IPA stands for IBPOC Plus ALLIES while IBPOC stands for Indigenous, Black, and People of Colour. Welcome to IPA Corner, a new regular feature in UCV’s monthly E-Bulletin with updates about our events and the work we are doing at UCV.  Read on for updates on recent and upcoming events at UCV by your IPA team fostering cultural connections, leading to greater understanding of IBPOC experiences and promotion of healthy relations.  May was Asian Heritage Month and IPA team members participated in several events held in the city as well as lead a service on May 21st!   IPA-led service on Sunday, May 21 – the IPA (IBPOC Plus Allies) lead the May 21 Sunday service. The service was a celebration of what we’ve achieved and learned in our first year of existence. The service was very interactive and participatory, in keeping with the IPA’s mandate of cultural connections and … Continue reading IPA Corner: June 2023

The Healthy Relations Team (HRT) came together last fall. Such a team had existed a few times over the years and has been wanted in recent years. At the request of our interim minister Rev. Lara Cowtan, the current HRT emerged and grew to seven or eight members in a matter of months. Our members come with various skills, experience, and perspectives. At least half of our members have had significant family or personal challenges this year, and like most volunteers around UCV, everyone is busy, so our program development has been slow but the rapport, goodwill, and commitment have been noticeable. We are still here and looking forward to a new church year! A brief summary of activity: A few of us have been approached by some individuals or groups at UCV for consultation or support around sensitive issues. We were able to collaborate with Rev Lara, the MTT, … Continue reading Update from the Healthy Relations Team

“All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy, for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter into another.” – Anatole France This month of June will be my last one with you at UCV, then I will be moving on and you will prepare to receive Rev. Shawn Gauthier as your new Settled Minister.  The past 3 years feel as they have been both long and short, as many complex journeys and relationships are.  We have been through a pandemic together, weathered unexpected storms and also great healing and discovery. We have held steady relative to the wider world of religious bodies during the challenges, and this community is emerging renewed, strengthened and hopeful, even if a bit bruised in places. I am looking back over our time together and re-reading notes I took from … Continue reading Grateful reflections on three years as your Interim Minister

I have just returned from a week in Ottawa where the tulips were in spectacular bloom. I had been on retreat with Canadian ministers and then attending the CUC National Symposium. A lot was packed into this week! If you missed it, I encourage you to watch the powerful Confluence Lecture delivered by Rev. Julie Stoneberg, speaking to where we, as Canadian Unitarian Universalists and Unitarians are now and may be going. People are talking about how inspiring, funny and challenging her message to us all is. It would be interesting to have a discussion group at UCV about the lecture.      Also really fantastic was the Sunday morning Worship service, ably led by Rev. Eric Meter from Ottawa, Rev. Diane Rollert from Montreal and Rev. Fulgence Ndigadimana also from Ottawa, plus the amazing song leading of Susanne Mazairz, Toronto’s Neighbourhood UU Congregation’s Music Director. Enjoy! (Watch the service.) … Continue reading In the interim: Reporting back on the CUC National Symposium

What a week it has been! I left for Ottawa last Wednesday to attend the Canadian Unitarian Council (CUC) gathering, AGM, and Symposium on Living into the 8th Principle. It was an uplifting, challenging, inspiring, and generative weekend. I was pleased to see a few other Vancouver Unitarians in-person and online for the first national multi-platform conference made possible by multiple owl conference cameras (including ours–thank you!) I have been the CUC Board Secretary for the past five years, and I agreed this year to stand as President. It is with humbleness mixed with excitement and trepidation that I step into this role for my last year on the Board.  The people working at the national staff and Board level are kind, courageous, thoughtful, compassionate and dedicated to the thriving growth of our denomination. And we cannot do this work without you.  To thrive as Unitarian-Universalists in Canada we must … Continue reading Vancouver Unitarians at the CUC

Vancouver Unitarian member and Director of Lifespan Faith Development was elected to be President of the Canadian Unitarian Council (CUC) at its Annual General Meeting on 19 May 2023. Congratulations to Kiersten!!  The hybrid meeting lasted 4 hours and included approximately 50 delegates online via zoom and a similar number face to face in Ottawa. At the time of registration CUC was comprised of 41 congregations with 3,845 members with 114 delegates. Some highlights of the meeting: Approved various Bylaw Amendments as presented. Postponed Indefinitely the motion to approve proposed 2023 Goals and Strategic Priorities. This was preceded by extensive discussion of this complex document. The Board will seek more input on it and bring forward a revised document at a future date TBA. Approved a motion to repudiate the Doctrine of Discovery and implement a related action plan. Approved an update of the 2023 budget and a preliminary 2024 … Continue reading Kiersten Moore elected President of CUC for 2023-24

Hearts of Freedom: Stories of South East Asian Refugees Hearts of Freedom is the story of the people of Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam, who came to Canada as refugees between 1975 and 1985 and Canadians who assisted them. The website, created by 170 interviews, tells the experience of refugees who suffered from the Vietnam War and the Khmer Rouge, surviving through the escape journey, as well as the experience of officials and other people of Canada who helped with their resettlement. The exhibit is currently in Vancouver, then will travel across BC, and will be shown across Canada for a year along with the documentary film “Passage of Freedom”. . This is also the story of Canada’s first acceptance of non-white refugee groups. It is also the story of Canada’s creation of the refugee program which became the model for the world. The Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) was the first … Continue reading History and Resources for Asian Heritage Month

