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JustFaith | Sunday Adult Education Series
Introduction
A scribe once came to Jesus asking, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” Quoting the Scriptures, Jesus replied: “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is One; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” These words resonate deeply with the members of Saint Andrew Christian Church where we practice our faith by worshipping with enthusiasm, by caring for one another, by working for justice and peace, and by engaging in study.
As part of an American religious movement now known as The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Saint Andrew Christian Church embodies several of the core values Disciples have always held dear. One of the primary characteristics of the Disciples is that we have always been a thoughtful people, serious about studying the Scriptures, spirituality, theology and ethics. We refuse to “check our brains” at the church door when we enter worship. Our study leads us into the world better equipped to carry out the ministry and service to which we feel God calling us. To better reflect the Saint Andrew commitment to connecting head and heart and to more fully embody Jesus’s injunction to “love God with all our mind” we are dubbing our adult education ministry as “The Academy for Life and Faith.”
On Sunday mornings you will be able to choose from a variety of classes. A set of “core courses” will be offered on a rotating basis. These classes will cover the foundational aspects of Christian thought and life: “Engaging the Bible,” “Finding a Faith that Makes Sense,” and “Seeking the Good Life: An Introduction to Christian Ethics” are among the courses that will be offered each year. “Elective courses” will also be available, often taking place in the context of Sacred Grounds and addressing contemporary issues in Christian faith. In all offerings, we seek to offer adult education that will help Saint Andrew members and friends to reflect passionately yet critically on the intersections of religious commitment and everyday life.
ADULT BIBLE STUDY
Rev. Tom Minges, Rev. Erika Marksbury and others will offer an opportunity for biblical and spiritual study. The group will be studying the sermon scripture for the current week. This class will meet on Sundays at 9:30 a.m. in Holly’s office.
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SUNDAY ADULT EDUCATION SERIES.
June 22
  Innocence Project
with David Everson & Cheryl Pilate
9:30 am, Friends Hall
How does an innocent person end up imprisoned or on death row? What does it take to overcome a weighty appeal process and the presumption that the convicted are always guilty?
Two lawyers discuss how and why the legal system wrongly convicts and imprisons the innocent and a program that advocates for wrongly convicted prisoners.
David Everson and Cheryl Pilate are lawyers, both with experience advocating for wrongly convicted prisoners. David is a partner with Stinson Morrison Hecker, and Cheryl practices in Olathe at Morgan Pilate LLC. Both are members of Saint Andrew.
June 29
 Forgiveness and Reconciliation: A Family Systems Perspective
with Phil Klever
9:30 am, Friends Hall
Resentment and fractured relationships are sources of some of our greatest pain, yet sometimes we can move from blame to forgiveness and from broken to healed relationships. Family Systems Theory describes interdependencies within the family and society. When one appreciates the reciprocal influences within close relationships, unforgiveness is naturally replaced with understanding. Family Systems Theory also gives a map for mending relationships or bridging cutoffs. When we engage our resentments and troubled relationships, we are bound to heal and grow.
Phil Klever is a marriage and family therapist, clinical social worker and family researcher who has been in private practice in Kansas City, Missouri since 1979. He has been published extensively on marriage and the family. He is a member of Country Club Christian Church.
July 6
 Whiplash of the Soul
with Bob Waechter
9:30 am, Friends Hall
Bob will present a current and historical overview of War Zone and Combat Trauma, especially as it relates to the readjustment of returning veterans to their families and communities. The session will provide a basic understanding of post-traumatic stress disorder as it relates to combat trauma.
A Vietnam veteran of the Marine Corps, Bob Waechter is director of the Kansas City Veterans Center under the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. He holds a master’s degree in clinical psychology from University of Missouri Kansas City and a master’s in public administration from Park University. He is co-chairman of Heart of America Stand Down for Homeless Veterans and sits on the board of directors of the Kansas City Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
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July 13
 Reflections on Living in Asia
with Jim & Patti Regan
9:30 am, Friends Hall
Two members of Saint Andrew discuss their work in China, what living abroad has taught them about life and how life in Asia has changed the way they approach day-to-day living.
Patti and Jim Regan have been members of Saint Andrew for four years. Patti recently retired from a 34-year teaching career. Jim is also a teacher with 28 years in the corporate world. Currently, they are teaching at the QSI International School in Shekou, China.
July 20
  Columbia Support Network
with Bob Thatch & Marie Pelto
9:30 am, Friends Hall
Members of Colombia Support Network-KC (CSNKC) discuss various aspects of life in
Colombia, including poverty, violence and the effects of the so-called “Drug War”.
