New Resource For Bible Study With The Bishops

I happened to take a look at the Lambeth Conference web site during lunch today and found that they have posted the booklet of Bible studies that

are designed to complement the Bible studies which the bishops of the Anglican Communion (and their spouses) will be participating in during the Lambeth Conference 2008. (from the Introduction, p. 1)

Titled Signs on the Way: Bible Studies for the Anglican Communion in the Year of the Lambeth Conference, the booklet focuses on the signs in the Gospel of John. The bishops and their spouses will study the "I am" sayings in John's Gospel. The same team of people wrote both studies. In their introduction they say

We hope that they will be used by clergy and lay people throughout the Anglican Communion to join in spirit with their bishops as the bishops prepare for, and engage in, and return from the Lambeth Conference... They can be used in a number of different ways. Perhaps a local church group might wish to work through them, perhaps one or more of the studies might be explored at a diocesan meeting, or perhaps individuals might like to use them for their own personal devotion and as a way of praying for and supporting their bishops. (p. 1)

The introduction ends:

So we invite you to travel with these Bible studies through the Gospel of John using the signs as signposts for your own journey. As you do we would ask you to pray for all bishops and others preparing for the Lambeth Conference, with its particular focus on enabling bishops as leaders in God's mission in the Church. Such a vocation is both awe-ful and joyful. Such a calling, John's Gospel suggests, requires us to be willing to follow Jesus closely, and through following to discover our true home in him. (p. 2)

The design of the studies themselves is fairly standard.

• Open with prayer
• Read the passage
• Reflect silently
• Discuss some questions
• End with prayer

Some of the individual studies provide a brief commentary to read before answering questions, and questions throughout the booklet are often followed by brief notes to deepen understanding and facilitate further discussion. Occasionally, the notes direct participants to other Scripture passages to read in connection with the passage from John being discussed. You could probably complete each session in an hour, but a group might also spend longer on the studies.

All-in-all, pretty standard stuff. The appeal here is that you would be participating along with other Anglicans around the world and praying with them for the bishops meeting at Lambeth.

The booklet is available as a download, which can be found here.

Peace,
Jeffri