Rev. Matthew's November Minister's Report
November 9, 2021
Dear BUU Board of Directors,
Following my report for October (CLICK HERE to read), I have these updates:
- We are moving closer to certainty within our Membership database and unpausing the Communications Query project. Following Jermain’s work using current ICON lists referenced with our Membership book, I will be contacting individuals whose status as a Member or Friend is still not clear. My goal is to take any guesswork out of our Membership list. I anticipate a much clearer list of who is a Member at BUU to be ready by the end of the month.
- According to our website’s reports, the “Go Knowing...” videos have an average viewership of 20 people. This is about the Prime Time videos that I used to make, which our Spiritual Nourishment team and I discerned weren't enough to continue to make. So, I’ll finish the “Go Knowing…” videos series this month with topics that support the Board’s focus on reopening.
- The response to our multi medium worship opening up to 40 people in-person has been encouraging. The initial Sunday we were able to reopen to a larger group in our sanctuary, we had 20 people in-person and 12 people online. We will continue to learn and grow toward our goal of holding multi-medium worship all Sundays starting in 2022.
- As I did last year, I will be taking Thanksgiving week off. This week marks my one year anniversary of contracting COVID-19. While I no longer feel acute symptoms of long-COVID, the experience has been life changing. I will be taking time to assess these changes. I'm grateful that Worship Arts and our AV team are working to develop a “This I Believe…” service for the November 28th’s in-person worship. It is a fine opportunity for us to review what we’ve learned and discover what we still need to put into place for 2022's goal of multi-medium worship.
Holding Covenantal Conversations
I am hearing directly from individuals that unhealthy congregational dynamics similar to what I reported in October are continuing. While disappointing, this is not unexpected. I honestly didn’t anticipate for this to be solved with a single minister’s report. In consultation with Rev. Sarah Gibb Millspaugh, our PWR Congregational Contact, and through my own ministry as a Good Officer to ministerial colleagues across our district, I have gathered that quite a few congregations, UUs and beyond, are experiencing such unhealthy dynamics. Disruption of the pandemic is being named as a catalyst for the emergence of unresolved issues in many congregations.
I am encouraged that many Members, Friends, and Guest have taken the time to read my October report (since it was posted over 60 people have reviewed it). I am also greatly encouraged that a few individuals have felt empowered to begin to have covenantal conversations addressing our unhealthy dynamics.
You might recall in my October report, I suggested we hold covenantal conversations as a means to re-covenant. It has occurred to me that this may have been a bit too broad and unclear. So, to better support you in my request, I will be adding a new part to my monthly report, sharing the methods and means of engaging in a covenantal conversation. I hope these will not only empower more individuals, but also encourage you as our Board of Directors to lead BUU in a re-covenanting process as a part of our reopening.
Listening deeply to those who have begun I covenantal conversations, I heard the call of our covenant. That is, these individuals felt that belonging to our faith community, they were responsible for living out our covenant. From this position they engaged in challenging conversations with careful listening, personal reflection, and with an open-hearted response .
Their approach instructs me that at its core, a covenantal conversation is based on belonging and responsibility. As individuals have related their covenantal conversations, it has become clear to me that they entered into a dialogue knowing that it might be challenging, but relying that they were held by our shared covenant. They were held by our promises to one another. They were held by our commitment as a people of covenant.
The first step, then, in holding a covenantal conversation is knowing our two covenants. If you are not familiar with our two covenants, you can find them by CLICKING HERE. After reviewing them, you might ask yourself, "How am I held by these promises?" and, "How will I hold these promises?"
In future reports, I will be looking to our covenants for the wisdom and guidance that we have instilled in them, with the goal that all our interactions become covenantal conversations. I will also be listening with gratitude to all of those who have begun to bring to life our most sacred promises, our covenants.
With respect and love,
Rev. Matthew Funke Crary
Minister, Borderlands Unitarian Universalist
Dear BUU Board of Directors,
Following my report for October (CLICK HERE to read), I have these updates:
- We are moving closer to certainty within our Membership database and unpausing the Communications Query project. Following Jermain’s work using current ICON lists referenced with our Membership book, I will be contacting individuals whose status as a Member or Friend is still not clear. My goal is to take any guesswork out of our Membership list. I anticipate a much clearer list of who is a Member at BUU to be ready by the end of the month.
- According to our website’s reports, the “Go Knowing...” videos have an average viewership of 20 people. This is about the Prime Time videos that I used to make, which our Spiritual Nourishment team and I discerned weren't enough to continue to make. So, I’ll finish the “Go Knowing…” videos series this month with topics that support the Board’s focus on reopening.
- The response to our multi medium worship opening up to 40 people in-person has been encouraging. The initial Sunday we were able to reopen to a larger group in our sanctuary, we had 20 people in-person and 12 people online. We will continue to learn and grow toward our goal of holding multi-medium worship all Sundays starting in 2022.
- As I did last year, I will be taking Thanksgiving week off. This week marks my one year anniversary of contracting COVID-19. While I no longer feel acute symptoms of long-COVID, the experience has been life changing. I will be taking time to assess these changes. I'm grateful that Worship Arts and our AV team are working to develop a “This I Believe…” service for the November 28th’s in-person worship. It is a fine opportunity for us to review what we’ve learned and discover what we still need to put into place for 2022's goal of multi-medium worship.
Holding Covenantal Conversations
I am hearing directly from individuals that unhealthy congregational dynamics similar to what I reported in October are continuing. While disappointing, this is not unexpected. I honestly didn’t anticipate for this to be solved with a single minister’s report. In consultation with Rev. Sarah Gibb Millspaugh, our PWR Congregational Contact, and through my own ministry as a Good Officer to ministerial colleagues across our district, I have gathered that quite a few congregations, UUs and beyond, are experiencing such unhealthy dynamics. Disruption of the pandemic is being named as a catalyst for the emergence of unresolved issues in many congregations.
I am encouraged that many Members, Friends, and Guest have taken the time to read my October report (since it was posted over 60 people have reviewed it). I am also greatly encouraged that a few individuals have felt empowered to begin to have covenantal conversations addressing our unhealthy dynamics.
You might recall in my October report, I suggested we hold covenantal conversations as a means to re-covenant. It has occurred to me that this may have been a bit too broad and unclear. So, to better support you in my request, I will be adding a new part to my monthly report, sharing the methods and means of engaging in a covenantal conversation. I hope these will not only empower more individuals, but also encourage you as our Board of Directors to lead BUU in a re-covenanting process as a part of our reopening.
Listening deeply to those who have begun I covenantal conversations, I heard the call of our covenant. That is, these individuals felt that belonging to our faith community, they were responsible for living out our covenant. From this position they engaged in challenging conversations with careful listening, personal reflection, and with an open-hearted response .
Their approach instructs me that at its core, a covenantal conversation is based on belonging and responsibility. As individuals have related their covenantal conversations, it has become clear to me that they entered into a dialogue knowing that it might be challenging, but relying that they were held by our shared covenant. They were held by our promises to one another. They were held by our commitment as a people of covenant.
The first step, then, in holding a covenantal conversation is knowing our two covenants. If you are not familiar with our two covenants, you can find them by CLICKING HERE. After reviewing them, you might ask yourself, "How am I held by these promises?" and, "How will I hold these promises?"
In future reports, I will be looking to our covenants for the wisdom and guidance that we have instilled in them, with the goal that all our interactions become covenantal conversations. I will also be listening with gratitude to all of those who have begun to bring to life our most sacred promises, our covenants.
With respect and love,
Rev. Matthew Funke Crary
Minister, Borderlands Unitarian Universalist