UUA: Congregations and Beyond
Tracking the conversation launched by UUA President Peter Morales's paper, "Congregations and Beyond."
Morales: 'We need to think of ourselves as a religious movement'
- The Rev. Peter Morales, president of the Unitarian Universalist Association, published a paper in January 2012 inviting UUs to respond to changes in the American religious landscape that may be making congregations less central to people's lives.
"We have long defined ourselves as an association of congregations," Morales writes. "We need to think of ourselves as a religious movement. The difference is potentially huge." 
UUA: Congregations and BeyondRev. Peter Morales, President of the UUA, offers a vision of the opportunities and challenges that face Unitarian Universalism as an inte...- The UUA is promoting conversation about Morales's paper and collecting resources related to it:
UUA: Vision for Unitarian Universalism: Congregations and BeyondRev. Christine Robinson's Blog Response #1 Rev. Christine Robinson's Blog Response #2 Rev. Naomi King blogs about Congregations and Beyon...Consultation in Florida stimulates conversation
- A 21-person UUA staff-facilitated consultation is meeting in Orlando, Florida, February 1-3 to brainstorm responses to Morales's paper:
UUA: Congregations and Beyond Consultation February 2012Congregations and Beyond by Peter Morales Rev. Terasa Cooley, Director of Congregational Life, UUA will be the facilitator of the Congreg...- The Rev. Dr. Terasa Cooley, co-facilitator of the Orlando consultation, is director of Congregational Services at the UUA. She describes the consultation as an attempt "to brainstorm how we might extend the reach of Unitarian Universalism in this new age."
- Behold We Do a New Thing! | Learn Out LoudTwenty two committed Unitarian Universalists have gathered in Orlando, Florida to brainstorm how we might extend the reach of Unitarian U...
- Much of the conversation centered on the Orlando consultation is taking place in a Facebook group called "Unitarian Universalists Exploring Congregations and Beyond" and on Twitter using the hashtag #CongBeyond. (Storify inexplicably thinks the Facebook group is "Pedro Santos," but the link does work! You must be signed in to your Facebook account to see this conversation.)
- Many who did not attend the Orlando consultation participated remotely via Twitter:
- Updated 2.7.12: In a blog post summarizing the Orlando consultation's work, the Rev. Dr. Terasa Cooley, one of the co-facilitators, identifies three major areas the consultation focused on: "Engaging congregations in reaching out to the world beyond them," "culture change," and "new modalities":
- Beyond “Congregations and Beyond” | Learn Out LoudMy head is still buzzing after our Congregations and Beyond consultation last week. The privilege of being in a far-ranging conversation ...
UU blogs respond to Morales
- UU World tracked the first week of blog reactions to Morales's paper in its Jan. 27 edition of The Interdependent Web:
Responding to a vision statement, and other UU blogging « uuworld.org : The Interdependent WebBy Kenneth Sutton, on January 27th, 2012 This past week Unitarian Universalist Association President Peter Morales published "Congregatio...- The Interdependent Web tracks a second week of blog responses in its Feb. 3 edition:
- ‘Congregations and Beyond,’ Black History Month, and more UU blogging « uuworld.org : The Interdependent WebBy Heather Christensen, on February 3rd, 2012 UU social media continues to buzz this week with reactions to UUA President Peter Morales' ...
- June Herold, a social media professional who helped the UU Congregation of Arlington, Va., build its social-media-powered church website, writes:
What’s The Vision? Need One Before We Go Beyond
February 2, 2012 at 3:27 pm | Posted in Online Ministry, UU Ramblings | Leave a comment The whitepaper, "Congregations and Beyond," is a ...- The Rev. Tom Schade offers historical context for why Unitarian Universalists find themselves in a new era:
- thelivelytradition: Out of the WildernessI believe that 1968-2008 was a 40 year wilderness period for Unitarian Universalism, a long period in which cultural, religious and polit...
