Models of "Doing" RE, April, 2004

This month's "Nuggets" is in response to a question that was asked at the Administration Renaissance Module – "What are the models of "doing" RE?"

• A classroom model based on age groups is the most common way of "doing" religious education. The children are grouped by age or grade in school and utilize an age-appropriate curriculum usually published by the UUA or authored by an independent UU author.
• The Way Cool Sunday School model, which was created by the Reverend Greg Stewart when he was the Minister of Religious Education at the First Unitarian Church of Cleveland, promotes a social-action based approach to RE. The program balances worship, curriculum, social outreach and the arts.
• The Worship-based Small Group Ministry model by Credentialed Religious Educator, Gail Forsyth-Vail, places community worship at the center of the religious education program and employs the small group model by organizing the children and youth in small, covenanted groups for further discernment and community building.
• To respond to the reality that many of our congregations are not large enough to provide age-specific programming, several multi-age learning curricula have been produced.
• The Rotation Model, which came to us from the All Souls Church, Tulsa, is based on the Multiple Intelligence theory and provides learning experiences that meet the needs of all types of learners. The children participate in workshop related to a theme. Workshops include drama, arts, music, story and movement.
• The Spirit Play model has been co-developed by Nita Penfold (wife of UU musician Nick Page, who was our recent keynote speaker at the Curriculum Fair last month). It is based on the principles of Maria Montessori and Jerome Berryman's "Godly Play" which integrate concepts of play and imagination into the learning environment.
• The Balanced Youth Programming model as outlined in the UUA's "Youth Advisor Handbook" is the most tried and true method for a successful congregation-based program for teens.

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This month I am sharing information about an important UUA resource that, in my opinion, does not receive the recognition that it merits. The UU Family Network, led by the Reverend Patricia Hoertdoerfer (Children, Family and Intergenerational Programs Director) is a ministry which serves UU families though its pages on the UUA’s website (www.uua.org/families), its annual packet of materials and its support of congregations and their efforts to work with families.

In About the UU Family Network on the website, Hoertdoefer states, “Recognizing our ministry to families and communities as a core mission of UU congregations, we need to develop philosophy, resources, programs and networks to serve and service this mission….Our ministry needs to celebrate all kinds of families, educate on family issues and UU values, advocate for family social justice, and companion our families with links between church and home.”

The annual UU Family Network Clearinghouse Resource Packet is a compilation of programs, worship services, essays, advocacy programs and activities. All are invited to share their best family programs for inclusion in the packet. Those that do will receive a hard copy of the packet. Otherwise it is available online, cross-referenced as to subject.

The most recent packet is titled Generations United. What follows is a sample of some of the offerings.

• Cross-Generational Understanding: Includes a fascinating look at general characteristics of the generations from the “GI Generation” to the “Millennial Generation”, a worship service that honors the faith journey at each decade of life and an essay that explores not just the individual’s relationship to the congregation, but the family’s relationship to the congregation.
• Intergenerational Worship: Includes a same-sex marriage story for all ages, two worship services appropriate for Thanksgiving and a worship service honoring Kwanzaa.
• Multi-Generational Learning & Service: Includes a workshop for grandparents, a process guide for conducting an oral history project and craft project guides for sewing aprons and vests for folks who suffer with dementia.
• Pan-Generational Gatherings & Events: Includes articles from past REACH packets such as the classic “Un-Birthday Party” and plans for a multi-generational theatre company.
• Resources: Includes reviews and overviews of recent books on intergenerational religious education and family life.

I hope you will come to rely on this excellent source of support, programming and inspiration in your congregation’s ministry to families.

Throughout the autumn, the Unitarian Universalist Association sponsored a number of Regional Campus Ministry Conferences across the country. Our Regional Organizing Consultant (ROC), Darrel Duane and the Reverend Alison Miller, from All Souls UU Church in New York City led a gathering of college students, graduating high school seniors, and professional and lay leaders early last month at the First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh. The participants were offered an overview of how to organize a Campus Ministry group, ideas for programs and worship, and bridging resources for high school seniors.

