What is
Unitarian Universalism?

                   

Unitarian Universalism has never had a creed; we hold the right of each person to seek the truth and to express it according to his or her own conscience is sacred. We have found that the following principles describe our tradition and aspirations. 


     The Seven Principles of Unitarian Universalism

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;
The 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 for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.


The living tradition which we share 
draws from many sources:

  • Direct experience of that transcending mystery and wonder,
    affirmed in all cultures, which moves us to a renewal of the spirit and an openness to the forces which create and uphold life;

  • Words and deeds of prophetic women and men which challenge us to confront powers and structures of evil with justice, compassion and the transforming power of love;

  • Wisdom from the world's religions which inspires us in our ethical and spiritual life;

  • Jewish and Christian teachings which call us to respond to God's love by loving our neighbor as ourselves;

  • Humanist teachings which counsel us to heed the guidance of reason and the results of science, and warn us against idolatries of the mind and spirit.

  • Spiritual teachings of Earth-centered traditions which celebrate the sacred circle of life and instruct us to live in harmony with the rhythm of nature.

To find out more about Unitarian Universalism, 
go to the UUA website.


A home for Pagans which isn't a Pagan ghetto.

According to a poll taken by the UUA Commission on Appraisal, about 23% of UUs identify "earth-centered spirituality" as their PRIMARY theological orientation.  47% identified as Humanists; 9% identified as Christian


Participatory Democracy

Unitarian Universalist Association

General Assembly

The Unitarian Universalist Association is made of over 1,000 congregations, each democratically self-governing, and autonomous 
in style of worship and focus of their programs. 
 
The UUA is democratically organized, with the ultimate power in the hands of the delegates to the annual General Assembly, attended by over 3,000 laity and 600 ministers.  To learn more, visit www.uua.org/GA

Honoring Sexual Minorities
The UU Association was the first large religious organization in North America to welcome homosexuals and bisexuals as full members, eligible to become clergy. They were also the first major religious group to open an office to in support of equal civil rights for (and social acceptance of) Gays and Lesbians. This has expanded in recent years to include both Bisexual and Transgendered people.
http://www.religioustolerance.org/hom_uua.htm

 

Local Congregations

There are over a dozen UU congregations in the Twin Cities, each with its own culture and focus and style of worship. Humanism is predominant in most Twin Cities area congregations, but nearly every UU congregation in the US has some Pagan members. 

To find out about each of them, visit http://www.unitarian.org

Before you invent the wheel...

UU Services of Special Interest to Pagans

The Web home of the Unitarian Universalist Assn., an international community of UU congregations, is at www.uua.org.  From there, you can access an amazing collection of resources for the empowerment of individuals and small groups. UUs have a lot to teach Pagans about HOW to actualize our values. The fact that UU values overlap Pagan values shouldn't be surprising; after all, 19% of UUs identified their theology as primarily "Nature/Earth-centered." 

The UUA also offers over 100 list-serves to meet different needs; most are open to anyone. To view the list of list-serves and subscribe, go to  http://www.uua.org/lists. 

 When was the last time you discovered a book that you had needed for a long time, but hadn't known that anyone might have written it?

For hard to find books about building community, understanding oppression, and celebrating diversity, check out the all-new UUA Bookstore on the web -- See best sellers, new titles, or write reviews of your favorites. You can also enter item numbers from their print catalog to find items on the web, or use the search engine to locate titles in your area of interest. Go to http://www.uua.org/bookstore and be amazed at what's new from the UUA!

Leadership School

UUs believe in the Priesthood of ALL members, and provide for training in leadership skills such as organizational development, generating change in a religious community, and the care and feeding of volunteers. 

Christa Landon: "I attended Leadership School towards the end of my years in seminary; in my opinion, if you want to help rugged individualists collaborate to build community, a week at leadership school may be better than a year in a seminary."

Our regional Leadership School is held in Beloit, WI every summer and costs the participant around $500 including room, board, and materials. Two of the instructors are Pagans. You MUST be a member of a UU congregation to attend. 

 For the Leadership School serving this district, visit
 http://www.unitarian.org/mwls/index.html
 All UU Leadership Schools: 
 http://www.uua.org/administration/organizations.html#leaderschools

UU Service Committee: 
Assisting Native Americans on the Reservations

As you may know, many Native peoples have critiqued the appropriation of their cultures by New Age practitioners who come to take but have no concern for pressing need of the living survivors of the American genocide.

If you really want to learn sacred traditions, there is no better way than to serve in this work-camp under the direction of Native elders.

In the Twin Cities, the Native Americans Concerns Committee at First Universalist Church also offers local opportunities.

The Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans (CUUPS) 
has been an independent affiliate of
the Unitarian Universalist Association since 1987.


 Last updated January 16, 2007