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When I was six years old, my family moved to a town along the Merrimack River in northeastern Massachusetts. In those days, we talked about living “within smelling distance” of the river. It was a mess, about as close as one could get to an open sewer, with manufacturing plants, homes, and...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | May 15, 2015 | From Call and Response -
By Karen Brown When I started my vocation as a Director of Religious Education twenty years ago, recruiting teachers was in my job description. No problem. Parents and other members of the congregation stepped up and volunteered. I continued to have a positive experience of recruiting teachers in...
May 5, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Faith Development -
[Editors’ note: The UUA Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries, in collaboration with a number of UUA regional teams, has published eight Youth Advising Competencies as an optional tool to help Congregational Life field staff, religious professionals, lay leaders, and advising teams identify...
April 25, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: High School-Aged Youth Faith Development -
By Shannon Harper Working in youth ministry, supporting young people in their search for identity, voice, and calling, is at best incredibly gratifying. It can also be heartbreakingly challenging. Raising two multi-racial young women of my own is equal parts of both, and everything in between,...
April 17, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: High School-Aged Youth Faith Development, Racial Justice & Multicultural Ministries, Multiculturalism -
By Richard S. Gilbert Liberal religious educators have for centuries sought to help people grow, spiritually and morally. How do we do that? That is one of those questions that empty the room. No one really knows. However, I believe what happens is “spiritual osmosis.” Osmosis is that...
April 7, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Beliefs & Principles, Spirituality -
I was a child with curiosity about the whole world. I made my first explorations through books. Among my early discoveries were these: (1) the world is alive with different people and cultures, and (2) the world of books is created by, about, and for white people of Anglo-Saxon heritage. The...
By Susan Lawrence | March 25, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Children's Faith Development, Teaching Methods, Multiculturalism -
The first completely online Renaissance module, UU History, has now been offered four times, including the field test in 2013. Participants have given glowing reports on the online learning format as well as the breadth and depth of the module’s content. It seems that using technology to explore...
By Pat Kahn | March 15, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: UU History, Faith Development, Professional Development for Religious Educators -
This winter, I met with a florist to talk about flowers for my daughter’s wedding. I entered the shop on a cold, windy morning with no idea that when I walked out I would be so uplifted and inspired. After our conversation about wedding flowers, the florist, Diane, told me about a project that is...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | March 3, 2015 | From Call and Response -
I have found that many Unitarian Universalist parents are very proud of how open and honest they are when they talk to their children. However, the eagerness for clear and explicit conversation comes to a screeching halt with regard to race....
By Aisha Hauser | February 19, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Children's Faith Development, Families & Faith Development, Parents, Teaching Methods, Anti-Racism -
by Rev. Annie Gonzalez Milliken “Where have you been all my life?” and “You were here all my life, now where are you?” are two common questions I hear asked about Unitarian Universalism. The first is asked by adult seekers who wish they’d found us sooner. The second is asked by people...
February 7, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: High School-Aged Youth Faith Development, Multigenerational Faith Development, UU Identity, Young Adult Faith Development (ages 18-35) -
By Rev. Marti Keller Memoirist Deborah Feldman, who walked away from her Hasidic upbringing in Williamsburg, Brooklyn as a young adult, went on a sojourn to discover herself as a Jewish person now that she had rejected her ultra-Orthodox roots....
January 26, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Holocaust Remembrance / Yom Ha'Shoah -
By Judith A. Frediani [Editors' note: Reverend Dr. Roberta (Bobbie) Nelson died on January 2, 2015.] In 1997, the UUA’s pioneering sexuality education program, About Your Sexuality (AYS), was under attack on national television. The CBS network had obtained a copy of AYS’s explicit filmstrips.
January 15, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: UU History, Professional Development for Religious Educators -
Addiction touches many Unitarian Universalist families, congregations, and communities. We know the pain addiction can cause, not only for an individual, but for those around them. We have seen the tenacity required to sustain recovery. Many of us have heard—or discovered for ourselves—that 12...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | January 6, 2015 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Adult Faith Development, Self-Care, Professional Development for Religious Educators -
I heard the bells on Christmas day Their old familiar carols play And wild and sweet The words repeat Of peace on earth, good-will to men. The 19th-century carol "Christmas Bells," Hymn 240 in Singing the Living Tradition, speaks to us across the ages about the longing for peace and justice in a...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | December 21, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Beliefs & Principles, Spirituality -
By Melanie Davis In the October 5, 2014 New York Times article, http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/05/sunday-review/we-want-privacy-but-can… Want Privacy but Can't Stop Sharing, Kate Murphy writes, "The problem is that if you reveal everything about yourself or it's discoverable with a Google search,...
December 12, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Sexuality Education, Sexually Healthy Faith Communities, Communication -
By Melanie Davis The newly released second edition of Our Whole Lives Sexuality Education for Grades 7-9 is now available from the Unitarian Universalist Association Bookstore. Like the first edition, this sexuality curriculum is comprehensive, inclusive, and justice-oriented....
