At 11:00 a.m. in the Lewis Room, Dale Briggs will discuss his work in prison ministry.

On Sunday, March 28 (Palm Sunday) our "Bible at 9:30" adult education class will be going on a field trip to see the UM's display of biblical manuscripts, one of the finest in the country.

There will be a series of seven classes after the 2:42 dinner on the "I am" sayings of Jesus. On February 3 the topic will be "I am the bread of life."  The classes start about 7:00 p.m. in Monteith Hall, last one hour, and will be taught by members of the Pastoral staff.  If you can, come for dinner before the classes!

Read all about the new semester of "The 2:42" — our Wednesday evening all-church program of fellowshiip, education, study, worship, and music opportunities for all ages. And did we mention dinner? Oh yess! So download this flyer (pdf) for more information and register now!

Dr. Robert Wallin will give a two-part presentation on "John Calvin at 500" at the Adult Education class that meets at 11:00 a.m. in the Lewis Room on Sunday, September 27 and Sunday, October 4.  Who was this father of the Reformed Church, and how and why do his ideas and theology remain important and influential at the 500th anniversary of his birth? Come and find out.

Please join us for our annual Health and Wellness Education Series, sponsored by our Parish Nurse and Pastoral Care programs. There will be four classes, running from April 26 through May 17. The classes are part of the Adult Education program and will meeet at 11:00 a.m. Sunday mornings in the Lewis Room. The topics are listed in the Adult Education section of the Education and Ministries page, http://www.firstpresbyterian.org/content/adult-education.

At the 11:00 a.m. Adult Education Class on Sunday, April 19, Dr. Waldemar Schmeichel, Professor of Religion at Kalamazoo College, will help us look at the story of the earliest followers of Jesus between his ascension and Pentecost. Then we will deal with the experience of the absence of a sense of our Lord's closeness in the walk of faith.

On Sundays, March 29 and April 5, Dr. Waldemar Schmeichel will continue the Adult Education classes at 11:00 a.m. in the Lewis Room, talking about Violence and the Cross.  He will discuss the conflict between the violence surrounding the crucifixion, which is understood as God's redemptive act for our slavation, and our current wariness of violence.

Twenty-four individuals from our congregation left February 23 for a 12-day visit to Jordan and Israel, sponsored by the Pilgrims of Ibillin. While in Israel, they visited the Mar Elias schools in Ibillin and worshipped in Haifa with Archbishop Elias Chacour. Hear stories of this trip and learn more about the Mar Elias schools at the Adult Education class on Sunday, March 22, 11:00 a.m. in the Lewis Room.

In January, Dr. Waldemar Schmeichel led a series of classes on the relationship between Christianity and other world faiths. In this class, he will focus on how Jesus is portrayed in the Koran, which is strikingly different from the New Testament presentation of Jesus. The class will meet at 11:00 a.m. Sunday, March 8, in the Lewis Room.