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'Universalism' is a religion and theology that generally holds all persons and creatures are related to God or the divine and will be reconciled to God. A church that calls itself Universalist may emphasize the universal principles of most religions and accept other religions in an inclusive manner, believing in a Universal reconciliation between humanity and the divine. Other religions may have Universalist theology as one of their tenets and principles, including Ananda Marga, Christianity, Hindu, and some of the New Age religions.

Contents

Ananda Marga

Christianity

Gandhi's View

Judaism

Islam

New Church

Online churches

References

See also

External links

Opposing Universalism

Ananda Marga

In Ananda Marga, Universalism refers to the idea that energy and matter are evolved from cosmic consciousness. Thus, all created beings are of one universal family. This is an expansion of humanism to include everything as family, based on the fundamental truth that the universe is a thought projection from the Supreme.

Christianity

Main articles: Universal reconciliation

In Christianity, Universalism refers to the belief that all humans will be saved through Jesus Christ and eventually come to a harmony in God's kingdom. A related doctrine, apokatastasis, is the belief that all mortal beings will be reconciled to God, including Satan and his fallen angels. Universalism was a fairly commonly held view among theologians in early Christianity: In the first five or six centuries of Christianity there were six known theological schools, of which four (Alexandria, Antioch, Cesarea, and Edessa or Nisibis) were Universalist, one (Ephesus) accepted conditional immortality, and one (Carthage or Rome) taught the endless punishment of the lost.^[1]. The two major theologians opposing it were Tertullian and Augustine. In later centuries, Universalism has become very much a minority position in the major branches of Christianity, though it has a long history of prominent adherents.
See also

★ Apokatastasis

★ Primitive Baptist Universalist

★ Trinitarian Universalism

★ Unitarian Universalism

★ Universalist Church of America

★ Quaker Universalist Group

Gandhi's View

Hindu Universalism denotes the ideology that all religions are true and therefore worthy of toleration and respect. It was articulated by Gandhi:

"After long study and experience, I have come to the
conclusion that [1] all religions are true; [2] all
religions have some error in them; [3] all religions
are almost as dear to me as my own Hinduism, in as
much as all human beings should be as dear to one as
one's own close relatives. My own veneration for
other faiths is the same as that for my own faith;
therefore no thought of conversion is possible." (M. K. Gandhi, ''All Men Are Brothers: Life and Thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi as told in his own words'', Paris, UNESCO 1958, p 60.)

Judaism

Judaism teaches that God chose the Jewish people to be in a unique covenant with God, and one of their beliefs is that Jewish people were charged by the Torah with a specific mission — to be a light unto the nations, and to exemplify the covenant with God as described in the Torah to other nations. Not explicitely a Universal theology, this view, however, did ''not'' preclude others nations from a belief that God also has a relationship with other peoples — rather, Judaism held that God had entered into a covenant with all mankind as Noachides, and that Jews and non-Jews alike have a relationship with God.

Islam

Muslims believe that Allah sent the Holy Qur'an to bring peace and harmony to humanity through Islam(submission to Allah). ^{[2] [3]} Muhammad's worldwide mission was to establish universal peace under the Khilafat.^[4] The Khilafat was intended to ensure security of the lives and property of non-Muslims under the dhimmi system, as well as according them certain rights of worship.
Although that system was initially for what Islam defines as the "people of the book" (i.e. Jews and Christians), some Muslims extend this to include Mandeans, Zoroastrians, and Hindus. Other Muslims disagree, and hold that adherents of these faiths cannot be dhimmi.
The Muslim ideal of universal brotherhood is the Hajj (pilgrimage to Makkah) prescribed by Islam. Each year close to three million people from every corner of the globe assemble in Makkah to perform Hajj and worship Allah. No individual can be identified as a king or pauper because every man is dressed in ihram clothing.

New Church

In the New Church, Universalism is the belief that God created every person to go to heaven and be conjoined with him there as an angel. He does not make anyone go there, but people freely choose their eternal destiny.
People of all faiths come into heaven if they have followed their beliefs sincerely and loved God and their neighbors.
Those who go to Hell have chosen Hell because they enjoy hellish delights, which in Hell are only allowed to be enjoyed as fantasy. Therefore God does not punish people by sending them to Hell, but rather allows Hell as a permission of man's free will.
See also New Church's official website.

Online churches

The Church of the One Miracle, Universalist[1] is an example of an entirely on-line Universalist church. The practice is to print out the Moral Tenets, put them on your refrigerator, read them every day and follow them. Universalist, it accepts anyone and everyone as a member, and has a separate page for both Theists and Atheists.

References

1. The Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, vol. 12, p. 96; retrieved Dec. 31, 2006
2. Islam and Universal Peace
Sayyid Qutb1977 ISBN:B0006CU4HG
3. Islam And Universal Brotherhood
4. Islam stands for universal peace


★ ''Catholic Encyclopedia'' article on Universalists as a Protestant denomination

★ ''Catholic Encyclopedia'' article on Apocatastasis

See also

★ Aslim Taslam

★ Bahá'í Faith

★ Comparative religion

★ Ecumenism

★ Ethnology

★ George Macdonald

★ Lan astaslem

★ Liberal Catholic Church

★ Omnism

★ Oomoto

★ Perennial philosophy

★ Primitive Baptist Universalist

★ Religious pluralism

★ The problem of Hell

★ Universal reconciliation

★ Universalist Church of America

External links

★ Quaker Universalist Group

★ The Christian Universalist Association

★ Unitarian Universalist Association

★ Universal Salvation: There Are Hundreds of Verses in the Bible that Supports the True Doctrine of Apocastatasis --A scripture-based article from a binitarian Church of God view.

★ Christian Fellowship Ministries -- Supporting the biblical understanding of Universal Reconciliation.

★ Biblical Universalism:Universal Salvation as Taught in the Greek Text of the New Testament -- Offers Biblical and Patristic Evidence that Hell is not Endless, with articles and sermons from historic universalists like Gregory of Nyssa, Charles Chauncy, and Elhanan Winchester.

★ Universalism and the Bible -- Prof. Keith DeRose (of Yale University) defends universalism on biblical grounds.

★ Universal Salvation in the Eschatology of Sergius Bulgakov

★ Student of the Word Craig Nolin's Christian Universalism ministry

★ Underground Universalism

★ About God's Inclusive Love -- Bishop Carlton Pearson's web site.

★ True Grace Ministries -- Rev. Ken Allen's web site.

★ Tentmaker Gary Amirault's Christian Universalism ministry

★ The Biblical Universalist

★ Bible-Truths L. Ray Smith, ''The Lake of Fire'' Series

Opposing Universalism

★ Against Universalism -- Several articles opposing universalism, Especially against preterist universalism.