Just a reminder about the Spirituality Class… it starts on Wednesday night, January 27th at 7pm.
It’s designed to explore the nature and meaning of spirituality in our lives, based on an adult RE curriculum authored by Wayne Arnason. It’s appropriate for groups of 15-18 year-old youths, college-age people, and adults, so let’s get some of you young people involved, too!
The program requires a minimum of six participants and the ideal group size is for 8-12 participants. No books or supplies will be needed other than maybe a notebook for keeping a journal.
Here’s a breakdown of each session:
In Session One: About Your Spirituality, participants explore definitions and understanding of spirituality, experience a meal and guided imagery as spiritual experiences, and plan and experience a worship service.
In Session Two: The Ways of the Spirit, participants experience a deep relaxation activity, hear several authors’ definitions of spirituality and discuss them. They explore journal writing as a spiritual experience.
In Session Three: Body and Spirit, participants experience yoga, tai’chi, Sufi dancing, or another spiritual discipline related to the body, and discuss experiences of the spiritual.
In Session Four: Exploring Spiritual Disciplines, participants experience meditation as a spiritual discipline, explore other spiritual disciplines, and choose to practice one for a while.
In Session Five: God/dess and Prayer, participants explore concepts of God/dess and understandings of prayer, and experience prayer as a spiritual activity.
In Session Six: Obstacles and Detours, participants explore hindrances and barriers to a spiritual life and the seductions of “cheap grace.”
In Session Seven: Loss, Crisis, and Healing, participants explore the concept of personal crisis and the relationship of spirituality to experiences of loss and healing.
In Session Eight: Spirituality in Every Day Life, participants explore the role of spirituality in everyday life and learn ways to increase a sense of the spiritual in everyday life.
In Session Nine: The Common Cosmic Journey, participants explore the image of life as a spirital journey.
In Session Ten: Vision Quest and Closing, participants experience a personal and group “vision quest.” They reflect on and evaluate their experience of the program, and experience a sense of closure to the program.
In keeping with our covenant to “affirm and promote acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth… a free and responsible searth for truth and meaning,” it is hoped that participants will gain an understanding of what spirituality is and will learn that people can be spiritual beings without holding any particular set of beliefs.
Here’s hoping that this will be a good way to get started in the New Year.
John
ps – Let me know if you plan to be there so I can plan accordingly.
