Information courtesy of our friends from Open Table United Church of Christ in Brownsburg:
“Let’s Talk about …BULLYING: a Christian response to bullying”
Bullies are an unfortunate fact of life at school, at home and many other places. Most people have encountered the bully at some time. The sting of being singled out for humiliation is a painful experience. Gay and lesbian students especially are often targeted by the bully. The result has been psychological damage, alienation of individuals and sometimes even suicide.
“No matter who you are, no matter where you mare on life’s journey, you are welcome here” is the message of the United Church of Christ. Open Table UCC proclaims a Gospel that affirms God’s love for all people regardless of sexual orientation and identity. We affirm that Jesus stood beside the oppressed and the downtrodden and that Jesus stands with the bullied.
Open Table is offering a four week series on bullying that looks at bullying from various perspectives and offers a word of hope for both the bully and the bullied. In the context of a worship experience, we’ll examine Scripture and listen for the wisdom offered there. We’ll hear from those who have been bullied and also those who have a unique perspective on bullying. And we’ll seek ways to understand the bully, why they act as they do and to offer a way out.
The series will be held on the first four Sundays of November. We will meet at the Brownsburg Hampton Inn at 5:00. Here are the topics:
Nov. 2 – “Help me. I’m being bullied.” A local high school student describes her experience as a lesbian.
Nov. 9 – “I’m not really a bully, am I?” Plainfield police detective Alyson Ritter is our guest. She teaches classes on bullying prevention, suicide prevention and bystander intervention.
Nov. 16 – “Forgive that bully? Really!” How do we relate to the bully?
Nov. 23 – “Healing.” Recovery of from bullying is the topic.
Open Table United Church of Christ is a progressive, open and affirming new church exploration of the United Church of Christ.
