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Unitarian Universalist Statement of Beliefs
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"We the member congregations of the UUA covenant to affirm and promote:
 | The inherent worth and dignity of every person. |
| Justice, equity and compassion in human relations. |
| Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations. |
| A free and responsible search for truth and meaning. |
| The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large. |
| The goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice for all. |
| Respect the interdependant web of all existence of which we are a part. |
The living tradition which we share draws from many sources..."
Unitarian Universalist Association
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| With its historical roots in the Jewish and Christian traditions, Unitarian Universalism is a liberal religion -- that is, a religion that keeps an open mind to the religious questions people have struggled with in all times and places. We are a "non-creedal" religion: we do not ask anyone to ascribe to a creed. |
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| We believe that personal experience, conscience and reason should be the final authorities in religion, and that in the end religious authority lies not in a book or person or institution, but in ourselves. |
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| Unitarians and Universalists have always been heretics. We are heretics because we want to choose our faith, not because we desire to be rebellious. ÒHeresyÓ in Greek means Òchoice.Ó During the first three centuries of the Christian church, believers could choose from a variety of tenets about Jesus. Among these was a belief that Jesus was an entity sent by God on a divine mission. |
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Thus the word ÒUnitarianÓ developed, meaning the oneness of God. Another religious choice in the first three centuries of the Common Era (CE) was universal salvation. This was the belief that no person would be condemned by God to eternal damnation in a fiery pit. Thus a Universalist believed that all people will be saved. Christianity lost its element of choice in 325 CE when the Nicene Creed established the Trinity as dogma. For centuries thereafter, people who professed Unitarian or Universalist beliefs were persecuted.
This was true until the sixteenth century when the Protestant Reformation took hold in the remote mountains of Transylvania in eastern Europe. Here the first edict of religious toleration in history was declared in 1568 during the reign of the first and only Unitarian king, John Sigismund. SigismundÕs court preacher, Frances David, had successively converted from Catholicism to Lutheranism to Calvinism and finally to Unitarianism because he could find no biblical basis for the doctrine of the Trinity. Arguing that people should be allowed to choose among these faiths, he said, ÒWe need not think alike to love alike.Ó
Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations
25 Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Phone: (617) 742-2100
Fax: (617) 367-3237
Internet: http://www.uua.org/
Unitarian Universalist Service Committee
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| With more than 25,000 members and supporters, the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee is a nonsectarian organization that promotes human rights and social justice worldwide. |
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| We maintain partnerships in the United States, South and Southeast Asia, Central Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.
Our programs are based on Unitarian Universalist principles that affirm the worth, dignity and human rights of every person Ñ but one need not be a Unitarian Universalist to join UUSC. Through a potent combination of advocacy, education and partnerships with grassroots organizations, UUSC supports programs and policies that empower women, defend the rights of children and support the struggles of indigenous people and oppressed racial and ethnic groups. We also provide financial and technical support when disasters strike impoverished areas. |
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The Service Committee trains and organizes U.S. citizens to advocate for legislative policies which foster social justice. We also educate U.S. citizens about human rights issues and rally thousands of UUSC members who have joined our Human Rights Network into action each year. Members of the network receive action alerts on key UUSC public policy issues and are encouraged to contact their legislators to advocate for just laws.
UUSC staff members work with members of Congress, the executive branch, and other U.S. government and United Nations officials to press for U.S. domestic and foreign policies that respect, promote and protect human rights.
Unitarian Universalist Service Committee
130 Prospect Street
Cambridge, MA 02139-1845
Phone: (617) 868-6600
Fax: (617) 868-7102
Internet: http://www.uusc.org/
The Continental Unitarian Universalist Young Adult Network
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| The need for an organization for young adults isn't as much because young adults are"special" as it is because young adults are at an age range not traditionally well-served by congregations. Often UUs move far from their home congregations around age 18 and don't find a congregation where they end up, particularly when they end up in a tiny college town. They lose their connections with UU community. |
Similarly, people discovering UUism at this age may have difficulty finding others their own age in congregations. Few colleges or universities have very good UU outreach,so finding out more about UUism can be challenging.
Compounding this problem is the fact that many people raised in UU religous education did not participate in services. Many congregations send people under 18 to religous education during the sermon. Teenagers ("youth") often get their religous experiences primarily from youth conferences and gatherings. Later on, they yearn not for sermon-style worships offered to them, but for the "circle worships" found at youth conferences. In effect, a congregation that does not include youth in adult services teaches them to find their own religion alien.
This isn't to say that the situation is insurmountable or uniformly bad. Many congregations have large numbers of young adults. In recent years, including children and youth in the church service has become very popular. And the fact that the majority of UUs are converts shows that some of our outreach is effective. But there is still a long way to go. In particular, congregations almost never help youth find a new spiritual home when they leave town. And colleges and universities, full of well-funded missions from other denominations, tend to have only modest UU outposts.
