10 Things UUs Need To Know by Rev. Mark Hoelter 1. Spirituality is desperately wanted – desperately. If a congregation gives it and helps its ministers give it, people will come to get it … if it’s genuine, authentic. They will flock. 2. Emphasize emotional intelligence – we’ve got enough intellectual intelligence and are in no danger of loosing it, but we desperately need to learn and use emotional intelligence. It’s a different thing and it can be learned. Make it robust and constant. 3. Both personal and spiritual growth takes time, practice, stumbling and goes in stages – it’s a totally different kind of educational process than virtually any of our current curricula. We need to develop that path (note: don’t call it a curriculum; de-academicize it) and launch it – yesterday. It would be good if it were a top priority. 4. Learn to dialogue … everywhere. We are superb, perhaps without peer, in both discourse and discussion. But we are pitifully weak when it comes to dialogue. I think dialogue should be to UU’s what consensus process is to Quakers and meditation is to Buddhists. We would be in high demand in many places. And we would help the world big time. 5. Go out and ask questions of the people around you – actually use the Rick Warren approach, ask those who don’t belong anywhere what keeps them away, what would be so compelling they could hardly stay away. Probe and probe; take copious notes. Resist every temptation to tell them anything, or tell them how “UU’s do that.” Ask, and ask, and ask. Research for information to help shape a congregation that meets those needs. Be ready to create a totally different congregation. 6. Be curious; don’t solve problems. When people present problems, resist the kneejerk temptation to give solutions. Learn the art of helping people discover they have the answers and solutions within them. They will never forget your helpful curiosity and those conversations. 7. Tell more stories. In worship. Everywhere. Create story-telling festivals. Learn how. 8. Worship can be fun. It can be fun AND challenging AND enlightening AND heavy AND entertaining. Color outside the lines. Sing outside the lines. Laugh a lot and create laughter – it’s a form of spirituality. 9. Spend at least as much time making peace as demonstrating for justice. Don’t stop demonstrating for justice. Just learn how to meet people and talk in such a way as to make peace, and spend as much time making peace as demonstrating for justice. 10. Give lots of presence. To everyone. All the time. Starting with yourself, then your family and loved ones, then the congregation and your friends, then…you get the picture. Be fully present.
Posted on: Sat, 26 Oct 2013 03:22:52 +0000
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