Our regular policy is to maintain six months of Adult Education class recordings. During the pandemic we have extended this time period. Below you will find content going back to January 2020 in reverse chronological order. Contact the church office for earlier classes.
January 2022 Classes (begins 1/9/22)
Faith ‘n Technology
From phones to drones; cars to mars, technology is reshaping, indeed, remaking the worlds we live in. But what can our ancient and analog faith offer such brave new futures? January’s all-ages class will plug into the big questions about belief in the digital age. Gather around as we ask, should we have faith in technology?
Previous Adult Education Classes
Advent 2021 (Nov. 28 – Dec. 19)
Advent in…
From the Annunciation to the Alleluias, Advent is a season of Anticipation. In music, art, movement and speech, we look forward to the birth of Christ. Come, Lord Jesus!
Fall 2021 Linked In Learning (Oct 17 – Nov 21)
Together Again: Biblical Stories of Reunion and Reconciliation
As we slowly return to cooperate worship and gatherings within our own community, come explore how earlier generations of believers have learned from and experienced reunion. Listen to familiar stories of redemption and reconciliation as well as ones where reunion is stalled, avoided, or only anticipated.
October 2021 Classes
Emerging Leaders of the Church
Come meet the next generation of leaders for the church and academy. We are excited to introduce three seminary students on three distinct educational paths. Learn how they are combining their unique skills and background with their training at Princeton Theological Seminary to become our pastors, professors, and Christian leaders.
September 2021 Classes
September 12 & 19, 2021 | Keri Day
Azusa Reimagined: What this revival teaches us today.
July & August 2021
The Adult Education Committee is offering us all a sabbatical for the balance of the summer. We’ll meet again, hopefully in person, in September.
June 2021 Classes
June 6 & 13, 2021 | Cam Stout with Len Scales
The Symbiosis of Mental Health, Faith, and Self-Care
Join Cam Stout and Len Scales for a two-part discussion on the powerful opportunity faith communities have to support mental health and attack stigma.
June 20 & 27, 2021 | Rubén Arjona
Erik Erikson’s Life Cycle Theory
The German-American psychologist Erik H. Erikson is well-know for his psychosocial theory of human development. Erikson posited that in addition to paying attention to the psychological and physiological dimensions, caregivers ought to also consider the social processes of a person’s life. Erikson is also famous for his formulation of the life stages of human life. At Princeton Theological Seminary, Professor Donald Capps dedicated many years to reflect on the significance of Erikson’s theory for pastoral care.
These two classes offer an overview of Erikson’s theory and its relevance for personal and collective self-reflection.
On Life’s Journey
May 9, 16 & 23, 2021 | Princeton Presbyterians
Princeton Presbyterians of the Westminster Foundation is a non-profit organization committed to the faithful discipleship of undergraduate and graduate students in Princeton. Andrew & Len Scales have been serving as the Presbyterian Chaplains at Princeton University and Executive Co-Directors of the Westminster Foundation for the last five years. In their role, they also serve as adjunct pastors at Nassau Presbyterian. Nassau is a long-term partner of the Westminster Foundation and continues to make the ministry of Princeton Presbyterians possible.
Over three weeks in May, hear from current students and young alumni about their connections with Princeton Presbyterians and the impact of faith on their vocational paths. We travel together “On Life’s Journey.”
Lectio Divina
April 25 & May 2, 2021 | Bo Karen Lee
St. Benedict introduced the church to a rich form of Scripture meditation called lectio divina, but Ignatius of Loyola in the 16th C. added imaginative depth to the practice, which we would like to share with you. Come join us for guided meditations around various passages that invite you to see, hear, taste, touch and smell the sights and sounds of Scripture.
April 2021 Classes
Descriptions below.
