Blessed Summer’s End, everyone!

…although, with the inordinate amount of rain, and now moving into cooler weather already, it hasn’t felt very much like summer this year; and now kids are heading back to school.

Last year in our return from pandemic isolation, we reconnected as a human community; with much of our focus largely on reuniting our social networks and reawakening our connections to each other within our shared identity as the Unitarian Universalist Church of Manchester. Now, as we return again to some of our regular church programs, we are at a natural place of evolution.

This year, our Unitarian Universalist Association continues the exploration of Article 2 – the way we express and engage with our tradition, both within our congregations and in the public forum. As a church family, we will actively join in that process, to examine the ways we express and engage with what our faith offers to our wider community of the world and its passengers.

We will begin with a foundation – our Purpose. More than “what does it mean to be a UU?”, our purpose informs what our responsibilities are as UUs. The purpose of the Unitarian Universalist Association is to actively engage its members in the transformation of the world through liberating Love. What does that mean for us as individuals, as members of a UU congregation, of a larger association?

It has been a busy summer of planning with church lay leaders and we are all excited for our new program year to begin on Sunday, September 3rd!

That’s right! In just over a week, we will return to our regular worship service time of 10AM, which will be our Water Ceremony Service (which some of our members may know as Water Communion).
Remember to collect a small container or vial of water to bring with you on Sept. 3rd, something that represents a sacred experience or a spiritual inspiration you may have experienced over the summer – or, water that represents where you focused your energy. If you are newer to us, or newer to Unitarian Universalism, and are unfamiliar with this annual event, don’t worry…. we will guide you through the ritual.

Also know that at the end of service, we will invite everyone to gather outside on the front stairs of the sanctuary for a Whole Congregation photograph (in the event of rain, we’ll relocate to inside the sanctuary). And don’t worry if you are zooming in – we have alternatives for both water ceremony and the photo!

I will see you on Sunday morning for Potluck, for our final summer service!
In faith,
Rev. Kali