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Two Sunday Services

Note: You can visit this page directly through the short link frederickuu.org/TwoServices

Sunday Schedule

(for the Sunday after Labor Day to the Sunday before Memorial Day)

9:15am Early Service
(Nursery care for ages 3 & younger, available all morning starting at 9:00 a.m.)
Children in Pre-K through 3rd grade start in sanctuary, then goes to Art & Exploration after Story for All Ages

10:15am Religious Education for All Ages

  • Pre-K to 1st Grade (Room 120)
  • 2nd & 3rd Grade (Room 123)
  • 4th & 5th Grade (Room 124)
  • Middle School (Room 115)
  • High School (Room 125)
  • Friendly Forum for Adults (Room 113)
  • Rotating Spirituality Services (Chapel): 1st Sundays: UU Christians; 2nd/4th Sundays: UU Buddhists; 3rd Sundays: Earth-centered Spirituality
We are excited that moving Religious Education to this “middle hour” has resulted in many more experienced teachers volunteering to be the anchor teachers for our children’s R.E. classes. Having the same teacher each week will provide a more consistent R.E. experience for our children, in addition to our many excellent support teachers who volunteer every few weeks as assistants.

11:15am Late Service
(Nursery care for ages 3 & younger, available all morning starting at 9:00 a.m.)
Children in Pre-K through 3rd grade start in sanctuary, then goes to Art & Exploration after Story for All Ages

Note: The Atheist/Humanist/Agnostic Group will continue to meet twice a month after the Late Service on 1st and 3rd Sundays.

Art & Exploration (Pre-K through 3rd Grade) at 9:15am and 11:15am

Would you be willing to help co-facilitate a session of “Art & Exploration” sometime in the next few months. (Lora Powell-Haney, our Director of Religious Education, will also be present to help, as well as potentially other volunteers.) Even if you cannot lead Religious Education on a regular basis, do you have a talent or skill to share with our younger children for a one-time “Art and Exploration” session concurrent with our early and/or late service one Sunday? Some ideas include arts, crafts, music, drumming, nature adventures, kids’ yoga, LEGO building challenges, and social justice activities.

Because we anticipate that families with children will attend either at “9:15 and 10:15” or at “10:15 and 11:15,” Art & Exploration will be the same at both the early and late service, but Religious Education will be different, centered around standard Unitarian Universalist curriculum.

Multigenerational Worship

At both the early and late service, children ages 4th grade and older will remain in the sanctuary for the full service. To assist the younger children as we live into this transition, we will provide Worship Bags in the atrium with UU-themed activities.

Among the many reasons for this change is that with our current model our young people graduate high school having experienced worship often at most once or twice a year.

  • For a recent UU World article about a congregation that has made a successful similar transition to including children in worship, see "We know why we're here".
  • For more about a similar shift at the UU Congregation in Annapolis, see their blog post on "Middle Hour."

Comparison of Standard Order of Service for Two Services

  • At both services, the sermon will be the same.
  • The early service will be shorter and more contemplative (approximately 50 minutes, 9:15 a.m. - 10:05 a.m.), with one less hymn and piece of special music, and will include a Sermon Conversation. Adapting a Quaker model, there will be a minute of silence following the sermon to allow “your head to descend into your heart,” and then members of the congregation will be invited to briefly share where the sermon intersects with their lives or the life of the world.
  • The late service will the same as our current service. The choir will continue singing on 1st and 3rd Sundays at the late service only.
Early Service (9:15 a.m.) Late Service (11:15 a.m.)
Welcome Welcome
 Introit
Chalice Lighting Chalice Lighting
Hymn Hymn
Story for All Ages Story for All Ages
Joys and Sorrows Joys and Sorrows
Spirit of Life Spirit of Life
Spoken Meditation Spoken Meditation
 Silent Meditation
 Musical Meditation
Sermon Sermon
Silent Meditation  
Sermon Conversation  
 Hymn
Offertory Offertory
Chalice Extinguishing Chalice Extinguishing
Benediction Benediction

Tentative Schedule for Summer 2015

  • 9:15am Friendly Forum and Rotating Spirituality Services in the Chapel
(Nursery care for ages 3 & younger, available all morning starting at 9:00 a.m.)
  • 10:15am Worship
(Children in Pre-K through 3rd grade start in sanctuary, then sung out to Art & Exploration after "Story for All Ages")

Three Steps to Help Make this Transition a Success

  1. Please contact Lora () if you are interested in co-facilitating an “Art & Exploration” session sometime in the next few months.
  1. Please contact Rev. Carl () if you are willing to be one of 50 “Early Service Pioneers,” who will commit to attending the Early Service at least through the end of December to help us give them service the best possible chance of long-term success.
  1. If you have friends, colleagues, or family members who would potentially find UUCF to be a life-giving community, please consider inviting them to join you on a Sunday morning in September. Studies consistently show that 75-90% of people who begin attending a congregation do so because of a personal invitation of a friend or relative. We don’t want to be the best-kept secret in Frederick!

Most importantly, "thank you!" to everyone's whose time, talent, and contributions make UUCF such a wonderful, growing community.

Peace to you,

Carl
The Rev. Dr. Carl Gregg, minister