Unittarianism: Beliefs

Lifestyle most of their ways are based on spiritual and how close they are to god so not

they bear the fruits of life and have a lot of faith in their life. To

God. All three religions believe that this God is the origin and source of all that exists. God

to make a choice about how they are supported or how they wish to live their

| 1. They are taught that the individual is nothing, mankind is everything, and that everyone must be treated with absolute equality. To

I was brought up Christian and believed in on only one God. A different god for love, war, and a variety of other things fascinated me.

religions, but due to a sharing purpose, which being praying to God, the difference can barely be

Central beliefs, views and perspectives (if relevant) (What are the key characteristics, i.e., what differentiates this group from others?)

The first chapter of the Unitarian Universalist welcome book kicks off with the question of, “What Do Unitarian Universalists Believe?” It expresses that they believe in the freedom of religious expression. They encourage all individuals to develop their own personal theologies, and present their religious opinions without Fear of reprisal. Unitarian Universalists can be known as heretics, because they make their own choice of what they believe or not believe. They believe in intellectual freedom, and encourage their members to have an open mind and heart that is truly free and open. They also believe in the authority of reason and conscience. The ultimate arbiter in religion is not the church or document, but rather the personal choice and decision of the individual. Unitarian Universalists are also known to be very vocal by supporting civil rights and protest unjust wars. They welcome and integrate gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender members, and help support their rights in society. They have Sunday sermons were they unite just like Christians do on Sunday in a church. Unitarian Universalists express themselves with seven principles and six sources that they all share. Their Services include time for meditation, singing and prayer led by a minister. They have a symbol known as, the “chalice”, which has a special meaning to them.

Regardless of my town’s homogeneous population, I grew up accepting diversity and valuing individual differences even amid the same racial group. One of the first experiences of diversity I can vividly recall is the various religious beliefs within the Black community. My parents believed “exposure to the world around you” was one of the primary factors for raising a well-rounded individual. Therefore, we often visited different churches of various faiths.

Jeremy Bentham is a teleological/consequential philosopher or consequentialist, one who focuses on the consequences and ends instead of intention and actions. Bentham’s focus carries more weight than that of Immanuel Kant or John Stuart Mill and their views. Jeremy Bentham’s philosophy focuses on measuring pain and pleasure for the greatest number of morally significant beings through their actions. Bentham presents guidelines that measure the intensity, duration, (un) certainty, propinquity, fecundity, and extent of the pain and pleasure that a certain action beholds and uses these measurements to determine if the action promotes the greatest good (being pleasure in Bentham’s case) for the greatest number of morally significant beings (Hoff 2017).

The rise, development, and spread of monotheism (the belief in one God), is one of the most significant and fascinating dimensions of human civilization. The three major monotheistic faiths are Judaism, Christianity and Islam, these religions have spread to other kingdoms throughout the world by use of missionaries.

Situation four was presented to my mother. She stated that it is a very horrible complex situation. Initially, she chose to tell him to keep silent and she would do the same. When asked why she said, “because a lot more people will suffer.” This would be a point of view aligned with a utilitarianism ethical belief system. However, she then changed her mind and reasoned that what he did was wrong, the reason for his confession to her after 14 years was guilt for the wrongdoing, and in order to relieve the guilt she would tell him that he should confess. She said she would not turn him in but suggest that he turns himself into the authorities. She also stresses that the revelation would definitely alter their relationship and she would not be

Utilitarianism is a limiting ethical theory that fails to grasp ethically reality. “The greatest good for the greatest number” is not ethically right in every situation. Although the majority would benefit, the minority will heavily suffer. Considering the overall consequences of our actions, the good may not always outweigh the bad, but this does mean that the good will be the ethically right thing to do. One may think they are “maximizing the overall good,” but in reality, harming many.

Anglicanism: They believe Jesus Christ had both divine and human natures, and that he died and rose again.