Exploring Human Sexuality: A Three-Part Dialogue
Event Overview
Session 1:
Saturday, April 20, 2024
Session 2:
Saturday, June 29, 2024
Session 3:
Saturday, October 26, 2024
All sessions 11:00 am - 1:00pm Central
remember to adjust for your timezone
Conversation concerning human sexuality is in the news, social media, entertainment, the education system, and the political arena. Unfortunately, good conversation about human sexuality is not often found at church, within Christian circles, or even in Christian homes. Yet, the need for Christians and others to talk about their sexuality with God and others has never been greater. How can we as spiritual directors, pastors, and lay leaders provide safe places to meet that need?
Join us as we explore that question in a three-part virtual series on human sexuality. Our guest presenters will be Julie Barrios from Nuos Formation and Dr. David Bennett, author of A War of Loves: The Unexpected Story of a Gay Activist Discovering Jesus. Each session in the series will run 2 hours, including time for Q&A with Julie and David. In addition, the week following each presentation Grafted Life Ministries will host a separate (optional) Zoom call for those desiring group discussion with peers.
Upon purchase you gain access to the event recording (available after event) & handouts
Session 1:
What are We Talking About When We Talk about Human Sexuality?
Before you have a good meal, you need to set the table. In a similar way, before you have a good conversation you need to help everyone get on the same page, define terms, and the context of the subject. This first session will lay the foundation for the topic, exploring the different planes of development that are involved in human sexuality–physically, socially, emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually.
Session 2:
Identity and Narrative in Human Sexuality
In this second session, Julie and David will explore how our sexual feelings and experiences shape our identity and our stories throughout our lives. As humans we use identity to gain a sense of self and we use narratives (storytelling) to integrate and make sense of our experiences.
But how does God fit into our conclusions about our identities and our narratives? Does he have anything to say, to add, possibly to rewrite about our stories? How do we have these conversations with him about our sexuality? These are some of the questions that will be explored in this important dialogue about sexual identities and narratives.
Session 3:
The Marriage of Sexuality and Spirituality
Ignatius of Loyola is known for summing up the spiritual journey as a pursuit of finding God in all things. He was a teacher of the with-God life, in every moment and every experience. Jesus’ word for this lifestyle was abiding. Yet, many of us have little experience of abiding with Jesus in the context of our sexual lives. We have essentially divorced our sexual experiences from our sense of God’s presence.
How has this separation–lack of integration–affected our spiritual formation and maturity? Could we be more alive, both sexually and spiritually, by welcoming Jesus into this aspect of our human experience? How might we do that for ourselves, as well as companion others who are desiring to connect with Jesus in a deeper way?
This last dialogue explores these questions and more as Julie and David conclude on a note of encouragement and hope.
Our Presenters
Julie Barrios
Spiritual Director, Founder of Nuos Formation
Nuos serves individuals, organizations, and companies in leadership development, cultural health, and organizational discernment--basically the convergence of spiritual formation and the San Francisco/Silicon Valley business world. Julie has served a number of churches and non-profits as a spiritual director and with expertise in spiritual formation and the intersections of spirituality, technology, art and organizational health.
Dr. David Bennett
Author, Speaker, Theologian Scholar
David specialises in the relationship between the Trinity, Christian ethics, patristics, queer theology, discipleship and contemporary Anglican theology, especially the role of desire in knowing God. David is passionate about equipping the Church to better love the LGBTQI+ and other minority communities, and the art of showing solidarity to those who are different or other to us. He is author of the book, A War of Loves: The Unexpected Story of a Gay Activist Discovering Jesus.
Purchase Virtual Event
ESDA Member rate is $60 per individual session, or $150 for full series. (Discount added in cart)