Intro to Bible Study  Wednesdays in May 9:30 am
Green’s Farms Church Parlor   Led by Dan England

Announcing a new daytime Bible Study at Green's Farms Church for people who would like to understand the Bible but have virtually no background in it.

People around here are interested in history, literature and many other disciplines but when it comes to the Bible they really don’t know where to start.  An opportunity awaits.

Rev. Dan England already teaches two Bible Studies in Westport & Greenwich that draw close to 100 people weekly.  There’s a reason.  He combines knowledge, humor and an entertaining teaching style that has kept people returning week after week for several years now.

Just to be clear, this Bible Study is open to anyone, but might be of special interest to mothers, work-at-home dads, seniors and work-at-home employees that couldn’t possibly find the time or energy to come on Sunday.  But you might just be able to fit in an hour on Wednesdays (each week in May from 9:30 to 10:30 am sharp) to join with others in this event.

What it is not:  

•   It is not a devotional session where you will be asked to share your view on some verse or other.  We will begin with the book of Mark and learn who the author is, why he wrote it, when he wrote it and what it means.

•   It is not an attempt to get you to come to church or join anything. If you attend another church, fine, we’re not after you and if you’ve don’t regularly go to church anywhere, that’s fine too.  Everyone is welcome.  There is no other agenda here but clear, interesting learning about the Bible.

•   It expects no previous knowledge of the Bible and you’ll finally have a place to have your questions answered.

So join us on Wednesday, May 1 in the church parlor, for the first session.  We guarantee you’ll learn more about the Bible in the first ten minutes that you ever knew before.

Questions??    Contact Dan England:   203-543-0363   dengland@fccog.org



SPIRITUAL GYM

The Spiritual Gym will be open for business on April 14.  We'll be considering how the New Yestament came about and thereby learn how the early church was formed.  This is relevant because the church now is closer to the first century church in a hostile environment than at any point in our recent past.  Even as they tried to figure out how to help people grasp the essence of the good news of the Gospel, so we must rethink how to make our message resonate with people's modern lives.  The follow up to this three week Birth of the New Testament series will be a look at the "nones," those people when asked about their religious affiliation simple check "none."  Of course, we will also get to look at ourselves for those times when we feel like checking "none."

The Spiritual Gym will begin this year with a workout with James, Jesus’ brother.  He is an ethical fitness nut so come prepared to hear some pretty stark language that will perhaps chide us and chasten us too, but there is a kind of gentleness and hopefulness in his writings too.  If you want to start off the New Year by keeping that resolution to have your faith grow, then simply read Chapter 1 of the book of James in the New Testament and join us for a great class beginning at 8:45am on Sunday, January 13.   You’ll be delighted by some of the insights that your fellow class members bring and you’ll find yourself thinking about what we discuss through out the following week – which, of course, exercises your intellect and faith even more, making you stronger for the blows and vicissitudes of life (see, it’s already helped your vocabulary).

Contact Dan England for more information.

 

THE WOMEN’S BIBLE STUDY GROUP has a new name – now it is

                                WOMEN’S SPIRITUAL CONVERSATION

WSC will begin its spring program with a Bible study of the Gospel of Matthew.  Matthew, a tax collector when Jesus called him to be a disciple, is agreed on by most to have written this gospel between 80-90 C.E.  Matthew crafted his account to reflect Jesus’ identity as the Messiah, his inheritance of Davidic dynasty, fulfilling the promise made to his ancestor, Abraham, to be a blessing to all nations.  Jesus is our “Emmanuel”, God present to us in the risen Christ, the ongoing revelation of God in our lives. 

This Bible Study will be interesting, exciting and spiritually nurturing.  Please choose from one of two sections offered this spring, starting on APRIL 4TH; both are on Thursdays, one at 10-11:15 AM, and the other, from 7:15-8:30 PM.  If you miss the first or second meetings, please join us anyway, and we will catch you up.  Both sections meet in the parlor (except for the morning section on 4th Thursdays of the month), and are lead by Dr. Diana Mrotek.  Study Guides are available in the office at $10.

WSC reflects that we not only study the Bible, but other spiritual books, as well.  We are reading and discussing Isaiah, and the study books are waiting for you in the church office.  In this study, you will get to know the “Holy One of Israel” through Isaiah’s eyes.  The God of Israel is a personal God, not a distant, unknown power.  You will recognize some of the eloquent writing of Isaiah as he begins,

Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
To the house of the God of Jacob,
That he may teach us his ways
And that we may walk in his paths.                 
                                                                Isaiah 2:3

This group will meet at 10 to 11:15 AM on Thursdays in the parlor beginning January 10.  AND, a new evening section is now available for all of you who have requested it --  it will meet on Thursday evenings from 7:15 to 8:30 PM in the Parlor.  Sign up today using the Interest Sheet in your Bulletin.  The books are reserved for women who participate in one of these sections. 
Questions? Contact Diana Mrotek.

LENTEN SERIES

FORGIVENESS: THE CRUCIAL CHRISTIAN VALUE  is the theme of our Adult Lenten Study this season.  The Rev. Adam Hamilton (our resource for the course) writes that “God’s forgiveness is something we know in our heads, and yet we often struggle to accept it in our hearts.”  Forgiveness isn’t as easy to give or experience as we often think.  For our annual Lenten Course we will contemplate this key factor in our Christian lives for four Sundays beginning March 3 at 8:45 a.m. in the Parlor.  We will use Adam Hamilton’s introductions each week on a DVD and then react in discussion.  The Rev. John Twiname and Dr. Diana Mrotek will lead the classes.  To find spiritual growth in the gift of forgiveness, please sign the Interest Sheet or sign up in the Social Hall after worship.