LEADER’S NOTES

ROOTS OF FAITH

Session 1 – Encountering Jesus

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Style Workshop

Key Point The roots of our faith lie in the Bible, in our shared traditions,
in the use of our reason – and in the experience of
encountering Jesus.

Key Skill Reflection

Prepare Imagine you are in a book club. The book this month is Mark’s
Gospel. Read it through like a novel.

Prepare some notes for the club meeting: what sort of book is
it; what’s the plot and who are the key characters; where is
the turning point in the story; what grabbed you…?

Bring Course notes

Pen & paper
Bible

Leader’s Select an ice-breaker

Preparation Review the PowerPoint charts
Prepare flip-charts for noting participant input:
• Brainstorm activity
• Individual reflection questions
• The different genres of biblical writing
Prepare a contact sheet including your own details

Early warning note:

You will benefit considerably in Session 5 from having
obtained and started to read:

In the Beginning – Henri Blocher

Through the Bible in 80 days – David Cooke

Leader’s Paper & pens

Checklist Flip chart & pens
Data projector, computer & screen
Range of Bible study guides
Bible and concordance
Prepare a contact sheet including your own details

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Name badges / place cards to be completed

Handouts:
• HANDOUT 1 Mark’s Gospel in Five Acts
• HANDOUT 2 Roots Reflection
• HANDOUT 3 Reading Suggestions

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Session Session 1 – Encountering Jesus

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Flow

Welcome Introductions

Activity Ground rules

Brainstorm and agree a set of ground rules that will apply for
the duration of this module.

Input Overview of the Module

The “Roots of Faith” provides an opportunity to look at the main

Module foundations of the Christian faith: the Bible, tradition, reason
and experience; and reflect on what they mean for us today.
The module comprises 5 sessions:
• Encountering Jesus
• Encountering Passover
• Encountering God in the Bible
• The Bible in Conflict
• The Bible – so what?

The Tool The aim of the module is to identify with a “Personal Biblical
story or phrase.”

Style Informal, lots of different learning styles (listening, talking,

discussion, video clips, small and large group work, individual
reflection).

Resources This module makes use of:

• Reading & viewing suggestions
• A written reflection

Participants are encouraged to select from the reading list

early in the module.

Reflection The Reflection for this module consists of writing a reflection

about the Bible. Session five of the course will focus on
reflection-writing and give individual help. Choose one of the
topics on HANDOUT 2 Roots Reflections.

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Ice Jesus – the story

Breaker

Leader’s Suggestion 1: The book club

Notes Run a ‘book club’ discussion on Mark’s Gospel

Suggestion 2: First encounters

Ø Ask the group to divide into pairs and share some first
experiences of the Bible.
o When did they first become aware of the Bible?
o When did they get their first Bible?
o Who gave it to them?
o What stories or passages first made an impression?

Overview This session looks at how we read the Bible. It asks:

of • What are we dealing with?
Session • How should we deal with it?
• What can we learn from it?

Activity Encountering Jesus

Think about the story of Jesus in the Gospels.

What is it that moves you most about the story of Jesus?

Don’t worry if you can’t identify particular verses, chapters or
particular gospels; you can just note “that bit where x
happens”.

Share thoughts about what we find difficult about Jesus.

Leader’s Encountering Jesus

Notes
Ø Lead a brainstorm with the whole group on the topic: what
are the top two most moving bits of the story of Jesus in
the gospels?

Examples: the story of his birth; the simple trust of the

shepherds who followed the angels and “were not afraid”; the
tenderness of Jesus’ concern for others in healing the sick and
shedding tears at the plight of others; Jesus’ courage in facing
his persecutors; the picture of Jesus in the sermon on the
mount; the compelling tenderness of Jesus invitation to others
(and to us) to “come follow me”.

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Ø Write up all suggestions, whether verses, chapters or

particular gospels, or simply "that bit where x happens".

Note: Some stories only appear in one gospel. The story of the
woman caught in adultery, for example, appears only in John’s
gospel.

Ø Lead a conversation about who likes which story best.

Ø Share thoughts about what we find difficult about Jesus. To

some of us, Jesus sometimes seems rather harsh with the
Pharisees or with those whom he castigates.

Activity Individual reflection

"When I close my eyes and picture myself as a disciple of
Jesus, the picture of Jesus that comes to mind is...."

"This picture is important to me because..."

Hold on to these thoughts.

Leader’s Individual reflection

Notes
Ø Spend 2-3 minutes leading a reflection on the two phrases
Ø Ask participants to jot down some thoughts, and hold on to
them

Note: They might help in our prayer before the end of the
evening.

