We offered a wide variety of adult education opportunities in 2021. We gathered virtually for the first five months of the year but were able to have in-person events the rest of the year. Moving forward, we will continue to have hybrid classes to ensure everyone has a chance for educational enrichment.
• The “Psalms, Hymns, and Singing in the Reign” met most Sunday mornings and covered the history, biblical basis, and theology of many well-loved hymns. The class provided a wonderful opportunity to learn together and share our joys and struggles with one another. The adult class will continue to meet on Sunday mornings at 8:50 AM in 2022, but we will study new topics together.
• The church continued to offer the St. Mark Spark online devotional. We adjusted the frequency from three days to once a week when pandemic restrictions loosened. The viewership numbers declined when the world opened up more in May, but we are pleased to retain a very loyal viewership base. This online devotion will continue in 2022.
• The Tuesday morning Men’s Bible Study began meeting in person again in 2022. This group continues to be a blessing to many.
• The Writer’s Life group met twice monthly, almost exclusively on Zoom, for the past year. We share our writing via e-mail before each meeting and reflect on what moved us during our meetings. Surprisingly many of us attend meetings without having written for the joy of reading and commenting on the work of others. During the year, we have read together Escaping into the Open: The Art of Writing True (Elizabeth Berg), On Writing Well (William Zinsser), and The Muses Among Us: Eloquent Listening and Other Pleasures of the Writer's Craft (Kim Stafford). Writers of every ability and inclination are welcome to join us. Contact Bill Tucker or Judy Richardson.
• The Presbytery of Giddings-Lovejoy hosted several online classes which had several St. Mark members in attendance. This included two discussions on The Black Tax with author Shawn D. Rochester and Voices Lifted with Diane McCullough.
• Pastor MP’s Women’s Bible Study moved from Thursday mornings to Friday mornings in May and went hybrid (in-person and on Zoom) when St. Mark began meeting in person for worship. This is not exclusively for women but that is who attended all of 2022. We worked through several studies in 2021: “24 Hours That Changed the World” (Lent) Adam Hamilton, “Short Stories by Jesus” Amy Jill-Levine, “Accidental Saints” Nadia Bolz-Weber, “Ten Women of the Bible” Max Lucado, “Light of the World” (Advent) Amy Jill-Levine. This group will continue in 2022. We have begun our 2022 studies with “Christianity and World Religions” Adam Hamilton.
• Pastor Dave and Pastor MP welcome congregational input on subjects members are interested in exploring. Please do not hesitate to contact them with ideas for classes.
Respectfully submitted,
Pastor Dave Burgess, Pastor MP Panco, and Bill Tucker
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