Notebook

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October 14, 1996

Writings in the Unitarian Universalist tradition

Robert C. wrote:

My chief reason for writing at this time is to ask about theological and philosophical resources (primary and secondary texts) that have been helpful to any of you in shaping an understanding of Unitarian Universalist thought.

What a great question. There are a number of books which I consider fundamental to my own personal understanding of liberal religion, and others that I know to be significant to UU thinking which I either haven't read or which didn't really ring my bells. I'm only going to list the ones that have been most significant to me personally, divided into "UU" writings and "non-UU" writings. I'm looking forward to seeing what has especially influenced other people's liberal religious thinking.

Writings in the Unitarian Universalist tradition

David Robinson, The Unitarians and the Universalists (Greenwood Press, 1985). The best history and overview of the liberal denominations I have read. Robinson puts Unitarian Universalist theology in the context of its time throughout our history. Like all groups of people, UUs have retrospectively tended to adopt historically unrelated lines of liberal thought, which is legitimate and useful, but Robinson deals primarily with the thinking that actually did influence our development as a movement. He is cautious in dealing with contemporary UUism, to his credit, but his concluding chapter identifies six general orientations in present-day UU thinking and provides some useful introductions to points of tension in our thought — especially regarding our "doctrine of the church."

James Luther Adams, "Guiding Principles for a Free Faith," in On Being Human Religiously (Unitarian Universalist Association, 1976). This essay is a composite of eight earlier essays in which Adams outlines the problems and promises of liberalism in theology. His famous "Five Smooth Stones of Liberalism" are introduced here. Adams is one of the pre-eminent twentieth-century thinkers in our tradition, and I have learned something each time I read him.

Jack Mendelsohn, Being Liberal in an Illiberal Age: Why I Am a Unitarian Universalist (Beacon Press, multiple editions). Mendelsohn's popular pamphlet, "Meet the Unitarian Universalists," gave me such a rush when I first read it that I knew I was one of 'em. His book gives a good introduction to a variety of trends in UU thinking; I wish he had included a bibliography. It seems to me that he presents the best aspects of what might be labeled the "humanist impulse" in contemporary UUism.

George Kimmich Beach, If Yes Is the Answer, What Is the Question? (Skinner House Books, 1995). [Reissued as Questions for the Religious Journey by Skinner House Books, 2002.] This is a modest book, and rather than providing a systematic demonstration of the "theist impulse" in UUism, Beach provides a series of provocative reflections about the need for direct engagement with religious questions. Not quite a meditation manual, and not quite theology--but I think this book provides a fine example of how a UU might approach questions of faith in real life.

The Transient and Permanent in Liberal Religion: Reflections from the UUMA Convocation on Ministry (Skinner House Books, 1995). This collection provides a broad sampling of UU thought, with a few real gems. I wouldn't say that this one has especially influenced me, but it has helped me see the variety of options available to UUs.

Writings not in the UU tradition

Loren Eiseley, The Immense Journey; The Unexpected Universe; and The Star Thrower. These books shaped my worldview when I was "between churches." Eiseley was an evolutionary anthropologist with a moody streak and a profound sense of what we call the "transcending mystery and wonder" in the world. His essay "The Star Thrower" may have changed my life. I tend to think of him as a transcendentalist evolutionary humanist with a hearty dash of existentialism.

James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time. I remember being struck by two things especially in this book, which I have read over and over: Baldwin's criticism of our human tendency to hide from the fear of death in false certainties about race, nation, religion, and identity; and his own startling presentation of his religious autobiography. Like much of Baldwin's writing, the strength is not in the argument but rather in the urgency of the witness.

Stephen Mitchell, The Gospel According to Jesus. Mitchell introduced me to alternative visions of Jesus — in this case, a Jewish-Zen perspective! — and started me thinking about how UUs who were turned off by the Bible might still find useful ways to reapproach it. His introduction especially amazed me. (With this book, I must also group David Rosenberg's A Poet's Bible and Jack Miles's book God: A Biography.)

Alfred North Whitehead, Science and the Modern World; Religion in the Making; Modes of Thought; Adventures of Ideas. Whitehead somewhat inadvertently started a movement called Process Theology (which has directly influenced one strain in UU theology via Charles Hartshorne), but I really enjoy Whitehead more than his followers. I don't worry so much about the system he constructed, but some of his observations about religion are extraordinary. For people only interested in some of the religious implications of his thinking, I recommend the final two chapters of Science and the Modern World; the first half of Religion in the Making (it's quite short!); and "The New Reformation" in Adventures of Ideas.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nature; Essays, First and Second Series; The Divinity School Address. (I know Emerson could go in Category One, but I read him before I got involved with UUism, and I have only recently started reading his sermons; these writings all catch Emerson as he heads for the church door.) Emerson represents, to me, what happens when romanticism and Puritanism take up residence together in a single feverish mind. My favorite essays are "Circles," "The Poet," and "Experience." I must admit that I don't really know what to do with Emerson as a UU thinker: he's quite a celebrant of the individual and intuitive religious experience, but he doesn't have a clue what to do with community. And I like what Joseph Epstein said about him: "He was the original talk-show host, with no guests other than himself."

This list looks horribly skewed. I have only listed the people whose writings have exerted the strongest gravitational pull in my own religious thinking. If I went out one level farther, I would include Adrienne Rich's poetry (especially The Dream of a Common Language), the Buddhist writings I devoured my first two years in college, and Wendell Berry's essays and poetry. Other books have probably influenced me more than I realize, but they don't leap immediately to mind. (Hmm, such as the Bible itself, come to think of it.) In spite of all this reading, I know I haven't developed anything close to a systematic or even non-systematic UU theology.

But back to the original question: the UUA has a list of significant books in UU thinking which they want those of us pursuing ministry to be somewhat familiar with. I think that would be a great way to start, if you want to be systematic about it! (I haven't received my copy of the list yet.) It's wonderful that you want to contribute your academic talents to UU students at Drew!

UUS-L 10.14.96