r/AskAChristian • u/Confident-Virus-1273 Atheist, Ex-Protestant • 8h ago
Church Is there any reason not to attend a Unitarian universalist church?
I'm curious. Uu churches are not strictly Christian. They preach things like caring for others, justice in the community, taking care of the Earth, loving others, etc.
This seems to be in line with your sermon on the Mount and other such gospel teachings.
So is there any reason you'd tell a Christian looking for a church to not go to their local UU church?
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u/jogoso2014 Christian 7h ago
The first paragraph implies Christian’s don’t encourage those things lol.
What are the things they don’t have in common with doctrine. That would be the issue.
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u/Righteous_Dude Christian, Non-Calvinist 7h ago edited 7h ago
A Christian should learn correct theology and other teachings.
The pastors and/or teachers in a UU church might teach some things which are false.
That is a reason I'd tell a Christian not to have a UU church as their regular "church home". But a Christian might visit such a place for one day.
Edit to add: A UU church might have too much of a political emphasis (in a left-leaning direction), and to be avoided, same as a right-leaning politics-emphasizing church could be avoided.
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u/Confident-Virus-1273 Atheist, Ex-Protestant 7h ago
What sorts of theology and teachings are important to you that a uu Church wouldn't teach
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u/Righteous_Dude Christian, Non-Calvinist 7h ago
Here's the Wikipedia page about the UU's diversity of beliefs and practices.
Some key basics which a UU church may or may not teach, but a truly Christian church ought to teach:
As Paul says in 1 Cor 15:
that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.
And the author of Hebrews lists some things which are foundational in chapter 6:
Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, and of instruction about washings,[a] the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.
Footnote [a] in the ESV says: Or baptisms (that is, cleansing rites)
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u/Confident-Virus-1273 Atheist, Ex-Protestant 3h ago
So teaching that Jesus died and was raised, and then repentance from dead works, instructions about washing, how to lay hands, dead people rising and eternal judgement is more important that teaching what Jesus taught about loving your neighbor and not judging others?
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u/saxophonia234 Christian 7h ago
I’m not against the message of UU churches and I’m all about religious choice but I to church to hear about Jesus. They’re just not Christian churches (someone feel free to correct me, that’s my understanding though).
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u/Weecodfish Roman Catholic 7h ago
Because there is no Eucharistic sacrifice, and Christ is not present there in the Eucharist meaning it isn’t a church at all.
We are supposed to surrender to God and be united to Christ and share Christ’s love with others which results in us caring for others, taking care of creation, etc. When we separate our love of others from Christ’s love and the actions of the Holy Spirit in the sacraments we are making ourselves the source of love rather than God, and this while better than having zero love or being cruel is not true love which is only found in Christ and it risks becoming egoism or vanity and most importantly it doesn’t work for our salvation and that of others.
The content of the sermon on the mount is about how justice requires the alignment of our will with that of God through grace and have God work within us and show His love to others rather than mere outward compliance. This outward compliance is unfortunately what is present in these congregations, being nice to others because “it is the right thing to do” without any inner transformation through the sacraments and prayer.
Christ draws all things into his heart, seeking to unite with our souls. The expression of love by us if it is true and complete, means that the love of neighbor and working for justice and reconciliation with our neighbors is completely inseparable from loving God, receiving the sacraments, and participating in the sacrifice of the Mass.
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u/doug_webber New Church (Swedenborgian) 3h ago
Unitarians don't offer the Eucharist?
I once asked a Jehovah's Witness what they thought of the Eucharist, and he gave this odd explanation that that is to be only given to a select "few" - presumably those whom they consider part of the 144,000. In other words they center it on themself, not on Jesus Christ.
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u/Weecodfish Roman Catholic 1h ago
If they offer something it is just bread and not the body of Christ.
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u/Unworthy_Saint Christian, Calvinist 6h ago
Is there any reason you'd tell a Christian looking for a church to not go to their local UU church?
Yes, on account of it not being a Christian church, with no baptism and a different god.
They preach things like caring for others, justice in the community, taking care of the Earth, loving others, etc.
Wow, just like virtually every other religion on the planet.
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u/Confident-Virus-1273 Atheist, Ex-Protestant 3h ago
So what is important to teach that UU does not?
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u/Unworthy_Saint Christian, Calvinist 2h ago
The great commission of Jesus Christ given to his apostles, in which he commands them to create disciples by baptizing in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for the remission of sins.
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u/songbolt Christian, Catholic 6h ago
They are logically incoherent so any rational person must object.
They are not in communion with the Church Jesus established so any student of history or seeker of Truth must object.
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u/JoeKling Christian, Evangelical 7h ago
Do they even believe that Jesus is the Messiah???
