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by Bishop C. Joseph Sprague
March 5, Ash Wednesday, through March 9,
First Sunday in Lent For Reflection and Discussion Recall a time when you were called to be as "wise as a serpent." Remember another incident when you were "innocent as a dove." Which was more difficult? Why? Name a contemporary example of disparity between creed and deed, words of love and actions of bigotry. Would you describe personal piety and the prophetic as paradoxical or by another term? How is your spiritual journey shaped by these two traditions? March 10 through 16, Second Sunday in Lent For Reflection and Discussion List the place(s) where you feel at home in your spiritual journey. Who have been the key mentors in your faith growth? What lessons have you learned from them? How did they respond faithfully? How do biblical teachings shape your living? When are you uncomfortable adopting Jesus' model of radical hospitality? Are there texts that you have been guilty of eisageses (reading into the text what you want to hear)? March 17 through 23, Third Sunday in Lent For Reflection and Discussion How does reading the Gospels as theology differ from reading them as history? Identify ways that you and your communities of faith can incarnate the Kingdom. Are there times when, like the early disciples, we still don't get it? How do you begin to understand a God without boundaries? What is your understanding of how a believer can faithfully seek to know God within a spiritual tradition other than Christianity? Identify the ways you have, or can, "name the name of Jesus" in you life and witness. March 24 through 30, Fourth Sunday in Lent For Reflection and Discussion Do you agree with Bishop Sprague's assessment that the near absence of hope is the most important issue facing The United Methodist Church? What are the signs of vitality in your faith community? Are there additions you would make to the bishop's prescription for recovering the gospel of hope in United Methodist congregations: renewed attention to biblical and theological study, prayer, small group life, holistic evangelism and risk taking, hands-on mission work, and justice work? March 31 through April 6, Fifth Sunday
in Lent For Reflection and Discussion Name the ways you are about loving-kindness, doing justice and walking humbly with God. Bishop Sprague focuses on the leadership role of clergy in particular. What is your perception of the primary issues affecting clergy leadership? What would be some of the fruits of empowered laity practicing informed and authentic discipleship in the world? April 7 through 13, Palm Sunday For Reflection and Discussion Identify ways in your setting to: What is your understanding of God's role in the course of history? How do the following hold up against just
war criteria (p. 73): Is your experience of The United Methodist Church closer to being a "just war" or a "situational pacifist" church? Why? What would you add to the list of the four Ms (p. 77) of western values that are often identified as Christian values? If you were responsible for implementing a permanent peace between Israelis and Palestinians, what steps would you take beyond the three key actions identified by Bishop Sprague on pp. 80 - 81? What would make a comprehensive approach to the future of Afghanistan (p. 89 - 91) a reality? Name ways you can move beyond being an "anvil of the status quo" and a "thermometer for what is" to being a "hammer for justice" and a "thermostat for what God intends?" How do the seven identified biblical passages about homosexuality inform your understanding? "Until all are welcome, no one is at home in the Church. That is just the way it is in the kingdom/reign of God which the Church, as the Body of Christ, is called to be the radical harbinger of God's way." (p. 102) Identify what it means to be a welcoming church. April 14 through 20, Easter Sunday For Reflection and Discussion Identify your most difficult challenges to experiencing unity with other believers. List ways you can manifest unity of the Body of Christ in your local setting. |