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Showing posts with label Congregational Life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Congregational Life. Show all posts
2020-03-11
Connecting to Worship, Meetings, and Journey Groups via Zoom
2014-09-25
Family Chalice Lighters
This year we are inviting
families to take a meaningful role in the Sunday Service by becoming Family
Chalice Lighters.
Each week that our children
join us in the sanctuary, one family will come to the chancel, read our chalice
lighting words, and light the chalice.
Would you like your family to
participate?
2014-09-11
We Begin with a Covenant (Perry's Ponderings)
When my wife, Barbara, and I spoke our vows two Sundays ago, with Reverend Meredith’s prompting, we made promises to each other. The words matter, but their real meaning comes from the feeling behind them and the intent to fulfill them. The care, love, and connection between us gives life to the words “love and cherish.” The same is true with the covenants created in our faith community.
Our wedding ceremony was a combination of Jewish and Unitarian Universalist traditions. Interestingly, both religions are covenantal faiths. Judaism refers to the covenant with God, which is interpreted in different ways depending upon how the person perceives God, from the more literal supreme being to, alternatively, a sense of connection with oneself and the world. In Unitarian Universalism, when we say we are a covenantal faith, we mean that our sense of meaning is dependent upon our agreements with one another. It is our covenanting that holds us in community around our values and way of being together, in the midst of our diversity of beliefs.
The year in Religious Education begins with our first classes this Sunday. The children, youth, and teachers will start in the sanctuary where we will have an RE Covenanting during the service. We will all say out loud the commitment we are making to one another to be in this Religious Education Ministry together. The congregation will promise to surround children, youth, and teachers with a loving supportive community in which to thrive. Volunteer teachers will promise to be present, available, and engaged. This is the essence of what we can ask of each other.
When the classes create their own covenants, we explain to the children and youth that these are not rules; they are agreements we make with each other about how we are going to be together. Each person is committing to this agreement and is a part of the process. Our ideas on how we should go about being together may shift somewhat over time, but our ultimate commitment is that we are going to present to one another in a supportive way. We are going to work through our differences in a way that will enable us to thrive, even when that is difficult. Much like a good marriage, our sense of community is based on that intent and the continual renewal of finding ways to come together.
Our wedding ceremony was a combination of Jewish and Unitarian Universalist traditions. Interestingly, both religions are covenantal faiths. Judaism refers to the covenant with God, which is interpreted in different ways depending upon how the person perceives God, from the more literal supreme being to, alternatively, a sense of connection with oneself and the world. In Unitarian Universalism, when we say we are a covenantal faith, we mean that our sense of meaning is dependent upon our agreements with one another. It is our covenanting that holds us in community around our values and way of being together, in the midst of our diversity of beliefs.
The year in Religious Education begins with our first classes this Sunday. The children, youth, and teachers will start in the sanctuary where we will have an RE Covenanting during the service. We will all say out loud the commitment we are making to one another to be in this Religious Education Ministry together. The congregation will promise to surround children, youth, and teachers with a loving supportive community in which to thrive. Volunteer teachers will promise to be present, available, and engaged. This is the essence of what we can ask of each other.
When the classes create their own covenants, we explain to the children and youth that these are not rules; they are agreements we make with each other about how we are going to be together. Each person is committing to this agreement and is a part of the process. Our ideas on how we should go about being together may shift somewhat over time, but our ultimate commitment is that we are going to present to one another in a supportive way. We are going to work through our differences in a way that will enable us to thrive, even when that is difficult. Much like a good marriage, our sense of community is based on that intent and the continual renewal of finding ways to come together.
2014-08-07
The Beauty of the Breeze (Perry's Ponderings)
As I sit in my cleaned out and almost completely-organized office, the most perfect breeze passes through the open door and peacefully awakens my senses. In its wake, I cannot help but pause for a moment to notice the beauty around me, feeling fully alive and connected to the nature outside the door and the life of the congregation within it.
There have been some days this summer when we were in the midst of the cleaning and reorganizing that there was a busyness in the heat, much as you might find on a city sidewalk baking in the sun as it absorbs thousands of footsteps. Then the cooling off happens overnight and we are refreshed by the air, able to see anew what has passed. It is heartwarming to see the imprint of the footsteps at CUC and the fresh air breathing new life into the building.
