We have a variety of Adult Sunday Study Group offerings to meet the diverse interests of our congregation.
To learn more about each group, please read the descriptions by clicking on any of the classes below.
Nick is the Director of Discipleship & Adult Ministries. If you have questions or would like to get connected with a Sunday School class, reach out to him today.
Agape: The Agape class is made up of 30 – 40 somethings who want to broaden their knowledge of the Bible while enjoying fellowship with the members of their class. This year they are excited to welcome Sally Huggins and Susan Koehler as class leaders.
Together, members decide the studies in which they would like to participate. In addition to Sunday morning gatherings, members arrange several socials, both with and without children. They welcome new members each Sunday!
Just Us Gals: Just Us Gals is a class for women of all ages. The class functions as a gathering place for women to learn of God’s love while strengthening their faith through various studies relating the Bible and Christianity to their lives, along with fellowship and laughter.
Service
Just Us Gals provides assistance to organizations such as the FSU Wesley Foundation, Operation Shoebox, and Nothing But Nets, as well as various missions and service projects through Trinity and in the local community.
Fellowship
The Gals also meet every few months for brunch.
Koinonia: Koinonia class uses the Faithlink series. Faithlink educates United Methodist Christians on current issues and promotes spiritual growth. Each week, they explore current topics, with background information and related Bible passages that speak to the issues. Since the lessons are electronically sent to the church each week, the subjects are timely and the information current.
Class members with email are sent the lesson prior to Sunday School. Time is given at the beginning of the lesson to review the material. They then discuss the topic in that issue and talk about how as a church or as individuals they can respond and act on it. Faithlink makes every effort to present different sides to each issue and supplies interesting statistics to back up the statements.
Q & A
1. What are your content and learning behavior goals?
We have two primary goals that are couched in the spirit of Christian love and activism:
(a) to understand and explore ways to solve problems in the contemporary world while gaining insights from experts in various fields and/or from each other
(b) to grow in service to—and in love for—God and our fellow human beings
2. What is the teaching and learning format?
We encourage democratic participation by means of thoughtful, open, and honest dialogue.
3. What drives your curriculum?
Our curriculum focuses on four main themes of religious commit
(a) prayer, devotion, personal relations to God
(b) theological/Biblical history and issues
(c) social, political, technological, economic, and ecological issues, needs, and affairs approached from a Christian perspective
(d) interfaith dialogue and relations in an increasingly global world
4. How are study materials selected?
Members nominate and vote on materials that represent each of the four themes by ranking their choices on Survey Monkey.
5. Why is the class named “Betty Phifer”?
Betty Phifer was a social and political activist in Tallahassee, who taught religion at Florida State University. She founded the class and was its driving force until her premature death from cancer.
6. Why do you call yourselves “advanced”?
As a request when she was ill, Betty asked that the class always be referred to as “advanced.”
In addition, because all class participants are considered valuable resources with unique perspectives and contributions, we encourage our members to think deeply, ask questions, and freely express their opinions based on careful reflection. We also hope that our members engage in church and community activities that inspire growth, spiritual guidance, and ethical deeds.
In short, advanced as a descriptor of our class denotes support of each other in striving to go beyond merely occupying a seat in class on Sunday mornings to being active and deeply thoughtful participants.
7. Do you have any service projects?
Our service projects have included microfinancing through KIVA, purchasing and assembling care bags for our friends who are homeless, and providing financial assistance to Guardian ad Litem.
8. Who leads the class?
Don Crosby leads the discussion, and Pam Crosby is class administrator, and others are always invited to take part in leading.
9. How can persons learn more about the class?
Contact Pam at [email protected].
Come be a part of the discussion! While we often agree on issues and concerns in our discussions, diverse viewpoints add to the ongoing richness, growth, and complexity of the conversation. Each one of us is a seeker, and we take seriously the journey on which every member embarks to achieve further understanding.
Secrets of God: Writings of Hildegard of Bingen
A unique glimpse into the mind of the 12-century visionary Hildegard of Bingen through her “creative and insightful” writings on medicine, spirituality, and more. Visionary, mystic, poet, musician, naturalist, healer, theologian—the Rhineland nun Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179) was a Renaissance woman long before there was a Renaissance. This is the first book in English to offer a representative selection of writings from all of her amazing range of work.
