"UU RELIGIOUS IDENTITY"

A Sermon by the Rev. Bruce Clear

Sunday, January 13, 2002

All Souls Unitarian Church

Indianapolis, Indiana

A visitor to a Unitarian Universalist Church sat through the sermon with growing incredulity at the heretical ideas being spouted. After the sermon a UU asked the visitor, "So, how did you like it?"

"I can't believe half the things the minister said!" sputtered the visitor in outrage.

"Oh, good," said the Unitarian, "then you'll fit right in!"

***

Why are Unitarian Universalists the worst hymn singers?

Because they are always reading ahead to see if they agree with the next line.

***

The Starship Enterprise was crossing over the Fundamentalist Zone to respond to a distress call from a lost Unitarian outpost.

Captain Kirk: "Spock, what can you tell me about these people?

Spock: "Well, the library computer has little information, Captain. Logically, however, we may deduce from their name, 'Unitarian Universalist,' that since Unitarian means 'one,' and Universalist means 'everything,' that these people believe in one of everything."

The perennial condition of Unitarian Universalist mental health is that of an identity crisis. Who are we? What defines us? So many of us hold such radically different views form each other, do we have anything in common that identifies us from other religions?

Given this state of perplexity, this identity crisis, it is little wonder that some of us live in fear of that moment when someone will ask, "Well, what is Unitarianism, anyway?"

This morning I wish to focus on one narrow aspect of this identity crisis. It is not so much "Who are we?" but rather "Where do we fit in the spectrum of religions found in this country?" In this country, which enjoys the greatest religious freedom of any country I know, there is a variety of religious groupings that dominate the religious landscape. These usually include Protestant Christians, Catholic Christians, Jews, new religious sects, and "other." In many sociological surveys I've seen, Unitarian Universalists are included in the in the "Protestant Christian" group. Other times, we are honored with the status of "other." Evangelical Christians often include us in lists of American "cults." And the truly uninformed continue to confuse us with the "Moonies"

So where do we fit in the landscape of American religions? What is our identity in relation to these categories of religion? You will discover that, if you ask enough people, there is justification for including us in any or all of these categories. This morning's reading from David Rankin reinforced our compatibility with nearly all the world's major religions: Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and so on. It's little wonder that we have an identity crisis!

It is easy to justify our inclusion in almost any category, and to prove it I will spend the next few minutes doing just that. Then, after making us totally confused about where we fit among American religions, I will do my best to unconfuse us. I won't succeed entirely in eliminating confusion.

We belong, first of all, in the category of Christianity, particularly Protestant Christianity. Yes, it is true, we are renegade Christians - sort of the black sheep of the family of Christendom - but there is no denying that Christianity is our historical heritage. Just as the proverbial village atheist is still part of the village, we are part of the religious culture from which we arose.

All Christian sects claim to have their roots in the early Christian church, following the death of Jesus. We Unitarians and Universalists are no different. Our religious heritage is traced, rather directly back to the 3^rd century theologian Origin, and the 4^th century bishop Arius. Actually, many of Unitarian Universalists, myself included, would dare to list Jesus as an early UU thinker, who had no inclination toward a polytheistic doctrine like the trinity.

We trace our roots to many other Christian theologians of antiquity: Faustus Socinus and Francis David in Reformation Eastern Europe. In this country the Unitarians and the Universalists began as entirely Christian reform movements. In colonial New England, the religious evolution of the Pilgrim churches began to split into two factions: one, the orthodox Calvinism of Congregationalism; and the other, the Arminian liberal Christianity of Unitarianism.

It was the issues within Christianity that started our religion, and it many of those issues still concern us today. We do not, of course, care much today about issues of Christian doctrine. But the issues that concerned Jesus most - of human responsibility, of ethical responsibility, of compassion and hope - are still the issues that define our religious dialogue.

