Widening the Circle of Concern
Widening the Circle of Concern

Author: UUA Commission on Institutional Change

Publisher: Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations

Published:

Total Pages: 224

ISBN-13: 155896861X

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Appointed by the Board of Trustees of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations in 2017, the UUA Commission on Institutional Change served through June 2020. Widening the Circle of Concern: Report of the UUA Commission on Institutional Change represents the culmination of the Commission’s work analyzing structural and systemic racism and white supremacy culture within Unitarian Universalism and makes recommendations to advance long-term cultural and institutional change that redeems the essential promise and ideals of Unitarian Universalism. The members and staff of the UUA Commission on Institutional Change were Chair Rev. Leslie Takahashi, Mary Byron, Cir L’Bert Jr., Rev. Dr. Natalie Fenimore, Dr. Elías Ortega, Caitlin Breedlove, DeReau K. Farrar, and Project Manager Rev. Marcus Fogliano.

Defund Fear
Defund Fear

Author: Zach Norris

Publisher: Beacon Press

Published: 2021-02-02

Total Pages: 218

ISBN-13: 0807003026

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A groundbreaking new vision for public safety that overturns more than 200 years of fear-based discrimination, othering, and punishment As the effects of aggressive policing and mass incarceration harm historically marginalized communities and tear families apart, how do we define safety? In a time when the most powerful institutions in the United States are embracing the repressive and racist systems that keep many communities struggling and in fear, we need to reimagine what safety means. Community leader and lawyer Zach Norris lays out a radical way to shift the conversation about public safety away from fear and punishment and toward growth and support systems for our families and communities. In order to truly be safe, we are going to have to dismantle our mentality of Us vs. Them. By bridging the divides and building relationships with one another, we can dedicate ourselves to strategic, smart investments—meaning resources directed toward our stability and well-being, like healthcare and housing, education and living-wage jobs. This is where real safety begins. Originally published in hardcover as We Keep Us Safe: Building Secure, Just, and Inclusive Communities, Defund Fear is a blueprint of how to hold people accountable while still holding them in community. The result reinstates full humanity and agency for everyone who has been dehumanized and traumatized, so they can participate fully in life, in society, and in the fabric of our democracy.

Beyond Welcome
Beyond Welcome

Author: Linnea Nelson

Publisher:

Published: 2022-01-12

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781558968820

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"In Beyond Welcome: Building Communities of Love, editor Linnea Nelson and contributors dream of a future Unitarian Universalism that upholds abundant love and universal justice within every community. The lived experiences of these hopeful Unitarian Universalists-ministers, religious professionals, and laypeople alike-illuminate the relevancy of liberation in each and every one of our communities. Examining both the joys of community and the responsibilities we have to one another, Beyond Welcome provides clarity about current structures and behaviors that create barriers to equity in our faith communities as a passageway to building foundational structures of love and liberation"--

Governance and Ministry
Governance and Ministry

Author: Dan Hotchkiss

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2016-01-14

Total Pages: 263

ISBN-13: 1566997712

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Governance and Ministry has proven to be an indispensable guide for leaders and clergy on how to work together to lead congregations. In this second edition, veteran congregational consultant and minister Dan Hotchkiss updates the book to reflect today’s church and synagogue landscape and shares practical insights based on his work with readers of the first edition. Governance and Ministry highlights the importance of reaching the right governance model for a congregation to fulfill its mission—to achieve both the outward results and the inward quality of life to which it is called. Hotchkiss draws on governance research from business, non-profits, and churches, as well as deep experience in a variety of denominations and congregations to help readers determine the governance model that best fits their needs. The second edition has been streamlined and reorganized to better help readers think through leadership models and the process of change. The book features new material on the implications of congregation size, the process of governance change, policy choices, and the lay-clergy relationship. It also features two appendices with resources often requested by Hotchkiss’s consulting clients: a style guide for policy-makers and a unified example of a board policy book. Written with energy and humor, and offering plenty of practical examples, the second edition of this helpful resource is ideal for anyone involved in church leadership to assist in framing critical questions, creating a vision, and implementing a plan.

The Gadfly Papers
The Gadfly Papers

Author: Todd Eklof

Publisher:

Published: 2019-05-28

Total Pages: 151

ISBN-13: 9781070524481

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The Gadfly Papers is a collection of three essays written by Rev. Dr. Todd F. Eklof about the negative impacts the emerging culture of Political Correctness, Safetyism, and Identitarianism is having on America's most liberal religion. It's written specifically for Unitarian Universalists who care about the future of their faith, but will prove of interest to anyone seeking to understand how today's identity politics can fundamentally alter any institution, and presents a seminal case-study for researchers of this timely subject. The Gadfly Papers is a substantive, well argued work that's based on plenty of credible scholarship, yet is written in a conversational tone that makes its complex subject matter easy to understand. Whether you're a Unitarian Universalist, a student of history, social science, politics, or simply value the rare but refreshing application of logic, The Gadfly Papers is a book you won't put down until it's finished.