Rev. Arthur Foote used to call newcomers to Unitarian Universalist congregations “shedders,” the term used by lobstermen in Maine to describe that tender moment in a lobster’s life between shedding its first shell and acquiring its mature one. That’s a vulnerable time, a period of transition from one way of life to the next, whether … Continue reading SUUF and Shedders [#61]
Read this headline aloud and people might imagine that at the Sedona Unitarian Universalist Fellowship female clergy dressed in black and white habits chant psalms. No, there are no nuns at SUUF, but there are many “Nones.” Nones is a term used for people who check a survey box saying they have “no particular religious … Continue reading SUUF and Nones [#60]
The Sedona Unitarian Universalist Fellowship believes in “justice, equity and compassion in human relations.” They want everyone to have the resources needed to live a decent life. They smile approvingly at author Anne Lamott’s admonition, “Nobody gets into heaven without a reference letter from the poor.” To this point, a UU minister tells about a … Continue reading Social Justice [#59]
Along with humans’ innate drive for sexual connection, social power, and possessions, theologians maintain that we also crave “knowledge of the right direction—for orientation.” Like other faiths, Unitarians have offered theological guidance for centuries. Unlike most others, however, they are committed to refreshing their theology periodically. Paradoxically, maintaining an open-minded outlook is a long-standing Unitarian … Continue reading A Renewing Theology [#58]
Most Unitarians are uncomfortable with theology. They tend to prefer philosophy, because (as the saying goes) although philosophers might look in a dark room for black cat that isn’t there, many theologians will find it. Unitarians are oriented toward logical reasoning, such as questioning faith in God’s omnipotence by asking: “Can God create a stone … Continue reading Theology [#57]
Most current Unitarians were raised within other religious traditions. Some were Catholic, Jewish, Baptist, Hindu, or Muslim, and some were agnostic and humanist. Unitarians honor the universal values that underlie all of these and other spiritual paths. For example, Unitarian ethics are consistent with the Declaration of Modern Humanism, agreed to at the 2022 Humanists … Continue reading Humanism [#56]
Unitarian Universalists see their unique and ongoing place in the spectrum of faith traditions as involving a “sacred fire.” They view their commitment to social justice as sacred. And their motivation to contribute burns from within, rather than requiring ignition from an external source. In other words, their values don’t depend on commandments from on … Continue reading A Sacred Fire [#55]
Unitarians value spirituality, but not in the ways most people define that term. They don’t limit it to scripture reading, attending church services, and prayer. Their view of spirituality is more akin to how Catholic monk Wayne Teasdale, who supported mutual understanding among world religions and was an active campaigner for social justice, saw it. He said, “Spirituality … Continue reading Spirituality [#54]
We face many daunting dilemmas in the world today, such as poverty, war, climate change, hyper-polarization, and more. One can easily lose faith in humanity’s ability and determination to make progress toward addressing them. Unitarian Jon Alexander asks us not to despair, but to examine, and perhaps change, the “deep story” we tell ourselves about … Continue reading On Citizenship [#53]
From 1836 to 1840, a group of New England activists, scholars, educators, and nonconforming ministers, later to be called the Transcendentalists, met regularly for conversations that led to a revolution within Unitarianism. These interactions among Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller, Henry David Thoreau, Elizabeth Peabody, Bronson Alcott, and more than 40 others, united them into … Continue reading Unitarian Troublemakers [#52]
