Sundays, 9:40–10:40 a.m. in Commons I
September 11–October 2: Reconciliation as a Way of Life
Pastor Jill Russell will share some of what she learned last fall during her sabbatical studies on reconciliation. The title for this series speaks to Jill’s growing conviction that reconciliation is not just a nice idea or tool to be picked up at moments of crisis or conflict but rather needs to be embraced as a way of life.
September 11: The Passion and the Questions
In this first session, Jill will share some of the background for her interests in the ministry of reconciliation and will begin to frame the questions and resources she used to explore them. A bibliography of her sabbatical reading will also be available for those who want to go deeper.
September 18: The Theology and the Scripture
The second session will delve more deeply into the scripture and the theology that serves as a foundation for thinking about reconciliation as a way of life. What are some of the key texts and how should we read them? These will likely be quite familiar scriptures but perhaps read in a different light. A place of overlap between Jill and Gordon’s recent sabbaticals was in the ongoing work of Renee Girard. Pastor Gordon focused on the theology of James Allison who has developed Girard’s thought as a theologian. Jill was reading the work of Vern Neufeld Redekop and others in his field who have been applying Girard’s thought to the concrete and practical work of peacemaking and reconciliation efforts around the world.
September 25: The Practical Tools
The third session will be an introduction to Restorative Circles which is a tool Jill has been using within and beyond the Hope Church community. Jill and her co-trainers at Holland Restorative Circles have been refining the ways that they teach restorative circles. There are several building blocks that make up a full restorative circle. You will walk away from this session able to apply some of those building blocks in your day to day life whether or not you ever make use of a formal restorative circle.
October 2: The Inspiration Along the Way
In this final session, Jill will share photos and stories from her time with the Iona Community. This community and the worship resources they share have been incredibly formative. Jill will share how the time at Iona stimulated a renewal of spiritual practices that continue to feed her commitment to reconciliation as a way of life. Jill will solicit interest from those gathered to consider taking a Hope Church trip together to Iona sometime in the not too distant future.