The
return of Gary Bowman, the fundamentalist preacher who calls himself "Moses," to
our campus, is sure to raise religious controversy once again. But that is not necessarily
a bad thing. Bowman's rhetoric is harsh and almost entirely devoid of truth, but he can
cause people to think about their religion (or lack thereof). Fortunately, few, if any, of
Bowman's listeners believe what he says. Perhaps some will think about why he is wrong.
It is
an assumption of my faith that religion should be thought about, rather than unthinkingly
followed or rejected. Every person is free to come to their own conclusions regarding
religion, but they should come to them on their own, not simply inherit them from parents
or copy them from peers.
Students
certainly should not believe something because a guy in a suit yells that they'll go to
hell if they don't. Not that the ideas of "Moses" are entirely rejected, but the
purpose of the religious community is to support an individual in their quest for
knowledge and faith. Enforcing a specific set of beliefs should not be imposed or forced
on others.
These are my beliefs, those of a creedless faith.
What is this creedless faith? When I'm asked my religion, I reply, "Unitarian
Universalist." Surprisingly, many people know something of what I'm talking about.
It's surprising because Unitarianism is a scarcely followed and little-known faith, with
followers mounting to less than 1 percent of the U.S. population.
The influence of Unitarians has long been greater than the number of its adherents. Many
influential women and men have been Unitarian and/or Universalist members or sympathizers,
too many to list. (If interested, a very thorough list can be found at www.jinet.com/famousuus.)
But what exactly is this small, yet influential, creedless faith? I'll attempt to explain.
The Unitarian Universalist Association was formed in 1961 with the merger of two liberal
churches that had grown out of the Christian tradition but had come to be more than just
Christianity. Unitarianism originally consisted of those who did not accept the doctrine
of the Trinity, finding little biblical reason to do so.
The religion originally consisted of Christians who felt they could not reconcile the idea
of a loving God with that of eternal punishment in hell, believing instead in universal
salvation.
These two non-mainstream denominations both grew rather liberal, becoming very open faiths
with very little dogma or creed (required beliefs for membership). When they came to
resemble each other enough, they merged, forming a faith open to everyone that declares
itself to have no creed or dogma at all.
About a quarter of today's Unitarians consider themselves Christians. The rest consider
themselves some other faith, a combination of several, or simply Unitarian Universalists.
How can such a diverse group of people get along without a formal set of beliefs? Well,
there is nothing that must be believed to be a part of the Unitarians, but there is a set
of assumptions most have freely chosen. The UUA, the democratic government of the
denomination, has stated them like this:
"We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist association, covenant to
affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equity and
compassion in human relations; acceptance of one-another and encouragement of spiritual
growth in our congregations; a free and responsible search for truth and meaning; the
rights 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;
and respect for the interdependent web of all existence, of which we are a part."
It is not a creed, but a mere declaration of the current feeling of the democratic
representatives of the faith's members, which reflect their common assumptions.
So, if Moses happens to stir a desire for a religion that is in many ways quite the
opposite of what he preaches, perhaps you should look into Unitarian Universalism. The
fellowship in Fayetteville is at the intersection of Cleveland and Oakland streets, and
services are at 11 a.m. every Sunday.
For
more information, check out comp.uark.edu/~uufellow.
In addition, a new UU student association has been formed on campus. The group meets at 7
p.m. Thursdays in the coffee shop of the student union. Our web page is www.uark.edu/studorg/uuff.
Feel
free to join us, I'm the president, which reveals my ulterior motive in writing this
article. But as a Unitarian Universalist, I'm free to regard that motive as just, no
matter what Bowman thinks of it.
