Free Will or Predestination?

I am taking a class at my church on Buddhism and the other evening during our discussion the group that I was in got off track (surprise) and started talking about free will and whether it really does exist or is our fate and outcome already been defined. The discussion traveled along the lines of we are raised with certain ideals and mindsets and to some extent what we do and the path that we are on has been predetermined by our upbringing and the people that brought us up and how they were raised and so on. I mean, think about it, we either make decisions based on what we learned as children and we either decide to go with how we were raised and continue along in lock step or we shrug off our training/education/upbringing in large or small ways because we agree or disagree with how our parents thought and believed. And, of course our parents had the same situations and same choices...but was everything planned out a long time ago? Can we really call going with or against our upbringing 'free will'?

I have to say that the classes that I'm taking and the study groups that I'm joining lately are really opening my eyes and making me want to delve in and really think about things more...they make me happy because they challenge me to really question things and use the parts of my mind that I haven't really used in a very, very long time.

Oh, and the picture is one from my Italy trip...I'm fascinated by the desire of plants to push through rock and concrete to bloom and grow....is that their free will or are they predestined to struggle? 

30 Days of Gratitude - Day 15

Today I want to pronounce my gratitude for my church, Horizon Unitarian Universalist church.

I've only recently started attending, well this past summer, and it has been a great experience. I had looked into the church about 10 years ago, but only in a cursory way. It wasn't until this summer that I decided that I really wanted to find out what the church was all about and I went to investigate. I was happily surprised at how open and welcoming the members were.

The services open with the following Affirmation:
Love is the doctrine of our church;
The quest for truth is its sacrament,
And service is its prayer.
To dwell together in peace,
To seek knowledge in freedom,
To serve humanity in harmony with the earth,
Thus do we covenant together. 

They also pronounce the importance of the "Free Pulpit and Free Pew" which states that we come together with the freedom that the Minister may say what he wants without fear and that we as congregants are free to accept what is being spoken or not accept it. It is a very open church and that is what I really enjoy about it.

I chose today to be grateful for my church because I am part of a small group that meets every other Thursday, this being one such day, where we are exploring Spirituality and what it is and how it impacts us. It is allowing me the opportunity to discuss my ideas in a safe environment and learn from others. In the end, I hope to gain a new perspective on myself and to improve who I am....make me a better me.

If you are unfamiliar with the Unitarian Universalists (UUs), here is a list of what the UU Association promotes:

• The inherent worth and dignity of every person,
• Justice, equity, and compassion in human relations, 
• Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations, 
• A free and responsible search for truth and meaning, 
• The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large, 
• The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all, 
• Respect for the interdependent web of all existence, of which we are a part. 

Okay, to be totally, 100% honest I am not "officially" a member yet, I have only been considered a visitor. However, on Sunday, I will be "signing the book" as they call it and becoming an official member of the church. This is a little exciting for me as I have never been a member of a church as an adult.

A Little Insight

Kim recently posted about an interesting site where you can go out and find out statistics on who shares your name. So, I had to go out and test this for myself. It is called HowManyofMe.Com. This is what I found out:

380,222 people in the US have the first name Andrea
It is statistically the 156th most popular name
9,941 people in the US have the last name Dodds
It is statistically the 3817th most popular last name
There are 12 people in the US named Andrea Dodds. Two of those people are in the same family. I am Andrea Dodds #1 and my cousin's wife is Andrea Dodds #2.

I also was in an introductory class for new members at my church where they told us about the site WWW.Beliefnet.com recently where you can find a quiz called the Belief-O-Matic. You answer a few multiple choice questions and the site will come back with where your belief system lies. It turns out that I am 100% Unitarian Universalist. This is a good thing since I've started going to and will probably join the church.