Contextual Bible Studies are being held across Scotland and around the world, helping people to read the Bible closely, together and in context.
Where and when
More dates and venues to follow.
Find out more: to register interest or find out more contact Wendy Young, churches development officer, by emailing wyoung@christian-aid.org or calling 0141 241 6137.
About Contextual Bible Study
Contextual Bible Study (CBS) is a way of reading the Bible in groups, which over the last 50 or so years has spread across the world from Latin America to South Africa and from there to various parts of Europe, including the UK.
CBS is a prayerful way of reading the Bible in a group, which allows the group to explore the text together, reading it closely and carefully, and where appropriate to exploring its literary and historical context. And having done that, it enables the people in the group to shed light on their lives and their contexts – personal, local, familial, national and international.
As its name suggests, CBS is a method that encourages readers to read the Bible in ways appropriate to their own contexts and which allow them to engage in dialogue with one another to address current concerns in the light of the biblical texts.
The method
The studies in Scotland are being facilitated by the West of Scotland CBS group who have some 15 years of experience of working with this method. Participants are guided through a series of questions which help them read the text closely and in ways which enable them to hear the different voices contained in it, and to discern the resonance between their own context and the text itself.
This may (or may not) then lead to the group formulating some plan of action arising out of their discussions. Or it may lead to a widening of people’s horizons, experience and understanding. The questions put to the text play an important role in the process.
They are designed to be open questions, encouraging people to explore the text and their own reactions to it. Above all, it is a method which encourages participants to engage in open dialogue with each other in the light of Scripture.
More information
For more information on the method of Contextual Bible Study see John Riches et al. What is Contextual Bible Study? A practical guide with group studies for Advent and Lent, (London: SPCK, 2010).
Why?
Christian Aid hopes these studies will be held by groups across Scotland and by colleagues and partners across the world. By sharing our understanding from our context we might strengthen our sense of solidarity and be inspired to sustain or deepen our commitment to the cause of overcoming extreme poverty.
As Kathy Galloway, head of Christian Aid Scotland, has said: 'It is where the word is made flesh that I find the faith and vision that empowers Christian Aid.'
