Christian Education for Adults
Adult Sunday School Classes meet each Sunday morning at 10:00 AM - 10:45 AM, September through May, in the Chapel building. All classes welcome visitors, guests, and new members.
The Seekers
Room 201
January 5—26
Short Stories by Jesus: The Enigmatic Parables of a Controversial Rabbi by Amy-Jill Levine
In this wise, entertaining, and educational book, Amy-Jill Levine offers a fresh, timely reinterpretation of Jesus’ narratives. In Short Stories by Jesus, she analyzes these “problems with parables,” taking readers back in time to understand how their original Jewish audience understood them. Levine reveals the parables’ connections to first-century economic and agricultural life, social customs and morality, Jewish scriptures and Roman culture. With this revitalized understanding, she interprets these moving stories for the contemporary reader, showing how the parables are not just about Jesus, but are also about us—and when read rightly, still challenge and provoke us two thousand years later.
February 2—March 2
Spiritual Roots in Archeology – Great Courses
Stonehenge. Machu Picchu. The Acropolis. The Great Pyramids at Giza. Sites such as these have captivated the world for centuries—even millennia—since their creation. They are works of great beauty whose construction required spectacular feats of engineering, involved the efforts of hundreds of thousands of individuals, and incurred a tremendous financial cost on the civilizations that created them.
But why were these massive sites created? What impulse drove ancient cultures to devote such time and labor into these projects? Why are we so transfixed by their presence today? And what do these and other mysterious sites reveal about our ancestors—and about humanity as a whole?
The answer to these and other eternal questions is the dynamic force of religious belief. Religion, in its many forms, is among the most powerful of all human impulses. The philosophical and intellectual side of religious practice is well studied—but religion also manifests itself physically. From cave art to intricate burial chambers to grand hilltop temples, the material expression of spirituality is less understood but offers equally deep insights into why humans believe in something larger than themselves.
March 9—May 4
Lenten and Easter Study – Meeting Jesus at the Table by Cynthia M. Campbell & Christine Coy Fohr
The Gospels are full of stories of Jesus sharing meals with disciples, friends, even tax collectors and Pharisees. Whether multiplying bread to feed a whole crowd, relaxing with his inner circle, or telling curious elites stories about even greater banquets, Jesus imparts wisdom as he shares the wine and grants forgiveness as he distributes the fish. This eight-chapter resource provides biblical insights along with thought-provoking queries regarding our own time, such as whom should we invite to Sunday dinner and who is left out and left behind in our culture today.
Illustrations by artist Kevin Burns complement each chapter and invite further meditation on the Gospel story and its meaning for our lives.
Each chapter includes questions for small group discussion or personal reflection. A guide for church leaders offers suggestions for preaching this book as a sermon series and incorporating food-related outreach and hospitality efforts.
May 11—18
AI and God
The Seekers will look at various articles on AI and discuss the impact on life, culture, and our belief systems.
Exploring Christian Theology
Led by Mike Lockaby - Room 101
January—May
As we continue our exploration of the history of how Christians think and talk about God, we'll be looking at the way we talk about God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit throughout the winter/spring semester. And as we conclude our studies in the spring, we'll be discussing a question that early Christians did not actually talk about much -- what it might feel like to be a person (a fraught word, incidentally) who is both a human being and God.
Parent as a Verb
Room 102
This class will engage parents (who have the most important job in the world) around the numerous topics encountered through parenting. We will support one another weekly, as we strive to raise healthy, joyful children who are enriched by a life of faith. We will enjoy open discussion as we focus on family-centered practices, and as we build a community of parents, both future and present, within our church.
January 5—26:
The Anxious Generation (continued from the fall)
After more than a decade of stability or improvement, the mental health of adolescents plunged in the early 2010s. Rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicide rose sharply, more than doubling on many measures. Why?
In The Anxious Generation, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt lays out the facts about the epidemic of teen mental illness that hit many countries at the same time. He then investigates the nature of childhood, including why children need play and independent exploration to mature into competent, thriving adults. Haidt shows how the “play-based childhood” began to decline in the 1980s, and how it was finally wiped out by the arrival of the “phone-based childhood” in the early 2010s. He presents more than a dozen mechanisms by which this “great rewiring of childhood” has interfered with children’s social and neurological development, covering everything from sleep deprivation to attention fragmentation, addiction, loneliness, social contagion, social comparison, and perfectionism. He explains why social media damages girls more than boys and why boys have been withdrawing from the real world into the virtual world, with disastrous consequences for themselves, their families, and their societies.
February 2—March 2
Epic Fails and Epic Wins
Real life stories shared from visiting parents on the epic fails and wins that they experienced throughout their parenting days. What worked, what didn’t, what were their struggles and where did they find joy. This will be a lighthearted time together of stories shared that will spur discussion from our class participants currently in the thick of parenting.
March 9—May 4
Good Inside by Dr. Becky Kennedy
“This book is for any parent who has ever struggled under the substantial weight of caregiving—which is to say, all of us. Good Inside is not only a wise and practical guide to raising resilient, emotionally healthy kids, it’s also a supportive resource for overwhelmed parents who need more compassion and less stress. Dr. Becky is the smart, thoughtful, in-the-trenches parenting expert we’ve been waiting for!”—Eve Rodsky, New York Times bestselling author of Fair Play and Find Your Unicorn Space
Dr. Becky Kennedy, wildly popular parenting expert and creator of @drbeckyatgoodinside, shares her groundbreaking approach to raising kids and offers practical strategies for parenting in a way that feels good.
