AUBURN - With an upcoming election and the economy in a state of turmoil, many people are facing difficult times and decisions.

In an effort to help alleviate some of this, SS. Peter and John Episcopal Church has begun a series of discussions, geared toward these pressing issues.

These discussion groups are held at 9 a.m. on Sundays in the fellowship hall in the building adjacent to the church. They began last week with a discussion hosted by Cindy Aikman, who is running for the county legislature's 15th District seat, looking at the way the county is managed.

Father Douglas Taylor-Weiss said the goal of these groups is to reach out and help people discuss their ideas and opinions during this time when so much is happening and decision making is more important.

“The idea is to dig a little deeper,” Taylor-Weiss said. “During the campaign and everything else that is going on, this is an opportunity to talk about it and look at it from a Christian standpoint.”

The discussions continued Sunday with a group led by church member Judy Tarver, looking at the difficult and confusing economic situation the country is facing. Tarver said she had three main objectives heading into Sunday morning's talk; she wanted people to express their feelings about the current economic situation, as well as for people to talk about how it has made them think and ultimately what they can do to take some initiative and make a change.

Tarver said on a daily basis from TV, radio and newspapers, people are bombarded with a great amount of information on the economy and Wall Street.

“It can seem like an amorphous bunch of themes,” Tarver said. “We see a lot of media, TV, radio, we see the candidates and we hear about the economy, but it is good to take a step back and look at how it makes you feel.”

Those present admitted like others, they have mixed feelings about the country's economy. With the barrage of information, many admitted to being scared about what they see and what they hear.

This has led to feelings of a lack of trust of information from the government and confusion over what exactly it is trying to do to make the situation more understandable.

It's a feeling Taylor-Weiss said was illustrated by several church members he spoke with in the spring.

“It was interesting to me,” Taylor-Weiss said. “When the bill was passed for the economic stimulus checks, three different people came to me. They all thought it was a bad idea. They said the government will be giving us back our own money, money we don't have and they will only make us pay it back with interest down the road. But these are things politicians have to do to make the system work, but it is really a big house of cards.”

These feelings increase when those present said they read stories about corporate vacations after large companies receive government bailouts. There is a general feeling there is a lack of accountability on the part of the government as well as big business.

Tarver said these feelings will often make people believe the worst, with the fear that the country faces another depression.

While it is not easy, Taylor-Weiss suggested there are things people can do to alleviate at least some of these feelings and to help gain perspective.

“We can give to the poor,” Taylor-Weiss said. “There are always people that have less and people that have less than what we have. If we can give, then maybe we won't be fearful. If I'm suffering, there is always someone suffering worse and by giving we can help.”

Tarver also suggested calling and writing to political leaders expressing all of these concerns.

“Democracy is not easy,” Tarver said. “Democracy is more than walking into the booth and pulling the lever. They still need to hear from us after we have made our vote.”

To learn more

The discussion will continue at 9 a.m. next Sunday with a talk hosted by Assemblyman Gary Finch.