Tapestry of Faith: Love Will Guide Us: A Program for Grades 2-3 that Applies the Wisdom of the Six Sources to the Big Questions

Taking It Home: Love in Our Congregation

The good we secure for ourselves is precarious and uncertain until it is secured for all of us and incorporated into our common life. — Jane Addams, American social activist and 1931 Nobel Peace Prize recipient

IN TODAY'S SESSION... the group learned about Jesus' life through a story, "Meet Jesus," based on passages from Christian scripture. They explored the fourth Unitarian Universalist Source, "Jewish and Christian teachings which tell us to love all other as we love ourselves," learning that Jesus preached and demonstrated the importance of taking care of everyone in a community. The children identified communities they belong to, talked about what being a community means, and worked together on human sculptures.

EXPLORE THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Talk about... Jesus' message of love and his ability to use love to create community wherever he went. Explore the meaning of community in your own life. What communities are important to you?

EXTEND THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Online, learn about Jesus and Christianity from a Unitarian Universalist perspective. Read five UU perspectives in the pamphlet UU Views of Jesus, edited by Bruce Southworth. Read resources about UU Christianity from the UU Christian Fellowship website.

The UUA Bookstore offers Our Chosen Faith: An Introduction to Unitarian Universalism by John A. Buehrens and F. Forrest Church (Beacon Press, 1989). Highly recommended for leaders of this program, this book presents two essays focused on each of the six Sources of Unitarian Universalism. The UUA Bookstore also offers:

  • Meet Jesus: The Life and Lessons of a Beloved Teacher by Lynn Tuttle Gunney (Skinner House, 2007)
  • Unitarian Universalism Is a Really Long Name by Jennifer Dant and Anne Carter (Skinner House, 2008)
  • What If Nobody Forgave and Other Stories by Colleen McDonald (Skinner House, 2003).

A Family Ritual. If you read to your children on a regular basis, consider adding the parables of Jesus to your repertoire. You might read:

  • The Parables and Miracles of Jesus by Mary Hoffman (Frances Lincoln Children's Books, 2007)
  • Tomie dePaola's Book of Bible Stories, Tomie dePaola (Putnam Juvenile, 2002).