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News from the
Unitarian Universalist Association

  • UUA President Addresses Immigrant Rights May Day Rally
    In support of immigrants' rights, thousands of immigrants and their interfaith allies marched, rallied, and prayed around the country in dozens of cities on May 1st. In Chelsea, Massachusetts, Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) President William G. Sinkford spoke at a rally in support of the immigrant community along with other secular and religious leaders who support immigrants' rights.  (Fri, 02 May 2008 14:45:00 EST)

  • Resources for UU Congregations: The Flower Communion
    Celebrating Flower Communion is an excellent opportunity for UU congregations to express their commitment to our Sixth Principle: We Covenant to Affirm and Promote the Goal of World Community with Peace, Liberty and Justice for All.  (Thu, 01 May 2008 10:30:00 EST)

  • UUA Announces Important Election Year Resources
    The Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations (UUA) is pleased to announce two important resources to help congregations carry out effective, nonpartisan electoral activities in 2008 and beyond.  (Thu, 24 Apr 2008 15:30:00 EST)

  • Green Sanctuary Program to be Managed by UUA Beginning July 1
    Staring this July, the UU Ministry for Earth's successful Green Sanctuary Program will start to be managed by the UUA as a part of their Congregational Services program.  (Thu, 24 Apr 2008 13:30:00 EST)

  • 2007 Melcher Book Award Presented to Kate Braestrup for "Here If You Need M
    Rev. Kate Braestrup accepted the Unitarian Universalist Association’s (UUA) Frederic G. Melcher Book Award on April 16, 2008, for her memoir Here If You Need Me.  (Thu, 17 Apr 2008 11:30:00 EST)

  • UUA Treasurer Discusses Socially Responsible Investing and Environmental St
    UUA Treasurer Tim Brennan traveled to New York City on Feb. 14 to attend the Investor Summit on Climate Risk.This year's meeting attracted hundreds of investors and culminated in the proposal of a climate action plan endorsed by 49 different organizations, including the UUA.  (Thu, 17 Apr 2008 15:00:00 EST)

  • First Emerson UUA Chair of Divinity Appointed at Harvard Divinity School
    The theologian and historian Daniel Patrick McKanan has been named the inaugural incumbent of the Ralph Waldo Emerson Unitarian Universalist Association Chair of Divinity at Harvard Divinity School.  (Fri, 11 Apr 2008 16:30:00 EST)

  • Earth Day 2008: Celebrate and Advocate!
    The UUA, the UU Service Committee, UU Ministry for Earth, and others are joining together to celebrate Earth Day Sunday—April 20th—in our congregations.  (Thu, 03 Apr 2008 15:15:00 EST)

  • UUA Debuts Second Phase of National Marketing Campaign
    The UUA has begun a second phase of national advertising with the April 14 edition (on newsstands April 4) of TIME Magazine, the most widely read news magazine in the United States.  (Thu, 03 Apr 2008 17:15:00 EST)

  • A Long Overdue Conversation on Race
    Obama's speech, by naming the honest concerns and fears on both sides of the racial divide, presents us with that rarest of opportunities, an invitation to re-engage with an issue many people would prefer to ignore.  (Tue, 25 Mar 2008 15:15:00 EST)

  • A Good Day for Peace: UUs Engage in Civil Disobedience to Protest War
    More than 200 people, including nearly 100 UUs from several Connecticut churches, gathered in front of the federal building in Hartford to demonstrate their opposition to the war in Iraq. 5 individuals, including 2 members of the Unitarian Society of New Haven and their minister, Kathleen McTigue, were arrested for first degree disorderly conduct and trespassing when they refused to move away from the doors of the building.  (Fri, 21 Mar 2008 16:15:00 EST)

  • Witnessing for Peace: A Pastoral Letter from Rev. William G. Sinkford
    It has been 5 long years of war and occupation in Iraq. Many of you, like me, have been praying and protesting this war, since before it began. We like to see ourselves as innocent. We like to see ourselves as fair, compassionate and kind. We like to see ourselves as freedom-loving and freedom-promoting. The Iraq war has stripped that self-image away from us.  (Mon, 17 Mar 2008 13:45:00 EST)

  • Washington, DC, Training Focuses on Sexuality Education, Advocacy
    The UUA's Washington Office for Advocacy is preparing for the fourth annual Sexuality Education and Advocacy Training (SEAT).  (Tue, 11 Mar 2008 11:00:00 EST)

  • Sinkford Joins UUs in Interfaith Witness for Peace
    UUA President William G. Sinkford and several hundred Unitarian Universalists came together in Washington on Friday, March 7, to participate in an Interfaith Witness for Peace.  (Tue, 11 Mar 2008 11:15:00 EST)

  • Unitarian Universalist Women in Times of War and Peace
    International Women's Day, celebrated on March 8th, offers us an opportunity to reflect on the role Unitarian and Universalist women have played in times of war and peace over many generations.  (Wed, 05 Mar 2008 13:00:00 EST)

  • Values-Based Sexuality Education: A Closer Look at Our Whole Lives
    The Unitarian Universalist Association has created a curriculum to provide young adults, ages 18-35, with sexuality education resources addressing the specific issues that they face.  (Tue, 04 Mar 2008 10:30:00 EST)

  • Congregation Honors African American Unitarian Minister with Change in Name
    In 2005, a church voted to honor African American Unitarian minister Don Speed Smith Goodloe.  (Fri, 22 Feb 2008 09:00:00 EST)