Bob Thatch is a small-business owner in Kansas City following a 20-year career in education (including one year teaching in Australia). He has made church mission trips to Central America and has for four years been chairperson of CSNKC, which traveled to Colombia in December to initiate a sister community relationship.
Maria Pelto is originally from Colombia, she emigrated to the United States in 1953. Maria became an activist after retirement from a career in healthcare and has worked for human rights, peace and justice.
July 27
 Healthcare and the Working Poor
with Sharon Lee
9:30 am, Friends Hall
Sharon Lee shares insights gained from decades of serving the urban poor in a private medical practice. Her clinic in Kansas City, Kansas, provides not only general family medicine care to her community, but has also specialized in HIV medicine and provides care for over 500 patients with HIV disease.
Sharon Lee is the Director of Southwest Boulevard Family Health Care. She earned her M.D. from the University of Kansas in 1982. After completing her residency in Family Medicine at the University of Missouri, Truman Medical Center, Dr. Lee founded Family Health Care and other initiatives in Kansas City to serve the poor. In 1993, Dr. Lee returned to the University of Kansas and is now an Associate Clinical Professor. Dr. Lee speaks nationally on topics including women's health, substance abuse, HIV disease, heart disease and medical care for
the poor. She has received several awards for clinical and humanitarian work.
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August 3
 Empowering the Homeless in Johnson County
with Vicki Dercher
9:30 am, Friends Hall
Johnson County is one of the wealthiest counties in the United States, but many residents struggle to make ends meet. Research shows that more than 23,000 Johnson County residents lived at or below the federal poverty line in 2003, and that nearly 8,000 of these residents were children, which was double the number of children living in poverty in 2000. Vicki Dercher will describe the efforts of the Johnson County Interfaith Hospitality Network to address the needs of poor and homeless county residents.
Vicki L. Dercher, MSW, LSCSW, is the Executive Director for Johnson County Interfaith Hospitality Network, which is supported by more than 30 congregations. She has more than 27 years experience in social services, including 13 years in upper management, and her career has been dedicated to working to empower children and families and to better their lives. Vicki is also an adjunct professor at the University of Saint Mary, teaching psychology.
August 10, 17 & 24
  Race, Racism, Peace and Justice
Coordinators: Brian Foster and Mark Kind
9:30 am, Friends Hall
Sharing stories of racial encounters and experiences, Saint Andrew analyzes the history
of racial tensions, stumbling blocks that impede racial reconciliation and strategies for seeking racial understanding between blacks and whites. August 10 and 17 will include extended small-group discussion sessions during the 11:00 am hour.
Brian Foster works in Sprint Nextel Corp.’s Corporate Research Center (CRC).
He is a charter member of the Kansas City chapter of 100 Black Men Inc., and has performed volunteer work for Junior Achievement, the United Negro College Fund, the Southern Poverty Law Center, YMCA of Greater
Kansas City, United Way, Operation Breakthrough and the March of Dimes. Brian is an alumnus of Clark/Atlanta
University and George Washington University’s School of Business and Public Management.
Mark Kind is co-chair of Saint Andrew’s Adult Education Committee and research director for the Kansas City
Business Journal.
August 31
 Globalization’s Attack on Standards of Living
with Judy Ancel
9:30 am, Friends Hall
Resentments and complaints target immigrants, but declines in wages and living standards aren’t the fault of workers, they’re fallout from corporate and capitalist policies. Globalization and deregulation play crucial roles as well.
Judy Ancel is director of the Institute for Labor Studies, a joint program of The University of Missouri-Kansas City and Longview Community College.
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Past Academy Guests:
May 5 & 6, 2007: Alison Hawthorne Deming, Associate Professor of Creative Writing, University of Arizona, and author of Writing the Sacred into the Real and The Colors of Nature: Culture, Identity, and the Natural World.
May 6 & 7, 2006: Wes Jackson, Co-Founder, the Land Institute
April 21, 2006: Bernard Brandon Scott, Ph.D., Vanderbilt University and Perry V. Kea, Ph.D., University of Virginia
November 13, 2005: Dr. Stephanie Paulsell, speaker, author, minister and faculty member at Harvard Divinity School
May 22 & 29, 2005: Rev. Daniel Hickey, Director of Transformational Journeys
May 15, 2005: Professor Scott Russell Sanders, Indiana University
November 7, 2004: Professor Hubert Locke, University of Washington
September 12, 2004: Dr. Bernard Brandon Scott, Phillips Theological Seminary
March 28, 2004: Rev. John Buchanan, Editor/Publisher of The Christian Century
February 22, 2004: Dr. Robert Mesle, Prof. of Religion, Graceland University |
