Reevaluating Wednesday Night Vespers
For those readers who do not got to UUCA, we have a Vesper service after our Wonderful Wednesday night dinners, but before Adult RE (religious education). It's a nice time to hear a Lay Minister give a sermon and have time for introspection. It has some challenges, though. First and foremost being the dinner and the time it takes to feed everyone. Dinner officially starts at 6:15 and Vespers is at 7 pm. Not a lot of time for a family to get everyone fed, then into the childcare room. Plus you miss out on the social aspect of dinner, the after-dinner conversation.
So tonight was the first meeting to discuss Vespers. We started by trying to build a time line of the Vespers' history. From the attendees at the meeting, we surmised that the Vespers service started about 12 years ago, around the birth of the lay minister program. However, dinner and Adult RE was there way before that. So we made an assumption that the Vespers program may have been started to support the lay ministry program. We had no way confirming it, but it made sense.
Then we went into listing the strengths and weaknesses that Vespers had for Lay Ministers, the Congregation, and new visitors. After that we tried to lay out what we saw as a "Success Vision" for Vespers.
It was a very energizing meeting. Most of the meetings I have had so far as a Lay Minister in-training has put me into introvert mode, where I was doing a lot more listening than speaking. I broke that streak tonight. I think it was because of something that I feel strongly about, it's something that I feel I have a lot of input on, and I am getting more comfortable with my peers.
We took a lot of notes, and had a lot of good ideas. We had a few disagreements, but nothing too heated. We will meet again soon, but we were charged with getting the feedback of other congregation members. So, if you do go to UUCA, what feedback do you have on Vespers?
- Have you ever attended? If not, why? If yes, how often?
- What are some good things that you got from the service?
- Do you see any room for improvement?
- If there was another night where something like vespers was done would you come? What would you like to see?
1 comment:
Well... since you asked....
> 1) Have you ever attended? If not, why?
No. Haven't heard much about it (one or two mentions). Think its something after the wonderful Wednesday dinners - which I've never attended. My perception is that the wed. dinners are aimed at families - never see any 20's 30's posts from folks wanting to get together for the wed. dinners... etc... and showing up for something like that doesn't really scream - gotta go (to me anyway).
I do go on Wed nights for the Buddhist book club. That's the only reason I even know there is a Wed. dinner and afterwards a vespers. I had picked up on the dinners sooner than the vespers. It wasn't until there was Jewish themed vesper service, and a book club member was skipping that to read with us making a comment about being having to decide between her Jewishy side and Buddhisty side - that I realized there even was a vesper service.
I had some vague interest, but not enough to look into it since it apparently conflicts with the time my book club meets (which has been very, very, rewarding). The Buddhist book club (that's what we call it) is sheltered under the adult RE whatever structure - even thought its more like an open random people older than me rotating covenant group) - so where I'm going with this is maybe the vespers are conflicting with adult RE classes on wed. nights in general - but I don't know - because I haven't checked to see if there are any other adult RE classes - since what brought me here to begin with was a google hit when searching for "buddhist atlanta" or something similar. Note: however, that I miss a lot of the meetings, either for other post wed. dinner meetings I've been drafted into - or because I just want to chill at home.
Oh - and its easier for me to make a 7pm book club meeting than an earlier timed dinner too... I work late a lot.
> 4) If there was another night where something like vespers was done,
> would you come? What would you like to see?
If something like vespers was done (again, never been, my brain association is kum bay yah type of bonfire "vesper" meetings at 4h camp) - on another night (that didn't conflict w/ my book club :) - then yeah - I'd be all over it. Suggestions: vespers then dinner? - do an 8pm vesper like thing on a Friday? night then head over to Tin Roof (really close to UUCA) for dinner and beers (disclaimer: I'm a regular - love the roofie!)
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