Getting the Most out of Your Membership Requires Your Time
Participate in the Life of the Congregation
Communal worship is extremely important. Attend services regularly, and come to congregational meetings. Through participation, you are knit into the fabric of this fellowship and give life to the reason you decided to become a Member.
Work on Your Spiritual Development
We believe that each of us is capable of discovering religious truth as it is revealed to us in our lives and within our community. We each take responsibility for our own spiritual well being with the support of the congregation.
Be a Steward of this Congregation
Use your talents and interests to serve the congregation and preserve it for future Unitarian Universalists. We need hands, hearts and minds. That means sharing the work, doing the chores, and joining committees. We cannot succeed in our mission without your involvement. Not surprisingly, taking care of UU Asheville (the goal of a steward) means contributing not just hands, hearts and minds, but money, too. The financial support of our congregation comes primarily from the generosity of our Members. We ask you to make a written financial commitment every year, an annual pledge. This is necessary so that the Board of Trustees can develop a responsible financial plan for the coming year and bring it to the congregation for approval.
Serve Others
We commit our faith to action and demonstrate through our service to others what we say with our mouths. The congregation is actively engaged in a number of social causes; however, there are many opportunities in each of our lives for outreach to others. Acts of caring are an essential part of belonging to a faith community.
Connect to the Wider Unitarian Universalist Movement
We encourage you to become involved at deeper levels in the Unitarian Universalist movement. As a Member you will receive the UU World magazine. We encourage you to attend Unitarian Universalist camps, conferences, workshops and the denomination’s annual meeting.
Honor and Celebrate Diversity
Our UU Asheville community seeks and celebrates diversity, inclusive of all ages, colors, sexual orientations, gender identities, abilities, and classes.
Benefits of Membership
Becoming Part of a Community
When you become a Member of our congregation, you become part of a growing, living institution. Our community is one of give and take, supporting and nurturing, exploring and growing.
Support and Comfort
At the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Asheville you can expect a community that, if given the opportunity, will support and comfort you during personal and family transitions and passages. When you are in need, please contact the office.
Opportunities for Growth
You can expect any number of social, educational, and spiritual outlets and opportunities at the church as ways to broaden friendships and self-understanding. You can expect to be challenged in your theological assumptions, nudged to explore beyond the accepted and everyday religious “sound bites,” urged to deepen your spirituality, and to be supported in your search for a meaningful faith.
Religious Education for Children and Youth
If you have children, you can expect an environment and program that will support them in their own questioning and searching. We have an outstanding children’s program with high commitment from our adults.
Adult Education
There are ample opportunities (forums and classes) for adults to explore various topics and expand their knowledge.
Acceptance
You can expect to find free-thinking religious people who place great value on freedom, reason and tolerance. You should expect to be supported as you practice different spiritual practices within our principles.
A Welcoming Congregation
Our congregation is an official Welcoming Congregation for LGBTQ persons. The congregation became a Welcoming Congregation in 1999 after a multi-year period of study and reflection by congregation Members.