Kimberly Wagner: Re-forming our Theology in the Face of Mass Shootings

Summer Lecture Series

During the summer, regular Sunday School classes recess, and Glenn holds group Sunday School classes in the form of a lecture series. Professors from the Candler School of Theology at Emory University are invited to come and talk about a chosen theme or topic over the summer. Join us in the Ward Fellowship Hall at 9:45 a.m.

This year's theme is Reformation: Past, Present, and Future. Join us for interesting discussions on the various reformation moments of our faith as well as more creative ways of exploring the term "reformation." Bring your own insights and questions!

Have to miss a Sunday but still want to hear the lecture? Click here to listen to audio recordings.

Schedule

June 
5: Susan Hylen - Reshaping Scripture: Reformation Interpretations of the Gospel of John
12: Brent Strawn - The Old Testament and Re-Formation, Part 1: Exodus and Pharaoh, King of Egypt
19: Brent Strawn - The Old Testament and Re-Formation, Part 2: Deuteronomy and (Other) Kings
26: Susan Hylen - Reshaping Scripture: Reformation Interpretations of Galatians

July 
3: Holiday Brunch and music by Cynthia Shepherd and Jim Gibson

10: Kimberly Wagner - When Trauma Strikes: Re-forming our Theology in the Face of Mass Shootings

 

 

17: Pat Graham - 500th anniversary of Erasmus’ Greek New Testament
24: Pat Graham - 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s 95 Theses in 2017
31: Won Chul Shin - After Reformation: Pietism and Its Influence on John Wesley

August
7: Tom Elliott - Methodist Reformations
14: Joel LeMon - Reformation and Art

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lament:  A lament or lamentation is a passionate expression of grief, often in music, poetry, or song form. The grief is most often born of regret, or mourning. Laments can also be expressed in a verbal manner, where the participant would lament about something they regret or someone they've lost, usually accompanied by wailing, moaning and/or crying. Laments constitute some of the oldest forms of writing and examples are present across human cultures.

A Lament in The Book of Lamentations or in the Psalms (in the particular Lament/Complaint Psalms of the Tanakh, may be looked at as "a cry of need in a context of crisis when Israel lacks the resources to fend for itself." Another way of looking at it is all the more basic: laments simply being "appeals for divine help in distress". These laments, too, often have a set format: an address to God, description of the suffering/anguish which one seeks relief, a petition for help and deliverance, a curse towards one's enemies, an expression of the belief of ones innocence or a confession of the lack thereof, a vow corresponding to an expected divine response, and lastly, a song of thanksgiving. Examples of a general format of this, both in the individual and communal laments, can be seen in Psalm 3 and Psalm 44 respectively.

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