A query from Stephanie on the Ethical Witches list turned up this paper by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. titled “The Influence of the Mystery Religions on Christianity.” King wrote it around the beginning of 1950, while he was a student at Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania. King’s expertise was as a preacher and a civil rights leader, not as a historian or a theologian. The scholarship on which this student paper was based is now at least 60 years... Read more

I saw this article on WitchVox last week but didn’t read it until Michi sent it out on our CUUPS members list. The article was horrible. What’s encouraging are the comments. I was expecting to see the usual fundamentalist rants about how Wicca isn’t a “real” religion. Instead, three of the four commenters quickly and concisely summed up what the journalist missed: the picture of Margaret Hamilton in greenface is an offensive stereotype, the prison system is wrong not to... Read more

And now we have an official response from Scott Ullrich, Business Manager for UU World. In part, he says: I have come to the conclusion that it was a mistake to run this particular ad. While the stated mission of the Freedom From Religion Foundation is entirely consistent with UU values, this ad seems hostile to all religion. To be more specific, I believe that I failed to help the advertiser match their message to our readers. An ad spotlighting... Read more

If you’re in the DFW area, come out to Pagan Pride Day next Saturday at Oak Cliff UU. I’ll be leading a circle planning seminar. Join us on September 12th 2009 at the Universal Unitarian Church of Oak Cliff from 12pm to 10pm. Come together for dancing, drumming and fun! There will be vendors, workshops and lots of fun! Bring your best pot of chili for the Black Cauldron Chili Cook-off or enjoy tasty treats from our food vendor. We... Read more

Last night Denton CUUPS presented a full moon circle at Sacred Journey Fellowship (formerly Pleasant Valley Unitarian Universalist Church) in Garland. Sacred Journey is “An Earth-Centered Unitarian Universalist Congregation” – an intentionally Pagan congregation. They do their own Sunday services, but they’ve started the practice of bringing other groups in to do full moons. This is a good thing. One of the things I liked most about the Druid Gorsedd and the whole House of Danu project is that they’re... Read more

Have you seen the print version of the new UU World? The inside cover is a full-page ad for the Freedom From Religion Foundation. Does that not seem a bit odd – if not counterproductive – in a religious organization’s official magazine? Now, just to be clear, I support FFRF’s work toward the separation of church and state. And I respect those whose free and responsible search for truth and meaning has led them to conclude that there is no... Read more

In the comments of the last entry, Ogre pointed out that Rev. Robert Hardies (senior minister of All Souls Church in Washington DC) taught a class on UU spiritual practice at Meadville Lombard seminary. A little googling turned up the syllabus from that class and this sermon Rev. Hardies preached on “The Practice of Reverence.” I encourage you to read them both – they’re worth your time, even if you already have a strong spiritual practice. A syllabus and a... Read more

All that was said in the comments of the last post (and thanks to all who participated in the discussion) seems to confirm my suspicion that there is no religious center in Unitarian Universalism. And this small sample size seems to be quite OK with that. I shouldn’t be surprised. When I look around at other denominations, I don’t see much in the way of religious centers there either. The Episcopal Church is currently in the middle of a nasty... Read more

Star UU blogger PeaceBang set off quite an uproar with this post on covenants. In it, she passionately proclaims that religious covenants always originate with God. She offers a way to interpret that in humanistic terms, but says that attempting to form covenants without reverence is blasphemy. She knows she’s being provocative – she says “I just said BLASPHEMY! But dern it, I mean it.” I remember enough from Baptist Sunday School to know she’s not wrong. Biblical covenants were... Read more

The Danu Portal, with gate, elemental altars, spiral labyrinth, and Brigid’s Cross. Some of the Grove Pavilion tents are in the background. Last year I attended a Saturday workshop on meditation, led by a Buddhist monk. We practiced several different types of postures and meditations, all with an emphasis on mindfulness. It was helpful, but what I remember most of all was Br. ChiSing’s final recommendations: practice alone daily, practice with a group weekly, and attend a retreat or seminar... Read more