for the whole world and a way of seeing reality." Indeed it does sometimes seem as if we have too often left the Bible behind!
Let us be mindful of this as we begin a new season of learning, of stretching our minds and hearts, of growing in our life together in Christ. Amen.
Adult Education: So Much to Learn, So Little Time!
Nancy Tunnessen, Adult Education Committee
Adult education programs at the Chapel of the Cross are scheduled on Sunday mornings between services, from 10:25 to 11:05 (an all too short 40-minute period) or on weekday evenings, usually Mondays or Tuesdays. The committee attempts to provide a wide variety of options to the congregation and is always eager to have feedback about the presentations. Occasionally, we are able to make audio tapes of some of the presentations, which are kept in the parish library.
The committee meets monthly to evaluate current programs and to brainstorm ideas for future programs. We discuss current events, religious feature stories, our individual concerns and basic faith issues. We identify individuals we know within the congregation and the community with special interests or talents. We draw on ties to the religion and other departments at the University of North Carolina and Duke University. Sometimes folks beyond the committee suggest topics, books, or speakers, or even offer to lead discussions. We play "who do you know" as we attempt to identify potential speakers to address different topics. All ideas are brought to the committee. Then the committee decides which to pursue.
We then attempt to schedule basic and in depth topics covering a wide variety of interests. We try to keep in mind a survey conducted four years ago that suggested that Bible study was the highest priority, followed by church history, liturgy, and ethical issues. This year timely discussion of the ethical conundrums of stem cell research and the funding of AIDS drugs in Africa will kick off the schedule, followed by Keith Meador, MD, director of the Duke Institute on Care at the End of Life. This year, David Jamieson-Drake will be examining the poetry of the Hebrew Scriptures, concentrating on the Prophets and the Psalms. For four Sundays, The Rev. Dr. Richard Pfaff, will discuss "Monks and Others." The rector and other staff clergy will begin a series of "conversations" with the parish, starting with an understanding of anointing and the laying on of hands, followed by how the church can support marriage. Tom Coombs has emerged as a skilled facilitator willing to tackle provocative issues; this fall it is "The King James Bible." The full schedule of the fall programs will be available on the web site.
Evenings offer a time frame for a more in depth exploration of our faith. Evening programs this fall will include a four-week exploration of "The Quest for the Historical Jesus," presented by Bart Ehrman, Bowman and Gordon Gray Professor and Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at UNC. Another fall evening program will be "The Sacraments from a Charismatic Perspective." In addition, on three Sunday evenings in November, we will use the North Carolina Council of Churches' curriculum entitled "The Elephant in the Courtroom," to examine the issue of racism in the North Carolina judicial system. With the Spiritual Life Committee, we have scheduled a Sunday morning program followed by a Saturday retreat centered around "Spirituality and Work."
There are numerous members of the parish who have repeatedly helped with adult education programs and we are grateful for that support. Please feel free to pass on your suggestions and comments to any member of our committee: Paul Carew, Tom Coombs, Susan Irons, Michael McVaugh, Mary Ann Morris, Carolyn Rugen, Wilborn Roberson, Lee Walsh, and Nancy Tunnessen.
Pam Miller, Church School Education Committee
The Chapel of the Cross offers a full curriculum for ages two through high school, Sundays during the school year, between the 9:00 and 11:15 a.m. services. For children participating in worship, church school helps provide them with the understanding and knowledge of what it means to be a Christian and a member of this Episcopal community. Our classes begin at 10:15 a.m. and last 45 minutes.
A Church School Education Committee, comprised of four to eight members helps plan, organize, and support events for children throughout the year, including vacation church school, which is held one week during the summer. Our Sunday classes are taught by teams of parishioners and utilize the Episcopal Children's Curriculum developed by the Virginia Theological Seminary and edited by the Rev. Dr. Locke E. Bowman, priest associate here. The content of the curriculum focuses on four areas: Old Testament, New Testament, Sacraments, and Church and rotates four years of different content. The curriculum is age specific at three levels: preschool/kindergarten, primary, and intermediate. Our four year olds meet in the 'atrium,' a classroom designed especially for them, where teachers utilize the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Curriculum. Teaching church school is vital and rewarding work.
