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I guess I was drawing conclusions from a Unitarian church in the DC Metro area that I went to a couple of times, with friends.
Thanks for clearing that misconception up.
They're all different. I don't mean to scare people off. They do mean well.
Just remember, Unitarians are disproportionately from our elite, well-educated, liberal classes, and they therefore attract way, way more than their fair share of guilty white liberals. If that's not your niche, it can be rather twee.
Unitarians really don't, either. I had to quit attending a nearby UU church when the lily-white membership got all snitty about the racism of "the Religious Right" regarding Segregation in America, given that the entire Religious Education program is white and that virtually all the membership lived in equally lily-white suburban areas.
It was just too hilariously rich for me to handle politely.
The Unitarian Universalist Church is making a decided effort to become more intergrated to match our belief system. We are a small minority religion so we arent going to have a huge amount of any section of the population and most of our churches are not christian and that further limits our appeal. In my church we have several Iranians, several Japanese and some middle eastern folks, some jewish members and some latino members. We also have gay and lesbian members. The congregaton is truly welcoming, but it doesnt have universal appeal.
The President of the Unitarian Universalist Association is a black man. This year the denomination set up scholarship programs to assist black ministerial students in an effort to increase the number of black UU ministers.
The Unitarian Church was historically associated with New England inteligencia and aristocracy....Harvard....where as the Universalist church was associated with farmers, tradesmen and pioneers to Ohio Indiana etc.
There is a kernal of truth in your perception....but the denomination recognizes the problem and is actively trying to broaden its appeal and its membership. As a non traditional denomination with a rational humanistic strain, it is what it is....but its efforts to serve the causes of peace and freedom and justice and enviornmental awareness are admirable.
I am unaware of any other institution that has maintained a commitment to social justice for the last 200 years and has been on the progressive side of as many issues.
I can assure you that I am not rich, either hilariously or seriously or dour.
Actually the Dalai Lama always says about himself that he is just an ordinary human being, like the rest of us. I have read quite a bit about him and recently seen a movie about his life, he actually thinks he might be the last Dalai Lama and doesn't seem to be bothered by this, he says we keep evolving and everything changes. While I wouldn't call myself a Buddhist, I am most drawn to their views.
The Unitarian Universalist Church is making a decided effort to become more intergrated to match our belief system. We are a small minority religion so we arent going to have a huge amount of any section of the population and most of our churches are not christian and that further limits our appeal.
The President of the Unitarian Universalist Association is a black man. This year the denomination set up scholarship programs to assist black ministerial students in an effort to increase the number of black UU ministers.
The Unitarian Church was historically associate with New England inteligencia and aristocracy....Harvard....where as the Universalist church was associated with farmers, tradesmen and pioneers to Ohio Indiana etc.
There is a kernal of truth in your perception....but the denomination recognizes the problem and is actively trying to broaden its appeal and its membership. As a non traditional denomination with a rational humanistic strain, it is what it is....but its efforts to serve the causes of peace and freedom and justice and enviornmental awareness are admirable.
Yeah, I know. UUs have been trying to get more diverse for decades, eh? I just think the religion has a certain ethereal appeal to, say, high-status white people that it does not have for lower-status whites (say, my husband, who is totally, totally put off by the liberal-love-fest) or for blacks (say, my neighbor, who doesn't even understand how it qualifies as a "real religion" anyway.)
I'm not upset by the lack of diversity. Just the silliness of the angst toward "low-class" white people. I got tired of hearing traditional-minded people like my grandmother derided constantly; she's not oppressing anyone by believing what she does, though she's probably part of what UUs would call the "Religious Right." I think the Brahmin Unitarians lost most of their blue-collar Universalists a long time ago.
JMO, of course. Spirituality is a funny thang. I wouldn't discourage someone from going to such a church... but they're as demographically-driven as any institution is. Peace be with you!
Nothing wrong at all. If two consenting adults who love each other want to make a commitment and feel marriage is right for them then it's something to applaud.
Any loving, long-term stable relationship is a bonus and I just will never get how people can be so negative about it.
Love is Love. Gay people should have the same rights to feel stable, and secure and benefit from exactly the same rights that heterosexuals do. Fair is Fair.
It is nobody's business but the couple whether they should marry or not.
I would be livid if someone told me that I couldn't marry and was a freak ( I am heterosexual BTW) so why should I want to impose some people's beliefs on others.
If you believe Gay marriage is wrong, that is your prerogative , just don't get married to a same-sex person.
We should be celebrating Love and commitment and encouraging stable relationships regardless of the sex-mix.
Gay people have existed since the dawn of time, will always exist and banning Gay marriages will do nothing to stop Homosexuality, apart from cause distress and hurt.
So what is the point ? I don't get all the aggravation.
By the way, that wasn't the topic, so back to gay marriage...
Several of our friends here in MA are married and why shouldn't they get the tax benefit, health insurance. They own houses together and live just my husband and I do.
I believe a lot of people are opposed because of those benefits, even if they don't oppose it on religious grounds.
The Unitarian Universalist Church is making a decided effort to become more intergrated to match our belief system. We are a small minority religion so we arent going to have a huge amount of any section of the population and most of our churches are not christian and that further limits our appeal. In my church we have several Iranians, several Japanese and some middle eastern folks, some jewish members and some latino members. We also have gay and lesbian members. The congregaton is truly welcoming, but it doesnt have universal appeal.
The President of the Unitarian Universalist Association is a black man. This year the denomination set up scholarship programs to assist black ministerial students in an effort to increase the number of black UU ministers.
The Unitarian Church was historically associate with New England inteligencia and aristocracy....Harvard....where as the Universalist church was associated with farmers, tradesmen and pioneers to Ohio Indiana etc.
There is a kernal of truth in your perception....but the denomination recognizes the problem and is actively trying to broaden its appeal and its membership. As a non traditional denomination with a rational humanistic strain, it is what it is....but its efforts to serve the causes of peace and freedom and justice and enviornmental awareness are admirable.
I can assure you that I am not rich, either hilariously or seriously or dour.
thanks for your post!
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Good To Go!
