• Worship Service: "Crowns and Dreams": Rev. Kendyl Gibbons, First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis, Minn.

A skit which highlights the polity of the UUA and its history and significance, as well as its promise, was presented at the opening of Friday morning's session. Acting from a script produced by the Rev. Fred Wooden of Brooklyn, N.Y., the actors brought several GA newcomers onto a 'Global Pagan Airlines' flight where they met characters from UU history including Susan B. Anthony, Faustus Socinus, Ethelred Brown, Olympia Brown, and others. The travelers included Jill and Jackie GoodPastor, a same-sex ministry couple and a couple who are longtime GA devotees, all of whom conveyed to the newcomers some of the excitement of General Assembly as well as the history of the Unitarian Universalist movement. Pictured right are Fred Wooden and Lisa Ward, portraying the first-timers on this spiritual pilgrimage which lands them in Rochester.

Friday's Plenary session featured an announcement by Secretary Carl Thitchener that the Rochester GA is the largest in UU history, and included reports from Ellen Campbell, Executive Director of the Canadian Unitarian Council, and Meg Riley, Director of the UUA's Washington, DC Office for Social Justice. Nancy Bartlett, President of the UU Service Committee Board, gave a report on Service Committee activities and presented a moving tribute to Dr. Richard Scobie, Executive Director of the Service Committee who retires this year.

• First Plenary Session: Denny Davidoff, UUA Moderator

The days's plenary concluded with an address by UUA President John Buehrens and included the announcement of an $800,000 grant from the Unitarian Universalist Congregation at Shelter Rock (N.Y.) to help fifty UU congregations move toward supporting a full time religious education professional. Buehrens also announced the calling of the Rev. Cynthia Breen of Seattle, Wash., as Director of the Department of Religious Education, succeeding the Rev. Makanah Morris, who leaves the UUA to begin a co-ministry at the UU Church of Cheyenne, Wy., with her husband, the Rev. Robert Morriss.

• Report of the President: Rev. John Buehrens, President of the UUA. Click here to here Rev. Buehrens' speech.

Among the programs and workshops presented on Friday were:

• Helen Cohen and Dorothy Emerson on "The Impact of Women on the UU Ministry" (Rev. Cohen presented a similar workshop on Ministry Day: click here to read about it.)

• Rev. Scott Alexander on "Spiritual Practices in Everyday Life"

• Deborah Weiner on "Crisis Communications in the Electronic Age"

• Rev. Ellen Brandenburg on "Thinking about Ministry"

• David Parke on "Doing Our First Works Over: Whither Congregational Polity"

• Keith Kron on "Welcoming Congregations: Changes and Next Steps"

• Journey Toward Wholeness Transformation Committee, presenting the JTW program

• John Buehrens and Forrest Church on their new edition of the bestselling Beacon Press book, A Chosen Faith. Click here if you'd like to hear their discussion.

• Ralph Mero, Director of Church Staff Finances, on "Why Our Health Insurance is Making Us Sick"

• Bill Gardiner and Marjorie Bowens Wheatley on "Creating Anti-Racist, Multi-Cultural Congregations"

• Jen Harrison, Sienna Baskin and Alison Purcell on "Start, Nurture and Grow a Local Youth Group"

• Rev. Wayne Arnason on "What Did the Buddhist Say to the Humanist?"

• "Race and Gender" workshop by Rev. Meg Riley and Alyce Gowdy-Wright

Evening presentations included:

• Margot Adler's worship service, "Saving the Earth, Savoring the Planet" (click here to hear her sermon)

• Bernice Johnson Reagon, founder of Sweet Honey in the Rock, was not able to give her talk.

• Beacon Press author Geoffrey Canada, on "Reaching Up to Manhood"

• Jerry King on "Introduction to Capital Campaigns"

• Rev. Marjorie Bowen-Wheatley and Rev. John Buehrens on "Congregational Polity: History and Practice"

Information: info@uua.org