Unitarians (and, since 1961 when they joined with Universalists to become the Unitarian-Universalist Church) come from many creeds and religious backgrounds. Some consider themselves Christian, others don't. Some of us are theists, others agnostic or atheists.
What drew and draws us together is the sense that in questioning, in educating ourselves, in considering and celebrating spiritual and ethical and, yes, religious experiences and traditions from humanity's great wealth of paths toward the light, we are enriched and brought to our shared values.
Equally vital are the actions UUs take, individually and together, to bring our values to life, to action, to light. Social justice work, Sunday School where we children learned about world religions, where thoughtful adults help create joyous curricula in which adolescents can learn about themselves, about their sexuality, about social action, all in the context of loving one another, not judging each other --- this is the world I grew up in.
My parents always did their best to keep open minds. Now and then, some of their distaste for the damage done by dogma and their horror of what inhumanity has been perpetrated in the name of religion couldn't help but show. I remember my Mom muttering under her breath that she knew that no baby is born with "original sin" and that no priest or minister or imam need tell us what to do or not to do in our bedrooms.
We four children went to Sunday School, and whether we were 5 or 6 or 15 or 16, we were always active, exploring, questioning, creating. I remember as a teenager in the LRY (Liberal Religious Youth) helping arrange Youth Sunday in which the teens planned and executed the Sunday service. A beautiful girl named Kit and I made up a modern dance piece inspired on the movie David and Lisa to some (probably somewhat schmaltzy) wordless music. We were so into it! By the climactic moment when David and Lisa reach out to one another across a chasm of their fears to the moment their fingertips touch, I wasn't the only one not-quite-silently weeping in the congregation.
My family helped build the Unitarian-Universalist Church of Palo Alto back in the late 1950's. And that same church welcomed us back when my folks retired to California and my husband became the Music Director there through the 1990's, when I was a regular attendee. I sang bass in the choir.
Here I'll let someone else sum up what being a UU means to me:
"a free and responsible search for truth and meaning; the inherent worth and dignity of every person; the right of conscience and the use of democratic process within our congregations and in society at large; and the goal of a world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all."
The "Bu" in my Bu-UU-ness is of course my Buddhism. While the religious traditions and rituals of Buddhism are barely part of my day-to-day life, my ethos and spiritual practice is very much inspired on the teachings of the Buddha. I like to internalize Buddhist philosophy and find practices that help me bring this philosophy to life. I will share more about how these teachings have helped me live fully in this world in an upcoming post.
For now, this Sunday, I speak gratitude for all people all around the world who gather to seek and to celebrate their truths.
May love and peace prevail.