Membership 

"Beings have gathered for centuries seeking a higher purpose and deeper life than they could find alone. We are grateful that you have found your way here, and that you have decided to make a commitment to this faith community. We hope that you will allow yourselves to know and to be known, to minister to and to be ministered unto, to love and to be loved, by this community." —Rev. Victoria Weinstein, adapted

Membership in Unitarian Universalism

Membership in a Unitarian Universalist congregation is a rich and fulfilling experience. Congregations who are able to embrace all that it means to be a member are in the best position to ensure that members remain active and contributing parts of the community.

What brought you to Unitarian Universalism and your own congregation? A strong religious education program for children and youth is essential to healthy membership development and retention. With schedules as busy as they are today, families seek activities that they can do together and places that have meaning for them as a family. Excitement and ownership by the youngest members of a family will keep adults coming as well.

Covenant groups, affinity groups, supper clubs, neighborhood groups, book clubs, and groups that assist with specific difficult transitions—such as groups for caregivers of elderly parents—can all provide the type of support that will keep members connected to the community.

Our members know that we have many kinds of theological diversity in our congregations. Spiritual diversity is based on the differences in what we do—our practices. Our diversity is a blessing, and we encourage our members to explore their own experience with religious practice, with meditation, with understanding what language of the spirit evokes in them.

With a tradition of independent congregations and a long history of outstanding and courageous lay leadership, Unitarian Universalist congregations have long understood that membership means involvement. Our ministers share leadership with our lay leaders, albeit not always without some uneasiness. When the idea of shared ministry was introduced to our congregations in the 1990s, it gave a vocabulary for what we have long believed: that a congregation will only be successful if its members give of their time, money, and talents and if that ministry is more than what the professional minister does.

Being a member of a UU congregation requires as much “inreach” as outreach, for the development of a strong Unitarian Universalist identity is one way to ensure that adults stay involved and that youth and young adults seek guidance and comfort from their Unitarian Universalist religious homes when needed. New members are often attracted by the freedom and breadth of Unitarian Universalism. More seasoned members may be seeking depth. A congregation needs the ability to provide both authentic personal relationships and religious resources to engage the mind and spirit at the deepest levels. Membership in a UU congregation is an ongoing journey that does not stop when one “signs the book.”

Becoming a Member of the Unitarian Universalist Church in Reston (UUCR)

Definition of membership from the UUCR Constitution: We welcome members of any creed, faith, national origin, race or color, social status, gender, sexual or affectional orientation, physical or mental ability or other similar classification. The Constitution describes Active [voting] members as "those members eighteen years of age and over whose residence permits regular attendance at services and participation in Church affairs, and who give tangible support to the Church."

What You Get Out of Membership

• A supportive community of fellow seekers where you can continue your spiritual journey
• A place to be renewed and inspired in the company of friends
• A place where you mya join with others to do good works in the larger community
• A place where you can share your talents and expand your social network

What You Give to Our Community

• A commitment to help with the work of the church in its committees, events, etc.
• A commitment to support the church financially to the best of your ability
• A commitment to make connections through small group activities
• A commitment to participate in our congregatiional polity by attending meetings and becoming informed about issues involving the congregation

How to Become a Member

• Attend services and events to see if this feels like a place you can call your spiritual home
• Participate in Newcomer Orientation sessions to learn more about our church and our denomination
• Ask questions of the membership committee, lay leaders, and minister
• When you feel ready to jolin, agree to sign the Membership Book and be recognized in a New Member Sunday ceremony