UU church was: Re: [Unschooling-dotcom] Unschooling and Life
jmcseals SEALS
Diana,
Would you mind sharing a little of the philosophy behind the UU church? Is
it just an exploration of different faiths? You've got me interested in
hearing more!!
Jennifer
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Would you mind sharing a little of the philosophy behind the UU church? Is
it just an exploration of different faiths? You've got me interested in
hearing more!!
Jennifer
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Help STOP SPAM with the new MSN 8 and get 2 months FREE*
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Kelli Traaseth
Yes, I've been meaning to ask about this too, Ren has mentioned it also
and so has Kathryn.
I'm exploring different churches, or trying to decide if I need a church.
Kelli
and so has Kathryn.
I'm exploring different churches, or trying to decide if I need a church.
Kelli
----- Original Message -----
From: "jmcseals SEALS" <jmcseals@...>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, May 01, 2003 1:02 PM
Subject: UU church was: Re: [Unschooling-dotcom] Unschooling and Life
> Diana,
>
> Would you mind sharing a little of the philosophy behind the UU church?
Is
> it just an exploration of different faiths? You've got me interested in
> hearing more!!
>
> Jennifer
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> _________________________________________________________________
> Help STOP SPAM with the new MSN 8 and get 2 months FREE*
> http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail
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>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
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[email protected]
In a message dated 5-1-2003 12:07:31 PM Mountain Daylight Time,
jmcseals@... writes:
Wouldn'tcha know, I just got some handy-dandy pocket cards that explain UU ~
Our 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 for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part
The living tradition we share draws from many sources:
**Direct experience of that transcending mystery & wonder...
**Words & deeds of prophetic women and men which challenge us to confront
poers and structures of evil with justice, compassion & the transforming
power of love...
**Wisdom from the world's religions which inspires us in our ethical &
spiritual life...
**Jewish & Christian teachings which call us to respond to God's love by
loving our neighbors...
**Humanist teachings wich counsel us to heed guidance of reson and the
results of science...
**Spiritual teachings of Earth-centered traditions which celebrate the sacred
circle of life...
[complete explanations on the website...]
For my kids, it has been an amazing few months in this church. They light a
chalice at the beginning of each *Religious Exploration* class [sunday
school] and say [with hand motions]: We light this chalice to celebrate
Unitarian Universalism. This is the church of the open mind. This is the
church of the helping hands. This is the church of the loving heart.
Our service invocation is:
It is a blessing to be
It is a blessing to be here
It is a blessing to be here now
It is a blessing to be here now, together.
I know I've seen someone else on this list talk about a UU conference [sorry,
don't remember your name] ~ It's really an *unschool-y* gathering of people :)
Check out your local UU ~ more than once, the coolest people may be
sleeping in on your first Sunday there <bg> There's no homily/sermon,
congregants give *talks* ~ I've learned lots of UU jokes, the Lakota creation
story [in Lakota & English], the connection between Humphry Bogart and a
local Native Tribe, the German origins of 12 Days of Christmas, original
Easter stories [pagan roots thru modern] ~ and many more; coming soon: Hindu
beliefs, more Lakota stories...
Anyone is welcome, this is the one place where Hindus, Jews, Christians,
Agnostics, Natives, Explorers, Pagans, EVERYONE can celebrate life
side-by-side, respecting, loving and learning from one another. In the few
months we've been attending, I've made friendships that have changed my life.
In fact, I've begun volunteering for the Sierra Club thru one member :) The
kids and I went camping in Spearfish Canyon last weekend with people we met
at church. It was incredible!!
You can also check out uua.org ~ personally, I didn't *get it* til I went and
*felt it* in person at our fellowship.
Rambling on... happy to share :)
diana,
The wackiest widow westriver...
“I'm just a human being trying to make it in a world that is very rapidly
losing it's understanding of being human" John Trudell
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
jmcseals@... writes:
> Diana,[warning: looooooong post]
>
> Would you mind sharing a little of the philosophy behind the UU church? Is
>
> it just an exploration of different faiths? You've got me interested in
> hearing more!!
