So, I'm considering Unitarianism.

arcticpenguin said:
I'm afraid I just don't 'get it' about Unitarianism. If it's really a social club and not a 'church' in the sense that most people mean, why not call it that? If your 'religion' has no creed and no dogma, is it really a religion in the sense in which most people use the term?

Anyway, happy wedding.
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First, thanks to everyone for the congrats.

Second, (straight response) the reason it's called a "church", I think, is because it provides a sense of community based not on a creed but on a philosophy of religious inquery. (I am, of course, making this up as I go along based on my impressions) I mean, anyone could practice their religion without getting together with other people to do it, right? I'm starting to view Unitarianism as a place where deists, agnostics, and atheists could come together to practice and share their varied forms of philosophy.

So, why call it a church? (smart-ass response) Tax exempt status, of course. ;)
 
Psi Baba said:

I don't think it's so much that Unitarianism has "no creed," but rather has many creeds, or that they tolerate any and all creeds, or those who have none at all.
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Technically, I believe the context of "no creed" is that Unitarianism has no creed one must adhere to in order to be a Unitarian. But essentially you are correct.
 
Upchurch said:

First, thanks to everyone for the congrats.

Second, (straight response) the reason it's called a "church", I think, is because it provides a sense of community based not on a creed but on a philosophy of religious inquery. (I am, of course, making this up as I go along based on my impressions) I mean, anyone could practice their religion without getting together with other people to do it, right? I'm starting to view Unitarianism as a place where deists, agnostics, and atheists could come together to practice and share their varied forms of philosophy.

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Sounds like JREF! I think that's one reason I am very interested in visiting the local UU fellowship. I like the diversity. Plus, I can't take fundamentalist churches.
 
Most religions seem to me to be faith masquerading as reason.

Unitarianism seems to be reason masquerading as faith.
 
Have you considered city hall?

I believe most municipalities provide civil marriages. For those indifferent to organized religions, this is an economical way to get the legalities out of the way and assume married status in the eyes of the law.
 
My husband and I were married by a Unitarian minister. (An interesting woman, she had lived all over the world and spoke seven languages.)

She offered us a multiple choice-style ceremony notebook, where you could choose from up to ten versions of opening words, vows, etc. You could also write your own, or ask her to write something just for you. She said adjusts the amount of "God-talk" to suit the couple.



We haven't attended in a while, but keeep saying we're going to go back, because the topics are interesting. The little "church" is in a converted home, and is actually called a fellowship, not a church.

The fellowship offers an outlet for those of mixed religious belief, those who are interested in spirituality, but are not necessarily religious, and those who want the supportive community of a church without the dogma.

Also, you can attend in shorts and t-shirt, then drop by the gym afterward without changing clothes.
 
I was "Raised" Unitarian, by my second generation Unitarian/Atheist mother and left the fold/Orthodox Jewish father. Although it's been 10 years since I went to the fellowship, I spent my teen years involved in LRY (Liberal Religious Youth), and various summer camps and conferences and the like.

I don't think I ever heard god mentioned at sunday school, most of the time we were doing things like drawing parallels between world religions and using those examples to examine issues of social justice and such.

Pros.
1. Nobody is going to tell you what to think or do.
2. A good social circle of freethinkers.
3. It helps get you excited about activism again.

Cons.
1. Because of the acceptance of almost all things spiritual, a lot of new age crap gets poured in and stirred into the pot. I remember at summer camp one year we celebrated the "Harmonic Convergence". You just smile and nod.
2. If you are having Existential dilemmas and need answers, all you will get is better questions.


Telling Unitarian joke:

A fast moving fire was sweeping through the religious district, the first house of worship threatened was the catholic church.

"I must save it" The priest says as he runs into the burning church. A few minutes later he comes out with the churches gold leafed bible.

Soon the Synagogue is threatened, "I must save it" says the Rabbi as he dashes in through the flames only to return minutes later with the Torah.

Finally the Unitarian minister arrives on the scene and sees his Fellowship on fire "I must save it" he cries as he runs into the building, he comes staggering out with the coffee maker.

Telling Unitarian joke #2.

Q: How many LRY's does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: None, they screw in sleeping bags.

Personally, I would like to go to services again for my children's education, but my wife got so burnt on Roman Catholicism that she is rabidly anti any church at all.

Good luck, and congrats.
 
arcticpenguin said:
I'm afraid I just don't 'get it' about Unitarianism. If it's really a social club and not a 'church' in the sense that most people mean, why not call it that?
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Because, in America, churches get tax breaks.
 
