Talking with Family and Friends - HOME BASE SESSIONS

UU Faithworks: Worship, Winter/Spring 2006

Dear Friends,

There is so much happening in the world! Is your head spinning? Is your heart heavy? Are you sad or angry? With all that is happening and all the debates being brought to our attention, it is time to talk.

We all need to talk about the issues facing our planet, global community, our country, our town, our families, our friends and neighbors, and those suffering outside of the media spotlights.

Everyone needs a safe place to explore issues, a home base. Many people in our Unitarian Universalist congregations have found small groups through our formal Small Group Ministries, Covenant Groups, and adult programs. They are serving many of us, but not all.

I believe that people of all ages are desperate for a place to talk, to share, to explore. For the most recent issue of the UUA's FAITH WORKS resource I wrote a brief resource on how we might use a basic small group ministry format for bringing family, friends, colleagues, or students together to talk about things that really matter. The sessions offer a simple structure to create room for reflection, sharing, and exploration. They do not contain any content other than our lives and our world.

Talking to some UU kids and teenagers I know about what to call such a session they said it should be "HOME BASE" sessions because that's were you should go when you want to be safe. When we call a “Home Base” session, we are simply pulling people together to discuss what is already on our hearts and minds.

My Home Base resource contains the following:
A general template for a “Home Base” session
A “Home Base” session entitled “After Natural Disaster”
A blank session outline you may use for developing your own “Home Base” sessions

I invite you to try to bring your family and/or friends together for a “Home Base” session. You need not call it that, though I believe having a name for what you are doing is helpful. You may find that once you do, the people you meet with want more!

In faith,
Peter Freedman Bowden
UU PLANET Ministries
(401) 855-0037
www.uuplanet.com

UU Faithworks: Worship, Winter/Spring 2006