What has transpired for you this summer? Have your steps quickly traversed those city sidewalks with a destination in mind? Have you found those moments to pause and connect with nature, or loved ones on vacation? Whether a particular conversation gave you pause or the perfect passing breeze held you still, I wonder what has contained significance for you in the changes of the summer season. What will you bring back with you to this community when you return?
We are more than halfway through the summer and coming upon the time when our minds are pulled into thinking about a new school and church year. We savor the time we have before it comes and begin to prepare in motions that will transition us from one mode to the other. I hope the summer activity and slowing down have provided what you needed during this time and the remaining summer weeks bring more of that.
I have been planting seeds in what is new soil for me at CUC and look forward to nurturing more of those growing relationships, so we may have a bountiful fall. I await to hear your stories and prepare for the ones we will be creating together.
There have been some days this summer when we were in the midst of the cleaning and reorganizing that there was a busyness in the heat, much as you might find on a city sidewalk baking in the sun as it absorbs thousands of footsteps. Then the cooling off happens overnight and we are refreshed by the air, able to see anew what has passed. It is heartwarming to see the imprint of the footsteps at CUC and the fresh air breathing new life into the building.
What has transpired for you this summer? Have your steps quickly traversed those city sidewalks with a destination in mind? Have you found those moments to pause and connect with nature, or loved ones on vacation? Whether a particular conversation gave you pause or the perfect passing breeze held you still, I wonder what has contained significance for you in the changes of the summer season. What will you bring back with you to this community when you return?
We are more than halfway through the summer and coming upon the time when our minds are pulled into thinking about a new school and church year. We savor the time we have before it comes and begin to prepare in motions that will transition us from one mode to the other. I hope the summer activity and slowing down have provided what you needed during this time and the remaining summer weeks bring more of that.
I have been planting seeds in what is new soil for me at CUC and look forward to nurturing more of those growing relationships, so we may have a bountiful fall. I await to hear your stories and prepare for the ones we will be creating together.
 | |
| Work and nature came together when everything had to come out of the office for the floors to be done. |
2014-07-11
Leading Out Learners of All Ages (Perry's Ponderings)
Sofia, Youth Representative on the RE Council and an active member of Youth Group, is helping me reorganize the REsource Room and the DLRE office. I am grateful for Sofia’s hard work over the past week. One of our tasks is to go through the Religious Education library, book by book. It is really interesting to see the array of books in the collection from the early 1900’s to the present. During our sorting endeavor, Sofia and I are seeing a snapshot of a cultural evolution.
Many books about those who are handicapped, people of other cultures, Native Americans, African-Americans, LGBTQQA persons, the elderly or speaking to family issues, do not meet current standards of cultural appropriateness and understanding. However, these books were often on the cutting edge of social ideological advancement at the time they were written. They illustrate that our understanding of what it means to respect the inherent worth and dignity of every person is affected by the culture at large and an ongoing evolution.
Reverend Mark Morrison-Reed gave the Sophia Lyon Fahs Lecture (religious education focused) at General Assembly (see video and transcript here ). Rev. Mark is an expert on Unitarian Universalist history and multiculturalism who inspires with his thorough knowledge, but also with his heartfelt investment in what he is saying. In the mission of the Fahs Lecture it states, “The speaker's role is to address some aspect of the sacred work of "leading out" learners of all ages.” Rev. Mark is moved by what he speaks about and you join him on the ride. He went through the history of early to mid-late twentieth century religious education curricula, UU hymnals, other denominational writings, and leadership assignments to illustrate that although we were advancing in our methods and philosophies of religious education, as well as voicing support for social causes, we were mostly stagnant when it came to including people of color in our publications and leadership positions.
Although Unitarian Universalists spoke about issues of equality, we were somewhat blind to our own omissions in the area. Even while we protested the social norms, we were slow to shift them in our own world. While we struggled with some of these advancements, however, Unitarian Universalists religious education instilled in children the values of equality, the dignity and worth of every person, the freedom of individual exploration, and the responsibility to change the world around you. It did this through a teaching method that emphasized wonder and experiential learning, as opposed to content, so children could empathize and see the picture through a relational lens. As a result, each generation evolved in its ability to turn ideals into action, leading to our involvement in the Civil Right movement and our continued growth in addressing equality issues within our denomination and the world around us.
