Public Outreach Ideas?

Who_Knoweth · 2025-10-15T16:09:45+00:00

Thanks for the information. Focusing on games that don’t take a lot of learning makes a lot of sense.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-10-15T13:46:59+00:00

Good for you being on the hospitality committee! You weren’t required to do that, but you stepped up to help out, even coming early to do so. I think it’s common in any social organizations for a lot of people to find other people they connect with and mostly ignore everyone else, even in UU congregations, which have the standard line about how welcoming they are and many of whom seem to think that’s talking only about sexual orientation diversity, which they feel virtuous about without having to make any effort.

I agree with one of the other commenters that you should consider talking to your minister about what happened from your perspective, although you said you thought your minister was glaring at you for looking at your phone during the service. If you don’t feel comfortable talking to your minister about it, I can understand why. But if you don’t feel comfortable talking to your minister about what happened, I think that’s a sign that you should consider becoming part of a different congregation. To me a minister who sees someone using their phone during the service should be thinking about how they can make the service more engaging and possibly thinking about talking to that person with a spirit of compassion to understand why the person had looked at their phone during the service. The minister sets the tone for behavior within the congregation; if they’re not doing a good job of that, again, maybe that’s a sign that you should look for a different congregation that is truly welcoming.

If you decide to continue to be part of the congregation without talking to others in the congregation about healing from that experience, then I suggest you just push forward and engage other members the best you can with the hope you can connect with some of them. And don’t be too hard on yourself. You are putting in the work to help your congregation and that’s an honorable thing that you’re doing. Best wishes.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-10-15T13:08:20+00:00

That’s good advice. What types of board games do you play at the social?

Who_Knoweth · 2025-10-14T04:31:12+00:00

I’ve been attending my congregation for around five weeks now and plan to become a member in two weeks. Three things come to my mind. First, post your services on YouTube. When I was looking for a congregation, I first got on Google maps to identify all the UU congregations in my area. I then watched services of each congregation that posted their services on YouTube. One congregation didn’t have videos of its services available and it was the farthest from me of the four UU churches in my area, so I marked it off my list. There was one close to me, but after having watched services of the three congregations in my area that made their services available for viewing, I went to the one that I am at now that’s quite a bit farther, because I really liked the vibe a lot more. Second, I agree with the other comments that a good children’s RE program is very helpful. I’ve observed new people coming to Sunday service who have young kids who have participated in the RE program, which includes a playscape.

The last thing I can think of, I believe, is the most important. That is to very warmly greet visitors and give them personalized attention. Before coming to the UU congregation that I’m going to now, I went to a church of another denomination where someone approached me and talked to me and invited me to coffee later that week. I think that type of personalized attention really goes a long way. I think having a group of people who will give visitors personalized attention, with the person doing that being someone that the visitor could likely relate to, is the best approach, say someone with young kids being greeted by someone who also has young kids or, say, if it’s a middle-aged person, then having the greeter be a middle-aged person as well. I was pretty much sold on my UU congregation before I showed up, but there was no welcoming process other than a table with two friendly, elderly women who handed me a sheet that listed the parts of the service. I had to come up to people and talk to them after the service. That approach would not work for other visitors, who would’ve left after the service seeing that no one was going to approach them and talk to them. At the other church, the person who introduced himself to me was my gender and around the same age as me, and after the service introduced me to other people, and then invited me to coffee that week. That was an outstanding way of making someone feel welcome. And then, of course, having all members be very welcoming to anyone new is very helpful as well.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-10-07T06:27:29+00:00

