Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Southern Maryland

What We Believe

Our Principles
	We welcome you to this website for Unitarian Universalists and friends. Ours is an historic 400-year-old faith with roots in both Europe and America — one that has always stressed individual freedom of belief. The "Principles" shown below are the most recent of numerous summaries of Unitarian Universalist ideas. We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote: The inherent worth and dignity of every person; Justice, equity and compassion in human relations; Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations; A free and responsible search for truth and meaning; The right of conscience and the use of democratic process within our congregations and in society at large; The goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice for all; Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. -- Adopted by the 1984 & 1985 U.U.A. General Assemblies.
Unitarian Universalism: A Liberal Religion With its historical roots in the Jewish and Christian traditions, Unitarian Universalism is a liberal religion -- that is, a religion that keeps an open mind to the religious questions people have struggled with in all times and places. We believe that personal experience, conscience and reason should be the final authorities in religion, and that in the end religious authority lies not in a book or person or institution, but in ourselves. We are a "non-creedal" religion: we do not ask anyone to subscribe to a creed. Our congregations are self-governing. Authority and responsibility are vested in the membership of the congregation. Each Unitarian Universalist congregation is involved in many kinds of programs. Worship is held regularly, the insights of the past and the present are shared with those who will create the future, service to the community is undertaken, and friendships are made. A visitor to a UU congregation will very likely find events and activities such as church school, day-care centers, lectures and forums, support groups, poetry festivals, family events, adult education classes and study groups. (Excerpts from "We Are Unitarian Universalists", pamphlet #3047) © Unitarian Universalist Association, 1995
Unitarian Universalists travel side by side to take Unique Journeys through different places  and end up together Unitarian Universalists are encouraged to pursue their own religious and spiritual journey. As Unitarian Universalists we help each other on this religious quest. Ours is a religion that encourages every member to pursue his or her own religious and spiritual journey, believing that each of us is responsible for our individual destiny. As Unitarian Universalists we help each other on our religious journey. Unitarian Universalists seek truth and moral teaching from multiple sources and all of the world’s religions. Since individual freedom of belief is one of our basic principles, it follows that there will be differing beliefs among us. People of all beliefs are welcome to our church. Mutual respect, acceptance of one another and diverse lifestyles, acceptance of differences of opinion, and a common search for ultimate truth bind us as a fellowship. Unitarian Universalists believe that religious education is important for children and adults. Our goal is to help young people gain knowledge and experience so that they can make informed choices about their religious life as they approach adulthood. We also believe everyone must continue to learn and to make choices throughout life, and we offer opportunities for individual growth in addition to the Sunday service. Membership in our denomination does not require us to subscribe to any statement of beliefs or religious doctrine. With an optimistic attitude about life and a 400-year history behind us, we believe that humans have great ability to recognize right, correct wrongs, find solutions, and make this a better world. For this reason, Unitarian Universalists are often at the forefront of programs for social justice, concern for the less fortunate, and equality of opportunity. As one Unitarian minister put it: "It is not the role of religion to bring comfort and ‘peace of mind’ to the individual, to the neglect of social responsibility and ethical sensitivity to the sorrow and sufferings of others. Our faith should fortify us against disaster and the fear of misfortune. But it should also challenge us to minister to the needs of others. In our world made one neighborhood by human ingenuity, there can be no boundaries to our sympathies nor any place for indifference." Learn more about Unitarian Universalism at the website of the Unitarian Universalist Association.