For people who are new to Unitarian Universalism,
the following principles might be surprising:
Reason, Tolerance, Democracy, & Diversity.
And long-time UUs will be pleased to note
that this new on-line community can exemplify
the basic principles we all endorse.

    Other religious movements are based on
the authority of special persons and texts.
But FUUCI operates to promote
the free and responsible search for truth and meaning.

    Cyber-sermon are selected by vote of the members
—not because the views conform to any pre-existing doctrines.

    This contrasts sharply with any doctrinal religious system,
in which 'discussion' might consist mainly of claims
that the views presented do or do not correspond
with the accepted beliefs of that denomination
or a particular interpretation of a holy text.

    In FUUCI discussion, reason is the main tool.

    Because Unitarian Universalism is a creed-free religious movement,
without any doctrinal test for membership in any UU organization,
all points of view are welcome in FUUCI.
FUUCI welcomes proposals for cyber-sermons from anyone.
No proposal is ever turned down, for example,
because it does not represent 'main-stream UU thinking'.

    In fact, FUUCI has already identified more than a dozen
different spiritual paths within Unitarian Universalism
that might be represented in our on-line congregation:
Jewish UUism, Paganism, Christian UUism, Deism,
Earth-Centered Spirituality, Panentheism, Green Spirituality,
Pantheism, Transcendentalism, Process Theology,
Humanism, Existential Spirituality,
Women's Spirituality, Feminist Spirituality, Buddhist UUism.
Other spiritual paths can be added to this list at any time.

    Different intellectual systems are also welcome
to use FUUCI to share their perspectives.
Our UU movement (and this on-line community) has no orthodoxy
with respect to sociology, psychology, philosophy, etc.
All views have equal opportunities to be expressed in cyber-sermons.

    An intolerant religious organization
would promote only the views of the denomination,
the authorities in control of that religious movement,
or the content of the holy books upon which that religion is based.

    Other forms of intolerance could be
the personal beliefs and commitments
of the leaders and members of the organization.

    But no such intolerant control by leaders or members exists for FUUCI.
The current members only choose the next cyber-sermon.
Anyone may propose a cyber-sermon.
Not every proposal will lead to a cyber-sermon.
But every proposal has an equal chance to be selected
by a direct vote of the FUUCI members.
Could any organization be more tolerant than that?

    Democracy means belonging to the people.
FUUCI is an example of pure, direct democracy.
Representative democracy is less direct
because the people elect representatives
who make decisions for them in and in their name.
For example, in most UU congregations,
the members select the minister
by a complex but democratic process.
Thereafter the minister decides the content of all sermons.

    In FUUCI there are no layers
of representatives, administrators, or committees
between the people and the cyber-sermon.
The people vote directly to decide
which proposal becomes the next cyber-sermon.
Each member has exactly one vote.
And each vote has precisely the same weight.
Could any organization be more democratic than that?

    A less democratic religious organization
would be controlled by the leaders and members
—and perhaps by denominational authorities—
who would decide who is permitted to speak
and who is not authorized to preach.
Even if the gatekeepers believe they are making
the wisest selection for the organization,
this is not as direct as asking the members
to decide which will be the next cyber-sermon.

    Altho some members themselves might be
(1) dogmatic, (2) irrational about certain subjects,
& (3) individually intolerant of views that differ from their own,
the method of direct democracy
overcomes any such narrowness of perspective.
FUUCI trusts the majority of members to vote
with reason, open-mindedness, & tolerance for diversity.

    The First UU Church of the Internet actively invites
persons of all points of view to propose cyber-sermons.
In contrast to most other religious organizations,
there is no doctrinal point of view.
FUUCI embraces diversity of emotional responses,
intellectual arguments, & spiritual paths.

    Certainly, the members individually
have their own personal responses,
intellectual opinions, & spiritual paths.
But these views have no bearing
on the decision about which cyber-sermon to publish next.
The selection of the next cyber-sermon
is a power reserved exclusively and entirely for the members.

    If some responder does not find this process sufficient,
he or she is welcome to propose
another cyber-sermon on the same subject
—perhaps expressing a completely different view.
As with all proposals, the members of FUUCI
ultimately decide which proposals lead to cyber-sermons.

    A religious organization that did not welcome
diversity of emotional, intellectual, & spiritual perspectives
would only invite sermons from preachers
who share the organization's opinions.
But FUUCI goes out of its way
to invite proposals from every imaginable place on the UU spectrum.
And FUUCI will continue to invite proposals from everywhere.

    As a further measure to promote diversity of thought,
each of the 3 proposals submitted to the members
for any given month is by a different author. 
The proposals do not have the authors' names attached,
which further ensures that voters are choosing
on the basis of the actual content
rather than based on the reputations of well-known authors.

    FUUCI embraces diversity
by promising never to turn down a proposal for a cyber-sermon.
Every proposal has an equal opportunity
to be selected by the members
to be the next cyber-sermon distributed by FUUCI.