Tuesday   

We'll view the films in class together; on the first class period the moderator will lead the dialogue. We'll sign up participants to lead discussion on each of the five upcoming sessions but if you aren't keen to lead a session, this will be an arm twist free environment and we'll have others who can volunteer -- don't let that keep you away from this amazing series and the rich conversations that will follow!

Step beyond the gates and discover cemeteries as places full of stories, history, and beauty. In this four-week course, we will explore cemeteries not as places of sadness, but as meaningful spaces that connect us to people, art, and the past. Together, we’ll uncover the lives behind the headstones, learn to interpret symbols and gravestone art, and share stories that reveal the history of our communities. Through discussion, images, and optional local exploration, you’ll learn how to “read” a cemetery in a whole new way. This course is designed to be engaging, social, and thought-provoking, perfect for anyone interested in history, storytelling, genealogy, or simply seeing familiar places with fresh eyes. No experience needed, just curiosity!

Do you wish you knew more about how to appreciate poetry? This course will help you develop skills to approach reading and interpreting poetry with confidence. We'll discuss and practice reading strategies, from learning to recognize and scan metrical patterns, to placing poems in their historical context. Drawing from primarily the British and American poetic traditions, we'll follow several forms, like the sonnet, from their origins up to present innovations.

The United States is much more religious than European countries, but that is changing. In the 1940s and 50s, the mainline denominations had churches that were packed, and the denominations promoted and taught social justice. Judaism was shaped by the Holocaust, the creation of Israel, and splits within the U.S. community.  The 1960s began a change, both away from the denominations and towards alternatives to Christianity, such as Buddhism and Islam.  Evangelicalism emerged in the Jesus Movement, the charismatic movement, and also in the rise in the South of white evangelicalism.  After 1980, white evangelicalism became increasingly politicized and focused on abortion and distrust of government.  Now, with the second Trump administration, with sexual harassment scandals, and with a public moving away from religion, we are again in times of change.