UU Beliefs

[uumckk16]

I'm just curious about the beliefs of the UUs here on RF concerning God. How would you classify yourself? I realize that this is quite an oversimplification. Feel free to post and elaborate!

For the sake of the thread we'll use these definitions (http://reference.aol.com/dictionary):
Monotheism - the doctrine or belief that there is but one God
Polytheism - belief in or worship of more than one god
Agnosticism - a person who holds the view that any ultimate reality (as God) is unknown and prob. unknowable; one who is not committed to believing in either the existence or the nonexistence of God or a god
Atheism - a disbelief in the existence of deity

Furthermore, what do these beliefs mean to you? How do they effect your daily life?

---

I'll start.

I'm a monotheist. More specifically, I'm a deist. I believe in God as the Creator and as eternal and infinite. I believe that God loves all of God's creation, which just happens to include me. I pray to God nightly, but not to ask favors (I do not believe God can interfere in our lives directly; I do believe through good deeds and loving hearts we can bring ourselves closer to God; the one exception to the no-favors rule is that I do ask God to look after those who have passed on); instead I use prayer as a way to sort of anchor myself, think about what I can do to make the world a better place, etc.

Belief in the inherent worth and dignity of every person is also central for me. Personally, one reason I believe this is I believe every person is God's child and thus has inherent worth and dignity. I try to remember this as much as possible, but I'll admit I'm definitely still working on it

:group:

 

[sparc872]

I chimed in because I do consider myself sort of a UU'ist, I have never been to their church however. I put down atheist.

Furthermore, what do these beliefs mean to you? How do they effect your daily life?

My belief in no God or afterlife has shaped me enormously. They have changed my whole outlook on life for the better. I no longer fear that my loved ones will go to Hell or that I will. I feel like I am more inquisitive than I used to be; I need to understand things. Being an atheist makes me want to change the world for a better, because I believe this is all we get. This is our one chance and everyone should be allowed to live life as happily as nature will allow.

 

[uumckk16]

I chimed in because I do consider myself sort of a UU'ist, I have never been to their church however. I put down atheist.

Awesome, welcome! How come you've never been to a UU church? Have you ever looked on uua.org to see if there are any congregations near you? (Just wondering, not seeking to "convert" you or anything )

My belief in no God or afterlife has shaped me enormously. They have changed my whole outlook on life for the better. I no longer fear that my loved ones will go to Hell or that I will. I feel like I am more inquisitive than I used to be; I need to understand things. Being an atheist makes me want to change the world for a better, because I believe this is all we get. This is our one chance and everyone should be allowed to live life as happily as nature will allow.

This was very interesting for me to read, because I've never heard this perspective before. (I haven't had many religious discussions with atheists.) But truly, I find that great. It sounds like it has indeed made your life much better and that's wonderful. For me, that's the biggest thing when it comes to belief...if it makes you feel good and doesn't hurt anyone else, go for it.

Thanks for the reply!

 

[Green Gaia]

If pressed, I tend to call myself an agnostic theist. Meaning, I'm not sure there is a deity out there that created this world for a purpose and is watching everything we do, but I think something caused all this to happen. Although I'm not sure that that something is what most people would call God. I probably have many deist leanings as well.

I do not pray to this something/God/mystery but I am aware that there is much about this world I don't know and don't understand. I don't believe that if there is a God we are obligated to worship it. But I just can't completely give up my theist thoughts. There is something larger, a bigger picture if you will, that we just don't get yet.

 

[uumckk16]

If pressed, I tend to call myself an agnostic theist. Meaning, I'm not sure there is a deity out there that created this world for a purpose and is watching everything we do, but I think something caused all this to happen. Although I'm not sure that that something is what most people would call God. I probably have many deist leanings as well.

I do not pray to this something/God/mystery but I am aware that there is much about this world I don't know and don't understand. I don't believe that if there is a God we are obligated to worship it. But I just can't completely give up my theist thoughts. There is something larger, a bigger picture if you will, that we just don't get yet.

Agreed. Of course I am not sure either, and I don't believe we are obligated to worship. I think our beliefs are actually very similar...I just tend to give in to the beliefs that comfort me more. Part of that is prayer...I pray because it makes me feel better, not because I think it's what God wants me to do.

I like what you said about not knowing/understanding/"getting it". There is so much out there to learn, as individuals and as a species! It really is true that the more you know the more you realize you know nothing...I've definitely noticed that as I've progressed through my education.

