A
Chosen Faith
Six Monday nights, March 31 to May 5, 7 p.m.
This small group program explores the premise that many
faith seekers have chosen to become Unitarian
Universalists because of common attitudes rather than
follow the faith of their forbears.
It is based on the book, A Chosen Faith: An Introduction
to Unitarian Universalism by contemporary theologians
John Buehrens and Forrest Church. The church has ordered
copies that participants are encouraged to buy.
This course is designed for newcomers, searchers, and
lifelong learners, and explores, in six weekly sessions,
such topics as "Deeds, not Creeds," "Beyond Idolatry,"
and "Mind and Spirit." Participants will not just
explore the ideas in the book but also share their
thoughts on their own religious paths. Listening is
valued as highly as speaking in this course that often
sparks friendships as well as deeper understanding.
Restricted to a maximum of 12 participants.
Facilitated by Ed Canning and Julie Bergshoeff
Lots
of adult religious education opportunities
Your Adult Religious Education Committee
is delighted that a rich offering of courses will be on
offer between the New Year and summer vacation. Courses
for which definite dates have been set are listed first.
Look for signup sheets, posters, order of service
announcements, a course brochure and more for details on
the others.
Getting Along
Without Going Along
Saturday May 10, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Led by Don McFadyen, this course will explore how
churches function as systems and help us better
understand how to be together less anxiously and more
effectively.
Increasing Self
Awareness Using the Myers Briggs Type Instrument
Tuesday May 13, 7:00–9:30 p.m.
Led by Gail Rappolt
The Myers Briggs Type Instrument gives people
information about their preferences on four dimensions
(see below). It has been widely used in Unitarian
congregations over the years. The instrument is best
used to help people better understand themselves and
their reactions to others.
Participants will do a MBTI paper and
pencil assessment, learn about the instrument (its uses
and pitfalls), and then determine “best fit” for
themselves. Small group activities to explore what each
of the four dimensions of type “look like” will be
offered forthose who wish, but people will have the
option to keep their results totally confidential.
Come out to an evening that promises
to be fun as well as a providing a chance to learn more
about yourself. Reference material will be available to
borrow, with more detailed resources to better
understand issues we may have with conflict, change,
decisionmaking, time management or communication.
The Four dimensions:
-
direction of focus and source of
energy
-
ways of acquiring information
-
ways of deciding and evaluating
-
preference for either perception
or decision making
Spiritual Practices
Support Group
Second and fourth Thursdays
mornings 10:30-12:30, February through May.
The Spiritual Practices Support Group has completed
three series of six sessions. Participants appreciated
the opportunity to pause and consider the significance
of spirituality in their daily lives, to experience a
variety of spiritual practices and to share their own
experiences with spiritual practice. Everyone is welcome
to the winter-spring sessions which will go a bit longer
than in the past,
Contact person: Don McFadyen
Courses without firm dates yet
Consensus: what it
really is and how it works
A Saturday 9 a.m.-noon
What is consensus, how does it work and under what
circumstances is it preferable to democratic practice
based on majority votes? Mel Rutherford and Melanie
Parish of our congregation have prepared a three-hour
workshop that will include the spiritual background that
is the context in which the Quakers developed this form
of decision-making and some hands-on work so people get
a bit more practice.
Contact person: Bill Johnston
Establishing a
Sabbath Practice
to Find Rest, Renewal and Delight in our Busy Lives
A six-part course, date to be determined
Many spiritual traditions value Sabbath time in which we
take a break from the busyness of our lives to rest,
renew ourselves and to find delight in simple pleasures
for which we too seldom make time. In this six-week
course, we will learn more about the Sabbath tradition,
and work together to establish our own Sabbath practices
through daily exercises and group discussion.
Wayne Muller’s thoughtful and compelling book Sabbath,
which participants are encouraged to acquire, will be
our guide.
Contact person: Jennifer Kaye
How Green is our
Building?
A Saturday morning
Learn about making buildings more energy efficient and
Earth friendly with architect Joanne McCallum, who
designed our building and has designed certified
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design buildings.
She will conduct a half-day
session on energy conservation, walking through our
church building to illustrate concepts. She’ll also
discuss possibilities for
expanding the building, to give us a sense of the
potential ultimate “footprint” of the structure so that
environmental initiatives aren’t lost if expansion
occurs.
Contact person: Bill Johnston
The Migrants’
Journey
A short documentary by Terry Asma and
Katrina Simmons.
Date/time to be announced
Thousands of people from Latin America and Mexico are
driven from their homes each year by economic hardships
and political upheaval. The United States is spending
billions of dollars to reinforce their southern
boundary, but migrants desperate to feed their families
still flood across the border, through legal means or
increasingly dangerous ones. In November of 2006, Terry
Asma and Katrina Simmons traveled to Guatemala, Mexico
and the southern United States to meet some of the
people that were heading north in search of work. This
documentary is their attempt to tell the migrants'
story.
Contact person: Bill Johnston
Person/Planet
Dates and frequency to be determined
A person/social change group that integrates personal
action with building awareness of alternatives to a
status quo that is destroying the biosphere. Based on
Voluntary Simplicity Circles and the 5,000-pound carbon
diet, it will involve learning about and supporting each
other in making personal change, and then discussion of
broader change and envisioning societies and
economies not dependent on constant (and unsustainable)
growth.
Contact person: Bill Johnston
There may be an
offering on church dynamics and how congregations
function as systems. And the committee would love to
find two volunteers to facilitate A Chosen Faith, an
enjoyable, well-organized six-part introduction to
Unitarian Universalism. And your ideas are always
welcome.
Bill Johnston for the Adult Religious Education
Committee |
