a question about Christianity

[miss tenderness]

I'm interested in a group of Christians called Unitarians

I'd like to know if they exist now?

And where are they located (or mostly found)?

What's the core of their belief? They do not believe in trinity, I'd love to know who namely their God is, and what is His description??

How did (Unitarianity) emerge as one of the sects of Christianity?


I spoke with a person adopting this belief, but he just knows that he belongs to this sect and nothing more! Do you know if there are people adopting this belief and practicing it? What certain practices do they have??



Thanks dearly

[Bandini]

There's a church near us.

[Gawaine]

My understanding of this religion is thin, but as I understand it, they are a religious group devoted to the understanding that all religions are correct, and that they believe in the oneness of God, not the triumverate. They understand the bible as a work of prose, and not of history. They conceive of the descriptions as mere metaphor, and that of this metaphor they grasp, as many scholars do, that God itself is the final metaphor to overcome. Not all Unitarians come to this conclusion, but the ones that I have met seem to have. I understand there may be more 'Bible-oriented' Unitarian churches around, but I couldn't be certain myself.

And yes, these people do certainly exist and congregate.

As for 'practices', am I to understand you mean 'rituals' and the like? I am not certain of any specific Unitarian ritual or rituals, but I imagine them not to involve a great many. Rather a spiritual devotion to .

My apologies to any Unitarians that rove in here and find mistakes. If I am wrong, through, please do not stop yourself from lashing out.

[miss tenderness]

There's a church near us.


I'm not curious to go there :D


I'm just askin about the concept

[miss tenderness]

My understanding of this religion is thin, but as I understand it, they are a religious group devoted to the understanding that all religions are correct, and that they believe in the oneness of God, not the triumverate. They understand the bible as a work of prose, and not of history. They conceive of the descriptions as mere metaphor, and that of this metaphor they grasp, as many scholars do, that God itself is the final metaphor to overcome. Not all Unitarians come to this conclusion, but the ones that I have met seem to have. I understand there may be more 'Bible-oriented' Unitarian churches around, but I couldn't be certain myself.

And yes, these people do certainly exist and congregate.

As for 'practices', am I to understand you mean 'rituals' and the like? I am not certain of any specific Unitarian ritual or rituals, but I imagine them not to involve a great many. Rather a spiritual devotion to .

My apologies to any Unitarians that rove in here and find mistakes. If I am wrong, through, please do not stop yourself from lashing out.


that's informative.

and yes i meant Rituals .

r they minority?

[Bandini]

They sound like they may be more pleasant/rational than your average 'brimstone and treacle' tub thumping, supremacist fundamentalist.

[Gawaine]

r they minority?

That would be safe to say, yes.

[miss tenderness]

thanks Gawaine:)

[Broken]

The Unitarian Universalism website (http://www.uua.org/aboutuu/) has this to say about their religion:

With its historical roots in the Jewish and Christian traditions, Unitarian Universalism is a liberal religion -- that is, a religion that keeps an open mind to the religious questions people have struggled with in all times and places. We believe that personal experience, conscience and reason should be the final authorities in religion, and that in the end religious authority lies not in a book or person or institution, but in ourselves. We are a "non-creedal" religion: we do not ask anyone to subscribe to a creed.

[mono]

My understanding of this religion is thin, but as I understand it, they are a religious group devoted to the understanding that all religions are correct, and that they believe in the oneness of God, not the triumverate. They understand the bible as a work of prose, and not of history. They conceive of the descriptions as mere metaphor, and that of this metaphor they grasp, as many scholars do, that God itself is the final metaphor to overcome. Not all Unitarians come to this conclusion, but the ones that I have met seem to have. I understand there may be more 'Bible-oriented' Unitarian churches around, but I couldn't be certain myself.

And yes, these people do certainly exist and congregate.

As for 'practices', am I to understand you mean 'rituals' and the like? I am not certain of any specific Unitarian ritual or rituals, but I imagine them not to involve a great many. Rather a spiritual devotion to .

My apologies to any Unitarians that rove in here and find mistakes. If I am wrong, through, please do not stop yourself from lashing out.
Gawaine, to me, really 'hit the nail on the head,' so to speak.
In some ways, I have always thought, the Unitarian philosophy seems very closely tied to Transcendentalism, accepting all truths established by all religions and philosophies as not necessarily incorrect, yet merely subjective interpretations of objective reality.
For example, this relates much to a Hindu-Buddhist analogy I once read of, involving multiple blind people touching an elephant as a representation of 'objective' reality; blindess, meanwhile, represented a hindrance to objective perception, making it more subjective. Each person would feel different parts of the elephant; one would feel the elephant tusk and perceive reality as long, hard, and round; another would feel the elephant ear and perceive reality as soft, flat, and plane-like . . . etc.
If you want to learn the most possible about Unitarian philosophy, I would highly recommend reading essays by Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Good luck, and I hope this helped. :)

[Mililalil XXIV]

I'm interested in a group of Christians called Unitarians

I'd like to know if they exist now?

