May 22 (9:30 am - In-person)

Rev. Dr. Steve Crocco will host the last Adult Ed session until fall. He will use the class as an opportunity to discuss issues emerging from the Supreme Court's draft opinion on abortion. Steve has a PhD in Christian ethics from Princeton University and is well qualified to lead the discussion. He will open the session with a few remarks as well as some distinctions and definitions to encourage a serious but civil discussion.

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Steve writes: '

   ...I will be make a few remarks about Christian approaches to abortion and the possibility that Roe v. Wade may be overturned. Those who attended my classes on a Christian approach to party politics will recognize some of the ground rules for discussion I will mention on Sunday. The idea is similar:  how do you talk about such a contentious issue? I am not going to have all the answers but I do hope to share some ways to improve our thinking and conversations about this divisive and important topic.  There will be plenty of time for discussion.

 

My main advisor in graduate school was Paul Ramsey, a noted Christian ethicist who wrote widely on abortion and medical ethics.  His ideas always inform my own.'

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After May 22, Christian Education resumes September 18.

April 24, May 1, 8 & 15 (9:30 am - In-person)

  James E. Davison will be teaching a four week class called “Experiencing God as Trinity,” starting April 24 and going through May 15. Read the description of the class as passed out during class Sunday morning, April 10.

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May 8 - Dr. Jim Davison will present the third of four classes on the doctrine of the Trinity.  Jim is a great teacher. So far, he's made an abstract doctrine come to life by discussing traces of the Trinity  in the Bible. He followed that up with an interesting account of how the early church gave formulation to the Trinity in the Nicene Creed.  In all this, he shows how the doctrine of the Trinity helps to shape us as Christians. - Steve Wilson, Senior Pastor.

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May 1 -  OPC friend Jim Davison taught the second of this four week class on the Trinity and the difference the doctrine makes for living the Christian life. This week’s lesson will be on some basic points of trinitarian doctrine in relation to the Nicene Creed.

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Last week’s lesson on references and allusions to the Trinity in the Bible was very interesting and helpful.  I expect more of the same this week.

See you there. Regards, Steve Crocco, Associate Pastor

April 3 & 10 (9:30 am - In-person)

  The Rev. Dr. Steve Crocco, OPC's Associate Professor, will lead us in a two week exploration of “A Christian Approach to Party Politics.”

  On April 10 Rev. Crocco will be finishing up his two week series on how Christians might be involved in political parties.  If you missed last week, there will be a review!  Plus, as promised, he will show some pictures of some of the graffiti, etc. that make Portland, Oregon famous/infamous.

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April 17 - NO Sunday School

March 6, 13, 20, 27 (9:30 am - In-person)

  Four week series on “The Provocative Parables of Jesus,” taught by the Rev. Dr. Angela Dienhart Hancock, Associate Professor of Homiletics and Worship at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. She is the author of Karl Barth’s Emergency Homiletic, 1932–33: A Summons to Prophetic Witness at the Dawn of the Third Reich, a contextual interpretation of Barth’s lectures on preaching in the early 1930s, based on unpublished archival material. She is an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and has served as pastor to churches in Pennsylvania, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Hancock earned her bachelor’s degree in music from Indiana University, Bloomington, and her M.Div. and Ph.D. from Princeton Theological Seminary. She is married to PC (U.S.A.) pastor Trent Hancock, and has two young adult children.

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February 6 (9:30 am - In-person)

  Ron Tappy, PhD, G. Albert Shoemaker Professor Emeritus

Dr. Tappy recently retired from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, where he served for many years as a professor of Bible and Archaeology. This month Dr. Tappy discusses The History of Old Testament Israel: A View from the Bible and the Writing of Israel's Neighbors in four parts. This week: part 1.

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February 13 (9:30 am - In-person)

  The History of Old Testament Israel: A View from the Bible and the Writing of Israel's Neighbors; continues with part 2 this week.

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February 20 (9:30 am - In-person)

  The History of Old Testament Israel: A View from the Bible and the Writing of Israel's Neighbors; continues with part 3 this week.

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February 27 (9:30 am - In-person)

  The History of Old Testament Israel: A View from the Bible and the Writing of Israel's Neighbors; continues with part 4 this week.

January 9 (9:30 am - In-person)

  Graham Standish, Samaritan Counseling Center

  It’s easy for Christians to pay attention those who need food, housing, clothing, and physical care. But how are we at paying attention to people’s mental and emotional states? Jesus healed people mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. How can we be a church that does that, too? The Rev. Dr. Graham Standish, PhD, MSW, will lead us in exploring what mental health is and how we, as a church, can do more to support those with mental health needs. He is the executive director of Samaritan Counseling, Guidance, Consulting, which we support as a church. 

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January 16 (9:30 am - In-person)

  Rev. Liddy Barlow, Christian Assoc. of Southwest PA

Rev. Barlow is a creative and passionate servant of the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church in all its complicated diversity. She works to bring Christians of all traditions together to make visible our true unity as the Body of Christ.

 

In April 2014, Rev. Barlow became the first woman to be installed as Executive Minister of Christian Associates of Southwest Pennsylvania. She reports to the Council of Bishops and Judicatory Executives, who represent 28 Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox church bodies throughout greater Pittsburgh. As Executive Minister, Rev. Barlow sets a vision for Christian Associates and manages all of the organization's projects and relationships.

 

Christian Associates of Southwest Pennsylvania brings together Anglican, Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant church bodies in the 10 counties of Southwest Pennsylvania to work for the unity of the church and the wholeness of communities. Founded in 1970, the organization includes 28 judicatories representing 2,000 local congregations and 1,000,000 Christians in the following counties: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Washington and Westmoreland.

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January 23 (9:30 am - In-person)

  Tara Conroy, Light of Life Mission

Tara is a lifelong resident of Oakmont. We will learn about the important work of the Light of Life Rescue Mission, the people they serve, their collaboration with community partners, stories of two of our clients/graduates and service-oriented opportunities.

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January 30 – Fourth Sunday after Epiphany

  Rev. Dr. Steve Crocco, OPC

Christians, like most other people, have an ambiguous relationship with animals.  We love some of them and invite them into our houses as pets, we eat some with great relish, and others we hunt for sport. To be honest, most Christians haven’t given much thought to our relationship with animals.  We point to biblical passages which talk about humans having dominion over animals. We wonder about the health benefits of eating meat. And we’d rather not think about factory farming.  This class is a quick look at the argument from theologian David Clough’s two-volume work, On Animals, that posits that if animals are included in the creation that is groaning for redemption as described by Paul in Romans 8, shouldn’t we treat them better?