Lifespan Religious Education

Children and Youth Religious Education is under the guidance of Director of Religious Education for Children and Youth, Andrea Purdy Heier. The Religious Education Program for Children and Youth is one facet of the Lifespan Religious Education Ministry whose mission is: "to be a catalyst and support for spiritual growth, transformation and progressive change within our congregation and the wider community". The mission of the CYRE program is to journey with families in their Unitarian Universalist faith formation by inspiring open minds, loving hearts and helping hands.

UUCM CYRE Vision Statement:
The UUCM children and youth religious education team envisions a program that: 

Is a thriving, stimulating program integrated into church life.  

• Provides a loving community for children and youth in which they can feel a sense of connection and belonging
  
• Helps children and youth become aware of the needs of the larger community and respond through social action  
• Supports families in developing meaningful family traditions and in cultivating a grounded spirituality 
  
• Explores  our rich Unitarian Universalist heritage/history and provides our  children and youth with firm foundations in our UU Principles and  Sources

NURSERY

Our  youngest are learners too!

 While these children receive safe comfort and care during the 10:00 am worship service, they will also begin  learning some early group skills and simple Unitarian Universalist rituals as they grow. The nursery is attended by carers from 8:45 - 11:15 AM on Sunday mornings. 

Register here by February 17

We are excited to bring back Beloved Conversations — a small-group curriculum for exploring the role of race/ethnicity in our lives. It’s a time for compassion, grace, risk-taking, vulnerability, and the healing joy when cross-racial relationships are reconciled. Not only does it offer opportunities for individual change for people who are white, but it provides organizational support for institutional change and faith formation resources explicitly for people of color. This curriculum has been used by nearly 150 UU congregations across the country since it launched 5 years ago.

Topics:

* Deep Check-in: Making Sense of the Retreat; the Invisible Footprint of Racial/Ethnic History
* Exploring Our Dynamic of Racism and Privilege
* Racism Today: Micro-Aggressions
* Interrupting Racism
* Community Audit: The Experience of Race and Ethnicity in Your Community
* Power and Process: How Institutional Change Happens in Our Congregations
* Prophetic Vision: Towards a Multicultural Congregation in Solidarity with the World
* Building the Bridge Between Our Present and Our Future

Learn more at the Fahs Collaborative.

2019 Schedule:

Beloved Conversations opens with a day-and-a-half-long learning laboratory in the form of a deep immersive “Retreat.” The Retreat explicitly models the learning style and spirit of the curriculum and encourages participants to go deep quickly.

The UUCM kick-off retreat will be on Friday, March 1 from 6-9 pm (includes dinner) and on Saturday, March 2 from 8:30 am – 5 pm (includes breakfast and lunch). It will be facilitated by the Rev. Ashley Horan.

Following the retreat, cohorts will meet for eight 2-hour sessions (schedule TBD; see registration form). These sessions will be facilitated by trained teams from the congregation and supported by Rev. Terri.

Participants should plan on attending the entire opening retreat and all eight sessions, barring unexpected life events.

Fee:

It costs UUCM $900 to bring this curriculum to our congregation. Because we feel it’s so important and we want it to be accessible to all, we are offering this as a “pay as you can” program with a suggested donation range of $20-$80. Together, we can ensure anyone who wants to can go. Donations of any amount can be made in the church office or during the retreat.

Register here by February 17. If you have any questions, please contact any of the following:

Rev. Terri, revterri@uucmtka.org
Jackie Smolen, jackiesmo@aol.com
Susan Goll, goll.susan@gmail.com 

Soul Matters groups offer UUCM members and friends Adult Spiritual development and the opportunity to connect with each other and with our deepest selves. We gather in small groups of 6 to 10 people with  a facilitator. Each group meets for 90 minutes every other week for a total of 6 sessions. 

Our monthly worship themes are studied deeply through readings, inspirational quotes, questions and practices. Participants receive a resource packet each month with background information, questions for discussion and contemplation, spiritual exercises, wise words and other suggested resources.

In each meeting, we share what it was like to “live with” the exercises and the questions as we share where the topic took us, and hear the experience of others. This sharing is at the heart of the Soul Matters program and our experience is further deepened by the group’s sharing. 

Check the UUCM Happenings adult education page for current Soul Matters groups.