Unitarian Universalist? Me?
Candle asks if I believed in what the religion quiz handed back to me. My initial answer? “Hell, no.” If it assigned me any religion at all, it had to be wrong. I am not a believer in any God, gods or goddesses, mystical powers, or energy crystals. I just don’t have it in me.
But Candle’s question made me curious and so I went to the link provided that gave more information on Unitarian Universalism. Why had the quiz been so short-sighted as to have ever put me in that category to begin with?
Unitarian Universalism – Our Unitarian Universalist Faith: Frequently Asked Questions
I’ve plucked sections out of the write-up this link leads to so I could comment on them.
–“Faithful Unitarian Universalists committed to the practice of free religion.” That comes under the “I may not believe in what you say, but I will defend your right to say it with my life”. I may not believe in [fill in the blank], but I feel it is important for people to follow their own paths, so long as they aren’t infringing on other people’s ability to do the same thing. So I guess that fits.
–“Some of the greatest scientists and social theorists of the age were either privately or publicly Unitarian or Universalist: Joseph Priestley, Charles Darwin, Maria Mitchell, and Benjamin Rush, for example.” Well, I’d be in good company, anyhow.
–“Some Unitarian Universalists are nontheists and do not find language about God useful. The faith of other Unitarian Universalists in God may be profound, though among these, too, talk of God may be restrained.” Well, that fits, I suppose. There aren’t many who get left behind here. I’m not precisely sure what a “nontheist” is supposed to be, though. Is that a lump-together category for agnostics and atheists?
–“Whatever our theological persuasion, Unitarian Universalists generally agree that the fruits of religious belief matter more than beliefs about religion-even about God. So we usually speak more of the fruits: gratitude for blessings, worthy aspirations, the renewal of hope, and service on behalf of justice.” Yes, yes, YES! It isn’t what you believe, but how you live your life. That’s it in a nutshell.
–“We do not, however, hold the Bible-or any other account of human experience-to be either an infallible guide or the exclusive source of truth.” I’m liking these folks more and more. Anybody who thinks that all their solutions can be found between the covers of a single book is bound towards disappointment. Books should prepare you to make choices, not make your choices for you.
–“Among Unitarian Universalists, instead of salvation you will hear of our yearning for, and our experience of, personal growth, increased wisdom, strength of character, and gifts of insight, understanding, inner and outer peace, courage, patience, and compassion.” That’s exactly what life is about. Or what it should be about.
–“Are Unitarian Universalists Christian? Yes and no.” You’ll just have to read that section to get the gist of it. But since Unitarianism seems to be all about tolerance, the answer makes sense. You believe in what makes sense to you. You just don’t expect everybody else to have to share those beliefs.
–“Religious liberals put less emphasis on formal beliefs and more on practical living. Our interest is in deeds, not creeds. We appreciate the biblical text, ‘Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only.’ ” This is too good to be true. It is also not a religion, in any sense that I’ve come to define a religion. This is a philosophy of life.
OK, don’t consider me a convert, but consider me intrigued enough to look into this further. I don’t know if I’m a Unitarian Universalist or not, but I see why they stuck me there. I’m still curious as to what answers I’d have had to change to get me put into the “Atheist/Agnostic” category.