New UUA outreach program in Time Magazine

[applewuud]

I read in UU World that a public awareness program about Unitarian Universalism began last week with a full-page ad in Time magazine, also coupled in some way with editorial content (how does that work?)

Did anyone see this campaign, and if so what did you think of it? Last Sunday October 14th the UUA requested that churches support this outreach, but I didn't see anything about this at my church. Maybe people are late reading their mail:sleep:.

 

[lilithu]

I read in UU World that a public awareness program about Unitarian Universalism began last week with a full-page ad in Time magazine, also coupled in some way with editorial content (how does that work?)

Did anyone see this campaign, and if so what did you think of it? Last Sunday October 14th the UUA requested that churches support this outreach, but I didn't see anything about this at my church. Maybe people are late reading their mail:sleep:.

Hi applewuud, namaste. :namaste

In June, President Sinkford announced the kick off of the "Now is the Time" fundraising campaign, which is supposed to last for 5 yrs. The purpose of the campaign is to raise funds because, as he said, "Now is the time to grow our faith."

50% will go towards advertising, like the article in Time.
25% will go towards grants to help grow congregations.
25% will go towards supporting ministers of color and their congregations.

This past Sunday, Association Sunday, for those congregations that volunteered to participate, the proceeds from the offering were sent to the Association. The UUA is hoping that next year even more congregations will participate.

I haven't seen the Time ad. I hear indirectly that true to UU form people were complaining about it. Too colorful. To out there. Wrong font. (Seriously, someone complained about the font.) But seeing as I identify myself as an evangelical UU I am happy about the ad. As another evangelical UU said, "Finally!"

Did your congregation participate in the Petition for Peace? Just curious. We got signatures from all 50 states!

 

[Pariah]

But seeing as I identify myself as an evangelical UU I am happy about the ad. As another evangelical UU said, "Finally!"

How does a UU evangelize?

 

[lilithu]

How does a UU evangelize?

By being open about our faith, so that people know that we exist. Too often we have a tendency to hide it for whatever reason. So many people come to us saying that they've been looking for us their entire lives but didn't know that we even existed. To me, that's a shame. And selfish of us.

UU evangelizing would never involved trying to "convert" people. If people want to hear, great. If they don't, that's fine too.

 

[Davidium]

Hey all, been awhile since I chimed in...

I was on the huge conference call that Bill Sinkford had with UU church leaders, and it was enlightening. The initial funding for the campaign up to this point has been donated by a few Unitarian Universalists... but additional funds are being raised through the Associational Sunday program.

While the ad that was run was "flashy" and perhaps even a bit more edgy than I would have prefered (It said in big, bold letters "Is God Keeping You Out of Church?") I dont think it is the long term real part of the campaign.

For the next seveal years at least, in webpages that deal with stories on religion on Time.com, there will appear a link that says something like "To learn more about this issue, or to see a different perspective, click Here". That link will take you to a section of UUA.org that will have articles on those particular topics written by UU ministers and leaders. My current supervising minister, Rev. Barbara Pescan will be one of those ministers (her writing about GLBT issues.)

All in all, I think it is a positive step forward for us... it is our first national advertising campaign in 50 years. As to how we UU's evangelize, I will just say this. Our evangelism should, I beleive, not be about "converting" people to UU'ism, or about filling our pews... but rather about helping the world become more in tune with our ideals, values, and principles. Part of that is awareness, which is why I support this campaign. But more if it simply is about learning to live publically as Unitarian Universalists. So when someone asks at the watercooler at work "Did you see the weird ad in time about God keeping people out of Church?" You can say, "Yep, that was my denomination... want to come Sunday with me and check it out?"

Our Evangelism is about changing hearts and minds, thereby changing the world... not about filling the pews. This is an internal argument I have within churches.... but it is the difference in perspective for me that makes me an evangelist for my faith

Yours in faith,

David Pyle

 

[applewuud]

Did your congregation participate in the Petition for Peace? Just curious. We got signatures from all 50 states!

Yes, we did, it was announced in the service and the petition was there at coffee hour; I signed it.

 

[lilithu]

Yes, we did, it was announced in the service and the petition was there at coffee hour; I signed it.

Sorry, I forgot you answered in the other thread.

Anyway applewuud, what do you think of the new campaign?

 

[applewuud]

(In response to question of "How does a UU evangelize?")
By being open about our faith, so that people know that we exist. Too often we have a tendency to hide it for whatever reason. So many people come to us saying that they've been looking for us their entire lives but didn't know that we even existed. To me, that's a shame. And selfish of us.