>
> Jennifer
Wouldn'tcha know, I just got some handy-dandy pocket cards that explain UU ~
Our 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 for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part
The living tradition we share draws from many sources:
**Direct experience of that transcending mystery & wonder...
**Words & deeds of prophetic women and men which challenge us to confront
poers and structures of evil with justice, compassion & the transforming
power of love...
**Wisdom from the world's religions which inspires us in our ethical &
spiritual life...
**Jewish & Christian teachings which call us to respond to God's love by
loving our neighbors...
**Humanist teachings wich counsel us to heed guidance of reson and the
results of science...
**Spiritual teachings of Earth-centered traditions which celebrate the sacred
circle of life...
[complete explanations on the website...]
For my kids, it has been an amazing few months in this church. They light a
chalice at the beginning of each *Religious Exploration* class [sunday
school] and say [with hand motions]: We light this chalice to celebrate
Unitarian Universalism. This is the church of the open mind. This is the
church of the helping hands. This is the church of the loving heart.
Our service invocation is:
It is a blessing to be
It is a blessing to be here
It is a blessing to be here now
It is a blessing to be here now, together.
I know I've seen someone else on this list talk about a UU conference [sorry,
don't remember your name] ~ It's really an *unschool-y* gathering of people :)
Check out your local UU ~ more than once, the coolest people may be
sleeping in on your first Sunday there <bg> There's no homily/sermon,
congregants give *talks* ~ I've learned lots of UU jokes, the Lakota creation
story [in Lakota & English], the connection between Humphry Bogart and a
local Native Tribe, the German origins of 12 Days of Christmas, original
Easter stories [pagan roots thru modern] ~ and many more; coming soon: Hindu
beliefs, more Lakota stories...
Anyone is welcome, this is the one place where Hindus, Jews, Christians,
Agnostics, Natives, Explorers, Pagans, EVERYONE can celebrate life
side-by-side, respecting, loving and learning from one another. In the few
months we've been attending, I've made friendships that have changed my life.
In fact, I've begun volunteering for the Sierra Club thru one member :) The
kids and I went camping in Spearfish Canyon last weekend with people we met
at church. It was incredible!!
You can also check out uua.org ~ personally, I didn't *get it* til I went and
*felt it* in person at our fellowship.
Rambling on... happy to share :)
diana,
The wackiest widow westriver...
“I'm just a human being trying to make it in a world that is very rapidly
losing it's understanding of being human" John Trudell
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Fetteroll
on 5/1/03 2:41 PM, HaHaMommy@... at HaHaMommy@... wrote:
But it depends on what church and probably what area of the country. So if
you don't like one, try another if you can.
Our services are pretty standard Protestant. Except the sermon can be about
anything and draw on anything.
Some churches don't mention God. Some do. But it's left up to the listeners
to decide what that means. It can mean the connectedness of everything.
Goddesses. Christian God. Whatever.
Joyce
> There's no homily/sermon,That sounds interesting!
> congregants give *talks* ~ I've learned lots of UU jokes, the Lakota creation
> story [in Lakota & English], the connection between Humphry Bogart and a
> local Native Tribe, the German origins of 12 Days of Christmas, original
> Easter stories [pagan roots thru modern] ~ and many more; coming soon: Hindu
> beliefs, more Lakota stories...
But it depends on what church and probably what area of the country. So if
you don't like one, try another if you can.
Our services are pretty standard Protestant. Except the sermon can be about
anything and draw on anything.
Some churches don't mention God. Some do. But it's left up to the listeners
to decide what that means. It can mean the connectedness of everything.
Goddesses. Christian God. Whatever.
Joyce
Stephanie Elms
> Some churches don't mention God. Some do. But it's left up toOur UU minister gave a sermon about that last month. It was very interesting
> the listeners
> to decide what that means. It can mean the connectedness of
> everything.
