Our congregation has co-pastors who team-teach the pastors’ Sunday school class. The class generally engages in theological discussion, with an opportunity to explore and compare popular cultural views with our understanding of the Reformed tradition. The participants are adults who range in age from 18 to 80.

This congregation had a fight in 1997 over G-6.0106b in the Book of Order. The recovery from that fight has included efforts of conflict management and discussion about the cause and effect of the disagreement. The pastors have used this video within that context.

The first session discussed the 213th General Assembly mandate to the task force, the church climate that led to its formation, and the goals the task force set for itself. Materials from the task force’s Web site, as well as the ordination questions from the Book of Order, were duplicated and distributed to the participants.

The next session used a portion of segment two of the video, which concentrates on three different models of biblical authority and interpretation. The leader borrowed some of the material from the Bible study in segment three, the text on ‘love your enemies,’ as an example. This generated a great deal of discussion.

The third session used segment one to learn more about the model the task force uses in doing its work. This segment is done with the assumption that it is being presented to a reflection group that is beginning its work. Our Sunday school class took this into consideration and discussed the actual model. The result of this discussion was the interest on the part of several people to form a theological reflection group that would spend a significant amount of time developing norms and goals, and doing community building. This theological reflection group will be organized after the first of the year.

The fourth session used segment two in its entirety, including the questions from the leader’s guide to shape the discussion. More than one class time was necessary for the group, who needed to put more thought into questions about the use of Scripture. The group discussed at length the conflicts experienced over differing interpretations of Scripture. Time in this session did not permit a discussion of the “tried and true” Reformed principles of biblical interpretation.

It is planned that at least one more session will use segment three as a Bible study, with an additional session to focus on the Reformed principles mentioned above.

This video caught the interest of most people in the class, and for different reasons. These sessions have also led some of the members to look for more information via the Web site. We found the video to be an excellent resource that will continue to be used in a variety of settings in the congregation.

The Rev. Catherine (Cathy) Ulrich is the stated clerk of the Presbytery of Arkansas and the co-pastor of Central Presbyterian Church in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Price: $10.00
PDS#: OGA-03-069
Length: 37 minutes
Study guide: Yes
Closed Captioned: Yes

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