Lately I have been dwelling on the topic of whether or not UUsim is really more of a philosophy as opposed to being a religion. These thoughts are my own and I am not going to try to convince anyone otherwise because the question may or may not be that important in the long run. The question for me remains, how can a religion have an appeal to an atheist, humanist, or an agnostic? This is the blessing and curse for us as UUs because we don’t really have ‘ an elevator speech” when someone asks us what it is that we truly believe. We can’t do it in 10 seconds or less. That is the curse to my mind. The blessing however is this; in a world that is destroying itself over many things, religion being one of the many, or secular acceptance and stance regarding people in our denomination and congregations who do not believe in a god, who are non-theistic, may be the wave of the future, at least in a world that appears to becoming less religious, depending on the circumstances. Let’s unpack this together.
Rev. Michael JS Carter, guest speaker
Rev. Carter is a board certified chaplain (retired) and an anti-racism/diversity consultant. He currently serves as the minister of the UU Congregation of the Swanannoa Valley in Black Mountain.
This is a homecoming of sorts for Michael. Most of us already know him well as a former member of our Fellowship
Jenna Jaffe, guest musician
Jenna Jaffe has been performing music, dancing and making art since she was a child. She has a vocal performance degree from the UC Santa Barbara and extensive graduate vocal work at the USC. Jenna is multifaceted. She is a multi-instrumentalist who has taught for thirty years. She is mixed media visual artist that focuses on equality for all life ( you can see her work at The Refinery, in Asheville). Jenna teaches ESL at AB Tech, is on the Board at AAPF, and both National & WNC Music Teachers Association.
In 2022 she received a Tzedek Social Justice Impact Award for her musical and artistic work engaged in community activism and system change.
In her “spare” time she gardens, studies languages, mindfulness, and energy healing. She also performs regularly in Asheville NC.
Topics: Philosophy