I Think I've Found My Home (ritual, beliefs, Jehovah, attend)

[Runt]

Originally Posted by lilithu

Runt, namaste. Good to see you around. And I agree with you about the lay services. I like the non-hierarchical nature of them.

Hello.

[powder21]

Originally Posted by lilithu

Namaste Powder.

Glad to hear that you could see past the technical difficulties and are willing to stick with us. Welcome.

If you liked a UU service well enough in the summer to come back, then I'm sure you'll be happier come mid-September when we are back in full-swing. I'll bet money that it will get more "professional" then. (Altho some people actually like the summer months because they are less polished and more lay people get to lead them.)

So you describe yourself as a UU Christian but you said that one of the things that you liked about UU is our religious diversity - the fact that you met atheists and Pagans, etc. Why about it appeals to you? Don't get me wrong - I think it's wonderful and feel the same way - and it's a very "UU" thing to say. I just like hearing people's stories.

I haven't been to church in months. Guess I'll go this Sunday. Our senior minister is back from sabbatical. And Sunday afternoon I begin intensive training to be an interfaith dialogue facilitator.

The biggest thing that appeals to me about UU is the fact that there is no dogma/doctrine being shoved down my throat. I'm also the type of person to ask questions, and the churches I've been to didn't really like that. I consider myself UU Christian because I still retain many of my Christian beliefs. I just don't think that any one denomination (or religion) gets it right. I think that Jesus was a messenger and one of his messages was that power hungry church officials had led religion down the wrong path, and it is my feeling that the same thing has happened again. Also, to believe that any religious text could be the "Word of God" is downright ignorant considering the fact that they've all been written by humans. I'm hoping that I can learn more about all faiths at UU, but I am Christian at heart, and that will never change.

[lilithu]

Originally Posted by powder21

The biggest thing that appeals to me about UU is the fact that there is no dogma/doctrine being shoved down my throat. I'm also the type of person to ask questions, and the churches I've been to didn't really like that. I consider myself UU Christian because I still retain many of my Christian beliefs. I just don't think that any one denomination (or religion) gets it right. I think that Jesus was a messenger and one of his messages was that power hungry church officials had led religion down the wrong path, and it is my feeling that the same thing has happened again. Also, to believe that any religious text could be the "Word of God" is downright ignorant considering the fact that they've all been written by humans. I'm hoping that I can learn more about all faiths at UU, but I am Christian at heart, and that will never change.

No need to change. You sound very much like a Christian UU and we have plenty of those. As long as your local UU congregation is not hostile to Christianity (unfortunately, a few of them are), you will be fine.

A lot of people come to us "wounded" by the type of Christianity that they grew up with, and so have negative feelings towards Christianity in general. But one of the things that UU does is help heal the wounds so that people can learn that "God" doesn't have to mean an angry guy with a robe and beard casting people into hell.