Advertisement
Miscellaneous tidbits from the final day of the UUA General Assembly:
- Delegates filled out ballots to record their favorites among the 30 mission-oriented statements that emerged from the Open Space exercise in which more than 1,000 attendees participated. Each delegate was allowed five votes to use as they wished—one vote for each of five statements, all five votes for one statement, or any combination in between. Moderator Gini Courter told delegates that the results wouldn’t be tallied till August or September, and that the UUA Board of Trustees would discuss the prioritized list at its October meeting as part of its discernment in seeking mission understanding. There were three major themes among the statements: Support of youth, antiracism, and the environment.
Delegates approved two bylaw changes without debate, adding “Chief Governance Officer” to the description of the moderator’s duties and refining language in the bylaws governing the Board of Review, an elected body that hears appeals of Ministerial Fellowship Decisions.
The final tally showed total registration of 5,697, including 2,428 delegates from 643 congregations. UUA Secretary Paul Rickter said the large attendance had overwhelmed program space and that the GA Planning Committee had agreed to provide free CDs of the workshops that had turned away the most people.
After a representative of the UU Church of Fort Lauderdale sang an invitation to next year’s General Assembly there, Elisabeth McGregor, the new chair of the General Assembly, moved that the 2007 Assembly be adjourned—15 minutes ahead of schedule.