tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.comments2023-05-16T08:21:43.605-06:00iMinisterChristine Robinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02291622244158872449noreply@blogger.comBlogger988125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-57498113145767877562016-11-30T23:23:28.385-07:002016-11-30T23:23:28.385-07:00YES.
One of my concerns: "Candidate" s...YES. <br /><br />One of my concerns: "Candidate" status. <br /><br />a) I believe that the perks that come with candidacy status -- specifically, being able to attend local cluster and regional UUMA meetings -- are a vital part of one's formation. <br />b) Right now, you have to have done a CPE, field placement, or internship to get Candidate status. <br />c) For those who are trying to lower the cost of seminary by continuing to be employed during it, it usually works best to put CPE/internship at the end of seminary, rather than after the first year. But that means you become a candidate at the very end of the process. <br />d) ML's new requirements, with an internship set up at the beginning, seems to work well with the new candidating process. But what about the non-ML seminarians? Rev Johttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04495907966950426682noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-56457435713000119352016-11-30T11:55:26.689-07:002016-11-30T11:55:26.689-07:00I agree that the MFC process is broken. It does t...I agree that the MFC process is broken. It does take too long. I have seen many well qualified candidates wait long after graduation and end up in less than optimal ministry situations that didn't require credentialing in order to afford to exist post seminary. Further, the MFC does a terrible job of weeding out clergy who are a danger to congregations: it gives those who commit miscoduct final Fellowship and it doesn't do much to check pre-seminary history beyond a criminal background check. It seems to me more emphasis on looking at past work history, substance abuse issues, etc. and far less on a short interview would serve us better. The present system is expensive, doesn't weed out harmful clergy, and harms the careers of many potentially strong candidates.KJRhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03188888797782106615noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-53873779482521089862014-11-02T08:15:14.042-07:002014-11-02T08:15:14.042-07:00Yes, yes and yes. I would call on the MFC or an ou...Yes, yes and yes. I would call on the MFC or an outside body to do a calculation of the full cost of becoming a minister, including the cost of the various interviews, psychological tests (which could definitely be done much cheaper), books (from the reading list, beyond seminary textbooks), unpaid CPEs, underpaid internships, delays in getting a job after graduation due to the poor timing of MFC interviews and the cost of committee-imposed delays and additional requirements. I think that if the average congregant knew about all these surcharges there'd be an uprising.amylynn1022https://www.blogger.com/profile/15562236418069640744noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-73753037844887025252014-04-03T18:39:19.303-06:002014-04-03T18:39:19.303-06:00This comment has been hidden from the blog.TangerineDREamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11344658101971733874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-51778307306332195932013-12-18T18:32:22.814-07:002013-12-18T18:32:22.814-07:00This comment has been hidden from the blog.NM_Creatrixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02359847723138971660noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-3490819835650640902013-10-14T13:15:17.672-06:002013-10-14T13:15:17.672-06:00I agree with "Ogre" with my reservations...I agree with "Ogre" with my reservations about the breakdowns of the extended family structure, a development which MAY have contributed to the weakening of our American sense of community within our towns, states, nation and World. Our materialistic and often insular mentality in the U.S. has, I believe, helped set the stage for the worship of wealth we find in high (and low) places in our country. From what I've been reading recently, the sense of "social contract" and our fundamental interdependence is now much higher in Europe than it is in our country.BobRhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11755260909910556101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-13307089255667763492013-06-10T09:17:25.713-06:002013-06-10T09:17:25.713-06:00I choose life. I see the problem as one of both p...I choose life. I see the problem as one of both parties being pulled in too many directions. We seem not to have a common vision. So let's go back to basics. I propose we divorce the UUA from providing services to congregations and leave them to national advocacy. The Regions could keep the congregational money and work on the ground to make better churches, with better ministers, and congregants that more fully live our covenant. Free the UUA! They seem not to want to be associated with congregations any longer, so maybe this is what they truly want and need. So I join you in saying, "STOP". <a href="http://uucrm.org/blog/2013/06/09/jpd-is-headed-for-change/" rel="nofollow">Change is here</a>. Let's embrace it. http://uucrm.org/blog/2013/06/09/jpd-is-headed-for-change/Alanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02628132704127264875noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-85193797079613960042013-05-22T15:06:20.382-06:002013-05-22T15:06:20.382-06:00Yes!