You will be proud to know that when I spoke to Rev. Mark afterward, he remembered CUC having significant integration early on and making inclusion a part of congregational life. As Sofia articulated the cultural relevance and value-setting of each book in our sorting exercise, I was reminded of the evolution in cultural sensitivity and multicultural competency that we see as each new generation comes into adulthood. May we all keep the flame of inclusion burning bright at CUC through awareness and understanding.
Many books about those who are handicapped, people of other cultures, Native Americans, African-Americans, LGBTQQA persons, the elderly or speaking to family issues, do not meet current standards of cultural appropriateness and understanding. However, these books were often on the cutting edge of social ideological advancement at the time they were written. They illustrate that our understanding of what it means to respect the inherent worth and dignity of every person is affected by the culture at large and an ongoing evolution.
Reverend Mark Morrison-Reed gave the Sophia Lyon Fahs Lecture (religious education focused) at General Assembly (see video and transcript here ). Rev. Mark is an expert on Unitarian Universalist history and multiculturalism who inspires with his thorough knowledge, but also with his heartfelt investment in what he is saying. In the mission of the Fahs Lecture it states, “The speaker's role is to address some aspect of the sacred work of "leading out" learners of all ages.” Rev. Mark is moved by what he speaks about and you join him on the ride. He went through the history of early to mid-late twentieth century religious education curricula, UU hymnals, other denominational writings, and leadership assignments to illustrate that although we were advancing in our methods and philosophies of religious education, as well as voicing support for social causes, we were mostly stagnant when it came to including people of color in our publications and leadership positions.
Although Unitarian Universalists spoke about issues of equality, we were somewhat blind to our own omissions in the area. Even while we protested the social norms, we were slow to shift them in our own world. While we struggled with some of these advancements, however, Unitarian Universalists religious education instilled in children the values of equality, the dignity and worth of every person, the freedom of individual exploration, and the responsibility to change the world around you. It did this through a teaching method that emphasized wonder and experiential learning, as opposed to content, so children could empathize and see the picture through a relational lens. As a result, each generation evolved in its ability to turn ideals into action, leading to our involvement in the Civil Right movement and our continued growth in addressing equality issues within our denomination and the world around us.
You will be proud to know that when I spoke to Rev. Mark afterward, he remembered CUC having significant integration early on and making inclusion a part of congregational life. As Sofia articulated the cultural relevance and value-setting of each book in our sorting exercise, I was reminded of the evolution in cultural sensitivity and multicultural competency that we see as each new generation comes into adulthood. May we all keep the flame of inclusion burning bright at CUC through awareness and understanding.
2014-07-04
Love Reaches Out and Thinking Together (Perry's Ponderings)
The theme of this year’s Unitarian Universalist General Assembly (GA) was Love Reaches Out and it was expressed in many forms. There were workshops about how we can connect with each other through recognizing and respecting our differing identities. Other workshops explored how we live out the transforming power of love within our congregation and outside its walls.
The Waterfire event in Providence, a festival with bonfires on the river that attracts thousands of people, had a strong Unitairan Universalist presence as part of GA last Saturday. UU involvement included the Love Tent and a circle of luminaries offering the opportunity to share how you spread love in the world. Non-UUs saw our values in action and were drawn into the wider circle we created on this particular weekend. (Read more about UU Waterfire here. What does “love reaching out” look like for you?)
Throughout GA there were the amazing worship services with thousands of Unitarian Universalism from all around the country. It was incredible to be in an expansive arena, yet feel intimately connected to all those people around you. GA brought us together in that space, but it was the thread of our common values and the welcoming intention of reaching out that created the real feeling of togetherness.
I just attended the Jewish wedding of a relative upon my return from Providence. The officiating rabbi told the couple that there are three levels of friendship. There are friends with whom you share common interests, those who share your worries, and the friends connected through overlapping values. The rabbi remarked that the couple were fortunate to have all three of those bonds, including the strongest one of common values. He made it clear that did not mean they think alike, but only that they think together - meaning that they share thoughts and figure it out. When they think together they can reach their common goals.
