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Universal Life Church

August 25, 2023

Not to be confused with Universal Life Church Monastery.

The Universal Life Church (ULC) is a non-denominational religious organization founded in 1962 by Kirby J. Hensley,[3][4] under the doctrine: "Do that which is right". The Universal Life Church advocates for religious freedom, offering legal ordination to become a minister free of charge, to anyone who wishes to join. The ULC has ordained ministers from a wide range of backgrounds and beliefs, including Christians, atheists, Wiccans, pagans, Jews, and people of many other faiths.[5]

Universal Life Church
Logo of the Universal Life Church
RegionWorldwide
HeadquartersModesto, California[1]
FounderKirby J. Hensley
OriginMay 2, 1962
Modesto, California
Members18,000,000+ ordained[2]

The ULC's popularity stems in part from a rising interest in having friends or loved ones officiate weddings, a trend which has attracted a range of celebrities to become ordained including Stevie Nicks, Adele, Benedict Cumberbatch, Ian McKellen,[6] Conan O’Brien and Steven Tyler, among others.[7] However, courts in Virginia have held that they will not recognize marriages solemnized by ULC ministers,[8] while eight states have specifically held such marriages to be valid, these being Alabama,[9] Illinois,[10] Mississippi,[11] Pennsylvania,[12] South Carolina,[13][14] Texas,[15] Utah,[16] and Washington.[17] The remainder have not addressed the issue.

History

Foundation and early growth

The Universal Life Church was founded by Kirby J. Hensley, "a self-educated Baptist minister who was deeply influenced by his reading in world religion".[4] Religious scholar James R. Lewis wrote that Hensley "began to conceive of a church that would, on the one hand, offer complete freedom of religion, and could, on the other hand, bring all people of all religions together, instead of separating them".[4] With this aim, he sought to establish "a new religion that would emphasize what all religions have in common",[3] establishing this entity in 1959 under the name "Life Church" in Modesto, California.[5][18] He first held services in his garage, and incorporated the organization in 1962.[3][19]

The ULC began issuing mail-order ordinations shortly after its incorporation. The church's growth was affected in part by social movements; during the Vietnam War, a widely circulated rumor claimed that ordination would qualify one for a legal exemption from the draft. Ordination requests increased dramatically, but the rumor proved to be false.[5] The ULC and its founder, Hensley, were also featured in several publications during this time, including Rolling Stone, which further increased public awareness of the church.[20] In the late 1960s, Hensley "became something of a folk hero among the young", particularly with college students, whom he would mass-ordain at speaking events.[3] In accordance with the Law of California that exempts religious schools from accreditation,[21] he offered a Doctor of Divinity degree from the ULC for twenty dollars, including "ten free lessons explaining how to set up a church". By 1974, the church had ordained over 1 million ministers. Also in 1974, a federal judge declared that the ULC was qualified for a religious tax exemption.[5][22]

Later expansion and division

The Universal Life Church ran into difficulties as new branches of the ULC were granted charters and began moving off in different directions. The Modesto group struggled to maintain control over these other entities as ULC affiliates grew in number.[23] There are currently multiple groups operating under the ULC name, most of which are unaffiliated in practice.[20] During this period, the IRS became suspicious about tax avoidance efforts within the church, eventually determining that Hensley, the Modesto ULC, and numerous affiliated churches chartered under its name were promoting tax avoidance schemes within church periodicals. As a result, the IRS withdrew ULC Modesto's tax-exempt status in 1984. Over the next 16 years, Hensley and his family battled the IRS in court over disputed tax payments. The matter was eventually settled in 2000 when the Modesto group agreed to pay $1.5 million in back taxes.[20]

