RSVP now for Healthy Congregations BCD trainings


In the Ballou Channing District?

It’s time to register for the Healthy Congregations ™ training our district is offering starting next month.  I will be facilitating this event with Ballou Channing District Executive, the Rev. Bill Zelazny. If your congregation is planning on attending, please email me so I may reserve your space  and order accompanying training materials.

Details and online registration

Training dates
Saturday, November 12th
Saturday, January 21st, 2012

Overview

The two workshops in this series are for lay and ordained congregation leaders who want to develop an understanding of the congregation functioning. These workshops, developed by the Healthy Congregations organization, look at the congregation as a system. Instead of seeing separate parts, the congregation is seen as interrelated parts and interactions. No one part promotes health or illness in a system. Everything contributes for good or ill. The congregation is seen as a whole unit in need of care by the leadership.

Congregational leaders are the chief stewards.  They set a mood and tone for the congregation. They are accountable for setting a direction, taking stands, staying connected to others, encouraging participation, and attending to the ongoing interplay of many conditions and forces.  Leaders aware of system dynamics are essential for congregations to successfully navigate the social, cultural and religious changes that are coming upon us.

Therefore, these workshops center around the stewardship of the congregation: how leaders care for, respond to, and guide the congregation’s life.  These workshops designed to help  participants:

  •  Gain a renewed sense of purpose and mission
  •  Cultivate strong leadership capacities push their congregations to new levels 
  •  Learn how to develop healthy patterns of living together in community
  •  Learn to focus on strength, resources, and options for the future
  •  Boost confidence in responding to challenges and opportunities
  •  Reflect theologically about relationships
  •  Move the congregation toward healthy functioning

Material to be covered include:  creating healthy congregations, healthy congregations respond to anxiety and change; leadership in healthy congregations, healthy congregations develop generous people.

Both professional and lay leaders are welcome at these workshops.   A team approach is used to explore issues, deepened insights and develop plans to take home.  Therefore, teams of three or people are required to attend and all team members are expected to be present for both sessions.

Cost is $150 for a team of three which covers both sessions. Additional team members can be accommodated for $55 per additional member.  It is strongly recommended that both current and upcoming congregation leaders as well as the minister and religious education staff be included in the team.

Details and online registration

Occupying? Supporting occupiers? Go Yellow!

https://i0.wp.com/www.sslonlinestore.com/images/SSLstickers.jpg

I wanted to encourage those of you engaging with the “Occupy Movement” to order Standing on the Side of Love campaign merchandise to wear when you attend occupy events. Visit the Standing on the Side of Love store to order shirts, signs, bags, buttons and more.

Our yellow Standing on the Side of Love shirts stand out  and  capture attention.  Just try and play “spot the Unitarian Universalist” in the videos at the end of this post.

Whether you are participating in an “Occupy” event or bringing supplies to occupiers,  GO YELLOW!

Visit the Standing on the Side of Love store to order shirts, signs, bags, buttons and more.

If you do, make sure to order packs of  packs of lapel stickers.  They are affordable and you can give them to people who join your protest and/or service projects last minute.        

See yellow?
This video from Occupy Providence starts with a still image, then turns to video. Can you see the shirts?

Unitarian Universalists and OCCUPY Movement?

NEW PAGE:
See new longer term
UU’s and OCCUPY MOVEMENT
page.


Question:  Any of your congregations, members and/or clergy getting involved in Occupy Wallsteet, Occupy Boston, and beyond?

If you are pro revolution, this is one of those situations where individual UU’s and our congregations need to lead.  If you want to see action, you need to organize locally, network nationally via social media, and rock it grassroots style.

According to comments on the Unitarian Universalist Association’s Facebook page (Monday at 9:50am)  the UUA is not going to be taking action on this one.

If you want to organize, you might start a Facebook group to share plans, resources.  If you do, let me know.  I’ll be happy to share it.

As for actions, so far I have heard that this Sunday UU clergy will be leading vespers at Occupy Boston,

http://twitter.com/#!/Revhanker/status/121729413539827713

What are you planning? Please share your plans, actions, and related blog posts in the comments of this post.

How UU’s in NYC Can Help

I’ve heard via Facebook that there is a “church tent” at Occupy Wallstreet.  Beverly tells me that as the weather turns cold they have a great need for hot water carafes.  She says, “yes, they should bring tea/coffee carafes to the church tent… it’s hard to give directions within that sort of environment… BUT the church tent is on the south station end of the community… the park is quite small and everyone is happy to direct you…”

UU Coverage, Action

UU Lincoln Statler gets arrested and loaded into police van. Look for the yellow Standing on the Side of Love shirt.
Photo  | Video

UU Blogs discussing “Occupy”
Link to UUpdates.net listing of all registered UU blogs containing term “occupy.”

emma’s revolution student workshop and concert – Oct 14 in Prov, RI

*** FREE FOR STUDENTS ***

The First Unitarian Church of Providence, RI and the Brown University Unitarian Universalist Group (BUUUG!) have organized an amazing day with emma’s revolution, winning activist musicians Pat Humphries and Sandy O.  On Friday, October 14th there  will be a workshop for students in the afternoon, followed by a concert that evening.  Concert is FREE FOR STUDENTS thanks to a funding from the UUA’s Young Adult/Campus Ministry Office. Oh yeah!  I hope to see you there.  ~Peter

Purchase tickets by contacting First Unitarian or via the emma’s revolution website here.

https://i0.wp.com/emmasrevolution.com/media/images/promo/emmas-3r-poster.jpgWORKSHOP
“Keep on Singing Loudly: The Power of Politics and Song”
For students only: Join us Friday afternoon for “Keep on Singing Loudly: The Power of Politics and Song”, a workshop on music and social change. Brown J Walter Wilson Room #411 from 1:00pm – 3:00pm. Students from all universities/colleges are welcome!

FRIDAY NIGHT CONCERT:
Fri Oct 14, 2011 – 8:00 PM at the First Unitarian Church of Providence
First Unitarian Church, 1 Benevolent Street, Providence, RI 02906

A portion of proceeds benefit the Standing on the Side of Love campaign. Events sponsored by BUUUG (Brown University UU Group) and First Unitarian.

Tickets: $15 in advance/$18 at the door/pay what you can. Free for students through a grant from the UUA Young Adult/Campus Ministry Office.

Purchase tickets by contacting First Unitarian or via the emma’s revolution website here.

PROMOTE THE EVENT

Help promote this event.  Share this post via Facebook, Twitter using buttons below.  You may download a PDF formatted with 4 color cards per page to display or hand out in person.
Download 4 Card PDF – emma’s revolution workshop and concert 10.14.2011 Providence

INFORMATION
For more information email Cathy Seggel or phone the First Unitarian Church Office at 401-421-7970.

QR Codes for Congregations?

In the UU Growth Lab the question of QR Codes just came up.  You may have noticed these starting to show up EVERYWHERE.  QR Codes can be scanned by smart phones and used to direct mobile devices to a web address or decode a text message.  I’ve invited UU Growth Lab members Bridgette Collado and Rev. Eric Hausman to write a guest post on QR Codes for us.  Stay tuned for their post including a UU Growth QR Code challenge!

Below is an example of a QR Code. Click to see encoded URL.

Click to see what URL is encoded in this QR Code
Click to see what URL is encoded in this QR Code

Curious George promo with kids

Here’s a fun promo for Curious George including some of the live action.  Each Curious George story is followed by an interstitial segment featuring kids modeling how viewers can engage with the same science, math and design engineering concepts as George did.