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Building Your Own Theology Class

October 24, 2023 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

|Recurring Event (See all)

An event every week that begins at 6:00 pm on Tuesday, repeating until November 21, 2023

BUILDING YOUR OWN THEOLOGY’ CLASS

Eight Tuesdays, Oct. 3 – Nov. 21, 2023, 6:00 to 8:00 pm via ZOOM 

Every individual is on a religious journey. Our UU church, as a spiritual community, encourages each of us to examine our own spiritual journey and articulate our own credo (Latin for “I believe) to grow in our ability to discover and clearly understand our own belief systems. This 8-week UUA curriculum will help you examine your values and beliefs about God or ultimate reality, human nature, ethics, and the meaning and purpose of life. Through a combination of reflection, group discussion, study, and writing, you’ll search for what is true for you in life and how your life experience informs your faith. Please note – this is not a “drop-in” class. It’s important to attend all eight sessions since they build on one another.   More detailed information is given below.

Facilitators: Chuck Bean (425-361-6002) chuckcbean@hotmail.com, Terry Santmann (631-766-6192) tasantmann@gmail.com

For questions or to sign up, you can click the link here or contact either facilitator.

Session 1 – “Doing Theology – Getting Started”
Purposes: To get acquainted; to think about and depict our own “ultimate reality” at various points in our lives; to share a brief initial credo statement
Hand-outs: “Guidelines for Writing Your Spiritual Autobiography,” Worksheet 1; “A ‘Credo’ Survey”; readings for Session 2

Session 2 – “Your Religious Journey – Autobiography with a Spiritual Twist”
Purposes: To share our spiritual autobiographies in a receptive setting; to reflect on the journeys shared by the group; to write our own epitaphs
Hand-outs: Readings for Session 3

Session 3 – “Ultimate Reality – Finding an Honest God”
Purposes: To consider the nature of Ultimate Reality by whatever name we call it; to explore our relationship to Ultimate Reality; to survey our personal beliefs and attitudes about God and prayer.
Hand-outs: “Personal Beliefs and Attitudes” Worksheet; readings for Session 4

Session 4 – “Ethics as Unenforceable Obligations – The Importance of Being Good for Nothing”
Purposes: To develop a list of our ethical Ten Commandments; to sharpen our skills in ethical problem-solving
Hand-outs: “Good, Evil, and Eschatology” worksheet; readings for Session 5

Session 5 – “We are the Meaning Makers”
Purpose: To explore the sources of meaning for religious liberals.
Hand-outs:  “Purpose in Life Test” worksheet; readings for Session 6

Session 6 – “Suffering and Meaning: When Life is a Broken Arc”
Purpose: To consider the age-old question of human suffering, to learn how different religions have understood it, and to incorporate the meaning of suffering into a credo.
Hand-outs:  “A Masque of Reason” by Robert Frost; readings for Session 7

Session 7 – “Death and Immortality: ‘This Time-Bound Ladder’”
Purpose: To learn of beliefs about death and immortality in various religious and cultural traditions and to explore our personal feelings on death and immortality.
Hand-outs: Readings for Session 8

Session 8 – “Wrapping It Up – A Credo”
Purpose: To put the group experience into perspective, to provide an opportunity for refining credo statements, and to evaluate our experience together.

Please register by Clicking the link here

 or call/email Chuck or Terry with questions. 

Details

Date:
October 24, 2023
Time:
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Event Category:

Venue

Zoom