Our Work with Childen
Nothing in the Unitarian Universalist religion is more exciting than its methods and principles of religious education. A new kind of church school has come into being in our movement in which the individual child, rather than a particular religious doctrine, is the center of the program.
Our religious education is founded on the conviction that human nature, rather than alienating us from the spiritual or divine, actually binds us to the universe and all that sustains it. The natural curiosities and urges of children are the very resources on which a program of religious education should be built.
We believe that a child's religion grows out of normal experience. Religion is not something to be given to a child, but something to be nurtured and encouraged in a child's unfolding life.
No one has yet done a better job of describing the general aims of our religious education than William Ellery Channing, the internationally revered liberal preacher and scholar of the 19th century, who wrote:
"The great end in religious instruction . . . is not to stamp our minds irresistibly on the young, but to stir up their own; not to make them see with our eyes, but to look inquiringly and steadily with their own; not to impose religion upon them in the form of arbitrary rules, which rest on no foundation but our own word and will, but to awaken the conscience, the moral discernment, so they may discern and approve for themselves what is everlastingly right and good. . . ."
We encourage in children and adolescents a natural development of religious faith based primarily on direct experience. We avoid imposing religious beliefs of any kind. We never suggest that an ideal is to be cherished simply because it is honored in our congregation or religion. We encourage a continual search to improve faith and life. We do not teach a finished gospel. We expose young people to the thoughts and beliefs of many religions, drawing on Unitarian and Universalist history, Jewish and Christian heritages, and wisdom from other world faiths. We heartily urge children to ask questions, express their doubts, and seek answers that are personally satisfying to them. We do everything possible to avoid an atmosphere that represses their natural curiosity.
While we do not teach creeds, we do teach principles, encouraging religious education participants of all ages to:
- respect themselves and others
- love in ever-widening circles of human community
- search for their own truth in the company of other seekers
- seek liberty, peace, and justice in our world
- engage their whole selves—mind and body, heart and soul-in creating a meaningful life journey.
Developing a religion of one's own is a slow, gradual, and seven-day-a-week process. Especially during children's preschool years, a large part of this development goes on in the home. The direction it takes, its depth or lack of depth, depends very largely on how seriously parents assume their role as religious educators. It is impossible to live with small children and not answer numerous religious questions each day. Because of this, we greatly stress parent participation in the congregation's program of religious education, and support parents in their role as resident theologians through our adult religious education programs.
Unitarian Universalist religious education programs are designed to appeal to those who wish to enter upon a lifespan adventure in religious growth and learning.
