Belief Compass

Across families

Reconstructionist Judaism and Unitarian Universalism

Different families with 11 axes in close agreement — the sort of pairing a quiz weighting only the divine axes would never surface. Mean distance across all seventeen axes: 0.15 (0 would be identical).

Reconstructionist JudaismJudaism

Judaism as an evolving civilisation rather than a revealed religion: God is reconceived as the process that makes for salvation, while practice is retained because it is how a civilisation lives. Non-supernatural and strongly peoplehood-centred at once.

Unitarian UniversalismLiberal religious

A covenant rather than a creed: members hold theist, humanist, pagan and Buddhist positions inside one congregation, bound by shared principles rather than shared beliefs. Has the widest dispersions in the entire matrix, and that is the tradition working as designed.

Where they agree

  • C1 Survival of the self

    Both sit at leaning ends at death — a gap of 0.00.

  • D1 Mechanism of the ultimate good

    Both sit at leaning achieved by effort or insight — a gap of 0.04.

  • A1 Divine reality

    Both sit at between nothing beyond the natural and a divine reality certainly exists — a gap of 0.04.

  • A4 Locus

    Both sit at fully present within it and leaning fully present within it respectively — a gap of 0.07.

  • B2 Reading of sacred text

    Both sit at metaphorical, or no text at all — a gap of 0.07.

  • A2 Personhood

    Both sit at leaning impersonal principle or order — a gap of 0.08.

  • C3 The human condition

    Both sit at leaning ignorant but fundamentally sound and ignorant but fundamentally sound respectively — a gap of 0.08.

  • D3 The body

    Both sit at leaning to be celebrated — a gap of 0.10.

  • E1 Exclusivity

    Both sit at many valid paths — a gap of 0.10.

  • E4 Standing of nature

    Both sit at leaning animate and itself sacred — a gap of 0.10.

  • B1 Source of truth

    Both sit at leaning reason and direct experience and reason and direct experience respectively — a gap of 0.12.

Where they part company

  • E3 Locus of belonging

    Reconstructionist Judaism: leaning a people, inherited. Unitarian Universalism: an individual choice. A gap of 0.66 on an axis running from “a people, inherited” to “an individual choice”.

All seventeen axes

AxisReconstructionist JudaismUnitarian UniversalismGap
A1 Divine realitybetween nothing beyond the natural and a divine reality certainly existsbetween nothing beyond the natural and a divine reality certainly exists0.04
A2 Personhoodleaning impersonal principle or orderleaning impersonal principle or order0.08
A3 Pluralitystrictly oneleaning strictly one0.25
A4 Locusfully present within itleaning fully present within it0.07
B1 Source of truthleaning reason and direct experiencereason and direct experience0.12
B2 Reading of sacred textmetaphorical, or no text at allmetaphorical, or no text at all0.07
B3 Institutional authorityleaning individual conscience decidesindividual conscience decides0.25
C1 Survival of the selfleaning ends at deathleaning ends at death0.00
C2 Shape of timeone life, then judgmentleaning one life, then judgment0.20
C3 The human conditionleaning ignorant but fundamentally soundignorant but fundamentally sound0.08
D1 Mechanism of the ultimate goodleaning achieved by effort or insightleaning achieved by effort or insight0.04
D2 Centrality of ritualleaning essential and prescribedbetween essential and prescribed and optional or absent0.32
D3 The bodyleaning to be celebratedleaning to be celebrated0.10
E1 Exclusivitymany valid pathsmany valid paths0.10
E2 Origin of the cosmosbetween an intentional act and beginningless or naturalleaning beginningless or natural0.14
E3 Locus of belongingleaning a people, inheritedan individual choice0.66
E4 Standing of natureleaning animate and itself sacredleaning animate and itself sacred0.10

Positions for Reconstructionist Judaism rest principally on Kaplan, Judaism as a Civilization (1934); for Unitarian Universalism, on UUA Seven Principles and Six Sources. Per-cell sources are listed on each tradition’s own page.

Which of the two is closer to you?

The questionnaire places your answers on these same axes and ranks all 65 traditions by how closely they match. Take it.