A Journey of Faith: Moving On
Wednesday 29th January 2014

A new Lent course in five parts has been written by John Churcher, vice chair of PCN Britain and is available free of charge.
This 5 week course, taking a progressive Christian standpoint, can be followed individually or in small groups. Each session comprises reading and questions to encourage discussion and further engagement with the issues addressed. To request a PDF copy please email John.Week One: The Nature of Spirituality
Outcomes:
- To affirm legitimate progressive alternatives to conventional or traditional creedal Christianity.
- To define Spirituality and identify ways in which it differs from Religion?
- To identify reasons why we may create the 'God' that 'supports' and encourages our prejudices, our psychological and social needs and our personal wishes.
Week Two: Carl Jung and Spirituality
Outcomes:
- To decide the value and importance of various well-known people and their contributions to the realm of religion.
- To consider critically Jung's attempt to create and to maintain balance and harmony in life.
- To critique the archetypes described by Jung and state the extent to which these may or may not impact upon traditional and creedal Christianity.
Week Three: "Everything we hear is opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth."
Outcomes:
- To acknowledge that our understanding of Bible passages can be changed completely by the way in which the translators of a particular version of the Bible have done their work.
- To critique the interpretation of the family situations in which Jesus found himself.
- To identify reasons why the church remains important for you, and if not, why it has ceased to be important.
Week Four: Jesus the healer, wisdom teacher and sage
Outcomes:
- To evaluate the religious importance of the concepts of repentance and judgement.
- To consider or determine which is of greater relevance in our part of the world today, repent and believe or lost and found celebration?
Week Five: Does life have any purpose when I dispose of the 'Super Interventionist God Out There'?
Outcomes:
- To evaluate the sacred stories within which we have grown up and developed our religious and social attitudes.
- To determine the extent to which human language invented 'God' to explain and to enable tribes to survive in an evolving and hostile environment.
- To decide upon the relevance or otherwise of the Charter for Compassion to the future of religion and humanity.
Study Methods:
- Read each section and complete the discussion box tasks either individually or in the group before moving to the following section.
- It will be useful to have several different translations of the Bible available.
- Reflect on the weekly session as a whole before commencing the following session.
- Additional suggested reading can be found at the end of each week.
Session requirements:
- A copy of these notes for each participant.
- Each participant should have a jotter for notes.
This course is available as a PDF. For a copy please email John Churcher
Published by: Permission to Speak 1 Maplefield, St Albans, AL2 2BD Photo: John Churcher, a church in Normandy