Preview: Fall 2026 Adult Formation

13Aug

We're excited to give you a preview of the classes we'll be offering this fall. Please continue reading for an overview of these classes and to register to attend. We look forward to seeing you.

Praying the Prayer Book
Wednesdays, 6:15 p.m.
Crail C

This class will meet every Wednesday at 6:15 p.m., Aug. 19-Sept. 30, with a scheduled break on Wednesday, Sept. 23.

Have you ever wondered how to use the Book of Common Prayer on your own? It’s not just for Sunday mornings to look pretty in the pew racks! In this class, you will learn how to use the prayer book during the week to pray the Daily Office, look up the collects or readings for the day, and overcome any generalized prayerbook anxiety. This series is a great way to grow more comfortable and familiar with an incredible resource that is foundational to our Episcopal identity. This series will be led by several advanced MDiv students from the nearby Seminary of the Southwest.

Via Media: Understanding Anglicanism
Sundays, 10 a.m.
Crail C

This class will meet every Sunday at 10 a.m., Aug. 30-Sept. 20.

Anglicanism is often described as a middle way, a via media between many different Christian traditions. We are Protestant, and yet affirm the catholic faith in the Creeds. Our Prayer Book was influenced by the faith of Luther and the faith of Calvin. Some Episcopalians identify as evangelical, some as AngloCatholics, some as liberals, and some as conservatives. Come learn how our tradition walks the tightrope between competing traditions to create a unique, nourishing, and comprehensive way of being a Christian with room for all within the guard rails of Anglican theology and tradition. This series will be taught by a combination of St. David's clergy and faculty from nearby universities and seminaries.

"Stewardship for Sweaty People:
Talking About God and Money with Grace"
Sundays, 10 a.m.
Crail C

This class will be led by Director of Stewardship and Planned Giving, Eric Malnassy, and will meet every Sunday at 10 a.m., Sept. 27-Oct. 11.

Money can be a topic that causes some of us to break out into hives, just thinking about it, so we’ll be broadening the conversation to the context of stewardship, covering the biblical impetus for giving and tithing, a grace-filled approach to financial maturity and estate planning, and even how planning now for your funeral is an act of deep faithfulness to and stewardship of your loved ones’ grieving process.

How Great a Cloud of Witnesses:
Praying with the Saints Up to All Hallow's
Wednesdays, 6:15 p.m.
Crail C

This class will meet every Wednesday at 6:15 p.m., Oct. 7-28. The last class on Oct. 28 will meet at the Guild Parlor.

We will pray with different saints who have feast days in the month of October, leading up to Halloween, learning each saint’s collect, learning to pray through an icon, and learning each saint’s spiritual biography, we will conclude the series by learning about Latinx traditions around Dia de Los Muertos from students in the Latinx concentration at Seminary of the Southwest and the Hispanic Ministry Committee at St. David’s.

Understanding the Mid-Term Election Challenges
Sundays, 10 a.m.
Crail C

This class will meet on Sundays at 10 a.m., Nov. 1-22.

Our Director of Community Engagement and Advocacy, Dianne Hardy-Garcia, will lead our parish in understanding the challenges ahead as midterm elections loom, as the Texas legislative session opens in January, and how as people of God we can be both radically honest and also radically hopeful, even in the midst of great injustice and fear.

Registration information coming soon.

Paths of Contemplation:
Exploring the Mystery of Prayer
Wednesdays, 6:15 p.m.
Crail C

This class will be led by Director of The Abbey and Director of Programs for the Iona Collaborative, Rebecca Hall, and will meet every Wednesday at 6:15 p.m., Nov. 4-18

This is a a three-week series on forms of contemplative prayer led by Rebecca Hall, director of The Abbey, and some of her fellow spiritual direction instructors from the Iona School. “Paths of Contemplation” will invite participants to move away from prayer that relies on words, logic, and order, instead exploring and experimenting with prayers that are embodied, mystical, and nonlinear. It is our sincere hope that spending an entire semester on forms of prayer will not only be of spiritual benefit to participants but also be a powerful and collective act of faith, justice, and liberation in our embattled world.

For more information, please contact the Rev. Preston Yancey, interim director of Adult Formation: .

Preview: Fall 2026 Adult Formation