Input Introduction to the gospels

Remember that the word gospel, evangelion, is used in two

senses. We sometimes speak of the ‘gospel’ as referring to
either Matthew, Mark or John’s gospel. But when Jesus speaks
of the ‘gospel’ (in Mark) He is not referring to the written
gospels but to the ‘good news’ that Jesus proclaimed and is
reflected in all the four gospels.

The word gospel, in Greek, evangelion, means ‘good news’.

So when Mark’s gospel begins with the words evangelion it is a
proclamation of the good news that Jesus Christ, Son of God
is now with us and that the kingdom of God is at hand.

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We shall begin our examination of the gospels by exploring

Mark’s gospel, the shortest and most probably the first to be
written - shortly before AD 70, nearly 40 years after Jesus’
death.

We can look at the gospel in five sections, or five acts, a bit

like a Shakespeare play! There is no one ‘right way’ of seeing
the structure - see HANDOUT 1 for one approach to looking at
Mark as a 5-act play.

Reflection Spend a few minutes in silence. Let us remember what we

most treasure in Jesus’ story and in Jesus’ journey. Let us tell
God what we find most difficult about Jesus.

Let us treasure the fact that one of the foundations of our

faith is our own deeply personal encounter with Jesus who
calls us to him…. Risen, ascended, glorified.

Leader’s Introduction to the gospels

Notes
Ø Discuss the meaning of the word ‘gospel’

Ø Review the structure and story of Mark using the structure

offered (see notes below).

Ø Afterwards, allow time for silent reflection

This approach is accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation

and uses the following structure:

Act 1. Mk 1:1 to 3:12 Proclamation

Act 2. Mk 3:13 to 6:6 Discipleship - identity
Act 3. Mk 6:7 to 8:26 Discipleship -
authority
Act 4. Mk 8:27 to 10:52 Discipleship - sacrifice
Act 5. Mk 11:1 to end Passion

Coffee
Break

Leader’s See optional topics on PowerPoint presentation

Notes

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Input Encountering the Bible – content, context and authorship

If our experience of an encounter with Jesus is one foundation

of our faith, another is sacred scripture, the Bible. The four
gospels have a particular importance because they contain
virtually all the evidence we have for the events of Jesus’ life
and his teaching.

Christians believe that sacred scripture has a foundational

importance for faith. But we need to remember that the faith
of the Church came before the writing of the gospels. Indeed
it was the Church that decided which books constituted the
Bible and should be regarded as “canonical”, guided always,
inspired indeed, by the Holy Spirit.

We shall examine the gospels critically. That doesn’t mean

attempting to deny their importance. On the contrary, it
means using our reasoning and our skills, as well as our hearts,
in trying to understand them more fully.

Telling the story in their own circumstances

The four gospels do not attempt to tell the story of Jesus in a
complete chronological sense and there are some acute
differences between the accounts given in the four gospels,
particularly in John’s gospel.

As well as telling the story of Jesus, the gospels also met the
needs of particular congregations or communities in which
each of the four gospel accounts emerged.

The authors of the gospels re-interpreted earlier traditions

about Jesus to make them particularly relevant to their
circumstances. This is particularly true of Matthew and John. It
is also what we, as disciples, are asked to do in our own time
and circumstances.

Changing historical ideas about the gospels

The Gospels as Biography

In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries there was a
tendency to regard the gospels as biographies of Jesus which
would differ in the same way that biographies of the same
person by different authors would vary.

Form Criticism
But by the 1930s there was a reaction against the biographical
approach. This new approach, sometimes called ‘form
criticism’ had Rudolf Bultmann as its most famous exponent.

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‘Form’ referred to the particular ‘forms’ or blocks of writing

that make up the text. It was claimed that the gospel texts
seem to comprise many blocks of writing, for example, about
miracles, healing stories, proclamations by Jesus, which are all
rather mixed up. They were arranged, according to ‘form
criticism’, to suit the needs of the early church. They might
tell us a few things about the historical Jesus; but primarily,
they proclaim the risen, living Christ.

Redaction Criticism
More recently, something called ‘redaction criticism’ has
stressed what each evangelist has done with the texts and
traditions which were before them.

Matthew, for example, modified and re-arranged parts of

Mark’s gospel to make particular theological points. He
produced a new edition or ‘redaction’ of the gospel.

Narrative Criticism
Biographies, forms, and redactions all have their place in
critical approaches to the gospels. More recently, narrative
criticism has stressed the literary skills of each gospel
evangelist in constructing a particular literary arrangement.

Viewing Mark’s gospel as a Shakespearean drama in five acts

can be seen as an example of narrative criticism:
• The text handout was adapted from Graham Stanton’s
book, The Gospels and Jesus, Oxford University Press,
1989.
• The PowerPoint handout was developed by one of the
course tutors.

