“It is a fundamental act of hope to consider revising and revitalizing our agreement together as congregations. Ever since we released our draft for comments last year, we’ve seen an outpouring of creative energy around what this proposal represents: the chance for the current generations of UUs to take an active hand in shaping our faith. It’s an opportunity for all of us to draw on the transformative energy of articulating anew what our Association is about.” (from the Article II Commission’s letter on October 25. See full letter HERE.)
We’re pleased to share the news that the final draft of the proposed changes to Article II of the Unitarian Universalist Association’s (UUA) bylaws is available for study and review. You may recall that at the 2023 General Assembly, delegates from UU congregations, including the UUCC, proposed, considered, and voted on amendments to Article II. The latest draft incorporates the amendments that were approved by delegate vote.
In the next six months, your staff are looking forward to providing a variety of opportunities to review, reflect on, and consider the proposed changes. Last year we did our best to share detailed information about the changes and the process for providing feedback to the commission without taking an official position. This year will be a bit different.
Part of the process of deciding whether to vote for these final changes requires engagement with the new language, reflection on different aspects of the draft, especially interpreting the six values. We’ll begin with a Community Sunday session introducing the draft on Nov. 19, and then follow that with a larger roll-out of multiple sessions to engage with from December 2023 through June 2024.
With this final draft, Unitarian Universalists across the country are continuing to move through the multi-year process to consider changes to our UUA Principles and Purposes. Your staff is happy to facilitate this process at UUCC and we hope as many people as possible will take the opportunity to engage.
Background info on the process:
It is required in the UUA bylaws that Article II be reviewed at least every 15 years. The current review process formally began in 2020 when the UUA Board appointed the Article II Study Commission.
Last year, there were opportunities – here and all over the country – to learn about the proposed changes and give feedback to the Study Commission. Then, the congregation voted to direct UUCC’s GA delegates on proposed revisions to the UUA Article II, containing our Principles and Purposes.
HERE is the letter about next steps from the UUA Board.