And the winner is . . .

Two posts ago, I asked what sounded especially good to you from a list of courses being offered this summer. Several of you spoke up. Thanks. I really enjoyed hearing what you thought. I don't know if it was a "Great minds think alike" thing, or what. But to a one, your comments matched up with what I'd been turning over in my mind too. Anyway, I've decided to take the course "Foremothers in Faith: Women in the Hebrew Scriptures," taught by Dr. Carolyn Sharp. Here are some reasons, in no particular order:

First, the class taught by Christopher Beeley, "Pastoral Ministry in the Classical Tradition," is the one I took last summer. It was a great course. And I didn't flunk.

Second, over the years I've become more and more of an Old Testament person. And this course is about women in the OT. Oh, and I like women too.

Third, Dr. Sharp has already posted a reading list and daily schedule for her class. I like it when an instructor has a plan and a destination in mind.

Fourth, my sense is that the important women of the Bible haven't always gotten the attention they deserve in Christian teaching and preaching. I'm all for the transition from "Faith of our fathers" to "Faith of our parents."

Fifth, it's safe to say that there will be some card-carrying feminists in the class. I've discovered that I'm much more "Christian" in how I think about and how I treat a certain perspective if I actually know someone else who espouses it. (I know, the word "spouse" is in there, which could be all kinds of fun).

Don't you think the world would be
more of what God wants it to be
if more people who don't agree
would just spend a few days together?

I do. Next summer: Spelunking with Osama bin Laden!