Membership

Becoming a Member

Why join?

We all wish for a life that has meaning, one that connects us more fully to the people in our lives and to the larger community.   Within the Unitarian Society of Germantown, you may be able to create that more meaningful life.   This supportive, caring community will give you many opportunities to develop spiritually and socially.  By joining USG, you create a deeper connection to this church community, thus honoring and giving meaning to both your life and the life of the church.

How do I prepare for membership?

• We encourage you to learn more about our principles and purposes through reading, worship services, classes, and discussions with members and our minister, the Rev. Kent Matthies.
• We require that you attend a UU101 class which is a one-hour introduction to Unitarian Universalism. It is held on the second Sunday of each month.
• We require that you attend a New Member Orientation which is a one-hour overview and discussion of what it means to be a member of USG.

How do I join?

After meeting the requirements listed above, new members participate in a brief ceremony and sign the USG Records Book. There is no creed you must swear to.

We receive people into membership several times throughout the year, generally the third Sunday of every other month. Upcoming membership signing dates Include:

• Sunday, January 15th, 12:30pm in the sanctuary
• Sunday, March 18th, 12:30pm in the sanctuary
• Sunday, May 20th, 12:30pm in the sanctuary

For more information about the membership process, please contact our Membership Chair, Delores Hill, at 215-247-7338 or membership@usguu.org.

What does membership involve?

Membership in our church brings with it responsibilities and expectations. A community is only as strong as its members and that strength comes from participation, service, gifts of time and money, individual growth, and caring and support of each other. Membership at USG involves mutual commitment.

Our church commits to provide members:

• Excellent worship experiences
• Caring and outreach, including pastoral support and comfort
• Faith development opportunities
• Service opportunities
• Spiritual education for all ages

Individual members commit to provide:

• Regular attendance at worship services
• Work on personal faith development
• Financial generosity to USG
• Volunteer service to USG
• Service to the larger community

What are the responsibilities of members?

To attend church regularly:
Communal worship is extremely important to the life of our church. If you do not partake of it often, you are less likely to feel connected to the spiritual heart of the church.

To work on your own spiritual development:
Unitarian Universalists have no dogma. We believe that each of us is capable of discovering religious truth as it is revealed to us in our lives and within our church community. With the support of the church, we each take responsibility for our own spiritual well being with the support of the church.

To financially support the church:
We don't require a specific level of giving, but an identifiable monetary gift (your name on check or envelope) is required of all members each fiscal year (July 1 to June 30). We do encourage generous, regular financial support on a schedule of your choice. Give until you feel good , and know that your contribution, whatever it  may be, sustains our spiritual home, the Unitarian Society of Germantown.

To serve the church in other ways:
Many tasks and activities of the church community are not done for you but by you. These tasks vary from being an usher at Sunday services to serving on the Board of Trustees. The church community needs hands, hearts and minds. We practice congregational polity, which means that members are the church's final authority. We have annual congregational meetings and special meetings during the year. Your participation is important.

To serve the larger community:
We commit our faith to action and express our beliefs through our actions. The church provides many opportunities for social action.  Acts of caring are an essential part of belonging to a faith community.

In addition, our neighborhoods offer opportunities to express our faith through social action. Recognize that you are part of something bigger than the local church community. We encourage you to become more deeply involved in city, state or national issues.

What are the church’s responsibilities to its members?

To honor and celebrate the diversity of our community:
Our church community seeks to be diverse, inclusive of all ages, races, sexual orientations, abilities, and economic circumstances.

To provide opportunities for growth:
You can expect excellent worship services, social, educational, and spiritual opportunities to broaden friendships and self-understanding. You can expect to be challenged in your theological assumptions, nudged to explore beyond the accepted and everyday religious "sound bites," urged to deepen and celebrate your spirituality, and to be supported in your search for a meaningful faith. Through classes such as “Articulating Your UU Faith” and groups such as Small Group Ministries, you will learn about Unitarian Universalist history and theology .

To provide support and comfort:
Here you can expect a community that will support and comfort you during difficult personal passages and celebrate with you your achievements and joys.

To be tolerant and accepting:
You can expect to find free-thinking religious liberals who place great value on freedom, reason and tolerance. We encourage and promote various theological perspectives within our community.

To provide religious education for children:
If you have children, you can expect an environment and programs that will support them in their own questioning and searching.  We have an outstanding children’s program with high commitment from our adult members.

USG Vision Statement

We are a liberal religious community using our combined resources to demonstrate faith, caring and love; exploring spiritual frontiers; and sharing in the struggle for truth, justice, equality and humanitarianism.

USG Mission Statement

The Mission of the Unitarian Society of Germantown is to meet the spiritual aspirations of people of a free faith through inspiring worship and music, supporting multigenerational life-long religious education, providing a loving, caring, welcoming, and diverse community, and creating opportunities to put the Unitarian Universalist principles into practice in our local community.