This Week at Grad Study

Happy new liturgical year and blessings for a joyously preparatory Advent

For Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Due to low turnout the week before Thanksgiving break, those who showed up went for dessert. The discussion on interfaith relationships was postponed to this Tuesday.

News & Events

• Next week the Grad Study will hold its annual shopping trip for Toys for Tots. We will follow it up with a trip to a bookstore. More on this will be posted later.
• The December issue of The Current, our conference's newsletter, now online.
• A link to the most recent edition of the Spire and the highlights of upcoming events were posted here recently.

Upcoming Events

The most recent edition of the Spire, Wesley's newsletter, is available online.

Here are some highlights:

• Wesley Fall Clean-Up Day - Saturday, November 21st 9am—?. Please bring a rake and work gloves if you have them.
• December 6 - Christmas shopping opportunities at the fair trade market.
  • 10,000 Villages
  • Heifer
  • Equal Exchange
  • Christmas cards, drawn by children at St Mary’s Church, North Mymms, Hertfordshire, England, will be for sale for $1.00 each. The proceeds will be given to the Lazarus School for girls in Bethlehem; Lazarus is a school for orphan Palestinian girls. This is a joint fund raiser with the St Mary’s Church which has links with the school.
  • Hand-made pottery (bowls, mugs, and decorative pieces) will soon be available for purchase. All proceeds from the sale will be given to benefit Wesley’s Sharing Shelves.
• Hanging of the Greens (December 6)
  • 4:30—6:00 p.m. - Ornament Crafts (Watseka Lounge)
  • 6:00—7:00 p.m. - Snack Supper (Great Hall)
  • 7:00 p.m. - Children’s Christmas Pageant (Sanctuary)
• 50th Anniversary of Wesley’s First Service in the Sanctuary (December 13th)
  • 9 a.m. - Breakfast, catered by Warters. Tickets cost $7/adult, $3.50/children ages 2-10, free/children ages under 2. 100% of the proceeds go to the Food Pantry
  • Procession to “the new” sanctuary led by our Wesley Bell Choir (battery-powered candle lights also provided at no cost to Wesley)
  • 10:30 a.m. - Combined Advent worship service
  • 11:45 a.m. - Dedication of a belated plaque originally intended at the base of the Christ Window by Dr. Paul Burt
  • You will be able to see displays from Wesley’s archives, informational slides about people in Wesley’s history, and special displays by our Sunday school and Wesley Youth.
• It’s time to restock the freezer with soup and casseroles for persons ill or recovering from hospitalizations, etc. Look for soup and casserole kits that include information and suggestions in East Kitchen or at Coffee Hour on Sunday.
• Recipes Wanted: Help fellow students with easy, quick, nutritious meal planning. Bring in or e-mail your recipes to Donna Giffen.

Interfaith Relations

The title of this post is a bit presumptuous. Interfaith relations implies that there are faiths outside Christianity and we ought to be in relationship with them. Christian opinions on interfaith relationships fill a spectrum from isolationism or superiority to mutuality, communal worship and cooperative ministries. This week we will explore what Process Theology might teach us about being in relationships with people outside the Christian tradition. After watching a brief video, we will explore the complexities of the subject. Some questions we may tackle as part of that conversation follow.

• What is the value of interfaith relationships?
• What is the nature of interfaith relationships?
• What are the risks? Are these risks to be genuinely feared or treasured?
• If asked through interfaith dialogue to share the heart of Christianity or why you are a Christian, how might you respond?

Upcoming Events

Updates on tonight's grad study and the Thanksgiving dinner follow:

• Tonight at grad study, we will explore creativity in relation to faith, hope, and love.
• A Thanksgiving Potluck will be held on Sunday, November 15 at Wesley. All are welcome to attend. Students need not bring a dish; everyone else is encouraged to bring something to share. You are welcome to bring table settings; however, if you forget or do not have any, disposable ones will be available.