2015 UUHA Annual Meeting
[Editor's note: These are the slides from president John Hooper's presentation of the annual meeting on Friday, June 26 at the Portland, Oregon UUA General Assembly.]
June 2015
Introducing the Freethinker Friendly Program
This is my presentation from the "Freethinker Friendly" part of the "Serving the Nonreligious" program at the 2015 UUA General Assembly in Portland, OR on Friday, June 26. I am Maria Greene, the part-time Executive Director of the UU Humanist Association.
Freethinker Friendly is a program of the UU Humanist Association with the goal of helping congregations communicate to their communities that they are welcoming to atheist, agnostic, humanist, and other freethinkers. You can find out more about the program and register your interest on the Programs > Freethinker Friendly page of this website.
Listen to the Presentation
[A special thank you to Adam Gonnerman for creating the video version of this presentation.] Read more about Introducing the Freethinker Friendly Program »
Humanists ARE Joiners!!
This is Kevin Jagoe's part of the "Serving the Nonreligious" talk at the 2015 UUA General Assembly in Portland, OR on Friday, June 26. Kevin is the Media Coordinator and Youth Director at First Unitarian Society, Minneapolis and the newly-elected Member-at-Large of the board of the UU Humanist Association.
In this presentation, Kevin discusses the outreach efforts he is involved with at FUS, and encourages other UU congregations to offer things that humanists and other freethinkers are truly interested in.
Listen to the Presentation
[A special thank you to Adam Gonnerman for creating the video version of this presentation.] Read more about Humanists ARE Joiners!! »
Rowboat in the Woods: the role of Humanism in a Secular Future
This talk by Rev. David Breeden was part of the "Serving the Non-Religious" session at the 2015 UUA General Assembly in Portland, OR on Friday, June 26. David is the senior minister of the First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis which has, "A heritage of forward-thinking humanism at home in the here and now". In this talk, David discusses the changing religious landscape of the FUS neighborhood, and by extension the country at large, then suggests how Unitarian Universalist congregations are going to need to adjust their programming and their thinking to thrive in the new reality.
Listen to the Presentation
[A special thank you to Adam Gonnerman for creating the video version of this presentation.] Read more about Rowboat in the Woods: the role of Humanism in a Secular Future »
UUA, Why Aren't You Nurturing My Spirit?
I laughed out loud yesterday when I got to the bottom of the stairs at the Oregon Convention Center for General Assembly and I saw the giant pendulum swinging in the foyer. Pendulums come up often when I'm discussing the place of humanism in the UUA with the people who come by the UU Humanists' booth in the exhibit hall. In the past, I'm told (since I am a new Unitarian Universalist and wasn't there to see for myself) the pendulum swung toward humanism, and now I'm told (and I see for myself) that it is swinging toward theism. The slow, relentless swing of the gold ball in the foyer is mesmerizing and the force must be tremendous, but I say it's time to stop the pendulum's swing entirely. Read more about UUA, Why Aren't You Nurturing My Spirit? »
The UUHA Joins a Coalition Urging Congress to Support Efforts to Repeal Blasphemy Laws Worldwide
The UU Humanist Association is proud to stand with the AHA and our other Secular Coalition for America partners as signers of this letter to all members of the U.S. House of Representatives encouraging them to support the resolution to oppose blasphemy laws.
---
June 24, 2015
Rep. Ralph Abraham
417 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515-1805
Dear Representative Abraham,
The undersigned secularist, humanist, nontheist, atheist, and religious freedom advocacy organizations write in support of H. Res. 290, a bi-partisan international religious freedom resolution recently introduced by Reps. Joseph Pitts (R-PA) and Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX). Read more about The UUHA Joins a Coalition Urging Congress to Support Efforts to Repeal Blasphemy Laws Worldwide »
Join the UU Humanists at UUA General Assembly 2015
June 24 - 28, 2015
Oregon Convention Center
Portland, Oregon
General Assembly is Our Chance to Gather, Learn, and Celebrate
GA is almost upon us! We are looking forward to Read more about Join the UU Humanists at UUA General Assembly 2015 »
Why Are UU Humanists Overlooked?
Over breakfast this morning, my husband told me about an interesting NY Times article that I should read, "It mentions your UU Humanist organization," he added. I was skeptical, but I thought perhaps I had missed something since I had been busy all day yesterday at a memorial for a cousin and hadn't even glanced at social media. After a quick scan of my Facebook news feed, I concluded he meant this article, "Wanted: A Theology of Atheism", by Molly Worthen. After reading it, I could see why he thought that it had something to do with UU Humanism. Worthen writes, "Humanist fellowships have often imitated the practices of traditional worship. Sunday Assembly’s close relative, the Society for Ethical Culture, has featured rousing music and a lecture at Sunday meetings since 1876." When one encounters the phrase "Humanist fellowships", free association usually causes the phrase "Unitarian Universalism" to come to mind to the initiated. Read more about Why Are UU Humanists Overlooked? »