Brown Bag Discussion Group

Wired Word - Brown Bag Discussions based on current events

Each weekly installment includes biblical commentary and discussion questions related to a topic in the news that week — sometimes even the same day! The lesson can be e-mailed to participants ahead of time. Contact Kathie at eldoradofumc@gmail.com to add your name to the list.

Participants bring their lunch and discussion starts shortly after noon and continues until close to 1:00 p.m. allowing working members to return to work.

Sample Lesson
from January 2006

This week, the whole country sensed the deflated hope that encompassed the families, friends and supporters awaiting news of the fate of the 13 miners trapped below ground by an explosion Monday in a West Virginia coal mine. False hope was created when erroneous news reached those keeping watch that 12 of the miners had been found alive, when in fact only one had.

The ensuing joyful celebration followed by deep grief present images of hope and despair, and so for our next class meeting, we will look at the nature of hope as presented by the Scriptures.

If you wish to begin thinking about our topic in advance, below is some introductory material.

Mistaken Report Gives Miner's Families False Hope

January 8, 2006

In the News
An explosion early Monday morning in the Sago coal mine in Tallmansville, West Virginia, left 13 miners trapped more than two miles inside the mine. The explosion released carbon monoxide, a gas so toxic that it prevented rescuers from reaching the trapped miners for more than 40 hours. As rescuers did work their way into the mine, one man was found dead early in the effort. The other 12 were eventually located deeper in the mine. Eleven of those were dead, and the sole survivor was unconscious and in serious condition. He has been rushed to a hospital.

Through a miscommunication in the early hours of Wednesday morning that has not been fully explained, word reached the anxious families and friends waiting outside the mine that all 12 of the men found deeper in the mine were alive. The relatives and friends began a joyful celebration and offering prayers of praise that continued for nearly three hours before mine officials brought the corrected information to them.

Many of the celebrants-turned-mourners felt that the mistaken news made the shock and impact of the sad truth even more painful, and many expressed anger at the officials for letting them go so long with the erroneous news. One woman among those reeling from the updated news said, “The only thing worse than being given no hope is being given false hope.”

As of Thursday morning, the sole survivor from the disaster remains unconscious and in critical condition in the hospital, and investigations are under way to determine the cause of the explosion.

The Big Questions

Here are some of the questions we will discuss in class:

How are hoping and wishing different? How are they the same?
What gives hope substance?
Why is hope a vital component of faith?
In the Bible, much of the hope described is based on long-range projections. How is that hope different from hope centered on immediate events. How is it the same?
Are dashed hopes about immediate events grounds for abandoning long-term hope based on God’s ultimate kingdom? Why or why not?

Confronting the News with Scripture

We will look at selected verses from these Scripture texts. You may wish to read these in advance for background:

Psalm 33:1-22

Isaiah 44:9-20

Luke 12:13-21

Lamentations 3:16-33

Zechariah 9:9-16

Romans 8:18-25

1 Corinthians 15:3-20

In class, we will talk about the context of these verses and look for some insight on the big questions, as well as talk about other questions you may have about this topic. Please join us.