I am considering converting my religion...

[Orko]

to unitarian universalism.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unitarian_Universalism
I really identify with their beliefs, so do you think I should convert and join them?

[Copperknickers II]

What religion were you before? What made you change?

[Orko]

What religion were you before? What made you change?

I was a non-devouted Jew.
I have find out about unitarian universalism a few days ago, and I was really identifying with their belirfs, so I thought it is beetter for me to convert.

[Zenith Darksea]

I personally do not agree with Unitarian Universalism, and would not support a conversion to that religion. I have a friend from America whose family is Unitarian, but she decided that it was just too vague and found it rather meaningless; as a result she became first a Roman Catholic and is now an Orthodox Christian.

However, it is your own soul that is in question here, not anyone else's, and so it is your own choice to make. You must follow your own conscience, not other people's.

[wilpuri]

I could think of becoming Orthodox, or may be Catholic.

Our national Lutheran Church sold out decades ago and now tip-toe the cultural marxist agenda. Women priests, same-sex marriages, complete lack of balls.

There was a time when Finnish priests left their flocks in their home parishes and marched east to shoot Russians with the blessing of God.

[Admiral Piett]

Unitarian Universalism is very interesting. It sounds like you are interested in Pantheism.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheism

That's pretty much what I am. I am considering mixing that in with perhaps some aspects of Paganism. Unitarian Universalim, to me, seems more social than religious. For me, I guess I wanted something a little bit more firm. So I'm considering some forms of paganism. I'm just not exactly a polytheist, though.

Christianity, for me, went out the window years ago.

[Orko]

Unitarian Universalism is very interesting. It sounds like you are interested in Pantheism.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheism

That's pretty much what I am. I am considering mixing that in with perhaps some aspects of Paganism. Unitarian Universalim, to me, seems more social than religious. For me, I guess I wanted something a little bit more firm. So I'm considering some forms of paganism. I'm just not exactly a polytheist, though.

Christianity, for me, went out the window years ago.

Pantheism is more of a definition of a certain thing then a religion.

[Fingy]

I think you should consider secular humanism. It's not a religion, more of a philosophy of life.

The Affirmations of Humanism:
A Statement of Principles

• We are committed to the application of reason and science to the understanding of the universe and to the solving of human problems.
• We deplore efforts to denigrate human intelligence, to seek to explain the world in supernatural terms, and to look outside nature for salvation.
• We believe that scientific discovery and technology can contribute to the betterment of human life.
• We believe in an open and pluralistic society and that democracy is the best guarantee of protecting human rights from authoritarian elites and repressive majorities.
• We are committed to the principle of the separation of church and state.
• We cultivate the arts of negotiation and compromise as a means of resolving differences and achieving mutual understanding.
• We are concerned with securing justice and fairness in society and with eliminating discrimination and intolerance.
• We believe in supporting the disadvantaged and the handicapped so that they will be able to help themselves.
• We attempt to transcend divisive parochial loyalties based on race, religion, gender, nationality, creed, class, sexual orientation, or ethnicity, and strive to work together for the common good of humanity.
• We want to protect and enhance the earth, to preserve it for future generations, and to avoid inflicting needless suffering on other species.
• We believe in enjoying life here and now and in developing our creative talents to their fullest.
• We believe in the cultivation of moral excellence.
• We respect the right to privacy. Mature adults should be allowed to fulfill their aspirations, to express their sexual preferences, to exercise reproductive freedom, to have access to comprehensive and informed health-care, and to die with dignity.
• We believe in the common moral decencies: altruism, integrity, honesty, truthfulness, responsibility. Humanist ethics is amenable to critical, rational guidance. There are normative standards that we discover together. Moral principles are tested by their consequences.
• We are deeply concerned with the moral education of our children. We want to nourish reason and compassion.
• We are engaged by the arts no less than by the sciences.
• We are citizens of the universe and are excited by discoveries still to be made in the cosmos.
• We are skeptical of untested claims to knowledge, and we are open to novel ideas and seek new departures in our thinking.
• We affirm humanism as a realistic alternative to theologies of despair and ideologies of violence and as a source of rich personal significance and genuine satisfaction in the service to others.
• We believe in optimism rather than pessimism, hope rather than despair, learning in the place of dogma, truth instead of ignorance, joy rather than guilt or sin, tolerance in the place of fear, love instead of hatred, compassion over selfishness, beauty instead of ugliness, and reason rather than blind faith or irrationality.
• We believe in the fullest realization of the best and noblest that we are capable of as human beings.

[Eksadiss]

I was just going to say that you could regain your independent thought for good and go atheist, but I think Fingy did it better.

[Theseus1234]

I was just going to say that you could regain your independent thought for good and go atheist, but I think Fingy did it better.

what exactly is the difference between secular humanism and atheism?

[Darkarbiter]

I was just going to say that you could regain your independent thought for good and go atheist, but I think Fingy did it better.

Replace atheist with agnostic and I'll agree.

If your asking the question of "whats a good religion, or is this a good religion" then I don't think your serious about it enough, you'll probably just end up "changing" in another couple of months or whatever. If you truly think otherwise then go ahead, but I'm just saying.

Then stop coming of as a foaming at the mouth rabid anti-theist. It's just as bad as a "holier than you" theist.

Indeed, this is why I prefer the term agnostic (it does ofc mean something different as well). I'd prefer not to associate with the "religion is a really stupid superstition" people.

