Origin and History:
The Unitarian Universalist denomination, as it name suggests, believes in the unitary nature of God. Unlike most Christian sects, it rejects the concept of the trinity or the idea that God consists of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Although the modern Unitarian Universalist Association was founded in 1961, the denomination has a long history in America. Unitarians distinguished themselves from other religious groups early in their history, because they believed in universal salvation, in contrast to the Calvinists who believed in the possibility of salvation for only a small, elect group of people.
The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) unifies two religious movements, that of Unitarianism (believers in the unity of God) and Universalists (believers in universal salvation).The idea of a ‘unitary’ Christian God has origins back to the Christian early fathers. Origen of Alexandria and Gregory of Nyssa advocated the idea of a singular godhead, although the Council of Nicaea declared the idea to be heresy in 325 BCE. (Unitarian Universalism)
Another early advocate of Unitarianism, Michael Servetus was martyred in 1553 during the Reformation
“for his criticism of the doctrine of the trinity and his opposition to infant baptism… Servetus rejected the doctrine of original sin and the entire theory of salvation based upon it, including the doctrines of Christ's dual nature and the vicarious atonement effected by his death. He believed Jesus had one nature, at once fully human and divine, and that Jesus was not another being of the godhead separate from the Father, but God come to earth. Other human beings, touched by Christian grace, could overcome sin and themselves become progressively divine” (Hughes)
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He was “a waspish old man who had ridden over three coun... ... middle of paper ... ... t to be distracted by abstract version of Christ, but instead wishes to find God through his own experience. He does not place faith in a Church With Christ, which commands redemption from on high. The Jesus of this church offers an abstract salvation that comes through the suffering of an unknowable God.
The Mbuti believe in a creator of all things, but not in a westernized view. It does not play a large part within their society, but more in the male ritual, of coming of age. The Mbuti God was viewed as the creator of the forest or simply the forest (the forest would protect him pg. 72). The Mbuti’s relationship between the forest and the tribe is very personal and sacred, achieved though song, music, fire and smoke. While the Mbuti God is the protector of the tribe, the men will do the physical protection of their women and family. The Mbuti look at the Forest as the mother and father, whom provide everything that they need (pg. 92). Food, water, shelter, love… all is available in the forest. If tragedy hit, then the forest is sleeping. The
One of the main principles of Christianity is the belief in both the divinity and humanity of Jesus, that these two natures are combined harmoniously in one being. In general, all modern Christians believe that Jesus was human, he was considered to be “The Word was made flesh” (John, I: 14). However, Jesus was more than just a human, despite being subjected to pain, suffering and death like all other human beings, he was sinless and also possessed the power to heal and to defy death in order to ascend, both body and spirit, into heaven. He was all man and all God, a combination of these two elements, remaining distinct but united in one being. The deity of Jesus is a non-negotiable belief in Christianity, which is referred to in many parts of scripture, “God was revealed in the flesh” (I Timothy, 3:16). The Christian faith does not perceive Jesus as God but rather a reincarnation of God, a mysterious deity who is the second person of the Holy Trinity. Throughout history, controversy has surrounded the issue of the humanity and divinity of Jesus, leading to the formation of Docetism, the belief that Jesus was fully divine but not fully human, Arianism, that Jesus was superior to all of creation, but less divine than God, and Nestorius, that there were two separate persons within Jesus. This the proportion of the divine and human within Je...
Christ for the third time refuses. Since Christ refused the power presented to him, the church must now attempt at unifying the christian religion. A goal of mankind is to unite the civilizations into a “universal state” (pg. 31). A universal state brings along security in replacement of free will which humans are more than willing to give up especially if the one who unites them is the one that also provides for them. Humanity has suffered because we have had no unity among all civilizations until the church came around. Since christ has died and did not assume the role of a universal leader the church must assume this power for the sole purpose of benefiting man. Along with assuming this role, the church must also correct errors that Christ has caused. The church now has finally been able to convince mankind to submit their freedom in return for happiness, security, and a sense of unity. The last anguish of man is “the craving for universal unity” (pg 31). Now that the church has provided this to mankind we should not mess with or upset the
...is composed of two natures, one external, one internal, one divine the other human, one invisible and one visible. “For notwithstanding this supreme and divine state, he experienced swaddling clothes, the crèche, childhood and the powerlessness of childhood, flight and persecution” (pg 144). God experienced the lowliness of human nature. Even though Jesus experienced all these states he was truly God-man. However, the glory of the Father wasn’t established in him yet. It was deferred by the plan of God for his son. This division only existed in Jesus. It was for the sole purpose of representing and erasing the separation that occurred between God and his creatures through sin. Jesus was separated from glory due to love. So its our duty to love Jesus in his love. It was due to love he gave his divinity to humanity. The mystery is love and only can be love.
