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Search InterConnections for resources relevant to your interest and role: whether you are a lay or professional leader, there's information here to help you fulfill your ministry and carry forward your mission more effectively.
Displaying 151 - 198 of 198.
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Music feeds our souls and many of us wouldn’t stay in our congregations without it, but to do it properly takes vision, time, and talent. Ten years ago, when Tom Benjamin, a choral director who had recently moved to the area, was asked to build a music program at the Unitarian Universalist (UU)...
By Donald E. Skinner | June 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
Don't feel it's necessary to reinvent the wheel. Originality in worship is no special virtue. Familiar language, like an old shoe, soothes and reassures. Don't put anybody down, including yourself. Do take care of your congregation....
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
Asking the right questions is a key part of learning how well your congregation functions. The new book, Churchworks: A Well-Body Book for Congregations, by Rev. Anne Heller, district executive of the Pacific Northwest District, includes checklists for committees and boards of trustees. Here are...
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
The First Unitarian Church, Oakland, CA (284 members), used to have a cash flow problem in the summer. As Church Administrator, Jay Roller, explains it: "People would go away in the summer and forget to pay their pledges."Seasonal sag is a perennial church problem....
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
When a congregation adds to its space by building or remodeling, it has cause for celebration. But there are right and wrong ways to perform these ceremonies. Rev. John A. Buehrens, Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) President, has participated in more than one hundred building dedication...
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
Getting members out at midweek for a "church night" is a tradition for many of our congregations. It's an important time to build those community connections in a more relaxed atmosphere than on Sunday morning. Members of the Unitarian Universalist (UU) Church of Berkeley in Kensington, CA (555...
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
When the congregation of the First Unitarian Universalist (UU) Church of Duluth, MN (190 members), made the decision this past winter to begin raising money for a new church building, it seemed like the time might also be right to consider changing the name that would go up on the new building.
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
The annual budget drive. Done well it's a thing of beauty and a joy for at least nine months, until the next one rolls around. Done badly it causes massive volunteer burnout, drives the congregation into hiding, and forces budget cuts that set the tone for a parsimonious year....
By Donald E. Skinner | January 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
Q. Our small fellowship has moved from employing a minister half time to two-thirds time for next year. a) Does a minister, whether part-time or full-time, get the same amount of money for professional expenses like books, etc.? Does the expense allowance go up as his salary goes up? b) Also, how...
By Donald E. Skinner | January 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
As another election season approaches, many of us are getting involved—and thinking about getting our congregations involved—in the political process. But what actions are permissible? Americans United (AU) for Separation of Church and State, a public policy organization that advocates for...
By Donald E. Skinner | January 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
Jean McCormick continues to be amazed at what comes out of the mouths–and hearts–of people she thought she knew. For four years she has been one of the coordinators of Unitarian Universalist (UU) Religious Odysseys, a program at All Souls UU Church in Kansas City, MO (317 members), in which...
By Donald E. Skinner | January 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
For three years, Stefanie Samara Hamblen, director of children and youth programs at the Unitarian Universalist (UU) Fellowship in Gainesville, FL (290 members), met every Sunday night with the three teenage boys who comprised the congregation's youth group.
By Donald E. Skinner | January 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
We see them standing there after the service, intently studying the bulletin board, carefully reading the framed copy of the Seven Principles on the wall, or focusing into their coffee. Visitors. We know in our hearts we should speak to them....
January 1, 2000 | From InterConnections -
Q. What should the Sunday morning experience include for children? A. What I would like to see kids get on Sunday morning: I would like to know that every week, when a child walks out the door, she is at least a little glad she came....
By Donald E. Skinner | October 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
Volunteers are the lifeblood of our congregations. They fill our committees, lead our small groups, cut the grass, and run our canvasses. A constant stream of them flows through all aspects of church life. That is, if we ask the right people....
