Unitarian Universalist 6 Sources and 7 Principles

[lpetrich]

Sources of Our Living Tradition | UUA.org

1. Direct experience of that transcending mystery and wonder, affirmed in all cultures, which moves us to a renewal of the spirit and an openness to the forces which create and uphold life;
2. Words and deeds of prophetic people which challenge us to confront powers and structures of evil with justice, compassion, and the transforming power of love;
3. Wisdom from the world's religions which inspires us in our ethical and spiritual life;
4. Jewish and Christian teachings which call us to respond to God's love by loving our neighbors as ourselves;
5. Humanist teachings which counsel us to heed the guidance of reason and the results of science, and warn us against idolatries of the mind and spirit;
6. Spiritual teachings of Earth-centered traditions which celebrate the sacred circle of life and instruct us to live in harmony with the rhythms of nature.

I can stomach some of these, I think, like #2 and #5. #1 seems too much like woo-woo, and one has to be selective with #3, #4, and #6.

The Seven Principles | UUA.org

1. The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
2. Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
3. Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
4. A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;
5. The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;
6. The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all;
7. Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

I think that I can subscribe to all 7 of them. However, I'm concerned that I may be poor exemplars of them.

We Welcome People with Many Beliefs | UUA.org

• Atheist and Agnostic
• Buddhist
• Christian
• Earth-Centered
• Hindu
• Humanist
• Jewish
• Muslim

Commendably accepting.

Beliefs about Life and Death in Unitarian Universalism | UUA.org

Unitarian Universalist views about life after death are informed by both science and spiritual traditions. Many of us live with the assumption that life does not continue after death, and many of us hold it as an open question, wondering if our minds will have any awareness when we are no longer living. Few of us believe in divine judgment after death. It’s in our religious DNA: the Universalist side of our tradition broke with mainstream Christianity by rejecting the idea of eternal damnation.

I expect my consciousness to end at the death of my body, but if I find out otherwise, I'll try to find out how it happened.

Existence of a Higher Power in Unitarian Universalism | UUA.org

What Do We Believe about God?

Unitarian Universalists have many ways of naming what is sacred. Some believe in a God; some don’t believe in a God. Some believe in a sacred force at work in the world, and call it “love,” “mystery,” “source of all” or “spirit of life.”

...
We join together not because we have a shared concept of the divine. Rather we gather knowing that life is richer in community than when we go it alone. We gather to know and be known, to comfort and be comforted, to celebrate the mystery that binds us, each to all.

 

[ideologyhunter]

In the 60s my dad went to a UU church. He was an agnostic and enjoyed the Sunday message -- don't know if it was called a sermon. I still have a few of the old weekly bulletins. There was a series of Sunday messages that went through various philosophers and psychologists, exploring one per week. Pretty heady stuff. I was a grade-school smartass at the time, and I hated the UU Sunday school, which I thought was a boring social studies class. We were forever coloring pictures of other cultures and their folkways, and singing songs I hated, like Kum Ba Ya and Kookaburra. I still hate that damn kookaburra song. One Sunday, as we got in the car, I launched into a bitter speech about how I hated Sunday school, and he never made me go again.
In retrospect, the message I got from my limited time with the UUs was a good humanistic message, although the version served up to 8-year-olds like me seemed goody-goody at the time.

 

[southernhybrid]

If there was a UU fellowship close to me, I'd give it a try. I have had many atheist UU friends when the Georgia Humanists was still active. The closest UU group to us is an hour away. There are two in Atlanta and one in Macon. I've always gotten the impression that UUs are more interested in social justice and doing charity work, then they are about their beliefs.

 

[Eldarion Lathria]

I remember a friend who said he was UU. He was in fact an atheist who said, "If there is really a god, I hope he is a UU.'" He detested the concept of hell and said (like me) that people who believe in hell ought to end up there.

Eldarion Lathria

 

[Politesse]

I have a strong Universalist core, but find UU worship services to be a little too... vague. Half the reason I go to church is for the hymnody, and the music is better in more othodox communities. It just is.

Fear of offense has a way of preventing pastor messages from getting too long or too deep, either. I'm a long deep kind of guy, and do not even slightly mind disagreeing with the rector if it leads to an interesting conversation.

Nope, I'm high church through and through. But I like UU philosophy, and feel that the world would be a much more peaceful and pleasant place if their basic principles were generally adopted.

 

[dendrast]

My Mum took us to a Unitarian Fellowship in the 60s after I got caught stealing from god at the Anglican church (pocketing the collection). I was a teenager and I absolutely loved the LRY (Liberal Religious Youth), which was the teen wing of UU. We'd have conventions in various cities on long weekends like Thanksgiving or Easter. It was great being away from home without the 'rents and with a bunch of other kids. We'd help kids from the 'States who'd wanted to dodge the draft too. The best was the summer of Expo 67. Got hooked up with a bunch of LRYers down in Montreal and stayed for free. The parents were at the cottage.

I found the "adult" church a bit too laid back. They needed a height restriction or something.
Actually, I'd still go, but the nearest Fellowship is in Toronto, more than 250 miles away. My Mum still goes.