Unitarian Universalist Buddhist Fellowship of Fayetteville

The Growing Appeal of Buddhism within Unitarian Universalism

Buddhist practice is one of the fastest growing spiritual movements within modern Unitarian Universalism. The Reverend James Ford, a prominent UU minister and Zen priest, suggests that "possibly as many as ten percent of UUs consider themselves Buddhist -- or at the very least, seriously influenced by Buddhism … the percentage is possibly even higher among the clergy." The national UU Buddhist Fellowship lists 96 UU-affiliate Buddhist practice groups in the U.S. and Canada, with new groups being added every month. The words of the Buddha and the words of contemporary Buddhist teachers like the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh, Lama Surya Das, Pema Chodron, D. T. Suzuki, Alan Watts, and others are regularly spoken from UU pulpits across the country. What accounts for this marriage of ancient Buddhism with modern Unitarian Universalism?

First of all, Buddhist doctrine is entirely compatible with UU principles and purposes. There is no Buddhist dogma or creed: In the Kalama Sutra, the Buddha advocates, indeed insists upon, the "free and responsible search for truth and meaning and the right of conscience" when he instructed his followers to "Rely not on the teacher/person, but on the teaching … Rely not on theory, but on experience … Do not believe in anything because it is written in your religious books … But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and the benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it."

Affirming the "inherent worth and dignity of every person", "justice, equity and compassion in human relations", "acceptance of one another", "peace, liberty, and justice", and "respect for the interdependent web of all existence" are all cornerstones of Buddhist thought. Each of those themes is woven throughout Buddhist practice and teaching.

More importantly, I believe the attraction begins with the beauty and simplicity of the Buddha's core teaching. The evolution and spread of Buddhism in the 25 centuries since the Buddha's life and death has resulted in an incredible diversity of Buddhist religious practice and thought - from the extravagant ritual and esoteric tantra of Tibetan Buddhism to the austere simplicity of Zen; but the central theme remains solid and consistent throughout. As the Reverend Tom Owen-Toole, another UU Buddhist minister puts it, the central teaching of the Buddha "consisted of Four Noble Truths: 1) Existence is unhappiness. 2) Our unhappiness is aggravated by selfish desire, the craving of our egos for our own satisfaction at the expense of all other forms of life. 3) Release from unhappiness comes through our recognition that as living entities we are all here together for a brief time. 4) Such liberation arrives by following the physical, moral, and spiritual training known as the Noble Eightfold path whose steps are right view, resolve, speech, conduct, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and concentration." In simpler terms: 1) Life is often unpleasant; 2) this unpleasantness is caused by our own unreasonable expectations and unfulfillable desires; 3) if we remove the cause of unpleasantness, life will stop being unpleasant; and 4) the best way to remove that cause is to be nice to living things, do no evil, speak no evil, think no evil, hear no evil, and learn how to shut up and sit quietly for 20 or 30 minutes every day.

By placing responsibility and control of the nature of life solely in the hands of the individual, without the need for supernatural intervention, Buddhism aligns itself firmly with the humanism that has dominated Unitarian Universalism for the last 50 years or so. In fact, James Ford suggests the Buddhism, with its emphasis on reason and personal experience, may be "a particularly good way to bridge" the growing "humanist/spiritual dichotomy" within modern Unitarian Universalism.

Some Unitarian Universalists may be uncomfortable with the "religious" or "spiritual" aspect of Buddhism (or with "religion" and "spirituality" in general.) While it is certainly true that millions of practicing Buddhists around the world adamantly view their practice as a religion, it is also true that a growing number of practitioners - especially in the West - don't view Buddhism as a religion at all. It's becoming more and more common to hear Buddhism described not as a religion, but as a "practice", a "way of life", a "philosophy", or a "psychology". There is a long tradition in Catholicism and other Christian and non-Christian faiths of integrating Buddhist practice and doctrine into the core religious practice. It's also fairly clear that the Buddha himself had no intentions to create a new "religion" through his teachings. He simply felt that he had discovered some important truths, and felt the obligation to share those truths with others who were interested and willing to listen.

The UU Buddhist Fellowship of Fayetteville

The Unitarian Universalist Buddhist Fellowship meets every Tuesday evening from 7:00 - 8:00 pm at the Fellowship. The format of the meetings consists of an informal 10-minute "get acquainted and settle down" period, followed by 20 minutes of silent meditation, followed by a 30-minute discussion of a topic selected by the evening's session leader. Discussion topics are diverse. In addition to regular discussion of Buddhist sutras, concepts, and philosophy, recent discussions have focused on the individual meditation experience, applying Buddhist ethics to the Terry Schiavo case and other social issues, and introductions to Taoism and Hinduism. Our discussions are not teachings, but are friendly and open group explorations into a wide variety of topical areas.

You do not have to be a Buddhist or even a UU to attend. Most of our participants do not consider themselves Buddhists at all, and several attendees are not affiliated with Unitarian Universalism. If you share the value of religious tolerance and pluralism, recognize the benefits of a regular group meditation practice, and have an interest in eastern religions in general and Buddhism in particular, you should feel quite comfortable and welcome here.

-- James S. Ownbey

In affiliation with
The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Fayetteville
901 West Cleveland Street
Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701

Web Hosting provided by Your Domain Host