Join us on Wednesday, March 4, at 7:00 pm Pacific for the first gathering of a seven-session book discussion of Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde's "How We Learn to Be Brave: Decisive Moments in Life and Faith." We will be meeting every other Wednesday for 7 sessions, and you can find more details here.

Here is a map of our journey (Gratitude to my colleague and friend the Rev. Michal Anne Pepper - Episcopalian clergy in New Mexico - for her guidance):

Session 1: Welcome, Introductions. (Please read the intro if you can for the first meeting. And Google "Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde" and watch some videos so you can get to know her. Here is one. Questions for reflection: How is this moment in our nation's history a "Decisive moment" for you personally? Reflect on past "decisive moments" in your life. How have your decisions changed you? How have they fostered a bigger sense of agency in your life?
Session 2: Deciding to Go. Deciding to Stay. (Please read chapters 1 and 2). Questions for reflection: Have you made a “decision to go” that transgressed others’ or cultural expectations? What did you learn from that experience and what was its impact on future decisions? What “life quakes” can you identify in your own personal transitions? Think about a significant time and/or situation when you decided to stay. Identify any sacrifices or blessings you reaped from a decision to stay?.
Session 3: Deciding to Start (Please read chapter 3) Questions for reflection: Reflecting on past decisions to start a particular life path, do you agree that they start with small steps? What were your sources of courage to take those first steps? What vision has carried you through past decisions to start? What is your vision, even if incompletely formed, that supports your current decision to start or to stay? What are your biggest fears or misgivings associated with your current decision to start or stay?
Session 4: Accepting What You Do Not Choose (Please read chapter 4) Questions for reflection: Frodo was not happy that the ring of power had come to him in Tolkien’s Lord of the Ring. Gandalf responded: “We cannot choose the times we live in, but we can choose how to respond to the time we are given.” What corollaries do you find in your life? In events in your lifetime? Have you ever been part of a community that was faced with the need to take an evolutionary leap in order to thrive in a new environment? What was transforming about walking through that experience? How have you found meaning in adversity? Have you ever found the divine or your higher self in adversity?
Session 5: Stepping Up to the Plate (Please reach chapter 5) Questions for reflection: Think about times in which you “stepped up to the plate”, both large or small. What was your experience in making that decision in the moment.? Was there a time when you stepped up to the plate and did not feel ready? How did you manage your fears/anxiety in following through? What were the consequences and how did you manage them? What benefits have you experienced?
Session 6: The Inevitable Letdown. The Hidden Virtue of Perseverance (Please read chapters 6 and 7) Questions for reflection. Bishop Budde describes a variety of types of “let down” (eg natural consequences, backlash, desolation that follows consolations). Why is perseverance called a “hidden virtue”? Think of a time in your life when the “guiding star” of your perseverance was a “hidden companion on the quest” instead of a reward or goal at the end. Have you experienced moments of kairos ? How did that support you on the journey? Reflect on the status of your “heart energy”?
Session 7: Hope or Despair? Closure (Please read the Epilogue) Questions for reflection: How do you sustain hope and speak of hope about the challenges we are facing? How has our reading and conversations helped you in our current “decisive moment”? How can you share any insights, or even transforming thoughts, with your community?

Meeting Dates:

Session 1: March 4
Session 2: March 18
Session 3: April 1
Session 4: April 15
Session 5: April 29
Session 6: May 13
Session 7: TBD

Meeting Link

P.S. At UCH, we encourage everyone to support your local independent booksellers. If you are in the Hayward Area, our go-to Bookstore is Books on B. If you'd like to join the group, but can't afford the book, drop me a note and I'll make sure you get a copy.