Item 1 in Unitarian Universalist Shared Values
Love
Use liberating love as the discipline connecting and guiding the other values.
- Position
- 1
- Form
- Mixed formulation
- Obligation
- Context-dependent
- Wording status
- Translation
- Intended audience
- Member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association
- Last reviewed
- 28 June 2027
Names and terminology
Canonical name: Love at the centre
Original term: Love at the centre
Transliteration: Love at the centre
Source wording
<p>Use liberating love as the discipline connecting and guiding the other values.</p><p><em>Editorial paraphrase; consult the linked source for full wording and context.</em></p>
Literal meaning
Use liberating love as the discipline connecting and guiding the other values.
Broader interpretation
Use liberating love as the discipline connecting and guiding the other values.
Historical context
This principle belongs to Unitarian Universalist Shared Values and must be read within that framework's setting.
Practical meaning
Use liberating love as the discipline connecting and guiding the other values.
Ethical purpose
Use liberating love as the discipline connecting and guiding the other values.
Exceptions and disputes
This is a covenant among UUA congregations rather than a creed every individual must affirm identically.
Variations across schools or traditions
Unitarian Universalism has congregational polity; congregations and international bodies may retain earlier principles or other covenants.
Modern application
Use liberating love as the discipline connecting and guiding the other values. Modern application should consider consent, evidence, proportionality, power and consequences.
Criticism and difficult cases
This is a covenant among UUA congregations rather than a creed every individual must affirm identically.
Truth By Reason analysis
Use liberating love as the discipline connecting and guiding the other values. Application should preserve the ethical purpose while avoiding coercion, discrimination and preventable harm.
Ethical themes
Sources
- UUA Article II — Purposes and Covenant Primary source