The First Multi-Faith Course for Christians of all denominations
The Awareness Course is expected to be the most revolutionary experience in Christian self-development since the Alpha Course.
The course will help Christians widen their perspectives on what it means to be a Christian in the context of a multi-faith society.
Archbishop of Canterbury commends this 'timely initiative' and says educating Christians to live in a multi-faith and multi-cultural society is 'one of the greatest challenges facing the Christian churches today.
The Trinity Foundation for Christianity and Culture (TFCC), an ecumenical and international education institution, today announces the international launch of 'The Awareness Course,' the first course of its kind to help Christians of all denominations develop their understanding of the Christian faith within the context of today's multi-faith world.
The Awareness Course has been written to educate and enhance the lives of Christians in an increasingly multi-faith and multi-cultural world. The Awareness Course promotes the understanding of what it means to hold fast to the principles of the Christian faith in a diverse society, while appreciating and respecting other world religions.
Strengthened in their own faith, Christians are then secure to study other faiths and develop the courage to face difference and diversity with an open mind. TFCC believes that, by changing their own attitudes, Christians can change the dynamics within society.
The Awareness Course has been successfully piloted over the last year in the UK, the USA and Europe and today marks the international launch of the finished product.
Commenting on the launch, the TFCC's patron, the Archbishop of Canterbury, said, 'I commend the Trinity Foundation for Christianity and Culture for its timely initiative because one of the greatest challenges facing the Christian churches today is to educate their members to live in a multi-faith and multi-cultural society.'
Rt Reverend Michael Marshall, President of TFCC, Rector of Holy Trinity Sloane Square and Assistant Bishop of London commented: 'The Alpha Course has provided a very powerful and successful introduction to Christian belief. What the Awareness Course does is to take the meaning of life from a Christian perspective forward to a new level that will help Christians deepen their faith and widen their perspective. Sadly, religion is still at the root of many conflicts in the world; the Awareness Course will do much to foster community harmony by promoting understanding and tolerance in society.'
Beirut-based Reverend Habib Badr, Chairman of TFCC Middle East Region said: 'TFCC aims to provide a response to the challenges of modernity from a Christian perspective. With the dawn of every new day in our multi-cultural world, it becomes ever more clear how necessary TFCC's work is for Christian presence in this world.'
Notes to Editors
TFCC is essentially ecumenical; our committees, boards and teachers include members of the Church of England, the Episcopal Church of the U.S.A., the Anglican Church of Canada, the Roman Catholic Church, the Greek and Russian Orthodox Churches, the Methodist, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Baptist, and the Congregational and Armenian Protestant Churches.
Our Head Office is in London, England, but our International Consultants, who are our supporters and advocates both in the clergy and the laity, come from North America - U.S.A (California, Washington DC, New York, Maryland, Louisiana, South Carolina and Wisconsin) and Canada, the Caribbean - Puerto Rico and Antigua, Europe - UK, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Holland and Spain, the Middle East - Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and Syria, and Australia. We now have offices in Charleston SC, San Francisco CA, Washington DC and Aleppo (Syria).
TFCC is independent and receives no regular funding from church, government, or other public sources. Our small permanent staff and core group of volunteers are supported solely by charitable donations.
The Awareness Course
-The course is already being taught in the United Kingdom, Europe, and the United States of America; we are currently preparing an Arabic version of the course materials
-Three courses are now available and additional new courses will be published each year. The courses are written to inform and enlighten both teachers and students, with a wealth of information that allows each teacher to tailor the programme to suit their church or venue. Each course is written from a Christian viewpoint so that students can go deeper into their own faith while considering Islamic and Judaic equivalents to build an awareness of 'the other'.
-The Awareness Course is designed to be taught in churches, parish halls or in any appropriate space. The course is suitable for regular or occasional churchgoers, Christians outside the church, seekers and the undecided; previous knowledge is not assumed, and students will not need any great theology beyond a basic understanding of the major figures and events in the Bible.
-Each course comprises seven sessions, each of which is expected to last sixty to ninety minutes, including time for questions and activities. Each session is accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation, a video presentation and a range of handouts.
-The Awareness Course is written by the Rt Revd Michael Marshall, President of TFCC, Rector of Holy Trinity Sloane Square and Assistant Bishop of London, and the Revd Nadim Nassar, director of TFCC and the only Syrian Anglican priest in the UK.