 |
. |
COVENANT of UU PAGANS (CUUPs) Then and Now
For those who have never heard of CUUPs, the letters stand for Covenant of the Unitarian Universalist Pagans. Although numerous pagan groups met in local UU congregations in the early 1980s, CUUPs became an official UUA Organization at the 1985 UU General Assembly in Atlanta, Georgia. A spontaneous Summer Solstice Ritual and subsequent networking led to a commitment to explore the possibility of an ongoing program.Over the next two years the organization was further enhanced by the distribution of a newsletter, Pagan NUUS. At the 1987 General Assembly in Little Rock, Arkansas, the national pagan leader Margot Adler spoke to the delegates, who then adopted a statement of purpose, formed a steering committee, and elected a board of directors. In October 1987, the Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans was recognized as an Independent Affiliate Organization of the Unitarian Universalist Association by a unanimous vote of the UUA Board of Trustees.
Here at UUCE, pagan celebrations were introduced to the congregation by the Women and Religion Committee and incorporated into the RE curriculum by DRE Candee Cole. Our local chapter was formed in the early ’90s and continued through most of the decade. Rituals were open to pagans from other non-UU covens and groups in the area. A Bylaws Committee of nine people met in early 1994. A newsletter, Full Chalice (with two chalices instead of one as its logo), was begun soon thereafter.
Celebrations for the spring equinox were held that year. One of those was Beltane or Mayday, where the ritual began the previous evening (Walpurgis Night) and included the popular maypole dances. Other rituals held during the year were Summer Solstice; Lammas (celebration of the gathering of the grain); Fall Equinox; Samhain (held on November 1 signaling the beginning of the dark season); Winter Solstice; and Imbolc (the new year associated with the goddess Brigid). UU membership in the group gradually dwindled and they stopped meeting sometime around 1997.
Then, in 1999, d. maria (to whom Candee Cole had given the CUUPS box of materials) placed an announcement for CUUPS in our monthly newsletter. A small group responded and held rituals for a full turn of the wheel (one year) including a Lammas Circle as one of the summer services. Unresolved conflicts led to the disbanding of the group. Yet we still have members who celebrate some of the rituals. John Burridge led a New Moon Ritual in keeping with the summer solstice at the June 25, 2006 service and indicated he would like to resurrect the pagan rituals here. (2006-2007 Rituals)
Those interested in paganism can contact Cameron. Kathleen Dillon and d.maria are available as resources for Women in Religion and Women’s Spirituality. General information on paganism and its celebrations can be found by a quick search on the Internet, at the library, or by going to the UUA website at http://tinyurl.com/owwe7
Some links follow:
http://www.cuups.org/content/intro.html
http://www.uuccwc.org/groups/cuups.htm
http://seattlecuups.org/
http://www.9houses.org/Directory/
A continental discussion list can be found at
http://lists.uua.org/mailman/listinfo/cuups-l
Unitarian Universalist Church in Eugene, Oregon
|