Universalism, Universalism

In religion and theology, "universalism" is a principle that asserts that all people are under the consideration and love of God, and that theological concepts (doctrines) which conform to this concept are in fact more in accord with the divine concepts.

For example monotheistic religions like Judaism, Christianity, and Islam still claim a universal value of their doctrine and moral principles because they feel they are inclusive. Christian Universalism: Its Ethical and Spiritual ImplicationsBy: Waclaw HryniewiczFormat: ArticleYear: 2003Published in: Dialogue & Universalism 2003, Vol. 13 Issue 5, p33 13p 12345792Database: Academic Search Premier A belief in one common truth is also another important tenet. The living truth is seen as more far-reaching than national, cultural, or religious boundaries.

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.

Veneration for all other religions was articulated by Gandhi: "After long study and experience, I have come to theconclusion that [4] all religions are true; [5] allreligions have some error in them; [6] all religionsare almost as dear to me as my own Hinduism, in asmuch as all human beings should be as dear to one asone's own close relatives. My own veneration forother 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.) In Ananda Marga, a branch of Hinduism, 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.

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