The ULC Monastery
My organization, the Universal Life Chuch Monastery, recently published blog pieces that reconciles our lives with the Islamic faith, touch on gun control policy, and tackles marriage equality. These are all incredibly important conversations to have, and I’m proud that ULC has succeeded in building a platform on which these conversations can take place. It is typical to receive negative feedback from people who think that ULC has no right to discuss these controversial topics which promote difficult conversations. Some people, offended by these efforts, will even go so as to challenge ULC’s existence as an organization.
Religion in our Society
The Universal Life Church makes a concerted effort to post pieces related to important topics of the day, and will continue to do so. Recently, religious beliefs and their consequences have dominated news headlines around the world. However, religion cannot exist in a vacuum, and it is crucial that our society utilizes whatever faith or beliefs we may have to affect real positive change in the world. One of the core tenets of the ULC is “to do that which is right”; this tenet is not a preventative message warning us away from doing things that are wrong – it is instead a sincere appeal to our followers to proactively do good in the universe. Every Sunday, traditional churches around the country are addressed by ministers who deliver sermons derived from the challenges our society faces in the world. Indeed, the teachings of Jesus Christ frequently touched on issues that would have been pressing challenges of the day.
As a church committed to improving human relationships and protecting our society’s freedom and equality, ULC plays a vital role in sparking important conversations which promote the search for mutual understanding. The ULC also utilizes its platform to provide a voice for those who may not otherwise have one. For example, the reason the ULC blog publishes pieces about the Syrian refugee crisis is not because of some nefarious hidden agenda, but because after seeing images such as that of 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi lying dead on a beach, it becomes an impossible issue to ignore. There is a reason the logo of the ULC is a shield – it is the ULC’s duty to defend the equality of all.
Searching for Solutions
While political in nature, the goal of these posts is not to promote a political agenda. Instead, it is to show that the “faith world” and the “real world” must sometimes intersect. The Universal Life Church will never tell you which candidate you should support or which ballot measure you should vote for, because you are capable of making these decisions on your own. However, the ULC will never, ever stop writing about important issues and highlighting items of concern. The ULC doesn’t pretend to have answers to the incredibly complex issues facing our society today, but starting a positive dialogue among our followers is undoubtedly a positive step in the search for long-term solutions.