In our new “marriage” at CUC, I look forward to sharing our interests and addressing the matters on our minds within and beyond our walls through our shared values. We treasure our diversity of thought and backgrounds, while we hold common values that bring us together. The joy of the connections we form within that context is a light that shines from our spot on the hill and shows in our actions as we make our way through the world. See that joy come to life in this video of a hymn sung at GA . It will be a pleasure to begin sharing that joy and meaning with you.
The Waterfire event in Providence, a festival with bonfires on the river that attracts thousands of people, had a strong Unitairan Universalist presence as part of GA last Saturday. UU involvement included the Love Tent and a circle of luminaries offering the opportunity to share how you spread love in the world. Non-UUs saw our values in action and were drawn into the wider circle we created on this particular weekend. (Read more about UU Waterfire here. What does “love reaching out” look like for you?)
Throughout GA there were the amazing worship services with thousands of Unitarian Universalism from all around the country. It was incredible to be in an expansive arena, yet feel intimately connected to all those people around you. GA brought us together in that space, but it was the thread of our common values and the welcoming intention of reaching out that created the real feeling of togetherness.
I just attended the Jewish wedding of a relative upon my return from Providence. The officiating rabbi told the couple that there are three levels of friendship. There are friends with whom you share common interests, those who share your worries, and the friends connected through overlapping values. The rabbi remarked that the couple were fortunate to have all three of those bonds, including the strongest one of common values. He made it clear that did not mean they think alike, but only that they think together - meaning that they share thoughts and figure it out. When they think together they can reach their common goals.
In our new “marriage” at CUC, I look forward to sharing our interests and addressing the matters on our minds within and beyond our walls through our shared values. We treasure our diversity of thought and backgrounds, while we hold common values that bring us together. The joy of the connections we form within that context is a light that shines from our spot on the hill and shows in our actions as we make our way through the world. See that joy come to life in this video of a hymn sung at GA . It will be a pleasure to begin sharing that joy and meaning with you.
2014-04-18
CSA at CUC
CSA = Community Supported Agriculture
Roxbury Farm is a community supported farm. Community UU is their White Plains distribution point for produce shares from Jun - Nov.
Pick-up at Community UU, room 43, is every Wednesday for 23 Wednesdays, starting the second Wed in Jun through the third Wed in Nov (except the second Wed in Nov) -- between 3:30p and 6:30p.
The shares are currently all sold out for the 2015 season.
Sign up in spring for the 2016 season.
More info about Roxbury Farm: CLICK HERE.
How does it work?
Roxbury Farm members pick up a share once a week from June to November at a central distribution point in their neighborhood. Roxbury Farm delivers to 6 sites in the Capital Region, 5 sites in Westchester, 2 sites in Harlem, 2 sites on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and the Farm in Columbia County.
When you arrive at your CSA site you check off your name on the sign-in sheet, pick up a newsletter (or download one from the website), and read the share list. You then collect each item from the share list and place it in your own bag. If you are going on vacation you can have a friend or neighbor pick up you share. But, don't worry none of the vegetables go to waste, all the produce left after the CSA pick up is delivered to a food pantry or community kitchen.
What’s in a share?
A share provides 10-17 lbs of freshly harvested produce each week. Given an average harvest, a share provides enough vegetables to feed 2-4 adults eating a vegetable based diet (400-450 lbs of produce every season).
Each week you will receive 7-12 different varieties of vegetables. You will experience a variety of vegetables that changes with the seasons. From early spring with wide variety of greens, scallions, and radishes, through the peak of the summer with rich flavored tomatoes, freshly picked sweet corn, and green beans, and into the cool days of fall with hearty root vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, winter squash, beets, and parsnips.
Fruit Share:
In addition to our weekly CSA vegetable share Roxbury Farm also offers our members the option to buy a fruit share by subscription only. The fruit provided in the share is all grown in Columbia County orchards but it is not organic. The share includes 2-4 lbs of pre-bagged fruit per week, ranging from sweet cherries, to plums, peaches, pears and a large variety of apples. We deliver fruit for 18 weeks beginning in July.
