Submitted to the Board of Trustees by Rev. Marcus Liefert
Context:
At UUCB’s congregational meeting on November 16th, the congregation voted to authorize the Board to sell or donate the church’s Freestone property. The conflict surrounding decision-making over this property has been a focus of congregational concern for many years, and the property holds symbolic and emotional significance, of many different kinds, for a number of UUCB’s members.
We now face the challenge and opportunity of holding a process that: 1. Prioritizes care for those grieving or hurt by the decision and the process by which it was made; 2. Takes time to honor what the Freestone property has meant to the church and our members, and memorializes its history, and 3. Engages in creative discernment about how we can best serve our mission and vision in how we donate or sell the property.
Process Principles:
- This process is central to the work of our church right now. It is an opportunity to build institutional trust by putting our values at the center of the process.
- Shift from a decision-making framework to a discerning framework. In a decision-making framework, the intellect and rationality are valued to the exclusion of other faculties (which can inadvertently and ironically lead to emotions hijacking the process), and choices are often framed with sides to take. In the spiritual work of discernment, we ask instead to deeply listen together to what would serve the soul of our congregation, to how the sacred is calling us to respond to the circumstances we steward.
- Use the practice of Circles to listen deeply to one another and make space for the full range of our mental, emotional, and spiritual capacities. Members point to Chalice Circles and other small groups that circle together as a foundational element of our community. Applying the wisdom of Circle practices to our discernment process will help ensure our understanding of the choices we face and the meaning they have is as complete as possible. Extending our Circle practices in this way will also begin to equip us to conceive of more ways we can employ Circles to effectively address conflict and strengthen our democratic governance.
- Aim to generate an outcome that propels us forward with collective buy-in. Over the past several years, each congregational vote on this issue has been close to a 50/50 split. The most recent vote, at 60/40, was the most decisive yet, but still far from a producing a unifying vision that might energize and inspire us. I believe this kind of vision is still possible, and could result from a process designed to understand and attend to the full range of underlying needs, rather than seeking a compromise that everyone can live with. To achieve this, we will need to maintain deliberate forward momentum throughout the process without letting the urgency to achieve a result eclipse other needs at hand.
- Prioritize widespread participation while maintaining clarity about authority and accountability. The congregation has authorized the Board to proceed with selling or donating the property. This process assumes the congregation would be best served by the Board using that authority to establish a team to facilitate the process, reporting regularly to the Board on its efforts.
Steps:
- Establish a Discernment Task Force.
- Timeframe: Invite members December ’25, first meeting by early January ‘26
- Composition: The Task Force might be led by members of the Committee on Ministry, include at least one member of the Board, and involve some members with significant connection to the people and history involved and/or skills in facilitation. Members of the Task Force must have the capacity to prioritize healthy process over personal preference, demonstrate the ability to uphold our covenant during challenging conversations, and buy into the goal of helping the congregation discern and coalesce around a shared vision.
- Role of the Minister: I encourage the Board to charge me with providing guidance to the Task Force in structuring and facilitating the process. I would anticipate being closely involved at each step along the way.
- Facilitate a first round of Circles to follow-up on the congregational meeting and the process leading up to it.
- Timeframe: January-Early February ’26
- Create an opportunity for care by listening attentively to the impact of the decision made, and the process to get there.
- The questions asked in these Circles will create space for the messiness of the grief and pain among us, as well as invite reflection on what is needed from the process ahead to serve our mission.
- Three Circles targeted for particular impacted groups: the Freestone Committee, the Board, those harmed in the past by the Freestone debate, those who self-identify as having been impacted.
- Create a survey with heartfelt questions that allow anyone in the community to have input in this first phase.
- Host a public forum to process and share the input from the first round.
- Timeframe: Mid-February ’26
- The Task Force has a frank conversation with one another in a public forum (“fishbowl” style) about how they are interpreting what they’ve heard in the process so far, and what needs they are identifying that need to be addressed in the ensuing process.
- Other forms of reporting back may also be appropriate, such as a Beacon column, or a report during the February Congregational Meeting.
- Facilitate Discernment Circles
- Timeframe: End of February-March ’26
- The Task Force hosts another round of Circles. The specific shape of these Circles (how many, whether they are created for specific groups or are all general invitation, etc), will be informed by the work thus far.
- The goal of these Circles is to create a forum in which new vision can arise from grief. The Task Force’s role will be to invite an approach of discernment from participants, and to notice what ideas and possibilities gather energy and have the potential to coalesce collective buy-in to a shared vision.
- Another online survey is created for those who would like to participate but cannot make it to a Circle in person.
- Public honoring and memorializing
- Timeframe: April ’26
- Arising out of the listening work that has occurred, and involving whoever wants to be part of celebrating the history of Freestone and its role in the life of the church, we will find ways to publicly honor all those who’ve given their time, talent and treasure to Freestone and memorialize its place in our shared history.
- Task Force meets to reflect and face a choice point
- Timeframe: April ’26
- The Task Force has now gathered a significant amount of input over three months and is faced with the work of discerning whether there is a shared vision coalescing or further process is needed.
- This phase will also likely involve needs for research about courses of action, which the Task Force might conduct or involve others in conducting on its behalf.
- Task Force reports its assessment of the input it has gathered and recommendations for next steps to the Board at the May Board meeting and the Board gives guidance to the Task Force in how to proceed.
- Congregational Information Sessions
- Timeframe: May ’26
- The Task Force works with the Board to present information sessions for the congregation, in which it is clear no immediate decision is going to be made. Information without the pressure of immediate decision will be key to the final phase of moving forward with collectively buy-in rather than a slim majority.
- The Task Force presents either the vision it sees has clearly arisen already, or a plan for extended time for the congregation to process the information being presented. Either way, next steps are articulated for August or September ’26 as we begin the next church year.
- Ultimately, the Task Force will offer its recommendations to the Board, either in August or September ‘26, or at the conclusion of an extended process proposed by the Task Force and accepted by the Board.
