Weekly News May 22, 2026
 May 22, 2026 Something For the Moment The Wheel of the Year: Do you long to get out of extractive, productivity-driven clock time and lean into something real, rooted in Earth’s seasons? Please join Rev. Catharine Clarenbach as she introduces the Wheel of the Year, one way of engaging and inhabiting time inspired by Celtic folk traditions and found frequently in Earth-based spiritualities, as in many traditions of Wicca. Find out more and register to join Catharine on Tuesday, May 26th from 4-5:30pm ET/3-4:30pm CT/2-3:30pm MT/1-2:30pm PT. Chapter Leader Call: Thank you to all Chapter Leaders who were able to join us this week for our Chapter Leader Calls! Did you miss this week’s calls? Last chance to join us for this seasons’ calls on May 26 at 8pm ET/ 7pm CT/ 6pm MT/ 5pm. Dialogue Session and Annual Meeting Packet: The Board of Trustees wants to meet with you for a conversation on issues vital to our shared profession. This Dialogue Session will focus on the upcoming votes at General Assembly. Our board is eager to hear members’ questions and thoughts about these GA proposals as they consider their response. We are glad to be joined by UUA Co-Moderators Rev. Kimberly Quinn Johnson and Bill Young. Please check your emails for a special message from us about the Dialogue Session and an updated version of our Annual Meeting Packet.  Something for the Journey Melissa Carvill Ziemer, Director of MInistries and Programs With gratitude to the Search Committee for their diligent work, I’m so glad to add my congratulations and warm welcome to Rev. Mr. Barb Greve to the position of Co-Executive Director of Ministries and Programs of the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association. It has been my honor and privilege to hold this role and to dedicate myself to you and your ministries dear colleagues. It is a blessing to know that I will be passing the mantle of leadership to someone with as much experience, skill and proven dedication as Barb. My prayers and abundant well wishes are with him and Janette for the shared ministry they will build and with all of our incredible staff and volunteer leaders who will carry forward the vital work and always, colleagues, with you. As for me, I’m so happy to share that I’ve gratefully accepted the call to serve as the next settled minister of the Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence. In this time of so much crisis and heartache and fear, my heart is calling me to be rooted in ministry with a people and a place and I’m so grateful I will have that opportunity to answer my call with a congregation right here in the place where I already live in Western Massachusetts. This means more goodbyes for me as I’m also resigning from my Affiliated Community Ministry role with First Parish in Northfield. I’m working hard to end well there and here and to stay present to all that is my life personally, vocationally, humanly, for this time that I have been given to love our broken and beautiful world. Something from Rev. Mr. Barb Greve With deep gratitude to the search committee for a wonderful search process and lovely conversations, I am honored and excited to be joining the UUMA staff team as your new Co-Executive Director! I have been (pleasantly) overwhelmed by your cheers of congratulations as well as your offers of support and service. As I shift away from the bedside of hospice patients, I am holding tenderly the fragility of life and death, interconnectedness and ministry. What we do matters. Whether you are ministering in the quiet spaces of homes, the chaotic spaces of street justice, the places of learning and teaching, where our troops are gathered, from the pulpit, or in the mundane moments of day-to-day life; your ministry matters. My hope as I move into this new role is that my passion for collaboration, advocacy, support, innovation, and governance is so contagious that you will find yourself joining in unexpected ways. For we need one another if we and our profession are to survive with spirits alive and resources abundant. With gratitude for your trust, I humbly take up this mantel thankful for the work that preceded me and committed to keeping us moving forward. Something for Formation UU Wellspring Orientation for Aspirants and Candidates: Join us on June 6, 2026 12pm ET/11am CT/10am MT/9am PT. Aspirants and Candidates who participate in this orientation will receive priority access to register for the summer (and fall!) UU Wellspring Love at the Center Program. This small group ministry integrates spiritual practice, UU identity formation and community care. Folks who are newer to UUism and/or attending non-UU theological schools will find support for continuing to develop their competency statements for the MFC but more importantly will experience a theologically grounded practice to sustain ministry for the long haul! The UU Wellspring Summer Session for Aspirants and Candidates will run July 11-August 29, 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT/12pm PT for 90 minutes/session. Upcoming Events You can view our calendar events here. Please make sure you are logged into uuma.org to see our full calendar as some events are available for members only. Sunday, May 24: Community Ministers Chapter Meeting Mondays, Ongoing: UUMA Recovery Meeting Tuesday, May 26: The Wheel of the Year Tuesday, May 26: Chapter Leader Gathering Wednesday, May 27: GO Consultation Group: NE Thursday, May 28: Pacific Southwest Chapter Meeting Friday, May 29: Board of Trustees Dialogue Session Saturday, May 30: Celebration of Life for Rev. Dr. Natalie Fenimore Saturday, May 30: Celebrating 20 Years of Shared Ministry: Rev Paul Sawyer and First Universalist Society of Hartland Saturday, May 30: Memorial Service for the Rev. Myron Andes |