UU evangelizing would never involved trying to "convert" people. If people want to hear, great. If they don't, that's fine too.

Like Lilithu, I'm not interested in "converting" people, but I want the wider culture to be aware of the ideals and ideas of liberal religion, just as it's aware of the ideals and ideas of the conservatives. They'll make their own choice, but they have to know there's a choice.

There is a struggle of ideas in the world which some have dismissed as just an intellectual exercise, or irrelevant. But the past 50 years have shown how ideas have consequences for culture, as fundamentalists preached and evangelized with virtually no comparably-organized liberal religious response. Secular people have the idea that religion is Jerry Falwell/Pat Robertson, because mainstream churches felt it was unseemly to reach out in the effective ways that televangelist megachurches do. I hope that the UUA's new outreach, or outspeak, program, has been energized by the growing awareness that if we don't stand up for something, we'll fall for anything.

It is selfish to keep your light under a bushel, figuring that everyone will find their own way without any assistance. 'Twas not always so. In the past, Universalists were very active in "spreading the good news" of their unique, historically repressed ideas, but in the 20th century, we "left the battlefield". The odd thing may be that by finally stepping out of the shadows, if we do, that those among us who are uncomfortable with being in the thick of things may leave. Davidium's comment about "it's not about filling the pews" reminds me of the fact that very often, when a minister comes in and grows a UU church from the family-size to a program-size, controversy often erupts and the church shrinks back down to its old, more "comfortable" size.

IMHO, we have a lot of theological work to do that should go in parallel with outreach. Once again I'm reminded of a speech at General Assembly a few years ago by the former head of the Starr King seminary. He said that the Unitarians and Universalists rushed into union in the sixties for organizational reasons, and that we haven't really knit together our theological ideas into a new, greater whole.

But that's another thread.

 

[powder21]

I attended a different congregation last week and we talked all about the new fundraising campaign. I kinda liked the ad. Definitely something that would have drawn me to UU before I knew of it's existence. I don't mind advertising it because I think it's something that more people should be aware of, therefore, I wouldn't mind contributing some money to it. Problem with the services at this congregation (which is different from my usual one) was that it was all about pressuring everybody into giving money. Like seriously "feel guilty if you don't" type stuff. The whole sermon was a fricken sales pitch! It kinda ****** me off, because I brought that friend of mine who was interested in UU (first time to a congregation) and she left feeling guilty and very weird about UU. I'm still trying to persuade her to go with me to my normal congregation. So, contributing to the ad campaign, no problem. Devoting an entire sermon to pressuring people into giving money, BIG problem. That's not what this should've been about.

P.S. I heard that a few UU's with deep pockets are willing to match all the congregations contributions up to like $500,000.00

 

[applewuud]

... Problem with the services at this congregation (which is different from my usual one) was that it was all about pressuring everybody into giving money. Like seriously "feel guilty if you don't" type stuff. The whole sermon was a fricken sales pitch! It kinda ****** me off, because I brought that friend of mine who was interested in UU (first time to a congregation) and she left feeling guilty and very weird about UU. .... Devoting an entire sermon to pressuring people into giving money, BIG problem. That's not what this should've been about....

That's too bad, Powder. So many UU congregations are not used to having guests, that they treat a Sunday service as if it were a congregational meeting. Big problem, as you say. On the old UUA blog, there was a long rant by someone who'd just been approached by an insensitive pledge drive person to the point where he left the church (which he'd only been attending for 6 months).

That's a paradox of outreach: you have one kind of communication with people who've been there and are already part of a long conversation, but need to start a dialog with people who are just coming in. Part of that dialog should be that this is a voluntary community that needs to be supported by its membership, along with the message that it's a privilege and responsibility that is shared by those who feel called to give, not something to be guilt-tripped into. To reach out, some kind of this-worldly support is needed, but it should never become "join our church, we need to fix the roof".

 

[Scuba Pete]

I thought UUs used coffee for evangelism, and that they mark their temples with "Starbucks".

 

[Davidium]

To reach out, some kind of this-worldly support is needed, but it should never become "join our church, we need to fix the roof".

Hah! You made me laugh... because it is so true.

I visit UU congregations where ever I am... I was visiting one congregation in a Mid-West state that did not have any clue I was a UU Seminarian, and upon entering the door a very well meaning and kindly woman asked if I was a visitor. When I said "yes" she smiled and informed me that there were several wonderful committee's I could serve on....



Sounds like a joke, but it really happened....

Yours in faith,

David