Congregational Organizing

The congregation is where we gather to worship, to grieve, to celebrate, and to be renewed. It is where we practice covenant—the promise to show up for one another, to be accountable to one another, and to grow together toward something larger than ourselves. And it is from this foundation that we are called to act in the world.

We don’t believe in the myth of the charismatic solo leader. Justice is a collective practice. Our work is to cultivate teams, not heroes, creating spaces where more people can learn, lead, rest, and grow into the roles that are right for them, right now.

Congregational organizing is how we turn values into action. It is the work of equipping UU congregations not just to respond to the crises of our time, but to become rooted, resilient centers of justice and transformation in their communities.

Side With Love partners with congregations to build real organizing capacity, developing leaders at every level, deepening political education, strengthening relationships within and beyond congregational walls, and connecting local action to national movements.

Leadership development is at the heart of this work because movements are not sustained by programs alone. They are sustained by people, people who know why they are in this work, who have the skills to bring others in, and who are spiritually grounded enough to stay in it for the long haul.

Together, we are building a movement rooted in covenant, animated by love, and led by communities of faith ready to meet this moment.

Take Action

  • Green Sanctuary 2030 Congregations: For 35 years, the Green Sanctuary program has supported UUs in protecting our environment. We honor that work and we need to transform our commitments and actions to respond to the challenges of our times. The new Green Sanctuary 2030: Mobilizing for Climate Justice offers a flexible, manageable, and impactful process to support UUs in transforming their congregations through climate justice.
  • Mosaic Congregations: Launching July 2026! This program emphasizes a congregational commitment to lifespan learning in diversity, equity, and inclusion and anti-oppression. Learn more and sign up to be notified when this program launches!
  • Welcoming Congregations: The Welcoming Congregation Program is a volunteer program for congregations that want to take intentional steps to be more welcoming and inclusive of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities. Start the program for the first time, do a refresher course, or take your welcome to the next level.
  • Solidarity Summits: Solidarity Summits are regional interfaith justice training and practice gatherings designed to strengthen the connections, skills, and capacities needed for this moment. These gatherings bring together Unitarian Universalists, people of faith across traditions, lay leaders, organizers, advocates, and community partners to strengthen regional networks, deepen relationships, and practice the kind of solidarity this moment demands. Join a regional summit or host one for your wider community.
  • Upcoming events from Side With Love

Workshops & Trainings

  • The Gathering: The Gathering is Side With Love’s monthly virtual event, a space to strengthen your spirit, make sense of the political moment, and take meaningful action alongside Unitarian Universalists and justice-seekers across the country. Each month, we come together to ground ourselves spiritually, deepen our political analysis, and move into action together. Because we know that the work of justice is not sustained by urgency alone. It is sustained by community, nourishment, and the practice of returning again and again to the vision of the world we are building.
  • Risk Discernment for Congregations: We often talk about partnership and solidarity in organizing, and the crucial role of showing up well in crucial moments. But how do we know which potentially risky asks we’re actually ready to say “yes” to — and follow through with?
  • Community Safety and Security: Unitarian Universalists are called to grapple with the question of “what is safety?” Black liberation organizers say “We Keep Us Safe” as a way to proclaim that true safety comes from relationship, community and structures of care and mutuality outside of state structures of violence and control. How do we build our political and theological commitment to keeping each other safe in the face of state and interpersonal violence?
  • Asset Mapping — Leveraging Congregational Resources for the Movement: Wondering what an easy and effective action step might be for your congregation in the current environment of fear and hostility? Take a moment to identify all the assets – human, physical, and financial – that your congregation might offer to grassroots groups organizing at this moment. With an asset map, congregations can: more quickly respond to requests from other religious and non-profit groups when immediate action is needed; be pro-active in enabling essential organizing to occur by providing, for example, much-needed meeting space; and build the long-run strength of local non-profits led by people who are especially at risk, groups which may have fewer access to resources.
  • Preparing for Pride — a webinar for religious professionals: As UU congregations are increasingly being targeted by right wing hate, we anticipate an uptick in attention and disruptive tactics heading into Pride month. In this informal space for religious professionals, we will share some observations about patterns we’re seeing on the national scale, point toward some existing resources for support, identify gaps, and make connections to fight back against overwhelm, fear, and isolation.
  • It Starts With Faith: Organizing School for Teams: This 9-week faith organizing training series designed to build faith-rooted organizing teams that are committed to dismantling white supremacy and taking action in with Side With Love’s four intersectionality justice priorities (Climate Justice, LGBTQ+ & Gender Justice, Democracy & Voting Rights, Decriminalization). Participants will learn foundational organizing skills to build and support teams in racial justice rooted work.
  • Additional congregational organizing webinars and trainings from Side With Love

Toolkits & Guides

  • Why Engage In Asset Mapping As A Congregation?: Congregations of all sizes are fundamentally hubs of Love’s resources: the people who make up our membership, the infrastructure we build to serve our mission, the values we hold in common and our commitment to realizing them in the world, and the relationships we nurture with one another and our communities. Because of the inherent richness within our congregations, we play a crucial role in the ecosystem of local organizing and justice-making. The more authentic and mutual our relationships are with community partners, the more effectively we can share our assets with those who share our values and goals. By practicing generosity, we honor the interdependence that has the power to transform our world with justice and Love.
  • Six Questions Congregations Need to Answer About Community Safety: Unitarian Universalist congregations have a critical role in resisting violence and protecting our communities, and UUs have a long history of showing up to resist authoritarianism, xenophobia, racism, transphobia, and other attacks on communities. Meaningful, effective response requires us to engage in faithful, values-based risk assessment and discernment that recognizes our unique landscape and community. This worksheet is an invitation for your congregational leadership and members to have a resourced, grounded, and accountable analysis of your congregation’s capacity to nimbly and resourcefully respond to any crisis.
  • Grounded, Resilient, & Responsible: Responding and Organizing in Authoritarian Times: In times of rising nationalism, racism, transphobia, and patriarchy, faith leaders play a critical role in resisting authoritarianism and guiding our communities toward justice. This resource is designed to provide practical support, strategic guidance, and spiritual sustenance as we navigate an increasingly chaotic and urgent landscape Whether you are wondering what to post on social media, how to engage in activism responsibly, or whose leadership to follow, this guide offers clear answers. It provides time-tested organizing tools, safety considerations, and actionable steps to respond to immediate threats while sustaining long-term justice work.
  • Prophetic Not Partisan: IRS Rules for Non-Profits: Many congregations have questions about how to act boldly on behalf of our values while also remaining compliant with IRS non-profit/501(c)3 regulations. Learn more at our Prophetic Not Partisan hub, with two webinars and our toolkit, The Real Rules for Congregations: IRS Guidelines On Advocacy, Lobbying, and Elections.
  • Taking Action as a Congregation: Guide for Congregational Resolutions & Social Justice Statements: When considering whether or not to pass a congregational resolution on an issue, there are several important questions that can help discern if and how to go about it. The first thing to keep in mind is that anything done in a congregational setting can be divisive if done poorly. As faith communities, it is important to take a stand on the side of justice in a way that nurtures community.
  • Preparing for Pride: Resources for Safety and Liberation

Spiritual Nourishment

Funding Opportunities