My attempt to unpack it a little:
http://bo...Yes! <br /><br />My attempt to unpack it a little:<br />http://bootsandblessings.blogspot.com/2013/05/beloved-community-now-and-not-yet.htmlRev Johttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04495907966950426682noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-67973207773210213132013-05-16T07:55:23.409-06:002013-05-16T07:55:23.409-06:00As a member of a UU congregation, I am uncomfortab...As a member of a UU congregation, I am uncomfortable with the term 'beloved community', which our minister uses rather unstintingly.I hadn't really thought through the source of my discomfort, but as I consider the phrase--thanks to your blog--I find it feels too inclusive, facile, smarmy, even. Do I value my UU community? Of course I do. Is it 'beloved'? No. My aging grandparent is 'beloved', my children are 'beloved', my music is 'beloved'. My UU community is a source of inspiration, examination, intellectual unrest, friendship. But those roles, while cherished as a source of personal challenge and growth, of necessity don't carry the respite and stasis implied in the term 'beloved.'Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-11333332555340618402013-05-15T12:43:44.077-06:002013-05-15T12:43:44.077-06:00At the country club, you pay your dues for the pri...At the country club, you pay your dues for the privileges of using the facilities, attending the programs, and associating with like-minded people. There's no reason for the organization to concern itself with your life. I would hope our churches are more than country clubs.UU Clickerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02471219340317492071noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-8117900381816705532013-05-15T00:12:51.201-06:002013-05-15T00:12:51.201-06:00And yet...
Depending on someone's religious c...And yet...<br /><br />Depending on someone's religious context/background, I've explained beloved community as another way to express "the kingdom of god." Which also is problematic and laden....<br /><br />I'm so with you about the overblown use of "family." But Iam not sure that we so much fled extended families (despite their human-riddled flaws) as that we were lured out of them. The breakdown of the extended family is very much hand-in-glove with the rise of the mobile, industrial society. The nuclear family was more convenient for industry. The... denucleated individual, barely connected, is even more convenient.<br /><br />I suspect that this also explains the eager use of the church as family metaphor. We're pack animals, and we miss the pack. Even a loosely connected pack feels like a real one if one's been so deprived, for so long....ogrehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15910505029382522110noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-70168172949950158402013-05-09T07:34:22.306-06:002013-05-09T07:34:22.306-06:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Robin Edgarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06208142626285495635noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-36688749289120530752013-05-06T13:26:23.354-06:002013-05-06T13:26:23.354-06:00You verbalized well what I have sensed -- good peo...You verbalized well what I have sensed -- good people (friends and colleagues of ours) on both sides, trying to work for the good as they see it, and enmeshing themselves in unproductive strife. To some extent it's a game of "king of the mountain" played out on a molehill. Sad. Gordonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08598744791119848068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-25153966010221597372013-05-06T12:15:37.184-06:002013-05-06T12:15:37.184-06:00Thanks. Well said
Thanks. Well said<br />Patrick Murfinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05191688376908660270noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-78083358974283091962013-05-06T11:48:17.574-06:002013-05-06T11:48:17.574-06:00Thank you so much Christine. Amen.Thank you so much Christine. Amen.Rev Parisahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17781763570163785312noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-75949807453489419642013-05-06T11:46:51.752-06:002013-05-06T11:46:51.752-06:00Yes, bravo Christine!Yes, bravo Christine!Rev. Michelle Walshnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-49635144561276069942012-12-28T14:23:06.458-07:002012-12-28T14:23:06.458-07:00Well, I wanted to attend a UU church, but discover...Well, I wanted to attend a UU church, but discovered it was too difficult to take my children. The Sunday school program during church services was serious. My children were expected to be potty trained and attentive at 3. Not a great fit for my developmentally delayed autistic son. I tried to go at Easter but again it was not really made easy to participate with unruly children. There was an Easter egg hunt which was nice but since I couldn't seem to get to know anyone it was awkward and unfulfilling. There are actually two other congregations where I live, but I don't think they have a children's program at all. The only sermon I ever managed to hear was interesting but felt like a little like a college lecture. Very intellectual. I keep thinking that UU should be a good fit for me based on principles, but then I also want warmth. Church to me is supposed to be about community. A place to go for love and potlucks. But I just didn't get that vibe.Nyxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06307112545023418132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-79991185758773881402012-11-17T12:54:51.937-07:002012-11-17T12:54:51.937-07:00I was meditating and I found two daemons! They ins...I was meditating and I found two daemons! They insisted I named them Shaeku and Hauype, so I did, and they loved it. Shaeku has settled as a crow, and Hauype hasn't yet, but said he is settled as a cougar.<br /><br />~Shaeku, Hauype, and MontanaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-78915017776596811712012-11-06T11:53:35.255-07:002012-11-06T11:53:35.255-07:00Oh dear. . .