• Enlightening Statistics: Each spring, there are approximately 2000 Unitarian Universalists graduating from high school in the United States. 90% of all UUs have some college education. Currently there are more than 120 Campus Ministry groups with 12 of these being coordinated by paid staff. The First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh is one of the twelve.
• Program Support: Campus Ministry is coordinated through the Young Adult and Campus Ministry Office of the UUA. The umbrella program is C*UUYAN, or Continental Unitarian Universalist Young Adult Network. Through this office, you can obtain the Campus Ministry Worship Manual, the New Campus Ministry Organizers Handbook and other useful, practical resources.
  
• Grants and Awards: The Young Adult & Campus Ministry Anchor Congregation program is aimed at supporting congregational commitment to campus ministry. The Young Adult & Campus Ministry Project Grant would be used to support programs in existing CM groups. The Billings Fund is for congregations that wish to offer large, public events. The Young Adult & Campus Ministry Special Grants are for those situations not addressed in the other three programs. More information at www.UUYAN.org
• Bridging Programs: Materials to assist in the bridging of seniors to the young adult community are available through C*YUUYAN. Bridging Cards are used to welcome the new college freshman to the local UU congregation. These and many others are initiative to help “mind the gap” between youth group and young adulthood.

The UUA Renaissance Program, January 2005

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The Religious Education Credentialing Program, May 2005

Many of the Ohio-Meadville District Religious Educators are participating in the RE Credentialing Program of the Unitarian Universalist Association. In this mini-letter I will identify the some of the benefits received by a congregation as well as the resources required as outlined by the UUA’s Ministry and Professional Development Staff Group. This is just a brief overview and not intended to be a comprehensive listing of the benefits and required resources. The entire program plan is outlined at the UUA’s website.

Goal of the Program:

• To strengthen Unitarian Universalism by empowering and recognizing professional lifespan faith development leadership, grounded in an acceptable core of competencies and skills and practiced with covenantal collegiality, justice and respect.

Benefits for a Congregation:

• A stronger, more vital and growing religious education program as the religious educator integrates professional development learning into the congregation’s programming.
• A religious educator with theoretical knowledge and demonstrated ability to put knowledge into practice.
• A religious educator with greater incentive for professional development.
• Professional training or self-study and demonstrated professional leadership ability and experience in many areas of RE leadership, such as volunteer management, faith development, conflict management, UU history, lifespan RE curricula and UUA initiatives such as anti-racism/anti-oppression.
• A religious educator with greater ability to serve as a resource in RE and congregational leadership.
• Recognition by the UUA as a congregation that supports and values the highest levels of professional excellence in religious education.

Required Resources:

• A professional role and position reflective of credentialing level.
• Salary commensurate with RE Credentialing level.
• Explicit support and recognition from congregation and ministerial colleagues.
• Time and financial resources for professional development as negotiated by the religious educator and the congregation.

For more information about the UUA Religious Education Credentialing Program visit the web page at www.uua.org/programs/ministry/reco/recp.html or contact the Reverend Beth Williams, Religious Education Credentialing Director at recdirector at uua.org or 616-948-6417.

The Church of the Larger Fellowship is a member congregation of the Unitarian Universalist Association that provides services to isolated religious liberals around the world.  Many members of CLF are also members of local congregations.  Many religious professionals join the CLF in order to maintain a formal relationship to Unitarian Universalism without joining the local (employing) congregation.  In recent years, the CLF Religious Education Staff has developed some wonderful resources.  I am sure that you have all seen uu & me! this is now an insert in the UU World magazine.  Below is an overview of some of the RE resources available at the website, www.uua.org/clf.

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New and Forthcoming Resources, November, 2005

One of the joys of attending the annual LREDA (Liberal Religious Educators Association) Fall Conference is learning what is new from UUA Lifespan Faith Development.  Below is an overview of the latest and forthcoming resources from our association.

