by WUUC | Aug 29, 2022 | Uncategorized
Passage from Soul Matters September 2022 Theme
“Welcome to Belonging
You hardly knew
how hungry you were
to be gathered in,
to receive the welcome
that invited you to enter
entirely…
You began to breathe again…
You learned to sing.
But the deal with this blessing
is that it will not leave you alone,
will not let you linger…
this blessing
will ask you to leave,
not because it has tired of you
but because it desires for you
to become the sanctuary
that you have found…”
– Jan Richardson
Richardson begins with hunger. And so do we. Just saying the word “belonging” conjures it up: The primal hunger to be included; the longing to be let in. No one likes standing outside the circle. No one likes leaning against the locked door listening while everyone is laughing inside. From the time we are little, belonging is the thing we seek. It’s the hoped for Holy Grail. The promised resting place.
But Richardson will have none of that. Our own belonging is only the beginning. That’s what she wants us to know. One minute she’s wrapping us in comforting words about settling in and allowing ourselves to finally breathe. The next she’s shaking us awake and telling us to get up and go.
That shaking should tell us something.
In other words, this is no gentle invitation, friends. No sweet reminder to think of others. It’s a warning. A desperate hope that we will wake to the fact that there are two kinds of belonging: one that wants to bless us and another that wants to enlist us.
Deep down we know this. The hard part is to remember it. To use Richardson’s language, if we find ourselves being invited to linger rather than leave, alarm bells should go off. We need to be weary of those who welcome us with a club jacket and a soft couch. They may have let us in, but soon they will enlist us into the work of keeping others out. There will likely even be a part of us that wants to keep others out. After all, closed circles don’t just set us apart, they sit us above.
But they also keep us small. Maybe this is why Richardson’s blessing is so intent on not leaving us alone. It knows that we only grow when the circle does. Circles that keep others out also keep the air out. No one inside a closed circle truly sings; they only suffocate, slowly.
It’s all one big reminder that the true blessing of belonging is not that you get to come inside the circle; it’s that you get to participate in expanding it. Again, as the circle grows so do we.
Each month WUUC engages with a theme which is explored in our Worship, in small groups, and hopefully in the minds and hearts of our members and friends. These themes and groups have been developed as a program called Soul Matters, as a tool for congregational enrichment from the UUA. September’s theme is: Belonging
by WUUC | Aug 26, 2022 | Announcements
Dear Community,
WUUC is committed to providing the best experience possible for all our congregation members, friends, and visitors. We encourage you to participate in our continuous improvement by submitting constructive suggestions regarding our church, our services, or even our website. Tell us your questions, comments, or concerns. Your feedback is a valuable part of our program. What can we do to grow and become a stronger and more welcoming faith community? Appreciation and positive feedback are also very valuable … What’s working well for you? What do you like about WUUC? Your suggestion will be reviewed promptly and considered for possible further action.
You may use this link to submit your suggestion online. Anonymous feedback is permitted.
Feedback and Suggestion Form: https://forms.gle/mWgNNyma7DizrQ8K7
Alternatively, you may send your suggestion in an email directly to the Board at board@wuuc.org. Thank you for your input.
In Community,
WUUC Board,
Leslie Morton, President
Jan Radoslovich, Co-Vice President
Jessica Belmont, Co-Vice President
Kermit Sprang, Treasurer
Terry Santmann, Secretary
Linda Sherry, Member-at-Large
Jeff Lu, Member-at-Large
by WUUC | Aug 11, 2022 | Announcements
WUUC is Hiring for the position of Membership Coordinator!
- Compensation: $19/hour
- Part-time: 8-10 hours/week
The Membership Coordinator provides a consistent warm and welcoming presence on Sunday mornings by welcoming visitors and newcomers and invites them to deepen their connections and involvement in our church community.
For more details about the duties and qualifications for this position, please see the detailed position description here or below.
To apply for the Membership Coordinator position, please send your resume and a cover letter telling us why you’re interested in the position (and why you’d be good at it) to mjohnson@wuuc.org.
Open until filled; position begins in Fall 2022.
Membership Coordinator Position Description – Woodinville Unitarian Universalist Church
Reports to: Minister
Status: Part-time, up to 465 hours per year; worked as approximately 8-10 hours/week
FLSA: Non-exempt
Effective: July 1, 2022
Compensation: $19.00/hr, not eligible for benefits
Job Summary: The Membership Coordinator welcomes newcomers and visitors and invites them to deepen their connections and involvement in our community. The Membership Coordinator is a consistent warm and welcoming presence on Sunday mornings, and encourages the congregation at large to create a welcoming atmosphere. The Membership Coordinator supports the Membership Team in tracking and following up with visitors and newcomers who are on the path to membership, and helps them engage in congregational life.
