Power is everywhere: social, political, economic, and relational. And the working of power is complex. And it isn't neutral.
The failures of the church in the West requires that we reckon with power, looking at the theology and practice of power through Jesus.
Working within the best of biblical and historical scholarship, engaging the traditions of Black and liberation theology, and feminist and postmodern philosophy, Dr. David Fitch will train this learning cohort to discern the difference between worldly power and the godly power practiced by Jesus.
All the research says that taking "work at your own pace" learning doesn't work. People start a course of study. But don't finish.
But learning with others adds creatives and accountability.
Grassroots Christianity learning cohorts are
Every learning cohort is structured the same way, loosely following the parable of the Sower:
ROCKS: We begins by guiding you around the ROCKS that trip us up. These are the common ways of understanding the topic. These aren't usually totally wrong. They are just incomplete.
SOIL: In the main part of each course we seed the SOIL of faith with best of biblical insights and theological truth—all while keeping it real
WEEDS: In the last section of each course we pull out the WEEDS, the tough questions and common mistakes that keep our faith from growing like it should.
There are plenty of elite academics in ivory towers, trained in the latest intellectual fashions and fanciest words. But these have lost sight of the questions, doubts, hopes, and fears of everyday people.
And then there are the hack theologians. They offer pious sounding words ripped from the headlines and the Bible. They promise to revitalize your faith in two easy steps, banishing all doubts, and bringing you peace and joy. But they don't.
Learning cohort leader, Dr. David Fitch, is neither.
He is both a pastor and professor, a theologian and church planter.
With over 20 years of pastor experience, and teaching hundreds of pastors and leaders, he will guide you through the thorny topic of Jesus, the Church, and Politics.
Dr. Fitch will guide the cohort through 6 weeks of reckoning with power, structured through pulling up the ROCKS in our field of faith, planting new SEEDS, and ending by pulling up the WEEDS that may remain.
Many people pay...
• 6 weeks of live teachings (with video replay, and PDF transcripts and slides available afterward).
• 6 interactive Q&A sessions with the cohort.
• A hardcopy of The Church of Us vs. Them: Freedom from a Faith That Feeds on Making Enemies mailed to you.
• And 5 essays and chapters by Dr. Fitch to compliment the teachings (PDFs)
All taught by a pastor-theologian...
...who is also a seminary professor!
Dr. David Fitch
Welcome to the learning cohort
Week 1: Four Kinds of Power (Zoom Link)
Week 1: Four Kinds Power (Replay)
Week 1 Resources: Post-Christendom and the Mission of God: Into the Far Country (Ch. 1 & 2 of "Prodigal Christianity")
Week 2: The Powers in Scripture (Zoom Link)
Week 2: The Powers in Scripture (Replay)
Week 2 Resources: The Many Gospels: How the Gospel Shapes the Church for Mission
Week 3: The Powers in Church History (Zoom Link)
Week 3: The Powers in Church History (Replay)
Week 3 Resources: More "Unintended Consequences": How the Reformation (Mis)Shaped the Church for Mission in North America
Week 4: The Powers in Evangelicalism (Zoom Link)
Week 4: The Powers In Evangelicalism (Replay)
Week 5: Three Sacred Cows of Evangelical Power (Zoom Link)
Week 5: Three Sacred Cows of Evangelical Power (Replay)
Week 6: Where Do We Go From Here? Beyond Conservative and Progressive (Zoom Link)
Week 6: Where Do We Go From Here?(Replay)
Week 6 Resource: The Way Worship Works in Mission: Proposing an alternative to the standard account
