Blue Boat of Youth and Young Adult MinistriesStretching Resources for Campus Ministry
Smart Strategy + Limited Resources = Vibrant Campus Ministry by Carlene Gardner Three years ago, the Unitarian Church of Montreal (UCM) hired me as the Campus Ministry Coordinator on a contract of just 3 hours a week, from September to May. The purpose was to set up a group for Montreal students to connect with each other, the UCM and the Unitarian movement at large. Targeting ‘students’ was an ambitious goal, given that Montreal has four major universities and 14 junior colleges, totaling nearly a quarter million post-secondary students. This puts Montreal on the map as having one of the largest student populations in the world, and the highest proportion of any city in North…
Spotlight: UUs of Northeastern University
Small But Mighty The set up was in some ways completely familiar. The cushions on the floor, the snacks arranged casually around the yet unlit chalice. Students drifting in and sitting down, late evening on a weekday. I could have been in the basement of the chapel back at my small Midwestern liberal arts college gathering with the Unitarian Universalist (UU) student group I led for three semesters. But I’ve been out of college for more than six years and instead I was in an interfaith space at Northeastern University here in Boston, a visiting Unitarian Universalist Association staff member. I ask the students why they come to the UU campus ministry gatherings. Their answers…
Small But Mighty: UU Campus Ministry
“Small but mighty” is a phrase I enjoy. Possibly because I am a petite woman of short stature, yet I like to think I’m relatively powerful. But more than that it’s because that’s how I see our faith. Unitarian Universalism (UU) is a tiny religion and a young one too, though our roots go back centuries and indeed millennia. Yet we are powerful, making big impacts in our communities with our yellow shirts and our comprehensive sexuality education, our inclusive communities and our radical love. Small but mighty also describes our Unitarian Universalist campus ministries. We are small. Like, super small. In the fall of 2015 we did our second campus ministry census and we…
A Bigger Picture for Campus Ministers
It’s not easy being a campus minister. This work of nurturing students spiritually and providing inclusive community on college campuses is crucial, and yet it is also taxing and can be isolating. That’s why it’s so important to find peer support! We Unitarian Universalists (UU) are a small movement and while we have roughly 60 campus ministries across the country, not all of them are currently active and many are led by rotating volunteers. To find wisdom, support, new ideas and a sense of connection, it’s wonderful to turn to our siblings in faith and get in touch with other religious professionals engaged in this work. One way to find such connection is through National Campus Ministry Association…
Look Forward, Not Back
Campus Ministry Kits from the UUA – the Perfect Antidote to End of Break Blues… Get your kit and get building, sustaining or energizing Unitarian Universalist Campus Ministry now that classes are back in….
New On GA Talks @ YouTube
Campus Ministry Renaissance Religious life on campus improves the scholastic performance and quality of life for students. Rev. Cody Nielson presents the data, describes the new types of meaningful ministry that have taken hold and shows us the future of student-based ministry on campus. Watch “New Relevancy for Campus Ministry” presented at GA Talks 2014
Breaking Humanist Ground
Tufts University – which has long has a relationship with Unitarian Universalism(UU) – became the first college campus in the United States to hire an humanist chaplain. Tufts has created the position of “Humanist in Residence of the Tufts University Chaplaincy”. Chris Stedman finds out why in his interview of UU Rev. Greg McGonigle, of the Tufts University Chaplaincy in his story on Religion News Service, “After Atheists Asked, Tufts Creates First University-Funded Humanist Position“. Who is Chris Stedman? Read more by Chris Stedman – “Faitheist” – Published by Beacon Press. (Available at the UUA Bookstore) On Huffington Post On Patheos On Religion News Service On The New Humanism After atheists…
Spotlight: UU Young Adults at Channing-Murray
Welcome to the Spotlight Series! Each month we’ll feature a different Unitarian Universalist congregation or community that is doing effective, innovative or otherwise interesting ministry with young adults.– Ed. It’s not every day that I highlight a young adult or campus ministry that has its roots in the consolidation between the Unitarian and Universalists, but then again, the Channing-Murray Foundation is not your average young adult or campus ministry. This non-profit center was formed when the Unitarian and Universalist congregations in town joined together to form the UU Church of Urbana Champaign (UUCUC), or what the folks I interviewed called “the Green Street Church.” In that shift, a decision was made to keep both historical buildings, and…
Gather Virtually with UU Campus Ministry Leaders!
Summer is over and it’s time for UU campus ministry leaders to meet In some parts of the country school has already started; elsewhere people are preparing to enjoy labor day weekend before the new semester begins. But whatever schedule you’re on it’s time to plug in with your fellow campus ministry leaders for mutual support and information! Our first call of the school year is on Monday September 8th at 8 pm eastern. All campus ministry leaders are welcome: lay and ordained, students and elders, everything in between. Last year we met on the second Sunday of the month in the evenings, but many folks expressed this wasn’t the best time to gather. So we…
What Do We Know About UU Campus Ministry?
We’ve got data from our Spring 2014 Survey! In the spring of 2014 the Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries ran a campus ministry groups census to track how many campus ministry groups we have and what they are up to. What we found wasn’t too surprising, but was definitely interesting! Our UU campus ministry groups are small, and tend to reach a fair amount of people who are brand new to Unitarian Universalism. They focus primarily on small group ministry, while a smaller chunk of our groups also engage in worship, interfaith work and service or justice projects. They tend to be connected to local UU congregations in some form, and often received…
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