Resources from the Rev. Calvin O. Dame

In April of 2006 Calvin concluded his ministry at the Unitarian Universalist Community Church of Augusta, ME. We are all thankful for Calvin's ministry in Augusta as their small group ministry program helped spark our association's present small group and covenant group ministry movement.

Articles
Small Group Ministry In The New Millennium
Sermon on Small Group Ministry by the Rev. Calvin Dame

A Small Group Ministry Resource Book
The story of Small Group Ministry in August, ME, an overview of their model, and more. This resource, along with Bob Hill's Covenant Group News, served as a catalyst for the UUA's small group revolution.

Also see Calvin's material in the Covenant Group Source Book published by the Center for Community Values (CCV).

Small Group Ministry Session Book. We have selected twenty-five of our newest and best SGM sessions that we know will work well in any covenant group setting. Topics include Curiosity, Shadow, Power, Perfection, Longing and more.

What Makes Small Group Ministry Different Than Other Groups?
Comments from Small Group Ministry Facilitators at the UU Community Church, Augusta, Maine
April 25, 2000

• People share themselves; There is more intentional sharing.
• The purpose of Small Group Ministry is ministry - to be the church with one another.
• It's a place to explore spiritual questions.
• There's a sense that every Ministry Group is one part of the whole church - interconnection.
• The intent is for Ministry Groups to provide ongoing ministry to its members and to provide an ongoing connection with the minister. This creates a true, church-wide ministry, that the minister him or herself could never hope to create alone.
• The Minister has loosely-held authority over the Ministry Groups, which can really help to sort out any difficulties that may arise.
• Ministry Groups are coordinated - they provide an interconnection throughout the church.
• Small Group Ministry tends to not be intellectual, as so many other groups or meetings can be.
• Small Group Ministry is essentially spiritual- its not intellectual.
• Small Group Ministry provides members an opportunity to share our spiritual development with each other.
• Small Group Ministry represents a different level of commitment. There's a covenant that goes with it: to create a safe space in which to explore issues that are spiritual.