Unitarian Universalism

This article is about the liberal religious movement. For the Christian theology which includes a central belief in the unitary nature of God, see Unitarianism. For the Christian theology that includes a central belief in universal reconciliation, see Christian universalism. For other uses of Unitarianism, see Unitarian. For Universalism as a general philosophy, see Universalism.

Unitarian Universalism
An early logo of the Unitarian Universalist Association which includes a flaming chalice, its most widely used symbol
AbbreviationUUism[1]
TypeLiberal religion[1][2]
OrientationMix of Protestant, liberal, progressive, and pluralist[1][2][3]
ScriptureOfficially none;[2] religious principles and moral teachings were historically drawn from the Six Sources[4]
FounderMembers of the American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church of America via consolidation[2][5]
OriginMay 1961[5]
Congregations1,048 worldwide
Number of followers148,232 members of Unitarian Universalist Association congregations in the United States; 800,000 identify as Unitarian Universalist worldwide (including the U.S.).[6]

Unitarian Universalism (otherwise referred to as UUism[1] or UU)[7][8][9] is a liberal religious movement[1] characterized by a "free and responsible search for truth and meaning".[10][11] Unitarian Universalists assert no creed,[2] but instead are unified by their shared search for spiritual growth.[1][3][12] Unitarian Universalists do not have an official, unified corpus of sacred texts.[2] Unitarian Universalist congregations include many atheists, agnostics, deists, and theists; there are churches, fellowships, congregations, and societies around the world.[1][12]

The roots of Unitarian Universalism can be traced back to Protestantism[2][13] and liberal Christianity;[1][2] more specifically, it can be traced to Unitarianism and Christian Universalism.[2] Unitarian Universalists state that from these traditions comes a deep regard for intellectual freedom and inclusive love.[3][12] Congregations and members seek inspiration and derive insight from all major world religions.[1][12][14] The beliefs of individual Unitarian Universalists range widely; they can include, but are not limited to, religious humanism,[1][2][12][15] Judaism,[4] Christianity,[4] Islam,[16] Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism, Taoism, syncretism,[1] neopaganism,[1][12] atheism,[1] agnosticism,[1] New Age,[1][12] omnism, pantheism, panentheism, pandeism, deism, and teachings of the Baháʼí Faith.[17]

The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) was formed in 1961 through the consolidation of the American Unitarian Association, established in 1825, and the Universalist Church of America,[5] established in 1793.[2] The UUA is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts; and serves churches mostly in the United States. A group of thirty Philippine congregations is represented as a sole member within the UUA. The Canadian Unitarian Council (CUC) became an independent body in 2002.[18] The UUA and CUC were two of the seventeen members of the now defunct International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (1995–2021).[19]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Casebolt, James; Niekro, Tiffany (March 2005). "Some UUs Are More U than U: Theological Self-Descriptors Chosen by Unitarian Universalists". Review of Religious Research. 46 (3). Cham, Switzerland: Springer Verlag: 235–242. doi:10.2307/3512553. ISSN 2211-4866. JSTOR 3512553. S2CID 147127153.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Willsky-Ciollo, Lydia (2015). "Epilogue: Seeking Authority in Contemporary Unitarian Universalism". American Unitarianism and the Protestant Dilemma: The Conundrum of Biblical Authority. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books. pp. 241–245. ISBN 978-0-7391-8892-7. LCCN 2015952384.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ a b c Hoop, Katrina C. (Spring 2012). "Being a Community of Individuals: Collective Identity and Rhetorical Strategies in a Unitarian Universalist Church". International Review of Modern Sociology. 38 (1). International Journals: 105–130. ISSN 0973-2047. JSTOR 43499872.
  4. ^ a b c Muck, Terry C. (2016). "Mission Trajectories in the Twenty-First Century: Interfaith Roads Best Traveled". In van Engen, Charles E. (ed.). The State of Missiology Today: Global Innovations in Christian Witness. Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Academic. p. 187. ISBN 978-0-8308-5096-9. LCCN 2016037715. The Unitarian Universalist Association, a Christian denomination, seeks wisdom from six sources: personal experience, prophetic utterances, world religions, Jewish and Christian teachings, humanist teachings, and spiritual teachings.
  5. ^ a b c Harvard Divinity School Library: Significant Events in the Consolidation of the Unitarian and Universalist Churches
  6. ^ "UUA membership rises for first time since 2008". November 2018. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  7. ^ "Believe". Introduction. United Kingdom: Unitarian. Archived from the original on 5 June 2014.
  8. ^ "Unitarianism and Unitarian congregations". South Africa: Unitarian. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
  9. ^ "Unitarian Universalist Principles and Sources". Canadian Unitarian Council. Archived from the original on 31 October 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
  10. ^ "4th Principle: A Free and Responsible Search for Truth and Meaning". Unitarian Universalist Association. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  11. ^ "7th Principle: Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part". UUA. 15 September 2014.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g Lee, Richard Wayne (Winter 1995). "Strained Bedfellows: Pagans, New Agers, and "Starchy Humanists" in Unitarian Universalism". Sociology of Religion. 56 (4). Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press on behalf of the Association for the Sociology of Religion: 379–396. doi:10.2307/3712196. ISSN 1759-8818. JSTOR 3712196. LCCN 93642782. OCLC 30932266. S2CID 170915346.
  13. ^ Buehrens, John A. (8 March 2010). "Sacred Texts in Unitarian Universalism". UUA.org. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  14. ^ "Unitarian-Universalism". Adherents. Major religions ranked by size. Archived from the original on 20 April 2013. Retrieved 19 April 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  15. ^ Murry, William R. (2017). "History and Core Beliefs: One Hundred Years of Unitarian Universalist Humanism". In Gibbons, Kendyl L. R.; Murry, William R. (eds.). Humanist Voices in Unitarian Universalism. Boston: Skinner House Books. pp. 3–9. ISBN 978-1-55896-783-0. LCCN 2016039272.
  16. ^ "Muslim Unitarian Universalists". 15 September 2014.
  17. ^ Our Minister, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Los Gatos, 6 September 2013, archived from the original on 1 December 2020, retrieved 2 February 2015
  18. ^ "CUC-UUA Transition – Canadian Unitarian Council". cuc.ca. Archived from the original on 19 February 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
  19. ^ Daniel McKanan, "Unitarianism, Universalism, and Unitarian Universalism", Religion Compass 7/1 (2013), 15.