Essential Functions
● Nurtures a sense of welcoming for visitors and newcomers, including by being present and actively engaging with newcomers and members at WUUC most Sunday mornings.
● Assists congregation with understanding visitors’ and newcomers’ needs and opportunities to engage with WUUC. Keeps Membership Team connected to newcomers’ progress.
● Encourages and supports congregation members (including but not limited to the Membership Team) in creating a welcoming environment for visitors.
● Uses WUUC’s database (Realm) to process attendance and membership records and ensure tracking of members’ activities and current membership information.
● Shows appreciation in formal and informal ways for contributions of time by members, regulars, and newcomers.
Additional Responsibilities
- Supports WUUC’s Membership Team regarding membership and engagement roles.
- Participates in staff meetings and supports the work of the staff team.
- Participates as a member in UU Association of Membership Professionals (UUAMP) to learn, grow, and develop and share resources.
● Attends monthly Ministry Council meetings.
● Increases WUUC’s online presence through creating and posting materials directly, e.g., on social media, and encouraging members to post member-generated content.
Minimum Qualifications
- Enthusiasm for engaging and interacting with people.
- Ability to work collaboratively with WUUC staff and the Membership Team.
- Skill in building community.
- Ability and comfort with speaking in public settings.
- Skill in organizing data.
- Skill in managing time.
- Proficiency in written and verbal communications in English.
- Ability to use email, word processing, spreadsheets, social media, Google Drive, Google Docs and Google sheets.
- Ability to learn membership databases and other new programs as needed.
- Willingness to submit to and pass a background check.
Physical Requirements
● Ability to move freely in and out of the congregation and different small group settings (mainly at church, which is wheelchair accessible).
● Ability to attend Sunday Service most weeks.
Core Competencies
- Interpersonal Skills
- Verbal and Written Communication
- Decision Making and Problem Solving
- Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
- Resilience
- Mission Ownership
- Attention to Detail
- Organization and Time Management
- Technical Expertise
by WUUC | Aug 2, 2022 | Uncategorized
– Cora Goss-Grubbs
Each fall, the Advocates for Social Justice go through a lengthy process to choose organizations that will benefit from our monthly special collections, making it convenient for members and friends to meet their giving goals. During the service on August 21, the Advocates for Social Justice invite you to donate to JUUstice Washington, which strives to inspire, educate, empower, and nurture the capacity of Unitarian Universalists (UUs), as well as our community allies, to collaboratively advocate for and undertake social and environmental justice initiatives. They support legislative change that aligns with our UU values in Washington state and beyond.
June’s Special Collection raised $360 to benefit Lambert House, a nonprofit organization that empowers lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth through the development of leadership, social, and life skills. In May we collected $612 for NAMI Eastside. This East King County affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness is a community-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to improving the quality of life for those impacted by mental illness through advocacy, education, and support.
The ASJ Committee thanks WUUC members and friends for their generous support of our monthly special collections, which take place during services on the third Sunday of every month. Instructions for giving are posted during the service, and you can also donate anytime the following week at https://onrealm.org/wuuc/-/give/now, or by sending a check to WUUC at P.O. Box 111, Woodinville, WA 98072. Please make checks out to WUUC and write “ASJ Special Collection” in the notes.
by WUUC | Aug 1, 2022 | Minister Blog
Dear WUUC Community,
As I prepare to take a study leave to plan the 2022-23 church year, I am excited about the opportunities that are possible as we continue to emerge slowly and cautiously from the pandemic. For the first time since I arrived two years ago, I am able to consider putting in-person activities on the calendar. Adult RE classes, social gatherings, postponed celebrations. Meetings over coffee instead of Zoom. And with so many possibilities, I know I will have to fight the temptation to put too much on my calendar (and the church’s calendar) too quickly. At a week-long community organizing training I attended years ago, the lead organizer asked a question on the last day of the training: what did you learn here that you are excited to take back and implement in your community? Many people raised their hands to share their answers. Then he asked a follow-up question: what is going to come off your plate to make room for the new thing you want to do? The hands didn’t go up as quickly to answer that question.
It is easy to get excited and want to dive right in to new and inspiring projects and plans. But before we do, it is worth reflecting on what we are letting go of to make room in our lives for the new. It can be tempting to think, “I’ll just squeeze this one more thing in. I can make it all fit in my life.” And that may be true; but we’ll only know if we ask the question of ourselves and reflect on the answer. And it is definitely true that this can’t be the answer every time, to just squeeze in one more thing. Eventually, something will have to give in order to make room for something else.
There are so many things I want to see and make happen here at WUUC. And, I know that ministry is a marathon, not a sprint. If we are doing it right, we will have many years together to plan, gather, and build; to connect, learn, and transform ourselves, our community, and our world. There is time for all of it, as long as we take it a little at a time.
I’m so glad to be on this journey with all of you.
Peace and Blessings,
Dan