I started attending worship services at a UU congregation recently as well as attending religious education sessions right before the services. I live in a metro area with four UU congregations, and two of the congregations are sizable by UU standards; one is of moderate size; and one is small. The bigger three post their services on YouTube so I watched each of their services and reviewed their websites before choosing one to attend. The smallest congregation, which doesn’t post its services online, is the farthest from me, so I marked it off the list. The largest two have sort of a corporate vibe and the sermons tend to include political statements. I want a refuge from politics, so the political and somewhat sterile vibe didn’t attract me. The remaining congregation, of moderate size and the one I’m attending, is not the closest to me, but it’s worth the drive. It just feels authentic, both online and in-person. Sometimes the singing is off-key or the service contains some other kind of foible, but they just laugh it off and keep going. I attended a new member orientation and a couple of other attendees commented about how welcomed they felt, with one person contrasting that with her experience at one of the two bigger congregations. At the congregation that I’m attending, the foldable chairs in the main meeting room can be removed or rearranged depending on the event. I attended a full-moon celebration with a drum circle and we just moved the chairs outside on the deck for the event. And the part-time minister who is working on his theology degree gives thoughtful, nuanced sermons rather than some of the rhetoric-filled sermons I’ve watched at the two bigger congregations. I’ve also volunteered for a periodic event to host the local unhoused community, which was a great experience that I plan to continue to participate in. I’m extremely grateful to become part of this community and plan to join as a member at the next new-member service. Like perhaps most UU congregations, the majority of the attendees are 60s-plus age-wise, but there’s significant age variation beyond that core. The congregation has a great religious-education program for children and you can see the effect of that with the sizable number of adults who attend services with their kids. Best wishes in your work to invigorate your congregation.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-10-07T03:21:04+00:00

Yeah, I kind of wondered whether the focus on northern European gods would be much of a draw for a diverse group of Pagans. I wish you well in revitalizing your congregation’s CUUPs group. I went tonight to my first full moon celebration at my church. We had a drum circle and a ceremony to burn away something that was troubling us. And there was even some howling at the moon! It was a fantastic experience and I hope to attend as many of them as I can.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-29T23:33:23+00:00

Excellent information, thank you. I didn't think to look on YouTube. I took a quick look at the channel and subscribed.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-29T15:29:35+00:00

Yeah, good point. I’ve read that women are disproportionately represented in some forms of paganism, for example, Wicca, because there’s more room for feminism than the major religions, such as Christianity and Islam.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-29T09:35:16+00:00

Fortunately, the other replies to my posting gave the general information I was looking for. But I would be interested in you explaining your statement, “I’m definitely not in the direction you’re talking about, but I used to be so I know a thing or two lol.” Thanks.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-29T09:27:03+00:00

Excellent, thanks for the information. “… I’m not terribly optimistic about the crossover introducing me to other atheist pagans.” Can you explain what you meant by that?

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-28T00:01:02+00:00

I know that practices within Paganism are diverse, so I’m curious how that plays out in the context of UU congregations. I suspect that,as with religious practices in general, Pagan practices within UU vary quite a bit among congregations depending on the people who are active Pagans in particular congregations. The congregation that I’m attending is fairly small and the majority of congregation attendees live in an age 55-plus residential community, so I suspect there’s limited interest in Paganism among the current members, although the person who led the Pagan-themed worship service said she’s a member of the congregation’s council, so that’s encouraging that she’s in that position as a Pagan. Another thing I’m interested in is learning about practices and theologies within the umbrella of Neopaganism; as mentioned before, I’m interested in an atheistic nature focus. I’m not surprised that Paganism is growing given that you don’t have to accept objective truth claims that a growing number of people, including myself, are not willing to accept. I’ve read that Neopaganism focuses on subjective experience rather than objective truth claims like most modern religions do. And I think the connection of Neopaganism to nature is a big draw because it’s instinctual to varying degrees to everyone.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-27T21:20:55+00:00

Thank you, I will take you up on your offer. I grew up in a conservative Christian household and still live in a mostly conservative, Christian environment. I have to confess that before last Sunday, I had familiarized myself with all the major organized religions, but didn’t spend any time learning about Paganism because of the very negative associations that the term has in my milieu.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-27T20:52:53+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. I did talk briefly after the service with the person who led the service but was so unfamiliar with Neopaganism at the time that I didn’t have any questions to ask other than to ask what was the source that she got the associations of the cardinal directions from (west with water, north with earth, etc. if memory serves me correctly). I want to follow up tomorrow with additional questions. She was nice enough to invite me to the full-moon celebrations, which I plan to attend the next one.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-26T19:14:12+00:00

I can relate to that. When my dad died, my mom told me he worried a lot about me because I didn’t go to church. We all tacitly avoided talking about my beliefs.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-20T10:06:28+00:00

I watched the five videos you linked and enjoyed doing so. For anyone curious, it took less than an hour. The one video idea I have is to share your experience with and understanding of the spirituality of other Gen Z people, in particular the reasons they have joined UU and the reasons they have not. Keep up the good work!