December 2, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Sexuality Education -
I remember my 25th birthday—a quarter of a century! It felt like a major accomplishment. It has been just as significant celebrating each of my daughters’ 25th birthdays, with pride in them both and accompanying gratitude. Somehow a 25th birthday feels like a really special...
By Pat Kahn | November 24, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Children, Globalism, International Human Rights & Justice -
Several years ago, I wandered in the Exhibit Hall at the UU General Assembly and found myself standing at a booth where you could make a button with your own personal slogan. I decided to make one that said, “What Would Mr. Rogers Do?” I suppose I had in the back of my mind the slogan then...
By Jessica York | November 14, 2014 | From Call and Response -
A couple of decades ago, many of our Unitarian Universalist congregations celebrated a Thanksgiving “seder,” a ritual patterned after the Jewish Passover seder. In my congregation, we retold the story of the “First Thanksgiving.” Tables were decorated with white cloth, bittersweet, and...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | November 4, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Holidays & Ceremonies, Social Justice -
[Editors' note: Through the Renaissance program, the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) offers continuing education for UU religious educators, including musicians, ministers, seminarians, and lay leaders. Each 15-hour module provides basic training in a topic area useful in...
By Pat Kahn | October 27, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Anti-Racism, Multiculturalism, Professional Development for Religious Educators -
I love movies. Correction: I LOVE movies! I watch them on cable. I watch them on Netflix – streaming and DVD rental. Through my desktop, tablet and Wii (but not on the phone – you’ve got to draw a line somewhere!). I love to watch them best in a theatre, eating popcorn, surrounded by other...
By Jessica York | October 18, 2014 | From Call and Response -
By Alicia LeBlanc “I will try my best to be…” -- Religion in Life for Girl Scouts (4th edition) Do you advise Girl Scouts in your congregation? Were you a Girl Scout in your youth? If you’re a young person reading this, are you a Girl Scout? If you’re not… maybe you’d like to be! The...
October 7, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: High School-Aged Youth Faith Development, Faith Development -
[Editor's Update, Nov. 18, 2014—As the nation awaits a Grand Jury decision on whether Office Darren Wilson will be indicted for shooting Michael Brown, many UUs are preparing to respond to the decision by "showing up" in a faithful way. The Ferguson Response Team of the UU New England districts...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | September 30, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Families & Faith Development, Multiculturalism, Racial Justice -
By Liz Strong [Editors' note: http://uuma.site-ym.com/blogpost/569858/196949/In-Memory-of----Eugene-B… Rev....
September 15, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: UU History, Faith Development -
By Kari Kopnick For seven years I served as the religious educator for a wonderful Unitarian Universalist congregation in West Seattle, Washington. During my early years there we would trek down to the rocky beaches of Puget Sound for an annual “Solstice by the Shore” celebration. We would...
September 2, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Children, Earth -
Theme-based ministry is happening in more and more congregations throughout our movement. What is theme-based ministry? According to Rev. Scott Tayler, the UUA’s Director of Congregational Life, theme-based ministry “is a powerfully engaging way of focusing the life of a congregation on...
By Pat Kahn | August 20, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Multigenerational Faith Development, Worship Tips -
The selection committee met this summer. We thoughtfully considered the 14 books nominated for the 2014-15 Common Read. There were beautifully written books that addressed social justice issues—immigration, voting rights, racial justice, and climate change—and several that looked at ways to...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | August 5, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Adult Faith Development, UU Identity -
No one knows better than religious educators that we are stronger together than we ever could be alone. Time and time again, you prove this to me, my colleagues -- most recently at RE Week at The Mountain. Six days in the company of religious educators, ministers, RE and worship committee...
By Jessica York | July 23, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Professional Development for Religious Educators -
Let the beauty we love be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground. —Rumi By Karen Bellavance-Grace Thirty-one. Not Baskin Robbins flavors. Not Heinz varieties. Not even the number of Sources of Unitarian Universalism. That number represents our families. Last year a...
July 8, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Families & Faith Development -
“Will you be part of the Gay-Straight Dialogue group?” It was the mid-1980s and I had just become the Director of Religious Education (DRE) at the Universalist Unitarian Church of Haverhill, MA. The Reverend Janet Bowering, after deep reflection, had decided that her Universalist faith called...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | June 24, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Faith Development -
Must we strive for excellence in everything we do? Is there a downside to the message our kids receive that they should always do their best?...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | June 13, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: High School-Aged Youth Faith Development -
“So, what are we supposed to do?” My 13-year-old daughter mumbles the question. It’s a fresh, almost-summer day and we’re parked at the entrance to Den Rock Park, car doors flung open as we wait for the others. She and her friend slump in the back seat of my car, noodling on their electronic...
