"A progressive church serving the Pine Belt of
Mississippi since 1906. A theologically diverse congregation in which
all individuals are encouraged to seek their own "truth."
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Church
Membership
Steps
Meaningful
church membership is a significant part of the cultivation of
our souls. Here are some simple steps you can take for your own
spiritual growth at
Our Home Universalist Unitarian Church:
Our Home Universalist Unitarian Church:
What is more
important in our lives than worship? But, compared to the urgent
demands of our bodies, families, and jobs, our need for worship
can more easily be postponed. A spiritual discipline and habit
of making time for worship helps us cultivate our souls and know
ourselves. Regular worship services at Our Home Church are
offered every Sunday at 11 AM. Arriving early allows for an
opportunity to visit with fellow congregants and to hear all the
announcements.
Learn
Beyond reading
the free brochures available in the vestibule and books
available from the church library, participate in adult
religious education. A group is scheduled to meet at 9:30 AM on
Sundays.
Contribute
and Join
When you come
to the point that you want your money to help increase the
volume of our church's message to Mississippi and through our
association with 1,034 other Unitarian Universalist
congregations--to the South, to all of North America, and to the
world, you are ready to join Our Home Church. Recorded financial
contributions substantiate your commitment to practical support
of this free faith. For each member, our church's fair share to
our association's work annually is $39.00 per member to the
Unitarian Universalist Association in Boston and $15.00 to the
Mid-South District office in Oxford, Mississippi. Our Home Church
counts as certified members all those who have (1) recorded
financial contributions (by checks or by writing their names on
envelopes containing cash) totaling at least $54.00 each year to
cover these dues requested by Boston and Oxford and (2) signed
the Our Home membership book.
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Volunteer
The best way to
learn something is to teach it. In tackling new tasks with
previously learned skills, we stretch ourselves. Making time for
what is most important to us develops integrity of life and
soul. Won't you take part in our cause by beginning to assist
our volunteer board members in ongoing projects in the church?
Or, if you notice a need within our church in which you feel
your light could shine, raise it with any of the board members
whose names are listed in the newsletter. Some you might
consider taking a turn over the next few months include:
greeter, children's religious education, database management,
Internet publicity, bylaws revision, representing our church at
district or associational events (see publications or log onto
http://www.uua.org).
A word of spiritual caution: church members are not immune to
the inevitable misunderstandings and conflicts of bringing
individuals of diverse personalities together. To expect zero
criticism in the church could suppress communication, inhibit
honest disagreement, and diminish creative thinking. The fact of
life is that various people, including the lay leader, will not
fulfill all your expectations. If you commit to a task in the
church and become disappointed or find for whatever reason that
you cannot fulfill it, please let a board member know as soon as
possible. It is better to release a steady stream of healthy
confrontations than let misunderstandings and disagreements
silently pressurize until they explode. We cannot be all things
to all people but we are committed to the democratic process
within our congregation and society at large.
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Signing the membership
book is such a simple act that some qualifying contributors put it off.
But it is a profoundly significant choice to enter deliberately into the
stream of this local congregation's history. By signing the membership
book, you officially identify yourself with a long line of principled
souls committed to such noble ideals as freedom, tolerance, and reason
in religion-some of whom paid with their lives for such a declaration.
Mention your willingness to sign the membership book to a board member.
You could add delight to our joy by signing publicly during a worship
service. Bear in mind that by choosing to keep membership open to all
who give just enough to cover our church's fair share to the national
and district offices, the church board has trusted all members to
contribute beyond that as they see fit to the greater local expenses. In
a sense, it is not until after the first $54 that a member really
begins to contribute to Our Home Church. As a spiritual discipline to
keeping your heart liberally generous, consider the goal of donating to
the church 5% of your income. Consider arranging a major gift to the
church in your will. Contact a board member for details. Following these simple steps should take you a long way toward meaningful membership in Our Home Universalist Unitarian Church. Wherever you are, won't you take the next step to foster your own and others' spiritual growth? ~ For more information, please E-mail or call |
