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Forgiveness
Registration is now closed for the forgiveness groups
Is there someone in your life who, after all these years, you’ve never been able to forgive? Is there someone who extended forgiveness to you and you felt unable to receive it? Do you feel forgiven by God? How do we experience forgiveness in our day-to-day? With movies, radio, Scripture, and our own stories, we’ll examine this central Christian belief and its role in our lives.
There are many opportunities to join a Forgiveness Group so that as many as possible can participate. When we talk with one another as the body of Christ, we’ll have this framework and vocabulary in common. This group will be a chance to build our skills and capacity for conversations that can be hard to have, both in our personal lives and as a church.
Questions? Contact Rebecca Anderson at rebeccaanderson@holycovenantumc.org
Monday Night, 7:30p – 9:15p
(Feb 21 – Mar 28)
Led by Georgette Kelly and Rebecca Anderson (Edgewater)
Tuesday Night, 7p – 8:45p
(Feb 15 – Mar 22)
Led by Teddy Jay and Candie ODell (Andersonville)
Wednesday Night A, 7:30p – 9:15p
(Feb 16 – Mar 23)
Led by Troy Plummer and Walter Treash (Northwest Chicago, near O’Hare)
Wednesday Night B, 6:15p – 8:00p
(Feb 16 – Mar 23)
Led by Amber Kujath and Matt Piechocinski (South Loop)
Thursday Night, 7:15p – 9p
(Feb 17 – Mar 24)
Led by Katie Wickman and Ann Hillman (Andersonville)
WEEK 1 – The Power of Forgiveness
This introductory week will be a chance to get to know one another, and to get some ideas about forgiveness on the table. We’ll be watching The Power of Forgiveness, a movie that tells about the story of the Amish community’s response to the tragedy in Nickel Mines, PA. Pastors, psychologists, and thinkers and religious people as diverse as Elie Wiesel and Thich Nhat Hanh share their understandings of forgiveness.
WEEK 2 – What do we (think we) know about forgiveness?
“I know what ‘forgiveness’ means – until I try to define it!” A conversation about what we know, where we learned it, and whether that matches our own experiences.
WEEK 3 – Receiving Forgiveness
We’ll examine two stories of people ready to receive forgiveness, one Biblical, one from This American Life.
WEEK 4 – Confession and Repentance
Still thinking of our stories from last week, we’ll consider the role and importance of confession and repentance in forgiveness.
WEEK 5 – Restorative Justice
We’ll examine this model of justice that focuses on repairing the harm caused by wrong-doing (criminal or not) with the goal of reconciliation. Through case studies, we’ll build our own capacity for using this model in our relationships both in and out of church.
WEEK 6 – Personal Forgiveness Timeline
We’ll think, share, and pray about our own experiences of and need for forgiveness. Group members are invited to tell one story from their own lives – a story that each is comfortable offering to the group.
Film and Forgiveness
Sundays, Feb 6, 20; Mar 20
1 – 3:30 pm, at Holy Covenant
Led by Art and Julie Holmberg
Many of us love movies for the entertainment and escape that they offer. However, this small group will be approaching film from a different perspective. We will watch a recent film together and then pause to how the movie “spoke” to us; what spiritual aspects might the film awaken. Reflecting on forgiveness, we will discuss the “teachers and lessons” that help us to see God in the everyday lives of ourselves and others. Please join us to watch, share or just listen! This group will watch movies as a way of opening conversation about our faith journeys. The group will meet four times for 2.5 to 3 hours to allow time for screening and conversation.
On-going Groups:
Discovery Lunches
Shared leadership, at church
1st Sundays after the 11:15 service
Contact: Rebecca Anderson
New here? Stay after church for pizza, salad, and to find out more about this community. Sessions are planned around our mission statement: Seek God, Love All People, Change the World. After a few sessions, you’ll be well-informed about what HC is all about and will get to know some of the other people sitting next to you on Sunday morning.
Women’s Group
Led by Linda Effinger Quinde at Pompeii (Wellington and Sheffield)
2nd and 4th Sundays at 5:15, ongoing and year round
Join this long-running community-within-a-community. Drop-in or become a regular. We provide a fun, casual place for the diverse women of the church to meet, share our stories, and support each other. A great choice for women who would like to feel more connected within the church, especially newcomers to Holy Covenant. Women’s Group can be attended in conjunction with or in between other groups.
Sunday’s Scripture
Led by Pastor Kate at Holy Covenant
Wednesdays, 7p – 8:30p
Meet with the pastor and others to discuss the text that provides the center of our Sunday worship. Are you interested in engaging scripture outside of weekly worship? Asking questions of the text? Hearing the insights of others? Going deeper into the word of God? Then this is the group for you! Study, explore, and imagine with the Scripture lesson for the Sunday a week and a half away. Your contributions will help shape the sermon and worship services. Join the conversation as we ask ourselves: What’s the history and context of this text? How do we relate to the characters in the story? How does this speak to our lives today? Where is God’s voice for us, here and now? Grow closer to God and one another through the biblical passages that shape our lives as a community.
Men’s Group
Shared leadership
1st and 16th of every month (rotating days, rotating locations)
Contact: Mark Owen, Matt Piechocinski
Join other HC men as we attempt to discern what it means to be a Christian man through acts of service and fellowship. We’ll spend our time in service (at the church, Dignity Diner, and possibly the Night Ministry), in fellowship, and in Scripture/life learning. Hopefully, when all is said and done, we’re better for it.
Sign up for any of these small groups online.
