Religious Exploration for children and youth is a cooperative venture involving both children and adults in the church community. In a liberal religious tradition such as Unitarian Universalism, religious learning, spiritual growth, and faith development are viewed as a lifelong journey each person takes.

We may hold different beliefs, but we covenant to journey together as a community, using as our guide our common principles and values. Together, we strive to create an atmosphere of respect, compassion, and spiritual growth for ourselves and others. Adults often find that teaching these classes can be a fulfilling way to deepen one’s own faith.

Children and Youth programs are primarily offered during Sunday morning worship services from September through May. Often, children of nursery school age and older sit in the Sunday service with their families until the reading of a Story For All Ages, at which point the congregation sings to them as they head off to age-appropriate classroom. There they participate in activities, books, art, music, and discussions to help them learn about themselves and their relationship to their world, including their own inner world and moral and ethical values to deal with the challenges of the exterior worlds they live in.

High school youth have participated in outings and community service. In their final year of high school, we have celebrated a Coming of Age ceremony celebrating the transition from youth to young adulthood.

For more information, please contact our volunteers for 2026, Julie Holmberg and Sue Fisher at dre@uusaratoga.org