Adult Formation

• Classes on the Abrahamic religions featuring a local Rabbi, a local Imam, and an Emory professor with expertise in Christian-Jewish dialogue. These classes were standing room only.
• A series on “difficult conversations” in which attendees discussed how to address both sides of a divisive political issue including gun violence, abortion and transgender persons in the church.
• A wonderful program featuring some of the original “Freedom Riders” who risked their lives for the advancement of civil rights in the southern states.
• A series with our beloved Dr. Catherine Meeks, the executive director of the Absalom Jones Episcopal Center for Racial Healing, who challenged us to express our faith by being courageous as promoters of racial healing in a divided world.
• A number of series on creating solidarity with our homeless citizens by highlighting the visionary work of leaders and advocates in the Atlanta community. We also have forums highlighting environmental justice issues and the Church’s mandate for environmental stewardship and responsibility.

St. Luke’s also offers Christian education opportunities outside of Sunday morning. Among them:

• We have two Education for Ministry groups, which are intensive study opportunities for laity to integrate theological education with community, prayer, and daily life. One group meets on Monday nights and the other group meets on Tuesday mornings. These groups are organized and led by laity.
• Many people who work downtown enjoy Soup and Scripture classes that meet mid-week during Lent.
• During Lent and Advent, the Church makes available widely popular Lenten and Advent daily devotional booklets. These booklets contain daily written reflections, photographs, and poems that parishioners volunteer to compose and that are carefully edited by volunteers in the parish.
• A unique educational offering is Leadership St. Luke’s, which is designed for parishioners who desire a richer experience to learn, grow, and connect with other parishioners, and who also seek an individual path to action for long–term engagement in the life and work of St. Luke’s.
• Our interim Rector, the Rev. Ed Bacon, recently led an extremely well-attended gathering on Thursday evenings that studied The Universal Christ by Richard Rohr.
• During Lent, a large group from St. Luke’s and All Saints Episcopal Church studied The Cross and the Lynching Tree by James Cone, under the guidance of Dr. Catherine Meeks of the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Reconciliation. The five-week Lenten study culminated in a pilgrimage to Montgomery to visit the Legacy Museum and National Memorial for Peace and Justice.