Passion Group Notes from 01/09/10

Inner Care
• Get to know members meaning of life. Explore our journeys, learn from others. Pot lucks, small gatherings. Shouldn’t be an inner circle.

• Make groups more inclusive.

• Institute small groups on a limited time frame so they don’t burn out. Not have things opened ended. Fear of signing up for something for life.

• Can’t be exclusionary. Doing things at peoples houses eliminates many (due to size of apartments, etc.). Excludes people without money or big enough homes.

• Importance of knowing others names.

• Importance also of getting to know another: like caring group

• Better venues for getting to know members. Doesn’t like coffee hour.

• Does not like to be made uncomfortable. Has been insulted, discriminated against. Big hole-losing existing members.

• Feels it’s more welcoming now. Felt it used to be very exclusionary. Church has failed her children. Need to keep people, have families feel part of community.

• Use facility more. Can’t us his home for events.

• People feel daunted by parking.

• Focus workshops. Work together. Art classes, etc. Woman’s group.

• Have a Craig’s List type thing. We all could advertise our services-sell-offers of rooms available. Many talents of church we don’t know about.

• Feels that non-members don’t have the right to speak up.

• Comes, gives money, bit is not a member. Doesn’t want to sign a book (ex-catholic) He loved the bean supper with skits –found helpful, wasn’t formal, met people.

• Bean supper a big hit. Open to the public?

• Would like open public dinners.

• Concern about amount of work involved with dinners.

Bridge to Community
• You get close to people that you have done community efforts with. Way to intimacy. Working on goal together.

• Soup Kitchen

• Go to USM for outreach. Sharing the Good News. Doesn’t have to be a deed. Tabling-a presence important.

• Common Ground Fair

• Portland High School-our neighbor. Poster in alley. Tutoring in classroom. Outreach to guidance councilors and social works. After school clubs-invite them.

• Technology. Community TV. Channel 4. Pod casts-live stream. Video/audio.

• Use our own high schools for ideas and engage.

• Sister church. Latin America or in US or South.

• Voter registration drives.

• Use groups that already exist: Safe Passage.

• Partner with another church that is already good at it.

• Bridge to Community –continued

• Ferry Beach Retreat-area UU’s. Opportunity to explore social action.

• Inner City church- for unchurched, not church Sunday morning. Programs. Place to give back.

• Outside garden services in summer.

• Banners. Acknowledge impact-more-alley.

• Solstice etc. outside. Maypole.

• UU Book group. Meet outside church. In community.

• Connection with other UU’s.

• Groups that come here. Make connections. Thursday concerts-important to have someone speak.

• Connect with AA, Thai Chi, Playback.

Worship
• Tension between preservation/visionary plays out here in worship. Elders/big givers object to banners/lights/renovations. Let’s be visionaries but not throw baby out with bath water; drive out traditional big givers.

• My alternative is Quaker Meeting, but prefer something with a sermon BUT sacred, centered, atmosphere with spirituality in services. Non traditional stuff is fine but not chaos.

• Dislikes should be respected, not told to “stuff it”

• It’s important to tolerate elements/styles of music you don’t like and that the program be varied to serve all.

• We are open but we can’t be everything to everyone.

• Authenticity is important in using and honoring other traditions.

• Excellence is important.

• A central, constant experience is important to me.

• I like to leave feeling that I learned something.

• Sacred space, life changing experience is important.

• Toughing people, elevating common themes to significance.

• Excellence is a certain level of competence that doesn’t break the experience.

• Personal participation is make the experience sacred-singing, etc.

• It is possible to combine preservation and vision. Example: Unison affirmation can be a common element while other things change.

• 7 year old says the affirmation.

• Need numbers in the meeting house to have energy.

• We need to understand why people don’t come back; tinkering with worship may not do it.

• Preserve the sacred no matter what we do,

• People are leaving for many reasons, not worship alone.

• Came during summer; hooked by different kind of service. Grew to like regular kind of service.

• Possible to have different styles of services at different times to serve multiple audiences, a.k.a. Soulful Sundown.

• Been here 4 months and haven’t heard anything about Islam.
Building Congregation
• Collaborate with other churches, ie; Williston-West and Polish Church; diversity

• Have other faiths meet at different times. Use the church / rent the space.

• Expand Building Use Coordinators role.

• “Bring a Friend” Have current members invite others to service on Sunday and events and Men group and others.

• Collaboration with A2U2.

• Have a service periodically focused on a symbol of the traditions; including the UU symbol; Buddhist. Etc.

• Put info at USM, SMCC, bookstores, library.

• Services on public access TV

• Pancake breakfast to include music and advertise it.

• Invite the Noonday music attendees to Sunday Worship, AA as well.

• Volunteers to Youth Groups to represent UU, ie; Long Creek

• Worship at nursing homes, college campuses.

• Educate public with ads to free papers. Use quote: “We do not ask all to think alike, we ask all to think.” “We don’t; have to think alike to love alike.” (Goes with our Mission.)

• Like Kitsy: carry around UU newsletters to give out when appropriate. Also where UU jewelry if comfortable.

• More collaboration with historical society and being speakers in schools to talk about UU for history classes, especially elementary and H.S. On college level on comparative religion.

• Building Congregation-continued

• Look at the latest survey for the ministerial search for ideas.

Funding
• Broader opportunities to solicit funds.

• Grants / ?

• Identify what programs we need to fund.

• Identify cast of each segment of the vision statement

• Annuities to church

• Functions that bring in people and ?

• Endow partial activity or ?; ie; RE or music

• Pledge for support church plus separate pledge for “special interests”.

Mission
• Mission should be to meet spiritual and emotional needs of attendees

• Should be attractive to outside.

• If talk is in theory and not concrete-intentional plan

• Is our strength in spiritual realm?

• Multiracial / Intergenerational communion

• Big Buddy.