Our third annual issues election is Sept. 14

Do you feel passionately about feeding the hungry, housing the poor, payingworkers a living wage, reining in the Patriot Act, or reinvigorating the UnitedNations? Do you want our church to become involved in prison reform? Would youlike us to work for universal access to health care? Is there some other socialjustice issue or concern that you feel we should tackle?

The Faith in Action (FIA) Commission is responsible for coordinating the witnessand advocacy program of our church for issues such as these. Each SeptemberFIA holds an all-church, town hall meeting to review FIA programs and to prioritizesocial action activities for the coming year. This year’s annual issueselection will be held after church on September 14. It is the third such electionsince FIA was created in September 2000 and the first since FIA was formallyestablished by congregational vote in May 2003.

The meeting will be in two parts. First, we will review current FIA activitiesrelated to peace, civil liberties, hunger, economic justice, and our newly recognizedstatus as a UU Welcoming Congregation. Members of the congregation attendingthe issues election will have an opportunity to ask questions about these programsand make recommendations about whether or not these programs should be continued.

The second part of the meeting will consist of small group discussions aboutideas for new social action programs and topics. These ideas for the futurewill be pooled and prioritized by group vote. New FIA programs, if any, willbe based on this process.

FIA is committed to focusing our witness and advocacy activities on thoseissues of greatest interest to the congregation. Please come to the annual issueselection on September 14 so we can determine your priorities and be responsiveto your most pressing concerns.

Charles M. Haskell
Chair, FIA Commission