  • Reproductive Choice and Our Association of Congregations
    Religious beliefs and sexuality have been linked since the earliest beginnings of Unitarian Universalism, starting with the Hebrew Scriptures.  (Tue, 19 Feb 2008 11:15:00 EST)

  • Lesbian Couple Files Lawsuit to Overturn Colorado Ban on Same-Sex Marriage
    A state constitutional amendment denying same-sex couples the fundamental right to marry is being challenged in court by a UU couple.  (Thu, 14 Feb 2008 16:00:00 EST)

  • UUA President Invites Congregations to Work for Peace
    This March, I invite you to recommit yourselves and your congregations to building a peaceful world by participating in our campaign, "March to Peace."  (Mon, 11 Feb 2008 14:45:00 EST)

  • Two Who Paved the Way for Reproductive Choice
    There are two generations of women alive now who have no memory of what life was like before abortion and birth control were legal in the United States.  (Mon, 04 Feb 2008 17:00:00 EST)

  • A Lifelong Commitment to Affirming Reproductive Choice
    Sarah Allison, a resident of Tulsa, Oklahoma, might not seem like a typical crusader, but she worked quietly to ensure that women would continue to have a choice around reproductive matters.  (Wed, 23 Jan 2008 16:30:00 EST)

  • Encouraging Diversity in Unitarian Universalist Ministry
    The minister, board, and congregation of the First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh are navigating a new path to expand their ministry and grow their congregation through the UUA's Diversity of Ministry initiative.  (Fri, 18 Jan 2008 17:00:00 EST)

  • A Pastoral Letter on Violence in Kenya and Pakistan
    Many of you are aware that Unitarian/Universalists in Kenya and Pakistan are among those who have suffered directly from violence in those countries. A joint UUSC/UUA Kenya Crisis Fund has recently been established.  (Thu, 17 Jan 2008 17:00:00 EST)

  • Rochester Congregation Focuses on 'The Greater Good'
    Rev. Kaaren Anderson and Rev. Scott Tayler, co-ministers of the First Unitarian Church in Rochester, NY, wanted to encourage generosity in their congregation.  (Fri, 28 Dec 2007 22:00:00 EST)


    • What We Believe

    Unitarian Universalism is a liberal religion born of the Jewish and Christian traditions. We keep our minds open to the religious questions people have struggled with in all times and places. We believe that personal experience, conscience, and reason should be the final authorities in religion. In the end religious authority lies not in a book, person, or institution, but in ourselves. We put religious insights to the test of our hearts and minds.

    We uphold the free search for truth. We will not be bound by a statement of belief. We do not ask anyone to subscribe to a creed. We say ours is a noncreedal religion. Ours is a free faith. We believe that religious wisdom is ever changing. Human understanding of life and death, the world and its mysteries, is never final. Revelation is continuous. We celebrate unfolding truths known to teachers, prophets, and sages throughout the ages.

    We affirm the worth of all people. We believe people should be encouraged to think for themselves. We know people differ in their opinions and lifestyles, and we believe these differences generally should be honored. We seek to act as a moral force in the world, believing that ethical living is the supreme witness of religion. The here and now and the effects our actions will have on future generations deeply concern us. We know that our relationships with one another, with diverse peoples, races, and nations, should be governed by justice, equity, and compassion.

    We Celebrate

    Each Unitarian Universalist congregation is involved in many kinds of programs. Worship is held regularly, the insights of the past and present are shared with those who will create the future, service to the community is undertaken, and friendships are made.

    Each Unitarian Universalist congregation is the fulfillment of a long heritage that goes back hundreds of years to courageous people who struggled for freedom in thought and faith. On this continent we include the Massachusetts settlers and the founders of the republic. Outstanding Unitarians and Universalists include John Adams, Clara Barton, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Susan B. Anthony, Adlai Stevenson, Eliot Richardson, and Whitney Young. Not as famous but equally worthy are the thousands of men and women in our congregations leading vital, dedicated, and useful lives.

    Our congregations are self-governing. Authority and responsibility are vested in the membership of the congregation. Each local congregation, called a church, society, or fellowship, adopts its own bylaws, elects its own officers, and approves its budget. Every member is encouraged to take part in church or fellowship activities.

    We Unite

    More than one thousand congregations make up the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), which represents our interests on a continental scale. The UUA grew out of the consolidation, in 1961, of two religious denominations, the Universalists, organized in 1793, and the Unitarians, organized in 1825. (See the UU Historical Society)

    The UUA provides resources and offers consultations to local congregations, creates religious education curricula, spurs social action efforts, expedites the settlement of professional religious leaders, supports Beacon Press, and produces pamphlets, devotional materials, and the bimonthly journal the UU World.

    The UUA works in concert with many other Unitarian Universalist organizations, the largest of which is the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC). Since its early work aiding victims of Nazi oppression, the UUSC has been helping people help themselves through service and advocacy programs around the world. The Unitarian Universalist Women's Federation, an independent membership organization, represents, organizes, and acts on the concerns and issues of importance to UU women across the continent. Another related organization is the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Larger Fellowship, which provides a ministry to geographically isolated religious liberals.

    Get to know us

    The best way is to come, see, think, and explore with us. Please join us for Sunday Services at 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. A warm welcome awaits you.

    - from We Are Unitarian Universalists by Marta Flanagan