Unitarian Service, what should I expect?

[Auriel]

Perhaps this question has been asked to death before. However I am curious. Quite a few of my friends and neighbors are Unitarians. They have asked me for several years now if I wanted to check out their church.

I do not know that much about their beliefs except that their branch has been around for over one hundred years. I also may be confused on this part, are Unitarians and Universalists the same thing?

I have been invited to go to a hanging of the greens ceremony. Sounds ok, like maybe an old fashioned Christmas pageant with carols.

Anyone know what I can expect?

BTW, I have asked what they believe. They just said that it is a church for all, does not discriminate. And that I would probably like it. But I would like to know, what exactly it is that I would probably like! LOL

 

[survive]

Once there were non-Trinitarians who called themselves Unitarians, and people who believed everyone is saved, called Universalists. They (I can’t remember what spurred this) merged in modern times.
They decided that there is a God, and God saves everyone, and there is no Trinity. They held casual services where anyone could speak. It gradually became a place where agnostics and atheists and the most liberal of theists got together to sing and speak and have rituals.
I went to two UU churches to visit as a teenager, and hated it. So there is no guarantee of liking anything about it. It was boring in a way even a church I disagree with is never really boring. They sang hymns to who-knows-whom and my attempts to figure out the subject from the lyrics were fruitless. One did end on a note of loud self-congratulation, but I didn’t know if they meant all UUs. all people or just that congregation. They left without socializing AFAICS. The speaking went on and on about all kinds of topics. One man said he’d grown morally after a tour of duty as a fighter pilot and another stepped up and said he didn’t believe him. We walked out of that one.
Maybe my youth affected my perception. Maybe the church you’re going to is different.

 

[Auriel]

Thanks you, that is a start at least.

Well, I guess one visit will not hurt me.

I did not realize that none believed in the trinity. I thought maybe it was more of a ecumenical thing. I wonder if they all are Deist then.

I do remember now one friend was surprised when I said I had no problem Believing in the Trinity.

 

[flameburns623]

Perhaps this question has been asked to death before. However I am curious. Quite a few of my friends and neighbors are Unitarians. They have asked me for several years now if I wanted to check out their church.

I do not know that much about their beliefs except that their branch has been around for over one hundred years. I also may be confused on this part, are Unitarians and Universalists the same thing?

I have been invited to go to a hanging of the greens ceremony. Sounds OK, like maybe an old fashioned Christmas pageant with carols.

Anyone know what I can expect?

BTW, I have asked what they believe. They just said that it is a church for all, does not discriminate. And that I would probably like it. But I would like to know, what exactly it is that I would probably like! LOL

Unitarian-Universalist churches are very low-church and absent of much by way of ritual. Traditional UU churches will have a number of similarities to a regular mainline worship service. There may even be hymns sung and some sort of prayer, usually addressed to a sort of “to Whom it may concern” sort of deity.

Usually, UU services are formal–wear a suit and tie–although I suppose that many have gone ‘casual’ like a lot of Protestant churches.

There will usually be a sermon and often some sort of adult education classes–a “Sunday School”. This latter will be more of a discussion group than a series of lessons from any sort of Holy Book.

Although, again, the Bible may be the most prominent Scripture in the service. Many UU Churches have not totally eschewed their Christian past. Some have, however.

UU Churches are usually populated by white middle-class suburbanites. There WILL BE a few members of other groups, and probably some of these will be in prominent positions, but the make-up will be dominated by whites.

There will probably be no sort of sacramental service–no Holy Communion, no baptism, etcetera. Many UU’s actively recruit new members–in some cases, joining is as simple as signing a membership roster. Many UU churches now have a ‘seekers class’ however, presumably because they were collecting a lot of names on the rosters of people who never really participated in the church after one or two visits.

It goes without saying that UU services will almost always include some heresies and false teachings, and that attendance at a UU service does NOT fulfill a Catholic’s Sunday obligation to attend Mass.

