Are you looking for ways to transform the world to a more kind and compassionate place, but don’t know where or how to start? Do you consider yourself a spiritual person but would like to live a more spiritually connected life? Are you wanting to have more authentic relationships with others at home, at work, or in your community, but just don’t know how? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then Bethel UCC’s Compassionate Communication Learning Community (CCLC) is the place to be. We are a community of learners learning in community. Compassionate communication (also known as Nonviolent Communication) is more than just a process for communicating in a way that enables us to connect with others more authentically and more honestly. It is a way for us to manifest our spirituality in terms of compassion – the kind of compassion that supports incremental, wholistic and transformational change on three levels: within one’s self, among and within others, and societies at large. Compassionate communication is a habit of mind and a life-long practice with a spiritual basis.
The CCLC will focus on deepening foundational knowledge of and skills with NVC – Observations, Feelings, Needs and Requests. For ten weeks, starting Monday, Sept. 10th, and ending with a Potluck CCLC Celebration on Nov. 12th, Bethel UCC’s Compassionate Communication Learning Community will meet online and in-person to learn about and practice applying the foundational elements of compassionate communication. CCLC participants will gather together in-person with a facilitator six times in ten weeks for guided practice and application, along with purposeful group discussion at Bethel Congregational UCC, located at 5150 SW Watson Ave, Beaverton, OR 97005.
Between the in-person practice gatherings, CCLC participants will explore Compassionate Communication concepts, stories, and examples through readings and reflection exercises sent out to the CCLC in weekly email messages. We will also create a community of mutual support, shared experiences, and transformational growth through a private social media space. In this space, topics can organized into threads which meets needs for order, clarity, and the efficient use of time, questions can be posted and replied to 24/7, and we can engage in deeper discussions and explore tangential topics between practice gatherings.
If you’re interested in registering or have questions, please contact Beth Astarte at ba@bethelbeaverton.org or 503-646-1191. Please note that after the September 24 meeting, registration will be closed for the duration of the ten-week experience.
WHAT YOU COULD GAIN - Ten weeks of active participation in Bethel UCC’s CCLC will provide an established a foundation for continued growth in:
1. Valuing and practicing observing without judging.
2. Differentiating needs from feelings when observing and listening to others.
3. Responding empathically when communicating with self and others.
4. Applying compassionate communication practices to a variety of scenarios/situations so that the needs of both parties are met in constructive ways.
5. Appreciating the spiritually-based transformative nature of compassionate communication as a means of bringing about positive change in our world.