Last January the Board drafted a set of outcomes for the
Association – what results do we want to produce, and for whose benefit? In partnership with the District Presidents
Association, we have received feedback from more than 1000 Unitarian
Universalists. You can see the draft
here.
More than 150 of these voices were called and elected
leadership of congregations chosen by the district boards because they were
superb examples of the values of Unitarian Universalism. These were rich interviews conducted by our
district partners. Over 100 called
and elected congregation leaders responded by survey. About 200 were drawn from our Current and
Future Generations – Youth, Young Adults, Children (through proxy with Liberal
Religious Educators), and people who identify and Unitarian Universalist but
are not currently members. These were done through both focus groups and
survey. Interviews and surveys were also
done with a little over 200 people from those representing our Vision of Beloved
Community. A number of historians and
the writings of key historical figures were consulted. In addition to the roughly 600 people who
represented our Sources of Authority and Accountability, we had nearly 400
individual UUs who responded via survey.
What did we hear? A
lot. A quote that typifies the overall
reaction to the draft came from one of our selected congregations in response
to the question “To what degree does this reflect the values of your
congregation?” Though 94% of them said it
“strongly” or “mostly”, one congregation also said: “As a matter of substance, yes. As a matter of style, not so much.”
Some of the feedback was more about language than concept,
but a significant number also addressed the latter. For example, a description of congregations
as “intentionally inclusive, multi-generational and multi-cultural in powerful
mission to, and with, under-served and un-served communities” was taken to task
for the patriarchal tone of “servicing” communities rather than being in
partnership with them, as well as raising polity concerns about the UUA
describing the mission of a congregation. The concept of “covenanted
communities” raised both plaudits and concerns (described as “bubble-speak” by
one), and while many liked the clear specificity of language around net
increases of congregations, people served, and inspired leadership, others
groaned “it is SOOO not about growth. Growth is an unavoidable outcome of doing
covenanted community well.”
In response to this feedback, trustees have started
rewriting some of these statements. The
DPA/UUA Joint Task Force on Linkage, which has been collecting and analyzing
the feedback, will be making suggestions to the board in an iterative process
over the next month. The intent is still
to have a final draft for the board to approve in its pre-General Assembly
meeting in June. This then becomes the
guidance for the Administration, which has been a key part of creating and
revising these statements.