Leader’s Encountering the Bible

Notes Ø Teach about the different forms of biblical criticism using
the participants’ notes above. Further background is in the
leaders’ notes below:

Notes
One major difficulty in understanding the gospels is that they
are not very direct about the context in which they were
written in the way that Paul is, for example. He is quite
explicit in his letter to the Corinthians about the conflict that
had emerged in the Church in Corinth and about how he
wished to solve it.

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A small example of contextual change is apparent in the

gospels of Matthew and Luke. In Mark’s gospel, chapter 8:34
there is a sentence: “if any man would come after me, let him
deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.” In Luke’s
gospel, the phrase “each day” has been added to stress the
need for daily self-denial on the part of a Christian disciple,
presumably because this was an important lesson for the
church of Luke to learn.

It might be helpful to briefly review some changing ideas about

the gospels.

Form Criticism
The gospels, it was claimed, are primarily constructions of the
early church in addressing the catechetical needs of the early
Christian communities. They made use of an oral preaching
tradition which existed at the time and they might tell us a
few things about the historical Jesus; but primarily, they
proclaim the risen, living Christ.

Redaction Criticism
It has been recognised that ‘form criticism’ underestimated
how much biography of Jesus there actually is in the gospels.
Justin Martyr, writing in the early second century, for one,
regarded the gospels as “memoirs of the apostles.”

Furthermore, ‘form criticism’ did not pay much attention to

the relationships between the four gospels. More recently,
something called ‘redaction criticism’ has stressed what each
evangelist has done with the texts and traditions which were
before them. For example, Matthew took Marks’s account of
journey of the disciples in a boat and altered it slightly to
make the disciples in the boat refer to ‘the Church’.

Narrative Criticism
Use the example provided of ‘Mark’s Gospel in 5 Acts’ to use as
an illustration of narrative criticism

Activity Different genres

The Bible is made up of many different styles of writing. Each

style works in a different way.
• Some sections of Paul's letters, or the ‘rules for priests’
in Leviticus 21, are in a teaching style, designed to give
practical guidance on behaviour and life-style.

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• Books like I and 2 Samuel and the Gospels contain

history, giving us accounts of things that happened and
the order in which they happened, as they appeared to
and were interpreted by the writer at the time.
• Isaiah is a book of prophecy, commenting on the events
of the day from God's perspective.
• The Psalms are a collection of religious poetry,
expressing emotions and beliefs (a bit like our modern-
day Songs of Fellowship!)

Where might the following different styles or genres be found

in the Bible?

Instruction
Wise sayings
History
Lament*
Oracle or prophecy
Hymn
Story
Poetry
Myth**
Letter

Notes:
*Lament is not a common form of expression in our
Christian culture today. It enables the writer and reader
to say that things are awful and to cry out to God. The
fact that this is included in the Bible shows that saying
things are not OK is a legitimate form of Christian
discourse. The Bible also includes uncertainty and
questions and is best understood as charting the journey
of God with God's people, as the people of the time
understood it.

** ‘Myth’ does not mean that these accounts are untrue.

Rather 'myth' means an ancient story from the mists of
time that a culture has traditionally used to understand
itself.

Leader’s Different genres

Notes Ø Ask the group to suggest where the following different
styles or genres might be found in the Bible:

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Instruction (Paul's letters, Leviticus and Numbers)

Wise sayings (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes)
History (Genesis 12+, Kings, Chronicles)
Lament* (Lamentations)
Oracle or prophecy (Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Revelation)
Hymn (Psalms, Mary's song in Luke 2)
Story (Gospels, Acts, Exodus)
Poetry (Genesis 1, Song of Songs, Psalms...)
Myth** (Genesis 2-11)
Letter (Pastoral letters, Paul's letters)

This Reflection:
Week Choose one of the topics from HANDOUT 2 Roots Reflection,
and make notes that are important to that topic from today’s
session.

Preparation:
Check out next week’s notes
Read Exodus chapter 12:1–13:16, and the letter to the
Galatians
Read the account of the Last Supper in all four gospels

Next Bring a Bible with you

Week

Leader’s Ø Introduce the Module Reflection in HANDOUT 2 suggesting

Notes the participants consider which Reflection they will
undertake

Ø Remind participants about

• Individual reflection on chosen topic
• Notes about this session for feedback
• What to bring next time

Ø Close in prayer

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ROOTS OF FAITH

Participants’ Contact Details

_____________________________________________

Name Email address Phone Share?

e.g. Leader’s Name leader.name@mailserver.dom (mobile pref) OK

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LEADER’S VERSION