The first day of church school classes will be Sunday, September 16. All who are interested in teaching are encouraged to contact the Rev. Tammy Lee or Pam Miller.
John Nelson, Committee chair
Following the resignation of Amy Gordon, the rector asked Amelia Crew, Archie Copeland, the Rev. Tambria Lee, John Nelson, and Martha Schütz Lo to serve on a search committee for a director of Christian education. Ads were subsequently placed in "The Living Church" and diocesan publications describing the parish's desire to employ "a lay person for a full-time position to direct a thriving education program for all ages." The committee explored recommending to the rector an interim one-year appointment, but the person that was interviewed chose to remain in her present position. No applications have as yet been received in response to the ads. The summer is not a propitious time to launch a search; newly trained DCEs have already secured employment and those already on the job have made commitments for the coming year. Consequently the committee in the coming months will be redirecting its efforts to secure the service of a director of Christian education well-qualified to lead the parish's program.
The committee would welcome your thoughts about the Christian education program at the Chapel of the Cross and suggestions of persons who are not parishioners to be considered for the post.
Ann Wilson
What is it?
When Vivian Varner asked me to share my experience with EFM , she suggested that it would perhaps answer the question she has heard asked: "What is "Ef-fim?" I'm going to try to solve the mystery.
First, The EFM is a program of theological education by extension under the direction of the University of the South at Sewanee. It is not a course of study for the ministry in the usual sense of the word. And having said that, I have to admit that it is -- since we all, as Christians, are engaged in ministry as we were charged to be at our baptism and confirmation.
EFM makes use of four texts, one for each of four areas of study. The entire Bible is read over the first two years with the texts as commentary for The Old and New Testaments; the third year the text covers the history of the Christian Church from Acts to the present day; and finally, the fourth text is a survey of philosophy and theology as they relate to the other content of the course.
How does it work?
A small group of students meets weekly to discuss the readings, chapter by chapter. The minimum time involved for most students is four to six hours per week, including the two-hour seminar, and the time spent in reading and reflecting upon the text. The level of scholarship can be adjusted to one's individual ability and available time. There are options to pursue areas of study beyond the readings and in the direction of individual interests. The group engages in some exercises together. Each learns from the perspectives of all as they participate in a non-judgmental forum of personal response to the literature.
Is it for you?
Anyone who has completed the four years would probably describe his or her experience in a totally unique way. For me it was a transforming adventure. I had never read the Bible in sequence and knew much less than I thought I did of Christian history. I was to discover in new and personal ways of the power that lies within the beauty of the scriptures and the interrelation of all the books of the Bible. I learned much about the relationship of "The Book of Common Prayer" and the hymnal to scripture and how these two books have been shaped by history. Today (Sunday, August 12) I heard in the lessons, the gospel, the psalm, and the hymns, echoing the past four years of study.
I also learned more about the many men and women who have preserved the faith through their discipline, devotion, and sacrifice and about the continual crises the Church has weathered to date. I believe in a sound and true form. I have often learned from the faith and commitment of my classmates. I would say, if I had to make one sentence do: I find that my faith has been enlarged by opening my ears to hear, and eyes to see, as in the Gospels, Christ so often urges us.
My graduation gift is a deepened relationship with the word of God, a renewed sense of vocation in his church, and a surer vision of my place in his creation.
For additional information about the Education for Ministry Program at the Chapel of the Cross, contact the Rev. Tambria E. Lee.