By 1999, the ULC had begun offering ordinations online. News coverage about journalists and celebrities getting ordained to perform weddings helped boost the popularity of online ordination. As more people became aware of non-traditional officiants presiding over wedding ceremonies, ULC membership rolls surged. Between 1962 and 2008, the ULC issued more than 18 million ordinations worldwide.[23][24] A large number of people seeking ULC ordination do so in order to be able to legally officiate at weddings[7] or perform other spiritual rites. A 2007 article noted that "[a]bout 70 percent of people who become ordained through the Universal Life Church do so... to officiate at weddings".[24] According to a 2016 internal survey conducted by wedding website The Knot and reported by the Baltimore Sun, 43% of couples in the U.S. in 2016 chose to have a friend or family member officiate their wedding, up from 29% in 2009.[25] Another example of a person becoming ordained through ULC in order to perform a religious ritual is that of a Native American in Cincinnati, who needed such an affiliation to perform smudging ceremonies as part of the prayer ritual for other Native Americans in area hospitals.[24]

Following Kirby Hensley's death in 1999, an organizational split led to the creation of the ULC Monastery (ULCM; now based in Seattle under the name Universal Life Church Ministries), which remains unaffiliated with the Modesto group.[5] The ULCM formally split from the ULC in 2006 following financial, legal, and philosophical disputes between the two bodies[26] and began ordaining ministers independently.[27][28]

Beliefs and practices

The Universal Life Church traces its doctrine back to the anticlericalism of the Protestant Reformation and ultimately to the words of St. Paul that the church is a "priesthood of all believers."[29][30] The U.S. Department of the Army publication, Religious Requirements and Practices: A Handbook for Chaplains, summarized the doctrines of the ULC as follows:

The Universal Life Church has only one belief. They believe in that which is right and in every person's right to interpret what is right. The Universal Life Church has no creed or authoritative book such as a Bible. Those wishing to learn about the Church can obtain its periodical Universal Life and other materials that it publishes from its international headquarters. No specific ethical guidelines except to do "what is right". ... The Universal Life Church is open and accepting of people of all religions. It is opposed only to those religions that attempt to deny religious freedom. Any minister in the ULC can ordain new members. ... The Universal Life Church has no specific holidays, though local congregations celebrate a wide variety of them. There are two gatherings (conventions) each year in the spring and in the fall, at which the members and ministers meet for celebration and to conduct business.[4]

According to Lewis, Hensley personally believed in reincarnation, in a merely human Jesus, and "in the reunification of all religions and governments under the Universal Life banner during thirty years of turmoil around the year 2000";[3] however, none of these beliefs were doctrinal to the ULC, which allowed members to follow their own doctrines. The Army's Handbook for Chaplains also notes that the ULC "has a very loose structure", with those ordained being given "a set of instructions on how to form a congregation", but otherwise operating with complete autonomy. It further notes that those ordained "may perform any of the functions normally associated with the clergy, including the conducting of weddings, funerals, etc.", and that "[g]roup worship is not required, but local congregations are required to hold regular meetings".[4] The ULC is noted to have no medical or dietary restrictions, and no specific burial requirements.[4] With respect to military service, the handbook notes that the ULC maintains no doctrinal opposition to military service, but "respects the individual opinion of its members".[4]

Legal status

Main article: Legal status of the Universal Life Church

The legitimacy of ULC ordination has been challenged in legal venues, primarily with respect to the questions of whether it constitutes a religious affiliation for tax purposes, and whether ordinations legally permit recipients to perform weddings in various jurisdictions. Lewis notes that the Internal Revenue Service has generally assumed a negative predisposition towards the ULC, and has sought to eliminate the organization's tax-exempt status.[3] A number of legal cases have addressed this question, as well as the ordination question, with varying results.

Four U.S. states expressly do not recognize ministers of the Universal Life Church as wedding celebrants, and in jurisdictions in which Universal Life Church ministers are not authorized to solemnize marriages, the solemnization of a marriage by a minister of the Universal Life Church (who is not otherwise authorized) may result in the validity of the marriage being questioned.[8] Professor Robert Rains, writing in the University of Miami Law Review, has warned that "even a reasonably intelligent (and suspicious) person could be readily misled by the ULC into believing that by becoming a ULC minister he can legally perform marriages throughout the United States, and beyond."[31] In Canada, ULC ministers are currently not authorized to solemnize marriage in any province or territory.[32] In places where being a ULC minister does not legally authorize a person to solemnize marriages, ULC ministers intending to do so must also meet other requirements, which might include registering as a notary public, justice of the peace, or marriage commissioner.

