CHRISTIAN FORMATION FOR ADULTS

Adult Forums Sundays at 9am

Candidate Forums
Zoom meetings in preparation for the upcoming election.
This is a chance to hear and be heard. (Link in the weekend email.)
  • 9/27 State Senate candidates
  • 10/4 State House candidates
  • 10/11 A representative from the League of Women Voters will discuss the Ballot Initiatives
  • 10/18 District Attorney candidates
  • 10/25 County Commissioner candidates

If you haven't downloaded the Zoom desktop client for meetings, do that ahead of time.
Learn to use Zoom here

August 23 Forum Photos

Forum: On August 23, our forum was "Pandemic Reflections," interviews with Plymouth community members as they reflected on how the pandemic has impacted milestones, challenged their spirituality, and the consequences it has had on their individual lives.

 Prepare for November 14* at
Weekday Adult Formation now!

Gifts of the Dark Wood; Seven Blessings for Soulful Skeptics (and Other Wanderers) (readily available on Amazon) by the Rev. Dr. Eric Elnes, pastor of Countryside Community Church (UCC) in Omaha, Neb. AND our Plymouth Visiting Scholar. Unlike Dante’s assertion that the dark wood was dangerous, Elnes wrote this guidebook for spirituality in a post-Christian world out of his own “dark wood” experiences where he discovered that “the dark wood” was the surest place to meet God.

THURSDAY EVENINGS (9/10-10/29)
Join Viki Johnson and Sarah Parmenter Thursday evenings, 7-8:30 pm. Email Sarah Parmenter for more info or to sign up. (Zoom link sent to class members.)

MONDAY MORNINGS (9/21-10/26)
Led by Anna Olsen and Marty Marsh, 9-10 am. Class is limited to eight people. Email us to join. We can help with Zoom if you are new to it.

*November 14: Visiting Scholar Eric Elnes

Saturday, November 14. Your Visiting Scholar Ministry Team is excited to present Rev. Dr. Eric Elnes for a day of inspiration and contemplation, live via Zoom. Details: plymouthucc.org/visitingscholar

Ongoing Weekday Opportunities

Celtic Spirituality

Wednesday Mornings: The Celtic Spirituality 1 group meets at 8am on Zoom continuing in the summer.  All welcome. Mary Freese for more info.
Tuesday Mornings: The Celtic Spirituality II group meets on Zoom from 9:30-10:30 am during the academic year. All are welcome. Questions/link? Pat Slentz.
Wholeness Prayer
The Wholeness Prayer Group meets the 2nd and 4th Mondays, during the academic year at 10-11:30am in the Adult Ed room. You are welcome to join us as we share our concerns, pray for each other, the church, our country and the world. Contact: (put Wholeness Prayer in subject line) Jean Preslan
Sophia Circle Women's Group
Info here.

What is Christian Formation for Adults?

We offer adult study groups (details above) every week you can choose between two ongoing classes. These classes generally run six to eight weeks, which provides an opportunity to deeply explore a topic with a group of fellow-inquirers. Generally, one of the classes is broadly "spiritual" in nature –dealing with theology, Bible, prayer, or the spiritual life. The other class is broadly "social" –looking at issues of society, economics, environment, or politics in the light of faith. 

The weekly Forum during the academic year (details above) provides an opportunity to hear a speaker address current issues. Often these speakers are from outside the church and let us know about community organizations people might want to work with, bring us a particular point of view on a current issue, or are part of a candidate forum ahead of an election. Speakers from within the congregation share their professional expertise, with an eye towards how their faith and church setting shapes the discussion. There is time for questions and answers, and we encourage people to follow up on topics that engage them. 

Additionally, we bring in an outside Visiting Scholar on an annual basis. During this weekend, usually in the fall, we bring in a major scholar for a weekend of lectures and workshops. Previous years' visiting scholars include Marcus Borg, Dom Crosson, Andrea White, and John Bell from Iona.