Richard, in a comment on a recent post about what it means to be a UU, thinks that our opposition to certain political positions, our rejection of certain movements and slogans, makes us hypocritical. We’ve hidden the comment where it originally appeared because it was wildly off-topic. We did want to address the comment, though: […]
It sometimes seems like Unitarian Universalism is chaotic; that we might actually be too diverse. Can it be that there are too many voices trying to be heard? Indeed, how we navigate that can be tricky, because we are blessed with many perspectives, all of them valuable. The I Am UU project holds that our […]
In the United States, our military is commanded by civilian leadership, with the elected President as the Commander and Chief of all our armed forces. All of our military operations are under the collective (if indirect) control of the citizenry; all service members carry out orders with our implied consent. We are, collectively, responsible for […]
I wanted to build on the topic I brought up last week: Who is a Unitarian Universalist. Here is an important distinction between a covenantal religion and a creedal one: Is Donald Trump a Christian? Well, if he can say the Creed and mean it, then yes. That’s the test, and all Christians have to […]
I see it all the time online: Someone wanting a little peace, or empathy, or respect is told that they’re asking too much. I’ve read over and over some variation of “grow up”. It gets tiresome reading “The world isn’t fair.” The world isn’t fair; not on a scale that humans can understand. Children who […]
After giving whatever your elevator speech, anyone with time and interest still remaining is very likely to ask you, How do you have a church where people have different religions? Firstly, while we may have different beliefs and practices, we have one religion. It is a religion that allows us to worship together as well […]
We spend a lot of digital ink on words, both religious and not, and how they are used by, and how they sometimes divide Unitarian Universalists. A lot is said about which words get used and how people react to them. Words do matter, but how we hear them is on us as much as […]
…all relations between persons ought ideally to rest on mutual, free consent and not on coercion. ~James Luther Adams In many religious traditions, you are made a part of the community through ritual acceptance. A Baptism, Birthday, or some other ritual that shows the community’s acceptance of you. They sanctify you; you receive their welcome. […]
This summer, I had the absolute joy and privilege of going to General Assembly and spending a week at a UU summer camp. If you haven’t done either, I highly recommend both. I am also fortunate to live in an area with many congregations within a reasonable drive. I seen (and even led) services at […]
Agnostic comes from the Greek ágnōstos “unknown, unknowable”. Merriam-Webster defines the word as “a person who holds the view that any ultimate reality (such as God) is unknown and probably unknowable“. They even include a section on the page explaining the difference between Agnostic and Atheist. The word “agnostic”, despite how many use it, is […]
Wearing a t-shirt or drinking from a mug with a flaming chalice on it is a very low-pressure way to invite questions and conversation about liberal religion.