Theme One: Prayer, Devotion, Personal Relations to God
Secrets of God: Writings of Hildegard of Bingen [200 pages]
The Difficult Words of Jesus by Amy Jill Levine [176 pages]
The Hours of the Universe: Reflections on God, Science, and the Human Journey by Ilia Delia [274 pages]
The Kingdom of God is Within You by Leo Tolstoy [224 pages]
Theme Two: Theological/Biblical History and Issues
The 7 Wisdom Books: An Introduction to the Wisdom Books of the Old Testament and the Apocrypha by Francis Brown [125 pages]
The Shaking of the Foundations by Paul Tillich [192 pages]
Accidental Theologians: Four Women Who Shaped Christianity by Elizabeth A.
Dreyer. The four women are: Hildegard of Bingen, Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Avila, and Te’resa of Liseux [171 pages]
The Triumph of Christianity by Bart Ehrman [353 pages]
Theme Three: Social/Political/Practical Problems, Ecological Issues, Needs, and Affairs Approached from a Christian Perspective
Wilderness Essays by John Muir [270 pages]
The Sacred Universe by Thomas Berry [181 pages]
Moral Man and Immoral Society by Reinhold Niebuhr [152 pages]
Reverence for Life: The Words of Albert Schweitzer [124 pages]
Theme Four: Inter-Faith Dialogues and Relations in an Increasingly
Global World
I and Thou by Martin Buber [194 pages]
The Story Of My Experiments With Truth by Mahatma Gandhi [384 pages]
Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh [256 pages]
When Christians Were Jews: The First Generation by Paula Fredriksen [272 pages]
Wesley Bible Study: Two of Trinity’s oldest Sunday School classes, Adult Bible Study and Wesley Fellowship, in May 2014 combined to continue to study the Bible in depth in order to gain a firm biblical foundation for their faith. Using the Adult Bible Studies Series published by the United Methodist Publishing House, class members share teacher/leader assignments with informal discussion and active member participation. The topics vary each month and are intended to strengthen the faith of the class through study of the Word. Newcomers are always welcome.
Activities
The fellowship of persons of all ages are active in the life of the church, including the choirs, UMW, committees and mission outreach. The combined class will continue a project started by the Wesley Fellowship Class in the 1940s to present Bibles each year to Trinity third-graders.
Bible Journeys: As the name suggests, this is a Sunday School class that uses the Bible as the final authority in teaching. It is led by Dr. Gregg Alexander. The class’s focus is to encourage and foster an in-depth study, understanding, and application of God’s Word. Attendance includes a wide spectrum of ages … from scholarly high-schoolers to seasoned Christian believers in their eighties.
Fellowship
Socially, the group sometimes enjoys a potluck dinner at a member’s home. Individually, we all enjoy the rich Christian friendships we share and the strong support and prayers we receive from one another.
Service
In service, individual members participate in a wide variety of church activities and outreach such as serving meals at “The Shelter” or delivering meals to those in need on Martin Luther King Day. As a group, we typically choose a Christian charity for a special Christmas contribution, such as “Shoeboxes to Haiti” mission outreach, “Hope House,” and many others.
Our mission is this: To know and share the Good News of JESUS CHRIST! Come join us.
Aldersgate: The ages of class members vary widely from mid-thirties to 60 plus. From its very beginnings 30 years ago, Aldersgate has been a class characterized by a lively discussion on a wide range of topics. It is definitely not a lecture class.
Studies
Subjects that are covered range from Bible studies to contemporary issues; from Christian theology to world religions; from spiritual growth to social activism. While class members’ views often differ, individuals strive to listen and learn from one another, embracing both their differences and their common desire to grow in faith.
Class time includes a brief period of socializing and sharing, followed by discussion on the scheduled topic. Typically, the class plans its study schedule a year in advance.
Fellowship
In addition to Sunday morning class time, the Aldersgate class has frequent social gatherings, such as dinner at a local restaurant, a play or movie together, or a “game night” at a member’s home. The class’s annual Christmas brunch, held each year in early December, is a much anticipated gathering not only of class members, but also extended family, friends, and class alumni.
Service
Aldersgate engages in frequent service projects, including assisting with Shelter meals, addressing needs of children in foster care or youth transitioning out of foster care, as well as other projects brought the attention of the class by members.
Contact Rev. Anna Brook Opalinski at [email protected] or call (850) 222-1120, x103 to find out how!