Cedars Unitarian Universalist Church

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From the President
May 2008

One hundred percent!  Wow!  Who said that Unitarian Universalists couldn’t agree unanimously on anything?  The congregational meeting of Sunday, April 20, 2008 will be forever a high point in Cedars’ history, an auspicious beginning to an era of stability, strength and growth.  As we become more grounded in our UU spirituality, more effective in our mission, and joyful in our faith community, we can be a stronger voice for social justice, peace and compassion in the world. 

We are realizing our dreams of settled ministry, with co-ministers who have depth and breadth of experience as well as a creative spark eager to try new paths and ideas.  How did we get here?  How did we get so lucky?  I do think we’ve earned it, in part.  We didn’t get stuck in past obstacles but learned important lessons.  We’ve hung together through thick and thin, even when “disappointment pierced [us] through, still [we] kept on loving” and coming together, inspired by our faith community.  We’ve supported this search process with excitement, generosity and faith; in ourselves, and in the value of ministry for our community.

In part, we had some invaluable help: nurturance and guidance from our Interim Minister, Rev. Julie Forest, who loved us just as we were, slightly abused and wounded.  Of all her wonderful gifts, the one most important to me has been restoring our faith in UU ministry and restoring our faith in ourselves.



Channie Peters
President

We also had the diligence, intelligence, good judgment, and hard work of the best possible Ministerial Search Committee.  As I said last month, there’s no way that meeting candidates one or two times could tell me whether we had a good match; but I had so much confidence in our Search Committee and in the process, that I was willing to make a leap of faith (and after meeting Barbara and Jaco ten Hove, I had every reason to “believe”).  This is why I hope that every member of our Search Committee considers the 100% vote to also be a vote of confidence in them, their hard work, and their careful judgment.

As for the jubilant post-meeting celebration, we have so many people to thank: especially the West Winslow neighborhood team, and all the Friends who helped set up and clean up.  Without the help of Carolyn and Bob Meredith, the sandwiches and cake might still be in the back of my car.  And without the help of LN Salsbury, Molly Clawson and Ariana Alexander, I’d still be in the kitchen washing dishes!

So where do we go from here?  As a healthy congregation, we regularly rummage in our archives (thank you, Richard) to honor our past; we celebrate our present; and we will chart our future with anticipation and hope.

        Channie Peters, President

                            

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