We have more than just an historical connection to Christianity. We meet on Sunday morning. That is not just a coincidence of history. Though the content of our Sunday service may differ in some significant ways, the form is almost indistinguishable from Protestant Christianity: we listen to a sermon, and to music, we sing, and celebrate as a community. None of this happens, say, in Hinduism or Scientology. It is clear that our worship habits are Christian in form, and if for no other reason - and there are plenty of other reasons - we fit within the broad category of Christendom.

No. We are not properly categorized as Christian. Actually, we are more a Gentile form of Judaism, and that too is a category into which we fit. We sometimes feel more at home talking religion with Jews than with many Christians. We do not require3 belief in some of the tenets that many people consider to be central to Christianity - such as the worship of Jesus as God, or a belief in a literal heaven and hell. We also share many of the central concerns of Judaism.

Jewish religious teachings emphasize ethical concerns - our responsibility to each other, our desire to contribute to a better world. These Jewish concerns are ours as well. Jewish religion places a high priority on learning, scholarship and intellectual understanding of life. So do we.

Most Jewish communities share our interest in science and reason as valuable tools for religious life. There is a broad acceptance of scientific investigation and rational discussion. Christianity makes a virtue out of agreement on doctrines; Jews and Unitarians are at home with lively disagreements, even finely tuned argumentation. It is clear that we are best understood as a Jewish religion without ethnicity, a sort of "melting pot" Judaism.

No. We are not a Gentile form of Judaism, nor are we a specifically Christian sect. Our profile also fits closely with what has come to be called American "new religions," like Mormonism, Unity, Christian Science, and Scientology. There are a few religious movements that, even though they are spin-offs of older Christian movements, were born in the United States and are, in their leadership, almost entirely American. It is true that Unitarian thinkers go back many centuries, but the American Unitarians weren't organized under that name until the 1820s. William Ellery Channing, the founder of Unitarianism in this country, wasn't that much older than Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism. Many of these new religions have direct ties to our history. Both Christian Science and Unity were, and some of the more recent movements known as "new age," are direct spin-offs from nineteenth century transcendentalism, which was mostly a Unitarian phenomenon.

The profile of the typical "new religion" would have some of these elements: it is small in numbers, fairly homogenous in membership, has limited appeal to the population at large, and is comprised mostly of converts, rather than second- or third-generation members.

We are small in numbers, representing roughly one in a thousand Americans. We are fairly homogenous in membership, culturally and in other demographics. Almost ninety percent of us were raised in some other religion, and came to Unitarianism as adults.

No. We are not doctrinally Christian, nor are we ethnically Jewish, and we are not among the so-called "new" American religions. Actually, we are a "universal" religion, an eclectic religion that draws wisdom and insight from the best in all the worlds' religions. We are a hybrid that accepts truth wherever it is found, and object to being categorized with any one religion.

No religion has a patent on the truth, so we are eager and open to seek those insights from religions of the East and religions of the West which best address the issues of living a meaningful life. What is key to our religion is not belief, but an approach, and attitude toward religious ideas. We value openness and inquiry, and that attitude is not restricted to any particular religion. You can be a UU Buddhist by being an open and inquiring Buddhist. You can be a UU Christian by being an open and inquiring Christian. The reading this morning from David Rankin demonstrates that our religion eagerly shares the wisdom and tradition of all the religions to the extent that the honor freedom.

And it is not just religion that defines our universality. We look for wisdom from the sciences, from psychology, from literature - from anywhere it can be found. All of civilization is available to us for our improvement. Anyone who values our principles of freedom, reason, and tolerance is welcome to contribute to the ongoing Unitarian journey.

We are, then, best understood as a universal religion that does not fit within any single category of religious tradition.

No. We are not to be categorized as Christian or Jewish or some new religion or some universal religion. We are born of modernism, of science and reason. We are the religion of the Enlightenment tradition of critical thought. We are a "this worldly" religion that cares about people and values, that puts human beings as the primary focus of ethical and religious thought. We are, it is often said, a "humanist" religion, one that places values above doctrine.

