P R E S S R E L E A S E P R E S S R E L E A S E P R E S S R E L E A S EUnitarian Universalist Association of Congregations
Contact: John Hurley, Director of Information
UUA Headquarters-Boston (617) 742-2100 X131
Email: jhurley@uua.org
www.uua.orgFor Release: June 26, 2000 Unitarian Universalists Conclude Record-Breaking General Assembly(Nashville, TN --June 26) Unitarian Universalists who traveled to Nashville from across North America tonight concluded their annual General Assembly with a ceremony featuring the wondrous sounds of the Children's Honor Choir. More than 4,100 UUs, record attendance for a General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association, spent five days listening to reports from denominational leaders, participating in worship services, and attending workshops on subjects ranging from abortion rights to Zen Buddhism.
Highlights of the General Assembly included a lecture by Morris Dees, the co-founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center, on the struggle to create a more tolerant America, and an impassioned sermon on economic injustice by the Rev. Marilyn Sewell, senior minister of First Unitarian Church in Portland, OR, at Sunday's Service of the Living Tradition, a worship service that honors the Association's professional ministry.
Of the five study action issues under review, the assembled delegates voted to send the one calling for the reformulation of drug policies ("the war on drugs") on to the 1,050 Unitarian Universalist congregations for further review. They also passed resolutions calling for an end to the death penalty, urging campaign finance reform, and calling for the registration and licensing of handguns. Another resolution called for support for the Dalai Lama and for the withdrawal of China from Tibet.
An unscheduled yet significant event at the General Assembly was provided by a group of Unitarian Universalist youth. Reacting to the sight of a homeless man in a Nashville park, the group collected $300 from among their ranks, used the money to buy food, and delivered the food to a local homeless shelter. After announcing their actions in a plenary session of the General Assembly, the young people raised an additional $2,700 to aid the homeless.
Unitarian Universalism is a liberal, creedless religion with Judeo-Christian roots. The UUA, headquartered in Boston, MA, was formed in 1961 through the merger of the Universalist Church of America and the American Unitarian Association. For further information on Unitarian Universalism or the General Assembly, please check the UUA website (www.uua.org) or contact the UUA's Office of Information at (617) 742-2100 x652 or info@uua.org