Children's Religious Exploration

Open the door, come on inside...

Welcome. This is a place where children, parents, and teachers learn, grow, dance, draw, sing, create, paint, laugh, cry, wonder, find sanctuary, explore, learn to speak with love and to listen with wisdom. The programme is designed for children and youth from pre-school through high school. We also provide childcare for infants and toddlers.

Beacon's Religious Education aims to:

• Engage young people, helping them to make decisions in life.
• Excite them to attend every week.
• Explores religious traditions of all kinds.
• Expand on Unitarian Universalist principles, linking them to wisdom from around the world.

...Step into this place where love and hope will abide...

The programme uses music, drama, role-playing, and visual arts to delve into many different religious traditions, linking them to the seven principles of Unitarianism. Child-focused, it engages young people, helping them to develop an ethical foundation and assisting them in becoming amazing adults.

The children start their Sundays downstairs with the rest of the congregation and listen to a 'Story for All Ages' before going upstairs for an in-gathering ritual. Lessons are given in a Small Group Ministry model. After the session is complete, children, teachers and parents join the rest of the congregation downstairs for snacks.

Here's some of what we have planned for children aged three to 12 this fall:

Three religious traditions will be explored this fall. Using a virtual 'Time Machine,' the children will start the year in the caves of Uluru, sacred to the Aboriginal people of Australia, to begin studying earth-based religions. The initial lessons will focus on the role of light and big questions which form the themes for this year: Why do we have religious education? How have humans followed the path of enlightenment through the ages? During this module, the children will form their own 'tribe' or extended family and create a panel of Aboriginal-style artwork which will become a backdrop for their weekly activities, helping them to make the space upstairs sacred in their own way.

Beacon Religious Exploration is made possible by co-ordinator Joy Silver and a co-operative of dedicated, hard-working parents.

For the Youth

The Beacon Youth program runs on the assumption that most youth already spend as much time as they want to in a classroom setting. You are encouraged to participate in community service activities; outdoor activities such as canoeing, hiking and camping; baking for Sunday morning snacks; movie nights (with discussions around Unitarian themes); and helping plan and run services. There is a place for straight, bi, gay, lesbian, transgender and questioning youth in our program.

UU's have always taken a great interest in social justice issues; bring your ideas and your passion for justice to our church and find a welcome here. Not all activities take place on Sunday morning, although we'd love to see you here! If other activities (including sleep) make Sunday impossible, make sure that youth co-ordinator Maggie Bell knows you're interested so we can invite you to evening events. There will be more structured activities using proven Unitarian Universalist youth curriculum; these vary from year to year and with input from the youth in attendance. The goal is to assist you in learning how to be in community in the youth group, in the church and in the wider world. (And to have fun doing it!)

Mission Statement

At our Religious Education Retreat, we worked on creating a mission statement. We're excited about the statement that came of this visioning. Here is our Religious Education Mission Statement for Fall 2002:

Beacon Unitarian Church is committed to providing and supporting a Religious Education program for children and youth that:

• Gives them a UU identity through learning about our religion and values
• Welcomes family involvement
• Reaches out to the wider community

To this end, we provide:

• A Sunday morning program for children and youth
• Opportunities for family worship, work and socialization
• A strong focus on community involvement
• Modeling of living our UU Principles and Purposes

Beacon offers your children a spiritual and ethical foundation that we hope will support your family's parenting goals. Our program strives to give children the knowledge and experience to help them develop their own strong values, enhance their self-esteem, and discover their own spiritual identities.