Ethics in Congregational Life Program
Welcome to the web pages for the Office of Congregational Ethics and Safety. You’re in the right place if you’re looking for resources and information about safe congregations, covenants, disruptive behavior, right relations, professional misconduct (ministers as well as other religious professionals) including information about complaint procedures, disaster trauma response, and other concerns regarding ethics and safety. Below are links to resources, followed by additional important information about safe congregations.
Safety Resources
- Unitarian Universalist Principles and Sexual Ethics Closing Words
- General Assembly 2008 Workshop: Boundaries and Healthy Congregational Work Environments
- Process for handling Complaints of Professional Misconduct
- Consider creating a Covenant of Right Relations
- Dealing with Disruptive Behaviors
- Trauma Response Resources for Families and Congregations
- Handling Trauma in the Aftermath of Disaster
- Our Whole Lives: sexuality education
- When hiring or recruiting volunteers and staff, don't forget Responsible Staffing practices
- Restorative Justice: a response and ministry to victims/survivors of clergy sexual misconduct—only we can make justice, only we can transform our faith
- Anti-racism and Anti-oppression work is integral to living in right relations in your community
- Beyond the UUA: connections to other organizations regarding safety and ethics in the congregational setting
District Offices
District staff are available to consult with congregational leaders, ministers, religious educators about issues of sexual misconduct and boundary violations. Many districts have Safe Congregations Teams to help Unitarian Universalist congregations build safer communities by addressing issues of sexual abuse and domestic violence. Some teams conduct workshops for district meetings and annual religious education conferences. Contact your district office for further information.
Safety/Abuse Clearinghouse Packet
A resource available to every congregation is the Unitarian Universalist Association's (UUA's) Safety/Abuse Clearinghouse Packet. This packet includes the pamphlet "Honoring the Children: What We Can Do To Prevent Child Abuse"; a healing service for survivors and congregations; sample safety policies and congregational guidelines; sample contracts for volunteers; information on reporting procedures and state laws governing mandatory reporters; and resource list of organizations and prevention education materials. To receive this packet on behalf of your congregation, make your request by clicking on the email address at the bottom of this page. Please indicate the purpose of your email, and include the name of your congregation and the postal address where you would like the packet sent.
Interactive, Online Safe Congregations Resource!
During the year ending in June 2008 the Office rolled out a new interactive online resource to educate congregational leaders on developing a safe congregation policy with a focus on the safety of children and how to prepare for the possibility of a sexual offender in the congregational community. The 2½-hour, free course of study is based on Balancing Acts—Keeping Children Safe in Congregations, a resource written for the UUA and available as an online resource since 2005. It is fair to say that the feedback from those taking the new UUA online course has been overwhelmingly positive. As of December 31, 2007, 336 people had taken the course. Of those who took the post test, the average grade was 86%, indicating that the self-paced course is well-organized and communicating the essential points of creating safe congregations policies.
About the Ethics in Congregational Life Program
The Ethics in Congregational Life Program develops and makes available to congregational leaders education, training, and other resources and services. The goals of this program are to support leaders in creating safer space within their congregations, encourage right relations among persons who are part of the congregation, and endorse just relations between the congregation and the larger community of which it is a part. The conflict management component of this program will provide additional support and resources to our districts in their support of congregations and find an appropriate role for the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) in direct service, developing resources and delivery systems as needed.
For more information contact safecongregations @ uua.org.
Last updated on Friday, June 12, 2009.
