Stories from Religious Education
“My daughter Caroline (now 11) has been in the Stars Studios program for years, and one thing she (and I) particularly like is the rainbow chalice. The ROYGBIV helps her remember the important principles of UU, in a fun way. While Caroline sometimes forgets what GBIV stands for, she always remembers “Respect…Offer….Yearn…”.
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After my mother passed away, my oldest daughter participated in the Challenge Class. In the Challenge Class, now known as the Coming of Age Class, 9th graders are paired with an adult in the Congregation which they call their Mentor. My oldest daughter was paired with a senior woman in the church, who spent a lot of time with my daughter exploring different topics about their beliefs and getting to know each other. It was heart warming knowing that my daughter was forming a relationship with an older woman who was probably close to my mother’s age, and who was taking a special interest in my daughter. I now have another daughter who is in the Coming of Age Class and has gotten together with her own Mentor a couple of times now. Her Mentor is planning on coming to watch my daugther play basketball tonight. We do not have any extended family in town, so to have another adult interested in becoming a part of your child’s life is very special to our family. The Mentor is able to discuss and explore spituality and beliefs with my daughter in a safe environment that my teenager might not be able to discuss with friends or her parents.
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I teach Our Whole Lives to our YRUU teenagers–people of tremendous character and contribution. I see that they are entering their intimate and loving relationships with strong values, self awareness, intelligence and skill. I teach them for the promise of making the world better, one person and one relationship at a time, and for the joy of their company.
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I’ve been catching my boys singing and reciting portions of their RE lessons during the week. The other day I caught them deeply immersed in the rhythm of a new chant that they apparently learned during children’s worship. It went something like this….earth my body, water my blood, air my breath and fire my spirit. They were particularly enjoying the “fire” line which included a loud smack of their hands. It must have gone on for 15 or 20 minutes!