Upcoming Events

All classes and events will take place online.

Hope and Healing: Mental Health First Aid Training for Rural Churches

With Michelle Snyder, Ashley Ashley, Sean Burns, and Leanna Fuller, Oct. 30, Nov. 6, and Nov. 13, 2020 (Registration deadline: Oct. 22, 2020)

Sin, Racism, and the Challenge of Contemplation Schaff Lectures

With Sarah Coakley, Nov. 10-12, 2020 (Registration deadline: Nov. 7, 2020)

Scenario Planning in Your Church

With James Downey, Nov. 9-Dec. 11, 2020 (Registration deadline: Oct. 25, 2020)

Wise Women and Spirituality Conversations and Community Series

With Barbara Brown Taylor, Lerita Coleman Brown, Mihee Kim-Kort, Carrie Newcomer, Joan Prentice, and Chanequa Walker-Barnes, Monthly Oct. 22, 2020-April 15, 2021

Other Upcoming Events

Click on the image to learn more.

With Mary Lynn Callahan and B.J. Woodworth, Jan. 15, 22, 29, Feb. 5, 12, and 19, 2021

With Jonathan Callard, Jan. 11-Feb. 14, 2021

"Nothing prisons truth so quickly as the assurance that one has found it."

-Christian Wiman

Every so often, when I need a good dose of Scripture inspiration, I ask my colleague, the Rev. Dr. Steven Tuell, what he thinks. And I am never disappointed.

"Steve," I asked him last week, "what Scripture passage do you find yourself drawn to these tumultuous days?" "This is odd, I know," he responded, "but—Daniel 3!" You heard right—the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, tossed into a furnace for refusing to bow before Nebuchadnezzar's nine-story-high statue.

The self-important sovereign, who liked things that were big, flashy, and gold, was incensed and ordered the trio to be tossed into a furnace made "seven times hotter" than usual—so hot, in fact, that the minions who lowered them into the fire were themselves burned to death.

You know how the story ends; our hapless Hebrew heroes were miraculously saved! As Dr. Tuell pointed out, however, "their refusal to obey the Babylonian king is not, as the KJV and RSV translations of their testimony suggest, rooted in their certainty that God would keep them from harm: 'If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us.'" Instead, the NRSV hews more closely to the intent of the original language: "If our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire and out of your hand, O king, let him deliver us. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods and we will not worship the golden statue that you have set up" (Dan. 3:17-18; emphasis mine). They are true to what their faith demands, whether God saves them or not. Even if the wages are death, they will not worship other gods.

We have the benefit of knowing the end of the story—that they emerged without even a singed hair. But as they entered the fiery pit, they had no idea what God’s faithfulness would look like.

Friends, we are not so different from our heroes in Daniel 3. We too are living in fractious times, empire run amok. Like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, daily we are asked to do the right thing and resist the idols of privilege, of violence, of exceptionalism—even if it means risking our own comfort to do so. It is challenging, because we crave certainty. But as Dr. Tuell reminded me, "the Bible doesn’t give [us] that. We can only resolve, whatever comes, that we will not bow down to this idol—that we will resist, and keep resisting."

What hard, right things are you called to do now? What must you resist? What gives you pause, as you consider the tension between what is right and what is comfortable? What gives you strength and hope?

As we turn toward the important decisions that lie ahead for all of us, may we be strengthened in our resolve to do—and proclaim—what is right, living courageously with uncertainty. And, like our heroes, may we do it in good company.

Peace!
Helen Blier
Director, Continuing Education

P.S. Looking for Christ the King Sunday or Advent resources? Pittsburgh Seminary has both! PTS is offering a series of video worship aids for Christ the King Sunday, including liturgy, prayers, and a sermon video specifically for Nov. 22, 2020. We will also have educational curriculum available for you to use throughout Advent. Complete this form to gain access to the Christ the King Sunday resources: www.pts.edu/advent-outreach-project. Our Advent devotionals and other Advent resources are available again this year. See the website for more information: www.pts.edu/devotional.