"I am a Unitarian Universalist"

A Children's Service

Terry Stafford, DRE
Beacon Unitarian Church
Coquitlam, B.C., Canada

When children are often frantically busy with recitals, concerts, and events, it can be difficult just to see them 2 Sundays in a row. I introduced holding a year-end Children's Service, the year our attendance had hit a serious low point. I phoned all the families and was able to get a commitment to have the children come 2 weeks in a row — 1 week to prepare the service, and 1 week to participate in it. The children enjoyed this service so much that several of them insisted on more frequent attendance, and the parents were impressed enough to also want to bring their children more often. The following year, our attendance numbers were vastly improved.  

Preparation:

I phoned all families and got a commitment to have the children attend church for 2 weeks in a row—1 week to prepare and 1 week to participate in the service. The week before the service, I handed out sheets with each child's " lines" to practice, and our pianist taught them a new, not-too-difficult song, " Room to Grow."

The Service Format:

The Opening:
Children provided the music for the opening.
Children read the simple chalice lighting words (shared so each child only read a couple of lines).

The Story for All Ages:
A youth read a " story for adults" —and the adults enjoyed the chance to come sit at the front for their own story!

The Reading:
An adult and a child went to the front where the adult read the UU Principles for Adults, and the child read the UU Principles for Children.

The Offertory:
Children provided the music for collection.

The Music:
Everyone sang " Come, Come, Whoever You Are."
A group of youth sang a gospel song, " The Storm is Passing Over."
All the children sang " Room To Grow." (They'd had a quick second practice before the service and sounded fantastic.)

The Homily:
I then read my article " Do Children Need Religion?" as the homily. This homily was first published in the REACH packet in spring, 2000. It is reprinted here as well:

Do Children Need Religion? A Homily.
Terry Stafford, Dre, Beacon Unitarian Church
Coquitlam, B.C., Canada
With Thanks to Rev. Amanda L. Aikman and Ned Wight

At Beacon Unitarian Church in Coquitlam, religious education is designed to foster independent thinking, to give kids the tools they need to make up their own minds about life's big questions. Exposure to the stories, beliefs, theologies, and practices of the world's religions is an important aspect of Unitarian Universalist children's religious education. Today's parents face some unprecedented challenges, among them teaching children to lead full lives in a diverse, multicultural society. It's hard for parents to do this kind of training alone, so being a part of the church community is invaluable.

Parents need the ongoing support and encouragement of others who share their values. Unitarian Universalist children's programs provide an opportunity for children to learn strong values. Like all parents, Unitarian Universalist parents want their children to develop a reliable sense of integrity, be compassionate members of their society and family. We want them to learn to trust themselves, the environment we bring them into, and ultimately to take responsibility for making their world more trustworthy. We want them to grow up knowing that it matters that they are alive; that they make a difference.

Children need structure and feedback to develop these values. And the structure needs to be consistent with the way their role models live their lives. We need to model for them respect for self and others, tolerance for others' views, and the importance of using their minds and hearts to determine what is right. Unitarians don't give children absolutes—ours is a religion that embraces paradox, complexity, and diversity. If we have primary guiding principles, they might be love, the context of life, and hope, the creativity of life, and, of course, respect. Often people don't even think about attending a church until their children ask, " What is God?" Most of us are, in fact, struck dumb by these questions and filled with awe about the unanswerables in life. We know however we respond to this young human being will have a lasting impact on how she perceives her world and her place in it. It is in moments like this that concerned parents wonder if there is a circle of wise spiritual teachers out there somewhere that would provide support.

The Unitarian Universalist faith doesn't pretend to give children all the answers to the big questions. Unitarian Universalism puts its faith in people's ability to explore the unknown together. It doesn't pretend to take away the mystery. Unitarian Universalist churches uphold liberal values of freedom of belief and conscience, unrestricted use of reason in religious inquiry, and tolerance for theological diversity. Because respect and acceptance of differences top their list of values, Unitarian Universalist congregations actively promote a hate-free society. They seek to live in accordance with values that include respect for the inherent worth and dignity of every person, and they believe that we are all a part of an interconnected web that includes the earth. These values form the common ground upon which more than a thousand Unitarian Universalist congregations in North America stand.

The Recognition of Teachers and Children:
I led the recognition of the teachers, and also handed out recognition certificates and a rainbow pencil to each child. (And the children had a surprise recognition for me—they'd each contributed a word that described me, and they each brought me a flower until my arms were overflowing—wonderful!)

Closing Reading:
The children then lined up across the front of the room and each made an " I Am A Unitarian" statement. (Parents were delighted that all week their children were practicing this and loudly announcing " I am a Unitarian and...")

Here are the statements I came up with and handed out to the children the week before:

I am a Unitarian and I believe...

• That every person is valuable.
• That every person is important.
• That every person should be treated fairly.
• That everyone should be treated with kindness.
• That we all need to keep our minds open to new ideas.
• That it's important to keep asking questions.
• That everyone should be included in making decisions.
• That we want a peaceful world.
• That we must respect the whole web of life.
• That we are responsible for keeping the earth healthy and beautiful.
• That we want to live in a world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
• That we should look after the animals and plants of the earth.
• That if peace and harmony are to come to the world, this must begin with each one of us.
• That each one of us can make a difference.
• That all people are different, that all people deserve respect, and that life is forever interesting because of our differences!
• That we should respect one another and keep on learning and growing and weaving our lives together.
• That under the sky, all people are one family.

After they'd all made their statements, they all shouted in unison: "I Am a Unitarian!" and cheered.

Music:
"To Everyone in All the World" (Raffi song—with actions that had everyone in the congregation shaking hands). The children then led the congregation in singing. Words were printed in the Order of Service.

Closing Words:
Children read the closing words and extinguished the chalice, and everyone took hands around the room for the closing song: "Go Now in Peace."

Postlude:
"Go Now In Peace."