Bull Run Unitarian Universalists
Manassas VA
20110-5499
Who we are
We are…
…a safe community for seeking & service
…an intellectually engaged congregation. Reason, far from being anti-religious, is one of the many tools we have for navigating the often rocky terrain of ethical decision making.
…a spiritually nourishing congregation. In our worship and devotional life, in our joyful singing and our times of contemplation, we deepen our connection to that which gives our lives meaning.
…a justice-centered congregation. It is how we live out our beliefs that matters most. Our members strive to express their values through concrete action in the world.
…an active, high-energy, warmly welcoming congregation. Every visitor, friend, and member contributes to our community life.
Our vision statement as approved by the BRUU Congregational June 6, 2020. “BRUU is a community of individuals from varied backgrounds and beliefs, connected through a passion to make the world a better place, for ourselves, for the planet, and for generations to come. Through fellowship, we will create a welcoming place of safety, acceptance, and personal growth, where transformation is an ever-present possibility.”
Our mission statement, as approved in 2011: “Bull Run Unitarian Universalists (BRUU) exists to nurture ourselves, our community, and our natural world in the pursuit of spiritual and intellectual growth. We give expression to our mission through celebrating our diversity and giving of our talents and resources with justice, equity and compassion. We work toward our goals through an open democratic process, respecting the views of each individual and seeking to protect the interdependent web of life.”
As Unitarian Universalists, we have chosen our faith freely – and we enjoy the company of others who are doing the same. Often, our members have different perspectives on what is “right” and what is “wrong.” We celebrate diversity and welcome civil discussions on ethics, religion, politics. We’re not afraid to say “That approach may work for you, but what I believe is…” Conversations, as well as sermons at BRUU, generate insights and constructive challenges that can lead us to deeper, more-consistent individual beliefs.
Our members have very different religious experiences and backgrounds. Some are monotheistic Christians, others are pagans, and yet others are secular humanists. Some of us were raised Catholic, others were raised Hindu. We don’t have a creed that defines what we believe about the beginning of life, whether there is life after death, or how to behave in all the years in-between. We honor a person’s faith and traditions, and we allow everyone to choose their own beliefs. Our UU PrinciplesExternal link. shape our common journey, but we do not assume everyone must follow a particular path or end up at the same place.
BRUU is a hoppin’ place filled with fun, as well as a serious place for spiritual growth and religious education. We party often, in small groups as well as a congregation. Fellowship hour can extend well past an hour, as people get to know each other over coffee and snacks.
You can come to BRUU and be anonymous at the start, but we will invite you to join us in conversations and encourage you to share your perspective once you are comfortable. We are an inclusive community. You’ll find people at BRUU who share your ideas and opinions, and you’ll find others who have divergent viewpoints. BRUU has members with dramatically different perspectives on God, guns, government, and almost everything else… yet we all find a way to stay part of a common community.
We learn from each other, rather than demonize people who are different. BRUU is, incidentally, a Green Sanctuary and a Welcoming CongregationExternal link..
Oh yes – we do food and music. Lot’s of socializing at BRUU includes good food, good drink, and good music, as well as good company. BRUU is an uplifting, exciting place.
…a safe community for seeking & service
…an intellectually engaged congregation. Reason, far from being anti-religious, is one of the many tools we have for navigating the often rocky terrain of ethical decision making.
…a spiritually nourishing congregation. In our worship and devotional life, in our joyful singing and our times of contemplation, we deepen our connection to that which gives our lives meaning.
…a justice-centered congregation. It is how we live out our beliefs that matters most. Our members strive to express their values through concrete action in the world.
…an active, high-energy, warmly welcoming congregation. Every visitor, friend, and member contributes to our community life.
Our vision statement as approved by the BRUU Congregational June 6, 2020. “BRUU is a community of individuals from varied backgrounds and beliefs, connected through a passion to make the world a better place, for ourselves, for the planet, and for generations to come. Through fellowship, we will create a welcoming place of safety, acceptance, and personal growth, where transformation is an ever-present possibility.”
