other than polite chit-chat
+ what is the Bible to you?
The responses, around a table of folks who - - beginning uneasily with quotes from the Catechism or other doctrinal statements of one's religious community to show their orthodoxy - - might come to feel they can trust each other's confidence in the intimacy of the situation, and in the Time of the evening - - possibly including minds relaxed and tongues loosened by wine or cognac - - would grow into telling personal perspectives, experiences, histories, views, opinions, questions, doubts and certainties.
A group mostly of Episcopalians - - whose Sunday worship is bible-intense - - might include lay and ordained, folks with no involvement in Sunday school or other small group Bible study, as well as folks who'd studied in Sewanee's EfM course - - and who, understanding the disillusionment that can come with the first exposes of "mainline" Bible exploration, could put lovingkindness ahead of self-superiority in the conversation such that everyone feels comfortable participating.
What might be the purpose of such a dinner party conversation? Why, to trigger thinking and imagination, to share by exchanging thoughts, to talk about something of substance. In Time you may realize, even if not until startlingly at age ninety, that life is indeed short and we haven't much Time, so to invest it instead of wasting it. Other than being with those I've loved, my sense of Time best spent was as the religion teacher at HNES and as the mentor of small Bible study groups, including EfM and mid-week Bible study; other than that, I'm good with sitting here at my bayside window and playing online Solitaire card games.
Sort of my sense of it all on a cool Monday morning beginning the second week of February in my ninety-first year of thinking about life, seeking the truth, and wondering what the hell.
RSF&PTL
T90