First Unitarian Church of Baltimore

Corner of Charles and Franklin Streets in Downtown Baltimore

Mailing address:
1 West Hamilton Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
P: 410-685-2330
Fax: 410-685-4133
Office E-mail

WHY I AM A UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST

by the Reverend Phyllis L. Hubbell
at the First Unitarian Church of Baltimore
on the 22^nd of October 2000

Why am I a Unitarian Universalist? When I was born, my family was attending a Baptist church, and I was baptized when I was 7. The Baptist church was very conservative culturally. It didnt condone dancing or movies. So my parents moved over to the Presbyterians when I was a little older, more for cultural than theological reasons. At 12, I was confirmed in the Presbyterian faith. But I turned away from that as well. For many years, I stayed outside organized religion. Finally, I chose to become a Unitarian Universalist.

But why? For me, that question has two parts. The first is about my religious journey. The second is about the nature of this faith I have come to cherish.

Like many people, I spent a long time in my 20s struggling with questions about the beliefs I had held as a child. Did God exist? I dont think I really understood then that there might be more than one way to think about God. I thought of God then as the omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient creator I had learned about in church. I wondered how we could have free will if God created us knowing everything we would do. How could God-- with prior knowledge of the consequences-- allow evils such as slavery and the slaughter of the Native Americans and other equally horrific events still be a good God? Wouldnt you do better than that? If you were creating a robot and you knew-- actually knew-- that it would create a hydrogen bomb, would you create it with the capacity to make that bomb? I dont think so. Would you create multiple sclerosis or cancer? Wouldnt an all-powerful God find kinder ways for us to die?

Finally, I concluded that the existence of God was not the most important question of faith. I might or might not believe in something I call God. But more important was whether or not I believe that good exists. Whether or not I believe this is a chaotic universe, governed by chance or governed by laws, perhaps divine laws, could I, did I, believe that good exists?

The answer, of course, is that I do. I have pondered over the years just what this good is based upon. I do not have what I consider to be a solid logical basis for my faith. Oddly, because of this faith, I believe that something somewhat analogous to what traditional religion calls God does indeed exist. That is a faith statement. Nothing I feel called upon to prove. I feel comfortable saying that good does exist. That although a lot ambiguity exists about certain moral issues, mass murder, rape, slavery, genocide, theft are wrong. Wrong in a very fundamental, clear way. Wrong not just because pragmatically they are harmful to society, but somehow wrong because we should treat one another compassionately, justly.

Now, occasionally, I still spend time thinking, reading, and talking about the God question, but more fundamental to my religion is striving to live my beliefs. Not because I might or might not go to Heaven or Hell, but because I care about the world I live in and the people who inhabit it. Religion is many things for me, but most importantly, it is a place where I am inspired to do more, to make a difference.

That is why I am a Unitarian Universalist. For so many religions, the worship of gods and the satisfaction of their demands are central. Of course, those whom most of us know the best are the Christians. It is true that Jesus said that those who feed the hungry and visit the prisoners are those who would go to Heaven. Most Christian sects, however, have entry requirements creeds that are focused on the trinity, the immaculate conception, and the bodily resurrection of Jesus. No denomination as I understand it proclaims that the commitment to at least try to treat our neighbors as ourselves is sufficient for salvation. Of course, they share with us a commitment to doing good. But that is not a requirement to achieve salvation, which seems to be the core for these religions. What kind of God would send an atheist who had a lived a life of love and good works to eternal torment? Certainly, many liberal Christians have rejected the idea of Hell. But the centrality of Jesus and God continue to make me uncomfortable

Buddhism, especially American Buddhism, does not place the existence of God at its center. Instead, the central challenge is how we can free ourselves from suffering. Buddhism, too, advocates compassion and acts of loving kindness, but as means to alleviating our own suffering. As I understand Buddhism-- and I am certainly not an authority on Buddhism-- what I would call morality is not important of itself, but for what it can do.

What sets Unitarian Universalism apart is the central nature of moral precepts. We have no creed. We have no requirements about what you must believe about the identity of the divine. We covenant to walk together, committed to the spiritual journey. We recognize that wisdom and knowledge are found in many faiths as well as in science, nature, and the lives of the saints. We accept the possibility of private revelation. We realize that there is much that any one of us does not and cannot know.

Our constant challenge, unlike most religions, is to stay in touch with what we do hold in common. In 1984, after a long consultation process, the Unitarian Universalist Association adopted a set of principles that we require member congregations to support. They are

1. style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"> The inherent worth and dignity of every person;

2. style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"> Justice, equity, and compassion in human relations;

3. style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"> Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;

4. style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"> A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;

5. style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"> The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;

6. style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"> The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all; and

7. style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"> Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part..

Still, respectful of the individual, we do not require that all Unitarian Universalists believe and try to follow these principles. But with lots of room for interpretation, lots of room for disagreement, these are our core beliefs. We differ on the God question. We are humanists and pagans. We are Christians and Buddhists. And we are united in our commitment to the good, as best we understand it. We have no shared belief either in an afterlife or in Hell. Most of us believe that our salvation or our damnation takes place in this life. All people are inherently worthy. But some choose lives that lead to internal-- not eternal-- torment. But our focus is not on salvation, even in this world --it is on finding and doing what is just. Because it is right. Or loving, not because it feels good, but because it is good.

We have a saving message. No one is predestined to damnation. All are inherently worthy. We fail, of course, to do what we should, to do what we want to do. But we are not damned for our failures. We have but to recommit ourselves. To feel that call to love and justice. To believe that how we live matters. To begin again in love. In respect. And most of us do not try to live by our beliefs in order to relieve a tortured conscience, but simply because we believe it is right.

Today, we stand on the brink of war between Israel and Palestine. Home and land, of course, are major stumbling blocks. But each side claims that God is on their side. God demands that Jerusalem be in Jewish or Moslem hands, depending upon whether you are Jewish or Moslem. God demands that blood be shed to win this fight. People are dying. Children are dying. In the name of what is holy.

How often throughout history have people believed that God demanded that blood be shed? I believe if God exists, if God is good, or if goodness may be called God, that God does not require blood to be appeased. If I am wrong, if some God demands payment in blood, then I, for one, will stand against God, whatever the price.

There is much that we do not know, cannot know, about the origin of life and love, about where consciousness comes from and where it goes after we die, about miracles and mystery. But cant we know, cant we stand unified in loving one another, in working for justice, working for peace, respecting our planet? Cant we walk humbly with our gods, whether they be scientifically concrete or something more mystical? Thats why I am a Unitarian Universalist. Committed to walk with all who will join us. Men, women, parents, children. Rich, poor. Ph.D. or grade-school drop out. Whatever you believe. Whatever your skin color. Whomever you love. Whatever your gifts. United in love. United in justice.

Take up the song.

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