Tapestry of Faith: Riddle and Mystery: A Program on the Big Questions for Grade 6

Activity 1: UU Understandings

Activity time: 12 minutes

Materials for Activity

  • Handout 2, UU Ideas
  • Pencils/pens
  • Description of Activity and (optional) newsprint with the group's ideas about religion, faith and spirituality from Session 2, Activity 5, Then What's a Religion?
  • Optional: Newsprint, markers and tape

Preparation for Activity

  • Review Session 2, Activity 5, Then What's a Religion? Retrieve and read the newsprint notes from that activity. You may wish to post them for this activity.
  • Copy Handout 2 for all participants. Decide how you will present and process the Handout 2 activity, depending on the learning styles in the group. Either:
    • Provide Handout 2 to be filled out as an individual worksheet and then processed as a group.
    • Or, read aloud each statement on the handout to the whole group and record their "votes" on each statement. Then process their answers as a group.

Description of Activity

This activity reinforces UU ideas from previous sessions about big questions, faith and mystery.

Distribute Handout 2 with pencils/pens and ask participants to check ten statements with which they think most UUs would agree. Once participants have marked their handouts, read the statements with them and decide as a group which best express UU ideas. The exceptions are 5 ("If I study hard enough I can correctly answer every big and little question there ever was.") and 9 ("The UU religion is the only religion with the right answers to the big questions.") Regarding statement 5, explain that most UUs agree we can never completely answer some big questions. Regarding statement 9, explain that UUs include among our Sources other religions which may offer wise responses, but not exact answers, to big questions. Say, in your own words:

When it comes to most big questions, UUs believe there are few "right" answers-only answers that are right to you. We believe that no one religion has the only right answers for everyone. We respect that different people and different religions embrace different answers to the same big questions. We can often learn from the answers or ideas of others.

When you have finished with the statements, review some ideas about faith, spirituality and religion presented earlier in Riddle and Mystery. You might re-use some discussion prompts or re-post newsprint from Session 2, Activity 5. Reviewing these concepts now will give youth confidence to speak about their UU faith, religion and spirituality as this session proceeds.

Variation

Add motion to the activity by reading each statement aloud and asking the youth to stand or raise their hand if they think it represents the thinking of many Unitarian Universalists. Count the responses to each statement and note them on your handout or on a posted sheet of newsprint.