Reclaiming Scripture is like restoring land overtaken by dogma — breaking up the hard soil and cultivating something nourishing again.

Through guided facilitation, our circles of 8-12 people stay committed to rooting deeply, learning from each other, expecting goodness, wrestling together, and searching for more. Our vision is for our community to cultivate wholeness, hope, and freedom, for ourselves and for others. Below are some options for how you can get engaged.

Engage on Your Own.

Our emails and podcast are ways to wrestle and learn on your own terms, in your own time. For our email list, you can subscribe here (this is also a good way to keep up to date on our program offerings). For our podcast, Searching the Sacred, you can listen and subscribe here.

Drop in for a Two-Hour Evening Group.

Join with 8-14 others in a facilitated circle where you can ask better questions— together. All are welcome, whether you have participated in many 40 Orchards Scripture Circles or if this will be your first time.

These one-time gatherings offer a flexible space to explore a specific theological question, sacred text, or area of “sacred trouble.” No long-term commitment—just an opportunity to bring what you’re wrestling with and engage in honest conversation with others who are asking big questions too.

Stop by for a Full-Day Conversation.

Some things take more than a few hours to unpack. This is a place to wrestle with narrow theology and find a more expansive way forward. These immersive, in-person experiences create space for deeper theological exploration, rest, and spiritual reimagining. With more time to listen, learn, and engage, full-day circles invite participants to go further into topics that challenge inherited beliefs and awaken new ways of encountering the divine. Includes topics such as Reclaiming Sin and Reclaiming Gender.

Commit to a Monthly Circle.

An ongoing circle with 8-14 people, reading Scripture slowly, asking hard questions, and holding space for different perspectives. These are ongoing communities that gather once a month over the course of a season (typically September through May). Together, we dig deep into Scripture, unlearn harmful theology, and reclaim faith through sustained relationships, shared curiosity, and spiritual practice. These circles offer continuity, trust, and a place to grow over time. Topics include Reclaiming Stories and Reclaiming the Letters.

Explore upcoming circles

Go All In with a Cohort.

For those ready to dive deeper, our cohort programs offer a sustained, transformative journey. These aren’t just studies; they are immersive communities of practice. Our 40-week cohort is open to anyone longing to wrestle with Scripture, disrupt inherited theology, and reclaim a faith that can hold complexity and wholeness. Reclaiming the Lectionary is a 5-month cohort designed for pastors and preachers who want to engage the weekly texts with fresh eyes, in conversation with others committed to liberation, truth-telling, and spiritual depth. Both cohorts offer the space, structure, and support to go all in—personally, communally, and theologically.

Our 40 Week Cohort Program

It can happen for so many reasons… Religious institutions that once felt like safe places begin to feel constricted. Studies of racism and injustice open our eyes to the way churches have been complicit with oppression. Bible verses that once felt hopeful create a sick feeling in our stomach about a way of thinking that feels too binary. Whatever the source, it is natural for faith to shift and change or even disintegrate or die. But those shifts can feel incredibly untethered and lonely. Sometimes we lose entire circles of people that we thought would be in our lives forever.

Our cohort program is a place of to rebuild while surrounded by community. That community may not be people who are the same age or gender or sexual orientation as you. You may have different kinds of baggage in your religious history. What you have in common is a desire to pick up the Bible and have it come alive again. To learn to read its text more expansively and vulnerably. To hope that there is still a Spirit at work in the world. To have your voice and perspective be welcomed with love and belonging.

What can you expect?

Midrash Study
Throughout 40 weeks, we focus on 10 biblical themes, which we call “seeds”. For each seed, our curriculum includes questions, readings, and experiential learning. As is our practice, we study using midrash, which opens up space for communal wisdom and expanded ways of seeing. Study happens both individually and communally, with one full day Scripture Circle for each seed, and encouraged ongoing connections between community members.
Community Connection
The Cohort has a deeply relational, personal, and responsive focus. The group is roughly 12 people—small enough to really get to know each other and large enough to be stretched by the varying perspectives. As staff, we’re committed to supporting each individual with walks and coffees, as well as adjusting to the specific needs of the group. (This has even included creating new curriculum, based on what was needed!) The retreat and full day experiences deepen connection even more.
Grounding Rhythm
We encourage the cohort community to experiment with rhythms of time, including a practice of a weekly Sabbath. Our meeting schedule is set into a predictable rhythm that fits the group’s scheduling needs. (For example, the first Friday of the month.)
What’s it really like?
It is often more meaningful to hear the about the experiences of alumni than to read descriptions of what something is like. We have several cohort stories as posts on our blog, including Brooke, Sarah, Tammy, Karin, Michelle, Travis, and Ashley.
What does it cost?
Tuition is $3600, which most people pay either in advance or at $360 per seed/month. At the same time, we know that everyone’s cash flow is different, and don't want finances to be a barrier. We are committed to keeping financial conversations safe, easy, and shame-free. If you need an adjusted total or payment schedule, you will have the opportunity to mark that on your registration. Then, we will contact you to make a plan. Since we are a non-profit, even something like this cohort fee is considered tax deductible, which is often helpful for people to know as they plan and budget. You can think about this as making a donation that supports 40 Orchards and getting something really valuable in return!

How do you learn more?

The first step if you are interested is to connect with us. We'll set up a time (maybe coffee, a walk, or a Zoom) to get to know each other and find out if the cohort is the right next step. Let us know about your interest by emailing Steph or Lisa. After getting together, if the cohort feels like a fit, we have a two-part process- a registration with a $25 nonrefundable deposit, followed by a declaration of intent.

The next 40-week cohort will begin in September 2026.