The first session of our Lenten Study was held this Tuesday evening in hybrid format in person and on Zoom. We are focusing on Part III of the book by Brian D. McLaren, “We Make the Road by Walking” which he has explicitly designed to be studied during Lent. This section focuses on Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount from Matthew 5-7 where he teaches about the counter-cultural demands of his teachings about the rule (kingdom/kingship) of God in our hearts and world. During the last night of the study, on Tuesday of Holy Week, we will look at the passages related to Jesus’s crucifixion and Resurrection.

McLaren writes in the introduction to this section: “Joining the adventure of Jesus is a starting line, not a finishing line. It leads us into a lifetime of learning and action. It challenges us to stand up against the way things have been and the way things are, to help create new possibilities for the way things can and should be. It enlists us as contemplative activists in an ongoing uprising of peace, freedom, justice and compassion.” 

We will be returning to this passage each of the following five weeks to reflect on an different aspect of how Jesus’ resurrection and discipleship should be reflected in our lives as Christians and as a Church. We still have a few books left in the church office or you can purchase one online. If you’d like to join the study circle on Tuesdays please let us know and we will send you the Zoom link. But you are also encouraged to join us in person.

Hoping to see you on Tuesdays for the next five weeks. 

Grace and Peace,

Pastor Fred