Unitarian Universalism: The Basics

As mentioned in my last posting, I am redirecting the course of this blog. I'm doing this because, as mentioned, I've undergone some personal changes that have called for this change in direction.
Unitarian Universalists. Who are they? What do they do? What do they believe? These are questions asked by many people, myself included. Over the past five or six years I've had an on and off relationship with Unitarian Universalism. I discovered them rather coincidentally when I was in 11th grade. When I did, I knew that I had found a movement that I could agree with on the issues that were important to me.
But, what were these beliefs that I felt so in tune with? In 1986, the UUA General Assembly adopted the following set of principles and purposes:

* The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
* Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
* Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
* A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;
* The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;
* The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all;
* Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

And, in acting on these principles, UU derives inspiration from a variety of sources which are:

* Direct experience of that transcending mystery and wonder, affirmed in all cultures, which moves us to a renewal of the spirit and an openness to the forces which create and uphold life;
* Words and deeds of prophetic women and men which challenge us to confront powers and structures of evil with justice, compassion, and the transforming power of love;
* Wisdom from the world's religions which inspires us in our ethical and spiritual life;
* Jewish and Christian teachings which call us to respond to God's love by loving our neighbors as ourselves;
* Humanist teachings which counsel us to heed the guidance of reason and the results of science, and warn us against idolatries of the mind and spirit.
* Spiritual teachings of earth-centered traditions which celebrate the sacred circle of life and instruct us to live in harmony with the rhythms of nature.

In the next few posts, I will be exploring aspects of the different principles, how I understand them, how I feel they relate to the world we live in, and some information regarding the history of Unitarian Universalism.

The majority of information which I refer to can be found on the UUA website.