The beginning of October has ushered in beautiful weather, changes in the vibrant colors of our trees, and the start of CTS’s two new 6-week online courses open to the public. Skills for Flourishing Congregations’ fall course on Church Finance and Infrastructure kicked off on October 3rd, and Our Life in Common Series’ fall offering Christianity, Consumption, and Capitalism held its first class October 5th. Both series got off to a great start thanks to strong participation and expert instruction.
Focused on practical leadership skills for churches, the Skills for Flourishing Congregations 2022-2023 series is focused on financial skills. “Under the leadership of Janet and Phil Jamieson, the Church Finance and Infrastructure class began by establishing a framework that is both practical and theological. Before the nuts and bolts of building a budget, congregational leaders are learning best practices to develop a theology of money that will undergird the remaining weeks of this course,” shared Anne Brock, Senior Program Manager for Lake Institutue on Faith & Giving at the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.
Our Life in Common Series takes a different focus – the courses provides a space for meaningful discussion and exploration about faith, humanity, ethics, and other relevant topics. The 2022-2023 series explores how our faith and our money are intertwined, both in our individual lives and in society. While many people worship in churches where they can critically examine their own thinking about God, these discussions can move beyond church walls to truly impact every person in our community. Dr. Rob Saler, CTS Assistant Professor of Theology and Culture and one of the instructors for Our Life in Common Series, shares “the class on Christianity, consumerism, and capitalism dove right in to key questions at the intersection of theology and economics. What is freedom, from an economic and theological perspective? What does it mean to live a productive life? How does attention to economics shed light on intersectional issues of race, gender, ecology, and poverty? It has been a great start.”
While registration for the fall courses is now closed, anyone interested can still register for both series’ Winter and Spring offerings. Titles include Grant Writing and Fundraising, Facilities Management, Christianity and Poverty, and Christian Practices of Economic Justice. Instructors include Lake Institute Director David King and Meredith McNabb, Pastor William Smith, and Dr. Miguel De La Torre.
Click here to sign up for Skills for Flourishing Congregations
To register for Our Life in Common Series, click here
