Don't Know Your Religion? Take The Test

We all believe. For many people, their beliefs come with a name attached. Often, their beliefs match the beliefs of a particular religion. These people can easily find others who share their beliefs. But others have a harder time defining what they believe in, and so, have a harder time finding others who share their beliefs.

Which brings me to the Belief-O-Matic quiz, found on the beliefnet web site. If you belong to a church, this quiz will likely be nothing more than a curiosity. You know what you are already. But if you know more or less what you believe in, but don't know what to call your beliefs, the quiz may well tell you. And the rest of this epistle is for you.

To continue, let me tell you a bit about me. I've thought about the great questions of life, universe, and everything for a long time. There are some things I know for sure, such as the importance of treating others as I want to be treated. There are other things that I doubt, such as the existence of a supreme creator being. In some ways, I consider myself a spiritual person. Like Einstein, I find spiritual inspiration in the fundamental principles governing the universe. In particular, I find something mysterious and magical about Euler's Identity:

What label would you give to my beliefs? Atheist? Agnostic? Secular Humanist? Would those terms describe you? Before continuing on, do the Belief-O-Matic quiz, if you haven't already done so.

Now to get to the point of today's missive: If, like me, you identify yourself as a secular humanist, you might be a bit surprised to find a few other faiths on your Belief-O-Matic results, such as Liberal Quaker or Unitarian-Universalist. The latter is what I'll focus on here. As a secular humanist, you may well think that there's no church where your beliefs would be welcome, or no church where your particular spiritual needs may be met. If that sounds like you, you know there are others like you. But in what church (if any) can they be found? They may be in your local Unitarian congregation. Yes, there is a church that may well be for you!

Just to be fair, Unitarians aren't all secular humanists. Some Unitarians are atheists or agnostics. Some Unitarians are Christians or Jews. And some are Buddhists or Wiccan. Almost all are on a journey of religious exploration. We all have different beliefs, and we all accept and encourage each other in our individual spiritual growth. If you come to a Unitarian service, you won't be told what to believe, unlike other churches. You are accepted no matter who you are, no matter what you believe, and no matter who you love.

If you want to learn more, start with the Canadian Unitarian Council or the Unitarian Universalist Association web sites. If you live in the Kingston, Ontario area, check out the Kingston Unitarian Fellowship. Some people who learn about Unitarianism for the first time wonder: What's the catch? There's no catch. If you are intrigued but have doubts, make an appointment with the minister of your local Unitarian church, and ask the most difficult, challenging questions you can. Or just show up at Sunday service and see what it's all about.

By the way, here are my own top three Belief-O-Matic results:

1. Unitarian Universalism (100%)
2. Secular Humanism (89%)
3. Liberal Quakers (81%)

Cheers! Hans

PS. If you want to check out the Kingston Unitarian Fellowship, note that the church takes a break over the summer. Services resume in September.