Spirit in Practice led by the Rev. Melissa Carvill-Ziemer
An Adult Religious Exploration Class in Spiritual Growth and Development
This winter I will be offering Spirit in Practice, an adult religious exploration class created to help Unitarian Universalists explore and develop regular disciplines, or practices, of the spirit. Spirit in Practice affirms diversity in our spiritual paths while seeking unity in our quest to live lives of meaning and purpose. In our tradition, spirituality is understood broadly as our relationship with the Spirit of Life. The practices in this course are designed to help participants connect with the sacred ground of their being, however they understand or name that ground.
Developed by the Rev. Erik Walker Wikstrom for the Tapestry of Faith series of curricula, Spirit in Practice draws on a model developed by the Zen Mountain Monastery for training its students. This model includes eight spheres of holistic and wholehearted spiritual practices including: personal spiritual practices, communal spiritual practices, spiritual partnerships, mind practices, body practices, soul practices, life practices and justice practices.
This course will remain open for participants to drop in, however those who commit to attending the whole series will derive the most benefit. Anyone who thinks they may be interested in participating in any of the sessions is encouraged to attend one of the two one-hour introductory sessions. You may attend either the session held on Sunday, January 8 during the second service in the Eldredge Annex or the session held on Sunday, January 15 in the Founders Lounge from 1pm to 2pm.
The remaining seven sessions will take one sphere of spiritual practice per session. Participants will be encouraged to practice on their own between sessions. Sessions will be held from 7pm to 8:30 pm on the following Tuesday evenings in the Founders Lounge: 1/17, 1/31, 2/7, 2/21, 2/28, 3/6 and 3/13. Please note that the last session on 3/13 will meet from 7 to 9pm. If you have any questions or would like more information, feel free to call or email. Additionally, if having childcare available would make it possible for you to participate, please let me know. I am willing to try to be creative with you in exploring ways to meet that need!
Rev. Melissa Carvill-Ziemer