Studies & Small Groups
- Small Groups (Fall 2010 – Present)
- Wednesday Night Bible Studies (Spring 1991 – Spring 2010)
- Weekly Topical Lunches (Fall 2006 – Spring 2010)
- Retreat Studies (1997 – Present)
Small Groups
| Group | Time | Location | Facilitator | Current Topic | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday Evening | 7:30 pm | 4 E. 32nd St. #709 | Lucine Francis | <lucine.petit @ gmail.com> | Could You Not Tarry One Hour? |
| Wednesday Afternoon | 12:30 pm | Barton 225 | Peter Li | <yli61 @ jhu.edu> | various topics |
| Wednesday Evening | 7:00 pm | 205 E. 30th St. #205 | Paul Aiyetan | <paiyeta1 @ jhmi.edu> | Amos |
Wednesday Night Bible Studies
"Historically", GCF had always met on Wednesday nights as a "large group". What occured on Wednesday nights evolved over the years, sometimes including worship, dinner, and/or prayer but always including Bible study. The table below includes a list of topics studied in past years at Wednesday night meeting, including links to many of the handouts and guides used in those studies.
This year (2010/2011), we are experimenting with a "small group" model of fellowship.
Previous Studies
| Season | Study 1 | Study 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Summer 2010 | Daniel | |
| Spring 2010 | various topics | |
| Fall 2009 | various topics | |
| Summer 2009 | John | |
| Fall 2008/Spring 2009 | Church History | |
| Summer 2008 | The Personal Letters of Paul | |
| Spring 2008 | Comparative Study of the Passion Week Accounts | |
| Intersession 2008 | Hard Sayings of Jesus | |
| Fall 2007 | Christianity & the Arts Video Series The First Christmas Songs | |
| Fall 2006/Spring 2007 | 1 & 2 Samuel | Comparative Study of the Gospels |
| Spring 2006 | Ecclesiastes | |
| Fall 2005 | James | Judges |
| Summer 2005 | Ruth & Esther Jesus' Last Teachings | |
| Spring 2005 | 1 & 2 Peter | Genesis |
| Fall 2004 | Mark | OT Prophecy Fulfilled in Jesus |
| Summer 2004 | Hebrews | |
| Fall 2003 | Joshua | Colossians |
| Summer 2003 | James | |
| Fall 2002/Spring 2003 | Isaiah | ??? |
| Fall 1999 | Questions Jesus Asked | |
| 1996 | John | |
| Fall 1995 | Habakkuk | |
| Fall 1994 – Summer 1995 | Luke | |
| Summer 1994 | various topics | |
| Spring 1994 | various topics | |
| Intersession 1994 | 1 John | |
| Fall 1993 | various topics | |
| Summer 1993 | Revelation | |
| Spring 1993 | 1 Peter | |
| Summer/Fall 1992 | Matthew | |
| Spring 1992 | Romans | |
| Fall 1991 | 1 & 2 Samuel | |
| Spring 1991 | Ephesians | |
Note:Special thanks to E.P. for providing a list of material studied in 1996 and prior.
Weekly Topical Lunches
Originally started as a first years' Bible study lunch group, this group turned into a weekly discussion on Christian life as an academic.
2009/2010
The Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship, by George Marsden2008/2009
- A Prayer of Mother Theresa (Andrew)
- Grace (Lauren)
- James 2 (Josh)
- Forgiveness and "The Sunflower" by Simon Wiesenthal (Lauren)
- Oswald Chambers on Prayer (Andrew)
- Elections and Casting Lots (Jason)
-
The Body-Soul Issue (Josh, Lauen, Andrew, Jason)
- Processing the Veritas Forum
- Physicalism vs. Dualism
- Life as a Maximization Problem (Andrew)
- Thoughts from the "Following Christ" IVCF Conference (Josh)
- "Value" (Lauren)
-
Virtue
- Colossians (Josh)
- ...And Transformation
- Wisdom and Human Flourishing: Colossians (Gina)
- Toward a Unified View of Science and Theology (Josh)
- Five Common Misconceptions About Animals (Jason)
-
Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius (Andrew)
- "Xxercises for the Discernment of Spirits"
- "Exercises for the Greater Discernment of Spirits"
- Some Questions for Thought:
- Do you see any relation to The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis?
- What is the relationship between spirit and mind?
