Arbitrary Marks

UUpdates Announcement

Attention readers viewing Arbitrary Marks through uupdates.net. I’ve asked the moderator of that site to remove me, since 1) I don’t attend a Unitarian Universalist church frequently and–since that doesn’t seem to discount one as a member*–I don’t any longer identify as such**; 2) I rarely post about related topics.

If, though, you enjoy what you read here, I suggest you subscribe to my direct feed to keep updated. And, since I don’t have animosity towards the movement, please feel welcome to contribute and comment here.

*The latest Pew Forum survey found that 22% of Unitarian Univeralists attend church a few times a yearr, 24% ”seldom” and 22% never. So I suppose I could remain a de facto participant by virtue of not participating!

**Probably, if pressed, I might identify Unitarian Universalism as the group with which I have the most in common. Still, I don’t have any particular need to “worship” weekly, to join in with the group socially, etc. And I think of myself more as an agnostic “Buddhish” person, anyway.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 24th, 2008 at 5:30 pm and is filed under Philosophy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. Email me at arbitrary [dot] marks [at] gmail [dot] com if you think a discussion should be re-opened.

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6 Responses to “UUpdates Announcement”

1. James Says:
   June 24th, 2008 at 7:04 pm

   Frankly, your caveats seem to put you into the Unitarian Universalist box, at lest close enough for government work.

   Still, out of respect, and I really respect your blog, I’ve moved you from my UU links to the Other Interesting links section…

   Fond regards,

   Your Buddhish (well, actually Buddhist) UU fan,

   James

   James Ishmael Ford

2. ck Says:
   June 24th, 2008 at 7:38 pm

   Thanks, James. The fact that I still am “close enough for government work” is nearly part of the problem, I think. After all, if one can not go to services, not particpate in the movement, merely be a liberal person (agnostic and Buddhist, even), and still be a UU, it makes me wonder whether there’s any core identity there at all.

   It’s kind of another version of the old complaint that UUs appropriate anyone passes a few “religious liberal” tests.

   So, to dispel the caveats a bit (since I can caveat myself to death, even in an ordinary post!), if I had to check boxes on a survey for religious orientation and “Unitarian Universalist” were there, I wouldn’t choose it

3. Ms. Theologian Says:
   June 24th, 2008 at 10:56 pm

   It’s a very respectable choice, though I find myself in a similar place and made the opposite choice. I’m reading you through google reader.

4. ck Says:
   June 25th, 2008 at 2:27 am

   I appreciate that, Ms. Theologian. I know I could just keep the label and be dormant for the rest of my life, but it doesn’t make sense to me. So, low key announcement made and the blog (and me) move on

5. Chalicechick Says:
   June 25th, 2008 at 11:42 am

   (((it makes me wonder whether there’s any core identity there at all.))

   For me, the core is refining spiritual belief through reason. It’s not the actions, or the belief, it’s how you arrive at the belief.

   Not forcing UUism on you, just pointing that out. You have a right to not be UU and I respect that.

   CC

6. ck Says:
   June 25th, 2008 at 4:35 pm

   CC, yeah, I can see that. I just don’t think I’ll ever be comfortable viewing my beliefs as “spiritual” or “religious.” I’d rather refine my beliefs through reason and call that philosophy

   I should link to this discussion about atheistic spirituality, though, for another viewpoint. Maybe, at the end of the day, I’m just overly attached to labels and terms, despite my interest in Emptiness…