As UUs, just as we acknowledge that there is not one truth, so we know there are several moments that can mark a new year. For some it’s the start of the fall when summer ends and school begins; then there are the many different new years for different traditions – Chinese, Jewish, Muslim and Persian to name but a few. Some of us may have our own personal date for marking the start of a new trip around the sun. For the EUU calendar, it’s now January 1st – the month takes its name from the Roman God Janus, who looks back and also forwards. So here are a few things to look forward to in the coming months.
When you read this, the early bird registration for our spring retreat should already be open. We’ll be coming together in a new location – Prague – on 3 to 5 April for the first retreat hosted by the Prague Fellowship. Our theme will be Nature and Wonder: the Emerson Legacy. Our theme speaker, Rev. Nicole Kirk, will take us back to one of the great figures in American religious thought – and our theme will also bring us to consider one of the great challenges our world faces today. I hope you will be able to join the Prague adventure.
Earlier in the new year, we will have a visit from our UUA Ambassador, Rev. Diane Rollert. Diane will lead the service for the Netherlands Fellowship in Amsterdam on 2 February and then the service for the Paris Fellowship on 9 February. Diane and the two fellowships will welcome those who would like to drop in. And already on Wednesday, 15 January, Diane will speak to the At-Large Chalice Circle
On January 1st the EUU’s new officers took their positions – Karen Kyker became Vice President and Michael Zink, Treasurer. They will join Bonnie Friedmann, our Secretary, and me as I move from Acting President to President. We’re holding our first meeting of the Coordinating Council on 25 and 26 January in Strasbourg. If you have any questions or issues for the CC, please write to me or talk to your fellowship or at-large representatives.
And for those who like to look further ahead, we’ll hold our fall retreat on 6-8 November at a familiar site, Mittelwihr in Alsace, France, near both Germany and Switzerland.
I look forward to an EUU year of activity, and reflection, with old and new friends.
Tony
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