Update from General Assembly 2024

CUUF is a member of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), a covenantal network of UU fellowships from all over the country and world. As a member congregation, we have delegates who vote on our behalf at the mass convergence of Unitarian Universalists, known as General Assembly (GA), which happens in June of each year.  I wanted to highlight 3 areas from this gathering:

The delegates voted to pass an update of shared values and purpose statements. While the previous version of 7 Principles and 6 Sources will always be a part of the UU living tradition, the invitation is to explore the shared values and think about how to live into them individually and collectively. The revision passed with 80% of the vote, and while there was strong dissent, it was an amazing experience to watch how group guidelines and using love at the center of the process created more curiosity than hostility.

Business Resolution titled “Embracing Transgender, Nonbinary, Intersex, and Gender Diverse People is a Fundamental Expression of UU Religious Values” passed with over 90% support. Business resolutions help direct the work of UUA staff. Please note: reviewing the discussion, which happened in General Session III, around this resolution caused many to experience harm when delegates used their allotted speaking time to disseminate false information. The discussion period closed with a powerful statement of love and affirmation by Rev. JeKaren Olaoya, a beautiful moment to counter a charged and painful discussion.

All fellowships were invited to participate in the first ever Climate Revival. While many will observe this during Sept. 28-29, CUUF will be observing it Nov. 17. Please contact Rev. Stacy Craig if you would like to get involved!!

A full account of General Assembly can be found here:  https://www.uua.org/ga/off-site/2024/business

From CUUF Board of Directors

Happy September! As we draw nearer to the start of our fall services, I wanted to provide an important and exciting update regarding Reverend Stacy.

At the July 31^st CUUF Board meeting, the Board cleared the path for Stacy to contract with the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Chico, California. Under the conditions of her contract with us, she is obligated to get clearance before she can accept their offer to be a 50% FTE remote minister.

The Board hopes you will join us in emphasizing the potential good for our Fellowship that can come from sharing a minister with this vibrant, distant congregation.  Though we as a Fellowship had hoped we might incrementally increase Stacy’s time from half-time to three-quarters, the funding of that decision was not possible. Concurrently, this opportunity presented itself to Stacy, and in consultation with her family, she pursued it.

Now it is up to us to celebrate the new doors this opens to Stacy and to us. There will doubtless be situational cross-fertilization between the UU congregation in Northern California and ours on the shores of Lake Superior.  Chico is the cultural and economic center of the northern Sacramento Valley.  Stacy shared that the Chico community is in the thick of wildfire country, fighting fires right now.  And here we are, in flood-prone territory, as rural as they are urban. Sharing a minister may lead to new perspectives for all of us in both congregations on important issues pertaining to worldview, faith matters, and congregation-administration.

It is also up to each of us to re-commit to creating a living fellowship here in the Cheq Bay. Stacy will fulfill her commitments to us with her usual grace, perception, and love, but we will inevitably lose some access to her.  It is healthier for the fellowship the more we create it together with one another and not become too reliant on a minister or any other employee to do the heavy-lifting. Many hands make light work.

We need some worship service tasks covered – we need some administrative tasks and some business tasks done – these will need to be parceled out. Can you say yes with a spirit of willingness, in light of this new development? Please contact me or any other Board member if you have 2-4 hours per month you could devote to some fellowship behind-the-scenes work (i.e. setting up chairs for service). Many thanks to those who already committed!  Working together, we will come out stronger with a half-time minister and a full-time congregation.

And many thanks to our new board member, Beth “Bethsy” Gehred, for her talented wordsmithing in summarizing this message.

Warmest regards,

Beth Lowthian

Board President