Criticism

The ULC has occasionally been criticized for its openness and ease of ordination. Some people, usually as a joke, submit ordination requests for their pets.[33] The ULC has tried to curb the ordination of pets, but if the name on the application appears to be legitimate, the application will probably be submitted. The ULC website warns against fraudulent ordination requests, including attempts to ordain pets: "No one is rejected because of their name, but we must protect the integrity of the records against those who fraudulently submit requests for pets, obscene names, etc. Applying for ordination in the name of a fictitious person or animal, or the submission of a person's name without his or her permission is fraud, and may subject you to prosecution!" In 2015, The New York Times wrote that the ULC "pumps out ordinations at an assembly-line pace, almost mocking a process that usually requires years of seminary study".[34]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Contact Universal Life Church". Modesto, CA: Universal Life Church. from the original on January 28, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
  2. ^ "ModestoBee.com". from the original on August 2, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d e f James R. Lewis, The Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religions (2001), p. 769-70.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g U.S. Department of the Army, Religious Requirements and Practices: A Handbook for Chaplains (2001), p. VII-47-49.
  5. ^ a b c d e Hoesly, Dusty (October 23, 2015). "'Need a Minister? How About Your Brother?': The Universal Life Church between Religion and Non-Religion". Secularism and Nonreligion. 4 (1). doi:10.5334/snr.be. ISSN 2053-6712.
  6. ^ Wolfson, Sam (April 4, 2018). "The wedding singer: Adele and the rise of celebrity ministers". the Guardian. from the original on February 12, 2019. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  7. ^ a b Freedman, Samuel G. (June 27, 2015). "Couples Personalizing Role of Religion in Wedding Ceremonies". The New York Times. from the original on September 16, 2018. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  8. ^ a b Oswald v. Oswald, 2013 N.Y. Slip Op. 02811 (N.Y. App. Div. 2013); Ranieri v. Ranieri, 539 N.Y.S.2d 382 (N.Y. App. Div. 1989); State v. Lynch, 272 S.E.2d 349 (N.C. 1980); Cramer v. Commonwealth, 202 S.E.2d 911 (Va. 1974); Robert E. Rains, Marriage in the Time of Internet Ministers: I Now Pronounce You Married, But Who Am I To Do So?, 64 U. Miami L. Rev. 809, 830 - 34 (2010).
  9. ^ "Couples looking to marry in Alabama don't need a judge or church; a friend can do the job". Huntsville Real-Time News. January 13, 2019. from the original on October 9, 2019. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
  10. ^ "Center for Inquiry Inc v. Marion Circuit Court Clerk". Findlaw. March 31, 2016. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  11. ^ "MATTER OF LAST WILL & TEST. OF BLACKWELL, 531 So. 2d 1193 - Miss: Supreme Court 1988 - Google Scholar". from the original on September 30, 2018. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
  12. ^ "O'Neill v Bucks County". from the original on August 7, 2017. Retrieved August 28, 2017. (1.45 MB)
  13. ^ "South Carolina Office of the Attorney General Opinion". from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved September 24, 2019. (6.08 KB) (11 January 1971).