Our mission statement, as approved in 2011: “Bull Run Unitarian Universalists (BRUU) exists to nurture ourselves, our community, and our natural world in the pursuit of spiritual and intellectual growth. We give expression to our mission through celebrating our diversity and giving of our talents and resources with justice, equity and compassion. We work toward our goals through an open democratic process, respecting the views of each individual and seeking to protect the interdependent web of life.”
Our members have very different religious experiences and backgrounds. Some are monotheistic Christians, others are pagans, and yet others are secular humanists. Some of us were raised Catholic, others were raised Hindu. We don’t have a creed that defines what we believe about the beginning of life, whether there is life after death, or how to behave in all the years in-between. We honor a person’s faith and traditions, and we allow everyone to choose their own beliefs. Our UU PrinciplesExternal link. shape our common journey, but we do not assume everyone must follow a particular path or end up at the same place.
You can come to BRUU and be anonymous at the start, but we will invite you to join us in conversations and encourage you to share your perspective once you are comfortable. We are an inclusive community. You’ll find people at BRUU who share your ideas and opinions, and you’ll find others who have divergent viewpoints. BRUU has members with dramatically different perspectives on God, guns, government, and almost everything else… yet we all find a way to stay part of a common community.
We learn from each other, rather than demonize people who are different. BRUU is, incidentally, a Green Sanctuary and a Welcoming CongregationExternal link..
Oh yes – we do food and music. Lot’s of socializing at BRUU includes good food, good drink, and good music, as well as good company. BRUU is an uplifting, exciting place.
Church Website
Bull Run Unitarian Universalists on Social Media
Leadership
Leader Name:
Rev Charlotte Lehmann
Leader Position:
Minister
Phone:
Leader Email:
Click here to contact Rev Charlotte Lehmann
Leader Bio:
Rev. Charlotte was born in Minneapolis, MN and raised as a Unitarian Universalist. From kindergarten until sixth grade she walked the three blocks to attend Sunday School at the First Unitarian Society, where her mother taught and her siblings also received their religious education.
She attended Mount Holyoke College in MA, where she earned her BA cum laude in Geology in 1983. Rev. Charlotte attended geology field camp in WY the summer following graduation before spending the next 6-8 months travelling and discerning her next moves.
She ended up teaching at the Cape Cod Outdoor Education Center during the spring of 1984 while applying for teaching positions. She spent the next two years teaching high school math and science and coaching at the Hackley School in Tarrytown, NY. Founded in 1899 by a wealthy philanthropist, Mrs. Caleb Brewster Hackley, the school was originally intended as a Unitarian alternative to the mostly Episcopal boarding schools throughout the Northeast. It had long since dropped its affiliation and added day students and become co-educational when Rev. Charlotte taught there living on campus in one of the school buildings.
The next chapter in her journey took Rev. Charlotte to Orono, ME where she eventually completed her M.S. degree in Geological Sciences at UMAINE in 1991. Her thesis was a study of the heavy minerals in estuarine deposits along the Gulf of Maine coast. During this time, Rev. Charlotte found her way back to Unitarian Universalism. During graduate school and when she returned to the University to work as a research associate in the School of Marine Sciences (1994-2000), Rev. Charlotte attended and then joined the Independent Congregation – Unitarian on Union Street in Bangor, where Hannibal Hamlin (lawyer, politician and 15th VP of the United States) had been a member. When the two UU congregations in Bangor consolidated in 1995 and began meeting as one at the Park Street Universalist church, she became a member of the UU Society of Bangor, served on the governing board, including as treasurer, chaired the finance committee, volunteered in RE and played a leading role with the buildings and grounds committee. She also acted as the agent of the congregation in the disposition of the building and major assets of the Union Street property. The sales were used, at her recommendation, to establish endowed funds for the upkeep of the organ and buildings on Park Street.
During the hiatus between graduate school and employment at UMAINE, Rev. Charlotte lived in Rhode Island, working for the URI Graduate School of Oceanography and attending Westminster Unitarian Church in East Greenwich. While there she was actively involved in the Welcoming Congregation Committee.
