Unitarians gets first permanent minister

Stacy J. Willis

Friday, Nov. 9, 2001 | 9:52 a.m.

The Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Las Vegas on Sunday will install its first permanent minister in more than 30 years.

Rev. Paul D. Daniel, 56, will take a position that has been filled by temporary ministers since the 1960s.

Although the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Las Vegas was chartered in 1952 by the Unitarian Universalist Association headquarters in Boston, it has remained a small congregation -- today, there are about 100 members in the local congregation. Nationally, there are more than 1,000 Unitarian Universalist churches and 220,000 members.

"There is a feel in the congregation that they are ready to move to a new level,"Daniel said. "There is a real sense that we can offer something to this community in the way of social activism. The Unitarian Universalist Church has always been very involved in fighting racism, homophobia, poverty and homelessness."

The Unitarian Universalist Church is a liberal faith tradition that espouses no specific creed. Nevertheless, it has adopted seven principles meant to "assist members in their spiritual growth and relationships." Those principles include supporting the "authority of reason and conscience," "a never-ending search for truth," and "the worth and dignity of each human being."

"We encourage people to explore all faith traditions and develop their own spiritual beliefs," Daniel said.

Daniel was raised Jewish in Connecticut, and came to the Unitarian Universalist Church in his 20s.