The Commission on Appraisal

Commission News: Draft of Article II Available for Comments!

Dear Unitarian Universalists:

On behalf of the UUA Commission on Appraisal, I am providing this information to notify you that the Commission is going to recommend changes in Article II, usually referred to as “the Principles and Purposes” in the Association’s By-Laws. We invite you to review the draft and comment on the changes we are thinking of proposing. Article II of the By-Laws includes other important sections on the Sources of Unitarian Universalism, Non-discrimination, and Freedom of Belief. A little background as to how the Commission has come to recommend these changes and planned timetable for the future of this review process might also be helpful.

The By-Laws require that a review of Article II take place every 15 years, and in 2006 the UUA’s Board of Trustees asked the Commission to consider conducting such a review. The Commission is independent of the Board and any other entity of the UUA, and our charge is to review any issue we consider to be important to Unitarian Universalism. After conversation and reflection, we decided to undertake the review of Article II. We:

• reached out to every UU congregation, held a number of regional hearings and one at each of the General Assemblies in 2007 and 2008, interviewed staff of the UUA, read sermons by UU ministers, consulted with many UU “identity groups,” interviewed many leading UU scholars, and received dozens of unsolicited, but very welcome, e-mails, letters and telephone calls;
• devoted time between and during quarterly meetings reviewing, compiling, organizing and reflecting on the mass of data we received; and
• developed the enclosed draft.

Now, it’s your turn. Once again we are asking for your assistance in engaging more voices in this process. Please make every effort to circulate this as widely as possible. We hope to hear from as many UUs as possible by October 16, 2008. You may send your response by letter addressed to the Commission at 25 Beacon Street Boston MA  02108, by e-mail to coa@uua.org, or, preferably, by responding to the online version of the survey, found here.

The time line for the rest of this process is:

• October 16, 2008  Deadline for congregational and other responses
• October 23-26, 2008 COA meets to consider responses
• December 15, 2008  Final draft of our proposal sent to UUA Board
• June 24-28, 2009  General Assembly. At GA the CoA will hold a hearing, provide a  written and verbal report, and host a Mini-assembly. Delegates will vote on preliminary approval (simple majority required).
• June 23-27, 2010  General Assembly. 2/3 majority vote required for adoption.

Please accept our deepest gratitude for the responses you have already given regarding the Article II review and for all you do working to create the Beloved Community.

Sincerely,

Orlanda Brugnola, Chair
For the Commission on Appraisal

 

Upcoming meetings:

Oct. 23-26, 2008- Boston, MA

Jan 22-25, 2009 - Boston, MA

March 26-29, 2009 - Boston, MA

June 24-28, 2009 - Salt Lake City, UT (General Assembly)

Select any of the links below to get more information.

Historical Background

Commission Members The Commission is composed of nine elected members, plus the UUA President ex officio. Three members are elected in odd numbered years to serve a single six year term.

Summaries of Recent Commission Meetings

Prior Reports from the Commission

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Purpose of the Commission

The Commission is charged to "review any function or activity of the Association which in its judgment will benefit from an independent review and report its conclusions to a regular General Assembly." The Commission meets four times a year--once at General Assembly, and three working meetings held in Boston and other locations throughout the continent. During most of our meetings, we hold open hearings to which we invite local UUs so we can hear as many of the different voices of our movement as possible.

Mission Statement

Revised by the Commission, October 2005, Boston, MA:
Grounded in the living tradition of our free and responsible faith, yet charged with acting independently, the Commission’s mission is to provoke deep reflection and to evoke timely, creative transformation of Unitarian Universalism, our congregations, and the Unitarian Universalist Association.