Sharing Shares:
If you would like to purchase a half share, we ask that you find someone to split the share with. We request that you indicate on your enrollment form one primary shareholder, who will be responsible for making the payments to the farm. We cannot accept checks from both parties. The share must be picked up all at once: you cannot sign in and pick up only your half of the vegetables. All splitting of shares must be done outside the pick-up site, unless you come together. (Some people divide their share by picking up on alternate weeks).
What is my responsibility as a member?
A CSA eliminates the need for a retailer, so the members not only share the harvest with the farmers, but the distribution of the harvest as well. It is important for members to help keep the sites running smoothly or they don't work. Each member or family is asked to contribute three to four hours of time, helping to set up or clean up the site, delivering leftover food to a pantry, or telephoning other members with reminders.
If you are unable to fulfill this work requirement please contact the farm to work out an alternative arrangment.
What is the share price based on?
Each fall the farmers go over the farm budget to figure out the operating costs for the next season. They then divide the costs of operating the farm by the number of members. This is the base share price. The farm adds a delivery fee to pay for the trucking costs. Then each member community adds on an administrative fee to provide for management of the pick-up site. Each site community has a different share price, see the specific site page for share prices.
Roxbury Farm is a community supported farm. Community UU is their White Plains distribution point for produce shares from Jun - Nov.
Pick-up at Community UU, room 43, is every Wednesday for 23 Wednesdays, starting the second Wed in Jun through the third Wed in Nov (except the second Wed in Nov) -- between 3:30p and 6:30p.
The shares are currently all sold out for the 2015 season.
Sign up in spring for the 2016 season.
More info about Roxbury Farm: CLICK HERE.
How does it work?
Roxbury Farm members pick up a share once a week from June to November at a central distribution point in their neighborhood. Roxbury Farm delivers to 6 sites in the Capital Region, 5 sites in Westchester, 2 sites in Harlem, 2 sites on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and the Farm in Columbia County.
When you arrive at your CSA site you check off your name on the sign-in sheet, pick up a newsletter (or download one from the website), and read the share list. You then collect each item from the share list and place it in your own bag. If you are going on vacation you can have a friend or neighbor pick up you share. But, don't worry none of the vegetables go to waste, all the produce left after the CSA pick up is delivered to a food pantry or community kitchen.
What’s in a share?
A share provides 10-17 lbs of freshly harvested produce each week. Given an average harvest, a share provides enough vegetables to feed 2-4 adults eating a vegetable based diet (400-450 lbs of produce every season).
Each week you will receive 7-12 different varieties of vegetables. You will experience a variety of vegetables that changes with the seasons. From early spring with wide variety of greens, scallions, and radishes, through the peak of the summer with rich flavored tomatoes, freshly picked sweet corn, and green beans, and into the cool days of fall with hearty root vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, winter squash, beets, and parsnips.
Fruit Share:
In addition to our weekly CSA vegetable share Roxbury Farm also offers our members the option to buy a fruit share by subscription only. The fruit provided in the share is all grown in Columbia County orchards but it is not organic. The share includes 2-4 lbs of pre-bagged fruit per week, ranging from sweet cherries, to plums, peaches, pears and a large variety of apples. We deliver fruit for 18 weeks beginning in July.
Sharing Shares:
If you would like to purchase a half share, we ask that you find someone to split the share with. We request that you indicate on your enrollment form one primary shareholder, who will be responsible for making the payments to the farm. We cannot accept checks from both parties. The share must be picked up all at once: you cannot sign in and pick up only your half of the vegetables. All splitting of shares must be done outside the pick-up site, unless you come together. (Some people divide their share by picking up on alternate weeks).
What is my responsibility as a member?
A CSA eliminates the need for a retailer, so the members not only share the harvest with the farmers, but the distribution of the harvest as well. It is important for members to help keep the sites running smoothly or they don't work. Each member or family is asked to contribute three to four hours of time, helping to set up or clean up the site, delivering leftover food to a pantry, or telephoning other members with reminders.
If you are unable to fulfill this work requirement please contact the farm to work out an alternative arrangment.
What is the share price based on?
Each fall the farmers go over the farm budget to figure out the operating costs for the next season. They then divide the costs of operating the farm by the number of members. This is the base share price. The farm adds a delivery fee to pay for the trucking costs. Then each member community adds on an administrative fee to provide for management of the pick-up site. Each site community has a different share price, see the specific site page for share prices.
