Unitarianism
In the likely event that you've never heard of Unitarianism, a quick summary:
We've been around in England since about 1680. We came
from the dissenting Christian tradition, although most Unitarians
would not describe themselves as Christians these days. Perhaps
the only thing that all Unitarians would agree about is that there is
no one universal truth. Otherwise, we don't believe anything.
(Well, that's a bit misleading, we all believe something, it's
just that it would be difficult to find anything that we all agree
about, and speaking personally, what I believe keeps changing, so if
you ask me about my beliefs on two separate occassions, I'll probably
say something different each time. I think this is a healthy way
to be.)
We don't have a creed. We welcome anyone looking to find a
meaning in life. The only requirements are an openness to have
your beliefs (if you have any) challenged, and a willingness
to accept that others may have a different truth; what we
offer is a supportive environment in which you can explore your own
personal faith / non-faith. And change it, if it's not working
for you.
We have a chapel (St. Saviourgate, in York), but it's not a
church. You won't find any religious symbols there, from any religion.
All we have is a chalice, and candle.
We have a minister, who gives addresses each Sunday, but these are not
sermons, they do not aim to teach anything. They are thoughts,
musings, speculations, based on readings from just about anything with some insight to share.
Unitarianism is not a proselytising religion (actually, it's not really
a religion at all), so no-one's going to visit you with explanatory
pamphlets. (We do have some explanatory pamphlets, but you have
to come and ask for one.) Most people seem to come across
Unitarianism by accident. Maybe you've stumbled across this page
by accident. You're very welcome.
Our embrace of rational thought as a route to spiritual growth is
perhaps unusual, and tends to attract scientists and those with an
inquiring, questioning mind. Joseph Priestley was a prominent
Unitarian, as is Sir Tim Berners-Lee (inventor of the World-Wide Web).
If you're interested to find out more, try our Home Page, or the BBC Article on Unitarianism, or please feel free to contact me: dajp1@ohm.york.ac.uk