At the start of the Religious Education year

ALL: We come together as a living church.

WORSHIP LEADER: We come together from different places as unique individuals. Our paths and the ways of our going are diverse, yet we share our journey.

CONGREGATION: We come together in gladness, knowing that here we are welcome as we are and that here also the best possibilities of our spirits are encouraged to grow.

PARENTS OF CHILDREN AND YOUTH: I am glad to bring my children to this church which is for us a larger family. Here we come to understand that we are all part of an even larger family of life on earth, which is our home. In our church we can discover what it means to be related.

CHILDREN AND YOUTH: I am glad I came into a family of love. I am glad to be part of this church family, and glad to be part of a world where there is so much to discover and to do.

TEACHERS OF THE CHURCH SCHOOL: I am glad I have the opportunity to work and play and learn with the youngest people in our church. Your questions invite my wonder, your trust encourages my hope. So I will strive to give each of you the kind of affection and respect which fosters your ability to question and to trust.

OTHER ADULTS: We all rejoice in the children and youth who are with us on life's journey. As we cherish you, we pledge ourselves to share with you the living wisdom of our religious tradition which is your heritage. We welcome you into our fellowship. As you grow, we hope to find you beside us in the long and loving work of creating goodness in the world.

CONGREGATION: As members of a church family we promise to stick together, to support each other, as all good families do, through thick and thin, through joy and sorrow, through tears and laughter, through work and play and all the choices and challenges life's journey brings.

WORSHIP LEADER: As children of one Creative Spirit we affirm our relationship to the larger family of life. We affirm our faith that we have within us the power and wisdom to join in the creation of a world of justice, peace and joy.

ALL: Let us strive to understand ourselves and one another, and to extend the spirit of goodwill as far as our love can reach.