Visitors and Guests are Welcome at our Sunday Services

We know that it is difficult to come into a new group not knowing any one or how things are done. We want you feel comfortable and welcome here! To find out more about how we do things (though program variety is one of our strengths!), please see our Frequently Asked Questions about our Fellowship.

Getting Started

• Pocket Coupon: Download a free Pocket Coupon (PDF) for a FREE potluck dinner, and directions to our Fellowship and a brief summary of Unitarian Universalism.
• Time: Fellowship services are held every Sunday evening at 5PM, except Easter and our Annual Meeting each spring. Since we meet on Sunday evenings, you can combine the pleasure of our "sundown services" with relaxing at home or an outing during the day!
• If you are new to the area, here are Ten Things to Do in Visalia and Tulare County.
• Location: Visalia Friends Meeting House, just east of Visalia. See Directions.
• Dress: Casual
• What to Expect:
  • Sunday Services Overview
  • Potlucks - guests do not need to bring anything
  • Current calendar - Read our monthly Newsletter online, or sign up for free subscription.
  • We take up an offering of money to support our Fellowship, but guests are not expected to contribute
  • Past Programs and Sermons.
  • We have a potluck dinner after the service -but again guests are not expected to contribute, but are invited to share our always-plentiful food.
• Spiritual Growth: Meditation Group, Study Groups, and Religious Education for Adults & Children
• Social and Environmental Justice: Making a Difference
• Beliefs: Our Seven Principles
• Orientation Classes: Pathways to Membership

Unitarian Universalism is unique - it is a religion that has faith in you!

Nobody will try to "convert" you here! Instead, we ask you to join us in "a free and responsible search for truth and meaning" (our Fourth Principle).

We will ask you to fill out an information card so we can make a name tag for your next visit, to get an idea of your family's needs for religious education, and to e-mail you our newsletter. Of course, you don't have to give us any information if you don't want to.

You are invited to bring both your doubts and your bedrock beliefs here. We promise neither easy answers nor will we ask you to adopt a creed. Instead, we are a faith which encourages you to develop your own personal theology, and to present openly your religious opinions without fear of censure or reprisal. Instead of saying "we have the Only Truth," we say: "All religions, in every age and culture, possess not only an intrinsic merit, but also a potential value for those who have learned the art of listening." Our religious community requires us only to listen to each other. This is not to say your thoughts won't be challenged - often the validation of experience requires the confirmation of peers, who provide a critical platform along with a network of mutual support.

From our Friends

One of our faithful regular "Fellowship Friends" - who actually is a member of another church - offers these thoughts for visitors:

"Do you dream of a church connection that brings together a rich variety of people searching for meaning in their lives? Do you dream of a church that cultivates individual fulfillment and practices loving respect for each others differences? Do you yearn for a joyful regular gathering where you can set aside the stresses of daily life, sing together, eat together, and learn together how we can find lifestyles that help us to share the work of restoring the earth and human dignity within the circle of multiple paths? If you say yes to any or all of the above questions, come visit the UU Fellowship of Visalia and help us find the answers!"
- Bill Lovett, April 30, 2009

Our church strives to be welcoming to all who come.

Whether temporarily-abled or disabled; whatever your skin color, cultural background or nation of origin; whatever your political persuasion or day-to-day occupation, you are welcome here. Male or female, young or old, gay, lesbian, bisexual, or straight, you are welcome here. Theist, atheist or agnostic; Pantheist, Pagan, Jewish, Humanist, Christian or Buddhist, or just searching, whatever ways you name sacred things, you are welcome here, just as you are.

Interested in social networking websites?
Join us on Facebook or on MySpace!

Videos

• Unitarian Universalism in 30 Seconds (best quick introduction from UU's themselves)
• Is God Keeping You from Going to Church? ( 31 seconds)
• Voices of a Liberal Faith - Unitarian Universalists - 10 minutes

Directions

From Visalia, head east on Hwy 198 about 5 or 6 miles, take the Farmersville exit (Exit #111), turn left twice so that you cross over Hwy 198 to the north, then turn right (east) on the frontage road, and proceed approximately one mile east to its end. In the grove of trees, you'll see signs for the Friends Meeting House and Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Visalia.

When We Meet

• Sundays, 5 PM: except Easter, when we join with the Visalia Friends congregation on Sunday morning.
• Sundays, 6 PM: Potluck dinner - you don't need to bring anything on your first couple of visits!
• Wednesdays, 6:30 PM: Meditation Practice,for information, contact Rick Meyers at meditation@uuvisalia.org.
• Study Groups other special programs are scheduled throughout the year. See our Newsletter!

Photo of Meeting House doorway courtesy of Harold Wood