What's New: Religious Education and Faith Development
Author(s) needed for a Renaissance module on Unitarian Universalist theology. Read the Call for Authors, and apply.
Engage children in Justice GA 2012, this spring in your congregation! Make time for grades 1-3 and 4-6 to do the four-session immigration curriculum With Justice and Compassion, plus a culminating Family Night that can include the wider congregation. Developed for the UUA by religious educator Mandy Neff, the program is part of the UUA's GA 2012 online resource, Cooking Together: Recipes for Immigration Justice Work.
New adult curriculum is online! In ten workshops, What We Choose: Ethics for Unitarian Universalists by Rev. Amber Beland and Rev. Manish Mishra-Marzetti explores how we do and could make choices grounded in our “deed over creed” UU faith. Examine frameworks for ethical decision making, from Kant’s categorical imperative to personal experiences one has lived in one's social/political place in the dominant society.
Wisdom from the Hebrew Scriptures is a new Tapestry of Faith program designed for a multigenerational group. Eight workshops based on biblical stories of David, Moses, Sarah and Hagar, Abraham and Isaac, Joshua, Isaiah, and Creation. Apply to field test! Contact Alicia LeBlanc at (617) 948-4371 or fieldtest @ uua.org.
Reverend Dr. Barry Andrews received the 2011 Angus H. MacLean Award for Excellence in Religious Education from the UUA and the St. Lawrence Theological School Alumni Association. Judith A. Frediani presented the award at the October meeting of the Liberal Religious Educators Association (LREDA) in Portland, Oregon. Read more...
A once-in-a-decade OWL opportunity! To field test the UUA's revision of Our Whole Lives (OWL): Sexuality Education for Grades 7-9 during the 2011-12 year, see the call for field testers online (PDF).
Acts of Faith by Dr. Eboo Patel, founder of the Interfaith Youth Core, is the UUA Common Read for 2011-12. This Beacon Press book shares Patel's faith journey as a young American Muslim and calls for interfaith cooperation based on values of service that are common across faiths. The UUA's Acts of Faith Discussion Guide (PDF), is suitable for youth, young adult, campus, adult, and cross-generational Common Read groups.
Let's talk about classism. The 2011 Skinner House book, Elite: Uncovering Classism in Unitarian Universalist History by Mark Harris explores how our congregations have come to serve primarily upper-middle class, well educated, professional people. The Discussion Guide for Elite (PDF) invites UU to talk about classism in our movement: Who are we? What do we believe? Who is welcome to belong with us? Design a program of one, two, or three 60-minute (expandable to 90-minute) sessions.
Spotlight: Trainings, Events, and Features
In 2011-12, new and experienced lay leaders in the Northern New England District will have opportunities to nourish a spiritual, UU practice of leadership by attending weekend Harvest the Power workshops, as the district's Leadership Visioning Team rolls out the second year of this leadership development initiative. Read the full article.
Are you seeking support to bring Building the World We Dream About to your congregation? The transformative, 24-session adult Tapestry of Faith program nurtures UUs to create antiracist, multicultural, beloved community in our congregations and beyond. Download a double-sided handout (PDF) which addresses common questions about the program, prepared by the Multicultural Growth and Witness staff group of the UUA with the Resource Development Office of the Ministries and Faith Development staff group.
The new Tapestry of Faith resource From the High Hill: Odyssey Writing for Elders invites participants to explore the stories of their own lives as they craft a reflective presentation for a peer High Hill group, loved ones, and co-congregants. Reverend Anne Odin Heller has structured the program as two weekend retreats, with time in between for participants to remember, sort, reflect, and write their Odysseys. From the High Hill can be a significant tool for enriching your congregation’s ministry to elders.
Adapting Small Group Ministry for Children (PDF) is a resource you can download to explore an alternative to traditional Sunday RE classes for children and junior youth. Originally developed for the North Parish of Andover (Massachusetts) by Gail Forsyth-Vail, this resource uses insights from the small group ministry model many congregations offer for adult, young adult, and youth groups. Find guidance for envisioning and implementing an Religious Education (RE) program that addresses the faith development needs of children and their families and the goals, needs, and capabilities of the wider congregation. Eight sample sessions for worship are followed by structured, small group reflection and activities for grades 1 and 2; 3, 4, and 5; and 6, 7, and 8. Drawn from the UUA's Tapestry of Faith programs, the sample sessions demonstrate how congregations can craft additional sessions using Tapestry of Faith materials.
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Last updated on Wednesday, February 8, 2012.
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