I just saw Kalosyni 's "Bible" reference to be metaphorical, as in a collection of authoritative texts providing what Epicurus and the early Epicureans wrote up to 529 CE. Unfortunately, I doubt we'll ever get such a reference work. The closest we currently have is Book X of Diogenes Laertius although I've been reading Philodemus's On Property Management and On Death today and may have some posts at some point. The scrolls from Herculaneum are always tantalizingly out of reach. I also recently requested Les Epicuriens through interlibrary loan, but, as I barely read French at all, we'll see how helpful it is.
Also Kalosyni , I agree about the UU church (although just as history for anyone interested, the Universalist comes from the Christian concept of universal salvation for everyone and not a benevolent universe) not necessarily being the *best *spot to form a Garden. . Here are some of the reasons I thought they *might* be amenable:
https://www.uucantonny.org/good-without-god/ (mentions Epicurus)
The Swerve: How the World Became Modern | Unitarian Universalist Church of Canton
https://austinuu.org/wp2013/spiritual-ambivalence/ "Epicurus modified the whole dualistic view of humans and took the stance that flesh AND soul were physical and both ended with death – and both body and soul dissolved back into nothingness upon death. Life was for living; it wasn’t just a preamble to eternity."
https://www.uuworld.org/articles/ameri…er-church-state (mentions Epicurus)
"Epicurean group's circle dinners" https://www.phoenixuu.org/wp-content/upl…018/08/1996.pdf