It was during the late 80s and early 90s that Rev. Charlotte again recognized the murmurs of a call to ministry, but because so many of her lesbian friends and acquaintances were choosing to go to Bangor Theological Seminary that it seemed trendy, she dismissed her re-emerging interest in going off in that direction. She remembers being a child who focused on ethical living through her imagination, creativity and play, so the pull was not new to her.
Starting in 2000, Rev. Charlotte was again in transition, emotionally and geographically. She spent a half year teaching high school math in Queens, then another six months unemployed during which she built a woodshed on the garage. She landed in Mid-Coast Maine with a job at New England’s only cement manufacturing plant as its Plant Chemist, a job that she lasted through until summer 2002. Because she was attending the First Universalist Church in Rockland, ME, she briefly took a position as a paid RE teacher, before heading south to Aiken, SC to work temporarily at the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, part of the Univ. of Georgia, as a Research Coordinator. While in Aiken, Rev. Charlotte sought out the UUs in town – finding them at last and by chance on a street corner as they protested the Gulf War. That spring the Aiken UU Church was organizing (to be born again) and applied for membership in the UUA with Rev. Charlotte signing as one of the original 31 charter members. She returned to Aiken in 2006 for their building dedication.
In the meantime, Rev. Charlotte returned to Maine for a job as a Research Technician in the Dept. of Geology at Bates College. While in the Lewiston-Auburn area, she attended the First Universalist Church in Auburn, contributing her leadership and talents in RE, buildings and grounds, worship, UU Theater, and other aspects of congregational life. After a physical healing experience in 2003 the urging of her spiritual teacher and gentle prodding by members of the congregation, Rev. Charlotte formally acknowledged her call to ministry in January 2008. Then most of the things that could have held her back from going to seminary fell away – often painfully – and she embarked on her theological education beginning with a cross-country road trip to check out schools, visit family and friends, and feed her spirit. A couple in the Auburn congregation provided some initial financial assistance when she started at Lancaster Theological Seminary in PA in early 2009. Wanting to be in UU community during her ministerial formation, in the fall of that year Rev. Charlotte enrolled at Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago, and First Universalist in Auburn became her sponsoring congregation. She earned her M.Div. in 2012.
Ministerial formation is different for every person on this path. Rev. Charlotte’s journey became an extended one with new trials added on along the way like the hero’s quest. She ended up, it seems, doing everything two times: interviews with the (old) Regional Subcommittee on Candidacy (RSCC), Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) units – Chicago Medical Center and St. Vincent’s Hospital at Worcester Medical Center, ministerial internships – DuPage UU Church in Naperville [IL] and UU Congregation of Binghamton [NY], interviews with the Ministerial Fellowship Committee (MFC).
Rev. Charlotte spent two years as Acting Director of Religious Exploration at the First Church in Belmont [MA] while completing these requirements for preliminary fellowship in the UUA. Once cleared for ministerial search, she was able to seek a ministry and served for two years as the interim minister at the UU Church of Tallahassee [FL] from 2016-18. She was ordained by the First Universalist Church of Auburn at the end of October 2017.
Rev. Charlotte and her partner, Lisa Stewart – a physical therapist – enjoy many outdoor activities, music, movies, cultural events of all kinds and excellent food from all over the world.
She attended Mount Holyoke College in MA, where she earned her BA cum laude in Geology in 1983. Rev. Charlotte attended geology field camp in WY the summer following graduation before spending the next 6-8 months travelling and discerning her next moves.
She ended up teaching at the Cape Cod Outdoor Education Center during the spring of 1984 while applying for teaching positions. She spent the next two years teaching high school math and science and coaching at the Hackley School in Tarrytown, NY. Founded in 1899 by a wealthy philanthropist, Mrs. Caleb Brewster Hackley, the school was originally intended as a Unitarian alternative to the mostly Episcopal boarding schools throughout the Northeast. It had long since dropped its affiliation and added day students and become co-educational when Rev. Charlotte taught there living on campus in one of the school buildings.
