Our fall retreat in Bad Homburg brought a swirl of ideas, emotions and goodwill.

Our speaker, Rev. Thandeka, showed us that knowing and understanding are different things; she urged us to bring more emotion into liberal religion and encouraged us to create small groups in which to share our lives. And our members offered workshops on topics from Zoroastrianism to Tikkun Olam (healing the world) and from yoga to mindful eating.

We also took care of EUU business. In our General Meeting, the members of EUU elected next year’s officers, approved our budget and had an open discussion on how to explore relations with other Unitarian and UU groups in Europe. The decisions we took were a necessary passage for moving into the New Year. All in an hour. Of course, we’re always discussing, it’s in our nature, and we’ll continue these discussions in 2020. In fact, one idea that came up in the Coordinating Committee is to hold a ‘town hall’ meeting at our spring retreat, a place for members to have an open discussion about issues on their mind.

As I look forward to my first year as President, I’m grateful to all those who have kept EUU flourishing. Our past president, Carolyn Burlingame-Goff, started a new tradition at Bad Homburg: a ceremony to recognise those who have volunteered their time for EUU. As Carolyn said, volunteering provides fellowship, learning and fun – so please consider how you can join in. Thanks to everyone for all that you’re doing and thank you, Carolyn, for all you’ve done as President!

I wish everyone the best for the end of the year. It can be a time for being together, for sharing and also for reflection, both about ourselves and our common ideals, such as working for Peace on Earth.

Happy solstice, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and New Year!