Class Reflection for Wednesday Week 10

Last Wed.  was the last class and I appreciated the discussion about what we’ve learned.  Since I’m at the end of my seminary career, the way I defined the Kingdom and the church’s mission on the first day of class and on last Wed. was not all that different.  Right before I took Dr. Bolger’s class, I took a class with Dr. Beaton, where in fact, many of the same issues came up, and where we talked about what the Kingdom was…what Jesus was trying to do in the first place etc..but this class has really helped me nonetheless.  In fact, I think its because I am taking it at the end of my studies that it’s particulary helpful.  Although I may have been able to come up with the right words before to describe the Kingdom, these words didn’t carry the same weight with me as they do now…these words are more rooted in my own personal theology now…..these words have more meaning to me.  Like many people in the class, I sometimes struggled with the free-form format…the lack of strict lectures, and the  sense that the class was low on content.  But the readings were great, and it was definately worthwhile to discuss the readings in groups…to chew on them.  I think Dr. Bolger proved himself to be right when he let us know the method to his madness….we won’t really be able to appropriate what we learn unless we do something ourselves with the material…instead of just being passive recipients of the material.  And trying to see how these things work out in a concrete situation is great…although difficult for me.  I tend to exsist comfortably in the abstract in school…although ministry and the church is very important to me.  So of all the “practical” ministry classes that I’ve had in seminary, this one may prove to be the most influential for me…I’m really planning on using my case study to begin something new at my church…and I can’t say that I’ve felt that way for other case studies that I’ve done at Fuller.