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I went to the Unitarian Universalist church sunday. My mom tells me it is unwise to make a decision about a church on the first visit. you dont get to know them untill you have been going a few times, so i am goign to reserve judgement till then but here are my impressions.
First let me say the unitarian church i went to had a loveley building. It was a long curved building. At first I thought it was a circle but relized it was just lost curve. Along the wall there were words carved like sorrow, wisdom, and joy. The People were welcoming and friendly. I suppose that is typical of any church though. They gavfe me a brief tour before the service and answered what questions there were. It had been almost a decade since I had attended a church for more than a wedding or funeral so I was feeling a little awkward.
The service itself was nice. The choir is actually pretty good and the music was...wel different. I grew up goign to episcopal and anglican services. The music in those services was old and sounded old. I dont know enough about music theory to say what was different except to say the music was definately writen in modern times. The service has its ritual. There is ceremony to light the chalice. There were spoken verse and responce portions. Things I could recognize in that, but different again. The pastor had as part of his writing the writings of philosophers, scientists, and even the Dali Lama. His sermon was prompted about and internet joke referring to Zen Judiasm. He discussed the strengths and weaknesses of taking truths and parts from different religious traditions. He pointed out it was something that can lead to great wisdom and could also be done shallowly. He gave anecdotes that referred to his own interest in the Dali Lama and one of his favorite writings on religion was the Dali Lama's comentary on the sermon on the mount. All in all I liked his points and his delivery.
After words there was free food in the form of a potluck. The people were again welcoming. I think I was a little intimidated by how many people there were but overall it was nice. I think I will keep going when I can for a while to at least get more of an impression of them.
I have to say though the fellowship felt nice and the common things to Unitarian Universalists appeals to me. They are very interested in scholorship and being open to different truths. There is no complete dogma to the church, but that lack is their dogma. They belive in the truth that each person carries and that is very compelling to someone who did not feel at home in any religion.
First let me say the unitarian church i went to had a loveley building. It was a long curved building. At first I thought it was a circle but relized it was just lost curve. Along the wall there were words carved like sorrow, wisdom, and joy. The People were welcoming and friendly. I suppose that is typical of any church though. They gavfe me a brief tour before the service and answered what questions there were. It had been almost a decade since I had attended a church for more than a wedding or funeral so I was feeling a little awkward.
The service itself was nice. The choir is actually pretty good and the music was...wel different. I grew up goign to episcopal and anglican services. The music in those services was old and sounded old. I dont know enough about music theory to say what was different except to say the music was definately writen in modern times. The service has its ritual. There is ceremony to light the chalice. There were spoken verse and responce portions. Things I could recognize in that, but different again. The pastor had as part of his writing the writings of philosophers, scientists, and even the Dali Lama. His sermon was prompted about and internet joke referring to Zen Judiasm. He discussed the strengths and weaknesses of taking truths and parts from different religious traditions. He pointed out it was something that can lead to great wisdom and could also be done shallowly. He gave anecdotes that referred to his own interest in the Dali Lama and one of his favorite writings on religion was the Dali Lama's comentary on the sermon on the mount. All in all I liked his points and his delivery.
After words there was free food in the form of a potluck. The people were again welcoming. I think I was a little intimidated by how many people there were but overall it was nice. I think I will keep going when I can for a while to at least get more of an impression of them.
I have to say though the fellowship felt nice and the common things to Unitarian Universalists appeals to me. They are very interested in scholorship and being open to different truths. There is no complete dogma to the church, but that lack is their dogma. They belive in the truth that each person carries and that is very compelling to someone who did not feel at home in any religion.
