In March the top elected lay leader of our denomination came here to give the sermon for our pledge drive kickoff.  Mr. Jim Key is a retired businessman and member of a UU church in South Carolina.  He praised our building expansion progress (now even closer to completion than in March) and our music, community service and religious education ministries, as well as other expressions of our vitality.

He had checked out our website (the older version, before this redesign).  He said it showed a lot of things about our congregation, and it was nice.  However, he said, it did not convey Why It Matters to be part of this congregation.

That has weighed on my mind.  Of course, I put my life into ministry here because I believe deeply that being part of this community does matter.  But why?

Here is the start of a list.

If you wish to add something to it, please do leave a Comment!

• Though technology has made communication faster and easier, it seems even harder to make genuine connections of the soul and heart in these times.
• More and more of us long for a sense of belonging, a place to be known.
• In an age-stratified society, there are few places where people of all generations can gather to learn, grow, grieve, celebrate, sing and share meals together.  We learn and grow through friendships across age categories.
• I’m so busy!  Are you?  At UUSS we are invited to slow down, to reflect on the meaning of life, to honor our own spirits and our need for serenity and hope.
• What is your purpose? Where do you find meaning? The demands of life and its many distractions can keep us from reflecting on the big questions of life.
• Our ministers and members inspire one another to ask life’s big questions.
• There are so many problems in our cities, region, state, and country. And the future of life on the planet is in peril due to climate change and war.  Such issues can be overwhelming.   We affirm that one good person can make a difference, but groups can make a bigger impact.  We gather here to work together–to serve, to speak, to give, and to sing as one strong body.
• Gathering with others can empower us, energize us, and give us hope.
• Cable TV, social media, and partisan politics can make it easy to associate only with people who share your perspectives or prejudices.  In our community, we strive always to learn something new and stretch ourselves.
• We pursue the spiritual values of understanding, empathy, and compassion.
• It’s the reputation of religions that they focus on beliefs and not on actions.  We show that is not always the case.  In a UU community, we focus on how we are together, how we treat other people and how we speak to one another.
• We acknowledge that we are not perfect.  We seek progress, not perfection.
• The loudest and cruelest of the so-called “religious leaders” in this nation and around the world have given a bad name to religion.  Their mean-spiritedness has detracted from the good works and the good will of so many others in all faiths or in no faiths.  We want to support them!
• As a UU community, we join in solidarity with people of who strive to practice more humble, curious, joyful and inclusive forms of spirituality.
• In fellowship across differences of religious tradition, let us all strive to live by the best examples of the great prophets and leaders of humanity.

Fortunately at UUSS we now have this fresh new website, with daily updates on activities and opportunities for connection and involvement.

But let us not forget.  Our events, programs, work parties and meetings are more than ways to “pass the time.”  Our UUSS Mission Statement says “We come together to deepen our lives and to be a force for healing in the world.”  This is why it matters.