I started taking my family to a UU church in September, and we have all been enjoying it quite a bit. I hope this discouraging thread is wrong.

Nov 22, 2011 -- 10:46AM, JCarlin wrote:

Nov 20, 2011 -- 10:08PM, Youthfulspirit wrote:

I started taking my family to a UU church in September, and we have all been enjoying it quite a bit. I hope this discouraging thread is wrong.

There are functional UU Congregations out there.  It is good you found one that works for you.  This thread is more about the denomination than individual churches. 

Thanks, JCarlin.  I wonder what happens if the Congregation is functional, but the Denomination goes under.

All things are in flux.

Lovely sentiments, IMO. That is what UUism ought to be.

I particularly appreciated his comment upon the fact that the word "love" doesn't appear at all in the P&P.

Interesting...and telling, I'd say.

While individual churches that currently are growing may survive the decline of the denomination, I think the downward trend is too far advanced to halt without extraordinary measures. It will be interesting to see what is proposed and accomplished by President Morales who does seem to realize that something must be done or the end of the tunnel is in sight...and no light shining there.

Youthfulspirit,

It looks like you have found a true Unitarian Universalist Church with a rare jewel for a minister and guide.

I will post a link to his sermon on the Unitarian Community Page here and on Facebook.

Aug 21, 2011 -- 10:41AM, DotNotInOz wrote:

This year marks 30 from when I joined CLF. 

From my reading, personal experience and conversations with lifelong or longtime UU's who went through the merger in the early 1960's, I think that I got into it midway on the downslope.

The first large disillusionment for me was the UUA's withdrawal of official status from the array of special-interest organizations given more legitimacy in some cases by its official sanction.  The one most valuable to me quickly went from about two dozen chapters scattered on the two coasts primarily to just under half that number about five years ago. I checked its website a few days ago, and there are now only four chapters. Very sad.     

I agree, J'C--the zombie is still plodding about but before much longer will collapse never to rise again.

If anything, CLF would be what I join. I've been on a if you could call it "spiritual journey" all my life. Born RC, but not raised it, attended and participated in two mainline Protestant churches in my life with nothing gained from it. It was more a going through the motions and social sort of thing, and the sermons in the last church were so lackluster  and clearly the pastor just doing another requirement-I never understood why this pastor was even a pastor because nice guy, but never did a darn thing. It was all the usual suspects that were the president, chairpersons, etc; just no meaning at all. The other church-one member was embattled with the pastor, and well, between the two, I decided I don't want to belong to any church again, and to boot, I never was "confidently" a believer in the whole Trinity, Jesus as sole savior deal anyway. I do believe in a God, a divine that accepts and cares about all, and that this is something we all can experience if we choose. I am not an atheist, I can't call myself really a Christian, and I do like elements of some of the Eastern religions, but I certainly don't ascribe to all of that either, although I do have a draw to more of the Eastern thought than Western if push comes to shove. LOL, I always come up UU on the belief quiz. There are things about all religions that I don't like, so I could never be a true anything, which is probably why UU would work for me. But no way would I join a physical congregation. There are no lack of them near me, but I'm not getting locked into congregational politics again. I may join CLF. I did the trial membership before. But what I've read on this thread rings true. The exclusion from the one group meeting-that's the type of utter PETTY nonsense I don't care to be around and I don't need to be a member of a brick & mortar congregation because I don't want a "Liberal Christian Congregation Lite" experience.