2013-11-25
Lists of Lists
Here's a list of a dozen lists for understanding Unitarian Universalism and for our shared congregational life.
We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote:
The living tradition we share draws from many sources:
Source: Rev. Richard S. Gilbert (UU Minister), The Prophetic Imperative: Social Gospel in Theory and Practice, (2000).
Membership in a Unitarian Universalist congregation, I explain to prospective members and current members alike, comes with certain expectations.
A church must be growing -- and growing in four different ways.
When I'm asked what Unitarian Universalists believe, I frequently reply, "What Unitarian Universalists believe is that your religion isn't about what you believe." So what is religion about?
Source: Meredith Garmon (but see also Phyllis Tickle [religion scholar]: religion is a "cable of meaning" composed of three strands: spirituality, corporeality [i.e., the apparatus of community], and morality).
The preceding "Three Constituents of Religion" apply to any religion, liberal or conservative. What qualities, then, make a religious approach liberal? The great 20th-century Unitarian theologian James Luther Adams (1901 - 1996) articulated these "five smooth stones" of liberalism:
The "Temperament and Character Inventory" (TCI) measures "self-transcendence" (a.k.a. spirituality) as the sum of three submeasures:
Whatever your primary spiritual practice may be -- playing music, hiking, quilting, gardening, or any of myriad other possibilities -- your practice will benefit from also taking up these five practices to provide a solid foundation for your spiritual growth.
Congregations can't make people advance to higher stages of faith development, nor can they even test with much accuracy who is at what stage. Nevertheless, nurturing and encouraging people toward greater faith development is the function of a faith institution.
Stage 1 – "Intuitive-Projective" faith (ages of three to seven), is characterized by the psyche's unprotected exposure to the Unconscious, and marked by a relative fluidity of thought patterns. [1] Religion is learned mainly through experiences, stories, images, and the people that one comes in contact with.
Stage 2 – "Mythic-Literal" faith (mostly in school children), stage two persons have a strong belief in the justice and reciprocity of the universe, and their deities are almost always anthropomorphic. During this time metaphors and symbolic language are often misunderstood and are taken literally.
Stage 3 – "Synthetic-Conventional" faith (arising in adolescence; aged 12 to adulthood) characterized by conformity to religious authority and the development of a personal identity. Any conflicts with one's beliefs are ignored at this stage due to the fear of threat from inconsistencies.
Stage 4 – "Individuative-Reflective" faith (usually mid-twenties to late thirties) a stage of angst and struggle. The individual takes personal responsibility for his or her beliefs and feelings. As one is able to reflect on one's own beliefs, there is an openness to a new complexity of faith, but this also increases the awareness of conflicts in one's belief.
Stage 5 – "Conjunctive" faith (mid-life crisis) acknowledges paradox and transcendence relating reality behind the symbols of inherited systems. The individual resolves conflicts from previous stages by a complex understanding of a multidimensional, interdependent "truth" that cannot be explained by any particular statement.
Stage 6 – "Universalizing" faith, or what some might call "enlightenment." The individual would treat any person with compassion as he or she views people as from a universal community, and should be treated with universal principles of love and justice.
Source: James Fowler (summary from Wikipedia).
#1. The Seven Principles
We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote:
- The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
- Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
- Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
- A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;
- The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;
- The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all;
- Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
#2. The Six Sources
The living tradition we share draws from many sources:
- Direct experience of that transcending mystery and wonder, affirmed in all cultures, which moves us to a renewal of the spirit and an openness to the forces which create and uphold life;
- Words and deeds of prophetic women and men which challenge us to confront powers and structures of evil with justice, compassion, and the transforming power of love;
- Wisdom from the world's religions which inspires us in our ethical and spiritual life;
- Jewish and Christian teachings which call us to respond to God's love by loving our neighbors as ourselves;
- Humanist teachings which counsel us to heed the guidance of reason and the results of science, and warn us against idolatries of the mind and spirit;
- Spiritual teachings of earth-centered traditions which celebrate the sacred circle of life and instruct us to live in harmony with the rhythms of nature.
#3. The Four Functions of Faith Community
- Worship and Celebration. The Sunday service centers congregational life.
- Religious Education. Learning and growing together -- for both children and adults.
