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My current passion for the work I do as the Director of Religious Education (DRE) for the UUC grew out of a simple wish I had for my daughter when I sought out the Fellowship in 1994. My motivation then was to find a place where my daughter would be able to explore her own spirituality and religious beliefs with peers. I also wanted her to feel a part of a community of caring individuals.
This original wish of mine has continued through the years, expanding to include all our children and spurring me to become involved in the Religious Education (RE) program, initially as a teacher and RE committee member, later as the RE committee chair, and currently as DRE. I am now aware that the majority of newcomers to a church come seeking a religious education for their children, just as I did. So for both newcomers and regular members, our ongoing goal is to provide a welcoming, strong, and vibrant Religious Education Program.
From my involvement in the UUC Religious Program I have learned these things to be true:
- We are all in this together. As they say, it takes a village to raise a child. Each and every child is worthy of the wise investment of each and every member of our Fellowship.
- We do not ever graduate from the school of religious education. It remains a life-long process. As adults, we can continue to become more religiously literate, learning about our own faith and other religions along with our children. Even more importantly, however, we are re-challenged throughout our day-to-day lives by some of the most basic religious principals and questions. Revisiting these fundamental building blocks of both our common UU affiliation and our own personal theologies through our interaction with children can be an enriching experience. As we teach our children, we too, learn and grow spiritually.
- Our ministry is shared. We minister to our children, they to us. Team teachers, RE committee members, the DRE, the Minister, and Fellowship members all minister to one another. Thus the word "with," instead of "to" in the title of this prospectus, Our Ministry with Children and Youth.
I believe that in our Religious Education program we must offer our children something of substance, something that they can take hold of and call their own, something they can use when facing the challenges of life. We must provide them with more than just an overview of the rituals, stories, and beliefs of others. They need to know what we as Unitarian Universalists believe. They need to understand the UU Principles and Sources we strive to live by. They need to have the chance to develop an understanding and respect for the wisdom offered in other religions so that they can draw from this richness as they develop their own personal theologies. Our children need our help and guidance on their individual journeys of religious discovery. This is our mission. Please join us!
Children, though natural questioners, are not skeptics, for whom doubt is an end in itself. Children are as open to belief and faith as they are to questioning. They are looking, as we are all looking,for things on which they can depend, values they can faithfully live by. ideas that make sense, things to believe in.
The Reverend Earl Holt
from the UU book, Religious Education At Home.
With warm wishes for a good year,
Kristine Reid,
Director of Religious Education
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