Beloved Unitarian Church of Montpelier members and friends,
As we greet the turning of the year and gather once more, I am filled with gratitude for the journey we share.
This year holds much possibility for our beloved community. In May, we embraced a new vision statement to guide us as we continue to nurture our mission and tend to the spiritual needs of our community, both now and in the days to come.
Our vision states:
At the Unitarian Church of Montpelier, love is at the center of all we do:
We offer spiritual nourishment and respite grounded in interdependence, pluralism, justice, transformation, generosity, and equity.
We cultivate belonging by building authentic relationships across diverse backgrounds, ages, and identities.
We pursue personal and social change, deepening our spirituality by living our values in service to one another and as stewards of the earth.
We are a resilient congregation that builds collaborative relationships with community partners and thrives through adaptation and interdependence.
Rooted in possibility, we work together to grow a just, generous, and loving world for all.
Living into this vision will take each of us, in all the ways we show up for one another—by gathering for worship and spiritual exploration, welcoming those who are new among us, leading and nurturing small groups, organizing opportunities to serve, reaching out to someone we have yet to know, or joining together in public witness rooted in our Unitarian Universalist values.
Our vision affirms the ministry we have already woven together and calls us to deepen our shared work in ways both subtle and profound.
One important way we will nurture this vision together is through our Climate Resilience Process. Together, we will discern how best to ensure we have safe, accessible, and climate-resilient facilities for generations yet to come. In the coming weeks, you will hear more from our UCM Governing Board about this journey. For now, I invite you to mark your calendar for a special kick-off event on Sunday, September 27, following worship.
On a more personal note, this season of discernment around climate resilience coincides with what I hope will be the completion of my Doctor of Ministry program. My project explores how congregations and their local communities are called to be in relationship in this time of climate crisis, and how we might build resilience together. I will be taking January and February away to focus on writing my thesis. I am deeply grateful for your support, and I hope my project is meaningful to UCM and to other communities of faith.
What a time to be alive. This is the theme that will guide us this year. Amidst all that is unfolding in our community, we are invited to notice the wonder and challenge of being here, now, together.
The river flows. Leaves turn. Birds find their way home. Someone reaches out for a helping hand. Another faces the tender threshold of their final days. New life is welcomed into our midst. And through it all, we are here—witnessing, welcoming, caring, and showing up for one another.
What a gift to be here now together.
With love and hope,