The history of organized humanism in the United States is inseparable from our own history. The humanist movement was a reaction against superstition and fundamentalism that flourished at the beginning of the twentieth century. It was in Unitarian churches that humanism took a name and a philosophy, making human reason a higher guide than any church doctrine or scriptural revelation.

No. We are not categorically Christian or Jewish. Nor are we expressly one of the new American religions or a hybrid universal religion. And though many, if not most, of us hold to humanist principles, this does not meaningfully identify the broad scope of ideas within our movement. One characteristic that distinguishes us from other religions of America is not only our commitment to reason, but also to the democratic process. American historians often speak of something called the American "democratic faith," and we are the embodiment of that faith because of our express commitment to democratic principles of freedom and democracy.

The central tenets of our nation are in fact indistinguishable from the central tenets of our Unitarian movement. That should be no surprise since many Unitarians were at the founding of this country. Three of the first five Presidents were Unitarian. A. Powell Davies was one of the great Unitarian ministers of the last century, serving All Souls Unitarian Church in Washington, D.C., and counted among his parishioners a number of Senators, Congressmen, Supreme Court Justices, and Cabinet officers. Davies believed that Unitarianism, because of its commitment to freedom and democracy, is what he called in the title of his book, "America's Real Religion."

The underlying principle of our country is the right of each individual to be free to map his or her own destiny, guaranteeing freedom of thought, statement, and association. Likewise, our religion, unlike any other religion I know, has at its core the right and duty of each individual to seek truth as they see it, unencumbered by creeds or church authority.

It is not just because of our principles that we can be categorized as "America's real religion." In fact, Unitarians and Universalists have played a major role in the shaping of this country. In addition to those early presidents, the first U.S. Supreme Court Justice, John Jay, and the most famous, John Marshall, were Unitarians. At least a dozen of today's UU congregations date back to the early 1600s, including the church of the pilgrims, established in Plymouth in 1620, is today Unitarian Universalist.

Our influence in American culture extends far beyond our size. We comprise one tenth of one percent of the population. Yet we are over-represented in Congress by about 10 times that proportion of the population. Among scientists, authors, educators, and others listed in Who's Who in America, there are more UUs, proportional to the denominational size, than any other denomination.

All of this is to say that we have always had, and continue to have, influence in this society far beyond what our numbers justify. And this should not be too surprising since our religion is built upon those same principles of liberty and democracy which characterize the soul of the nation. We are "America's Real Religion."

No. We are not Christian or Jewish. We are not one of the new religions or a universal religion or a humanist religion or America's real religion. Maybe we are really not a religion at all. Religions offer answers to life's tough questions; they offer a system of beliefs - called creeds - to which adherents must subscribe. Instead of answers, though, what we offer is a method, an approach to religious issues. The answers are up to the individual, not the church. The approach we offer is one of openness, a willingness to ask tough questions of any one or group that pretends to have authority. To the question "why?" the answers "because I said so," or "because the Bible says so," or "because the church says so," just will not do for us.

And furthermore, the method we offer provides what may be only temporary answers, because we know that new knowledge frequently modifies our earlier beliefs.

Since religions tend to offer not only answers, but also certainty, perhaps Unitarian Universalism is not a religion after all, but rather a modern way of approaching religious questions, leaving the answers - no, maybe leaving the questions -- up to the individual.

So there you have it. Where do we fit in the American religious landscape? What is our identity in the context of the religions that surround us? Are we the rebels in the Christian family? Are we Judaism in Gentile clothing? Are we one of the "new" religions, best described in this culture as simply "other?" Or are we a universal religion, open to wisdom from every religious tradition? Is ours a religious humanism, carrying principles of reason and human ethics into society? Perhaps we are the religious counterpart of American commitment to liberty and democracy, America's "real religion." Or are we not a religion at all, but rather a method for confronting religious issues? I believe the answer to all of these questions is "yes" to some extent. Each position has strong, persuasive arguments. It's no wonder we are confused, no wonder we cringe whenever we are asked about our religion.

