A lot of UUs I know would describe their beliefs as "a work in progress". You don't need to have that all figured out in order to benefit from a supportive community.

Yes. I grew up as a conservative Christian and deeply believed in Christian values; however, the people in these conservative Christian churches didn’t act very Christ-like, and that was a huge turnoff. I became an atheist and got into Taoism as a teen. I definitely miss believing in God, but for me it’s similar to believing in Santa Claus. That said, I do believe we’re all interconnected. I still believe in Jesus’s teachings as well as Taoism. Are you familiar with Eckhart Tolle? He’s pretty good, same with Wayne Dyer. I also really resonate with Carl Jung. I’d like to become more spiritual, especially with all the chaos going on in the world. If you’ve ever experienced extreme suffering, having a belief system can be healing and can promote growth.

I also, as freeing as it is, miss my life where I believed in god. I sometimes miss the sense of community with church.

Also, life is a lot more lonely as someone who isn't a believer. I've been two years out of revealed religion now. I still cannot, however, turn to that mind set again, but I find it plausible that god could exist, even if I find religion (supernatural, revealed religion anyways) to be superstitious nonsense.

My best guess is that I may be some kind of Deist/agnostic.

I wish there was a fitting UU church near me.

At the very least, you will (or certainly can) find community there. Maybe let the real spiritual/religious/faith component take care of itself?

If the UU church you join runs a Wellspring group or a small group discussion/“chalice circle” groups, those might be a good place to start with reflecting on your own spiritual beliefs and practices in community with others.

I hear you. I’ve been an atheist for about 20 years and a UU for the last dozen. I recently had occasion to revisit my favorite and most moving liturgy from my former religion, not long after a personal bereavement, and discovered a part of myself that really wanted to believe again. I’m sad that I can’t, but grateful that I’m in a church that encourages me to question myself and my deepest beliefs or lack thereof.

https://huumanists.org/ might be of interest, and https://americanhumanist.org/what-is-humanism/definition-of-humanism/.

Are you an ex-Christian? If so, you might benefit from this subreddit: r/exchristian

I just know I can't bring myself to believe in any of the worlds established religions. I am 65 now and I realized that the older I get the more I realize I am not wise enough to choose some religion and or cult and then walk about proclaiming I have found the one true religion. To me that would seem a bit arrogant.

If there is a god then I imagine it would be some kind of universal consciousness that holds no interest in either burnt offerings at a temple or human offerings on a cross. I don't think it would write a rule book demanding people be stoned to death for minor offenses. I doubt any supreme being cares about how humans love one another or if they eat shellfish.

My idea of a supreme being would be a consciousness of some sort that would simply want us all to remember that we all are struggling through life together so we should treat each other with kindness. To me it is just that simple. Be kind and help others when you can. That was what spoke to me about the UU church. The message of human decency to one and all.

Out UU church has an atheist group that meets twice a month. It’s a general discussion group about different aspects of atheism.

I like a saying I've heard, "follow people searching for the truth, and don't trust those who say they've found it."

It's a brief explanation of why I like the UU's.

My actual beleifs have changed and evolved. Raised Catholics. I guess id  say I'm Agnostic now. Lots of stuff in between. But no matter what my beleif system has been, how I should live my life has been pretty consistent. And those things are pretty close to UU principles. 

I wish I could believe sometimes too. It’d be nice to abdicate all responsibility (it’s in god’s hands) and believe death will bring glory. But they pay a severe price as they are mired in shame and control. Christians I mean. Grew up southern Baptist and it was awful. I feel so badly for the folks who are still apart of it. I was so traumatized when I first went to a UU church that I panicked when I first went in because it looked Protestant. Forced myself to stay for the service and it was amazing. So much love, warmth, and acceptance. Complete 180 from anything I ever experienced. I’m pretty content these days to call it good at being an athiest. You’ll find your way too to your own beliefs that bring contentment. Just keep searching with love :)

I deconverted because I did not feel right worshipping a deity who makes it a sin simply to worship other gods. So I became a Hellenic neopagan. It feels good to worship deities out of love and not fear.

I’ve gone back and forth over the years. Recently, this is my mindset- the world and universe is so large with complexities that we can not even fathom. With all of that in mind, it wouldn’t be so crazy if there was a God.

I still consider myself totally Christian. I read the Bible on my own and join online Bible study occasionally. HOWEVER……it was necessary to leave the cult and UU is my community and happy place. I just have to keep the Jesus stuff to myself 😂😂😂😂😂

I'm interested in your post. What made you stop believing in God? You mentioned getting evidence. What do you mean?

"Struggling" is perhaps a strong version of what most UU folks do, but I suspect I wasn't alone in thinking that the heart of the faith lay in the old Fourth Principle: "We affirm and promote the free and responsible search for truth and meaning." A rather far cry from "We affirm and promote the tenets of faith as handed down by the Disciples, Prophets, and Fathers of the Church." The point, as others in this thread have said, is that theology is something of an active-tense verb -- it's something you do in the world, like serving, loving, helping, changing things for the better -- and not something you put on a bumper sticker or repeat to yourself before you go to bed at night.

"What I believe" is a formula that is still evolving. Maybe I haven't given myself enough time or space to lay it all out, interrogate it, and polish it all up for public consumption? Dunno. But answering the question definitively, once and for all time, has always seemed less important than asking the question, and then, following all of those follow-up questions.

For me, that's why that word 'search' seems so on-point. It's not a casual journey, not a walk in the woods, or a series of quiet moments, or a cataclysmic revelation crashing in from The Outside. I mean, that would be nice, but while I'm waiting for that to happen, I mean taking up a very particular kind of activity. One more akin to cleaning a rug -- you take the entire "thing" outside, into the sunlight, and then beat the living snot out of it with a racket till all the dust, dirt, and dog hair fly off into the air. What survives is worth, perhaps, laying out in the living room of my life. But that process is very energetic, intentional, and requires a lot of sunlight and clean, ocean air.

So, not quite a struggle. But definitely important. Otherwise I just end up sneezing at all the dogma, doctrine, ritual, and other encrusted goop that others seem happy to spill on my rug.