A Happy Birthday (and an Announcement)

Looking for Faith is one year old today! That’s right, a whole year has gone by since the introductory post (“New Beginnings”), on February 18, 2007.
It is a happy birthday. I have been so blessed by this blog and by its readers. Here are some reflections on the year past…

When I started Looking for Faith, my goal was to share Unitarian Universalism with seekers on the internet in a positive and pastoral way. Over the past year, I’ve received e-mails and comments from people who are new to Unitarian Universalism letting me know that this blog helped them move forward in their faith journey — and that makes me so happy! I can also tell by looking at the search engine queries that bring people to Looking for Faith — and the amount of time those searchers spend on the site — that seekers are finding information here that helps them learn about Unitarian Universalism.

And I enjoy hearing from readers who are members of other faith traditions and not seeking a new one, but like reading Looking for Faith.

Looking for Faith has also experienced an outpouring of participation and positive feedback from Unitarian Universalists. This has been a blessing.The conversations I’ve had with UU readers of this blog — and the conversations I’ve participated in on other UU blogs — have brought me into a diverse community of Unitarian Universalists with a wide range of experiences and beliefs. UU readers and fellow UU bloggers have generously offered friendship, affirmation and insight, while bringing me to a deeper understanding of Unitarian Universalism.

So THANK YOU to ALL of you readers, including seekers, Unitarian Universalists, and people of other faith traditions, who’ve blessed me on my spiritual journey through your e-mails, comments, and posts on your blogs.

And I have a special birthday announcement! By a happy coincidence, today is also the debut of a new blog I’m writing for the UUWorld: The Interdependent Web. The Interdependent Web will spotlight UU blog posts, websites, YouTube videos, and other online content that is relevant and exciting. I’ll also now be writing the UUWorld print edition’s “On the Web” column. It’s an honor to write for the UUWorld and to guide readers to the contributions of my fellow UU’s online.

To find out more, see UUWorld editor Chris Walton’s post today (“Spring issue of UU World now available”), read the first two Interdependent Web posts (“YRUU and C*UUYAN funding, attracting newcomers, and more” and “Obama’s blog surge, thoughts on Lent, and more,”) and check out the Spring 2008 “On the Web” feature from the print edition of the UUWorld.