Thanks for the reply, Maize

 

[Green Gaia]

I was the agnostic vote, btw. Had to be different.

 

[Katzpur]

I do not believe God can interfere in our lives directly...

May I just ask that you clarify... Are you saying that you do not believe that God is capable of interfering in our lives, or that you do not believe that He chooses to? (I realize this isn't a debate thread, and I have no desire to debate this issue. I just want to know if I'm understanding your point of view correctly.)

 

[uumckk16]

May I just ask that you clarify... Are you saying that you do not believe that God is capable of interfering in our lives, or that you do not believe that He chooses to? (I realize this isn't a debate thread, and I have no desire to debate this issue. I just want to know if I'm understanding your point of view correctly.)

Good question. If I answer honestly, I'd say that I believe that God is not able to, anymore than I believe God is able to defy the laws of nature even though I believe God created them (sorry for the redundancy, I don't like using pronouns to describe God). However, it is entirely possible that God simply chooses not to. Regardless, I don't believe that God chooses to save a certain person from a disease or allow a certain person to be killed in a car accident, to get a person hired or make a person meet up with someone they will later fall in love with. In other words, I don't believe God interferes in our actions and choices. As for inspiration and enlightenment (for lack of a better term)...I can try to describe my beliefs if you want, but it would probably be long, rambling, and confusing. Send me a PM if you're really curious

 

[Mercy Not Sacrifice]

Agnosticism is the closest thing I could pick here, if my beliefs even have a label.

I honestly have no clue if I'm still a Christian or not....

EDIT: Crap, I saw what forum this was in AFTER I voted! That's what happens when you vote in the poll listed on the front page...Oh well. I have some UU in me

 

[sparc872]

Awesome, welcome! How come you've never been to a UU church? Have you ever looked on uua.org to see if there are any congregations near you? (Just wondering, not seeking to "convert" you or anything )

I've thought about going to one nearby me before. It is close when I am at school, but too far of a drive during the summer. I didn't really learn about it until the end of my school year last year, so I might check it out when I head back in the fall

 

[robtex]

I chimed in because I do consider myself sort of a UU'ist, I have never been to their church however. I put down atheist.

I see a little UU in you. From an atheist perspecitive if you find merit in the 7 principles you can certainly be a UU and have no higher power.
http://www.uua.org/aboutuua/principles.html

My belief in no God or afterlife has shaped me enormously. They have changed my whole outlook on life for the better. I no longer fear that my loved ones will go to Hell or that I will. I feel like I am more inquisitive than I used to be; I need to understand things. Being an atheist makes me want to change the world for a better, because I believe this is all we get. This is our one chance and everyone should be allowed to live life as happily as nature will allow.

That in fact is a very UU atttitude. Add religious tolerance to the package which you seem to be and I say you are the spitting image of an atheist uu.

 

[robtex]

If pressed, I tend to call myself an agnostic theist. .

Amy I think you did a lot of deep examination in the last two years. I wonder if your studies of buddhism bent you more in an agnostic direction but I thought, and I may not remember correctly that when I joined two years back you had an incarnated God in your religious paradigm.

I admire the way you put your studies to practical use particulary on gender issues and GTL issues. I learn a lot from the research you do and I am confident others do too.

 

[sparc872]

Thanks for the link rob. Those are seven extremely important concepts for anyone to keep in mind.

 

[robtex]

I'll start.

I'm a monotheist. More specifically, I'm a deist. I believe in God as the Creator and as eternal and infinite. I believe that God loves all of God's creation, which just happens to include me. I pray to God nightly, but not to ask favors (I do not believe God can interfere in our lives directly; I do believe through good deeds and loving hearts we can bring ourselves closer to God; the one exception to the no-favors rule is that I do ask God to look after those who have passed on); instead I use prayer as a way to sort of anchor myself, think about what I can do to make the world a better place, etc.

So your deity isn't really a deity that exists in any particular religion. What you have is a truely an indivdualized belief. Is this correct?

Belief in the inherent worth and dignity of every person is also central for me.

ditto.

I voted atheist in the poll. I subscribe the 7 princples of UU and see the value in the utility of the UU stysem. Utility is something I find lacking in the major religions of today with the exception of Bahai and buddhism but is something that I find is central for me in finding crediblity or merit in the system presented.

