by Christina Brennan Lee

As we approach the end of our 25th Anniversary Celebration, and the conclusion of Father David’s time with us, I want to offer just a few words about one aspect of SsAM’s life that has meant much to me: Adult Christian Education. As some of you know, it is one of my passions and it has been a critical and long-held focus of my professional, educational, and personal work for more than 30 years.

In SsAM’s early days, Canon Casson gathered us each Sunday to teach and share the many and varied aspects of Christian Education and how integral it is to true Christian Living. Father Rod Welles and then Father Fred Guyott were also part of this great endeavor and I did little bits here and there.

It was Father Fred who convinced Canon to change the time of the main service from 10:00 am to 10:30 am to have the time from 9:00 to 10:15 on Sunday mornings to explore so many aspects of this many faceted “Christian Way” of Life.

Canon, Fr. Rod, and then Fr. David added to the bounty of this exploration and, for those of us involved and/or participating, the takings were rich, deep, fun, lively, and opened us to want more.

Biblical exploration, the theology of the Seasons of the Church Year, spirituality, Contemplative Prayer, the theology and mechanics of the Liturgy, the themes of Creation through Season of Creation, Church History, diving into the theology of the sin of Racism, even looking at popular films through the lens of Christianity, theological reflection on the parables of Jesus, small group discussions on a variety of topics including the study of the writings of Trappist Monk Thomas Merton, have all been part of our studies and interests.

Recently on Zoom, Rabbi Douglas Krantz has enriched the lives of those who joined him as we learned more about our Rabbinic and Jewish ancestral roots through his eyes and teachings as we studied the Book of Genesis from a Hebrew perspective and translation.

It is my fervent prayer that we will continue to offer and encourage continuing opportunities to know more than just familiar recitations of prayers on Sunday, but that we will know why we say them and how we came to have them, among other topics.

I pray for more exploring of the Who, What, Where, Why, When, and How of Christian Living through Scripture, Tradition, and Reason (now there’s a topic for study!).

—Christina Brennan Lee
December 18, 2021