  14. ^ "South Carolina Office of the Attorney General Opinion". from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved September 24, 2019. (5.02 KB) (29 March 1973)
  15. ^ Ctr. for Inquiry, Inc. v. Warren, CIVIL ACTION NO. 3:18-CV-2943-B at *20 (N.D. Tex., 2019).
  16. ^ "Universal Life Church v. Utah, 189 F. Supp. 2d 1302". Dist. Court, D. Utah. January 17, 2002. from the original on September 30, 2018. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  17. ^ "Letter Opinion 1971 No. 117 | Washington State". www.atg.wa.gov. from the original on August 9, 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  18. ^ Ashmore, Lewis (1977). The Modesto messiah: The famous mail-order minister. Universal Press. ISBN 0-918950-01-5.
  19. ^ Ashmore, Lewis (1977). The Modesto messiah : the famous mail-order minister. Bakersfield, Calif.: Universal Press. ISBN 0918950015. OCLC 5551316.
  20. ^ a b c "Inside the Universal Life Church, the Internet's one true religion - The Kernel". The Kernel. December 14, 2014. from the original on September 16, 2018. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  21. ^ "Exemptions from the higher education licensing process for religious colleges". January 9, 2007. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  22. ^ "Cramer v. Commonwealth". Justia Law. from the original on September 16, 2018. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  23. ^ a b "Universal Life Goes On". modbee. from the original on September 16, 2018. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  24. ^ a b c Lauren Bishop, Ordained for the Occasion, The Cincinnati Enquirer (April 14, 2007), p. A1, A9.
  25. ^ Britto, Brittany. "The new normal: Friends, family presiding at weddings". baltimoresun.com. from the original on April 11, 2019. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  26. ^ "Pa. judge nullifies weddings by online ministers". USA Today. from the original on November 13, 2014. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
  27. ^ "UI students serve as ordained ministers". The Daily Iowan. from the original on November 13, 2014. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
  28. ^ Hodges, Jane (June 12, 2008). "Chapel Bound: Getting Ordained Online". The Wall Street Journal. from the original on December 28, 2014. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
  29. ^ "775 F2d 576 Lynch v. Universal Life Church". OpenJurist. October 23, 1985. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  30. ^ The federal reporter. The federal reporter. 1986. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  31. ^ Robert E. Rains, Marriage in the Time of Internet Ministers: I Now Pronounce You Married, But Who Am I To Do So?, 64 U. Miami L. Rev. 809, 834 - 35 (2010).
  32. ^ "Wedding Laws By State". Universal Life Church Online. Retrieved January 10, 2018. As of this writing, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia do NOT permit ULC ministers to officiate legal marriage ceremonies.
  33. ^ Cody Clark (Daily Herald). "You may now lick the bride: Canine clergyman helps household pets tie the knot". Pet Weds: Pet & Animal Nuptials. from the original on December 22, 2008. Retrieved June 15, 2009.
  34. ^ "Couples Personalizing Role of Religion in Wedding Ceremonies". The New York Times. June 26, 2015. from the original on October 24, 2018. Retrieved August 29, 2019.