> Goddesses. Christian God. Whatever.
to think about. Our service is very churchy but not very churchy if that makes
any sense. There are readings (but they can be from anything...poems, UU ministers,
the bible, novels...), hymns (some are even tunes that I knew from my episcopalian
upbringing but with different words), there is a sermon but it is not preachy
rather it just gives you interesting things to think about. We do have lay led
services and have speakers sometimes come in. Topics are great including environmentalism,
war, peace, etc. There is also music ranging from a sax quartet to a piano playing
show tunes. They celebrate easter, christmas, passover, winter/summer solstices (we
have a great outdoor wooded circle...there is a stream that runs through the church
property and we own a lot of land that we keep mostly in its natural state). I loved
that a couple of weeks ago my 3 yo had a seder in his RE class and then went and
joined another class to decorate easter eggs. :o)
I have found that I like the ritual in the service and that I really enjoy the topics
discussed. And the community with like minded people is great. I got to talk with
one of the church founders at the visioning weekend (our church is only 22 years old)
and it was really neat to hear about how it started.
Stephanie E.
moonstarshooter
A friend of mine had piqued my curiosity regarding the UU church, so
I looked up the local church's website. I found that the minister is
an athiest. Most of the impressions I had about UU was that they are
open to exploring many beliefs regarding spirituality, but my
understanding of atheism is that basically they believe there is NO
god, so I don't quite get how you have spirituality without any form
of deity, whether it be god, goddess, buddha, etc. Am I missing
something here?
It also seemed that there was a huge democratic "slant" in the
sermons shown on the website. I don't really fall in line with
either republican or democrat, so I don't know that I would be
comfortable in a setting that was extreme one way or the other.
So I guess my question would be whether these observations are in
line with the average UU church. I have not been to any church in
over 2 years due to my frustrations with the one I had been very
involved with (non-denominational Christian.) I am not really sure
that I feel like I need (or want) a church, but the seeming lack
of "doctrine" within the UU church did catch my eye. (Plus the fact
that I also found out a small group of secular homeschoolers meet at
the UU church here, as well as an astronomy group...two of my
passions!) Any input from an insider (or otherwise) would be great!
I looked up the local church's website. I found that the minister is
an athiest. Most of the impressions I had about UU was that they are
open to exploring many beliefs regarding spirituality, but my
understanding of atheism is that basically they believe there is NO
god, so I don't quite get how you have spirituality without any form
of deity, whether it be god, goddess, buddha, etc. Am I missing
something here?
It also seemed that there was a huge democratic "slant" in the
sermons shown on the website. I don't really fall in line with
either republican or democrat, so I don't know that I would be
comfortable in a setting that was extreme one way or the other.
So I guess my question would be whether these observations are in
line with the average UU church. I have not been to any church in
over 2 years due to my frustrations with the one I had been very
involved with (non-denominational Christian.) I am not really sure
that I feel like I need (or want) a church, but the seeming lack
of "doctrine" within the UU church did catch my eye. (Plus the fact
that I also found out a small group of secular homeschoolers meet at
the UU church here, as well as an astronomy group...two of my
passions!) Any input from an insider (or otherwise) would be great!
Fetteroll
on 5/2/03 1:26 AM, moonstarshooter at torywalk@... wrote:
spirituality since it suggested relationship with God. But it is more than
that. It's how we relate to everything. And how everything relates to
everything else. Carl Sagan said we're all made of star stuff. Native
Americans and pagans talk about the interconnectedness of everything. Our
spirituality affects how we see our place in the world and how we treat each
other.
atmosphere at any particular church is going to depend on who are the
loudest talkers ;-) It won't mean everyone agrees.
Joyce
> so I don't quite get how you have spirituality without any formIt confused me too. Being an atheist also I was uncomfortable with the word
> of deity, whether it be god, goddess, buddha, etc. Am I missing
> something here?
spirituality since it suggested relationship with God. But it is more than
that. It's how we relate to everything. And how everything relates to
everything else. Carl Sagan said we're all made of star stuff. Native
Americans and pagans talk about the interconnectedness of everything. Our
spirituality affects how we see our place in the world and how we treat each
other.
> It also seemed that there was a huge democratic "slant" in theUUs do tend toward leftist thinking. But there's variation even there. The
> sermons shown on the website. I don't really fall in line with
> either republican or democrat, so I don't know that I would be
> comfortable in a setting that was extreme one way or the other.
atmosphere at any particular church is going to depend on who are the
loudest talkers ;-) It won't mean everyone agrees.
Joyce