Learning & Formation

What does it look like to follow the way of Jesus? What did it look like for our ancestors in faith? What does it look like for us today? These are the questions at the heart of our Learning & Formation programs.

We tackle these questions from living room couches and Sunday School classrooms, and yes, via Zoom. We dive deep into the Bible, wrestle with topics like Christian approaches to prayer, justice, forgiveness, food, service, and community, and listen to Christian voices both ancient and modern. The goal is to both know our faith and be formed into the kind of people who can live it out in the world.

The mix of opportunities is always changing. A few are listed below. Be sure to check out the calendar for what’s coming up next. And if you don’t see something you like, reach out to our pastor to propose an idea: (413) 298-3137.

Explore Our Learning & Formation Programs

Engaging Children

Kid’s Time in Worship

During Sunday Worship, Pastor Brent shares a story with the families and children. For these times of online worship, these stories can be seen on the church’s YouTube channel.

Kid’s Time videos

Children’s Activities / Storytelling

Each Sunday there are new stories for the children during the service. Organized by the Board of Christian Education, these activities bring Bible stories and other teachings to life. If you would like to receive emails about the weekly activities, please contact the church at office@stockbridgeucc.org.

June is Pride Month

Pride Month: Worship, Parade, and Community Conversations
As an Open and Affirming (and extravagantly welcoming) Congregation we are planning to engage with our LGBTQ+ Community in a celebration of Pride Month.
June 2, at 10:00am: Our worship will celebrate God’s inclusive love as part of LGBTQ+ Pride Month. It will be a joyful service of song, prayer, readings, communion, and blessing. We are Open and Affirming of all people not to be nice or to be politically correct, but because it is how we read the Bible, how we love neighbor, how we follow in the way of Jesus. We invite people to come in ways that make them comfortable. There will be a nursery for young children, Sunday School for older children, and a time of food and fellowship to follow. We look forward to seeing you and getting to know you. If you are interested in taking a role in this service, please click HERE.

June 8: Please come to the Berkshire Pride parade and festival on The Common, in Pittsfield. Parade: 11:00am; Festival: 11:00-4:00pm. If you’d like to participate, please fill out the form by clicking HERE.

June 10 & 24, 6:30pm – 8:30pm. Join the Community Conversation, discussing Austen Hartke’s “transforming – the Bible and the Lives of Transgender Christians” – sign up by clicking HERE.

Statements of Faith

We are a diverse church – both locally and in covenant with other UCC churches – diversity abounds. We welcome and cherish people who come to be the body of Christ for very different reasons and who understand that body of Christ and the larger issue of faith equally differently. One of our great hallmarks is our desire to strive for deep understanding and connection even as we recognize that we need to hold any such endeavors or discoveries from them loosely as love and faith are unfolding enterprises.

In our tradition, believing matters deeply. One of the gifts we bring to organized religion is our approach to belief. In the UCC we more often talk about “how” we believe rather than “what” we believe. We emphasize the “how” of believing to keep us moving, exploring, praying, surrendering, discovering, learning, and, of course, following.

To read Pastor Brent’s “work in progress” Statement of Faith, click here. To read the United Church of Christ’s Statement, click here.

Comprehensive Bible Study, led by Pastor Brent

There is simply nothing quite like reading and considering the full Bible together. There is wonder in discovering new details or meaning in stories we thought we knew so well. There are connections between the stories that are suddenly illuminated either in ways we hadn’t noticed or because our life situation now helps us to see them. There is the gift of struggling with challenging passages – even those that have caused hurt or pain. There is the beauty of hearing others’ perspectives that help shape our own. There is the whole arc of it that puts the life and teachings of Jesus in context. There is, of course, the kind of relationships that develop when you spend intentional and thoughtful time with others pursuing something good.

Please note that this session is underway. We suggest reading the description to get an idea of our small-group studies. There will always be another one!

“This year, I am delighted to lead a new curriculum “Kerygma: Discovering the Bible (A New Generation).” There are thirty lessons to this study, and it is laid out to take us from Genesis to Revelation. Thus far, I have found the study guide to be thoughtful and thought provoking. It provides enough information to stimulate good exploration without bogging the user down in too much detail. The reading load usually includes about seven fairly short readings easily spread out through the week (ideal) or handled more intensely if needed. There are good questions and activities that not only get at what the material is all about, but why it matters for us today. There is a copy of the Curriculum in the small conference room on the table. Feel free to take a look (and please leave it for others to do the same).” ~ Pastor Brent

This study was done in two different ways, weekly in hybrid (in-person and via Zoom) mid-days; and all in-person early evening twice a month. For the latter, the length and the in-person dimension, allowed the conversations to lead us deeply into those places of mutual interest. On the second Wednesdays we started by grabbing some food at the community supper; on fourth Wednesdays we figured out whether and how to add some food into our gathering.

Morning Prayer Services

In this quiet, contemplative time we draw closer to God and one another through prayer and sharing. Come and see. On Wednesdays, we join via Zoom; on Thursdays in-person under the tent on the church’s north lawn.

Each service begins at 8:00am and concludes by 8:25am.

Two women and a man engage in coversation about the Bible

Bible Study

Our Wednesday afternoon adult study, led by Rev. Rick Floyd on Zoom, is based on that Sunday’s preaching text and meets from 1:00 to 2:00. It’s a great chance to dive more deeply into the context and setting of the reading, prepare for worship, and consider how the Bible applies to our individual and collective lives. Each week is a different text, so come when you can.

Black Sacred Music

African American music is American music, from blues to rock and roll, Motown, jazz, funk and hip hop. Within that, there is a rich heritage of black sacred music that evolved from spirituals to gospel, hymns, freedom songs and sacred jazz. In honor of black history month, the Christian Education board presents a series on black sacred music.

Click on the button below to explore Spirituals, Sacred Jazz, Freedom Songs, and “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

black sacred music