By Donald E. Skinner | October 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
Rev. James Robinson, minister at First Parish in Brewster, MA (715 members), is a believer in having lots of small groups as a way to connect members and build a congregation, not only in numbers, but in faith. And for good reason—he gives much of the credit for a seven-fold growth in membership...
By Donald E. Skinner | October 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
Coming of age (COA) ceremonies, marking the transition from childhood to young adult, are as old as history. They have included ritual abductions, vision quests, and bar and bat mitzvahs, all to help youth learn about themselves and prepare for adulthood....
By Donald E. Skinner | September 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
Most of us have the front door pretty well covered on Sunday morning. We have our greeter teams in place, we make our visitors use red coffee cups or special nametags, we introduce them to our friends, and we make sure they know where the bathrooms are....
By Donald E. Skinner | September 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
If any committee is a natural for Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations, it should be the booktable committee. A bookstore, booktable, or bookstall can not only feed the hunger of congregants for UU-related books, but can make it easier for religious education classes and other groups to get the...
By Donald E. Skinner | August 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
Pennies and nickles from church school children, combined with larger donations from adult members, helped the endowment fund at Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist (UU) Church in Bethesda, MD (917 members), grow past a million dollars last year.November is Endowment Month at Cedar Lane, and that's...
By Donald E. Skinner | June 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
When the UU Church, Eugene, OR (214 members), started holding two Sunday services to relieve overcrowding, the reaction was mixed. Most people felt that the change, although it upset familiar routines, was necessary for growth to occur, says Martha Osgood of the membership committee....
June 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
We've all been there. The service is about to start and the moderator asks the dreaded question: Are there any announcements? Yes, it seems there are, and they go on forever. How best to handle them?...
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
Think back to the last time you were asked to chair or serve on an important congregational committee? Did it feel like: I thought you'd never ask. I was just going to ask you if I could do that. A death sentence. It may be too much to expect that we will be overjoyed when we are asked to take on...
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
What do you do when you're asked to help at a school with no windows? If you're a member of High Street Unitarian Universalist (UU) Church in Macon, GA (122 members), you make windows....
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
Q. We're concerned about all the ways that members are getting asked for money at church. There are the musicians that bring tapes, Girl/Boy Scouts/school fundraisers, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the collection plate, the service auction, regular/capital pledges, a church used book...
By Donald E. Skinner | January 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
The voice of experience belongs to Deirdre Shaw when it comes to attracting young adults to Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations. Three times in ten years she tried to form a Young Adult group in her own congregation. Twice she failed. But the third time she succeeded and now on any given...
By Donald E. Skinner | January 1, 1999 | From InterConnections -
When you first joined a Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregation, were there questions you wanted to ask, but no one to ask them of? Were you reluctant to bother the church staff with something you were sure they had heard a hundred times before?...
December 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
The First Universalist Church in Yarmouth, ME (185 members), has managed to keep busy in recent years. It built an addition to its building, survived a minister's sabbatical and resignation followed by an interim minister and the search for a new minister. When finally, Rev. Erik Wikstrom was...
By Donald E. Skinner | November 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Congregations that want to grow might think that advertising is the only way to attract members. But there's another option for UUs who are willing to put their principles to work. Social action can help build your membership, even as it boosts your local community. It's also much less expensive...
By Donald E. Skinner | November 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Q.My church has about 175 members. We have always had a fulltime minister and part-time secretary and custodian, but we began paying our half-time director of religious education about ten years ago and recently began paying a quarter-time music director....
By Donald E. Skinner | November 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
We see them under our coffee cups at social hour. They are the little people darting around our kneecaps. Or they are the teenagers and young adults lurking on the edges of our congregational gatherings. We see them but we don't always have much to do with them, busy as we are with our own...
By Donald E. Skinner | November 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
When visitors come through our doors most of us are pretty good about making them a nametag, introducing them around, and making sure they know where coffee hour is held. But once they become members, sometimes we're a little less sure of how to relate to them....