 

[bpbasilphx]

I did not realize that none believed in the trinity. I thought maybe it was more of a ecumenical thing. I wonder if they all are Deist then.

**What did you think the word “Unitarian” implied?

Once I attended a concert at the local UU Church, and in their tract rack they had title such as “Can a Jew belong to a Church” and even “Can an Atheist belong to a Church”, and the answer to both was, “Yes, provided the Church is Unitarian.”

FWIW, the UUs have several times asked to be admitted as members of the NCC and WCC and have been refused.**

 

[cyberjacques]

My parents attended a Unitarian Universalist church for a few years after they gave up Mormonism. I was only about 4 or 5 at the time, so my recollection is a bit fuzzy, but in retrospect I can say that it was full of lots of very nice, very misguided people. They have a very liberal view of absolutes, in that they don’t really believe in absolutes. They’re big on the whole “everyone can find the truth that works best for them” kind of thing. I’ve even heard of Wiccans belonging to Unitarian churches. And as others here have stated, they don’t have much in the way of ceremony or ritual. It appeals to people who want somewhere to go where they can feel like they’re part of a church, but without that pesky moral judgment stuff. If you decide to attend, don’t expect a whole lot of substance, just lots of feel-good kumbaya collective naval-gazing.

 

[Auriel]

I did not realize that none believed in the trinity. I thought maybe it was more of a ecumenical thing. I wonder if they all are Deist then.

**What did you think the word “Unitarian” implied?

Once I attended a concert at the local UU Church, and in their tract rack they had title such as “Can a Jew belong to a Church” and even “Can an Atheist belong to a Church”, and the answer to both was, “Yes, provided the Church is Unitarian.”

FWIW, the UUs have several times asked to be admitted as members of the NCC and WCC and have been refused.**

Well, that was the confusing part. The husband of one of my friend is also a member, it is their regular Church. However I know for a fact he believes in the Trinity. Then again he was a Methodist once upon a time.

cyberjacques
My parents attended a Unitarian Universalist church for a few years after they gave up Mormonism. I was only about 4 or 5 at the time, so my recollection is a bit fuzzy, but in retrospect I can say that it was full of lots of very nice, very misguided people. They have a very liberal view of absolutes, in that they don’t really believe in absolutes. They’re big on the whole “everyone can find the truth that works best for them” kind of thing. I’ve even heard of Wiccans belonging to Unitarian churches. And as others here have stated, they don’t have much in the way of ceremony or ritual. It appeals to people who want somewhere to go where they can feel like they’re part of a church, but without that pesky moral judgment stuff. If you decide to attend, don’t expect a whole lot of substance, just lots of feel-good kumbaya collective naval-gazing.

And cyberjacques WOW! From a Mormon to Unitarian?
Your probably right, most I know are pretty liberal.

 

[Auriel]

Unitarian-Universalist churches are very low-church and absent of much by way of ritual. Traditional UU churches will have a number of similarities to a regular mainline worship service. There may even be hymns sung and some sort of prayer, usually addressed to a sort of “to Whom it may concern” sort of deity.

Usually, UU services are formal–wear a suit and tie–although I suppose that many have gone ‘casual’ like a lot of Protestant churches.

There will usually be a sermon and often some sort of adult education classes–a “Sunday School”. This latter will be more of a discussion group than a series of lessons from any sort of Holy Book.

Although, again, the Bible may be the most prominent Scripture in the service. Many UU Churches have not totally eschewed their Christian past. Some have, however.

UU Churches are usually populated by white middle-class suburbanites. There WILL BE a few members of other groups, and probably some of these will be in prominent positions, but the make-up will be dominated by whites.

There will probably be no sort of sacramental service–no Holy Communion, no baptism, etcetera. Many UU’s actively recruit new members–in some cases, joining is as simple as signing a membership roster. Many UU churches now have a ‘seekers class’ however, presumably because they were collecting a lot of names on the rosters of people who never really participated in the church after one or two visits.

