WINTER 2012 CLASSES AND EVENTS

LIBERATING BIBLE STUDY
Tuesday evenings, January 24 – March 20
7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Project H.O.M.E. - 1515 Fairmount Avenue

This special 9-week course is based on the new book Liberating Bible Study: Scholarship, Art, and Action in Honor of the Center and Library for the Bible and Social Justice, a unique collaboration of pioneering biblical scholars, social-change activists, and movement-based artists. We will look at new ways to read Scripture to tap its power as a source of liberating social transformation work. Each week will cover a different section of the book, which includes such themes as Prophets of Environmental Justice; Center and Margin; The Divine Economy of Grace; Sanctuary (spiritual as well as literal/immigrant justice). The co-facilitators are Elizabeth Nichols and Cara Curtis, both of whom are in the Word and World Mentoring program (www.wordandworld.org/index.php/mentoring-program). This course will also feature a variety of special presenters and facilitators, some of whom are contributors to the book.

This course is also a fund-raiser for Word and World, a national collaboration of alternative biblical and theological education and action (www.wordandworld.org). This is an important program, launched by a group of long-time faith-based activists including Ched Myers, Joyce Hollyday, Bill Wylie Kellerman, and others, that has nurtured many efforts around the country, including The Alternative Seminary. The fee for the course is on a sliding scale and includes the book: $40-100 or whatever you can afford.

Space is very limited. If you are interested in participating, please contact Will O’Brien at 215-842-1790 wobrien@alternativeseminary.net by January 3, 2012.

SATURDAY MORNING SEMINARY

The Alternative Seminary occasionally offers Saturday morning sessions on a variety of provocative topics. All of these events take place at Project H.O.M.E., 1515 Fairmount Avenue and feature a light breakfast.

THE ANATOMY OF THE SPIRIT
Saturday morning, September 24, 2011
9:30 - 11:30 a.m.

Our body is our vessel, the means through which we relate to and explore the world around us. We give and receive through our bodies, gather information and express our passion, convey praise and elation or pain and grief. This workshop is a Spirit-led study of the unique stories and expressions that we may access through our bodies. Looking at movement as meditation, self-reflection, and healing balm, we will explore a number of repeatable practices in relation to breath, soft stretching and joint mobility. Then, we will explore movement improvisation as a community-building exercise. Participants are invited to become alert to the nuances of experience, looking at how the Spirit's urgings live more in the transitions than in the destinations. This workshop will be led by Tevyn East, an artist, performer, and founder of the Affording Hope Project. With a background of seven years in collaborative professional dance projects, Tevyn integrates her creative talent with a deep faith, passion for justice, and intelligent social analysis. A light breakfast will be served. A $5 donation is requested to cover costs (though if you can’t pay, please feel free to come anyway!). Space is limited.

If you are interested in participating, please contact Will O’Brien at 215-842-1790 wobrien@alternativeseminary.net by September 14, 2011.

MYSTERIES OF THE JESUS PRAYER
Saturday morning, October 29, 2011
9:30 - 11:30 a.m.

In 1 Thessalonians 5:17, Paul exhorts us to "pray without ceasing." Such a spiritual goal seems impossible, especially in our hyper-paced contemporary world. But one of the most ancient spiritual practices in the church may show us a way: the Jesus Prayer. Award-winning filmmaker, author, and theologian Norris Chumley spent eight years journeying to monasteries and spiritual centers throughout the world learning about this prayer, which dates back to the era of the desert monks in the early centuries of the church. We will watch his highly-acclaimed one-hour documentary on the Jesus Prayer, and we will discuss what it means to our spiritual lives today. Norris Chumley will join us as we consider how this prayer tradition invites each of us to a richer experience of God's presence in our lives. A light breakfast will be served. A $5 donation is requested to cover costs (though if you can't pay, please feel free to come anyway!).

If you are interested in participating, please contact Will O'Brien at 215-842-1790 wobrien@alternativeseminary.net by October 25, 2011.

PEACE ON EARTH AND THE POLITICS OF CHRISTMAS
Saturday morning, December 10, 2011
9:30 - 11:30 a.m.

The celebration of Christmas is often wrapped in innocent, feel-good, Hallmark-card imagery. But in fact the biblical texts describing the coming of Jesus are making powerful assertions about the politics of the Bible that speak very much to our contemporary global crises. We will reflect on the “nativity narratives” in Gospels of Matthew and Luke to see how they express core biblical themes of justice and liberation. We will try to “un-domesticate” these tales of liberation and reflect on how they are truly challenging us in terms of our allegiance and our discipleship. A perfect event for Advent. A light breakfast will be served. A $5 donation is requested to cover costs(though if you can't pay, please feel free to come anyway!).

If you are interested in participating, please contact Will O'Brien at 215-842-1790 wobrien@alternativeseminary.net by December 1, 2011.

SPECIAL EVENTS