There is a witticism about Unitarian Universalism that begins, “Do you belong to an organized religion?” To which the congregant replies, “No, I’m a Unitarian Universalist.” As with most jokes, there is an element of truth to the wisecracking punchline. Unitarian Universalism is a non-dogmatic, creedless religion that embraces a diverse theology—including meaningful traditions from a number of faith systems, along with an appreciation of a variety of holy texts. Conversely, Unitarian Universalism also appeals to those who eschew any faith traditions, including secular humanists, atheists, and agnostics. Despite being a religion that welcomes everyone to their table,
Unitary beliefs grew in the Americas as more and more people rebelled against the strict and intolerant Calvinist style of Christianity. William Ellery Channing became a most vocal proponent for the church when he published a sermon he called “Unitarian Christianity”. This became widely accepted as the statement for the Unitarian position.
United Methodism, "We are a church with clear doctrine. It shapes our practice in ways we don't know."
A cult may be defined as a group of people centred about one person’s religious, social or political ideology (Martin, 2003). It is a movement that venerates a specific person, and uses manipulative techniques to recruit members and raise funds. Cults demand complete obedience from the members and use them to work, provide money and provide sexual favours for the benefit of the leaders. Most cults engage in criminal activities such as child marriages, sexual abuse, kidnapping, assault, arson and even murder (Snow, 2003). Over the years, there has been a brisk rise in the number of people starting up cults and those joining them. Individuals are in a bid to discover their significance through passionate and spiritual experiences, which are provided by cults. Reasons why people turn to cults include loneliness, lack of personal identity and alienation (Martin, 2003). There have been many cults in the course of American history. One of the most infamous cults is the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS). This paper will give a brief history of the cult, its methods of action, the toxic effects of its beliefs and the methods of treatment used for survivors.
When mentioned to the general public, the word “Pentecostalism” generates three diverse responses: confusion, mockery, and tolerance; some people never heard of the word, some people view it as being infamous, and the rest accept it. According to the Oxford dictionary, Pentecostalism “relates to any number of Christian sects emphasizing baptism in the Holy Spirit.” Misconceptions originated from the misunderstanding of the history of Pentecostalism, along with the notion that Pentecostalism is one sect when, in fact, there are many divisions. The largest of these is the teachings of Charismatic’s, which make up the most prevalent part of the denomination and have been the driving force for the assumptions and reputation that Pentecostalism has garnered. To truly understand Pentecostalism, one needs to learn the religions history, the standard beliefs of the various sects, and the contemporary changes that some followers have made in the recent years that have fueled the current fallacy about the belief system.
The Baptist faith believes in the precepts of Trinity, Heaven, and Hell. Surprisingly Mary does not have a special place in the Baptist religion. They don’t teach the assumption of Mary because Mary is seen as just Jesus’ mother. As for the belief in Saints, they really don’t designate saints because they believe that we all have been saved and we are all God’s messengers. Unlike Christianity, Baptists don’t have bishops or Cardinals. The Baptist religion has a much more loose structure than the Catholic faith.
My home church is United Methodist. I have gone there ever since I was a child because that is where my mother went to church. Through researching this paper I found many interesting things about my church. There are many points and issues I agree with and many I disagree with. Writing this really made me think about my denomination closely and if it’s the right one for me.
Four movements, now heresies, of the past each adopted one of these four views mentioned previously. They are: Nestorianism, Eutychianism, Apollinarianism, and Arianism. Nestorianism and Eutychianism fall under the controversy of the relationship between the two natures. The controversy of Nestorianism arose over the propriety of the term theotokos (“God-bearing”) as a description of Mary. At the Council of Chalcedon in 428 Nestorius gave his view of theotokos to which he held and overly dividing view of the two natures of Christ. Nestorius felt that the term was of doubtful propriety unless the term anthropotokos (“human-bearing”) was also used. Nestorius was later condemned when Cyril of Alexandria; who held the belief in Christ having one nature got involved. Nestorius’ pronouncement towards the birth of Christ caused Cyril to oppose him. Nestorius said that God cannot have a mother; no woman can give birth to God. Cyril of Alexandria suggested that Nestorius was proposing that Jesus has two natures joined in a purely moral union. After Nestorianism came Eutychianism. Eutyches who was repeatedly summoned to the standing Synod of Constantinople in 448, finally appeared and stated his position whereas Christ has two natures before the incarnation, that was but one afterwards. The result of the Synod was the Eutyches was deposed and excommunicated and the one- nature doctrine rejected.
Ecumenical spirits influence various religions to lay aside theological differences, and accept and tolerate diverse beliefs coming together and forming ecclesiastical bonds. Historically, Catholics and Protestants fought each other, and not only through verbal exchange, but through physical means as well. World and religious leaders today advocate accepting all faiths and tolerance of differing viewpoints. For the most part they reflect the ideals of the general consensus. Popular opinion suggests that there are various paths to God, and it is narrow minded to believe there is only on...
Meanwhile, in the Christian faith, diversity finds its unity in God Himself. In God we find one being in three persons and the ground for unity and diversity. He points out that there are hints of the Trinity in the Old Testament and that monotheism is assumed in the New Testament. He is able to provide good support for these points with biblical verses and deeper explanations of them. That is not to say that this can now be clearly accepted as matter of fact, which is proven so by the controversies over the years within the Church.