And where are they located (or mostly found)?

What's the core of their belief? They do not believe in trinity, I'd love to know who namely their God is, and what is His description??

How did (Unitarianity) emerge as one of the sects of Christianity?


I spoke with a person adopting this belief, but he just knows that he belongs to this sect and nothing more! Do you know if there are people adopting this belief and practicing it? What certain practices do they have??



Thanks dearly
Having been born into such a group's atmosphere, I knew nothing of Christianity, nor of the TRINITY until I was 11. Such groups are certainly no part of Christianity. They are eveolved out of protestant sects' own breakaway groups, and their conception of GOD is not according to a Divine Revelation, nor something passed down by a Tradition from any of GOD's People in the past, but born wholly out of human speculation by those who, like Plato, tried with bare human guesswork to understand what you might call a math about the DEITY. Christianity is not born out of such a thing, and offers such speculative theology no place in its realm.

[Mililalil XXIV]

I commented on the sort of groups I figured Miss Tenderness would have in mind, probably looking for something like islam that calls itself "Christian". There is a particular group, however, that isn't concerned with how many PERSONS are the ONE TRUE GOD, but has a pseudo-universal ideal, in which all consciousness collectively is one and is divine. I doubt that sort of thing was being reffered to. The sects collectively called unitarian, that purport to be "Christian" are not universalists, nor mystical at all.

A true universal Religion has to offer all a common understanding - otherwise it remains a dance hall for many incompatible dancers.

[Bandini]

I commented on the sort of groups I figured Miss Tenderness would have in mind, probably looking for something like islam that calls itself "Christian". There is a particular group, however, that isn't concerned with how many PERSONS are the ONE TRUE GOD, but has a pseudo-universal ideal, in which all consciousness collectively is one and is divine. I doubt that sort of thing was being reffered to. The sects collectively called unitarian, that purport to be "Christian" are not universalists, nor mystical at all.

A true universal Religion has to offer all a common understanding - otherwise it remains a dance hall for many incompatible dancers.

So the essence of religion is conformity/dismissal of anybody elses belief system/blind acceptance of a book written by human beings - oh, that' sfaith isn't it?

[Bandini]

Actually the Unitarians sound like something I could respect - decent values (as I believe many Christian - and indeed values of other belief systems; aside from the views on homosexuality etc. - are) without saying 'My God is real - yours is rubbish' , and without condemning all those without faith to eternal torment.

[Broken]

My question is if a set of religious beliefs is based upon "personal experience, conscience and reason," what then makes it a religion? I respect your values, Bandini, of tolerance and plurality, but I am left wondering what specifically would define a religion were we to separate it from its claim to some connection to the divine? Perhaps I am misinterpreting, but from what I have seen, this idea of religion focuses almost solely upon the human element. Is not religion a belief in the divine, rather than a belief in human reason and its ability to theorize upon what the divine could be were it to exist?

Maybe we are using two different understandings of religion, that or I am misconstruing what is being said.

[Mililalil XXIV]

Actually the Unitarians sound like something I could respect - decent values (as I believe many Christian - and indeed values of other belief systems; aside from the views on homosexuality etc. - are) without saying 'My God is real - yours is rubbish' , and without condemning all those without faith to eternal torment.
As I already said, I think you are reffering to the other sort of sect called "Unitarian" than what Miss Tenderness was inquiring about. Those I suspect she meant are not tolerant of anything - they usually suspect every thing in GOD's creation of having heathen roots. Their appelation "Unitarian" is only to do with not being Trinitarian, and has nell to do with universalism. Ask any J.W., "Christadelphian", etc. These are the sorts of pseudo-Christian groups that have beliefs more like muslims do.

That particular group you keep mixing up with these sects because of their name, do not accept the theological ideas of the above namesakes. They cannot say they agree with all religions while filtering out every difference that makes there to be these diverse religions. That just isn't as universal as one Truth being shared by all. The socalled universal "Unitarians" - whom I do not think Miss Tenderness meant (what interest could they have to her like that of their namesakes whose theology is practically islamic) -, while saying they agree with all, have modern ideas that are very specific, so as to exclude most ancient ideas.

[miss tenderness]

Brokin, thanks indeed for the link and the quote.



Mono ,I'm familiar with Emerson essays, the concept seems more philosophical in away.,have you read any of his poem?




Milil , what was that atmosphere if I may? I mean could you give some places where they would be congregated?
I find it strange ,if taking ur suggestion as an axiom of their ideology being human-based and out of mere platonic speculation, that they call themselves Christian .Do they have belonging complex in a sort of a way? or as one of their thinkers claimed "We had historical roots in the Christian tradition".

