“Will the new minister hear me? Will my concerns and needs be met? Will the minister understand what I’m living with? How will the community respond to our minister?”

In answering these questions, a picture of the “ideal minister” (categorized by age, gender identity, nationality, physical or cognitive ability, race, sexual orientation, etc.) comes to mind. With this picture in place, it can be easy to unintentionally exclude ministers who fall into certain categories. On the weekend of October 24, 2020, First Unitarian Church will participate in the Beyond Categorical Thinking workshop offered by the Unitarian Universalist Association for congregations involved in the search for a new minister. The First Unitarian Ministerial Search Committee invites all congregational members, friends and leaders to participate in the BCT workshop.

The BCT program is designed to promote inclusive thinking and help prevent unfair discrimination in the search process for a new minister. In the workshop, First Unitarian members will:

· Consider the hopes, expectations, and concerns they have for a new minister
· Learn more about the ministerial search process, and
· Explore how thinking categorically about people sometimes interferes with choosing the best candidate.

Our BCT program will consist of two Zoom workshop meetings, 10:30 am-noon and 1:30-3 pm on Saturday October 24th, and during the Sunday morning service on Sunday, October 25th, streamed on YouTube, all conducted with facilitators trained by the UUA.

The BCT workshop is a key part of the search process, providing essential guidance to the Ministerial Search Committee, so please plan to attend (Don’t worry, Zoom can handle it!).