No matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome here at University Congregational United Church of Christ. Young, old, sure of your path, or still searching --- we invite you to join us in imagining love and justice - as Jesus did - in acting to change the world.
Our worship service starts at 10 am and includes hymns, prayers, scripture reading and a sermon. It usually lasts about an hour. Right now we are worshiping online and will adjust this message once we are able to meet together in our sanctuary once again. 
We are an inter-generational church and strive to be family-friendly, with an active ministry for children and youth. All ages are welcome in worship. We also offer nursery and child-care, Younger children begin the service with us and usually leave after about 15 minutes. Older children have the option of leaving for a special sermon time. Junior high and high school youth meet at 9 am and then often sit together in worship. Give us a call at 206-524-2322 for more specifics.
Wheelchair Access: The front entry is wheelchair accessible as are the rest rooms. Please don't hesitate to ask for assistance.
A note from your Pastors | October 15, 2021
Dear Beloved Community: “We are.” These two words are guiding and shaping us this fall. As your pastors we are struck by the ways we are rooted – connecting and re-connecting, celebrating and grieving, together; and the ways we are changing – a season of change in a...
A note from your Pastors | October 9, 2021
Dear Beloved Community: “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of God’” Psalm 121:1 In this last twenty months of adapting to the social distancing requirements of Covid, we have discovered new depths in the ways we “go to the house of God.”?We have...
Undressing The Blessing
I had been seeing this lovely patient in the ICU for many months. Now, she was getting discharged into a nursing home. So this was my goodbye visit. We had a wonderful conversation and then she asked if I would say a prayer and bless her on this next part of her...
Celebrate our beloved shepherd—Pastor Catherine Foote
We have been so deeply blessed for 20 years having Rev. Dr. Catherine Foote as a strong and tender shepherd to help guide our flock. She has led us beside still waters AND helped us walk through the valley of the shadow of death. We are stronger and more focused...
A note from your Pastors
That holy revolution that Christ has brought about: the revolution of the beatitudes, the revolution of love, the revolution of renewal, the revolution of peace built upon true justice. —St. Oscar Romero, 24th Sunday of Ordinary Time (B), 1979 Dear Beloveds, September...
Leadership Team Profile Update
We all know that change is the only constant: after almost ten years with the same Leadership Team, we welcomed Pastor Steve Jerbi onto the Leadership Team in February as the Minister of Worship and Christian Formation. Catherine will retire at the end of November; a...
Sacred Earth Matters | Deforestation and the climate crisis
SEM advocates are celebrating the EPA’s stoppage in Bristol Bay, Alaska, of the establishment of the proposed Pebble Gold Mine. Their calls and emails helped protect the 300- to 700-year-old-growth forest there along with salmon. However, SEM has virtually no say in...
Gathering Ground | October events
Whiteness Is Not an Ancestor: book study and reflection group Sunday, October 10, 7:00-9:00 pm, via Zoom How do we reckon with a family history of racism? Join local writer June BlueSpruce to delve into the book Whiteness Is Not an Ancestor: Essays on Life and Lineage...
Racial Justice | October news
Ally Building with Indigenous People October 23, 9:30 am - 12:30 pm, online This workshop will be led by teachers from the Na’ah Illahee Fund in Seattle. The Fund is an Indigenous women-led organization dedicated to the ongoing regeneration of Indigenous communities...
October Special Offering
Neighbors in Need (NIN) is a special mission offering of the United Church of Christ that supports ministries of justice and compassion in the United States. In 2021, two-thirds of our Neighbors in Need offering will fund grants to United Church of Christ churches and...
Iona—pilgrimage in a pandemic
It began in 2018 when Catherine agreed to lead a group to Iona. We thought we were going in 2019 but there was no room in our preferred hotel on Iona. So, a trip in late summer 2020 became the plan. There were 28 of us getting ready for this grand adventure. And then...
Mwanzo | October update
Community Center Progress Submitted by Lily Lahiri At the time of this submission, we are eagerly awaiting the return of our dear Executive Director and friend, Loyce Ong’udi, from Rabuor Village, Kenya. By the time of your reading this she will almost certainly be...
Children, Youth and Family Ministry news and events
Children Dear Elementary Children, Littles, and Families, It has been quite the month; we had a great opportunity to gather at the church for Hopecoming Sunday. There were ponies, bubbles, and fry bread tacos. It was a joy to be together in person, and it reminded us...
Love and Justice | October update
In a time of division: speak out and act for unity The Church Council of Greater Seattle (CCGS) is an ecumenical force for good in our region. For more than a century the Council has embraced all Christian denominations and many interfaith partners. It has also...
Adult Education | October news and events
All-Church Book Club The Seabeck Book Club in partnership with the Visiting Theologian Program is hosting an all-church book read of The Color Purple by Alice Walker. The sessions will be Monday evenings at 7:00 pm throughout October and facilitated by Rev. Yolanda...
Along the Way
For Each of Us In This Time of Transition Let Your Light Shine We happily join young children in singing, This Little Light of Mine, but are often afraid of our own brightness. Marianne Williamson says, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear...
Deaths in our community
Betty Duncan Born: March 17, 1923 Died: September 10, 2021 We received word that Betty passed away. She had been a member here since 1968 and was very active in church, especially in Women’s Fellowship and attending worship regularly. Betty enjoyed traveling,...
October news and events
Register for the 2021 Senior Retreat Monday and Tuesday, October 4 - 5 After a year’s hiatus due to the pandemic, the Senior Retreat is returning to Rainbow Lodge. The retreat is for members and friends of UCUCC who are 55 years old or more. While the title is “Senior...
