Unitarian Universalism made the Colbert Report yesterday, November 1st.  In his Tip/Wag – Constant Documentation & Billy Graham segment, Stephen Colbert discusses Mitt Romney’s outreach to Reverend Billy Graham and Graham’s subsequent disencultification of Mormonism.

In response to Unitarians being listed on Graham’s website, Colbert replies..

“Oh yes, the dangerous cult of Unitarianism. Their rules are so loose, their three sacred texts are the Old Testament, New Testament, and Free to Be You and Me.”

If you haven’t seen it yet, you may watch the segment here. The part about Unitarian Universalism starts 3 min 30 sec into the video.

What Do Unitarian Universalists Believe?

What happens when a previously Christian church gets so liberal you don’t have to be Christian to belong? What happens when over time the country gets increasingly pluralistic with massive numbers of people loving the Dalai Lama, Oprah and doing yoga?  Eventually you get a breed of congregations that bring diverse people together around shared values, not set beliefs. That’s what’s happening in Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations, great values but many different spiritual and theological perspectives.

That’s my quick explanation.  You can get a more official description here or watch the following video about our congregations.

The Challenge of Unitarian Universalism

Okay, not all Unitarian Universalists love Oprah and the Dalai Lama…  But I do.  And that’s the beauty (and challenge) of Unitarian Universalism.

Because our congregations don’t have a set creed, we end up with people who don’t agree on big religious questions.  And I love that!

What About Love?

Speaking of love…  In recent years love has moved to the forefront as an organizing force in our congregations.  Not a cheesy bad greeting card love, but a we need to take care of each other fight for justice and build a better world together kind of love.  We might not agree on whether there is an afterlife, but we know how we should treat each other.   In fact, we have a campaign dedicated to that, the Standing on the Side of Love campaign.

And this election season, we’re encouraging people to VOTE on the side of love.

Why I Love the Challenge

Me? I want to be part of a community where people have great values, but differing opinions.   It keeps me learning and growing.

For me, Unitarian Universalism serves as a home community and center from which I can continually explore, have friends to share and discuss life with, and an institution through which we can multiply our efforts to address the moral challenges of our time — marriage equality, climate change, immigration justice and beyond.

If that sounds appealing,  find a congregation near you and see what they’re up to.

I should note that I have a big fat UU bias.  I was raised a Unitarian Universalist and came upon pretty much everything great in my life through my UU connections — my wife, my work, my friends, my meditation practice, fellow change agents, hope…