Below are Other Lessons (neither Bible Study nor Book Study) from our Tuesday Study Group that I have been able to upload to this site.
Saints in Lent
During Lent in 2021, I was asked to give a short meditation on a saint during our mid-week services. The assigned saint was based on the Calendar. The five meditations are Matthais, the Wesley Brothers, Gregory the Great, Patrick, and the Annunciation.
Leo the Great at Christmas
Leo the Great was the bishop of Rome from 440 until his death in 461. In the annals of history, he is best known for convincing Attila the Hun to spare Rome and cease his Italian campaign. In Church History, Leo is best known for his arguments in carrying the day at the Council of Chalcedon that Christ is of two natures in one person. His Christmas sermons reflect his emphasis on the centrality of the Incarnation to our Faith. This Advent study covers three weeks and his sermons 21 and 26.
Martin Luther’s Christmas Sermons
This study is a collection of abridged versions of Martin Luther’s sermons for the Advent and Christmas seasons contained in Martin Luther’s Christmas Book. His Christmas sermons help bring the reality of the Nativity story to life. This Advent study covers three weeks.
Hymns of the Church
During this study on Hymns of the Church, we begin with a review of the history of (Anglican) hymnody. Each subsequent week, we study and sing our way through several hymns drawn from the ancient church, the 1982 Hymnal, and contemporary Christian music. This study is for six weeks.
Mary – An Advent Study
For Advent this year, Fr. Gabriel Bullock of St. Nicholas Antiochian Orthodox Church is leading us in a study of Mary. As background to our study, I am reading through the Protoevangelium of James, Mary and The Fathers of the Church by Luigi Gambero, and The Mystery of Christ by The Very Rev. John Behr. This study is for two weeks.
Angels – An Advent Study
In this three-week Advent study, we will be exploring Angels. We will look at how angels are described to us in the Scriptures and down through Christian history. As background for our study, I am using Lifted by Angels: The Presence and Power of Our Heavenly Guides and Guardians by Joel Miller, Angels of God: The Bible, the Church, and the Heavenly Hosts by Mike Aquilina, The Angels: The Catholic Teaching on the Angels by Fr. Pascal Parente, Angels by Rev. Billy Graham, Institutes of the Christian Religion (Bk 1, Ch.14) by John Calvin, and The Celestial Hierarchy by Pseudo-Dionysius. This Advent study is for three weeks.