Anyway I see the thread has become some place for some people to practice their disrespect for others, and because that is exactly not the thing I wish anythread to go for I'de love if we keep ourselves limited to the Q stated!or let it be locked.

[miss tenderness]

When you feel like saying something
That you know you will regret,
Or keenly feel an insult
Not quite easy to forget,
That's the time to curb resentment
And maintain a mental peace,
For when your mind is tranquil
All your ill-thoughts simply cease.

It is easy to be angry
When defrauded or defied,
To be peeved and disappointed
If your wishes are denied;
But to win a worthwhile battle
Over selfishness and spite,
You must learn to keep strict silence
Though you know you're in the right.

So keep your mental balance
When confronted by a foe,
Be it enemy in ambush
Or some danger that you know.
If you are poised and tranquil
When all around is strife,
Be assured that you have mastered
The most vital thing in life.

[Bandini]

I think I might check out that church.

[Logos]

Please do not make this another topic for ridiculing religions, or, "my faith is better than your faith" postulations, or I will have to close it.

[cuppajoe_9]

Those I suspect she meant are not tolerant of anything - they usually suspect every thing in GOD's creation of having heathen roots.Everything in God's creation (metaphor) does have heathen roots because a few thousand years ago everybody was, by your definition, a heathen.

Off topic question for the admin: Am I to understand that threads are never deleted, only closed?

[Logos]

Off topic question for the admin: Am I to understand that threads are never deleted, only closed?

Topics are either closed or removed from the main forums, never "deleted" forever, unless it's an accident.

[cuppajoe_9]

Topics are either closed or removed from the main forums, never "deleted" forever, unless it's an accident.Good stuff.

[Pendragon]

Read the works of Robert Fulghum. You should be able to find them in any good library, and probably in a used or new bookstore. Fulghum was a Unitarian Minister for many years, and is a recognized philosopher and humorist. You will get an good idea of the church's basics and if I may say so myself, some good common sense advice and rare humor. I do not ascribe to any denomination, but I have all of Fulghum's books. God bless. :angel:

[mono]

Mono ,I'm familiar with Emerson essays, the concept seems more philosophical in away.,have you read any of his poem?
Yes, I have read his complete works - essays and poetry, and love Emerson all the more for it; seldom have I felt such strong agreement with any writer.
To clear up a bit of his biography, he worked as a preacher for many years, until a death in the family which, I think, may have changed some of his beliefs. From then on, he adopted much more of a 'Unitarian' philosophy and religion, and some would even consider Emerson one of its founders - amazing, amazing mind, to say the least! :nod:

[Mililalil XXIV]

Milil , what was that atmosphere if I may? I mean could you give some places where they would be congregated?
I never knew anyone in the groups called "Jehovah's Witnesses" and "Christadelphians" that was ever at Peace. There is a thick feeling of grey depression and a two-dimensional sort of feeling in those sorts of groups, a particular sense shared alike. Why? Because they have no sesne of true continuity as within the People mentioned in the Bible, and they have more of a code about being different than Christians, than a rich Tradition in which life is richly felt and lived. I will touch more on this in making another comment in this post.

Such groups are mainly an English-speaking phenomenon, mostly in North America and England, but they have pockets of theri communities in all protestant nations, and here and there in places like Russia, China, etc.



I find it strange ,if taking ur suggestion as an axiom of their ideology being human-based and out of mere platonic speculation, that they call themselves Christian .Do they have belonging complex in a sort of a way? or as one of their thinkers claimed "We had historical roots in the Christian tradition".
What about various fringe sects insisting they are the real muslims? Without using a more ancient Religion's name, the unitarian sects cannot get very far in rivalling such an ancient Religion. It is historical fact what I said, their founders and members being humans that formed their groups' independant of Christian Tradition, more than a millennium and a half later than when JESUS was around bodily to establish the Church. CHRIST said that there would be those opposed to HIS Religion that would presume to speak in HIS NAME. Some of the earliest heretics called themselves "Christian", which is why the term "Catholic" became such an important epithet of the real Church, as implying membership in a widespread Community that believed alike in all places. The heretics and their followers really made up a much smaller per centage than did the Orthodox, of people claiming to be "Christian". The heretics differed locally, and all could be traced to different innovators of the respective sects.

Part of the dark, heavy atmosphere I felt among the j.w.s was the lack of anything certain, due to an obvious gulf between the People of the Bible and that modern sect. There was always the sense of being a makeshift sect trying to claim the status of the People in the Bible, while having nothing but the same life as the world in general, and no sense of connection to the Reality of GOD or the History of HIS Religion. It was merely a human thing, like a role-playing game in which you read of something and imagine possessing the identity of the role that is not recieved in some manner of real heritage.

This is an honest answer, no matter how briefly put, as to particulars.

[miss tenderness]

Read the works of Robert Fulghum. :


thanks i really love when someone suggest books ,more reliable sources:)

[miss tenderness]

I appreciate ur answer Milil ,thanks.