New Board Members and InterConnections

As August slides toward September, InterConnections welcomes new, as well as veteran, board members back into the rhythms of congregational life.

The UUA sends InterConnections five times a year to board members and professional staff at all UU congregations. Its aim is to be relentlessly useful to you in your new, and old, responsibilities. We write about congregations that do particular things well, since we believe that the best way to build vital congregations is to learn from each other.

There should be a file of back issues of InterConnections  in your congregation's office. Keep each new issue in your board binder and give copies of articles to appropriate committee members.

Another tool for board members is the InterConnections Resource Library. It contains not only articles from the newsletter, but related documents that are all searchable by key word, such as membership or canvass.

We hope InterConnections and the library will be valuable to you, along with other tools like the Congregational Handbook (also on the website), the new fundraising manual, Fundraising with a Vision, (available from the UUA Bookstore at (800) 215-9076), and the UUA-sponsored e-mail lists. See a description of those lists on page 4. And welcome to a new year.

Donald E. Skinner, Editor
InterConnections

Is Your Congregation  An Equitable Employer?

In many congregations a religious educator, administrator, secretary, music director or maintenance person has less status than the minister, notes Brad Brown, compensation consultant for the Southwest District.

He recommends developing a statement regarding employment and how it rewards employees. It may include:

• selection of personnel on the basis of competence without discrimination
• fair compensation for part-time and full-time work
• provision of medical, disability, retirement, and other benefits, such as paid holidays and vacations for eligible employees
• periodic reviews of performance, working conditions, and compensation
• prompt and fair resolution of complaints

Contact your district office for the name of a district compensation consultant.

How High Is Too High?

Where is eye level in your church building? It might be a lot lower than you think, says the Central Midwest District's Committee on Disability and Access. Be sure bookshelves, resources, and worship materials are located within reach for children, small adults, and people using wheelchairs.

Helpful UUA E-Mail Lists For Board Members And Committee Chairs

Board members and committee chairs can get (and share) advice on a variety of congregational topics by joining any of more than 100 UUA-sponsored e-mail lists. Some of the most useful are UU-LEADERS (any leadership topic), MEMB-L (membership topics), UU-MONEY (finance), REACH-L (religious education), 550PLUS (large congregations), and RURAL-L (rural congregations).

To subscribe, click on the links above, or go to www.uua.org/mailman/listinfo to see all UUA-sponsored lists.

Insurance Program For UU Congregations

A group property and liability insurance program specifically for UU congregations has been developed by the Church Mutual Insurance Company of Merrill, WI and is being recommended by the UUA's Congregational Properties and Loan Commission.

A letter announcing the program was sent to all ministers and congregation presidents in May, notifiying them that Church Mutual representatives will be contacting them. Jerry Gabert, UUA treasurer, and Wayne Clark, director of building programs, emphasize that the program is voluntary and that the UUA does not profit by it, although individual congregations may realize substantial savings.

Church Mutual insures 186 UU congregations. Spike Vrusho, treasurer of the UU Society, Stamford, CT, recently reported on the UU-MONEY e-mail list that the company is saving his congregation about $1600 annually.

"Is there a Pulse Here?" How to Diagnose Congregational Vitality

By the Rev. Lawrence Palmieri Peers, Director of the UUA's Extension, Education and Research Office

When considering congregational vitality, I propose we ask, "Is there a pulse here?" Believe me, it's not a given. I've been to congregations of all sizes and denominations and I'm not always convinced that there's a pulse, that there is life and vibrancy, that there is something worth sustaining there. It's a terrible disappointment when this happens. I feel it for myself-for the spiritual hungers and aspirations that go unmet and unexpressed when I am there-and I feel it for others, wondering who thirsts for some water from the well, for some breath of the Spirit.

I wonder if we recognize the profundity of our sacred work in these times. Can we light a flame in our sanctuary to attest what is holy, sacred, transforming, and renewing in our midst? As Unitarian Universalists, we claim as a source of our Living Tradition the "direct experience of transcending mystery and wonder…which moves us to a renewal of the spirit and an openness to the forces which create and uphold life."

It is not our music, our noble causes, our well-delivered sermons, our programs or well-brewed coffee alone that is the pulse of our congregation. These are only containers for something broader and deeper that actually moves us to a renewal of the spirit, to an openness to the forces that create and sustain life.

A vital congregation needs to nurture all the ways that we promote the renewal of the spirit. Some questions to ask about your congregation:

• Is your spirit being nurtured?
• Are you growing and maturing in your faith life and personal life?
• Is there, as we affirm in our Purposes and Principles, an actual encouragement to spiritual growth in your congregation?
• How have you known this? How have you experienced this? What wonders has it led you to? How has it changed your life and that of others?

From Peter Steinke, author of Healthy Congregations, A Systems Approach,  Alban Institute, 1996. Available from UUA Bookstore at (800) 215-9076  $14.75   #4667.

According to Steinke, healthy leaders:

• stay spiritually grounded
• manage their own anxiety
• take stands and stay connected
• focus on presence and functioning (avoiding triangles, remaining calm)
• focus on vision and mission
• focus on strengths
• challenge themselves and others

Clergy and lay leaders who are active in district affairs now have a new UUA-sponsored e-mail list to use.

The list, DISTRICTS, is available to district executives and presidents, UUA trustees, and members of district boards and committees. The list permits users to share information among districts.

To subscribe, e-mail listproc@uua.org with the message subscribe districts (your name).

New Program to Help Congregtional Growth

Mid-size congregations seeking help  with growth issues should ask for the new UUA program Transforming Congregations for the Future: Mission-Centered Ministry, which replaced the Decisions for Growth program earlier this year.

The new program is for congregations that want to become more outwardly focused, more mission-centered, and to increase their ability to transform lives.

Contact Margaret Beard or Nanette Sawyer in the Department of Congregational, District, and Extension Services; 25 Beacon St. Boston, MA 02108; (617) 742-2100, ext. 270

New Book Titles

These books are new in the UUA Bookstore, (800) 215-9076:

The In-Between Church: Navigating Size Transitions in Congregations, by Alice Mann (Alban) 1998. How to deal with the hurdles and anxieties of expansion or contraction in congregational size.  #7734  $11.25

Developing Faith in Young Adults: Effective Ministry with 18-35 Year-Olds, Robert Gribbon, 1999 (Alban). How to bring this "missing" age group back to active church membership.  The author adds fresh material and insight to his decade-long research on young adults.  #7735   $12.25

Young Adult Worship

Soulful Sundown, a new manual that introduces a contemporary worship style through music, storytellers, comedians, dancers, etc., is available from the UUA's Young Adult/Campus Ministry Office to help congregations boost young adult worship services.

The manual, by Marlin Lavanhar, grew out of monthly worship services at First and Second Church, Boston, where Lavanhar is assistant minister. Cost is $15.

Contact the Young Adult/Campus Ministry office at 20 Nassau St., Suites 510-511, Princeton, NJ, 08542; (609) 252-1412.