Our Lords United Methodist Church presents Two Fall Adult Classes

Our Lord's United Methodist Church in New Berlin Presents Two fall Adult Studies

Harry Potter & The Hallowed Word

With Rev. Sandra Herrmann

Wednesdays, September 30 --- October 28, Fellowship Hall, 7:00 --- 8:30 PM

Registration: $10

In this five week series, Rev. Herrmann will discuss what Christians can learn from Harry Potter and how J.K. Rowling's books can renew faith in Christ. The Harry Potter books, loved by children and adults around the world, are filled with Christian symbols like the phoenix, a legendary creature, introduced in the very first book. It foreshadows the Christ-like sacrifice Harry makes to defeat the evil Voldemort in the last of the seven books. In Christianity, the phoenix is a symbol for Christ and the resurrection, introduced by Saint Clement in the first century.

Rowling, a member of the Church of England, was shocked when some Christian groups tried to ban her books from libraries, accused her of being a wiccan and of trying to subvert children. Among her favorite books as a child were The Wind In The Willows and the Narnia books by Christian writer C.S. Lewis. "Even now, if I was in a room with one of the Narnia books, I would pick it up and reread it like a shot," she told the London Telegraph. When questioned at book signings, Rowling has said that she thought the Christian content of the books was 'obvious'.

Sandra Herrmann is a retired United Methodist pastor who makes her home in Greenfield. She is renown for her preaching and Biblical teaching. In 1980, she was in the first class ordained by Bishop Marjorie Matthews (the first female United Methodist bishop). Herrmann is the author of "Ambassadors of Hope" (CSS); her articles and sermons have also appeared in "Emphasis" and "The Circuit Rider", and her poetry has been published in "Alive Now" and "So's Your Old Lady". She has trained lay speakers and led School of Christian Missions throughout Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois & Indiana.

Centering Prayer

With Kathryn Rambo

Tuesdays, Oct. 13, 20 & 27, Wesley Room, 7:00 - 8:00 PM

Registration, $10.00

Centering Prayer is an ancient form of Christian contemplative prayer. For the first 16 centuries of the Church, Contemplative Prayer was the goal of spiritual practice. Centered Prayer differs from active or verbal affective prayer in which we express our thoughts and feelings in words. Instead it is an opening of the mind and heart to the Ultimate Mystery, beyond thought, words and emotions. Participants are invited to learn this ancient receptive form of prayer, leaving all thoughts, words and images behind. The purpose of Centering Prayer is to experience God’s presence, open to the faith within us, and to be close to the Divine, closer than breathing, closer than thinking, resting in the lap of God. Centering prayer does not exclude other types of prayer but deepens reverence for all spiritual traditions and practices.

Kathryn Rambo is a Certified Expressive Arts Therapist and Benedictine Oblate with the Holy Wisdom Monastery in Madison. She has been a student of meditation for 35 years and teaches meditation and angel classes at Alverno College's Telesis Institute. Kathryn can be reached at her Purple Otter Studio in Franklin, 414-333-5834, purpleotterstudio@yahoo.com.

To register, e-mail office@ourlord'sumc.org or phone 414-425-7030.

Look for Our Lord's across from Valley View Park near the intersection of Sunny Slope and Beloit Road. www.ourlordsumc.org