External links

  • Universal Life Church and branches websites - ulc.org, ulchq.com, ulcseminary.org, ulc.net

August 25, 2023
universal, life, church, confused, with, monastery, denominational, religious, organization, founded, 1962, kirby, hensley, under, doctrine, that, which, right, advocates, religious, freedom, offering, legal, ordination, become, minister, free, charge, anyone,. Not to be confused with Universal Life Church Monastery The Universal Life Church ULC is a non denominational religious organization founded in 1962 by Kirby J Hensley 3 4 under the doctrine Do that which is right The Universal Life Church advocates for religious freedom offering legal ordination to become a minister free of charge to anyone who wishes to join The ULC has ordained ministers from a wide range of backgrounds and beliefs including Christians atheists Wiccans pagans Jews and people of many other faiths 5 Universal Life ChurchLogo of the Universal Life ChurchRegionWorldwideHeadquartersModesto California 1 FounderKirby J HensleyOriginMay 2 1962 Modesto CaliforniaMembers18 000 000 ordained 2 The ULC s popularity stems in part from a rising interest in having friends or loved ones officiate weddings a trend which has attracted a range of celebrities to become ordained including Stevie Nicks Adele Benedict Cumberbatch Ian McKellen 6 Conan O Brien and Steven Tyler among others 7 However courts in Virginia have held that they will not recognize marriages solemnized by ULC ministers 8 while eight states have specifically held such marriages to be valid these being Alabama 9 Illinois 10 Mississippi 11 Pennsylvania 12 South Carolina 13 14 Texas 15 Utah 16 and Washington 17 The remainder have not addressed the issue Contents 1 History 1 1 Foundation and early growth 1 2 Later expansion and division 2 Beliefs and practices 3 Legal status 4 Criticism 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksHistory EditFoundation and early growth Edit The Universal Life Church was founded by Kirby J Hensley a self educated Baptist minister who was deeply influenced by his reading in world religion 4 Religious scholar James R Lewis wrote that Hensley began to conceive of a church that would on the one hand offer complete freedom of religion and could on the other hand bring all people of all religions together instead of separating them 4 With this aim he sought to establish a new religion that would emphasize what all religions have in common 3 establishing this entity in 1959 under the name Life Church in Modesto California 5 18 He first held services in his garage and incorporated the organization in 1962 3 19 The ULC began issuing mail order ordinations shortly after its incorporation The church s growth was affected in part by social movements during the Vietnam War a widely circulated rumor claimed that ordination would qualify one for a legal exemption from the draft Ordination requests increased dramatically but the rumor proved to be false 5 The ULC and its founder Hensley were also featured in several publications during this time including Rolling Stone which further increased public awareness of the church 20 In the late 1960s Hensley became something of a folk hero among the young particularly with college students whom he would mass ordain at speaking events 3 In accordance with the Law of California that exempts religious schools from accreditation 21 he offered a Doctor of Divinity degree from the ULC for twenty dollars including ten free lessons explaining how to set up a church By 1974 the church had ordained over 1 million ministers Also in 1974 a federal judge declared that the ULC was qualified for a religious tax exemption 5 22 Later expansion and division Edit The Universal Life Church ran into difficulties as new branches of the ULC were granted charters and began moving off in different directions The Modesto group struggled to maintain control over these other entities as ULC affiliates grew in number 23 There are currently multiple groups operating under the ULC name most of which are unaffiliated in practice 20 During this period the IRS became suspicious about tax avoidance efforts within the church eventually determining that Hensley the Modesto ULC and numerous affiliated churches chartered under its name were promoting tax avoidance schemes within church periodicals As a result the IRS withdrew ULC Modesto s tax exempt status in 1984 Over the next 16 years Hensley and his family battled the IRS in court over disputed tax payments The matter was eventually settled in 2000 when the Modesto group agreed to pay 1 5 million in back taxes 20 By 1999 the ULC had begun offering ordinations online News coverage about journalists and celebrities getting ordained to perform weddings helped boost the popularity of online ordination As more people became aware of non traditional officiants presiding over wedding ceremonies ULC membership rolls surged Between 1962 and 2008 the ULC issued more than 18 million ordinations worldwide 23 24 A large number of people seeking ULC ordination do so in order to be able to legally officiate at weddings 7 or perform other spiritual rites A 2007 article noted that a bout 70 percent of people who become ordained through the Universal Life Church do so to officiate at weddings 24 According to a 2016 internal survey conducted by wedding website The Knot and reported by the Baltimore Sun 43 of couples in the U S in 2016 chose to have a friend or