By the unanimous decision of those in the Sanctuary and online, UCV members voted on April 30th to call Rev. Shawn Gauthier as our next Settled Minister. Sunday was a joyful culmination of the work of so many in the ministerial transition and search process. We look forward to Rev. Shawn starting at UCV this August! The vote took place at a special meeting held right after Sunday service. Once the results were announced, Rev. Shawn returned to the pulpit to accept the call, thank the Search committee, the Board, Rev. Lara, and all those who made this ministerial transition happen. He then signed his contract and shared brief remarks about his hopes for the congregation and our work together in the coming years, concluding with the words of Mark Belletini: “Go in peace. Live simply at home in yourself. Be just in your word and just in your deed. Remember the depth of … Continue reading Unanimous! Shawn Gauthier is our new Settled Minister

There is a new book club starting up at UCV for LGBTQ+ identified adults to discuss and share LGBTQ+ literature. This will be a potluck style book club, bring what you are reading, have read and enjoyed, talk about an author you love or just come to listen. If you are interested, please email Kiersten at dre@vancouverunitarians.ca. This group will meet on the second Thursday of each month from 7pm to 8pm.

IPA stands for IBPOC Plus ALLIES while IBPOC stands for Indigenous, Black, and People of Colour. Welcome to IPA Corner, a new regular feature in UCV’s monthly E-Bulletin with updates about our events and the work we are doing at UCV.  Read on for updates on recent and upcoming events at UCV by your IPA team fostering cultural connections, leading to greater understanding of IBPOC experiences and promotion of healthy relations.    SECOND Annual Cherry Blossom Picnic – April 2 & 9, 2023 The IPA demonstrated that sometimes in life, we receive curveballs, but we are resilient and know how to pivot! On April 2nd our planned picnic under the cherry blossoms was moved indoors due to heavy rain, and at times hail! That’s Spring in Vancouver for you.  Instead we had an enjoyable indoor celebration, sharing memories of the blossoms, singing songs and even learning about and composing haikus … Continue reading IPA Corner: May Connections and Happenings Springing Forth at UCV

The R&A Koerner Foundation Community Fund contributed a total of $6,750 to finance the installation of a Medicine Wheel at the Alderwood School run by The Children’s Foundation. Alderwood has made a short video after the completion of the wheel in 2022. You can watch a video explaining the project here. The Children’s Foundation website explains the significance of the The Indigenous Medicine Wheel: “a sacred symbol used by many Indigenous cultures throughout North America. It is a circular symbol divided into four quadrants, with each quadrant representing one of the four directions, elements, seasons, stages of life, and spiritual aspects.”    

Final CUC Resolutions for 2023 regarding 1) Bylaws, 2) Goals and Strategic Priorities 3) Repudiation of Doctrine of Discovery 4) Budgets for 2023 and 2024 are in a folder here: Earlier DRAFT resolutions are here. Earlier COMMENTS sent to CUC from UCV members are here.   There was a CUC AGM Plenary on Motions Round Table, 9 AM – 10:30 AM Pacific, on Sat 29 Apr 2023. There were 32 participants including 7 from UCV. Contact CUC or one of the UCV delegates for further information about this event.  Click here for a link to the UCV zoom Forum at 7 pm on 3 May 2023 (open to all UCV Members and Friends) to discuss the final versions of the CUC resolutions. The Forum is intended especially to address the needs of the six delegates who the UCV Board has appointed to represent UCV at the CUC AGM. 1st Image Credit: … Continue reading UCV Denominational Affairs Zoom FORUM, 7 pm, 3 May 2023

Every day we are reminded that we are in a climate emergency.  Unprecedented heat waves, droughts, fires, extreme weather events, floods, refugees – the list goes on. Taken together with the current pandemic, it’s understandable that many of us feel frightened, overwhelmed, powerless.  Where can we find the individual and collective strength to clearly face the truth of the emergency, mourn the damage being done to our blue planet, and inspire ourselves and others to action? From December 2021 to June 2022 the Vancouver Unitarians in co-sponsorship with the Multifaith Action Society hosted a series of talks on this subject by people of religious, faith, and secular backgrounds, including an Indigenous peoples perspective. They were invited to educate, nourish, and inspire us from their respective world views. How are their outlooks challenged by the climate crisis? How might they help us engage more effectively with the crisis and create our … Continue reading Hot off the presses: Read our Climate Justice Dialogue series report

This week is your chance to meet Rev. Shawn Gauthier! You can see a full schedule of Candidating Week events here. In addition to several Tea with Shawn events (both in-person and online), there are three evening forums this week. These events will be multi-platform events and are open to all members and friends of UCV. We hope you will join us this week. The forums will be available as livestreamed events at ucv.im/forum and will the YouTube live video will also be embedded on this page. Tuesday, April 25 7pm: UCV in the Wider World – Conversation on Social Justice and Denominational Outreach  Wednesday, April 26 7pm: Conversation on Worship, Music, Theology, and Ritual Thursday, April 27 7pm: Learning and Growing – Conversation on Religious Education and Faith Formation      

Draft 2023 CUC Resolutions – UCV Members were invited to comment on the draft resolutions and action plans that CUC prepared for approval at the 19 May 2023 Annual General Meeting in Ottawa. Comments were invited in the following areas: Goals and strategic priorities Repudiation of the Doctrine of Discovery CUC Bylaw revisions 2023-24 Budget What UCV members said is summarized anonymously CUC Proposed Resolutions Feedback from UCV – Rev for web 2023-04-17 [38 UCV members provided feedback. The summary is 14 pages and includes 8 charts showing distribution of support for various parts of the resolutions.] Many (but not all) past CUC resolutions from 1969 to 2022 are available as pdf documents here. Next steps in congregational discussions with CUC CUC staff and board members review and discuss feedback from up to 41 member congregations. CUC staff and board revise the resolutions and action plans or affirm them in … Continue reading UCV’s denominational affairs, update – 16 April 2023