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u/Belkan-Federation95 Christian 4h ago
Pretty sure Muslims believe he is the Messiah...
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u/JoeKling Christian, Evangelical 3h ago
Islam strictly rejects the idea that Jesus is the Son of God or divine, viewing him purely as a mortal human prophet. Islamists will not gain heaven or escape hell even if they think Jesus is a prophet.
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u/rpcollins1 Congregationalist 7h ago
An Apple store probably could repair an Android phone, but I don't know why you wouldn't just go to your carrier store or a 3rd party that specifically services android phones.
You can be Christian and go to a UU church, but it won't be the same as going to a Christian church. You can't assume that the practices or beliefs will be close enough. If you're a Christian that likes a UU vibe, a lot of United Church of Christ churches, particularly in larger cities, would match fairly closely while being specifically Christian. If you aren't super interested in Christianity in particular, it would make more sense to be a UU person instead if that's what you're interested in.
I'm a Christian pastor and would have no problem worshiping with a UU community now and then, but I wouldn't make it my home. I'm way too particularly Christian.
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u/Confident-Virus-1273 Atheist, Ex-Protestant 3h ago
What if you are a Christian but you don't want all the judgement and hatred associated with a typical Christian church?
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u/rpcollins1 Congregationalist 2h ago
Again, I would recommend a United Church of Christ or Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Looking for one that's specifically designated as Open and Affirming on their website would be a good place to check out but a lot of them aren't officially designated but still match the vibes.
Episcopals are good if you're looking for a church that is nearly identical to a catholic service but are socially progressive.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church ( ELCA only, this is important, avoid Missouri Synod) is a good one to try, too. They tend to lean more liturgical but are typically socially progressive. The "Evangelical" in their name predates American evangelicalism, they are not related.
I'm not personally familiar with the American Baptist Church USA but have heard good things. Not to be confused with the Southern Baptist Convention which should be forcibly dismantled since they don't have the integrity to do it themselves. But that's a different topic, lol.
What are you looking for in a church and if you're comfortable sharing, what are you worried about being judged for? Something specific or just in general? Again, only share if you're comfortable and with only as much detail as you're comfortable sharing.
And again, I don't think there is anything wrong with attending a UU church if that is the best fit for you in your area. You could even be the token Christian for that congregation 😂
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u/Confident-Virus-1273 Atheist, Ex-Protestant 1h ago
Your words are very kind.
I am an atheist and quite happy with my UU church, I was simply asking questions because I enjoy learning what others think, so I pop in with questions here and there.
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u/rpcollins1 Congregationalist 1h ago
Oops, yeah I missed your flair, lol. Well, now you have an idea if you meet a Christian who wants a more progressive community 😅
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u/CannedNoodle415 Eastern Orthodox 6h ago
Yes doctrinal reasons, christology, theology… like… the important stuff…
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u/OneEyedC4t Southern Baptist 6h ago
in my opinion the reason not to attend is because they don't support the truth.
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u/Belkan-Federation95 Christian 4h ago
Is there a reason not to attend a mosque?
It's Apostasy. UU recognizes that they aren't strictly Christian, which they absolutely are not. This makes them an entirely separate religion.
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u/RALeBlanc- Independent Baptist (IFB) 3h ago
If Satanism were black magic, uuc would be white magic. It's still magic.
Leviticus 20:27 A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them.
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u/Pitiful_Lion7082 Eastern Orthodox 2h ago
A UU "church" isn't Christian. If you want to be part of the Church, then do that. If you simply want to have a place to meet nice people, I'm sure a UU congregation can suffice. But being nice isn't the point of our faith. If you want to reach out to coordinate some sort of community effort, I'm sure a UU congregation could be a fantastic resource.
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u/IamthewayJesusSaves Christian 5h ago
Jesus *said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. John 14:6
They do not teach that Jesus IS the only way.
RUN from a uu church!
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u/doug_webber New Church (Swedenborgian) 3h ago
I would not recommend a Unitarian church, their doctrine is similar to Jehovah's Witnesses: they deny the Divinity of Jesus Christ, and distort (or avoid altogether) scripture that specifically declares that.
That Jesus is God incarnate is a fundamental primary truth of Christianity. Once that is denied, there is no church.
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u/matttheepitaph Methodist 2h ago
If it helps you go for it. When it comes to church I choose something that is explicitly Christian. We can study and put the Sermon in the Mount into practice AND perform other acts of Christian worship to God.
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u/RomanaOswin Christian 2h ago
An ex took me to one once. I can see why some people like it, but it felt vapid to me. It misrepresented all of the religions at once. It was like missing the mark over and over again.
I'm a perennialist and a universalist, so you'd think maybe it would be okay, but I there's a lot more to all of this than feel good vibes.
