Unitarian Universalist clergy, staff, and volunteer leaders:
You're invited to the October 7th UU Growth Lab live session.
Belonging First: Redesigning Unitarian Universalism for a Fractured World
A UU Growth Lab strategy session with Peter Bowden
October UU Growth Lab Live Session
Date: October 7, 2025
Time: 1:00 PM Eastern
Duration: 2 Hours
Format: The first hour is presentation and Q&A. Then we shift into more open strategy discussion for the second hour. Some people join for the full sessions, others just the first hour.
See the end of this post for the registration link.
This session will be practical and very strategic, addressing a combination of issues raised in our recent survey:
- Membership growth challenges
- Responding to loneliness crisis and meaning crisis
- Outreachnz and growth in hostile environments
- Best way to articulate who we are, what we do
- How to lead and thrive in these times
There are many opportunities grounded in THIS MOMENT that require us to restructure our programming, communicate more effectively, and lead differently.
In this session, we are going to discuss:
1. What I call "religious barrier language" frequently used by our congregations, which I believe undermines our growth.
Many congregations are using excessively religious language to the extent that, in my opinion, you're turning off huge chunks of your potential membership.
In the olden days, maybe people could visit and get a sense of what you are really like onsite. Today, people assess rapidly online. This means overly religious language that signals "too religious, this isn't a match me" results in people leaving your website before they can learn more.
You can still be a congregation, still be a Unitarian Universalist religious community, and choose language that effectively communicates who you are without excluding those you want to welcome into membership.
We'll discuss these dynamics and potentially helpful shifts in language.
2. Many congregations have small group ministry programs that are fantastic, but the way they are named, described, and implemented can make them less appealing to those new to Unitarian Universalism.
I consistently see groups named "Chalice Circles" and "Covenant Groups" and as "our Small Group Ministry program."
I love small group ministry and have been helping our congregations design, launch, and troubleshoot these programs for decades!
"Small Group Ministry" is what it is, but that's not what I'd call it.
Ministry, Chalice, Covenant -- all valuable words, but you don't need to wrap one of the most crucial aspects of congregational life in them!
We can still do ministry, use chalices, and have covenants. But we need to get real. With some shifts in language and vision, we can make our group-based offerings far more appealing to newcomers.
Ideally, our small groups are where newcomers who do not self-identify as Unitarian Universalist form relationships early and are able to explore, share, and grow with members who are Unitarian Universalist.
We also have a significant opportunity to leverage our small group expertise to help our larger communities engage with the issues of our time. I believe we need to add a community layer or ring to our small group programs.
I will share a specific model for transforming internally focused small group programs into a more sophisticated group system designed to engage your community, newcomers, friends, and members.
Using a common small group approach to promote connection, meaning-making, and crowdsource participant wisdom, we can expand our vision beyond groups for UU insiders.
Instead, we can offer:
1. Unitarian Universalists leadership & enrichment group experiences
2. Community Groups / Small Groups for members, friends, newcomers
3. Host community conversation events with a core small group component onsite and via Zoom
4. Share associated questions, insights, resources, and session plans via online to expand our reach and invite more people in.
I hope you'll join us live on Tuesday, if you can. To register for this event, log in or subscribe below to unlock the registration link.