Pardon my responding to everyone in a single post.
Ruby said:
Sounds like JREF!
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pretty much, except the UU has singing and occasional moments of silence for prayer, meditation, or whatever trips your trigger. Kidding aside, it's very similar except that it is an IRL community, which JREF isn't, for me anyway. Plus, they support a wider variaty of social programs, many of which I could get behind.
Fun2BFree said:
Most religions seem to me to be faith masquerading as reason.

Unitarianism seems to be reason masquerading as faith.
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Wow. Me likey.

To Lemastre and UnrepentantSinner, my fiancee wants to get married in a church, either that or by Elvis in Vegas. If I had to choose a church, The Unitarian church works for me, both architectually and philosophically.

To thrombus29, you forgot one from the pro list. Unitarians seem to love jokes at the expense of Unitarians.

So far, I have felt the new age vibe from this group. I think it's mostly populated by academic types. Not that they are amune to the woo-woo, but they do seem to go for it less often (with some notable acceptions).
 
Cristina said:
Dearest Upchurch

Congratulations on your decision to wed but I strongly urge you to rethink the date :roll:
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Thanks Cristina, but I've already taken care of this. See, I've already seen the bride-to-be in her wedding dress (helped her pick it out, as a matter of fact), which everyone knows is bad luck. Well, from your article this is a bad time to get married, right? So, in essense, this is a bad time for my bad luck. In other words, the double negative cancels and becomes a positive!

(I know, I know. But it makes about as much sense as the astrology or the supersticion.)
 
Just a note on the nomenclature they are the 'you-yous', which is from the abrreveation UU, it is Unitarian-Universalist. (They combined in 1957)

They are usually very nice people who are tolerant of atheists and pagans. If they don't like you then they burn a question mark in your yard.
 
thrombus29 said:

Personally, I would like to go to services again for my children's education, but my wife got so burnt on Roman Catholicism that she is rabidly anti any church at all.
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Don't use me as an excuse, you want them to go, take them yourself.

And Congrats Upchurch:)
 
I love the Unitarians and the LRY. ("liberal religious youth" in case the sleeping-bag joke wasn't clear)

If you do decide to be married there, please give the minister some good monetary compensation. Back in my years with the Unitarians, the fellowship met at the local YMCA - woefully short of funds, and this was in a relatively affluent community.

Maybe read some Emerson, too.
 
Congratulations Upchurch! Hope that you and your fiancee will be happy for many years to come.

My Mr. and I were married by a Unitarian minister. We were married at my parent's house - he didn't have a problem with that. At the time, the Mr. was an agnostic and I was a wiccan. He didn't have a problem with that either, and was happy to customize our vows/ceremony to whatever we wanted. All that he asked was that we attend a couple of services at the local Unitarian church (this was in the Deep South, so they were emphatic about the word "church") and see if this was what we wanted. We were pretty impressed. Nobody was especially dressed up ( a huge deal for the Mr.). We happened to be there on Gautama the Buddah's birthday. The minister brought *all* the children up to the front, told them one of the stories about Buddah's childhood, and the kids all sang a song for him. We decided then and there that if we had kids, we'd take them there for any religious ed. we wanted them to have.

Oh yes, and our local atheist/humanist group meets at the Universalist church just down the hill.

Of course, with all the wedding plans, I'm betting Vegas and Elvis is starting to look real good :D
 
Upchurch said:
Thanks Cristina, but I've already taken care of this. See, I've already seen the bride-to-be in her wedding dress (helped her pick it out, as a matter of fact), which everyone knows is bad luck. Well, from your article this is a bad time to get married, right? So, in essense, this is a bad time for my bad luck. In other words, the double negative cancels and becomes a positive!

(I know, I know. But it makes about as much sense as the astrology or the supersticion.)
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Maybe this means that wedding costs will be lowered?
 
Re: Re: Re: So, I'm considering Unitarianism.

a_unique_person said:


God didn't give you your mind so you could use it! I would watch out for them.
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:D
 
No, no, no. If you're not a Universal Lifarian, Lifian, Lifer, then you are going to suffer whatever eternal damnation you happen to believe in. So Sayeth His Most Celestial Majesty, The Very Reverend Agammamon. Minister Of Religious Persecution, Witchfinder Persuviant, And Lord High Executioner (and ordained minister of the Universal Life Church).


(in such informal communications I tend to just use the shorter version of my titles)
 
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