I think in my lifetime religious tolererance and understanding is a highly nobel goal and UU is likey the most effective group to achieve this due to the diversity of its membership and dept of study of the members.

I find comfort in the synergy and in the humanitarian aspects of UU irregardless if there is a God percieved or not precieved by the partipants.

 

[Tigress]

I voted 'Other,' as I'm a pantheist.

 

[Green Gaia]

EDIT: Crap, I saw what forum this was in AFTER I voted! That's what happens when you vote in the poll listed on the front page...Oh well. I have some UU in me

I added "UUs:" to the title of the poll. I don't think you're the only one who did that.

 

[BrandonE]

I voted agnostic, though I am somewhere between agnostic and pantheist (monist). There's not that big of a distinction between the two though, really. I still think that the true nature of god is not entirely knowable. Basically, I like the idea of monism and hope that it's true, but have no evidence for it and don't see any advantage to blind faith in a non-personal deity.

As far as how it effects my daily life, I don't know that it explicitly does; or to be clearer, it effects me no differently than any of my previous beliefs have. I was raised in a conservative Christian family, and I've always tried to be as kind and loving to all as I could. That's continued through my period of total agnosticism and into my now pantheistic leanings. I used to pray daily, but on the rare occaisions when I do now, I think of it more as trying to connect to the universal divinity within than any sort of dialog with a third party deity.

 

[uumckk16]

I've thought about going to one nearby me before. It is close when I am at school, but too far of a drive during the summer. I didn't really learn about it until the end of my school year last year, so I might check it out when I head back in the fall

Cool Well, I wish you luck in your journey, wherever you may go

 

[uumckk16]

So your deity isn't really a deity that exists in any particular religion. What you have is a truely an indivdualized belief. Is this correct?

As far as I know, yes. But in my view, that's how it should be. Not one of us is the same, so why would our beliefs be the same? While I do believe my core beliefs about God to be true (namely...that God exists and that God created the Universe), I realize that the details that I add on - i.e., that God is loving - are things that I believe because they make me feel good. They are a reflection of myself and my personal needs, in a way. Again, since each of us is different...I don't think anyone should have the exact same beliefs.

I say this all the time, I know, but I am just in love with this quote:
“God is like a mirror. The mirror never changes, but everybody who looks at it sees something different.” –Rabbi Harold Kushner

I find comfort in the synergy and in the humanitarian aspects of UU irregardless if there is a God percieved or not precieved by the partipants.

I think that's something truly amazing about UU. You and I have completely different beliefs when it comes to God, and yet we can find not only common ground but also comfort and companionship in UUism.

I voted 'Other,' as I'm a pantheist.

Yes, I apologize the choices were so narrow. I just listed the first, most obvious things that came to mind. Thanks for the link, though! Quite interesting

I voted agnostic, though I am somewhere between agnostic and pantheist (monist). There's not that big of a distinction between the two though, really. I still think that the true nature of god is not entirely knowable. Basically, I like the idea of monism and hope that it's true, but have no evidence for it and don't see any advantage to blind faith in a non-personal deity.

I agree with you on that point. I, too, simply hope my view of God is true. I certainly would never claim to know the true nature of God, and would be immediately wary of any who made that claim.

As far as how it effects my daily life, I don't know that it explicitly does; or to be clearer, it effects me no differently than any of my previous beliefs have. I was raised in a conservative Christian family, and I've always tried to be as kind and loving to all as I could. That's continued through my period of total agnosticism and into my now pantheistic leanings. I used to pray daily, but on the rare occaisions when I do now, I think of it more as trying to connect to the universal divinity within than any sort of dialog with a third party deity.

:hug::foryou:

 

[lilithu]

Um... all of the above? I voted "other." I am a panentheist. That would make me a theist in some people's eyes and an atheist in other people's eyes. When I have to choose, I call myself a theist, because when it comes down to it I believe that there is meaning and sacredness in the world, and while "theist" comes with a lot of other baggage it certainly implies a belief in sacredness and meaning while "atheist" more often implies a rejection of such things.

I don't call myself a polytheist but can totally see why people would worship the divine in concrete, individual forms with which one can relate than in a remote abstract universal. I too experience the Divine in a place or a person.

I'm also agnostic, but I don't think it fits in with the other categories. Agnosticism is an epistemological stance on whether or not it is possible to know the nature of God/gods. It says nothing about one's personal belief in said God/gods. And one can be agnostic and a theist or agnostic and an atheist, etc.