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Frequently Asked Questions
When are your
Sunday Services?
How do I find your congregation?
How do I become a
member of the congregation?
What is KUUF's History?
What do Unitarian Universalists believe?
Are Unitarian
Universalists Christian?
What is the Flaming Chalice?
How is the Fellowship Governed?
Why are we
called a Fellowship instead of a Church?
When are your Sunday Services?
Worship Service Times:
Sunday after Labor Day - Sunday before Memorial Day
Family Worship Service: 9:00 - 9:30 a.m.
First Adult Service: 9:45 - 10:45 a.m.
Second Adult Service: 11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Memorial Day to Labor Day - 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
We meet for worship each Sunday at 9:30 and 11:15 a.m. from
the first Sunday after Labor Day through the Sunday before Memorial Day,
and then at 10 a.m. (one service only) from Memorial Day weekend through
Labor Day. Our children's religious education classes meet during the
service. A Fellowship Hour follows the service, with coffee and tea
served, and supervision is provided for children on our playground.
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How do I become
a member of the congregation?
Becoming a member of the Fellowship is fairly easy. All you
need to do is 1) sign the membership book, and 2) be in agreement with our
purpose, as stated in Article II. of our Bylaws, which is printed below:
"The purpose of this Fellowship is: to seek the truth and deeper insights
of all religions, and to draw from the wisdom of all ages and cultures; to
respect in each other and in all the authority of the individual
conscience and the freedom of the mind; to uphold freedom, amity, and
equal rights for all people; to encourage the progressive transformation
and ennoblement of individual and group life in accordance with the
growing vision of humankind without bondage to creeds. To affirm and
promote the use of the democratic process within our congregation."
Sixty days after you sign the membership book, you become a
full voting member, eligible to participate in the Fellowship's democratic
decision-making process. When you are ready to join, please call the
office (377-4724) and make a membership appointment with our minister. Click here for the
responsibilities and benefits of KUUF membership.
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Are Unitarian
Universalists Christian?
Both the Unitarian and the Universalist faiths arose from
liberal Christianity in 17th and 18th century England and America, during
the Enlightenment, a time of exciting Biblical scholarship and discovery.
Our roots are in the Jewish and Christian religions, but in the ensuing
years, our vision has expanded to include wisdom from the world's
religions, earth-centered religious traditions, feminist theology, the
arts and sciences, literature and other cultural forms. We view all of
these as valuable sources of truth, just as we view the sacred as being an
inherent dimension of life. Some of our congregations self-identify as
Christian, and some, including KUUF have "Partner Church" relationships
with Unitarian congregations in Romania which are Christian.
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What is the Flaming Chalice?
At the opening of our Sunday worship service, we light a
flame inside a pottery chalice. This "flaming chalice" has become a
well-known symbol of our denomination. It combines two archetypes -- a
drinking vessel and a flame -- each of which has many different religious
meanings. The flame and the chalice were brought together as a Unitarian
symbol in 1941 by an Austrian artist, Hans Deutsch, for the Unitarian
Service Committee, which then was helping Jews escape Nazi persecution.
There is no single, official interpretation of the flaming
chalice, and indeed, not all Unitarian Universalist congregations use this
symbol. For us, the chalice symbolizes the common cup of seeking humanity
-- it symbolizes our beloved community. The flame is our symbol of
creative truth, of illumination, of courage and the passion for justice.
The flaming chalice symbol is often set within two
interlocking circles, which represent the two faiths which merged in 1961
-- Unitarian and Universalist. The chalice is set off-center, to indicate
that we do not believe our way in religion to be the only way.
In the illustration of the symbol which we use here at the Fellowship, the
two faiths -- Unitarian and Universalist -- are represented by the two
mountain peaks that form the chalice which cradles the flame. The
mountains also reference our location just east of the beautiful Olympic
Range. In our symbol the flaming chalice is enclosed in a circle, but the
flame breaks the circle, in honor of our conviction that revelation is not
a closed circle, but is continuous and open, and also to indicate that our
community's doors are open to all.
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How is the Fellowship
Governed?
KUUF is governed by a nine-member Board of Trustees, which is
elected by the members of the congregation. The Board meets monthly and
has general charge of the property and funds of the Fellowship, the
conduct of all its business affairs and the control of its administration,
including the appointment of committees as the Board deems necessary, and
filling vacancies on the Board itself until the next-scheduled
congregational meeting. If there is a transaction that will obligate the
Fellowship to exceed five percent of the annual approved budget, it must
be approved by the membership at a duly-called business meeting.
Meetings of the Board of Trustees are open to all voting
members as observers, and all members are welcome to attend, however the
Board may go into executive session and ask all non-trustees to leave the
room. No final or formal action may be taken when the Board is in
executive session. Five trustees constitute a quorum. Major policy issues
are referred to the congregation for a vote.
Trustees of the Board are elected at the Annual
Congregational Meeting in April from a slate nominated by the Nominating
Committee. Three are elected each year to three-year terms, to provide for
overlapping leadership. No trustee may serve more than six years
consecutively; after two terms on the Board, an individual may not be
re-elected for a period of two years.
Under the Unitarian Universalist system of "congregational polity,"
Fellowship members have a great deal of power in decision-making that
affects the Fellowship. We believe in the democratic process! There is a
minimum of one congregational meeting each year, and the Board may call
additional meetings as it feels necessary. Ten percent of the voting
membership may also call a congregational meeting. For more detailed
information, please call the Fellowship office and request a copy of our
bylaws. Back to top
Why Are We
Called a Fellowship Instead of a Church?
Unitarian Universalist congregations use many different
names: church, fellowship, society, association and congregation are the
most common.
The use of the word "fellowship" dates to the 1940s and 50s,
a time when there were more people interested in coming together in
Unitarian congregations than there were ordained ministers to serve them.
A program of the American Unitarian Association now known as the
"fellowship movement" began, under which dozens of small Unitarian groups
led by lay persons were organized around the United States. KUUF came into
being under this program.
Like KUUF, many congregations begun during the fellowship
movement have grown and called ministers to serve them. Some congregations
have changed their names from "fellowship," to "church" or "society." We
retain the historical term "fellowship" in our name because in its best
sense, fellowship means companionship on the path, friendly relationship,
a community of caring. And that is what KUUF seeks to offer: a spiritual
community of caring companionship to nourish us to face the challenges our
lives bring, and to challenge us to act for the greater good.
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 4418 Perry Ave NE
PO Box 2015
Bremerton, Washington
98310
360.377.4724
admin@kuuf.org
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