Beyond Categorical Thinking Service and Workshop - October 23, 2011
The Service - Beyond Categorical Thinking
Guest Speakers: Suzanne Fast and Carol Carter Walker
Beyond Categorical Thinking will allow us to explore our hopes and concerns for a new minister, learn more about the search process, and see how our own history (both personal and congregational) might interfere with our efforts in this search. Facilitated by expert UU trainers, it is a way for us to put our faith into lived experience and improve the odds that regardless of identity, we will find the minister who is the best match for us and will serve us well.
Monthly potluck lunch.
The Workshop - Beyond Categorical Thinking
“Will the new minister hear me? Will my concerns and needs be met? Will the minister understand what I’m living with? How will the community respond to our minister?’
In answering these questions, a picture of the “ideal minister” (categorized by age, gender, gender identity, nationality, physical ability, race, and sexual orientation) comes to mind. With this picture in place, it can be easy to unintentionally exclude ministers who fall into certain categories. At times, as we get caught up in comparing candidates to our “picture,” we can even forget what it is we hoped for in a minister.
On Sunday, October 23, 2011, the Unitarian Universalist Society of Mill Creek (UUSMC) will participate in the Beyond Categorical Thinking (BCT) workshop offered by the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) for congregations involved in the search for a new minister. The UUSMC Ministerial Search Committee invites all congregational leaders, members, and friends to participate in this workshop.
The Beyond Categorical Thinking program is designed to promote inclusive thinking and help prevent unfair discrimination in the search process for a new minister. This program includes a Sunday morning service with BCT workshop facilitators followed by a three hour workshop. In the workshop, UUSMC members will:
- Consider the hopes, expectations, and concerns they have for a new minister
- Learn more about the ministerial search process
- Explore how thinking categorically about people sometimes interferes with choosing the best candidate.
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The selection of UUSMC’s new minister is important. The Beyond Categorical Thinking workshop is another opportunity for everyone in our congregation to be a part of that process. This experience will provide guidance for the search committee in our work.
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Child care will be provided.
Service Time: 10:30 A.M.
Music provided by Jennifer and Larry Stomberg.
Contact: UUSMC Ministerial Search Committee - .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)