The UU History Sparks module will be offered online Wednesdays, January 22, February 5 & 19, March 5 & 19, and April 2, 1-3pm ET. The module will be facilitated by Corinna Whiteaker-Lewis, CRE-Advanced Level and Emmie Schlobohm. Registration is limited to 15 participants and the fee for this 6-session module is $300, payable on a sliding scale according to availability to pay. More payment details are available in the registration form. The registration deadline is January 15, 2025.

Module Requirements

The Unitarian Universalist History Sparks module is an online learning experience that includes six two-hour webinars with reading and other assignments for each session. Credit will be offered for full participation in the module. Full participation includes:

• Online attendance and active participation in six two-hour sessions;
• Reading and reflection to prepare for each session, which will require about two or three hours;
• Submission of a 250-word post on the Discussion Forum after each session with an idea for application of your learning in your professional work. You will find a sample post in the Session 1, Discussion Forum. Note: The Discussion Forum will remain active until one week after the module closes;
• Preparation of a final project and presentation, working by oneself, with a partner, or with a small group; and
• Submission of the Participant Evaluation within one week after module ends.

Goal and Learning Objectives

The goal of this module is to give participants a sense of the broad scope of Unitarian, Universalist, and Unitarian Universalist history and some of the key stories that are part of that history, so that participants are able to:

• Understand context for historical stories they tell in worship, small group, classroom, social media, and other settings;
• Explain the history of our movement to lay people, to youth, and to children in age-appropriate ways;
• Understand and explain how the history of their own congregation or geographical area fits in with the history of the broader movement;
• Understand and articulate the history behind some of the theology and traditions that are important to contemporary Unitarian Universalism; and
• Understand how we came to be who we are as a movement- and what strengths and challenges our history offers.

Religious professionals are often called upon to share our history, and this approach provides a method of sharing history that allows engagement with that history. Because religious education is the vehicle by which we guide children, youth, and adults to live their faith in the world, this module offers a glimpse of how our faith has called people to action in their times and places.

This module also includes a guided tour of some of the worship and faith development resources that religious professionals might use in the course of their work. Tapestry of Faith stories from a number of programs for children, youth, and adults are included in the readings. Hymns and readings fromSinging the Living Tradition are placed in their historical context, both to increase participants’ familiarity with worship resources and to give them a sense of how the theology of each era is reflected in the hymns and readings we still use today.

The online “classroom” includes session-by-session background information and reading assignments. You will also find timelines to help you locate events and understand some of the relationships between people and events (please note that the scale of the timelines varies to accommodate the information pertinent to each session). Additionally, links to interactive timelines will be reviewed during each webinar.

Required Reading

You will read selections from three required books and selections from Tapestry of Faith programs and other online resources:

• Stirring the Nation’s Heart by Polly Peterson (UUA, 2010)
• Missionaries, Builders and Pathfinders by Polly Peterson and Gail Forsyth-Vail (UUA, 2014)
• Darkening the Doorways: Black Trailblazers and Missed Opportunities in Unitarian Universalism by Mark Morrison-Read (Skinner House, 2011)

A print version of the UU History Participant Guide (PDF, 62 pages) is available for downloading.

Technical Considerations

The webinar platform is Zoom, which you can download from Zoom.

In order register and access module materials, participants must have or create a UUA profile name. On UUA.org, click on “create account” at the top right and follow instructions on the page. If you have already participated in an online module, use the profile name you have already created. You must provide your profile name to be added to the group and begin the preparation required before the first session.

Register here!

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