<P> The Unitarian belief that reason, and not creed, defines the search for truth, and the Universalist belief that God embraces all people equally has led to the current Unitarian Universalist belief that truth and spiritual meaning can be found in all faiths . This is reflected in the wide array of spiritual practices found among Unitarian Universalists today . Many Unitarian Universalist congregations include Buddhist - style meditation groups, Jewish Seder, Yom Kippur and Passover dinners, iftaar meals (marking the breaking of Ramadan fast for Muslims), and Christmas Eve / Winter Solstice services . Children's and youth's religious education classes teach about the divinity of the world and the sanctity of world religions . One of its more popular curricula, Neighboring Faiths (formerly Church Across the Street), takes middle and high school participants to visit the places of worship of many faith traditions including a Hindu temple, a Reform or Orthodox synagogue, and a Catholic church . </P> <P> There is great variety among Unitarian Universalist congregations, with some favoring particular religious beliefs or forms of worship over others, with many more home to an eclectic mix of beliefs . Regardless of their orientation, most congregations are fairly open to differing beliefs, though not always with various faith traditions represented to the same degree . </P> <P> There is a wide variety in how congregations conceive of themselves, calling themselves "churches", "societies", "fellowships", "congregations", or eschew the use of any particular descriptor (e.g. "Unitarian Universalists of San Mateo"). Whether a congregation is a' fellowship' or a' church' sometimes hinges on whether it is led by one (or more) minister (s): those without ministers being fellowships, those with ministers being churches . Many use the name "Unitarian Universalist", (and a few "Universalist Unitarian"), having gradually adopted this formulation since consolidation in 1961 . Others use names that reflect their historic roots by keeping the historical designation "Unitarian" or "Universalist" (e.g. "First Unitarian Church"). A few congregations use neither (e.g. Unity Temple). For some congregations, the name can be a clue to their theological orientation . For others, avoidance of the word "church" indicates a desire to distance itself from traditional Christian theology . Sometimes the use of another term may simply indicate a congregation's lay - led or relatively new status . However, some Unitarian Universalist congregations have grown to appreciate alternative terms such as fellowship and retained them even though they have grown much larger or lost features sometimes associated with their use (such as, in the case of fellowships, a traditionally lay - led worship model). </P> <P> Also of note is that there are many more people who identify as Unitarian Universalist on surveys than those who attend Unitarian Universalist congregations (by a factor of four in a recent survey), reflecting those who have never joined (and lapsed members) but nonetheless consider themselves part of the Unitarian Universalist movement . </P>

How to become a minister in the unitarian universalist church