Membership
When you become a member of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Annapolis, you are joining a spiritual community. Members support the church and its programs by taking an active role in congregational life, and making financial contributions annually.
Benefits of Membership
There are many benefits to membership, including:
- Belonging to a spiritual community that builds deep relationships based on shared values.
- Pastoral care and support during difficult times.
- Spiritual and personal development, for both adults and young people, through our year-round programming, spiritual practice affinity groups, small groups, and as offered by our Building Beloved Community team.
- Opportunities for involvement in activism through Anne Arundel Connecting Together (ACT), UU the Vote, UU Legislative Ministries, the Green Sanctuary team, our prison ministry, and through involvement with our other community partners.
- Eligibility to serve in leadership positions and vote at congregational meetings.
- Ministerial and church support for child dedications, weddings, funerals, memorial services, and other rites of passage.
- A subscription to the bi-monthy magazine UU World.
- Leadership opportunities in our Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA). Members are eligible to serve as voting delegates at conferences and serve on national committees. Our UUA offers annual retreats, summer institutes, leadership training, and other events offered throughout the year.
Becoming a Member
We acknowledge that choosing a spiritual home for your family is a big decision, and there is no rush to join the church. Membership demonstrates your commitment to the UU principles and UUCA community. To help you make this decision, we offer the classes Exploring UU and Pathway to Membership. These minister-facilitated classes are relaxed, conversational, and centered around participant questions. So join us and ask away!
In Exploring UU, participants will take a dive into Unitarian Universalism— history, theology, sources, people, polity, national work and wherever curiosity leads us. In Pathway to Membership, the group will focus on UUCA — who we are, and our history, purpose and activities. We also will explore what it means to be a member of this congregation. Directly following the Pathway to Membership session, participants who have completed both classes will have the option to become members. (Individuals who have previously been members of a UU church are only required to take Pathway to Membership.) Anyone who is interested in meeting new people and learning more about our faith and church is invited to participate, even if they aren’t considering membership at this time.
We are also offering a small cohort opportunity, Roots and Wings, designed to foster “roots” within our community and the familiarity to take flight living our mission and purpose. In these 5 weekly sessions, participants will collaborate to learn more deeply about our church governance, worship and spiritual practices, social justice and activism work, faith formation offerings, and how we care for and support each other as a community. While designed to help members integrate more fully into the church, this course is a wonderful opportunity for anyone who would like to become more involved and connected.
Click for more information on upcoming classes and to register
Questions? Please contact Laura Schrank, UUCA Membership Coordinator.
Expectations
While we are proud of our liberal religious heritage we do ask members to commit to the following expectations:
Working on Your Own Spiritual Development: We believe that each of us is capable of discovering religious truth as it is revealed to us in our lives and within our church community. We each take responsibility for our own spiritual well-being with the support of the church.
Serving the Church: Use your gifts and interests to serve. The church community needs hands as well as hearts and minds. That means weeding and cleaning-up are needed the same as singing and teaching. As a member, you need to attend bi-annual congregational meetings. Business cannot take place without a quorum.
Serving Others: We commit our faith to action and show through our works what we say with our mouths. Although the church provides opportunities for social action, many places exist in each of our lives where such acts can take place. Acts of caring are an essential part of belonging to a faith community.
Pledging at a Stewardship Level: You are required to make a written financial commitment (annual pledge). This helps the church plan financially for the coming year. We ask that you give what you can afford, but also that you consider the needs of the church.
Honoring and Celebrating Diversity: Our church community seeks and celebrates diversity, inclusive of all ages, races, sexual orientations, gender identities, abilities, and classes. As a Welcoming Congregation we reach out to bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender people. As a congregation which adopted the 8th Principle, we strive to become a multicultural, multi-racial and multi-ethnic congregation. We expect all members to engage with anti-racism and anti-oppression educational opportunities so that one day, with diligent work, we may reflect the community we dream about.
Above all, we strive to create an environment that challenges, encourages and supports the individual quest for religious fulfillment.