- Caring for Each Other. The church has a pastoral function.
- Social Justice. Acting together as a people of faith to promote peace and justice in the world.
Source: Rev. Richard S. Gilbert (UU Minister), The Prophetic Imperative: Social Gospel in Theory and Practice, (2000).
#4. The Four P's: Expectations of Membership
Membership in a Unitarian Universalist congregation, I explain to prospective members and current members alike, comes with certain expectations.
- Presence. Membership calls for a commitment to show up, if at all possible, for weekly Sunday worship, and for your monthly "Journey Group" (a small group of 9-16 members). Without a commitment to attendance at these two, membership isn't very meaningful.
- Participation. Take part in the running of the church. Various items come before the membership for a vote: participate in the discussion, engage the issues, and cast your vote. "Participation" also includes taking part in the programs of the church, helping with various tasks, servng on committees, taking a turn teaching kids' R.E. from time to time.
- Pledge. The church requires your financial support to sustain itself, of course. More importantly -- since we are a faith organization for nurturing your spirit -- generosity and gratitude are the most basic practices for cultivating spiritual growth.
- Practice. Practice Unitarian Universalist values and spirituality throughout your life. If you were accused of being a Unitarian Universalist -- and if the evidence of your presence, participation, and pledge were inadmissable -- would there still be enough evidence for a conviction? "Practice" also involves taking up the intentional discipline of a spiritual practice, of which there are many forms.
#5. The Four Types of Church Growth
A church must be growing -- and growing in four different ways.
- Numerical growth. Growth in membership numbers (including also number of kids registered for RE and average Sunday attendance of adults and kids), and in budget numbers.
- Maturational growth. The growth of the members of the church in the maturity of their faith, the depth of their spiritual roots, and the breadth of their religious imaginations.
- Organic growth. The growth of the church considered as an organism. A healthy organism requires healthy internal organization. For a church, this means policies, processes, practices, programs; practices of leadership recruitment and succession planning; evaluation mechanisms for programs, volunteers, and paid staff; structures for dealing with conflict openly and honestly.
- Incarnational growth. The growth of the church as the embodiment of its values, hence, it's growth as a presence in the community and in serving needs outside itself.
#6. The Three Constituents of Religion
When I'm asked what Unitarian Universalists believe, I frequently reply, "What Unitarian Universalists believe is that your religion isn't about what you believe." So what is religion about?
- Religion is about the way you live: the ethics and values that guide your life.
- Religion is about community: the people with whom you choose to join in faith community, and the rituals, songs, and stories that affirm and strengthen community connection.
- Religion is about experience: the experiences of moments of transcendence, awe, mystery, wonder, beauty, interconnection and oneness.
Source: Meredith Garmon (but see also Phyllis Tickle [religion scholar]: religion is a "cable of meaning" composed of three strands: spirituality, corporeality [i.e., the apparatus of community], and morality).
#7. The Five Smooth Stones of Liberalism
The preceding "Three Constituents of Religion" apply to any religion, liberal or conservative. What qualities, then, make a religious approach liberal? The great 20th-century Unitarian theologian James Luther Adams (1901 - 1996) articulated these "five smooth stones" of liberalism:
- Growth. "Religious liberalism depends first on the principle that revelation is continuous. Meaning has not been finally captured. Nothing is complete, and thus nothing is exempt from criticism." Our religious tradition is a living tradition because we are always learning.
- Freedom. "All relations between persons ought ideally to rest on mutual, free consent and not on coercion." We freely choose to enter into relationship with one another.
- Justice. We are morally obligated to direct our "effort toward the establishment of a just and loving community. It is this which makes the role of the prophet central and indispensable in liberalism."
- Social Incarnation. Religious liberals "deny the immaculate conception of virtue and affirm the necessity of social incarnation." Developing just institutions involves the messiness of claiming our power amid conflicting perspectives and needs, rather than the purity of ahistorical, decontextualized ideals.
- Hope. "The resources (divine and human) that are available for the achievement of meaningful change justify an attitude of ultimate optimism."
#8. The "Four Noble Truths" of Unitarian Universalism
- It's a blessing you were born.
- It matters what you do.
- Your experience of the divine is true.
- You don't have to go it alone.