By Susan Lawrence | June 3, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Children's Faith Development, Nature -
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By Pat Kahn | May 26, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Beliefs & Principles, Families & Faith Development, Parents, Spirituality -
I love to play Sims. In Sims 3, you sometimes find an Unknown Seed. If you have enough gardening skills, your Sims can plant the seed and see what grows. It might be a money tree! In real life, we also plant seeds without knowing what they will ultimately become. In 2012, I facilitated a...
By Jessica York | May 16, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Racial Justice & Multicultural Ministries -
Storytellers make choices all the time. We choose which parts of a story to lift up and which to downplay or omit; which characters to develop, and how; and which dilemmas to emphasize. This is especially true when it comes to stories from the Bible. It was so with the great biblical films and...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | May 6, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Judaism -
I am taking a UU history class with the Starr King School for the Ministry. But to you, my colleagues and friends, I’ll admit a secret: I’ve never been fond of history. In high school, history seemed to be a long list of dates and monarchs and wars. Classes improved in college when, forced to...
By Jessica York | April 28, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: UU History, UU Identity -
The family is a huge factor in a child's faith development. Reverend Makanah Morris has likened family life to a ground in which seeds of a child's faith are planted. She writes, "The seeds are planted in the early environment, but the ground can also be prepared for spreading roots and welcoming...
By Pat Kahn | April 18, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Beliefs & Principles, Families & Faith Development, Parents, Spirituality -
Ramon Selove and his wife, Shellie Selove, are Our Whole Lives sexuality education facilitator trainers. They are members of the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Shenandoah Valley (VA)....
April 8, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: UU Identity, Multiculturalism -
An 18-inch blanket of snow surrounds my house and it is far too early to put the winter clothes into storage. Yet, the birds are singing every morning, the days are longer, and grocery store conversation has turned to spring. Springtime...a time of delight for the human spirit!...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | March 30, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Beliefs & Principles, Christianity, Spirituality -
We know that the Universe's one constant is change. Systems are full of chaos. We've seen that in our weather systems this month, when March came in like a lion. Northern parts of our country are preparing for another big snow storm. Here in the South the beginning of March brought ice storms and...
By Jessica York | March 20, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Multiculturalism, Communication -
by Sandy Weir “From this House” is a joyous, South African-style song by composer Ben Allaway. It evokes the image of people walking out into the world after finding power and a sense of purpose at their house of peace, their community space to celebrate, learn, and work out problems. Unitarian...
March 12, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Multiculturalism, Social Justice -
I first experienced a UU camp retreat when I was still in high school. At Ferry Beach in Saco, Maine, I found a community trying to live according to its highest values in a place apart from an outside world which often felt so violent, unjust, and broken. For me, Ferry Beach was a place where...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | March 4, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: High School-Aged Youth Faith Development -
Last fall, as the Faith Development Office was preparing discussion guides for Muhammad: The Story of a Prophet and Reformer by Sarah Conover (UUA/Skinner House, 2013), we learned from Mary Benard, Editorial Director of our Publications Office, that Muhammad had been reviewed by Booklist. This is a...
By Pat Kahn | February 22, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Children's Faith Development, Islam, Teaching Methods, LGBTQ Issues -
Many parents and educators would say “love” is the most important value to demonstrate and to teach the children in our care. Some of us might say "justice." The annual 30 Days of Love campaign from Standing on the Side of Love, which closes next week, offers reflections and actions to help...
By Susan Lawrence | February 12, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Families & Faith Development, Parents, UU Identity -
The Indian philosopher, Chanakya (350-283 BCE), said, “Education is the best friend. An educated person is respected everywhere. Education beats the beauty and the youth.” As the Faith Development Director at the UUA, I often ask myself, “What sort of education is available for our UU...
By Jessica York | February 5, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: High School-Aged Youth Faith Development, Anti-Racism, Multiculturalism -
February 2, Groundhog Day, presents a small, persistent cultural marker of a spiritual observance hundreds of years old....
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | February 2, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Paganism, Spirituality, Winter -
In 1990, the year of Nelson Mandela's release from Robben Island, I was a great enthusiast of world music. Specifically, the sounds of southern Africa captivated me, the rhythms of that particular, different drummer....
By Susan Lawrence | January 19, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Social Justice -
About five years ago, I began a sabbatical with a compelling charge from the congregation I served: “Go and find stories and bring them back to us!” I took that charge seriously. I traveled by car the length of the Mississippi River and around Lakes Huron and Superior. I wanted to know how the...
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | January 7, 2014 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: UU Identity -
Members of the UUA Common Read selection committee read a lot of fabulous books to prepare for our mid-summer selection meeting....
By Gail Forsyth-Vail | December 28, 2013 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Adult Faith Development -
Thanksgiving can be a difficult holiday. Not all family gatherings are harmonious. There might be pressure to prepare “the perfect meal” just like a parent used to make. Then there is that business with Europeans spreading their empire and claiming new lands—even though those lands were...
By Jessica York | December 16, 2013 | From Call and ResponseTagged as: Multiculturalism, Multiculturalism