Reflections with the Board: February 5, 2021

It is our goal as the Board of Trustees to maintain connections with you. To that end, we are hosting a program entitled, “Reflections with the Board.”  We host these sessions via zoom once a month at 10 am before the service.  Our next session will be held on February 14th at 10 am. For this session, the Board would like to spend some time talking with you about Widening the Circle of Concern. This month we will focus on Chapter Three, Congregations and Communities.  You did not have to attend any of our previous sessions to join us this month. Here are the questions from the WTC Study Guide: 

  • The shaded box on p. 47, Recommended Congregational Practices to Increase Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, details six actions that can be taken by congregations. Discuss which of these you are already engaged in and which of these you might like to add. 

  • An important part of this chapter (shaded box pp. 40-41 and pp. 48-49) is understanding congregational polity and the covenantal understanding of each congregation’s relationship with the UUA and other congregations.  

    • Discuss how you understand these relationships. 
    • How well do you think they are understood in the broader congregation? 
    • What actions can you take to build shared understanding? 

  • There is a case study of a congregational audit on pp. 52-53.  

    • Is this something your congregation should consider? 
    • What might be barriers to implementing this? 

  • There is a case study of a congregation that intentionally focused on welcoming a younger and more diverse leadership team on p. 45. Read the excerpts from their identity documents and reflect on your own.  

    • In what ways are they similar and what ways are they different? 
    • When was your congregational covenant last renewed? 

  • Which of the suggested actions related to this chapter seem relevant to our community?  

    • What would be the first task? 
    • What are the barriers to implementation? 

As you can see, many of these questions rely on having the chapter on hand.  You may want to review those sections or have that information pulled up on your computer or your book available.  Here is a link to the Chapter: https://www.uua.org/uuagovernance/committees/cic/widening/congregations-communities 

Which of these questions would you like to discuss?  What have you been learning as you have been reading Widening the Circle? Please join us on Sunday. Thank you. 

Click here to join Zoom meeting. 

Meeting ID: 862 4288 7134 

Passcode: 220807 

One tap mobile +13126266799,,86242887134#,,,,,,0#,,220807# US (Chicago) 

2021-02-01T19:51:03+00:00

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Unitarian Church of Evanston

A Unitarian Universalist Congregation

1330 Ridge Ave
Evanston, IL 60201
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uce@ucevanston.org

UCE's office hours: Monday - Friday 10:00 am - 4 pm

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