Capital Unitarian Universalist Congregation

Being different from others is something we all have in common. It can make us feel valued or isolated, truly whole or deeply divided. What does “us being different together” make possible?

Anna Isaacs is nearing a decade as a fervent UU and is rapidly approaching retirement from young adult status. She is a member of both First Unitarian Church of Victoria and the small lay-lead Capital Unitarian Universalist Congregation in downtown Victoria.

Sixty years ago, on this date in 1954, the first mass inoculation of children against polio with the Salk vaccine began in the US. Victoria was among many Canadian cities which were struck by polio epidemics. Polio has been essentially eradicated. For many Unitarians, openness to science is a spiritual practice.

What does our Sunday service have in common with some of the first services after the reformation? How has our structure changed since then? Join Rosemary as she delves into the rich heritage that is our Living Tradition.

Gathered from 1866 by the second Catholic Bishop of Victoria, Charles Seghers, the Seghers Collections comprise some 4000 volumes, most of them ancient treating of theology, ecclesiastical history, and canon law. On permanent loan in UVic collections, they are beautiful books, which should have been the pride of a seminary library, they have no other readership than bibliographers now. Why do we collect, keep, and study book collections that no longer represent our communities? Hélène’s talk will explore the values, communitarian and spiritual of books and collections: an iconic book is an identity, a material book can be a piece of freedom.

Pursuing diversity, compassion, and equity in our congregations requires our willingness to be dead wrong about the world. This is a good thing, and I’ll talk about why.
Sam is a member of First Unitarian Church of Victoria and has two delightful children, Lucas and Mary Stefanie, and is pursuing a Master’s Degree at UVic.

Looking at some of the issues from a Unitarian point of view. The Social Justice Committee of First Unitarian Church of Victoria is involved in exploring some of the current concerns in preparation for the CUC study we hope we will all be doing next year. (There is a study resolution coming up this May at the CUC annual meeting in Montreal.) The presenters are Christine Johnston, Virginia Daniel, Dr. Ed Daniel and Dr. Adrian Fine.

WHY did you become a Unitarian Universalist? What was the delight, emotion, rational thought that drew you to our denomination? How would you express that to someone who has no idea what UUism is? WHY should they join us and how it would change their life for the better?

D L Seaborn will share a sermon (by Rev Rod Richards) that she enjoyed while visiting  the Unitarian Universalist Church of San Luis Obispo.

Unitarian and UU congregations around the world use the image of a lit chalice as a symbol of the religion. UU services and many UU meetings feature a chalice. Why do we do that?

Also, once a year Unitarian congregations in Canada are asked to contribute to the national Sharing Our Faith fund, which gives grants for special UU projects. Please bring a cheque.

At John and Sara’s Ark.  Please speak to a Board member or Amanda for directions

Following on from our first Principle the second Principle states: “Justice, equity, and compassion in human relations”. Let’s get to the bottom of what justice and equity really mean. Being a part of a religious community provides a platform and an opportunity for us to deepen compassion. Do we take this opportunity? How do we live this
second principle every day?

To create the systems we envision, beyond the reaches of oppression and inequity, we must look to ourselves, those around us, and the earth which sustains us to find meaning, inspiration and power.

Looking into ourselves, looking into our communities, and truly breaking down the structures of violence and appropriation, we find the role and power of connection. I’ll share my experience on how building community focused on food security has helped me discover this role, and taught me the power of connection.”