As another election season approaches, many of us are getting involved—and thinking about getting our congregations involved—in the political process. But what actions are permissible? Americans United (AU) for Separation of Church and State, a public policy organization that advocates for…

Jean McCormick continues to be amazed at what comes out of the mouths–and hearts–of people she thought she knew. For four years she has been one of the coordinators of Unitarian Universalist (UU) Religious Odysseys, a program at All Souls UU Church in Kansas City, MO (317 members), in which…

For three years, Stefanie Samara Hamblen, director of children and youth programs at the Unitarian Universalist (UU) Fellowship in Gainesville, FL (290 members), met every Sunday night with the three teenage boys who comprised the congregation’s youth group.

We see them standing there after the service, intently studying the bulletin board, carefully reading the framed copy of the Seven Principles on the wall, or focusing into their coffee. Visitors. We know in our hearts we should speak to them….

Q. What should the Sunday morning experience include for children? A. What I would like to see kids get on Sunday morning: I would like to know that every week, when a child walks out the door, she is at least a little glad she came….

Volunteers are the lifeblood of our congregations. They fill our committees, lead our small groups, cut the grass, and run our canvasses. A constant stream of them flows through all aspects of church life. That is, if we ask the right people….

Rev. James Robinson, minister at First Parish in Brewster, MA (715 members), is a believer in having lots of small groups as a way to connect members and build a congregation, not only in numbers, but in faith. And for good reason—he gives much of the credit for a seven-fold growth in membership…

Coming of age (COA) ceremonies, marking the transition from childhood to young adult, are as old as history. They have included ritual abductions, vision quests, and bar and bat mitzvahs, all to help youth learn about themselves and prepare for adulthood….

Most of us have the front door pretty well covered on Sunday morning. We have our greeter teams in place, we make our visitors use red coffee cups or special nametags, we introduce them to our friends, and we make sure they know where the bathrooms are….

If any committee is a natural for Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations, it should be the booktable committee. A bookstore, booktable, or bookstall can not only feed the hunger of congregants for UU-related books, but can make it easier for religious education classes and other groups to get the…