(June 2026) “I am created in God’s image. No matter what anyone else says.”
We’ll begin with the story of God’s creation and the “very goodness” that is spoken over every human being, hearing how those scriptures can be read as invitations to new freedom, community and vocation for people, regardless of gender, for all people were made in God’s image.
(July 2026) “I am more than one thing: Honoring our many identities.”
In her TED talk, “The Danger of a Single Story,” Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie names this truth: We are much more than one thing. All of us have intersecting identities, roles and responsibilities. In this session, we’ll explore how the multiple identities of several women in Scripture shape their faithful living. Esther is not just a queen, but a niece, as well as part of an oppressed community of faith. Ruth is so much more than just a widow. Mary Magdalene has more identities than can fit within the allowed word count of this paragraph. So do you!
(August 2026) “I am because you are: We need one another.”
Our individual identities are always bound up in community. Jesus describes this vision using a vine and branches. Archbishop Desmond Tutu describes this way of mutual interconnectedness as “Ubuntu,” where “my humanity is caught up and bound up inextricably with yours. I can only be fully me if you are fully you.” In delving into Scripture, we learn how no one can flourish unless everyone does, and how our lives are bound up with one another and the planet.
