Winter-Spring Term Companion Classes
(See Current Schedule for all events)
For the most part, there are no prerequisites to any of these classes.
Please check each class for specifics. See registration form for class fees.
SERVICE AS A SPIRITUAL PRACTICE
Mondays from 10:30 a.m.–12 p.m. beginning January 25 for 8 weeks
In this circle of practice, we will agree to “A Blessing Way in Life” each day.
This “Blessing Way” includes: 1) Holding a sacred intention for each day; 2)
Giving thanks each day; and 3) taking a life-affirming action each day. We
will use the new book Spirit of Service: Your Daily Stimulus for Making a
Difference, which offers daily meditations and suggestions for taking action in
the areas of: money, energy, focus, compassion, support, and passage. At each
class, we will check in with one another, then spend time with the daily suggestions
from the book. After some time in silence and reflection, we talk
about the topic of the morning and end by coming back together for a circle
to check out. This is a gentle, invitational circle where we come together in
faith to support and be supported as we continue to deepen on the spiritual
journey through acts of service.
Location: The Upper Room, 211 W. Fisher Avenue
Led by: Ruth D. Anderson, Ph.D.
SACRED ACTIVISM: BEING PRESENT TO CHILDREN IN POVERTY
January 25, February 22, March 29, April 26 and May 24, 2010 from 4–6 p.m.
Come to any of our monthly meetings to hear about our work with children in
poverty in our community. We go to a local community housing environment
and offer after-school programming two times a week. Come and see if this might
be a volunteer opportunity that is life-giving for you at this point in your life.
Location: First Floor Conference Room, 211 W. Fisher Avenue
Facilitated by: Ruth D. Anderson, Ph.D. and other spiritual activists
TWO SESSIONS ON THE CLASSIC ESSAY, “SERVANT AS LEADER”
BY ROBERT K. GREENLEAF
Thursday, February 11 and Thursday, February 18, 2010 from 7—8:30 p.m.
Come and explore the relevance and applicability of the ideas of servant leadership
as expressed in the classic essay, “The Servant as Leader” by Robert K.
Greenleaf. This provocative piece, which initiated a world-wide movement,
begins this way: “Servant and Leader. Can these two roles be fused in one
real person, in all levels of status and calling? If so, can that person live and
be productive in the real world of the present? My sense of the present leads
me to say yes to both questions. This paper is an attempt to explain why and
to suggest how.” If you are in business or nonprofit or are an active volunteer
in our community (or just curious about the leadership opportunities available
to us all in our everyday lives) and have wondered about the possibility
of leading with more emphasis on service, imagination and inner authority,
come together with others who are reading and reflecting on this essay to
help deepen our understanding of these original ideas.
Location: The Gospel Café, 211 W. Fisher Avenue
Facilitated by: Ruth D. Anderson, Ph.D. and Russ Moxley, M.Th.
GROUP SPIRITUAL DIRECTION
Tuesdays from 12–1:30 p.m. beginning January 19 for 6 weeks
Are you seeking some regular time to enhance God’s presence in your daily
living? Do you sense the need for a small community that could support contemplative
listening? Group spiritual direction is a unique way of tending to
the Spirit of God through regular sharing in a sacred space with a community
of four or five persons of faith, plus facilitators.
Location: The Upper Room, 211 W. Fisher Avenue
Led by: Marion McCollum and Nancy Nikiforow
JESUS WANTS TO SAVE CHRISTIANS
Tuesdays from 12:30–2 p.m. beginning January 26 for 10 weeks
The Rev. Frank Dew, chaplain at Greensboro Urban Ministry, will facilitate a
discussion of the book, Jesus Wants to Save Christians: A Manifesto for the
Church in Exile by Rob Bell and Don Golden. The class begins at 12:30 p.m.
at the service for the guests at Greensboro Urban Ministry and then transitions
into a time for discussion of the book in the chaplain’s office. The book
is a very modern version of the Biblical story – one that will make you laugh
out loud and cringe at the same time. For example, chapter one begins:
“What started with two people and some fruit has escalated to murder
among family members, to an entire civilization at odds with God.” The
authors weave the biblical story into our current cultural and personal stories
in new and surprising ways.
Location: Greensboro Urban Ministry, 305 W. Lee Street
Led by: The Rev. Frank Dew
CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER
Wednesdays from 12–1 p.m. beginning January 27 for 10 weeks
We will meditate in silence for 20 minutes, followed by journaling and further
sharing in circle format. Together, we will become a community of meditation
as we explore being Present to the love of God together. All levels of
seekers most welcome.
Location: The Upper Room, 211 W. Fisher Avenue
Led by: Ruth D. Anderson, Ph.D.
SENIOR MEN’S SPIRITUALITY GROUP
Wednesdays from 6–8 p.m. beginning January 27 for 10 weeks
The Senior Men’s Spirituality Group is a group providing a safe place for senior
men to inquire, share, and learn in a spirit of acceptance, caring, and
encouragement: a place where we can speak truths from our hearts, explore
our spiritual lives and our relation with God, ourselves and others, and an
avenue to becoming Wise Men and Sages. The group will begin with a meal
together at 5:30 p.m. (bring your own or purchase a takeout meal from Holy
Trinity’s kitchen, available beginning at 5:30 p.m.). Our time is devoted to
checking in where we are in our journey with ourselves and God, a time of
study, and a time of prayer. We will be using the book Winter Grace:
Spirituality and Aging, by Kathleen Fischer as a source of discussion.
Location: The Upper Room, 211 W. Fisher Avenue
Led by: Paul C. Volk, MSW, Spiritual Director
FROM WILD MAN TO WISE MAN: A MEN’S SPIRITUALITY GROUP
Thursdays from 7–9 p.m. beginning January 28 for 10 weeks
Drawing on Richard Rohr’s book, From Wild Man to Wise Man, this men’s
spirituality group will become a center of learning, devoting study time to
deepen our faith and knowledge; a place for pastoral care as we pray and support
one another in our own spiritual formation; and a safe place where we
can speak from our “true self,” not just from the head but the heart. We will
follow Rohr’s outline for men’s groups. During the first section (lasting about
30 minutes) we will discuss what is going on in our lives. The second section
is given to the study of Rohr’s book. The last section will focus on individual
needs, praying for personal ministries and for the concerns of all members.
Timing will be flexible, and we will adapt each section according to the
group’s needs and interests.
Location: The Upper Room, 211 W. Fisher Avenue
Led by: Paul C. Volk, MSW, Spiritual Director
“If we do not transform our pain we will transmit it in some form.”
–Richard Rohr
TRANSFORMING CONFLICT: WORKING WITH DIFFICULT CONVERSATIONS
Wednesdays from 6:30–8 p.m. beginning February 10 for 6 weeks
Our speech is the main way we communicate with one another, but so often
we take the things we say for granted and very seldom do we examine what
we say or hear from a place of presence or awareness. This lack of awareness
can be the source of conflict, both large and small. Becoming aware of our
communication and the feelings and needs behind it can help us to become
better communicators and enable us to navigate conflict more effectively. We
can also learn to hear what others say through a lens of understanding and
compassion, which renders us less vulnerable to being hurt by those we love.
Using the process of Nonviolent Communication (NVC) as taught by Dr.
Marshall Rosenberg and using circle practice, we will learn and practice NVC
through bringing our own issues and concerns to our community of practice.
Location: First Floor Conference Room, 211 W. Fisher Avenue
Led by: Amelia Poole, M.A.