It goes without saying that UU services will almost always include some heresies and false teachings, and that attendance at a UU service does NOT fulfill a Catholic’s Sunday obligation to attend Mass.

Thanks, I probably should dress up. And I do know they sing, because one of the kids of my friend said, she wishes her mom would not sing out loud! LOL

Your probably correct too, the people in my neighborhood and also the friends attend are all older than I am, and they do have better jobs and positions than most. I do not know if they are a fair sampling though of that church.

Well, it will most likely only be for this one service. Does not sound like something I would be interested in.

 

[bpbasilphx]

Unitarian-Universalist churches are very low-church and absent of much by way of ritual.

With the notable exception of King’s Chapel in Boston, which uses an adaptation of the Book of Common Prayer.

 

[cheese_sdc]

Re: Unitarian Service, what should I expect?

Something almost completely, but not quite entirely, unlike Catholicism.

I’ve been attending UU services for almost 10 months. At the Baton Rouge Unitarian church, the service starts with some music, following by a introductory reading/statement. It is followed by the lighting of the chalice (the closest thing that the UU’s have to a ritual). The lighting of the chalice is accompanied by a short “Prayer”.

There is some more music, followed by a reading (taken from some sacred text or literary work appropriate for the day). They then take up a collection, and then finally the sermon.

After the sermon is a short invocation.

 

[RebeccaJ]

I attended the UU church for a while. Also chaperoned UU youth groups on occasion.

Every church has it’s own “feel”. The one I attended was largely comprised of atheists, humanists, former Mormons and Wiccans. They were very casual, their Sunday service was as described already. People wore jeans, some I think they showed up in their pajama pants. Coffee cups in hand.

The church I attended seemed to be a place for religious refugees. There was only one person who was raised as a UU, everyone else had come stumbling in. Some were raising their own children as UUs, others not.

I marched with them in a gay pride parade and at a youth conference I chaperoned, 90% of the topics were about “diversity”. The kids were taught the proper meanings of gay community lingo. The difference between trans-gendered and lesbian, don’t assume a person who is sexually male goes by the pronoun ‘he’, that sort of thing.

I met a lot of nice people. Made good friends with a Wiccan, who was former Mormon and had legally changed her name to a pagan name. Her animal spirits tattooed on her back. I watch a grown man of 50-something cry in a gay pride parade as we passed a group of “Christians” who were on standing on the corner shouting very hateful things with signs that said things like “God hates fags”.

In the end, it is a social group. A place where all are accepted and for former Mormons a place where they can find a community as Mormonism too is very community oriented, and people who are exiting Mormons find losing this community to be extremely difficult.

There is no dogma or doctrines in the UU church. They are very much based on secular humanism. If you believe in God, fine, but that is secondary to the community. In essence, you will be accepted despite your belief in God. The church I attended was largely atheist, and belief in God was considered the thing that had to be tolerated.

The sermons I heard were largely how belief in God messed society up, so that it was the job of the UUs to be the example for a group of people to use their secular humanists belief to show that God wasn’t needed.

My daughter also attended, and we used to joke that the single commandment in the UU church we attended was, 'thou shalt not inconvenience another". Everything in UUs is about what is convenient to you, and not being an inconvenience to any other person in the community.

One thing I did like about UUs is that they are very open in their communication. If you are angry, you don’t sit and stew and wonder, you just go talk to the person. If you need help, you ask. If you love someone, you tell them. To become offended at someone telling you something as “their truth” is not acceptable in the UU community. You are expected to accept the individual truths of every individual.

 

[Auriel]

I like openness too. Then again I was around more males growing up than females. They tend to just say stuff. LOL

I can see why if someone wanted a sense of community it would appeal to them. I heard this one has weekly exercise and meditation classes.

And thanks guys. I was frustrated earlier trying to remember. As weird as it sounds I may have visited one already, but can’t remember. if I did it was not the same UU.
For Christmas several years ago I was hit by a very sleepy trucker. There are some blocks of memory totally gone. On the bright side it all worked out and it taught me to have patience with the elderly.