Advent 1: Wisdom
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I thank my God always for you, because of God’s grace that was given to you in Christ Jesus. That is, you were made rich through him in everything: in all your communication and every kind of knowledge, in the same way that the testimony about Christ was confirmed with you. The result is that you aren’t missing any spiritual gift while you wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will also confirm your testimony about Christ until the end so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, and you were called by him to partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
1 Corinthians 1:3-9 (CEB)
In many ways, modern Christianity seems to have become more interested in information than transformation. Where the whole point seems to be more about proving the so-called “truth” of the Bible, rather than being profoundly changed by the way of Jesus.
To quote Fr. Richard Rohr, “The world has no time for such silliness anymore. The suffering on Earth is too great.”
Which presents an interesting question: what role does wisdom play in transformation?
Please join us this Sunday, Dec. 3, in the New Wineskins Virtual Theology Pub powered by Zoom as we begin our celebration of Advent with a conversation about overcoming dualistic thinking and allowing the wisdom mind to overcome the rational mind in our search for the transformation of the world.
Click here to view this week’s discussion video (email address required)
6:00pm ET: Happy Half-Hour (informal meet & greet time)
6:30pm ET: Presentation & conversation begin
Advent 2023
How does the incarnation of the Christ—both in the creation of the universe and in the person of Jesus of Nazareth—open us to a cosmic view of who God is and who we are? And why does it make a difference?
This Advent, we’re examining the concept of the Universal Christ and how Jesus illuminates the sacredness and connectedness of all things.
Along the way we’re aligning the traditional Advent themes of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love with the topics of Wisdom, Incarnation, Particularity, and Unitivity to help us experience a deeper connectedness with the Christ, with one another, and with our universe…and, perhaps, beyond.
Using the weekly scripture passages from the Revised Common Lectionary and a series of videos* by The Work Of The People featuring Fr. Richard Rohr, we’ll take a deep look at how Jesus became the Christ and what that means not just for us, but for the entire cosmos.
*All discussion videos will be available through Jan. 1, 2024
Advent/Christmas Weekly Schedule
Dec. 3: Wisdom (Hope) — (1 Corinthians 1:3-9) How setting big mysteries on small stages gives us insight into the non-dualistic mind of the Christ.
(Click here for our discussion video)
Dec. 10: Incarnation (Peace) — (Mark 1:1-8) How seeing the universal through the particular open us to a peace that transcends non-conflict
Dec. 17: Particularity (Joy) — (Luke 1:46b-55) How Mary’s Magnifcat reveals the divine hidden within the ordinary
Dec. 24/25: Unitivity (Love) — (Luke 2:1-20) How the theory of quantum entanglement helps us see the universality of the Christ. (Pre-recorded so you can engage at your convenience)
Dec. 31: No Gathering — Celebrate the New Year with your friends and family, and join us again Jan. 7!
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