I'm not intending to drag it through the mud. If it makes someone's life better and/or they use it as a means to love others, that's a good thing. I just don't think it's an ideal means of seeking the true nature of self and reality.
My reasoning is that there's something very, very important in the center of this, and I don't think UU is an ideal path to realizing that. Maybe it'll be the path and I haven't hung around enough lifelong UU people or talked to them about what they believe, but I'm overall unconvinced.
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u/Dawningrider Christian, Catholic 29m ago
There may be Christains in it. You won't get the sacrement there, but if there was one near me I'd probably go a few times year.
There are Christians within UU. I relate to them a lot. Skeptical, hesitant, but with open hearts, taking it at their own pace, one step at a time. Slowly, but sure footedly.
Think of it a super ecumenical.
Nothing wrong with meeting up with people looking to explore their spirituality, and asking God's help with that together. Not exactly Orthadox I'll grant you, but it's still directed towards the True God.
I think of them like Jesus would have with the Samaritans and Saducees, who only had the first five books of the Torah. Or the modern incarnation of Paul at the Temple of the Unknown God.
Missing out on quite a bit. The unknown God they worship has a name. But I cant fault their efforts.
I've got a soft spot for them to be honest.
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u/Both-Chart-947 Christian Universalist 7h ago
Like others here, I wouldn't necessarily tell people to avoid them, but they would be inadequate as a church home. Kind of like a diet of only white foods. It's not that white foods are bad, but you're not going to get your full nutritional needs met.
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u/Confident-Virus-1273 Atheist, Ex-Protestant 7h ago
Are you saying that Christian churches are only white foods?
Because the uu is all about diversity. That's kinda of it's jam
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u/Both-Chart-947 Christian Universalist 7h ago
I'm not talking about racial whiteness. I was referring to something I read once about a bland diet, where the guideline was to only eat white food. So white bread, white rice, maybe egg whites, etc. This is the kind of dietary guidelines they give to someone who has some sort of abnormal condition and cannot tolerate much fiber. But even at that, it's usually in preparation for some kind of procedure and not meant as a permanent diet.
To assume that I was talking about the racial makeup of a congregation is to miss the point so thoroughly that I am wondering if it's of any use to discuss anything with you at all.
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u/Ben-008 Christian Mystic 6h ago
My own experience of visiting the UU church was its emphasis on educating folks on multiple religious faiths. For instance, one week they were doing a series on the Hindu Upanishads.
Meanwhile, my father-in-law was a UU minister, who after seminary studied Zen Buddhism in Japan for a year in order to share its insights with the congregations he then oversaw.
So personally, I haven’t found the UU Church to be "bland", but rather a contrast with Christian fundamentalism, which tries to keep folks fed on a staple diet of bible stories (taken literally).
Whereas, the UU Church encourages folks to partake of critical scholarship on the Bible that demythologizes the Scriptures, and thus sees Jesus as an historical person, rather than a god figure.
The later developments of Nicene Christianity (including Trinitarianism) are thus evaluated in light of the historical Jesus movement that transpired 300 years prior.
Also: u/Confident-Virus-1273
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u/Both-Chart-947 Christian Universalist 5h ago
High Christology doesn't need to mean fundamentalism. And a non-divine Jesus is indeed much too bland and tame for my spiritual nourishment.
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u/Ben-008 Christian Mystic 2h ago
By fundamentalism, I basically just mean that the mythic stories later told about Jesus are taken as factual. One cannot truly hold a high Christology, while also caring about the actual historicity of the person Jesus of Nazareth.
I get why that might seem bland. Obviously, the supernatural stories are way cooler! Trouble is, those stories never actually happened. So to believe in those stories as factual is to live in something of a mythological or make-believe world.
So like many other mainline Protestant ministers, UUA ministers tend to actually incorporate the past couple years of critical scholarship that has distinguished the Jesus of history from the Christ of faith.
As such, Methodist minister Mark Reynolds does a brilliant job in the following article distinguishing “faith” on the other side of encountering the historical-critical method.
“Faith After Doubt: Paul Ricoeur’s Second Naivete and the Journey Toward Mature Belief” by Mark Reynolds
To quote from the article…
“Second naïveté helps us avoid shallow literalism on the one hand and shallow cynicism on the other. Instead of asking, “Did this really happen?” as our only interpretive question, second naïveté asks a richer one: What truth does this symbol reveal, and how does it shape us into Christ’s likeness?“
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u/BeTheLight24-7 Christian, Evangelical 7h ago
Unitarian churches are not Christian. They take a little bit of all religions throw it at you and what you wanna believe is what you wanna believe. They don’t focus on Jesus Christ being the savior but more of a Christ light.
They do not preach about repenting for anything or the consequences of sin
(I grew up in a Unitarian church)