How to Begin

Becoming a member of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Phoenix is straightforward: Learn about us, sign the Membership book, contribute financially if able.

Being a member of UUCP involves more than those simple steps. Committing to our mission, vision, and shared covenant makes membership meaningful. You can read more about our expectations of membership below.

Learn More

Here are some ways to learn about us in addition to attending our online services:

• Attend our “Get to Know UUCP” meeting after service, which is offered monthly. No advance signup is necessary–the link is in the Compass e-newsletter for that week.
• Watch the series of short videos that we have made describing various aspects of our congregational life. These are all on our YouTube Membership playlist, and you can watch them in any order.

Next Steps

If you are considering membership, after learning about our congregation, please email Rev. Christine Dance at minister@phoenixuu.org to arrange for a conversation. We encourage you to attend one of our “Membership at UUCP” sessions, held approximately quarterly for those who are ready to become part of our congregation. We are also happy to answer questions at membership@phoenixuu.org.

We hope you will consider becoming part of this community in which we share our strength in fellowship.

Membership at UUCP

You can download this membership information as a PDF (423KB).

Becoming a Member

Becoming a member of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Phoenix is straightforward: Learn about us, sign the Membership book, contribute financially if able.

These are the relevant paragraphs in our Bylaws:

Qualifications for Membership

1. Any person who has attended an orientation meeting with the minister and/or the appropriate Congregation committee or class, has signed the Membership book, and is over 16 years of age shall be a Member of the Congregation. No subscription to creed shall be required of a person in order to become a member.
2. Youth who have completed the Coming of Age Program may sign the Membership book and become Members of the Congregation regardless of age.
3. Members are required to make an annual financial contribution to the congregation or request a hardship waiver for that fiscal year.

Being a Member

Being a member of UUCP involves more than those simple steps. UUCP is a beloved, engaged, supportive community with a mission and a vision.

Our mission:
Welcoming all in building religious community, called to
      share journeys,
            grow in spirit,
                  advance justice.

Our vision:
To be a spiritual community for our time:
      Theologically Diverse
      Radically Inclusive
      Justice Centered

Committing to those goals makes membership meaningful. In practice, such commitment should include:

• Commitment to presence: Coming together each Sunday, sharing our common experience, because community is central to who we are. We need to be together. Paraphrasing Rev. Galen Guenerich: what we do together in community: songs, words, rituals, silence… is how we experience our faith and pass it along, from person to person and generation to generation.
• Commitment to spiritual growth: Being open to change, deepening your emotional life, nurturing the deepest part of your character. Working intentionally at your own spiritual development is a gift to the congregation and to the larger world.
• Commitment to participation: Giving our talents and time in whatever ways we can makes our mission and vision real and, crucially, connects us to each other more deeply. It is through smaller group activities that we get to know and care about each other.
• Commitment to financial support: Pledging provides our self-supporting congregation the ability to be effective in our members’ lives and to advance our mission in the larger community. Members’ abilities to give vary widely; everyone’s contribution is treated confidentially and with respect.
• Commitment to shared ministry: Recognizing that what we are about is ministry in all its many forms and that we members are responsible for who we are and what we do. Our minister and staff are guides, but the work is ours.
• Commitment to covenant: Making and keeping our promises about how we will be with each other as we share our time and work together.
• Commitment to Unitarian Universalism: Learning about this faith’s history, exploring the resources available regionally and nationally, and influencing its ongoing evolution.

People come to UUCP at all stages of life. We all have our own histories, abilities, and needs, and the community changes and grows as we individually change and grow. Membership means being part of that growth.