New and Revised Programs: Richard Gilbert’s popular curriculum for adults that guides participants to articulate their own beliefs, Building Your Own Theology, Volume 2: Exploring, has been revised.  Our Whole Lives, Grades 7-9, has been updated to include the most recent sexuality information available.

New Resources for Families: The Family Matters Task Force of the UUA has created a booklet series, Taking It Home: Families and Faith, that you can download at www25.uua.org/families/fam_faith/index.html.  The topics include respect, balancing time and money, marriage and committed relationships, divorce and broken relationships and interfaith families.  These pamphlets would be a welcome inclusion in a packet of materials for parents and visiting families.

Forthcoming Resources: The Unitarian Universalist Musician’s Network will be publishing their new Children’s Songbook in time for GA 2006.  We sang from the songbook during a workshop at the LREDA Fall Conference.  The songs are singable, fun and relevant to our UU values and principles.

Two new curricula for teens, Families: A Photo-documentary Curriculum for Junior and Senior High and Exploring our Identities Through Poetry have been field tested and are quite near publication.

Programs in Development: These resources will be available in the future: Making Meaning in the Face of Disaster: a Workshop for Unitarian Universalist Adults and/or Youth, Youth Group Handbook (a reworking of the Local Youth Group Handbook), Our Whole Lives for Young Adults and Giants Among Us: A Handbook for Youth and Social Justice in the Congregation.

Several of the Renaissance Modules are currently being revised including Philosophy, Teacher Development, Curriculum and Ministry with Youth.

New and Updated Resources for Youth and Adults Working with Youth: The front page of the YRUU Web site has been reworked to be more user friendly.  Check it out at www.uua.org/yruu/.  There you will find new and updated resources such as Welcoming Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Youth into YRUU, Links to Social Justice Organizations and an updated, downloadable version of Deep Fun: A Compendium of YRUU Games.

Information on the Consultation on Ministry to and with Youth may be accessed at www25.uua.org/trus/youth.

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The Commission on Appraisal Report, Engaging Our Theological Diversity, December, 2005

This month I am highlighting the recently published report from the Commission on Appraisal of the Unitarian Universalist Association, Engaging Our Theological Diversity and am drawing my comments from the text and from the website at www.uua.org/coa/index.html.

Purpose of the Commission on Appraisal:

The Commission, created in 1961, is charged to "review any function or activity of the Association which in its judgment will benefit from an independent review and report its conclusions to a regular General Assembly."  Members are elected at General Assembly and serve rotating terms.  The commission is currently chaired by Dr. James Casebolt of the Ohio Valley Congregation in Bellaire, Ohio, one of the member congregations of the Ohio-Meadville District.

The Report:

The most recent report offers their conclusions drawn from a broad survey of our membership, open hearings, discussions with focus groups, and conversations with ministers and ministerial students.  It asks “What is the unity in our theological diversity?  What holds us together as a community of faith?  What is the center of our faith?”

A copy of  Engaging Our Theological Diversity was sent to each congregation last summer.  It is also available from the UUA Bookstore.  A summary is available at the website.  It is a fascinating look at who we are and what we believe!

Resources for Adult Religious Education:

There is no formal study guide, per se, but rather a collection of many resources that allow congregations to readily use the materials in an adult RE format or in a Small Group Ministry setting.

The text itself contains a simple, but intriguing question posed by the Reverend Dr. Rebecca Parker, President of the Starr King School for the Ministry.  She asks us to consider, “What features of Unitarian Universalism, when taken away, would leave us with something that is no longer Unitarian Universalism?”

Adult RE lessons on three of the chapters are available at the website as well as a list of discussion questions.  The “Tools for Theological Conversation” chapter of the report can also be used as a process guide for adult religious exploration.

Usefulness with Youth:

This report offers just the kind of values clarifying that so many teens long to engage in!  In fact, youth attending a conference in the Ohio-Meadville District were one of the focus groups for the study.

An Opportunity for Dialogue with the Commission Membership:

Members of the Commission on Appraisal will be at the next Ohio-Meadville District Annual Meeting which will be held April 22, 2006 at the First UU Church of Columbus.

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