Leon Henderson-MacLennan will facilitate the adult curriculum of The Lessons of Loss every other Sunday beginning Sunday, March 1 from 1-3pm, Sunday, March 15 1-3pm, Sunday March 29 12-2pm and Sunday, April 12 12-2pm in Forbes. The Lessons of Loss is a Life-Span Curriculum developed by Unitarian Universalist Carol Galginaitis. Leon has facilitated this popular program annually since 2007, save, notably, for the last few years. He is pleased to resurrect this ministry understanding the great need.

To paraphrase Carol Galginaitis, in Lessons of Loss, we frequently note that loss and gain are part of the same experience. We permit the certainty of death to aid our focus on those aspects of life we find most precious. We do not suppress the great pain of loss, yet we recognize that with it may come growth, greater capacity to survive change, and novel avenues of strength. When shared, we recognize that related experiences may help our neighbors, families, and children face life -- and its often relentless sets of losses -- with grace, hope, and peace of mind. 

Lessons of Loss will help participants to: 

·         recognize that change and loss are inevitable and exist throughout nature

·         have an opportunity to voice fears and questions about loss

·         understand that grieving, with its wide range of feelings, is a normal reaction to loss

·         recognize that every person responds to loss in a different way

·         identify UU and other religious/cultural traditions concerning death and dying

·         understand how the UU principles provide guidance in understanding

·         loss and supporting the grieving process

·         develop a personal theology regarding loss, death, and dying

·         respectfully remember loved ones who have died

We shall explore participants' experiences to losses large and small including those associated with death. Reflecting on experiences, we shall also explore the consequences of both sharing and ignoring feelings of loss as well as relevant, related Unitarian Universalist theses from theologians and lay people alike.