Mission Statement

In support of the church’s mission statement:
The mission of the Religious Exploration Program is to guide our
 children and youth in the learning and integration
 of the Principles, Traditions and History of Unitarian Universalism.

 Statement of Vision

We seek to have our children and youth:
Grow in faith;
Realize their individual worth and potential;
Integrate the Principles into their daily lives

The Unitarian Universalist Community Church of Augusta offers nursery care and religious exploration for grades K-12 at both Sunday morning services.

At 9:15 our Director of Religious Exploration, Karen Fisk, offers Children's Worship in the Fellowship Hall. Karen gathers the children and interested parents and youth for a circle worship. We sing, pray/meditate and share a story.  Although Children's Worship began as a way to ease the overcrowding in our sanctuary, it has grown to be an important aspect of our spiritual life at the UUCC.

For our Second Service Religious Exploration Program, Karen shares a story in the Sanctuary with all the children and adults present. The stories, told with props, work sequentially to illustrate each of the seven UU principles, the six UU sources and the history of our own church. Karen and the children and youth then leave the sanctuary for the Fellowship Hall where each participant chooses an art response to that day's story. This program is called Spirit Play.

First Service Religious Exploration Classes

First service participants leave Children's Worship to attend age and grade specific religious exploration classes facilitated by adult volunteers from the community. Please see the listing below for a sample of what a given year might look like. **Loving care is available during all Sunday services year-round for infants and children under 3. We employ one attendant and have one volunteer attendant as helper. **


Preschool: "Chalice Children." Following the premise that children learn best through direct experience, this curriculum is designed to nurture children’s spiritual growth, creativity and connection to their Unitarian Universalist community by involving them in "hands-on" rituals — simple rhymes, finger plays, games and other activities.

Kindergarten-Grade 1: "We Believe" invites children 5-7 to think about what they already know, then hear a story that might expand their knowledge. Each story is followed by a related activity. The hope is that each child (and adult) will expand their knowledge of self and of what it means to be a Unitarian Universalist.

Grade 2 & 3: This year they will be studying a variety of beautiful stories that help further understanding of the natural and the mystical world, using the curriculum, "A Stepping Stone Year."  It also emphasizes Unitarian Universalist heritage through biographical sketches of famous UUs.

Grades 4-5: They will be reading Bible stories and doing related activities using the "Timeless Themes" curriculum. This Unitarian Universalist program engages kids in an exploration of biblical themes such as loneliness, loyalty, sibling rivalry, forgiveness and love.

Youth Programming

Junior Youth, grades 6, 7 & 8: This year the Jr. Youth will be taking on three challenges—Mind*Body*Spirit—in addition to exploring what it means to be a Unitarian Universalist. The focus will be on each young person as an individual meaning-maker. Then we will study our cultural and religious heritage and view religious comparatively. Last we will focus on ourselves as Unitarian Universalists.

Senior Youth, grades 9-12: The Senior Youth will be exploring issues of what it means to be a member of a liberal faith. They will be working in journals guided by discussions on current events, personal reflections and the curriculum "Words to Live By," a Unitarian Universalist guide to writing a personal credo, or statement of faith.

The Junior and Senior Youth also focus on the meaning of worship by providing a Children's Worship and an adult worship respectively. 

District Youth Programming

Our Northeast District facilitates numerous opportunities for youth from throughout the state to gather for Conferences on subjects of interest to youth of the UU faith.

Youth and adults of our church participate regularly in these wonderful opportunities. Several of our youth are involved in district-level planning surrounding conferences as well.

Faith-in-Action and Religious Exploration

All Classes have an age-appropriate Faith-in-Action affinity group for which they do a service project each year.

Religious Exploration Class    Faith-in-Action Affinity Group
        Preschool              Greybirch Nursing Home
        Grades K-1            The Kennebec Valley Humane Society
        Grades 2 &  3        The Augusta Food Bank
        Grades 4 & 5          NICA (Neighbors in Central America)
        Junior Youth           The Hallowell Soup Kitchen

The Kennebec Land Trust
        Senior Youth         The Hallowell Soup Kitchen,
                                   The Kennebec Land Trust and
                                   The Family Violence Project

OWL: Our Whole Life Sexuality Education for All Ages

OWL is a Unitarian Universalist curriculum which helps participants make informed and responsible decisions about their sexual health and behavior. It equips participants with accurate, age-appropriate information in human development, relationships, personal skills, sexual behavior, sexual health, and society and culture. Grounded in a holistic view of sexuality, OWL provides not only facts about anatomy and human development, but helps participants to clarify their values, build interpersonal skills, and understand the spiritual, emotional, and social aspects of sexuality. It is a celebratory, respectful and inclusive approach to sexuality which is steeped in the principles of Unitarian Universalism.

The UUCC offers OWL every other year to grades K-1, 4-5 and 8-9. We are in the process of adding an OWL for grades 11-12 and adults.

This is our third year of offering OWL to younger children as well as our teens. The program has met with support and gratitude from parents of all-age children and youth. We hope that all of our young members will have an opportunity to take each of the OWL levels we offer.

Adult Religious Exploration
We promote Adult Religious Exploration through our Small Group Ministry, Minister-led courses and lay-led activities. On any given year, our adult religious exploration schedule might look as it did this year (2006):
Being a Discerning UU: Decision-making using a Unitarian Universalist Filter. Facilitated by our Ministerial Intern Peter Friedrichs. 6-weeks, meeting 2 hours Sundays after church.

Authentic Movement is a movement discipline which offers training in deep listening to our inner impulses toward movement, imagination, stillness. Facilitated by Christine Little. 8-weeks, meeting 2 hours on Thursdays.

Meditation: Meeting Sundays at 11 this gathering will focus on the seven principles of Unitarian Universalism, social action and a variety of other subjects through meditation. Facilitated by three church members who have devoted themselves to meditation as a spiritual path.

What I Really Want for Christmas: A two-hour examination of how we want to approach the holidays for real spiritual fulfillment. Facilitated by our Ministerial Intern Peter Friedrichs.

Introduction to Nonviolent Communication: A practical introduction and practice session to promote interest in Nonviolent Communication. Facilitated by Helen Wing. Two hours after church Sunday.