Life is the great inexplicable. Who is it who will explain this mystery to us? Clearly, it is the artists and thinkers who gather together meaning. Art is that which "houses" what it is to be human. This is what Heidegger has taught us, that it is art which records the successive iterations of human existence. With Heidegger, we will learn to see the arts as snapshots of unfolding, successive eras, one following upon the next, each different but, however same. Call it, if you may, a rumble in the jungle of thought (shout out to M. Ali) In short we will meditate on the arts, inviting the "from whence" to address us. (shout out to Heidegger) Readings: handouts, some art. $5 fee.

Surprising, shocking, and downright radical! Study Jesus’ parables of the kingdom of heaven in their cultural and scriptural context. Unvarnished understandings of familiar scriptures will give added meaning for today’s living – our relationship with each other and with God. Ten discussion-based 80-minute sessions. Bring your Bible. Worksheets will be provided.

What do you love? Seminar-style, the project will incorporate class conversations about student experiences with love and hope in a shared society as well as stories about civility heroes now and in the past. Examples include James Baldwin, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Robin Wall Kimmerer, Wendell Berry, and others. Answering a call for action .... something as simple as planting and appreciating a tree to counter the ecological crisis? "The text is "Love's Braided Dance" by Norman Wirzba, published by Yale University Press, 2024, {157 pp.) available at Amazon.