[Orko]

I think you should consider secular humanism. It's not a religion, more of a philosophy of life.

The Affirmations of Humanism:
A Statement of Principles

• We are committed to the application of reason and science to the understanding of the universe and to the solving of human problems.
• We deplore efforts to denigrate human intelligence, to seek to explain the world in supernatural terms, and to look outside nature for salvation.
• We believe that scientific discovery and technology can contribute to the betterment of human life.
• We believe in an open and pluralistic society and that democracy is the best guarantee of protecting human rights from authoritarian elites and repressive majorities.
• We are committed to the principle of the separation of church and state.
• We cultivate the arts of negotiation and compromise as a means of resolving differences and achieving mutual understanding.
• We are concerned with securing justice and fairness in society and with eliminating discrimination and intolerance.
• We believe in supporting the disadvantaged and the handicapped so that they will be able to help themselves.
• We attempt to transcend divisive parochial loyalties based on race, religion, gender, nationality, creed, class, sexual orientation, or ethnicity, and strive to work together for the common good of humanity.
• We want to protect and enhance the earth, to preserve it for future generations, and to avoid inflicting needless suffering on other species.
• We believe in enjoying life here and now and in developing our creative talents to their fullest.
• We believe in the cultivation of moral excellence.
• We respect the right to privacy. Mature adults should be allowed to fulfill their aspirations, to express their sexual preferences, to exercise reproductive freedom, to have access to comprehensive and informed health-care, and to die with dignity.
• We believe in the common moral decencies: altruism, integrity, honesty, truthfulness, responsibility. Humanist ethics is amenable to critical, rational guidance. There are normative standards that we discover together. Moral principles are tested by their consequences.
• We are deeply concerned with the moral education of our children. We want to nourish reason and compassion.
• We are engaged by the arts no less than by the sciences.
• We are citizens of the universe and are excited by discoveries still to be made in the cosmos.
• We are skeptical of untested claims to knowledge, and we are open to novel ideas and seek new departures in our thinking.
• We affirm humanism as a realistic alternative to theologies of despair and ideologies of violence and as a source of rich personal significance and genuine satisfaction in the service to others.
• We believe in optimism rather than pessimism, hope rather than despair, learning in the place of dogma, truth instead of ignorance, joy rather than guilt or sin, tolerance in the place of fear, love instead of hatred, compassion over selfishness, beauty instead of ugliness, and reason rather than blind faith or irrationality.
• We believe in the fullest realization of the best and noblest that we are capable of as human beings.

Humanism is actually the most predominent Unitarian Universalist philosophies.

[Dance the older]

Roman Catholic all the way baby!

[Aziel]

You also believe in the part of the Jesus thingy?

[Orko]

You also believe in the part of the Jesus thingy?

No. not at all. it is just a way to convert people to your belief and gain a lot of power. it basically goes like that: if you are a murderer, a thief, a robber, a racist, a bully but if you prey to Jesus one minute before you die than you go to heaven. BUT if you helped people all of your life, lost all your money because you donated to a lot of places and tolerated people of all kinds, but were a muslim, you go to hell. I don't believe that praying to deity or a saint is the only thing that determines your reward or punishment in the afterlife.

[boofhead]

No. not at all. it is just a way to convert people to your belief and gain a lot of power. it basically goes like that: if you are a murderer, a thief, a robber, a racist, a bully but if you prey to Jesus one minute before you die than you go to heaven.

Sorry mate, but take this from a Christian. That is utter BS. Such a philosophy would make an entire business out of "predict when you are going to die....and repent at the last second.....whoever repents closest to his own death wins."

That is quite moronic. Many Christians have been so from birth/childhood, and followed The Path from that time.

[Zenith Darksea]

I don't believe that praying to deity or a saint is the only thing that determines your reward or punishment in the afterlife.

Neither do Christians, I must say. Or at least, not the people who follow traditional, historical Christianity. Modern 'Christian' sects such as Evangelicals and Pentecostals may say that you only need to say a prayer to be saved, but if you look at what Christians have believed from the time of Christ onwards, or indeed if you look at the Bible, you will see that simply saying a prayer to God is not enough to save a person. The person needs to change their whole life and to put God's will before their own.

[zznɟ ǝɥʇ]

I was raised UU. How it is preached is different from church to church. I had one reverend who was a former Catholic, another who was Buddhist. You won't know until you try. What I like about it is that no one looks down on you if you look different. Sure, that's a generalization, but only in a UU church could you find a coke fiend Nam vet sitting next to a lesbian couple with kids and next to them, a guy with 20 piercings. But the vast majority of UU'ers are 'normal' families.

Check it out. I stopped going because I don't need to go somewhere every Sunday to find some meaning in the universe. Meh.

[boofhead]

What I like about it is that no one looks down on you if you look different. Sure, that's a generalization, but only in a UU church could you find a coke fiend Nam vet sitting next to a lesbian couple with kids and next to them, a guy with 20 piercings

You should have a look at some Xian congregations sometime.

I stopped going because I don't need to go somewhere every Sunday to find some meaning in the universe. Meh.

The Sabbath is Saturday, mate. Ask any Jew.

[Каие]

to unitarian universalism.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unitarian_Universalism
I really identify with their beliefs, so do you think I should convert and join them?

Go for it man, don't let anyone hold you back to remain part of their Churches or Mosques. Each must find his own salvation his own way.