What Do I Love About TJMC-UU
This year’s Stewardship Campaign, “Taking Care of the Church We Love,” is in full swing. It is a time to contemplate our pledges of financial support for the coming year, and in doing so each of us may ask ourselves: What is it that I love about TJMC-UU? Our individual answers to that question will vary, but it is worthwhile to consider some of the ways in which each of us may be drawn to our congregation.
For some, the strength of connection may be through the spiritual practice of liberal religion. In this regard, TJMC-UU is a precious resource. Its ministry, worship services, Religious Education and Adult Faith Development programs, and such groups as the Labyrinth Ministry, UU Christian Fellowship, Buddhist Sangha, and NatureSpirit, offer keys with which to open doors on our paths of deep spiritual growth. Our efforts at moral development are furthermore put into action in examples of conscientious citizenship. Through such groups as PACEM, IMPACT, Green Sanctuary, and Undoing Racism, our congregation is engaged with with the Charlottesville and Albemarle area, and beyond, in a dedicated pursuit of social justice.
For many, the church is above all a place of community. What we love about TJMC-UU may stand beyond its ideas, or its buildings and grounds, to the people and families who make it live and breathe. The history of our congregation is a human story, in which TJMC-UU has served as the (one and only) center of UU community in central Virginia. We’ve become friends at parties and social events, on the playground, when we’ve worked shoulder-to-shoulder at our volunteer efforts, and when we’ve sung together during our services. We are a network of people on which we rely for support. Our friendships are strengthened in Covenant Groups and at Circle Dinners; we take care of each other through the work of Carenet and the Pastoral Visitors; we find camaraderie in such groups as Active Minds, UUppity Women, UU Guys, Gay Straight Alliance, Twenties ‘n’ Thirties, and the Fourties and Fifties UU Network (FFUUN); those no longer with us are honored in our Remembrance Garden; and our hand of friendship extends far to our partner churches in Romania and India.
As UUs, we recite no common creed, our concept of faith is nuanced, and we know that our codified set of purposes and principles do not tell the whole story. Yet we love TJMC-UU deeply because of what it stands for, because it proudly holds the torch of liberal religion in an age where few such lights shine. We may recognize that stewardship of our church, by simply permitting TJMC-UU to exist, automatically translates to stewardship of the greater cause of free religious discourse.
We are a church who’s gifts are put into action and given back. As you contemplate your pledge, please think about what you love about TJMC-UU. If in doing so your thoughts lead you to an interesting story to tell or sentiment to express, please let us know. Submit your thoughts to stewardship@uucharlottesville.org and we will gladly post it on our “Stewardship Blog.”