Ask a group of Sunday School teachers why they first began teaching, and you are likely to get a variety of responses. “My child’s class needed a teacher.” “The Christian Education Director talked me into it.” “I enjoy working with children/youth/adults.” “I don’t remember.”

 In an age when nearly everyone has access to the web, thereby having access to huge amounts of content related to the Bible, faith, Christianity, doctrine, progressive theology, and much more, what place do Christian education classes (e.g. Sunday school)--especially for adults--still have?

Not all that long ago, pastors and Sunday school teachers were the repositories of religious knowledge. In reality, they often simply just had the study guide! But still, there was an expectation that the teacher would generally have more information at their fingertips that they would impart to the students. At least two developments radically changed that.

Last Monday, Tim wrote about community. Sunday School teachers are a community of individuals who have all agreed (or been encouraged) to teach. One of the values of holding a teacher training session at the beginning of each year (even if all of your teachers have taught Sunday School before) is establishing the identity of these individuals as a group. Here are some ideas to promote connections between your teachers throughout the year.

Facebook, used daily by millions of people around the world, has yet to turn a profit. One of their new attempts to generate revenue is to take their classified ads to a new level—social networking. For example, an individual may list something she is selling with all of the proceeds going to Kiva (a microenterprise loan organization). Her facebook friends or those interested in the item for sale may, as a result, learn about Kiva and discover common hobbies and concerns.

At the website 29 Gifts, the concept of personal sharing becomes a communal experience...

Sometimes simple little things are big things. Today I offer four easy suggestions. None of these are rocket science. (That’s a topic for another day…) They are, however, practices to implement as reminders that the stories and teachings upon which we base our faith are found in the Bible.

When it comes to your adult education ministries, sometimes it's just as important to help your congregation understand why you offer educational opportunities for adults as it is to advertise what your congregation is doing.

Here's a quick little blurb I have used in a church newsletter for this purpose. (Unfortunately, I no longer have a note that indicates whether I originally wrote it or whether I borrowed/adapted it from somewhere. If you recognize it, please let me know so I may give credit where it's due!) This pretty succinctly states what I believe to be true about adult educational ministries. I encourage you to write your own statement which fits your own congregation and your vision for Christian education.

Until I visited Israel in person, I never truly understood the importance of geography to a better understanding of the biblical narrative. Now, a few years after my trip, what sticks in my mind more than anything is the geography.

It is unfortunate that maps are usually relegated to the back of the Bible, if they are present at all. The best Bibles have at least ten pages of maps and diagrams; my favorite Bible has 19! Why? The history of the land of Israel is a history of tribes and kingdoms and empires—united and divided monarchies, Assyrian and Babylonian, Greek and Roman, and of course one can't forget about all of those "ites" (Ammonites, Moabites, Canaanites...) and many others. To understand a story in its historical context, you simply have to have a basic understanding of where and when a story took place. Here are three simple examples...

I am sure that exciting things happen each week in the Sunday School classes at your church. There’s no reason to keep this excitement a secret! Remember to share the joy of Sunday School with your entire congregation and anyone else who uses your building during the week. Consider having a brainstorming session on this topic with your Sunday School teachers. Here are some ideas to get you started thinking…

Sunday School is often an entry point to a church for visitors. This is especially true for families with children. Although they may be unaware of it, Sunday School teachers play an important role in reaching out to and welcoming visitors.

Here's the final part of our 3-part series on great sources for progressive-friendly Christian education resources.

You can read Part 1 and Part 2 of this series on our website. We'll no doubt run this series again when more progressive-friendly sources are available, but here for now are a few more recommendations for resources worth checking out!