Tim West, Spiritual Life Committee Chair
As I see it, "Christian formation" is a term that covers all aspects of our growth and development as Christians -- intellectual, emotional, devotional, social action, relationships, etc. The Spiritual Life Committee centers its mission and work on the devotional aspect of our Christian lives, helping members of the Chapel of the Cross community learn about and experience various spiritual practices and consider ways in which those activities relate to other aspects of our lives. We see ourselves, then, attending to one part of Christian formation, and often doing so in an educational sort of way.
So, practically speaking, what part does the spiritual life committee play in the educational program of the Chapel of the Cross? We sponsor instructional programs on various prayer methods (intercessory, contemplative, lectio divina, etc.) as well as such topics as the tradition and value of pilgrimage and the variety of types of retreats. We produce brochures with information about retreat centers nearby and far away, about opportunities in the parish for spiritual practice, growth, and development. Most of these educational activities are paired with opportunities for practice: weekly prayer groups, actual pilgrimages (such as our trip to the National Cathedral in Washington), and our own 'in-parish' retreats and quiet days. These latter events really combine the educational and the devotional: we've learned about the spirituality of art and literature and then used poems as focuses for meditation; we've learned about ways of reflecting on Scripture, then used our reflections as integral parts of the celebration of a Eucharistic liturgy; we've learned about meanings of Advent, then had time to pray and consider them deeply in silence.
There are, of course, many other groups in the church that sponsor spiritual/educational opportunities, from Awakening Heart's monthly contemplative times with discussion to the intercessory prayer chain. The spiritual life committee aims to promote coordination among these groups -- and especially with the adult education committee -- with whom we sometimes co-sponsor events. Spirituality and education are probably two points on a continuum rather than distinct entities, and at the Chapel of the Cross we keep them closely connected.
Van Quinn, Organist/Choirmaster
"I will sing with the spirit; and I will sing with the understanding also." (I Corinthians 14:15)
It has often been said that the theology of the Episcopal Church is more deeply embodied in its liturgy and artistic expressions than in the systems of its theologians, and I think this is probably true. Theology is a normative discipline that gives structure and coherence to religious experience. Theology ordinarily operates with words and conceptual schemes as it invites us to "rethink" the structures of our faith and our religious experience of the world. It is normative in that it seeks to reshape and reorder the religious experience itself, providing ever clearer and more adequate grounds for understanding and action. And that is precisely what liturgy does in a more radical and primordial sense, namely in the context of the experience itself rather than at the level of reflection upon that experience. Liturgy does that by the sanctification of time in which the Christian story is dramatically retold, and through its images and symbolic acts provides the context for the recapitulation of that story in the life of the believer so that it becomes his or her story. The liturgical forms, the sacraments, ritual acts, preaching, music, and architecture are not merely edifying and inspirational or illustrative of a set of doctrines but are themselves primary and normative forms of the religious life. Christianity as we understand it is not first and foremost a matter to be thought and discoursed over ... but as the ultimate truth about life in this universe, something to be uttered in sacred speech, sung and played in sacred sound, danced in sacred act, eaten and drunk in communion with the transcendent and incarnate God, enacted in concrete bodily actions around the world. This is preeminently the way in which we come to see, hear, and touch the extraordinary things of God, and to come to know who He is and who we are. This is why worship is so important in our church, and why we take such care about what we will do, say, sing, and play when we gather for worship.
It follows from this that worship and the preparation for worship are primary forms of Christian 'education,' not in the sense of learning about the faith but rather being formed in it, of undergoing the intensification and shaping of a distinctly Christian consciousness by focussing on God and opening ourselves to him. The music at the Chapel of the Cross is not intended to provide an education in musical appreciation (although one could learn a lot along those lines!), but to help make the reality of God and his saving love for this world a present and powerful force in the lives of those who worship here, to make known the deep things of God and to shape a consciousness that is drawn to receive them. Integral to the training of our musicians is not simply an understanding of what music we are performing but also an understanding of why we are performing that particular music or singing those particular hymns, of how the music we prepare makes real and present the themes of a particular liturgy and thereby moves us all along in the rhythm of a Christian life.
© 2001: Chapel of the Cross
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