That "stool sick" Spooneri...Oh dear. . .<br /><br />That "stool sick" Spoonerism looks like a Freudian slip in every sense of the phrase. ;-)Robin Edgarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06208142626285495635noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-50879180600530191622012-11-05T11:24:40.673-07:002012-11-05T11:24:40.673-07:00I got the album about the time my eldest was born....I got the album about the time my eldest was born. In our house, it was played over and over and over. RE: "William Wants a Doll," I think the first time I heard the line, "put diapers on double," I thought: "Double? Oh, yeah. That probably would be a good idea."Meredith Garmonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16197895762895387696noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-91260322524751065682012-11-05T10:03:05.225-07:002012-11-05T10:03:05.225-07:00I think it's only forgettable if you weren'...I think it's only forgettable if you weren't in the target audience. My parents gave it to me when I was in kindergarten, and pieces of it stool sick with me.Obijuanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09473011865098984611noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-86295886539481252102012-07-31T13:18:21.607-06:002012-07-31T13:18:21.607-06:00I commented on the previous post that self-identif...I commented on the previous post that self-identifiers with spouses of a different or no faith are a bigger mission field - and probably much more fruitful - than UU youth grown up. For one thing, if somebody grows up in a UU church, they have a good idea of whether they want to continue as an adult or not. Not much marketing room there. <br /><br />For another, self-identifiers with a non-self-identifying spouse need to spend a great deal of energy being active in a UU church. Imagine having to convince your spouse to give up x% of your income to an organization that they don't support. Or the dilemma of bringing your children every Sunday when they want to stay home with the other parent or burden imposed on the other parent of watching the kids alone every Sunday.Mark Ericksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12604074895219791713noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-30399706496819719602012-07-31T12:48:17.783-06:002012-07-31T12:48:17.783-06:00I think point #5 is immensely important. Making sp...I think point #5 is immensely important. Making spouses feel welcome (outreach) should be on every congregation's radar. It isn't enough that UU's non-doctrinal core makes it easier for split-faith households to pick UUism. If you build it, they will come couldn't be farther from the truth. Spouses with a different faith could be an entire ministry. Consider - if this sample holds up in the general population - that since there are many member married couples in UU congregations, that a great many of the non-member self-identifiers have a spouse of a different faith. Reaching all of them could increase membership by 20% to 30% I would guess. <br /><br />Think how much more energy is needed for regular attendance, volunteering, donating, any type of involvement etc. for split-faith spouses.Mark Ericksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12604074895219791713noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-4298001958742321572012-07-27T05:44:24.197-06:002012-07-27T05:44:24.197-06:00I am moving to Massachusetts and already am uncomf...I am moving to Massachusetts and already am uncomfortable with the differences that you have outlined so well. Perhaps the UUs in the West and South could together write a best practices guide to what they are doing and how the spaces they occupy and the climates they are in make a difference. We have much to learn from them. I'm moving from the Wash DC area and am in a church that is of relatively modern construction. Way more friendlier to inhabit.puzzlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00903524782063581034noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28809213.post-67130181416570837572012-07-26T07:35:58.245-06:002012-07-26T07:35:58.245-06:00Good point Book Doctor.
Indeed the significant d...Good point Book Doctor. <br /><br />Indeed the significant decline in RE enrollments in UUA congregations *could* also be an indication of a significant decline in "young families" choosing the fate of becoming card carrying members of Unitarian Universalist congregations. That however does not change the fact that recent UUA administrations at 25 Beacon Street in Boston, perhaps most notably the Rev. Bill Sinkford administration, did things that caused many UU Youth to become quite disillusioned with the UUA and the UU institutional "church", if not Unitarian Universalism more generally. . . I am not blaming UU Youth for the decline in UUA RE enrollments, I bellieve the *fault* lies very much with the UUA and broader problems within UUism more generally. One thing about youth, they are usually quite idealistic and can smell hypocrisy a mile away. . . I have definitely seen evidence of UU Youth being VERY disillusioned by UU hypocrisy of various kinds.Robin Edgarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06208142626285495635noreply@blogger.com