Bridge Minister search update
In preparation for the time after Rev. Catherine Foote’s retirement at the end of November, a committee has been working on finding a bridge minister to help carry the UCUCC clergy workload until a new, settled pastor is called to join our leadership team. The members...
Welcome to the 2022 Pledge Campaign: We Are!
Welcome to our 2022 annual pledge campaign! Pledging what we can is an important part of our ministry, as it signifies commitment, and helps to make possible the many good works that we do together as a community. By pledging, we express our hope for future...
October Worship theme: We Are
We are - these two words not only shape our fall series but declare deep truths about our congregation. WE makes it clear that for all of our personal experiences, the path of discipleship is a collective journey. ARE is a statement of being, describing our identity....
A note from your Pastors | September 27, 2021
Beloveds, This Sunday is a big day. Our first attempt at a worship service specifically developed to be experienced in our sanctuary... for the first time since March 2, 2020. What does that sentence even mean?? As pastors we take classes and receive training in...
A note from your Pastors | September 19, 2021
Beloveds, We write to you this week knowing you are likely tired and worried. Hearing the news about Catherine and several others contracting the virus even with the abundance of care and vigilance about vaccinations and masking, is disquieting. So far everyone’s...
Gathering Ground | Fall events
Seeds of Wisdom: a campaign for Gathering Ground support Would you like to make more meaning in the world? A seed from the tree of wisdom is determined to take root. Please support its growth by supporting Gathering Ground’s campaign for 2022 support. Gathering...
Sacred Earth Matters | Red Alert re: Climate Crisis
This month’s SEM article was going to focus on another topic. But it was pushed aside by the urgency of the United Nations’ new climate report. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concluded it’s “unequivocal” that humans have warmed the skies, waters,...
Children, Youth and Family Ministry news and events
Children’s Ministry news Bruce Wilson joins the team! Dear Elementary kids, littles and families, As we look forward to the 2021/2022 church program year, I'm looking forward to ways in which we will work together to form opportunities for learning and growing with...
Mwanzo: a blessing for a sign of hope Our Mwanzo family in Rabuor is gathered in the picture below to bless the ground which has been prepared for the Community Center. The center is really needed now, because the first students in the school (now the Mwanzo Wetu...
September Church Council summary and 2021 Pledge Campaign
Church Council summary July 21, 2021, 7:00 pm via Zoom Priscilla Grundy read our Land Acknowledgement. Catherine prayed us into our gathering. The group participated in a circle of sharing focused on Seabeck reflections. Amy led us through a grounding exercise...
Land Acknowledgement | September action steps
A land acknowledgement is a gesture of respect and awareness of the land and its history. It becomes meaningful when coupled with informed action that builds relationships. To continue on the path toward relationship, we will be reading the above acknowledgment of the...
Fall worship theme: We Are
Worship in September spans 3 themes: Seasons of Love, Hope-coming, and our fall series “We Are.” We also continue our time of emergence, returning to the building for watch parties, then worship in the sanctuary, other spaces, and a digital service later in the day....
A Note From Your Pastors | September 10, 2021
Dear Friends, As the calendars turn, we find ourselves moving into a new rhythm. It is harvest season. It is a return to school, the end of summer schedules. In the life of the church, some patterns are returning: youth group, the lecture series, the idea of the...
Racial Justice/Indigenous Justice
An Indigenous People’s History of the United States Written by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz Beacon Press Boston Book review and selections from “Introduction: This Land” pp. 1-14 We are here to educate, not forgive. We are here to enlighten, not accuse. ~Willie Johns,...
Special Offering | September 2021
A classroom for children—September Special Offering UCUCC Child Care Programs: the Child Learning and Care Center and Trettin Drop-In Preschool The September Special Offering benefits the scholarship fund of our UCUCC Child Care Programs—the Child Learning and Care...
What we know about the Delta variant
Beloved community, these are complicated times! A month ago your church was ready to offer mask-optional gatherings for those who are vaccinated, and to say “yes” to small groups sharing food indoors. Now, King County is back to a mask mandate for indoor gatherings,...
Visiting Theologian | Fall focus
Visiting Theologian After a successful summer with Liberation Academy and visits with various teams in the congregation, the work alongside our visiting theologian continues. The arc of the work will focus on Reflection, Repentance, Reparations, and Reconciliation,...
Christian Formation | September events
September opportunities for faith formation: Pastor-led Bible Study Tuesday mornings, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm on Zoom This group is currently studying the book of Jeremiah and then will move to the gospel of John. You are welcome to attend any time you are available....
September and October 2021 events
Men’s Supper Group September 7, 6:15 pm The monthly meeting of the Men’s Ministry has returned to the Turner Lounge every first Tuesday of the month. Please join us when you can! We will be following the latest building protocols, so please plan to wear a mask inside...
Emergence Update
As we take these next steps on our emergence journey, each of us will need to make our own best choices about how much risk we are willing to undertake. Based on the best available science and supported by the data we’ve collected from the emergence survey, we think...
Results of the Covid-19 Emergence Survey
~Kyna Shilling, on behalf of the Emergence Team When your emergence team created this survey last month, we were curious how people were feeling about regathering in-person. We wanted to know if folks were vaccinated. We wondered what would help people feel more...
Worship and Music updates
Singing in-person Because we know singing in person adds an additional element to living in Covidtide, we will not be having congregational singing or choir singing. For the next few months, musical leadership for Sunday morning sanctuary worship will be with...