On civil marriage equality

Resolved: That Prairie Unitarian Universalist Society of Madison opposes constitutional or legislative limits on the definition of civil marriage, or other civil matters, that endanger the full civil rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender persons.

Adopted by congregation at April 25, 2004 parish meeting.

On the death penalty

Resolved: That Prairie Unitarian Universalist Society of Madison is opposed to returning the death penalty to Wisconsin. The willful taking of a human life by the state violates our belief in the intrinsic worth of every human being. We believe the state should continue to impose nonviolent penalties for violent crimes to set a positive example aimed at reducing the violence in our society. We believe capital punishment degrades and brutalizes any society which practices it. We find the death penalty particularly abhorrent because it is based on an unjustified assumption of infallibility in the process of determining guilt, with the greatest risk of error being borne by those who are economically disadvantaged. We find the death penalty wholly unacceptable, whether imposed to prevent repetition of a crime by an individual, as a deterrent to others, or as social retribution.

Adopted by congregation at Oct. 22, 2006 parish meeting.