By Donald E. Skinner | September 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
At the Unitarian Universalist (UU) Congregation of Fairfax in Oakton, VA (664 members), the joke about the annual service auction is that if it weren't for the auction none of the members would have a social life. ...
By Donald E. Skinner | July 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Q. Our congregation is growing steadily and one of the most significant aspects of our growth is the addition of many young parents. To make it easier for them to participate we provide child care for most church functions. It costs money, of course, and some members feel the parents should be...
By Donald E. Skinner | July 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
If you get "the call," from a smooth, but insistent made-for-radio-or-TV voice asking you, as a Unitarian Universalist (UU) leader, for an instant comment, you need to be prepared....
By Donald E. Skinner | July 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
At First Unitarian Universalist (UU) Church, Columbus, OH (485 members), the revelation came when a member who uses a wheelchair couldn't get up on the platform for a birthday recognition....
July 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Q. We just had our annual meeting and we were barely able to declare a quorum at the start of the meeting. The same was true at a special meeting we held earlier this year. By the time we got around to voting I'm sure we had lost our quorum. I find it a little disappointing. How do other...
By Donald E. Skinner | May 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. —Thomas Edison Monthly work parties are an institution for most Unitarian Universalists (UU) congregations, necessary to keep the grass cut, the buildings painted, and the bathrooms shined up . But getting...
By Donald E. Skinner | May 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Could your bathrooms pass the sniff test? How you answer that and related questions can make all the difference when visitors decide whether your church is worth a second look. When Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations think about attracting visitors the very next thought is often of...
By Donald E. Skinner | May 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
As Unitarian Universalists (UU), we pride ourselves on being inclusive and forgiving. We celebrate diversity and welcome all individuals. But occasionally a person comes to our door who is bent on causing physical or emotional damage. What do we do then?...
By Donald E. Skinner | April 15, 1998 | From InterConnections -
How many of these vignettes sound like your congregation? At your last annual meeting, twenty-seven of your 181 adult members showed up. The budget and a proposal to hire a part-time bookkeeper couldn't be considered for lack of a quorum....
By Helen Bishop | March 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Helping volunteers to feel good about what they're doing is one of the best ways to keep a congregation moving forward. What works best?Respecting volunteers' time is a good way to show appreciation, says Martha Osgood, membership co-chair at The Unitarian Universalist (UU) Church in Eugene, OR,...
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Q. We had a disturbing incident at our church in Ohio this weekend. A member got an early morning call from a man who claimed to be connected with the church, but was in fact an impostor. In most convincing terms he said he'd been beaten and robbed in San Francisco and needed someone to send him...
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Helping volunteers to feel good about what they're doing is one of the best ways to keep a congregation moving forward. What works best? Respecting volunteers' time is a good way to show appreciation, says Martha Osgood, membership co-chair at The UU Church in Eugene, OR (209 members)....
By Donald E. Skinner | March 1, 1998 | From InterConnections -
It's 11:30 p.m. on the second Wednesday of the month. If you're on the board of trustees of your congregation, where are you? A. Home in bed, where you belong. B. Yawning your way through a tedious discussion about folding chairs and wishing you'd had Caller ID when the nominating committee...
By Donald E. Skinner | February 15, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Religious educators have always known that making Religious Education (RE) programs fun is the best way to attract children. Some have also discovered that it's the best way to attract teachers, too....
By Donald E. Skinner | February 15, 1998 | From InterConnections -
Q. We are preparing position descriptions for many staff and committee positions at our church and wonder if anyone has anything on a church archivist or historian? A....
By Donald E. Skinner | February 15, 1998 | From InterConnections -
There are moments in each of our lives that stand out because they mark the beginning of a significant chapter—graduation from high school or college, the birth of a child, achieving a major career goal. Many of us can also remember with great clarity the first time we stepped inside the church...
By Donald E. Skinner | February 15, 1998 | From InterConnections