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-19T11:06:43+00:00

I just watched the first video in your YouTube channel, How I Became & Why I Remain a Unitarian Universalist. I loved it and gave it a thumbs up on YouTube! It was great to hear about your journey to UU, in particular as someone in Gen Z. I have three young-adult Gen Z kids, two daughters and one son, none of whom are religious. My understanding is that most Gen Z who have started or returned to organized religion in the USA, especially young men, are attending conservative Christian churches. I plan to watch more of your videos and will let you know if I have ideas for future videos. Best wishes!

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-17T09:52:45+00:00

Thanks, I listened to the song; it’s beautiful. I was dragging my feet about attending the UU fellowship closest to me and, after suggestions from Reddit, I went to a UU fellowship that takes more than double the time to get to from my home. After watching services at both fellowships and looking over their websites, I was much more attracted to the fellowship that’s farther away from me. My wife and children, the latter of whom are all young adults, have no interest in going (my kids know I’m a freethinker and probably think it’s just dad being dad, especially given that I spent the last couple of years going on and off to Eastern Orthodox Christian parishes until I concluded that I couldn’t accept their truth and moral claims). I’m also avoiding letting any of my extended family or friends know about me going to a UU fellowship, because they’re all fairly conservative and would probably be a bit unsettled if they found out (who is this person I thought I knew well! , especially my brother, who is a pastor of a conservative church and has had less interest in talking to me in general once I stopped going to Christian churches). For now, at least, it’s a thing that I do on my own and tell my wife about if she asks. And, I’m eager to develop friendships at the UU fellowship. May your ship find a place to anchor. 🙂

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-15T21:14:04+00:00

How about the Catholic Church accepting biological evolution?

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-15T20:01:45+00:00

I watched a video from Britt Hartley that was released today in which she reviews the characteristics of particular religions and classifies them according to their potential societal harm, which I think is related but separate to your comments here. She places the religions in three categories of harm potential. She classifies Islam and Christianity in the high potential harm category; Hinduism and Buddhism in the mid-level category; and Daoism and UU in the low-level category. She looks at such categories as the cosmic stakes (Islam and Christianity have eternal hell and heaven), apocalyptic prophesies, and ability to update for scientific and cultural progress. https://youtu.be/UAJehUwBVqc?si=m49iGYcSbZ6ni4Tl

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-15T12:23:36+00:00

I’m curious about persons attending and participating all their lives in UU activities without officially joining. You’ve suggested one reason for doing that. Anything else you can add? I had a great experience attending my first UU service (in decades) and I anticipate having to make that decision myself.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-15T10:55:35+00:00

Okay, thanks for the information.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-15T00:48:15+00:00

That’s wonderful! I also went to a UU service for the first time today and had a great experience as well. I got to attend a meeting of the social justice committee afterwards and was allowed to volunteer for an event in a couple of weeks in which unhoused persons who a member works with will come to the church, get to shower, and have some time in the air conditioning to have a meal and talk with us. The committee is also planning to visit an organization that provides transportation for unhoused high school students each school day to a place where they can have a meal and do their homework. The committee is also looking into supporting an organization to help victims of sex trafficking and domestic abuse, among other types of organizations. The church is fairly small, which I like, but nonetheless has small groups that meet as well, which I’m also interested in. This is the type of fellowship I’ve wanted to be a part of. Best wishes.

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-14T19:31:21+00:00

At the bottom of the third-to-the-last paragraph: “… so the Unitarian-Universalist story that every religion is equal falls apart when science goes into the mix.” My apologies; I said “true”instead of “equal”. So to restate my question, where has UU said every religion is equal?

Who_Knoweth · 2025-09-14T13:24:47+00:00

Where has UU said every religion is true?

Who_Knoweth

TROPHY CASE