In the world of Unitarian Universalism, the foundational principles and purposes of the faith are laid out in Article II of the UUA bylaws.  It is the covenant to which all UU congregations pledge themselves.  A UUA commission has spent the past two years studying Article II, collecting input, and drafting proposed amendments. Now it is time for individual Unitarian Universalists and UU congregations to learn about these proposed changes and weigh in. How do they reflect our values? How do they take Unitarian Universalism into the future? 

You have recently received emails, and may have attended a meeting here at the Barn last Sunday, about the UUA proposed revisions to our principles by creating a revised Article II. We are compiling input from the MMUUF community about these changes that our representative(s) to the UUA General Assembly will be able to draw on to do our part to guide this democratic process at the national level. Please review the proposed Article II and make any comments you have either on the board at the Barn or via this google doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rzY1opGtd3B_W5SmlSLrv3rAOx7I_3Z5DUxlqBcB7HQ/edit?usp=sharing. Please write clearly to help those who will be compiling our recommendations to the UUA and feel free to include your name if you’d like so we can follow up if there are questions about your input. If you are interested in representing MMUUF at the UUA General Assembly in June (you can attend via Zoom) get in touch with the Steering Committee.

In the meantime, we encourage you to learn more on your own. Here is a document with both the old and new versions of Article II so you can compare side by side.

The UUA website has lots of information about Article II including the 26 pg study report – https://www.uua.org/files/2023-02/article-II-study-report-2021-23.pdf, an introductory video: https://youtu.be/64ItC1mv_3Y, and the Article II Study Commission webpage: https://www.uua.org/uuagovernance/committees/article-ii-study-commission.

The time has come! We’re reopening the Barn!

Barring a catastrophic turn in the rollercoaster that’s been Covid, we’ll be throwing open the barn doors (literally, all of them and the windows, for ventilation, as well as our new air filters!) on Sept 11 for our first service of the new year. We will also still be holding the service hybridized via Zoom, as we practiced a number of times last spring. You are all welcome to attend in whatever and wherever capacity is right for you, taking the precautions that best reflect our first UU principle: “The inherent worth and dignity of every person.” That includes respect for ourselves, our health, and our mental wellbeing, as well as those of others, accepting as well as we can, fellow humans for whom that equation is very different, and manifests in a different set of choices and priorities.

We welcome all with open arms, in whatever capacity they wish to join us in Fellowship. Here’s what we have planned so far:

 — We are having a Barn Day on August 27th, sprucing up the place indoors and out. I’ll be putting the Sign back in its frame by the road, our kids will be milling about, we’ll bring some games and snacks, and I hope you’ll join us for a bit of fellowship through service. We’ll rain date to the 28th.

— The first service is Sept. 11th, gathering the waters from our summers apart, telling our stories and reconnecting at the beginning of the year. Join us however you wish, on Zoom or in person! We’ll have coffee and snack time after for those at the barn, and Zoom will break out to chat as well as is our habit.

— RE is hosting kids Movie night on Sept. 16th. Movie will start at 8pm, the fire will be lit by 7:30, come early and enjoy s’mores and connection with the other parents and children of the fellowship.

— Look forward to October, Date TBD, Julia and I will be setting up our apple press again for Cider Day and Pumpkin Carving. Scour the countryside for dropped wild apples, bring your horde, and we’ll turn them into golden goodness of fall in Vermont!

Feel free to get in touch with me or the Steering Committee with anything you’d like to add, whether it be comments or concerns, or ideas to add to our gatherings this fall. Our meetings are generally on the third Tuesday of the month at 7pm at the Barn (or you can tap in via Zoom), we’d love to see you. You can check the Calendar for updated meeting times for all committee meetings.

In fellowship and peace,
Lincoln Grey, MMUUF President on behalf of the Steering Committee