The next chapter in her journey took Rev. Charlotte to Orono, ME where she eventually completed her M.S. degree in Geological Sciences at UMAINE in 1991. Her thesis was a study of the heavy minerals in estuarine deposits along the Gulf of Maine coast. During this time, Rev. Charlotte found her way back to Unitarian Universalism. During graduate school and when she returned to the University to work as a research associate in the School of Marine Sciences (1994-2000), Rev. Charlotte attended and then joined the Independent Congregation – Unitarian on Union Street in Bangor, where Hannibal Hamlin (lawyer, politician and 15th VP of the United States) had been a member. When the two UU congregations in Bangor consolidated in 1995 and began meeting as one at the Park Street Universalist church, she became a member of the UU Society of Bangor, served on the governing board, including as treasurer, chaired the finance committee, volunteered in RE and played a leading role with the buildings and grounds committee. She also acted as the agent of the congregation in the disposition of the building and major assets of the Union Street property. The sales were used, at her recommendation, to establish endowed funds for the upkeep of the organ and buildings on Park Street.
During the hiatus between graduate school and employment at UMAINE, Rev. Charlotte lived in Rhode Island, working for the URI Graduate School of Oceanography and attending Westminster Unitarian Church in East Greenwich. While there she was actively involved in the Welcoming Congregation Committee.
It was during the late 80s and early 90s that Rev. Charlotte again recognized the murmurs of a call to ministry, but because so many of her lesbian friends and acquaintances were choosing to go to Bangor Theological Seminary that it seemed trendy, she dismissed her re-emerging interest in going off in that direction. She remembers being a child who focused on ethical living through her imagination, creativity and play, so the pull was not new to her.
Starting in 2000, Rev. Charlotte was again in transition, emotionally and geographically. She spent a half year teaching high school math in Queens, then another six months unemployed during which she built a woodshed on the garage. She landed in Mid-Coast Maine with a job at New England’s only cement manufacturing plant as its Plant Chemist, a job that she lasted through until summer 2002. Because she was attending the First Universalist Church in Rockland, ME, she briefly took a position as a paid RE teacher, before heading south to Aiken, SC to work temporarily at the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, part of the Univ. of Georgia, as a Research Coordinator. While in Aiken, Rev. Charlotte sought out the UUs in town – finding them at last and by chance on a street corner as they protested the Gulf War. That spring the Aiken UU Church was organizing (to be born again) and applied for membership in the UUA with Rev. Charlotte signing as one of the original 31 charter members. She returned to Aiken in 2006 for their building dedication.
In the meantime, Rev. Charlotte returned to Maine for a job as a Research Technician in the Dept. of Geology at Bates College. While in the Lewiston-Auburn area, she attended the First Universalist Church in Auburn, contributing her leadership and talents in RE, buildings and grounds, worship, UU Theater, and other aspects of congregational life. After a physical healing experience in 2003 the urging of her spiritual teacher and gentle prodding by members of the congregation, Rev. Charlotte formally acknowledged her call to ministry in January 2008. Then most of the things that could have held her back from going to seminary fell away – often painfully – and she embarked on her theological education beginning with a cross-country road trip to check out schools, visit family and friends, and feed her spirit. A couple in the Auburn congregation provided some initial financial assistance when she started at Lancaster Theological Seminary in PA in early 2009. Wanting to be in UU community during her ministerial formation, in the fall of that year Rev. Charlotte enrolled at Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago, and First Universalist in Auburn became her sponsoring congregation. She earned her M.Div. in 2012.
Ministerial formation is different for every person on this path. Rev. Charlotte’s journey became an extended one with new trials added on along the way like the hero’s quest. She ended up, it seems, doing everything two times: interviews with the (old) Regional Subcommittee on Candidacy (RSCC), Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) units – Chicago Medical Center and St. Vincent’s Hospital at Worcester Medical Center, ministerial internships – DuPage UU Church in Naperville [IL] and UU Congregation of Binghamton [NY], interviews with the Ministerial Fellowship Committee (MFC).
Rev. Charlotte spent two years as Acting Director of Religious Exploration at the First Church in Belmont [MA] while completing these requirements for preliminary fellowship in the UUA. Once cleared for ministerial search, she was able to seek a ministry and served for two years as the interim minister at the UU Church of Tallahassee [FL] from 2016-18. She was ordained by the First Universalist Church of Auburn at the end of October 2017.
