Religious Education Program for Children and Youth
Second Parish provides children with the opportunity to learn and grow spiritually and ethically. As valued members of our church community, they are a key part of Second Parish. Every Sunday we begin their religious education by including them in the first part of our regular worship service so they can get comfortable with church ceremony. We focus on the children during "Time For All Ages" and enjoy what they share with the entire congregation. Afterward, everyone sings "Go Now In Peace" as the children head upstairs for the children's program that we call Sunday Adventures.
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Throughout the year, we also hold the following intergenerational services during which the children remain with the adults: Water Communion, Christmas celebrations, New Year's, Easter, Memorial Day, and Flower Communion.
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This inclusion reinforces the Seven Unitarian Universalist Principles that guide our Religious Education Program.
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We believe that:
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Each and every person is important.
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All people should be treated fairly and kindly.
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We should accept each other & learn from each other.
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Each person is free to search for what is true and right.
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All people should have a vote in things that concern them.
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It is important to work for a peaceful, fair & free world.
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Our planet Earth must be cared for; the home we share with all living things.
Leigh shares her love of puppetry with the children
Sources of Inspiration
Our Religious Education program uses the UU curriculum called Soul Matters as a lesson planning guide. Soul Matters draws inspiration from many sources, including Christian, Jewish, and other world religions, spiritual teachings from Earth-centered traditions, ethical teachings from historical and contemporary thinkers, and the examples of Unitarian Universalist men and women. The lessons are centered around a different theme each month. For our current year, we are focusing on the practices of:
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Invitation (September)
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Deep Listening (October)
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Repair (November)
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Presence (December)
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Story (January)
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Inclusion (February)
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Joy (March)
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Trust (April)
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Imagination (May)
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Freedom (June)
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Sunday Morning Programs
The children join us in the sanctuary each Sunday for the beginning of the worship service. After attending the first part of the formal worship and a Time for All Ages segment (approximately 20 minutes total), the children and their teachers go upstairs to our classroom where they share some quiet moments of reflection and expressions of their Joys and Concerns. Then the teacher -- with the help of the assistants -- presents the lesson and activity of the day. This upstairs time together we refer to as Sunday Adventures. The overall goal is for the children to have fun while exploring the idea that we are connected to something larger than ourselves in a spiritual way and to develop a strong sense of community.
Annual RE Report
Click here to read the Annual RE Report for 2023/2024.
(It opens in a new window and takes a little while to load. If you see a blank screen for a while, that is what is supposed to happen. It's the Universe giving you an opportunity to practice patience.)
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And, if you're wondering how the photo with the huge snake relates to Sunday Adventures, be sure to read the report!
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If you want to really take a deep dive into our past reports, you can access them here: 2022-2023 2021-2022 2020-2021