Alpha Summary & Feedback

This section is really intended as a summation of the course and a response to a paper version of the feedback form I was given at the end of week 9.

I think it's worth concluding things on a personal note and pointing out some of the limitations of this account.


If you're new to the blog and would like to start reading from the beginning, please use the links on the right hand side to travel back in the mists of time to week 1, October 2009!

At times, I think my blog will be difficult or frustrating reading for some people, and I find that regrettable, though I'm not moved particularly to apologise; it has always been an honest record, and I hope accurately reflects my feelings at various times.

There were obviously some difficulties in recording these views as a blog - as I've mentioned before, most of the people I refer to have had their anonymity preserved. The exceptions are those who were those who are employees in some capacity of the church (their names could be pretty easily obtained from a cursory search of the Kerith site).

Also, there is a sense that despite my best efforts at balance, I may have summarily failed to provide it. Not least because this is necessarily a monologue - everything recorded here is through the prism of my own experiences.

I also didn't want to reveal my blog to anyone before it was finished in case it compromised that balance or that I started writing for a specific "nominal" audience, meaning that opportunities for reply by those who attended were non-existent in effect.

Despite these limitations, I hope this is a balanced, honest and interesting read for those considering the course. Some of the content is necessarily Bracknell-orientated, and it's worth noting that it's highly unlikely your own experience will be quite the same as mine given the variables at work. Nonetheless, I hope it's of some use to the casual reader, not least with respect to the content.

On that note, here's my personal feedback in response to the sheet provided:

Why did I decide to do the Alpha Course?

To me, there was a huge swathe of the country I live in who go to great lengths to worship an invisible being. If that doesn't pique your interest, then I guess you're either already one of them, or totally disinterested in the world around you. I suppose on a basic level I had questions too, which I hoped would be answered or at least the underlying assumptions confronted.

How much did the Alpha Course meet your expectations?

It met some expectations - the expectation for debate, investigation and discovery - to a certain extent. It intermittently delivered the kind of course I had expected and wanted, but rarely gave complete satisfaction. The root cause of this deficiency was the number of Christians that had decided to attend. As (generously) one of three people attending the course who couldn't be described as Christians, this left a good 60-70% of the time simply spent watching the vast majority of attendees agreeing with one another. If the small group of agnostics and "waverers" had not been there, I wonder what kind of shape this course would have taken.

Were you able to attend the Away-day? If yes, what were your thoughts about it?

Expounded at exhausting length here!

When you started the Course, how would you have described yourself in relation to Christianity?

I wanted to find out more.

How would you describe yourself now in relation to Christianity?

I want to find out more.

Has the course:

a) Helped you to understand the process for becoming a Christian?

Yes

b) Led you to change your ideas about Christianity? If so, in what ways?

I am not sure it has in all honesty. It's put me in touch with "good Christians" - people who were kind, patient and likeable. It also introduced me to a couple of people I basically never want to see again. So in that sense, it's not that much different to any other social gathering! In terms of Christianity, it's helped me to understand why I feel the way I do rather than change that directly - in some senses it's just defined my position more clearly rather than undermined it as such.

c) Helped you in any other ways?

It gave me a forum to express my own ideas, and my own questions, albeit less frequently and in-depth than I would have liked.

What did you enjoy most about the Course?

The genuine enthusiasm the leaders had for the material, and how down-to earth many of them were. I enjoyed the cut and thrust of the debate, when it happened, and I enjoyed learning. It was messy, annoying, challenging, absorbing and totally human with all the faults that entails.

What did you enjoy least about the Course?

All of these issues are described in-depth elsewhere in the blog, but....

• The venue - hugely limited.
• The ratio of Christians to non-Christians.
• The rather lax timekeeping (occasionally a bit annoying, but not altogether a bad thing as it gave time for relaxed discussion prior to the course starting)

In what ways do you think the course could be improved?

The Costa Venue.

It was sometimes just plain uncomfortable. It was routinely difficult to hear what was being said, and in essence it was ill-suited to what I needed from the course - a venue for discussion. I understood that it would be "less threatening" to non-Christians, but by the end of the course, I was probably the only one that fitted that description in its entirety, and I'm certainly not intimidated by church buildings anyway. The insensitivity of the staff (who, fair enough, had work to do), was sometimes a severe obstacle. At several intervals, key points of the discussion were interrupted by people carrying mops, emptying bins, or once asking loudly if anyone needed the toilet as they had to go and clean it.

I also honestly think that holding an "Alpha for Christians" would be a good idea based on this evidence. I am still stumped as to why there were so many there at this "introduction to Christianity".

Do you have any other comments about the Alpha Course?

Yes...! This blog!

Was the Alpha Course worthwhile?

In short, yes. Whichever angle you approach it from, it will force you to rationalise and explain your opinion. Being challenged is healthy, for an Atheist, an Agnostic, a Christian or even Jewish people, as I saw in my particular course.

My overall score depends very much on what you want out of the Alpha Course. If you attend expecting a deep theological discussion, it's probably not going to suit. If you want to go along, filled with indignation and anger at Christianity, I also wouldn't recommend it, but I don't think that would necessarily stop you. If you want a relatively gentle introduction, with some nice people in a non-threatening context, then go for it. Much depends on the dynamic of your particular group I suspect - different people will give a very different atmosphere, and I can only speak for my particular one.

Overall, I would give this Alpha Course a 7 out of 10. Not so lightweight as to be a waste of time, nor so in-depth as to be totally impenetrable to anyone. It was delivered with enthusiasm and sincerity, and without exception, the team members were approachable and sincere.