April 18, 2021 | Villages in Partnership
Transformational Travel: Lessons from Malawi
Hear Nassau Church’s own Stephanie and Maddie Patterson, Carla Tuan, and Bob Wells reflect on experiencing life together with our brothers and sisters living in the materially impoverished but spiritually rich villages of Malawi, Africa, in a panel discussion moderated by Aaron Shaver from Nassau’s Mission Partner, Villages in Partnership (VIP).
April 11 | Arm In Arm
This is Home
ArminArm has modeled resilience and an unwavering commitment to the community it serves this past year. Last month, they created a compelling video celebration lifting up the volunteers and mission of their organization titled, This Is Home, A Celebration of Home and a Triumph of Community. Learn about the adaptive and innovative methods employed to strengthen their support of at-risk families and individuals. The clip includes an interview with Dr. Matthew Desmond, Pulitzer Prize winning author of “Evicted.”
April 4 | Jason Oosting
The Art of Easter
Jason Oosting returns for a special Easter Sunday Adult Education offering! Learn about works of art that help us consider the theology, meaning and significance of the resurrection of our Lord in a new way. Jason specializes in examining unconventional depictions of an ancient story and reflecting on what these works can teach about our life of faith.
February 21-March 28
Presence in Absence: The Departed Jesus Who Remains
A striking feature of the Gospel of John is how frequently Jesus announces his impending departure from “this world.” These statements bewilder the crowds and worry his disciples. In his lengthy conversation with his disciples on the eve of his arrest, however, Jesus makes the seemingly contradictory claim that his departure ensures his ongoing presence among them. Join us for our Lenten study on this provocative, fascinating, and ultimately encouraging message Jesus delivers to his disciples in John 13-17.
January 10 & 17, February 7 & 14 2021
On Life’s Journey
The January inter-generational all ages sessions continue with a twist. Instead of featuring content geared towards youth, this year’s content is our youth. For four Sundays, listen to former Nassau youth (now young adults) talk about how their years and experiences with Nassau Presbyterian Church helped direct them on the journey of life.
January 24 & 31 2021
Focus on Mass Incarceration
Teaching on the Inside: Lessons from the New Testament and Sing Sing Prison
Drawing on his experience of teaching in the Ossining Correctional Facility, also known as Sing Sing Prison, Efrain Agosto shares his experience of teaching the Christian Bible to the diverse population of a correctional facility. Themes of empire, justice, forgiveness, reconciliation, and community take on new meaning. He will also share insights gained regarding what life is like for the incarcerated.
Thinking Outside the Cell: Peril and Possibilities in the World of Mass Incarceration
The United States incarcerates more people per capita (and in volume) than any other country. Join us for a brief overview of the mass incarceration system in our country. The history and statistics are sobering. But we will also discuss one promising trend that seeks to address this crisis, the “Higher Education in Prison” initiative, and look at encouraging examples of this initiative at work.
January 3 | Holley & Eric Barreto
Food & Faith
How does understanding the connection between ethnic identity, food, and faith help us understand our place in the story of Scripture? Food is central to who we are as people. The act of eating is a daily, communal, formational experience. Eating together teaches us who and whose we are.
Advent 2020
The Art of Advent
In this four part series, Jason Oosting will lead us in an exploration of works of art that will help us consider not only who and what we’re waiting for this Advent, but also how we’re waiting. Looking at paintings such as Breugel’s “Census at Bethlehem,” Leonardo’s “The Annunciation,” and Friedrich’s “Abbey in the Oak Forest,” we’ll investigate the people God chooses to work through and how we respond to God’s call, imagine how the moments leading up to the birth of Christ speak to our current context, and reflect on the symbolic meaning of many of the objects that we see both in paintings and all around us this time of year.
October 18-November 22, 2020
The Psalms and the Life of Faith in 2020: Praise, Sorrow, Curse
John Calvin called the Psalms an anatomy of all parts of the soul. Martin Luther called the Psalms the Little Bible. This six-week series will discuss the Psalms and their role in the life of faith—ancient Israel’s and our own. Hymns of praise, psalms of lament, thanksgiving songs, and cursing psalms will be treated as a detailed anatomy of the soul and as an entry point from the little Bible to the big one.
