Live online hybrid course which consists of a recorded lecture we'll watch together and a live Zoom discussion led by Dr. Shirley Paulson.

Can you imagine what it was like to hear Jesus teach through parables? Their meaning was rarely obvious at first. Even today, after hearing them many times, we still have to pause, listen carefully, and remain open. Jesus’s parables can be inspiring, beautiful, and deeply encouraging—but they can also unsettle us, challenging assumptions when we least expect it. We will ponder about 6-8 parables, some familiar, and some less familiar.

Shirley Paulson, CS, PhD has served The Mother Church in various capacities since the mid 1980s. She has been a Journal-listed practitioner, served as Head of Ecumenical Affairs for The Mother Church, Committee on Publication for Illinois, the Christian Science Board of Lectureship, and the Board of the North American Academy of Ecumenists.

In 2017 she finished her PhD in Theology and Religion at the University of Birmingham, UK, and began her work on her website, Early Christian Texts: The Bible and Beyond. Her focus is an exploration of the early Christian writings that were discovered relatively recently, and her website and courses are her means of communication with both Christian Scientists and with the public. She sees it as an important way to communicate the deep spiritual meaning of early Christianity that was lost after the first 300 years.

In addition to Shirley’s book on one of the newly discovered ancient texts, she has published numerous articles in the Christian Science periodicals as well as book chapters and articles for the public. She received Principia’s David K Andrews Distinguished Alumni Award for her overall service to the Christian Science movement.