Become a Member or Friend
As the sign at the entrance to our church property says, “All Are Welcome” at UUCP. Everyone is welcome to participate with UUCP by visiting our church for Sunday Services or watching online services, mingling during Coffee Hour, and attending events like Second Hour activities and gatherings. Some folks participate with UUCP for months or years, or participate off and on, without officially joining the church, and that is totally okay. Becoming a member of the congregation is a commitment to join our beloved community by entering into covenant with us.
This page provides an overview of what it means to join UUCP by becoming a member, the process of becoming a member or friend, and important information about our denomination and our congregation. You can read straight through, or click on the section titles or links in the text to jump to that section. If you have any questions at any time during this process, contact the Membership Team at UUCPMembership2021@gmail.com.
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What does it mean to become a member of UUCP?
What are the benefits of membership?
What are the steps toward joining the congregation?
Self-paced orientation to UU and UUCP
Can I be involved with UUCP without becoming a member?
What does it mean to become a member of UUCP?
According to our church bylaws, “Any person having reached the age of 15, or having completed pre-membership study acceptable to the Governing Board … , may become a member by agreeing to uphold the principles outlined in Article II of these bylaws and signing the Membership Book and by participating in the life of the congregation through involvement and a record of financial contribution within a church year. The Executive Committee of the Board may grant exceptions.”
Article II of the UUCP bylaws identifies our Mission Statement. The current Mission Statement of UUCP is to Celebrate Diversity, Strive for Justice, and Inspire Love. Article II goes on to state, “We affirm that love is the spirit of this Church and service its law. Our covenant is to dwell together in peace, to seek the truth in love and to help one another.”
What are the benefits of membership?
The primary benefit of membership at UUCP is intangible – the realization that you have found a religious or spiritual home. You are identifying yourself with a group of like-minded people and entering into covenant with us. Many UUCP members find that they make lifelong, deep and meaningful relationships within our community.
When you’ve been a member for six (6) weeks, you’ll be entitled to vote at congregational meetings, stand for an elected position and lead a ministry team. You’ll be eligible to receive the services of the ministerand use the building without a fee for life events such as weddings, memorial services and child dedications. Members can rent the church facility at a discounted rate for personal parties and other events. As a member, you’ll receive the UU World magazine. You will have an entry in the church’s members- and friends-only, web-based directory, calendar, and giving database, which is called Simple Church. Members who pass away are memorialized in our Memorial Garden at no cost.
What is expected of members?
Members are expected to abide by our church mission and covenant and to contribute to the ongoing life of the congregation. We ask each member to make an annual financial pledge which is proportional to their disposable income. It is up to each member to determine the percentage and amount. The purpose of the pledge is to enable our church to budget and plan how to best serve our congregation and community according to the resources available. Each year, usually beginning in February and ending in March, we conduct our annual budget drive to fund the upcoming operating year that begins on July 1st of each year. New members need not wait until the budget drive to make their pledge. The leader of the church Finance Team and/or the Treasurer can answer questions about pledges and contributions.
As members are willing and able, they are asked to donate time and talents to our congregation. We value the diversity of our members’ experiences, skills and talents! Participation can range from serving occasionally as a greeter to accepting a major ongoing team responsibility. The President, Ministry Team Leaders, or the Leadership Development Team can connect you with opportunities to get involved.
What are the steps toward joining the congregation?
After you have connected with UUCP, if you think our congregation is a place where your values can be realized, this may be an appropriate time to take steps toward joining the congregation.
One step is to think carefully about whether you wish to abide by our church Mission Statement to Celebrate Diversity, Strive for Justice, and Inspire Love and whether you wish to uphold our covenant, which defines our relationship with one another and is recited during Sunday Services: “…to dwell together in peace, to seek the truth in love and to help one another.”
If you’re willing to subscribe to that Mission Statement and covenant and to contribute to the ongoing life of the congregation, then another step is to understand Unitarian Universalism generally and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Pensacola specifically. There is no creedal test for membership in a UU congregation. To familiarize yourself with us, you can complete a self-paced orientation on our denomination and our congregation. The orientation includes a review of key elements of UU and UUCP to familiarize yourself with important information – right from our website on your own schedule and at your own pace.
Elements addressed in the orientation include:
- UU and UUCP history and philosophy
- Governance and congregational polity
- Membership
- Programming
- Financial information
- Ways you may consider to become involved.
Self-paced orientation to UU and UUCP
It is suggested that you spend approximately 1 hour (or more) exploring and developing your understanding of our way of being in a faith community. After you’ve reviewed these key components, if you feel ready to move forward, get in touch with the Minister or Membership Team Leader who will answer any questions and may invite you to sign our Membership Book as an official indication of your intention to join us. Several times a year, a New Members Welcoming Ceremony will be part of a Sunday Service. At that time, new members are invited forward to recite a Congregational Covenant together and be recognized by the congregation.
The words of the Congregational Covenant recited together at our New Members Welcoming Ceremony are as follows.
Congregation:
We warmly welcome you into membership. We are glad you have chosen to join us. We know that the ideas, energies, resources and commitments which each of you bring will greatly enrich our vibrant and growing community.
New Members:
Today we celebrate entering membership with the Unitarian Universalist Church of Pensacola. We bring to the community our strengths, our limits and our unique desires. We ask for a place of love and encouragement as we find our way among you. We are glad to be here.
All:
We commit ourselves to an ever-increasing understanding of right relations among us. We value honesty, direct speaking and courtesy in our conflict, courage in our speech, and integrity in our action. We hold one another accountable to our very best intentions. May we be true to ourselves, true to each other, and true to the vision of the beloved community we are ever becoming.
To begin your self-paced orientation, click on the active links in blue to navigate to each page for more information.
About our denomination and church
- About Us
- About Unitarian Universalism
- Our History
- Ministry Teams
- Children’s Religious Education (CRE)
- Location
Visiting and attending services at our church
Elected leadership and governance of UUCP
Budgeting and giving
- FAQs about budgeting and giving
- What does a Fair Share pledge look like?
- I’m ready to pledge!
- The UUCP Charitable Trust
News and events
- Newsletter (The Light)
- Adult Exploration
- UUA Webinar series – Learning and Connection for Smaller Congregations
Connect with us
- Fun and Fellowship
- Volunteer/Get Involved
- Social media
- YouTube page for Unitarian Universalist Church of Pensacola
- Facebook pages
Can I be involved with UUCP without becoming a member?
If you find yourself aligned with UU and UUCP but are not ready to become a member or can’t join at this time for some reason, you have the option to become an official friend of the church. Our congregation bylaws define a friend in this way: “A Friend of this Church is one who supports the Mission Statement of the Church and has chosen not to become a Member, but has participated in the life of the congregation through involvement and/or has made a repeated record of financial contribution within a church year. A Friend can participate in any Church activity except for voting and serving in elected or appointed positions and will not be counted as pledging units for the UUA and District fair annual contributions. Contributing friends shall be listed as such in the church directory and shall receive the newsletter and other communications from the church.” Sometimes official friends eventually become members, and sometimes members convert their affiliation over to friends due to changes in their life circumstances. Either way, if you feel ready to move forward and make your affiliation with UUCP official, get in touch with the Membership Team Leader at UUCPMembership2021@gmail.com to discuss the next step for you.