Spiritual Classics (Foster/Griffin)

Spiritual Classics, edited by Richard J. Foster and Emilie Griffin, is a pretty decent possibility for young adult small group discussion. We used this at National City Christian Church in Washington, DC for our Thursday night Disciple Space group. The book covers twelve spiritual disciplines -- Meditation, Prayer, Fasting, Study, Simplicity, Solitude, Submission, Service, Confession, Worship, Guidance, and Celebration. Each discipline has up to four readings from theologians, saints, and Christian "mystics." (Example theologians: Martin Luther King Jr., George MacDonald, Augustine of Hippo, Clare of Assisi, Dorothy Day, Charles Wesley) Scripture references and questions are also included to guide discussion. The material isn't too long to digest, even in the busiest schedule, so it could be useful even for a short lunchtime reading group.

We found it helpful at least to bring everyone on board to a particular spiritual discipline. The mix of readings were also interesting, and in some cases, provocative. Anyone could get into it and have an opinion, regardless of past experience (or lack of experience).

The only problem - it's not too exciting. This might not exactly draw in the big crowds or get people buzzing. If you have a group of committed young adults who are already active in the church and community, this might be a good book for weekly discussion to help them take new steps in their faith practices. Of course, there are ways you could make it a little more exciting - and work in times to actually practice the disciplines in some accountable way.