In the spirit of Marcus Borg who challenges us to peel back the layers of Christian tradition in order to discover the Reign of God in the teachings of Jesus, this series of lectures will look at the ways Christian tradition over the centuries has transformed the teachings of Jesus into dogmatic teachings and how we can begin to peel back the layers of that tradition in an effort to discover the "real" Jesus of Christianity.
 

Rev. Vernon Meyer, PhD., a former Catholic priest and current United Church of Christ minister, is  Director of the Arizona Center for Theological Studies.
 

January 6: The New Testament in the Life of the Church
Pinnacle Presbyterian Church
25150 N. Pima Rd., Scottsdale  480-585-9449 www.pinnaclepres.org
 

January 13: The Reign of God in Jewish and Christian Understanding
Via de Cristo United Methodist Fellowship 
 7430 E. Pinnacle Peak Rd., Scottsdale   480-515-4490  www.viadecristo.com
 

January 20:  Saving Jesus from the Church
Living Water Lutheran Church
9201 E. Happy Valley Rd., Scottsdale    480-473-8400  www.lwlcaz.org
 

Lectures are Free and Open to the Public
 

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Thursday mornings, January 13, 20, 27, 9:00--11:00 AM

The Great Speeches:
Matthew's Jesus and The Sermon on the Mount

with Rev. Vernon Meyer, Ph.D.
 

Matthew writes to a Jewish Christian community that is being challenged by the new vision of the teachings of Jesus and the Reign of God, and they are being challenged by their desire to hold on to the traditions of Jewish faith.
 

No stranger to controversy, Dr. Meyer is the ideal guide through some of the Biblical material that is at the heart of the New Reformation in Christianity, leaving old dogma behind and embracing the heart of Jesus' message.  The Sermon on the Mount was the transition point between the old and the new for the first disciples: while Jesus is portrayed as the new Moses, his teachings go beyond the conventional traditions and rituals of the day to envision a new Israel.