Article II Study Commission Update: July 8, 2022

Commission Studying UU Principles and Sources Extends Feedback Deadline to July 18th

From UUA.org

After such wonderful feedback from the sessions at the 2022 General Assembly (GA), the Commission studying Article II of the Unitarian Universalist Association Bylaws, which will rewrite our Principles and Sources, has extended its deadline for individual feedback to July 18th. 

If you did not attend GA, you may view all the public videos from GA online. The Article II presentations can be found within the following General Sessions under the On-Demand Video section: 

• Introduction to the work, Purpose, and Freedom of Belief in General Session II (beginning with Dan McKanan’s theological framing at 20:35, followed by a presentation at 32:30). 
• Values and Covenant in General Session III (beginning at 24:15, followed by Dr. Elías Ortega’s theological framing at 1:29:20). 
• Inclusion and Inspirations in General Session IV (beginning at 33:00, followed by Rev. Dr. Sofía Betancourt’s theological framing at 1:20:34).

Record your thoughts, comments, questions, and ideas via the GA 2022 – Feedback for Article II Study Commission hub at padlet.com/a2sc/ga22. 

You can learn more at the Article II Study Commission’s website: uua.org/a2sc
Follow the Commission on Facebook:  Article II Study Commission or Instagram: RevUU_A2

Background Information:
Our current Unitarian Universalist (UU) Principles and Sources are listed in Article II of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) Bylaws. Article II is the foundation for the work of our Unitarian Universalist (UU) movement. It encompasses the covenant to which all of our UU congregations and UU covenanted communities pledge themselves when they become members of our UUA. 

Since the founding of the UUA in 1961, our Principles and Sources have been amended several times, with a full review having been conducted last in 1987. The 5th Principle was the subject of a report in 2009, which dealt with the ways in which General Assembly (GA) and other UU gatherings do and don’t embody an inclusive democratic process. At GA in 2017, there was discussion of an amended 1st Principle, addressing non-human life, and of amending the Principles to add the 8th Principle, addressing racism. The 7th Principle has also been the subject of discussions about possible amendments. In response to those discussions, in 2020 the UUA Board established an Article II Study Commission to conduct a full review and consider revisions to Article II of the UUA Bylaws.