For the last few years (but much less last year) I gamed the congregational certification numbers Unitarian Universalist Association-member congregations submitted each year to qualify for voting at General Assembly. I said I wouldn’t be making a play-by-play anymore because it was a terrible and mostly useless time suck. But this year congregations are asked to report two more bits of data: religious education enrollment and average (Sunday) attendance. This should make the numbers more meaningful. A quick look and my first visceral response is how tenuous, if not fragile, many of the congregations look. How much energy goes in to maintaining these systems? Will it be there 10, 20 years from now?
I still won’t give play by play, but hope to visit the final numbers within a week of the deadline, February 1. Until then, review the certification numbers here.
Hi Scott,
I made the same call on the numbers this year. Too much of a time suck. Can’t wait to read your observations and analysis!
Thom