- What is the relationship between spirit and discernment?
- What actions should we take during times of distress? Comfort?
- Discussion of last week's Veritas Forum and the Issue of Civility (Josh)
- How does being a Christian affect the way you live? What practical difference has the gospel made in your life? (Josh)
- Ideas of Goodness and Life in the Story of Creation (Lauren)
- Some Reflections on "Crying" (Andrew)
-
What is sin? (Jason)
- Can a sin be amoral?
- Are all sins willful?
- Are all sins deserving of death?
- Is sin solely a spiritual issue?
- Should Christians take drugs to help deal with anger, lust, or other issues?
- Free Will and the Significance of Our Actions (Lauren)
- "Fair-Mindedness": The President & Notre Dame (Andrew)
- The Science of Life (Andrew)
- Christian's Obligations Regarding Healthcare Needs of Our "Neighbors" (Gina)
- Some Quotes from Reinhold Niebuhr (Andrew)
- Discipleship and What That Could Look Like for Graduate Students (Josh)
2007/2008
In no particular order:
- Dallas Willard (Andrea)
- C.S. Lewis, "Christian Solutions" from Mere Christianity, p. 80 (Andrew)
- A Sacramental Approach to Living or Finding God in the Mundane (Josh)
- Biblical Perspectives on Sleep (Josh)
- Disciplines of the Mind (Lauren/Andrew)
- The prayer of Jesus: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner." (Andrea)
- Meditative Prayers / "Centering" Prayer (Andrew)
- How To Fight for Joy (Lauren)
-
Job (Josh)
- What keeps Godly people seeking God?
- What was Job's view of God? How did it change?
- The Dark Night of the Soul: The Struggles of Mother Theresa (Andrew)
- Godly People in Secular Professions (Gina)
- The Authority of Scripture (Lauren)
- The Error of the Spiritual-Secular Divorce (Andrew)
-
Identity in Christ (Josh)
- Who are you?
- What does Jesus Christ have to do with that?
- James (Josh & Andrew)
- "A student asked the President of his school whether he could not take a shorter course than the one prescribed. 'Oh yes,' replied the President, 'but then it depends on what you want to be. When God wants to make an oak, He takes a hundred years, but when He wants to make a squash, He takes six months.'" (Josh)
- Satan and Demons (Josh)
-
Meekness vs. Weakness (Andrew)
- a working definition of meekness: "power or strength under control"
- Meekness and humility (Andrew)
- Storing up Treasure (Lauren)
2006/2007
In no particular order:
- Where Was God? (During the VA Tech Massacre)
- Swords into Plowshares? Various Theological and Historical Positions of Christianity and War
- Thankfulness
- Waiting on God
- The Significance of Christmas
- C.S. Lewis' "The Weight of Glory"
- C.S. Lewis' "The Inner Ring"
- The Christian Culture War
- Can We Legislate Morality? Should We Try To Legislate Morality?
- How Should Christian's Respond to Panhandlers?
- Different Types of Knowledge and Their Validity
- Truth
- How Should Christians Educate Their Children?
- St. John Chrysostom's Commentary on Romans 5 & 6
- What We Can Learn From the Duke Lacrosse Scandal
- Assorted Thoughts on Marriage
Note:The views expressed in the links above do not necessarily represent the views of GCF or its members.
Retreat Studies
GCF typically holds annual weekend retreats at which we perform thorough studies of Biblical topics.
| Season | Topic | Study 1 | Study 2 | Study 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2010 | The Law & You | Definitions & the Torah | The Prophets & the Writings | The Gospels & the Epistles |
| Fall 2009 | Life in the Kingdom of God | Past | Future | Present |
| Fall 2008 | Finding Rest in God | Past | Future | Present |
| Fall 2007 | The Attributes of God | Holiness | Righteousness | Love |
| Fall 2006 | Being a Christian in... | Biophysics (talk by Brian Cannon) | Astronomy (talk by Jonathan Heiner) | ??? (talk by ???) |
| Fall 2005 | The People of God | Past (Old Testament) | Present (New Testament) | Future (Revelation) |
| Spring 2005 | ??? | ??? | ??? | ??? |
| Spring 2001 | ??? | ??? | ??? | ??? |
| Fall 1997 | Spiritual Gifts | ??? | ??? | ??? |
Updated: 2011.04.13:15:22
