Leaving a church?

I haven't made a final move yet, but I am very close to quitting our UU church. We have decided not to renew our pledge of membership this year. We will change our status to "friends". Big J wants to feel free to go back occasionally if they should have any good sermon topics come along. I kind of feel a sadness when I think of leaving. But frankly, I hardly recognize the place anymore.

I won't get into the issues publicly, but there is a disagreement at our church that stands to tear the very fiber of the congregation into two. There is a very vocal bunch who just won't let this issue die. Their need to be "right" and "win" is so great that they are willing to watch the congregation implode as a result. As far as the disagreement goes, I don't really have an opinion one way or other about that. I do, however, have an opinion about a congregation which appears, these days, to be ruled by a group of people who are hell-bent (and I use that phrase purposely) on getting their way no matter what damage is done.

I think about the covenant that we say each week. I'm sure it is like most UU churches' covenants:
"Love is the Spirit of this church
Service is its law
To dwell together in peace
To seek the truth in love
And to help one another
This is our covenant."

Some of these people seem only to recognize the "Service is its law" piece of the covenant. They definitely don't consider Love to be the Spirit of the church, nor do they believe we should dwell together in peace, seek the truth in *love*, or help one another. They've become hateful and mean-spirited and are letting that control what is happening. These are not my values. The spiritual values that I think are most important to me are compassion and forgiveness and these people seem to be lacking in both. It is not a pleasant environment there anymore.

It makes me sad, but I see no solution on the horizon.

Today we visited the Quakers again for meeting. The compassion and joy I saw there is what I'm looking for.