{"id":75,"date":"2026-08-04T19:06:05","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T19:06:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/test.uuha.org\/?page_id=75"},"modified":"2026-08-08T19:02:28","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T19:02:28","slug":"frequently-asked-questions","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/uuha.org\/?page_id=75","title":{"rendered":"Frequently Asked Questions"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-medium\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/test.uuha.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ana-municio-PbzntH58GLQ-unsplash-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-116\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uuha.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ana-municio-PbzntH58GLQ-unsplash-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/uuha.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ana-municio-PbzntH58GLQ-unsplash-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/uuha.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ana-municio-PbzntH58GLQ-unsplash-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/uuha.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ana-municio-PbzntH58GLQ-unsplash.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Do you want the UUA and its congregations to be only Humanist?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Definitely not. We are committed to the UUA&#8217;s shared value of pluralism, and to communities of love and respect that value differences of belief. Our congregations can be a model and training ground for how to do this in wider society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Are UU Humanists atheists?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some of us (proudly) are, and some of us don\u2019t take that identity. Our philosophy is naturalistic, which means we concern ourselves with this life and this world. We are, however, committed to fighting the unfair stigmatization in the United States of atheists as untrustworthy, and to fighting the shocking persecution of atheists around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Can you be a UU Humanist and a theist?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yes. If your concept of god(s) is naturalistic, but more importantly, your ethics can be humanistic if you put human* needs and human agency at the center of concern. (*Where human needs include our planet\u2019s and other species\u2019 needs as well.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Isn&#8217;t Religious Humanism an oxymoron?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yes, if your definition of \u201creligious\u201d requires supernaturalism. No, if you define religion as finding meaning and purpose carried out in community, with the intent of bringing more justice, love and peace into the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Do UU Humanists demand that UUs stop using religious language?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some (but not all) UU Humanists are uncomfortable with religious language. We ask UUs to be sensitive to the reasons for that, and to try to be inclusive. UUs can explicitly state that we intend liberal definitions of traditional religious terms, and can use different terms (like Sunday Services instead of Worship) when there are good alternatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Aren\u2019t Humanists all grumpy old white guys who live only in their heads?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That is a common stereotype, but it&#8217;s sometimes based on reality because our congregations do not always see the beautiful diversity of passionate, creative, and energetic Humanists of all ages, gender identities, and colors that does exist. They are growing in numbers, and part of our work is letting them know Unitarian Universalism is a community that welcomes them and their Humanist identity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Do you want the UUA and its congregations to be only Humanist? Definitely not. We are committed to the UUA&#8217;s shared value of pluralism, and to communities of love and respect that value differences&#46;&#46;&#46;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-75","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uuha.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/75","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uuha.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uuha.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uuha.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uuha.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=75"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/uuha.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/75\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":118,"href":"https:\/\/uuha.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/75\/revisions\/118"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uuha.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=75"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}