Rev. Charlotte and her partner, Lisa Stewart – a physical therapist – enjoy many outdoor activities, music, movies, cultural events of all kinds and excellent food from all over the world.
Driving Directions to Bull Run Unitarian Universalists
Travel/Direction Tips
We are located at 9350 Main Street, Manassas, Virginia 20110, in Old Town Manassas at the corner of Church Street (Route 28 South) and Main Street. Church Street is a one-way street, and Center Street is one-way the other way a block south of Church Street.
Parking
On-street parking is scarce directly in front of the church, but there is ample parking within a couple blocks. The parking lot across Church Street is available for use on nights and weekends, excepting the spots marked for the use of Aurora Quilts. There are several municipal parking lots within Old Town (see Manassas downtown parking mapExternal link.), including the new five-story parking garage next to the train station, between Battle and Main Streets (two blocks from BRUU). The entrance to the parking garage is on Prince William Street.
Bull Run Unitarian Universalists Service Times
Sunday Service at 10:00 am (in-person and via zoom)
It's been more than a year since the last service times update. Please make sure to contact the church to confirm service times.
Please contact the church to confirm Service Times or SUBSCRIBE to updates below
It's been more than a year since the last service times update. Please make sure to contact the church to confirm service times.
Please contact the church to confirm Service Times or SUBSCRIBE to updates below
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Dress Code
BRUU meetings, including Sunday services, have a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. Most people dress casually, without coats and ties or fancy dresses. Of course, Unitarian Universalists are individual thinkers. There is not a “professional” dress code, and don’t be surprised to see a full range of styles at any gathering.
On any given Sunday you may find slacks, kilts, suits, jeans, and sundresses in the sanctuary. In the summer, there may be some people in shorts and sandals – while others could be dressed up as if attending a wedding. Yes, you’ll see people wearing fancy hats, as well as an occasional ballplayer’s cap. Some people wear an American flag lapel pin, or a button advertising their favorite cause, or even a Bluetooth receiver in their ear. (We silence all electronic devices during Sunday Services, except for doctors on call who leave theirs on “vibrate.”)
One standard item – those who attend regularly get BRUU name tags, and we wear them. We invite guests to wear a name tag too, highlighting the first name. That way, in a conversation after the service, everyone will know who’s talking. People are individuals at BRUU; no two are alike. We encourage people to express their own perceptions in discussions, and to dress in whatever manner they find comfortable.
BRUU is an interactive group where people share ideas. There’s Fellowship Hour afterwards, plus many opportunities to get together for various events during the week. It’s not what we wear during our time together that matters. We get together because we have unique thoughts and feelings to share, because we seek to learn together, and because we enjoy having company on our personal journeys.
Special Needs/Accessibility
We welcome people with special access needs, and we are working to provide universal access.
We have an elevator (450-pound capacity) big enough for an attended wheelchair. The elevator serves the Sanctuary and the Fellowship Hall. Other entrances to the building involve steps.
There is one handicap parking space on Main Street between Center and Church streets near the BRUU building.
The curb along Main Street is cut for wheelchair access.
From the Sanctuary, the Library and Classrooms 206/208 are marginally accessible with a slight ramp.
From the Fellowship Hall, there is a unisex accessible bathroom. From the Fellowship Hall, the Lounge is accessible with a slight ramp.
Classrooms 304/306 are not accessible to a wheelchair.
We have an elevator (450-pound capacity) big enough for an attended wheelchair. The elevator serves the Sanctuary and the Fellowship Hall. Other entrances to the building involve steps.
There is one handicap parking space on Main Street between Center and Church streets near the BRUU building.
The curb along Main Street is cut for wheelchair access.
From the Sanctuary, the Library and Classrooms 206/208 are marginally accessible with a slight ramp.
From the Fellowship Hall, there is a unisex accessible bathroom. From the Fellowship Hall, the Lounge is accessible with a slight ramp.
Classrooms 304/306 are not accessible to a wheelchair.
Other information
"There is nothing that makes us love a man so much as praying for him".William Law
Bull Run Unitarian Universalists listing was last updated on the 31st of August, 2022