All parents, come join us as we connect our faith to the topics Dr. Becky presents in her book. Including sibling rivalry, separation anxiety, tantrums, and more.
Greeking Out & The Gospel
Led by Andrew Whaley—Room 202
February 2—March 2
"Greeking Out" is a National Geographic Kids podcast that condenses ancient Greek myths into digestible 20-minute episodes. These stories cover great battles and treacherous journeys. These are stories that the Gospel writers, the Apostle Paul, and others in the first century would have heard in their surrounding culture. Knowledge of these tales can enhance the beauty, wonder, offense, and radical message of the Gospel of Jesus. In this class we will listen to episodes of this podcast and then compare and contrast it with biblical narratives to see how the way of God's grace turns our notions of heroics, justice, and power on their heads. This class is intended to be intergenerational, open to high school students and adults.
Tortured Poets Lenten Poetry Study
Led by Leigh Sackett—Room 101
March 9—May 4
Journey with us in word and rhythm through the Lenten season. We will study the poets crying out as they name their experience and struggles, so that we too can name ours as we write our own poetry for this time of repentance, reflection, renewal, and finally rejoicing!
Discover RCPC
Led by Andrew Whaley—Room 202
Discover RCPC is a way to learn more about our life together as followers of Jesus. In these gatherings, we will get to know one another better. We will learn about how and why we worship and what is distinctive about being a Reformed Church. We will learn about how Presbyterians practice their life in covenant with each other, and we will learn the story specifically of the Raleigh Court Presbyterian Church: The Church of the Open Door.
January 5—19: During the Sunday school hour
(10:00 AM—10:45 AM)
March 2 & 9: Following the 11:00 worship service
(12:15 PM—1:30 PM)
Adult Small Group Bible Study
The Small Group lessons are based on the Sunday sermons and scripture. Being part of a Small Group is an experience rich in personal connection and spiritual growth. Small Groups discuss what is shared in worship, therefore the experience of worship is more deeply ingrained in our minds and hearts. As we contemplate it all together the concepts take root and our faith grows! Small Groups begin the week of September 15.
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Sermon Reflections: Monday 12:30 PM-2:00 PM - Andrew Whaley, Room 102
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The Fools: Tuesdays 4:00 PM-5:30 PM - David Dixon, Room 201
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Soul Sisters: Tuesdays 8:00 PM-9:30 PM - Emilie Biddle, Parlor
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The After Dinner Crowd: Wednesdays 7:00 PM-8:30 PM - Leigh Sackett, Room 102
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Thursday Theology: Thursdays 10:30 AM-12:00 PM - Elise Hansard, Room 101
Presbyterian Women
Presbyterian Women is an organization for ALL women of Raleigh Court Presbyterian Church. Our morning meetings occur during the months of September through May on the second Tuesday of every month from 10:15 AM-1:00 PM in the Fellowship Hall. Women gather to sign cards for shut-ins, collect donations for Turning Point, and leave a least coin offering for worldwide missions. The business meeting starts at 10:15 AM followed by a Bible study led by Ruth Marple. This year the Bible study curriculum is “Let Justice Roll Down" God's Call to Care for Neighbors and All Creation by Reverend Dr. Patricia K. Tull. The morning ends with a time of fellowship over a delicious lunch provided by Lisa Goad.
This year PW is adding an evening circle to the options in addition to the daytime circle. The new evening circle will meet on the second Wednesdays of the month at 7:00 PM at RCPC.
In addition to the monthly morning meetings, a nighttime or weekend women's intergenerational event is offered on a regular basis to allow bonding and fellowship with the women of the church who work, have small children at home, or cannot attend morning meetings.
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Game Night at RCPC - Friday, January 24 at 6:30 PM
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Women, Wine, & the Word - Friday, February 21
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Walk, Talk, & Taste at Mill Mountain Gardens -
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Saturday, March 29
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Paint & Praise- Saturday, April 26
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Taste, Talk, & Walk on the Roanoke Greenway
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Lunch at Wasena Tap & Grill - Sunday, May 25
Men of the Church
A men’s group has been meeting for several years from September through May for about an hour per week. Typically, the group is reading a book and taking time each week to check in with one another. Although most of the group attends RCPC, we have had others join us as well and they are welcome. This past year and beginning this year, we have been and will continue to meet by zoom so that we can safely gather until such time as the Covid-19 virus is less of a threat.
Young Adult Ministry
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Starcade Arcade & Dinner - Friday, January 17 at 6:00 PM
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Ice Skating at Lancerlot - February
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Blue Ridge Axe Throwing & Dinner - Friday, March 7 at 6:00 PM
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Daytime Hike - Saturday, April 12
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Kayaking at Carvins Cove & Picnic Lunch - Saturday, May 17 at 9:30 AM
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Elks Pool - Saturday, June 28 at 12:00 PM