UU Beliefs (Creator, Deist, creation, hell, doctrine)

[robtex]

Originally Posted by 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.

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

Originally Posted by sparc872

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]

Originally Posted by Maize

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]

Originally Posted by uumckk16

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?

Originally Posted by uumckk16

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]

Originally Posted by Mercy Not Sacrifice

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]

Originally Posted by sparc872

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]

Originally Posted by robtex

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

Originally Posted by robtex

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.

Originally Posted by Tigress

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

Originally Posted by 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.

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.

Originally Posted by BrandonE

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.