From: Steve Petermann (steve@spetermann.org)
Date: Fri Sep 19 2003 - 15:19:09 EDT
Josh wrote:
> I have a hard time understanding the process that your local UU church
> experiences with the loss of its intelligensia. Perhaps they are teaching
> something other than the gospel at a "universalist" church, which folks
can
> see through and wish to abandon.
Perhaps I need to be more clear what I meant. The UU churches offer an
environment where individuals are excepted who have non-orthodox views. The
fact that these churches have a steady influx of "former" Christians says
something about how compelling or relevant Christianity is in modern society
for certain people. I've been told but do no know the citation that studies
have shown that the denomination with the highest average IQ is UU. Point
is, these are intelligent, thoughtful, critically thinking people. And they
are bailing from Christianity in significant numbers, many who come from
these seekers groups.
The reason I said a "revolving door" is that UU does not offer what many
people need either. The acceptance is wonderful but the lack of common
belief is a great detriment for forming community and sacred fellowship.
Many people come to UU looking for affirmation of their intellect and
individual thinking. They leave because of the lack of profound ritual and
common belief. I don't know what happens then. My guess is that they hit
the bookstores to do their own searching alone.
Steve Petermann
----- Original Message -----
From: "Josh Bembenek" <jbembe@hotmail.com>
To: <steve@spetermann.org>; <asa@calvin.edu>
Sent: Friday, September 19, 2003 9:25 AM
Subject: Re: Fragility and tendentiousness
> Steve-
>
> I have a hard time understanding the process that your local UU church
> experiences with the loss of its intelligensia. Perhaps they are teaching
> something other than the gospel at a "universalist" church, which folks
can
> see through and wish to abandon.
>
> The bottom line in the point I was trying to make is
> >that Christianity is becoming less and less compelling for a many people.
> >Why is that? Although I'm not member, I see a virtual revolving door of
> >the
> >newly disillusioned going through the local Unitarian Universalist
church.
> >My questions may sound like scholasticism but that's because the premises
> >lead to a plethora of follow up questions. And they are, by the way, not
> >irrelevant to the thinking persons I know. The scholastics may have been
> >able to "reason" through each question but in the final analysis was
> >anything compelling about their system? Did they convince by their
> >gymnastics of logic? Christianity may not be that fragile as a whole now,
> >but what about 100, 500 years from now. The populace is becoming more
and
> >more educated and critically thinking. The scientific worldview is
sweeping
> >the globe. All it will take is something new to come along that speaks to
> >their needs but is less intellectually objectionable and there may be a
> >mass
> >exodus."
>
> Critical thinking is an integral part of my Christian faith. I believe
> strongly that if you begin to ask the correct questions that you will find
> Christianity the single best solution to those problems. When I was in
> college questioning religion and Christianity, I began performing
> thought/practical experiments in my life. For example, what does it mean
to
> treat ones' neighbor as one wishes to be treated? Back then I would
> experiment, treating someone as I would like to be treated and watching
the
> response, as opposed to the next week treating them the other way. The
more
> I observed human interactions, the more the gospel makes perfect and
> complete sense. Paul's writings contain the most sophisticated and
> articulate understanding of human interactions and behaviors, and also
> delineate clearly the most effective approach toward an understanding of
God
> and changed lives. The teachings of Christ represent the most elegant
> solution to life as a human in my opinion, following Pascal's challenge.
> Questions or discoveries about aliens cannot change that.
>
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