Experiencing the Heart of Christianity – A 12 Session Program for Groups
Tim Scorer
Wood Lake Books
Tim Scorer has produced an excellent study guide and DVD combo for small groups who want to study Marcus Borg's, The Heart of Christianity. But it's a granola guide.
The Heart of Christianity is one of the most important Christian theology books to have been published in the last 100 years. I would put Borg alongside Reinhold Niebuhr, Paul Tillich and Karl Barth in terms of his importance to modern Protestant theology. As Peter Gomes of Harvard Divinity School said, “If Marcus Borg didn't exist we would have to invent him.”
Borg's book is not only revolutionary in content; it's actually causing a real revolution in progressive North American churches, both liberal and conservative. He is probably the most articulate voice in the emerging church movement, writing at a level accessible to any reader, without the usual ivory tower style of a university theology professor. And he speaks to the heart of our struggles to be Christian in a post-911 world. Borg's book is a must-read for any modern Christian.
It is inevitable that this book would inspire, almost demand, a study guide. Not because one might require a study guide to get through it, but because once you've finished reading it you just have to talk to someone about it! What better place to have that discussion than in a small group at church?
Into that need steps Tim Scorer — a United Church minister from Penticton, B.C., and former director of the Maranatha Retreat Centre. Scorer is a gifted small group facilitator and knowledgeable about adult experiential learning styles. He brings his expertise together with his passion for Borg into this excellent study resource.
Scorer's book is a leader's guide with 12 study sessions, including help on how to lead a small group — suitable for anyone from the least to the most experienced group facilitators. The guide comes with an accompanying DVD with video segments by Scorer and Borg himself. The DVD also includes masters for any printed material needed for the course. The package is therefore complete.
The quality of this resource is excellent, but it is extremely granola, just too politically correct. The clearest example is Scorer's use of the Lord's Prayer, which he refers to as The Prayer of Jesus, presumably because Lord is an oppressive word. He offers a modern paraphrase of the prayer written by Jim Cotter that begins, “Eternal Spirit, Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver…” in order to avoid the politically incorrect “Father.”
Scorer is a big fan of tactile learning and pays attention to creating an aesthetic atmosphere for the group sessions — including the use of water, bread, candles, stones, “smells and bells,” etc. While this approach may go over well in a United Church retreat centre in B.C., I can just see some Hamilton steel workers running from the building if I used Scorer's lesson plan here in southern Ontario.
Also, Scorer gauges each session to be about two and a quarter hours, which is just too long. Each session needs to be halved. This is really a 24-week program.
Scorer presents the reader with a full and rich approach and invites the reader to adapt as needed to his/her context. I think the book/DVD is excellent and well worth the price. I plan on using it in my own congregation, but I also plan on taking Scorer's advice and adapting it liberally to fit.