September 2020
Descriptions below.
September 27 | Jim McCloskey in conversation with Dave Davis
When Truth Is All You Have
Jim McCloskey, founder of Centurion, joins Pastor Dave Davis in a conversational interview about Jim’s new book When Truth Is All You Have: A Memoir of Faith, Justice, and Freedom for the Wrongly Convicted. Tune in for this meaningful discussion about the theological foundation of Jim’s work.
September 20 | Len & Andrew Scales
Princeton Presbyterians
Len and Andrew Scales, Presbyterian Chaplains at Princeton University and Executive Co-Directors of the Westminster Foundation will share ways they’ve seen God at work through the Princeton Presbyterians campus ministry. Learn about what theologically grounds the ministry, and hear from a few undergraduate leaders about why they love Princeton Presbyterians.
September 13 | David Fox
Arm in Arm: Partnering in a Pandemic
David Fox feels honored to serve Arm In Arm and is grateful for the opportunity to combine his theological studies and experience serving the suffering in this Adult Education offering.
July 2020
Descriptions below.
July 5 | Larry Stratton
Least Dangerous Branch? US Supreme Court’s 2019-2020 Term
Alexander Hamilton famously wrote that the judiciary “will always be the least dangerous” branch to the “political rights of the Constitution; because it will be least in a capacity to annoy or injure them” Federalist Papers, #78. This session explores highlights and themes from the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2019-2020 term involving cases dealing with the electoral college, congressional oversight of the executive, the free exercise of religion and contraceptive mandates, and the 1964 Civil Rights Act and sexual orientation and transgender status discrimination. The survey will consider the arguments, personalities, and political dynamics of the Court as the Justices wrestle with these critical constitutional issues.
July 12 | Mark Herr
2020 is always hindsight, except when it’s not.
The fifth presidential election of the 21st Century: what a long, strange, trip it’s been.
The 2020 presidential election was launched in late 2017 when the first Democratic candidate declared and featured the greatest numbers of Democratic challengers in 100 years. The primary campaign has had more lead changes than an Indianapolis 500 and a surprise guest in the coronavirus pandemic. Add it all together, and you get the most intriguing race since . . . 2016. As the Talking Heads once asked, “How did we get here?”
June 2020
The Church in Times of Crisis
May 2020
Acts and Imagination – Acts of Imagination
April 2020
Stories from the Gospel of John
Lent 2020
The Shape of Salvation in the Gospel of Luke
Come explore the Shape of Salvation in the Gospel of Luke this Lent. In Luke’s narrative, Jesus preaches salvation for all who believe in him. But what does salvation mean? Is it only a future hope or possibly a present reality? What are Jesus’ followers saved from? And what are they (and we) saved to?
Join us each Sunday morning as Eric Barreto leads us through the Gospel of Luke, examining not only the Biblical and historical context of Luke’s narrative of Jesus’ life and ministry but also its timely and timeless impact on our lives today.
This series began in person (audio only) and moved to video on March 15 when we closed the church building. We thank Professor Barreto for his ability to quickly and so successfully switch to this new form of teaching.
February 2020
Incarceration, Race, and Restoration
As Christians, we are called to be a part of God’s transformative work of peace, justice, and reconciliation in the world, yet we live in a country with the highest incarceration rate in the world: despite making up close to 5% of the global population, the U.S. has nearly 25% of the world’s prison population. Join us to learn more about crime and punishment in our time, as we consider how we might be part of God’s transformative work.
January 2020
Trees of the Bible
The Bible is a forest, but we don’t need to feel lost. This January, our All Ages Class (middle school to adults) will return as we spend four weeks finding our way by looking at classic stories of “Trees of the Bible.” From Genesis to Revelation we will see how God’s redemptive plan for the world is rooted in these stories, one tree at a time.