family member officiate their wedding up from 29 in 2009 25 Another example of a person becoming ordained through ULC in order to perform a religious ritual is that of a Native American in Cincinnati who needed such an affiliation to perform smudging ceremonies as part of the prayer ritual for other Native Americans in area hospitals 24 Following Kirby Hensley s death in 1999 an organizational split led to the creation of the ULC Monastery ULCM now based in Seattle under the name Universal Life Church Ministries which remains unaffiliated with the Modesto group 5 The ULCM formally split from the ULC in 2006 following financial legal and philosophical disputes between the two bodies 26 and began ordaining ministers independently 27 28 Beliefs and practices EditThe Universal Life Church traces its doctrine back to the anticlericalism of the Protestant Reformation and ultimately to the words of St Paul that the church is a priesthood of all believers 29 30 The U S Department of the Army publication Religious Requirements and Practices A Handbook for Chaplains summarized the doctrines of the ULC as follows The Universal Life Church has only one belief They believe in that which is right and in every person s right to interpret what is right The Universal Life Church has no creed or authoritative book such as a Bible Those wishing to learn about the Church can obtain its periodical Universal Life and other materials that it publishes from its international headquarters No specific ethical guidelines except to do what is right The Universal Life Church is open and accepting of people of all religions It is opposed only to those religions that attempt to deny religious freedom Any minister in the ULC can ordain new members The Universal Life Church has no specific holidays though local congregations celebrate a wide variety of them There are two gatherings conventions each year in the spring and in the fall at which the members and ministers meet for celebration and to conduct business 4 According to Lewis Hensley personally believed in reincarnation in a merely human Jesus and in the reunification of all religions and governments under the Universal Life banner during thirty years of turmoil around the year 2000 3 however none of these beliefs were doctrinal to the ULC which allowed members to follow their own doctrines The Army s Handbook for Chaplains also notes that the ULC has a very loose structure with those ordained being given a set of instructions on how to form a congregation but otherwise operating with complete autonomy It further notes that those ordained may perform any of the functions normally associated with the clergy including the conducting of weddings funerals etc and that g roup worship is not required but local congregations are required to hold regular meetings 4 The ULC is noted to have no medical or dietary restrictions and no specific burial requirements 4 With respect to military service the handbook notes that the ULC maintains no doctrinal opposition to military service but respects the individual opinion of its members 4 Legal status EditMain article Legal status of the Universal Life Church The legitimacy of ULC ordination has been challenged in legal venues primarily with respect to the questions of whether it constitutes a religious affiliation for tax purposes and whether ordinations legally permit recipients to perform weddings in various jurisdictions Lewis notes that the Internal Revenue Service has generally assumed a negative predisposition towards the ULC and has sought to eliminate the organization s tax exempt status 3 A number of legal cases have addressed this question as well as the ordination question with varying results Four U S states expressly do not recognize ministers of the Universal Life Church as wedding celebrants and in jurisdictions in which Universal Life Church ministers are not authorized to solemnize marriages the solemnization of a marriage by a minister of the Universal Life Church who is not otherwise authorized may result in the validity of the marriage being questioned 8 Professor Robert Rains writing in the University of Miami Law Review has warned that even a reasonably intelligent and suspicious person could be readily misled by the ULC into believing that by becoming a ULC minister he can legally perform marriages throughout the United States and beyond 31 In Canada ULC ministers are currently not authorized to solemnize marriage in any province or territory 32 In places where being a ULC minister does not legally authorize a person to solemnize marriages ULC ministers intending to do so must also meet other requirements which might include registering as a notary public justice of the peace or marriage commissioner Criticism EditThe ULC has occasionally been criticized for its openness and ease of ordination Some people usually as a joke submit ordination requests for their pets 33 The ULC has tried to curb the ordination of pets but if the name on the application appears to be legitimate the application will probably be submitted The ULC website warns against fraudulent ordination requests including attempts to ordain pets No one is rejected because of their name but we must protect the integrity of the records against those who fraudulently submit requests for pets obscene names etc Applying for ordination in the name of a fictitious person or animal or the submission of a person s name without his or her