Here on the blog last week, I talked about how the world still needs liberal religion; how many people still want all the community benefits and even the rituals and commemorations that come with religious practice. They want the good parts of religion without the dogma and the stifling traditions, and at its best, that […]
The goal of religious education in a Unitarian Universalist setting is, in short, to make better citizens of our members; to help them be people who work and fight for a more Just, Compassionate, and Equitable world.
We all have an image of ourselves in our heads. We also know that there are people in the world who do not see us the way we see ourselves; they have seen or heard or otherwise experienced something that has them thinking we’re not as good as we seek to be. And they are […]
Back in 2008, my life fell apart. I won’t go into the real details, but I was homeless, unemployed, recently divorced after a long separation, and had come to the realization that the friendships of my early 20s were not supporting me in my 30s. I moved away from those friends and my now ex-wife […]
Hi there. My name is Thomas Earthman and I run the I Am UU Facebook page, Twitter account, and this website. I make a small amount of money doing so, though a lot of what is raised goes into software fees, hosting costs, and other business expenses for the project. I never wanted to be […]
The Principles of Unitarian Universalism dedicate us to building a world that is just, compassionate, and equitable. That will never come about by accident or even charity. People have fought their whole lives to see the world get better on any one of those points. They come together and build movements and organizations to do […]
“Religious liberalism affirms the moral obligation to direct one’s effort toward the establishment of a just and loving community.” ~ James Luther Adams While many UUs believe that there might be, even must be, life after death, the heaven we all commit to is here on Earth. The name we’ve been calling that heaven for […]
We must not forget that, even while we aspire to accept and encourage every person who enters a UU space, whether online or in person, we are a covenantal religion; covenant means that responsibility and respect must go both ways. While we affirm the worth and dignity of every person, we do not need to […]
“Charity is commendable; everyone should be charitable. But justice aims to create a social order in which, if individuals choose not to be charitable, people still don’t go hungry, unschooled or sick without care. Charity depends on the vicissitudes of whim and personal wealth; justice depends on commitment instead of circumstance.” ~ Bill Moyers Unitarian […]
“Nothing ventured, nothing gained.” It is an old saying. Put more simply, if we aren’t risking anything, we aren’t likely to see much in the way of results. You can’t be great at everything the first time you try; you have to be willing to risk failure. You learn from failure. You get better. A […]
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.
