(Fourth Principle of the Unitarian Universalist Association)
I discovered the Unitarian community the year I turned forty. On the surface I had a full life – a busy job, a loving relationship with my long-term partner, a close relationship with my family, and a network of friends. I was physically fit and active, and aside from mild anxiety around my stressful job, I was doing ok, but I was plagued by a niggling feeling that there was something missing.
The niggling feeling coalesced into a longing for spiritual community. I knew what gave my life truth and meaning was awareness and celebration of the interconnected web of being. I vaguely identified these beliefs as pagan, but the idea of joining a coven or similar group with a particular focus or fixed way of doings things did not appeal to me.
Sometimes I used to take a break from my job to meditate quietly in the Roman Catholic Church on Oxford Road. Occasionally I attended lunchtime Mass there, but although I found the liturgy beautiful, the theology behind it did not resonate with me at all and there was no community feeling there. Then my friend moved from London to Manchester, to a house on the edge of Longford Park. As I went to visit her I walked past the Chorlton Unitarian Church.
The word ‘Unitarian’ rang bells in my head – I had a vague memory from a paragraph in a text book from my university course in modern Christian history. That night I checked out the church website and the diversity of the services it described sounded just what I was looking for. So that Sunday I walked through the door, rather nervous and shy. I found a kind and welcoming community, and very quickly felt at home..
Joining the Unitarian community has enriched my life immeasurably. I have met such lovely people and formed firm friendships. My commitment to living a life of compassion has deepened. I appreciate the beauty of everyday life more. I definitely have a much better handle on my anxiety. I have discovered a wealth of spiritual writers and I have acquired a new set of spiritual ancestors.
At the beginning of the first service I attended the Minister said that Unitarians are people looking for truth, meaning, love and deep connection. On hearing these words, I knew I had found my spiritual home. In the Unitarian community, I find truth and meaning continue to unfold, and I am met with love and the fostering of deep connection – to each other and to the divine, which is in everything.
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