Connecting Church Forums
March 15, 2009
Many Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations would feel incomplete without their “forum,” a time on Sunday morning or at other times of the week when they invite local political and social justice leaders and others to speak on topics of the day.
To help support these forums, and to encourage more of them, an effort is underway to help them communicate with and learn from each other. The Forum Organizing Project grew out of a new forum at the First Church in Jamaica Plain Unitarian Universalist in the Boston metro area (104 members). Started 18 months ago, the forum has held 35 events, hosting nationally known speakers on issues including global warming and holding other events such as a slow-food potluck and community singalongs.
The Jamaica Plain forums are usually held on Friday evenings and are an example of what other congregations might do, says Andree Zaleska, who has been hired to organize the forum network. She says the Jamaica Plain forum events drew more than 4,000 people in the past year. Anywhere from 50 to 250 people attend each time. The forums are a way to strengthen the church as well as the larger community, she notes.
Zaleska invites congregations that hold forums, or that want to learn more about forum possibilities, to contact her at forumorganizing @ gmail.com or at (617) 541-0500, ext. 302. Zaleska has a list of about 100 forum groups at UU and other churches. Go to Jamaica Plain Forum to find out if your church’s forum is listed.
Zaleska notes that the network will be useful for helping speakers who are on tour find places across the country to speak, and in spreading the word about timely forum topics. She hopes that forum groups can share information and learn from each other about how to reach out to their larger communities, and how to organize forums. The Forum Organizing Project is supported by funding from the UU Funding Program and other sources.
For more information contact interconnections @ uua.org.
This work is made possible by the generosity of individual donors and congregations. Please consider making a donation today.
Last updated on Wednesday, September 14, 2011.
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