Most people don’t know that the titles many Christians associate with Jesus are actually titles for Caesar Augustus, plagiarized by Christians: Divine, Son of God, God from God, Lord, Redeemer, Liberator, and Savior of the World. All Caesar. Early on, Jesus followers adapted them for their own – thus emphasizing the political conflict between empires: the empire of Caesar or the empire of God.
If you’re interested in learning about this and many other insights that are taught in our seminaries but clergy just don’t share with their congregations, then the next Living the Questions class at The Fountains may be for you!
Facilitated by Pastor David Felten, First Light is a 12-session DVD and web-based study of the historical Jesus and the Kingdom of God with two of the world’s leading Jesus scholars, John Dominic Crossan and the late Marcus Borg. Filmed on location throughout the Galilee and Jerusalem and with a participant reader by Dom Crossan, participants will discuss the surprising answers to questions like: Why did Jesus happen when he happened? Why the tiny villages around the Lake? What were the priorities of Jesus’ proclamation of the Kingdom? And how does Roman imperial theology continue to subvert Jesus’ message to this day?
These and many other questions will be considered in First Light: Jesus and the Kingdom of God at The Fountains, a United Methodist Church. These daytime sessions will begin on Wednesday, November 29th from 10am to 12 noon and will continue on Wednesdays (with a break for Christmas) through February. Member of the Jesus Seminar and prominent scholar, Dom Crossan Crossan says: “[First Light] is all I have to say about Jesus after half a century of study — in succinct summary.”
First Light (www.livingthequestions.com) is a program created by The Fountains’ pastor, Rev. David Felten, and colleague, Rev. Jeff Procter-Murphy. The sessions will be held in the sanctuary of The Fountains at 15300 N. Fountain Hills Blvd. Suggested tuition for this twelve (12) week series is $20. Contact the office to register: 480.837.7627. Those who register ahead will receive a participant guide via email or mail so they can prepare for the first session.
Join us and plan for stimulating input, great conversation, and a liberating view of Christianity. Childcare is available upon request – call the office (480.837.7627).
First Light: Jesus and the Kingdom of God. Wednesdays at 10am
- Nov. 29th 1. The Matrix of Jesus
- Dec. 6th 2. The Advent of the Messiah
- Dec. 13th 3. God’s Great Cleanup
- Dec. 20th 4. Collaborative Eschaton
- (break)
- Jan 3rd 5. The Lake as the World
- Jan 10th 6. Parables as Lures
- Jan 17th 7. Jesus as Lord
- Jan 24th 8. Substitutionary Atonement?
- Jan 31st 9. Demonstrations in Jerusalem
- Feb 7th 10. The Crowd & the Crucifixion
- Feb 14th 11. Resurrection as Resistance
- Feb 21st 12. America as the New Rome