#9. The Three Sub-measures of Spirituality
The "Temperament and Character Inventory" (TCI) measures "self-transcendence" (a.k.a. spirituality) as the sum of three submeasures:
- Self-forgetfulness. The proclivity for becoming so immersed in an activity that the boundary between self and other seems to fall away.
- Transpersonal identification. Recognizing oneself in others -- and others in oneself.
- Acceptance. The ability to accept and affirm reality just as it is, even the hard parts, even the painful and tragic parts.
#10. The Five Foundational Spiritual Practices
Whatever your primary spiritual practice may be -- playing music, hiking, quilting, gardening, or any of myriad other possibilities -- your practice will benefit from also taking up these five practices to provide a solid foundation for your spiritual growth.
- Study. Daily. Choose writings that seem to you to offer spiritual wisdom and insight. Spend some time studying them every day for at least 15 minutes.
- Journal. Daily. Journal about your reflections on spiritual subjects, your experiences of the last day and what they meant to you, and what you're grateful for. Journal every day for at least 15 minutes.
- Silence. Daily. Sit still and quiet. Bring your attention to the sensations of your breath coming in and going out. When thoughts arise, make a note of what sort of thought it was, and then return to awareness of the sensations of breathing. Set aside some time -- at least 15 minutes -- every day to experience stillness and silence.
- Group meeting. Monthly, at least; fortnightly or weekly, if do-able. Meeting regularly with a group that shares your spiritual practice provides additional insights and helps maintain the motivation for practice. We need to have friends along the path.
- Resolve for mindfulness. Continuously. Throughout the day, keep bringing yourself back to the present moment.
#11. The Seven Dimensions of Religion
- Ritual: Forms and orders of cermonies (private or public or both)(often regarded as revealed)
- Narrative and Mythic: Stories (often regarded as revealed) that work on several levels. Sometimes narratives fit together into a fairly complete and systematic interpretation of the universe and humans' place in it.
- Experiential and Emotional: Dread, guilt, awe, mystery, devotion, liberation, ecstasy, inner peace, bliss (private)
- Social and Institutional: Belief system is shared and attitudes practiced by a group. Often rules for identifying community membership and participation (public)
- Ethical and Legal: Rules about human behavior (often regarded as revealed from supernatural realm)
- Doctrinal and Philosophical: Systematic formaulation of religious teachings in an intellectually coherent form.
- Material: Ordinary objects or places that symbolize or manifest the sacred of supernatural.
#12. The Six Stages of Faith Development
Congregations can't make people advance to higher stages of faith development, nor can they even test with much accuracy who is at what stage. Nevertheless, nurturing and encouraging people toward greater faith development is the function of a faith institution.
Stage 1 – "Intuitive-Projective" faith (ages of three to seven), is characterized by the psyche's unprotected exposure to the Unconscious, and marked by a relative fluidity of thought patterns. [1] Religion is learned mainly through experiences, stories, images, and the people that one comes in contact with.
Stage 2 – "Mythic-Literal" faith (mostly in school children), stage two persons have a strong belief in the justice and reciprocity of the universe, and their deities are almost always anthropomorphic. During this time metaphors and symbolic language are often misunderstood and are taken literally.
Stage 3 – "Synthetic-Conventional" faith (arising in adolescence; aged 12 to adulthood) characterized by conformity to religious authority and the development of a personal identity. Any conflicts with one's beliefs are ignored at this stage due to the fear of threat from inconsistencies.
Stage 4 – "Individuative-Reflective" faith (usually mid-twenties to late thirties) a stage of angst and struggle. The individual takes personal responsibility for his or her beliefs and feelings. As one is able to reflect on one's own beliefs, there is an openness to a new complexity of faith, but this also increases the awareness of conflicts in one's belief.
Stage 5 – "Conjunctive" faith (mid-life crisis) acknowledges paradox and transcendence relating reality behind the symbols of inherited systems. The individual resolves conflicts from previous stages by a complex understanding of a multidimensional, interdependent "truth" that cannot be explained by any particular statement.
Stage 6 – "Universalizing" faith, or what some might call "enlightenment." The individual would treat any person with compassion as he or she views people as from a universal community, and should be treated with universal principles of love and justice.
Source: James Fowler (summary from Wikipedia).
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