But, in conclusion, I will say that ours may be a mistaken identity, but it is not really an identity crisis. I believe our religious identity is one of which we should be, and are, proud. Because if we continue to work to living up to the values we encourage and promote, we not only grow as individuals and community, but we nurture and encourage others to grow as well.

There was once a Unitarian minister walking to church one day and passed a parking lot of a Catholic church where a child sat with a box of kittens and a sign that said, "Free kittens, from a good Catholic family." The minister smiled to herself, and mentally wished the child good luck, and went on her way.

A few days later, she saw the same child, with the same box of kittens, only this time it was outside a Methodist church. And the sign said, "Good Methodist kittens! Absolutely free!" Impressed with the child's tenacity, she went on to her church board meeting.

Finally, the next Sunday, the child was in the Unitarian minister's church parking lot, with a sign reading, "Unitarian Universalist kittens! Free to a good home!" This time she stopped to chat with the child.

"Weren't you outside the Catholic church last week?"

"Yes," said the child.

"And on Wednesday, weren't these Methodist kittens?"

"Well, how come they're Unitarian Universalist kittens now?"

"Because today," said the child, "they opened their eyes."

***

READING from "Our Beliefs" by David Rankin (UU minister)

It is true that ours is a free, tolerant, and creedless church. There is something redemptive in our ready acceptance of people from all traditions and backgrounds - with no theological dogmas, with no intellectual restraints, with no prohibitions on religious statement. Yet that is not the end. To feel happy with one's negative feelings, without the kind of positive commitment that might eventually improve upon them, may be an innocent and blissful condition, but hardly the fulfillment of the Unitarian Universalist dream. In many was, we are similar to other religions:

• Like the Roman Catholics, we have a long tradition - extending back to the sun-backed desert of ancient Israel, the small rural villages of Transylvania, and the rocky shores of New England.
  
  
• Like the Jews, we have our heroes and heroines - Michael Servetus, Francis David, and Margaret Fuller; Clara Barton and Susan B. Anthony; Murray, Channing and Emerson.
  
  
• Like the Baptists, we have a system of democratic polity - with the congregation as the ultimate authority, an elected Board of Trustees, and a pulpit characterized by freedom of statement.
• Like the Confucianists, we have emphasized the capacity for reason - possessing a thirst for the fruits of wisdom and knowledge, a reverent feeling toward the achievements of the mind.
• Like the Hindus, we have an eclectic system of theology - encouraging each individual to develop a personal faith which is not dependent on external demand.
  
  

• Like the Humanists, we have our roots in the experience of the world - as it is known through the medium of touch, and sight and sound and taste and smell.
  
  
• Like the Buddhists, we have an accent on the individual - on the beauty, the mystery, and the holiness of each man, woman, and child - as each is a sacred vessel.

***

READING from "The Protestant Churches of America"

by John A. Harden (A Catholic priesT surveying different denominations in the U.S.)

Behind their critical attitude toward dogma is the real spirit of Unitarianism as an ecclesiastical institution built on the foundations of anti-supernaturalism. Essentially naturalistic, its corporate existence is a symbol of the limits to which Protestant liberalism can go and still call itself an heir of Reformation.

Unitarianism is often misunderstood, and its critics accuse it of being hostile to the Christian tradition. The standard Unitarian reply is that in all human institutions, notably in the church, tradition tends to become fixed and unchangeable. Unitarians boast that theirs is a fellowship which consciously resists this tendency.

The issue comes to focus for them as to whether they are Christian or not. Of course, they say, the only sensible answer is the exasperating one: it depends on who is talking and what he or she thinks Christianity is. They are not concerned with whether they are Christian; they claim to be concerned only with whether they are right.

One of the distinctive features of the Unitarian movement is its acceptance of open questions. Unitarians do not claim to be the only church to hold this view, but they find their identity in the degree to which they insist that the Spirit must be unfettered in all of its expressions. Put negatively, their principle declares: Truth cannot be reduced to a creed. Stated positively, they claim: Ours is a church in which creedal matters are purposely kept open.