Ministerial degree from the mail-order church
I kid you not. At the Progressive Universal Life Church (PULC) you can become an “ordained” minister with the “legal right to use the title ‘Reverend’” for a “small loving offering of only $19.50.” With this degree you are supposedly authorized to preform all functions including marriages, baptisms, funerals, and services.
So what does this “church” believe? “[The PULC wants] to help you reach your full potential in life. [They] want to help you become all God meant you to be. [They] want to help you achieve wholeness!” Ironically, they say that this church stands for “religious freedom.” “The freedom for each and every person to believe as they choose and the right to express that belief–so long as it harms no other.” The stated doctrine of the church is: “every man and woman has the right to determine what is right for themselves.”
BUT WAIT!!! (I’m not making this up.) “For a limited time only, we are offering our Doctorate courses for an unbelievably small donation… ACT NOW! You are guaranteed to pass all courses.” Here is a list of the available doctoral programs that upon completion, you “have the legal right to be known as ‘doctor’.” Ahh no, in the US, only medical doctors (allo and osteopathic) are legally titled Dr.
A common theme reverberating throughout the PULC’s webpages is the allure of obtaining wealth. This is on the page regarding the ministerial license: “As a point of passing, thousands of Ministers have become enormously wealthy performing simple religious ceremonies.” Wow, enormously wealthy. This is the kind of religion that I want to join! I not only will get a certificate of ordination printed on high quality paper perfect for hanging in a very visible spot in the house, but I will also be making upwards of “$500 for performing a simple ceremony”!
I put this under the category of “funny” because that is exactly what it is. This is a company with the sole purpose of making money. I find it hard to believe that donations to it are tax-deductible. They do not talk about worshipping God and only use the name of God when referring to how He can help us. The few quotes from the Christian Bible that they use are there only to motivate the reader to buy into the scheme. However, they are definitely not a Christian church…there is not one mention of Jesus anywhere on the site.
Sadly, I heard about this company on a blog that I read occasionally on Google Reader. This guy had actually gotten married by the PULC and then went on to become a “minister” himself. Some of the stuff that he writes is pretty interesting, but I’m not so sure about him now…
To read more about this “religion” and other strange ones, visit Breakaway Beliefs: That Old-Time Religion is So Passe







