Testimonies
As members and friends of UUCF, "We join together to encourage spiritual growth, build a beloved community, and act for peace and justice." Related to our mission statement:
- Do you have a story of how your experience at UUCF has made a difference in your life?
- How has UUCF helped you grow spiritually, connect with beloved community, or act for peace and justice?
We are looking for brief vignettes that share about a transformative experience that has already happened, not plans for the future or announcements.
The experience could be individual to you or part of the ongoing work of a program, team, or committee.
How to Participate
If you would like to offer a testimony, please email a draft (up to 200 words) to Rev. Carl (). He can both work with you on the draft and schedule you for an upcoming Sunday morning.
- Please also include whether you are available to share your testimony during the Early Service, the Late Service, or both. (Note on scheduling: 3rd Sundays are typically reserved for split-plates, March for Stewardship, and late August / early September for Chalice Communities. In addition, you can view the upcoming date openings in the testimony column of frederickuu.org/services.)
- Please avoid beginning your testimony with "Good morning" or "Good afternoon." Just go into your testimony, continuing with the flow of the service.
Logistics
The morning you are scheduled to speak:
- Please come forward to the pulpit during the last verse of the post-sermon hymn, so that you are behind the pulpit and ready to speak as soon as the congregation sits.
- Adjust the microphone as needed for your height, so that you can speak directly into it.
- After sharing your testimony (up to 200 words), please end by saying, "To support this congregation, which makes experiences like this one possible, we invite you to make a one-time or recurring donation either online through the "give" link on our homepage or through the offering plate here in the sanctuary. The offering will be gratefully received," which the the weekly cue for the musician(s) to start the anthem.
- Finally, please hand the ushers the 3 baskets on the upper shelf behind the pulpit -- two baskets per usher. (Please hand them the baskets away from the lit chalice.) You can then be seated and either Rev. Carl or the Liturgist will give the words of gratitude for when the offertory ends.
Thank you for sharing your story with our congregation!
Resources
For inspiration, read Testimony: The Transformative Power of Unitarian Universalism, edited by Meg Riley
(The short link to this page is frederickuu.org/testimony.)