ENLIVEN!

Nurturing Abundant Spirits

Enliven is a series of virtual courses that create community and conversation around spiritual life, and encourage individuals to learn, grow and share together. Please scroll below and click on each course title to find the course description, details and faculty introductions. Check back as new courses are added in the coming months of 2022!

 

Register Now

 

Program Foundations

  • Create welcoming virtual spaces to build community
  • Encourage the deepening of the Spirit
  • Celebrate diverse faith traditions and experience
  • Provide creative, experiential, participatory opportunities for learning and growth
  • Compliment congregational and chaplaincy ministries

Participant Requirements/Expectations:

  • Individuals need their own technology or access to a computer or iPad, preferably with video capability.
  • Participants need to have access to Wi-Fi to connect through Zoom and email to receive the session Zoom links.
  • Participants are required to register one time for each course series. Log-in information will be provided with the registration confirmation.
  • This log-in will be the same for all sessions which are a part of the course.
  • Since the goal is to engage all participants and build community around the course topics, attendance at all sessions within each course is strongly recommended.

Courses Offered Winter 2022:

 

Qi gong with Rev. Rich Plant - Mondays @ 10AM January 10th - April 25th

Beginning Monday, January 10th from 10 – 10:30 a.m.

Continuing weekly through April 25, 2022.

Start your Monday mornings with the flowing movement of qi gong which helps to encourage the flow of energy throughout your body. You are encouraged to stand for 20-30 minutes of movement or participate from a seated position. Participation in every session is not necessary, but you are encouraged to join as much as you are able.

Rev. Rich Plant is a spiritual director who has served local congregations and on staff of Living Water Association, UCC. He began learning and practicing qi gong about 15 years ago and has since led this gentle practice of flowing movement in a variety of settings, both in person and on-line. There is no limit to the number of participants.

Another Day Older: Conversations about Ageism - Each Friday in January 10-11:30

Beginning Friday, January 7th, continuing each week through January.

In these four conversations we will consider our own aging process and the messages that influence our attitudes about aging. And we will look at ageism, the prejudice or discrimination on the grounds of how old someone is or is perceived to be by another. Ageism has negative consequences on individuals and society in general. Through these conversation, we will examine why recognizing ageism is important and discuss what to do to disrupt it.

Rev. Beth Long-Higgins joined the United Church Homes Board of Directors in 2007 while serving as copastor of David’s United Church of Christ in Canal Winchester, Ohio. In 2013, she joined the staff at UCH and, in 2017, was named as the founding executive director of the Ruth Frost Parker Center for Abundant Aging. A graduate of Heidelberg (College) University, with degrees in psychology and music, Beth holds a Master of Divinity from the United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities. She has been an ordained minister in the UCC for more than 30 years.

This course is open to all.

Winter's Tales: Finding Spiritual Wisdom in Seasonal Stories - Mondays @ 1PM February 21st - March 7th

Beginning Monday, February 21st from 1 – 2:30PM EST.

Continuing weekly through March 7th, 2022.

What better way to spend time during the winter months than by reading short stories? This brief three-session class will look at the spiritual wisdom in several short stories with “winter” themes. Attendees will enjoy stories from Oscar Wilde, Mary Wilkins Freeman and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Each will be accompanied by works of poetry or brief passages for reflection related to its spiritual themes and lessons. Each participant will receive the stories and readings in plenty of time to read them prior to each session.

Dr. Steven Geitgey is an adjunct faculty member at Epiphany Academy of Formative Spirituality in Pittsburgh, teaching in its spiritual direction certification program as well as leading adult faith formation groups in a variety of ecumenical settings. He has a PhD from Duquesne University focused on spiritual writings from the late medieval and early modern eras, as well as a post-graduate teaching certification in formative spirituality.

Register