Seventeen women walked along side biblical storyteller Tracy as she weaved geography, history and scripture to transform the way we understand the women of the Holy Scripture. Dorcas rising  from death came alive on the sandy beach of Jaffa port, Mary Magdalene encountered the risen Christ at the tomb, and Elizabeth felt her son John move in her womb when Mary arrived on the high cliff at Ein Karem.

As the days together progressed we changed from a program of seekers to a community of sisters in faith.  Cathy started a secret Facebook page for sharing, Lu learned to ring the cathedral bells calling us to evening prayer, Wana’s reading of scripture captured the Holy Spirit hovering around us, and Julia shared her amazing gift of song that God truly blessed.

Our hearts are filled with affection for each other and gratefulness for the profound way our faith journey was transformed in the beauty of women narratives who walked with Jesus and encountered God.

The Rev. Dr. Susan Ackley Lukens
Associate Dean, St. Georges College

The College will be offering a set of special programs in the northern Fall (Spring time for our southern alumni, of course) this year.

After returning from our August summer break, we looking forward to welcoming pilgrims for the following courses:

Sep 6–15 | Palestine of Jesus (Year of Matthew) – we still have several places available on this 10 day program

Sep 19–30 | Palestine of Jesus (Year of Matthew) – there is just 1 place remaining on this 12 day program

Oct 4–11 | Introduction to the Bible Lands – we still have several places available on this 8 day program

Oct 14–23 | Living Stones (Peace, Reconciliation and the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem) – we still have several places available on this special 10 day program to be led by Dean Hosam Naoum from St George’s Cathedral.

Oct 25–Nov 1 | Division and Hope in the Holy City (offered in association with the Anglican Centre in Rome) – we still have several places in this special 8 day program, but numbers are restricted to a total of 20 participants.

Nov 4–11 | Introduction to the Bible Lands (Linked Dioceses of Southwark and Zimbabwe) – 20 people from London and 20 people from Zimbabe will share this special 8 day program in Jerusalem.

Nov 15–24 | Palestine of Jesus (Year of Matthew) – we still have several places available on this 10 day program

Please make these opportunities widely known, and join us yourself for any of these programs that especially interest you.

Details of future programs in the Winter of 2016/17 and throughout 2017 are available on the College Calendar.

The Jerusalem Ministry Formation Program offers ordinands an opportunity to participate in a short program to engage with Scripture in the context of the biblical lands, and to reflect on the dynamics of their future ministry as Deacons and Priests in the company of peers from around the Anglican Communion. Special attention is given to questions of Anglican identity, as well as to biblical hermeneutics for mission in both post-colonial and Western secular contexts.

Some bursaries and scholarships are available to assist ordinands from a diverse range of contexts to participate in this program.

Course Objectives

The Jerusalem Ministry Formation Program requires participants to have completed the equivalent of one year full-time theological studies, and will assume knowledge of introductory biblical studies, theology and church history. It will offer participants an opportunity to:

• engage with Scripture in the context of the biblical lands
• reflect on the intersection of text, location and political context
• practice and refine personal hermeneutical skills
• engage with peers from other parts of the Anglican Communion
• engage with Palestinian Christians as well as with Jewish and Muslim perspectives
• refine their sense of Anglican identity and mission in the global context

Faculty

The teaching team for the Jerusalem Ministry Formation Program will be drawn from staff of St George’s College Jerusalem along with Visiting Professors from Anglican seminaries and colleges around the world.

The Living Stones: Peace, Reconciliation and the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem
Dates: October 14, 2016 to October 23, 2016

The ancient stones of this land have captivated adventurers, archaeologists, and pilgrims.

The sacred texts that shape our spiritual imagination are illuminated by an encounter with the ‘Fifth Gospel’, the land of the Holy One.

But the real treasures of the Church in this land are the living stones, the faithful women and men who live out their faith day by day in very challenging circumstances as a minority within a minority.

In this 10-day program you will visit selected sites in Israel, Palestine and Jordan to see the diversity and the vitality of the Anglican Church in this land of promise.

Highlights of the program include:

• 7 nights in Jerusalem
• 2 nights in Nazareth
• 1 night in Amman
• Princess Basma Center, East Jerusalem
• Holy Land Institute for the Deaf, Salt (Jordan)
• Ministry with Syrian refugees at St Paul’s, Ashrafiyeh (Amman)

Join us for this special program of pilgrimage, solidarity, and witness led by Fr Hosam Naoum, Dean of St George’s Cathedral, Jerusalem.

Dr Robert Heaney, Director of the Center for Anglican Communion Studies at Virginia Theological College will serve as a Visiting Professor for this program and help us to reflect on the significance of the Christian community in the Holy Land for the wider Anglican Communion.

Register now to secure your place in this very special program.

This year the Anglican Centre in Rome (ACR) is celebrating 50 years since its foundation in 1966. In collaboration with ACR, St George’s College Jerusalem is offering a special program of ecumenical studies in Jerusalem, the Holy City.

Division and Hope in the Holy Land: Learnings from Rome and Jerusalem
October 25, 2016 to November 1, 2016

This 8-day course will focus on Christian diversity and ecumenism, within the unique context of Jerusalem with its rich mixture of Christian communities.

The program will combine sessions that explore the ecumenical councils and the historical divisions of the church, with visits to several of the 13 official churches in Jerusalem, opportunities to participate in varied liturgies, as well as visits holy sites and charitable institutions. The course will address the main issues in the ecumenical dialogue, the challenges shared by Christian churches today, the differences that divide, and the hope for greater strength in unity.

Through this program, participants will:

• Encounter the rich diversity of the Christian communities in the Jerusalem and the Holy Land;
• Explore the cultural, historical and theological factors that created and sustain this diversity;
• Express our solidarity with the minority Christian communities in societies with Muslim and Jewish majorities;
• Visit the major holy sites for the Christian communities in Jerusalem; and
• Witness the ministry of the churches to people in need.

The program includes two nights in Jordan, which is an integral part of the Holy Land.

Numbers are restricted to 20 persons. Register now to ensure your place in this unique program.

The course will be led by Archbishop David Moxon, Director of the ACR, and Canon Gregory Jenks, Dean of St George’s College. The course team will include Dom Henry Wansbrough and Bishop Jonathan Goodall, with input from other staff of the College and local scholars.