Book Studies

Books are a great way to spark discussion and learn interactively about God! Throughout the year, interesting and sometimes controversial books are chosen for a book study class.

For the fall of 2008, the Wednesday weekly evening group takes on What's So Amazing About Grace?, by Philip Yancey. The editor's review on Amazon.com reads " The grace of which Philip Yancey writes is the freely given and unmerited favor and love of God. This grace seems a remote, almost sentimental concept, without a place in our lives or our society. It is a vague, slippery thing to us, probably because we seem to experience grace so rarely and have managed to leech the word of meaning. But Philip Yancey has set about to rescue grace in his book What's So Amazing About Grace? This grace is the true message of Jesus. All faiths have virtues and creeds and justice and truth, but Jesus speaks merely of receiving the love that God has for us. Accepting it, not earning it or making ourselves worthy of it. And frankly, accepting something we have not earned or are not worthy of is not an easy thing for most of us." Come explore the book and yourself with us!

To prepare for Easter in 2008, we met weekly on Wednesday evenings for an hour to discuss the book The Jesus I Never Knew, which is also by Philip Yancey. We read one chapter each week on our own time, and then came together to discuss the chapter and its relevance to our lives. The Pastor integrated short video clips from movies like Jesus Christ Superstar to make several points and offer a variety of perspectives.

In the Summer of 2008, the book group was led by Mrs. Barbara Gilman, who has a rich theological background, with the book Jesus Mean and Wild: The Unexpected Love of an Untamable God. Talk about sparking a great discussion!

A book of interest to folks who want to know more about the Episcopal faith is Those Episkopols, by Dennis R. Maynard. Maynard presents an accurate and humorous look at the belief's at the center of the Episcopal faith.

Suggest a book to the Pastor ... it may be our next choice! Discussions are always lively, and promise to take your faith to a different level.