permission is fraud and may subject you to prosecution In 2015 The New York Times wrote that the ULC pumps out ordinations at an assembly line pace almost mocking a process that usually requires years of seminary study 34 See also EditList of ministers of the Universal Life ChurchReferences Edit Contact Universal Life Church Modesto CA Universal Life Church Archived from the original on January 28 2018 Retrieved January 28 2018 ModestoBee com Archived from the original on August 2 2017 Retrieved August 2 2017 a b c d e f James R Lewis The Encyclopedia of Cults Sects and New Religions 2001 p 769 70 a b c d e f g U S Department of the Army Religious Requirements and Practices A Handbook for Chaplains 2001 p VII 47 49 a b c d e Hoesly Dusty October 23 2015 Need a Minister How About Your Brother The Universal Life Church between Religion and Non Religion Secularism and Nonreligion 4 1 doi 10 5334 snr be ISSN 2053 6712 Wolfson Sam April 4 2018 The wedding singer Adele and the rise of celebrity ministers the Guardian Archived from the original on February 12 2019 Retrieved September 16 2018 a b Freedman Samuel G June 27 2015 Couples Personalizing Role of Religion in Wedding Ceremonies The New York Times Archived from the original on September 16 2018 Retrieved September 16 2018 a b Oswald v Oswald 2013 N Y Slip Op 02811 N Y App Div 2013 Ranieri v Ranieri 539 N Y S 2d 382 N Y App Div 1989 State v Lynch 272 S E 2d 349 N C 1980 Cramer v Commonwealth 202 S E 2d 911 Va 1974 Robert E Rains Marriage in the Time of Internet Ministers I Now Pronounce You Married But Who Am I To Do So 64 U Miami L Rev 809 830 34 2010 Couples looking to marry in Alabama don t need a judge or church a friend can do the job Huntsville Real Time News January 13 2019 Archived from the original on October 9 2019 Retrieved October 9 2019 Center for Inquiry Inc v Marion Circuit Court Clerk Findlaw March 31 2016 Retrieved May 11 2020 MATTER OF LAST WILL amp TEST OF BLACKWELL 531 So 2d 1193 Miss Supreme Court 1988 Google Scholar Archived from the original on September 30 2018 Retrieved September 1 2019 O Neill v Bucks County Archived from the original on August 7 2017 Retrieved August 28 2017 1 45 MB South Carolina Office of the Attorney General Opinion Archived from the original on December 8 2015 Retrieved September 24 2019 6 08 KB 11 January 1971 South Carolina Office of the Attorney General Opinion Archived from the original on December 8 2015 Retrieved September 24 2019 5 02 KB 29 March 1973 Ctr for Inquiry Inc v Warren CIVIL ACTION NO 3 18 CV 2943 B at 20 N D Tex 2019 Universal Life Church v Utah 189 F Supp 2d 1302 Dist Court D Utah January 17 2002 Archived from the original on September 30 2018 Retrieved November 1 2017 Letter Opinion 1971 No 117 Washington State www atg wa gov Archived from the original on August 9 2019 Retrieved August 12 2019 Ashmore Lewis 1977 The Modesto messiah The famous mail order minister Universal Press ISBN 0 918950 01 5 Ashmore Lewis 1977 The Modesto messiah the famous mail order minister Bakersfield Calif Universal Press ISBN 0918950015 OCLC 5551316 a b c Inside the Universal Life Church the Internet s one true religion The Kernel The Kernel December 14 2014 Archived from the original on September 16 2018 Retrieved September 16 2018 Exemptions from the higher education licensing process for religious colleges January 9 2007 Retrieved February 21 2023 Cramer v Commonwealth Justia Law Archived from the original on September 16 2018 Retrieved September 16 2018 a b Universal Life Goes On modbee Archived from the original on September 16 2018 Retrieved September 16 2018 a b c Lauren Bishop Ordained for the Occasion The Cincinnati Enquirer April 14 2007 p A1 A9 Britto Brittany The new normal Friends family presiding at weddings baltimoresun com Archived from the original on April 11 2019 Retrieved October 28 2018 Pa judge nullifies weddings by online ministers USA Today Archived from the original on November 13 2014 Retrieved December 27 2014 UI students serve as ordained ministers The Daily Iowan Archived from the original on November 13 2014 Retrieved December 27 2014 Hodges Jane June 12 2008 Chapel Bound Getting Ordained Online The Wall Street Journal Archived from the original on December 28 2014 Retrieved December 27 2014 775 F2d 576 Lynch v Universal Life Church OpenJurist October 23 1985 Retrieved October 23 2022 The federal reporter The federal reporter 1986 Retrieved October 23 2022 Robert E Rains Marriage in the Time of Internet Ministers I Now Pronounce You Married But Who Am I To Do So 64 U Miami L Rev 809 834 35 2010 Wedding Laws By State Universal Life Church Online Retrieved January 10 2018 As of this writing Canada the United Kingdom and Australia do NOT permit ULC ministers to officiate legal marriage ceremonies Cody Clark Daily Herald You may now lick the bride Canine clergyman helps household pets tie the knot Pet Weds Pet amp Animal Nuptials Archived from the original on December 22 2008 Retrieved June 15 2009 Couples Personalizing Role of Religion in Wedding Ceremonies The New York Times June 26 2015 Archived from the original on October 24 2018 Retrieved August 29 2019 External links EditUniversal Life Church and branches websites ulc org ulchq com ulcseminary org ulc net Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Universal Life Church amp oldid 1159531045, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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