Unitarian Universalist WomenÕs Heritage Society
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| UUWHS 2 Elm Street Malden, MA 02148 Phone: 781-321-3979 http://www.uuwhs.org/ |
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| The Unitarian Universalist Women's Heritage Society was founded in 1988 (as the Women's History Publication Project) by one woman with a vision and a small group of supportive colleagues with funding from the Unitarian Universalist Association and private donations.
The mission of the Unitarian Universalist WomenÕs Heritage Society is to reclaim, communicate, and celebrate the lives and accomplishments of Universalist and Unitarian women, and to engage local congregations in the recovery of womenÕs history, so that we may draw courage and inspiration from our heritage, and so that our foremothers may take their rightful place in the ongoing story of Unitarian Universalism. |
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The Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office
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| The Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office 777 UN Plaza, C-C New York NY 10017 Tel: (212) 986-5165 Fax: (212) 983-5498 http://www.uu-uno.org/ |
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Congregations
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We have chosen these congregations because of the exceptional content and design of their web sites. The statements presented are from their websites and we felt they effectively expressed the spirit of Unitarian Universalism. The congregations are listed alphabetically by state.
| UU Fellowship of Montgomery P.O. Box 230355 Montgomery, AL 36123-0355 Phone: (334) 279-9517 Fax: (334) 279-9795 http://www.mindspring.com/~scottr/uu/
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| Unitarian Universalist Church of Fresno 4144 North Millbrook Avenue Fresno, California 93726 Phone: (559)227-6146 Fax: (559)227-6182 http://www.uufresno.org/ |
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| Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church 9601 Cedar Lane Bethesda, Maryland 20814-4099 Tel: 301-493-8300 Fax: 301-897-5713 http://www.cedarlane.org/
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| River Road Unitarian Church 6301 River Road Bethesda, MD 20817 Phone: (301) 229-0400 Fax: (301) 320-3544 http://www.rruc.org/ |
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| Unitarian Universalist Church of Nashua 58 Lowell Street Nashua, NH 03064 Phone: 603-882-1091 http://www.uunashua.org/ |
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| First Unitarian Universalist Church of Nashville 1808 Woodmont Blvd. Nashville, Tennessee 37215 Phone: 615-383-5760 Fax: 615-383-5785 http://www.firstuunashville.org/
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| Williamsburg Unitarian Universalists 3051 Ironbound Road Williamsburg, VA 23185 Phone: (757)220-6830 Fax: (757)220-9975 http://www.wuu.org/
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Affiliates
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Explore the beauty of Pagan, Goddess, and Earth-centered spiritualities woven together with Unitarian Universalism. The Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans, Inc. (CUUPS) is an Independent Affiliate of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations (UUA). We are a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization committed to furthering Pagan and Earth-centered thea/ology within the UUA. We invite you to learn more about us. www.cuups.org |
ÒThe Covenant of UU Pagans was formed at the 1985 UUA General Assembly in Atlanta to enrich and strengthen the religious pluralism of UUism by promoting the study and practice of contemporary Pagan and Earth- and nature-centered spirituality.Ó --From the 1995-96 UUA Directory.
CUUPS, Inc.
PMB 335
8190A Beechmont Avenue
Cincinnati, Ohio 45255-3154
Phone: (303) 295-0515 (until 6/30/01)
Internet: http://www.cuups.org/
Unitarian Universalist General Assembly Resolution on Lesbians, Gay Men, and Bisexuals. (Passed, 1970)
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| RECOGNIZING THAT: 1. A significant minority in this country are either homosexual or bisexual in their feelings and/or behavior; 2. Homosexuality has been the target of severe discrimination by society and in particular by the police and other arms of government; 3. A growing number of authorities on the subject now see homosexuality as an inevitable sociological phenomenon and not as a mental illness; 4. There are Unitarian Universalists, clergy and laity, who are homosexuals or bisexuals; |
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THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: That the 1970 General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association: 1. Urges all peoples immediately to bring an end to all discrimination against homosexuals, homosexuality, bisexuals, and bisexuality, with specific immediate attention to the following issues: a. private consensual behavior between persons over the age of consent shall be the business only of those persons and not subject to legal regulations; b. a personÕs sexual orientation or practice shall not be a factor in the granting or renewing of federal security clearance, visas, and the granting of citizenship or employment; 2. Calls upon the UUA and its member churches, fellowships, and organizations immediately to end all discrimination against homosexuals in employment practices, expending special effort to assist homosexuals to find employment in our midst consistent with their abilities and desires; 3. Urges all churches and fellowships, in keeping with changing social patterns, to initiate meaningful programs of sex education aimed at providing more open and healthier understanding of sexuality in all parts of the United States and Canada, and with the particular aim to end all discrimination against homosexuals and bisexuals.
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