A covenant group includes six to twelve church members and friends who intentionally and regularly gather to build a sense of community with one another and to share the process of personal spiritual growth. A covenant group offers opportunities for friendship, spiritual growth, mutual responsibility, leadership, and service. Many people have found that belonging to a covenant group has become one of the most important parts of their connection with UUCNH.

Covenant Group 2024 Contact Person:

• Please contact Kip Ruefle with any questions.

Its goal is to nurture spiritual development, foster individual growth, and encourage gifts of service, which can include church tasks such as sponsoring coffee hour on Sunday mornings or carrying out Building & Grounds projects.

Each member promises not only to attend regularly but also to participate actively in meeting discussions, as well as to work during the year with fellow members on a service project they have identified together. Each year, signups happen in September and groups start in October. They then meet twice a month for the duration of the church year.  There are also signups in February with another group start in March. The groups then meet twice a month through May or June. If you wish to join a Covenant Group mid-year, contact the Covenant Group.

In each group, one of the members is a facilitator who is responsible for presenting readings and questions associated with a given topic.  The facilitator’s role is not to conduct the discussion in a formal sense but rather to ensure that the discussion stays on topic and that all members have an equal opportunity to express their ideas.  All members are responsible for participating in the discussion, keeping in mind our Seven UU Principles and the Six Sources of Our Living Tradition.

Each meeting begins with a chalice lighting and opening reading, followed by brief check-ins. According to the group’s initially agreed-upon covenant, the members discuss the topic introduced by the facilitator.  Toward the end of the meeting, at check-out time, group members have the opportunity to offer their parting thoughts. After the closing reading, the chalice is extinguished.  A meeting normally lasts around 1.5 hours.