Unitarian Universalism IS A Tiny Declining Fringe Religion

In his "stump speech" announcing his candidacy for President of the Unitarian Universalist Association in 2008, Rev. Dr. Peter "Beyond Belief" Morales declared that Unitarian Universalism "is not called to be a tiny, declining, fringe religion". This assertion implied that Unitarian Universalism either was "a tiny, declining, fringe religion" in 2008, or on its way to becoming one. . . I favor the first interpretation of Rev. Morales' words but, if Unitarian Universalism aka UUism was not already "a tiny, declining, fringe religion" in 2008 when it officially claimed to have 1,050 UUA congregations, 163,932 adult members, and 57,650 RE enrollments for a total membership 221,582 adults and children, UUism is undeniably an even tinier, constantly declining, and indeed quite a bit "fringier" in 2024 when official UUA membership statistics claimed the UUA has 1000 congregations, 130,265 adult members, and 22,693 RE enrollments for a total membership of 152,958 adults and children.

Minutes ago I asked Google - Is Unitarian Universalism a tiny, declining, fringe religion?

Here is the verbatim response of Google's AI Overview to that question with a few links I embedded in it to official UUA web pages that corroborate Google's assessment of The U*U Movement:

 

 

AI Overview

Unitarian Universalism (UU) is a

tiny religious movement in the U.S. and has been consistently declining in membership for decades, leading many within the faith to describe it as a fringe religion, both in size and political orientation. 

 

Size and Scope

• Tiny Numbers: Fewer than one in a thousand Americans are members of UU churches today. The total adult membership in North America is under 200,000 people, a number that has been dropping for years. 
• Historical Context: Unitarian Universalist membership numbers are currently around what they were at the time of the 1961 merger of the American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church of America, despite significant U.S. population growth since then.
• Geographic Concentration: It is often described as "New England-centric" and predominantly white, which contributes to its niche demographic. 

Decline in Membership

• Long-Term Trend: The movement has experienced a slow but steady decline for over 40 years. From 1970 to 2000, membership fell by more than 7%, while the U.S. population grew by over 37%.
• Recent Losses: The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) has seen record annual losses in recent years, with a 16% drop in membership in the decade leading up to 2024.
• Challenges: The decline is attributed to several factors, including:
  • General societal trends away from institutional religion.
  • Low retention rates of youth in the church as they become adults.
  • An aging demographic across many congregations.
  • Internal debates over whether the movement has become too politically narrow, potentially alienating those seeking spiritual nourishment over political advocacy. 

"Fringe" Identity

The characterization as "fringe" stems from both its small size and its distinctive nature compared to mainstream religions: 

• Theological "Heresies": From a mainstream Christian perspective, both Unitarianism (denial of the Trinity) and Universalism (belief that all souls are saved) are considered historical heresies.
• Lack of Creed: A central criticism is the absence of a formal, universal creed, with the faith emphasizing individual spiritual search and a diversity of beliefs (atheist, Christian, Buddhist, Pagan UUs all exist within the faith).
• Political Identity: UUs have a long history of social activism. However, the UUA's recent alignment with specific far-left political positions has led to internal debate and external perceptions of it being a politically extreme organization rather than a broad spiritual movement. Critics note the "progressive left" makes up only 6% of the U.S. population, making the denomination's dominant culture a niche one. 

While some local congregations may be growing, the national data indicates that Unitarian Universalism is a small, shrinking denomination facing significant structural challenges to its future viability.