The 8 Points of Progressive Christianity

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Mystic

Well-Known Member
FROM "Progressive Christianity.org. THE 8 POINTS OF PROGRESSIVE CHRISTIANITY

I've given up hope of obtaining straight answers to sincere questions about beliefs and experiences from progressive WC2 posters. The consistent defensive reaction of freezing like Bambi in the headlights to flee challenging dialogue has now convinced me this is not my crowd and I will once again take an extended leave of absence. In my experience WC2 seems generally (with a few exceptions) incapable of honoring points 5 and 8 below. But as my parting shot, I thought you might be interested in reacting to these 8 points:

"By calling ourselves progressive Christians, we mean we are Christians who…

1. Believe that following the path of the teacher Jesus can lead to healing and wholeness, a mystical connection to “God,” as well as an awareness and experience of not only the Sacred, but the Oneness and Unity of all life;

2. Affirm that the teachings of Jesus provide but one of many ways to experience “God,” the Sacredness, Oneness and Unity of life, and that we can draw from diverse sources of wisdom, including Earth, in our spiritual journey;

3. Seek and create community that is inclusive of ALL people, including but not limited to:

Conventional Christians and questioning skeptics,
Believers and agnostics,
Those of all races, cultures, and nationalities
Those of all sexual orientations and all gender identities,
Those of all classes and abilities,
Those historically marginalized,
All creatures and plant life;

4. Know that the way we behave towards one another and Earth is the fullest expression of what we believe, therefore we vow to walk as Jesus might have walked in this world with radical compassion, inclusion, and bravery to confront and positively change the injustices we experience as well as those we see others experiencing;

5. Find grace in the search for understanding and believe there is more value in questioning with an open mind and open heart, than in absolutes or dogma;

6. Work toward peace and justice among all people and all life on Earth;

7. Protect and restore the integrity of our Earth and all of Creation;

8. Commit to a path of life-long learning, compassion, and selfless love on this journey toward a personally authentic and meaningful faith."
 
Yes, I suspect a fair number of people agree with all or most of those, really. Your point?
 
In fact, UUs who lean Christian could probably live with these when I think about it more.
 
I can endorse all 8 of these, actually. I think that building bridges of unity and understanding in the long run will work out better for all, rather than erecting walls of dogma and division.
 
I never identified myself as a progressive Christian. If anything, I am an evolutionary Christian. I like these 8 points. The only absolutes I remember at this moment include treating all the words ascribed to Jesus as being said by Jesus, accepting Acts as a reliable history of the early Christian community, and so on.
 
It has been many years since I looked at these points. They used to be illustrated in a star diagram and I believe there have been a few revisions in recent years.

The final point in #3 seems misplaced to me. It begins by talking about ALL people but includes "all creatures and plant life"

Not sure why Mystic left us this as his "parting shot" as he called it. I am.not even sure how it follows his preamble on this thread.
 
The final point in #3 seems misplaced to me. It begins by talking about ALL people but includes "all creatures and plant life"
I wonder if that got appended later without revising the introductory line to something like "Seek and create community that is inclusive of ALL Creation, including but not limited to:" I know the UU seventh principle about the "web of all existence" was a later addition during the eco movement in the late twentieth century.

The repeated references to questioning and open mindedness seem to me to be key. It seems to lean towards something like UU fourth principle of "A free and responsible search for truth and meaning."

There's clearly an attempt here to drop boundaries and stop using doctrine and dogma as gatekeepers. Which, to be fair, I have seen in some liberal churches that didn't embrace the "progressive" label as well. In fact, Protestantism pretty much opened the door for that once it embraced the idea that people could read the Bible and think about it for themselves rather than having priests and bishops as mediators.

Of course, it also explains why Protestantism, esp. the Reformed branch, has fragmented so badly. Each time someone answers a question, some seem to turn to that answer as the new dogma, leading to rifts with those who embrace other answers or choose to "live in the question."
 
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I wonder if that got appended later without revising the introductory line to something like "Seek and create community that is inclusive of ALL Creation, including but not limited to:"
For sure. It just seems a tad sloppy to have missed this.
 
Then is some mystery belief systems light is to remain as a thin beam in a deep hollow ... the understanding of light thus becomes profound to the superficial ... and no reading anything beyond that prescribed thing of protocol for reason still unknown by many!

What about the concept of avarice and thus the mess we're in ... so many wish to control the world to suit their personal requirements! Comes no where near to socialized faith and thus further bifurcation ... to make the cosmological stew more interesting ... it can be Cana Ba'al as tic ... a physical overrun! Few grasp that much ... especially in the realm of essence ...

Yet after the rain a fragrance as things warm up ... like that song about the mystery of the name ...
 
Does anyone remember the 8;points from the Canadian group? That organization (CCPC) has been defunct for a few years.
 
The Canadian group was found at progressivechristianity.ca and it no longer works.
 
This is the American group. Perhaps the 8 points posted on this thread are out of date
That actually linked from a page about Gretta so maybe she merged with the American group? Interesting.

Anyhow, it is even more important, then, since it updates what is in Mystic's original post.
 
That actually linked from a page about Gretta so maybe she merged with the American group? Interesting.

Anyhow, it is even more important, then, since it updates what is in Mystic's original post.
I agree that the update is important. I can certainly embrace these stated values from the Progressive Christianity site.
What I don't really get - is our seemingly endless need to label & categorize bits of Christianity. I suppose in a way if one adopts labels then it becomes 'short form' for communicating a broad position on issues & beliefs. Identifying one's 'tribe' as it were.
 
As one whose faith is grounded on mystical experiences, I have trouble with relying on words for definition or identity.
 
That actually linked from a page about Gretta so maybe she merged with the American group? Interesting.

Anyhow, it is even more important, then, since it updates what is in Mystic's original post.
No merger as far as I know. Gretta posts material on the American site but I think it's behind a paywall.

Bishop Spong was a big name in the American movement. He & Gretta were closely aligned. He used to do a column and she may even have taken it over at one point.

Interesting that Mystic posted old material for us to peruse.
 
I agree that the update is important. I can certainly embrace these stated values from the Progressive Christianity site.
What I don't really get - is our seemingly endless need to label & categorize bits of Christianity. I suppose in a way if one adopts labels then it becomes 'short form' for communicating a broad position on issues & beliefs. Identifying one's 'tribe' as it were.
Yes I totally agree about the short forms that help us communicate. We just need to recognize the limitations of all these terms we throw around.
 
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