Greetings, !

Image Credit: “Dignity” (or “Dignity of Earth and Sky”) statue in Chamberlain, South Dakota – 50-foot tall stainless steel sculpture of a Native American woman in Plains-style dress, holding a star quilt behind her. The quilt’s diamond shapes are meant to move with the wind and represent Native American heritage, honoring the courage, wisdom, and perseverance of Indigenous women of the Plains. Artist: Dale Lamphere, South Dakota’s state artist laureate.

NAUA's mission / value statement is "rooted in our commitment to the inherent worth and dignity of every person and all peoples."
What have others said on this topic?

“All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.

"Human rights rest on human dignity. The dignity of man is an ideal worth fighting for and worth dying for."
Robert C. Maynard, American journalist and publisher

“What should move us to action is human dignity: the inalienable dignity of the oppressed, but also the dignity of each of us. We lose dignity if we tolerate the intolerable."
Baltasar Gracian (1601-1658), a Spanish Jesuit writer, philosopher, and Baroque moralist

Note: If you've written a poem, designed a work of art, or taken a photograph that might be a good fit for this newsletter and its focus on human dignity and traditional liberal religious values, please consider emailing it to jmkrettek@gmail.com. If we aren't able to use it here, we may request your permission to share it on our Facebook page or via other communications. Thanks!

Have you registered for the 2025 NAUA Summit?
Sign up today!

One of the key priorities of the NAUA Board of Trustees this year has been the creation of a Three-Year Strategic Plan for our fledgling organization. The now completed plan outlines goals and objectives, along with tentative deadlines, for ensuring long-term growth, meaningful community outreach and mission fulfillment:

Mission: NAUA is a member service organization dedicated to supporting and promoting the practice of liberal religion by embracing freedom, reason, and tolerance—rooted in our commitment to the inherent worth and dignity of every person and all peoples.

The Strategic Plan will be reviewed and discussed during a special session of the upcoming NAUA 2nd Annual Summit. All NAUA members and friends are encouraged to register and attend the Summit. The Strategic Plan will also be shared with all NAUA committees, who will be charged with designing and carrying out action plans to achieve relevant goals and objectives. This will ensure that by the Summit 2028 we will have increased our membership, resources and outreach in ways that position us to better fulfill our ambitious mission of advancing liberal religion.

If you have comments or suggestions related to the strategic plan or would like to play a key role in achieving any of the outlined objectives, please email secretary@naunitarians.org.

Are you curious about the International Convocation of Unitarian Universalist Women (ICUUW)? It is a global partnership of Unitarian* Universalists who work for all women’s and girls’ equity through Unitarian* Universalist connections around the world. The ICUUW holds special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council, allowing it to engage in international advocacy focused on women's and girls' rights and equity. Its programs emphasize capacity-building, education, violence prevention, economic advancement, humanitarian relief, and support for marginalized communities.The ICUUW welcomes members of any gender who support its mission. 

Please join this Summit session, Wednesday Oct 1st, 5 pm PDT, for an overview of ICUUW offered by Karen Kortsch, Executive Director, US.  Find out more about ICUUW, its programs, how to join and how to participate. 

If you have questions, please contact Marga Hanna margahanna@shaw.ca or Gail Sandlin gbsandlin@gmail.com

In preparation for our Summit Workshop, How Are We Doing One Year Later?, the Member Services Committee (MSC) has begun to gather their thoughts about what the MSC should focus our efforts for moving forward. Naturally, we are hopeful that we will soon be able to launch the MSC webpage, a piece of unfinished business from this past year, and that the number of Regional Groups will continue to grow.

But we have also begun exploring other areas of focus such as programs, discussions, or activities for children and adults that might guide or assist people in ethical, moral, and civic responsibility and decision making. These are troubled times, not just in this country or politically, but also globally. In addition, the focus on being a good steward of the earth often gets lost in the day-to-day chaos of our lives. Resultant stress levels are rising. Thus, we have begun to ask, how can NAUA be relevant and respond to these dangerous times? What can we do to be helpful, useful, or provide support or guidance to our members and those in the larger community?   

These are some of the questions that we will be asking you in the Breakout Groups during the MSC Summit Workshop on Friday, Oct. 3 (10AM PT).  If you have thoughts about any of this, and would like to share them now, or even after the workshop, we would gladly listen. Please send them to memberservices@naunitarians.org.

We are still hoping that more regions of the country will want to develop regional groups.  If interested in starting a group, please contact us at memberservices@naunitarians.org.

Looking forward to seeing you at the Summit! Register at: https://naunitarians.org/2025-summit/

Do you feel called to serve on the Board of Trustees of North American Unitarian Association but were not included in this year’s nominations? We welcome your voice!

Members who wish to stand for election to the Board, but were not nominated by the Nominating Committee, may submit their names for consideration through a self-nomination process. To be eligible, self-nominees must submit a written declaration of candidacy along with documentation of support from at least 10 current members in good standing.

This is an important opportunity to offer your leadership and help shape the future of our organization. We encourage individuals with a commitment to our mission and values to step forward.

To submit a self-nomination, please include:

• Your full name and contact information
• A brief statement (250 words or less) about your background and reasons for seeking a board position
• A list of at least 10 NAUA members in good standing who support the applicant’s nomination, including names and e-mail address or other contact information for verification

All materials must be submitted by September 5th, 2025 to secretary@naunitarians.org.

We look forward to hearing from you!
NAUA Board

This summer IARF and NAUA have jointly hosted a number of free courses on the topic of free religion. Recently, a member asked if it was possible to go back and review the sessions. Yes, it is!

The Forum Circle, which is led by Mark Reimers and requires a reservation, took a break over the summer. Twice monthly meetings will resume September 7th.

Sunday, Sept. 7: "Nuclear Energy"

Sunday, Sept. 21: "Canada’s Medical Assistance in Dying: A measure of dignity or a slippery slope?"

If you are interested in joining or would like more information, please email CIRCLES@naunitarians.org. 

JD Stillwater will lead the September Service: "One Song - the Science of Oneness."

The first session will begin at 9am PT, 10am MT, etc. Join Online. Save this LINK for future classes. The passcode (if needed) is 043765.

The second/repeat session will begin at 7pm PT, 8pm MT and on the beginning of a new day, Sept. 25th, 8:30am India and 12noon Japan.

Some Reading for those who wish: Cosmopolitan Zen Buddhist Precepts Primer

September brings to mind so many things...Labor Day celebrations, back to school, changing colors, harvest time for grapes, apples, corn, squash and more, fall-blooming mums and asters, American football, pumpkin spice, sweaters and boots. 

Best of all, September means it's time for our Annual NAUA Summit! Join the Summit and renew your commitment to liberal religion. Get inspired to promote freedom, reason, tolerance and human dignity in a world where they are slowly declining. Prepare yourself and your fellow religious liberals to lead the change to a brighter future. Register today!