As the church year begins anew, Faith Exploration is ready to welcome children, youth, and families back to the rhythms and rituals that invite learning and connection.
Our Sunday morning classes will start on September 20. This first class will focus on a ritual of ribbon and fabric weaving to symbolize beginning together. Our second class on Sept. 27 will focus on crafting a covenant to hold us through the year. Both classes are designed to build up our capacity for being together on Sunday mornings, which means we’ll intentionally transition to the playground after the lesson.
Classes in October and November will use curriculum that helps children understand our shared UU values and find their own way of expressing what these values mean in our lives. In the spring, we’ll engage the Mosaic curriculum which is an anti-racism curriculum with specific units for different age groups. Interspersed throughout the year we’ll also use a new curriculum developed by the Unitarian Universalist Association called Woven Faith.
Families are invited to a Faith Exploration orientation to take place on Sunday, Sept. 27 in the Social Hall following the service. At this orientation I’ll be joined by folks from the Faith Exploration Committee to share more about our plans for the year, and to answer any questions.
And if you are interested in volunteering to teach on Sunday mornings, you are welcome to a potluck on Friday, Sept. 25 from 5:30-7 pm in the Social Hall. This will be a time to learn about the curriculum and how you might work collaboratively with other volunteers to share the creative gifts of teaching and learning.
Beyond our Sunday morning classes we have more in the works. Our Youth Group, for youth in 6-12th grades, will start meeting in October. We will offer Our Whole Lives sexuality education for 5-6th graders starting in January. We will also look to start a Parent Group for conversation and connection. And we have a couple dinner churches in the works to foster some more multigenerational worship opportunities.
I think back to last year at this time when I was on the precipice of meeting many of you for the first time. There was so much unknown and hoped for. I am so glad to be returning with you as we deepen our own connections and continue to offer Faith Exploration programs that are invitations to understand each other more.
Thank you,
Rev. Kyle M. Belmont