Unitarianism (from Latin unitas 'unity, oneness') is a nontrinitarian branch of Christianity . Unitarian Christians affirm the unitary nature of God as the singular and unique creator of the universe , believe that Jesus Christ was inspired by God in his moral teachings and that he is the savior of humankind, but he is not equal to God himself. Accordingly, Unitarians reject the Ecumenical Councils and ecumenical creeds , and sit outside traditional, main-stream Christianity.
82-774: Edward Everett Hale (April 3, 1822 – June 10, 1909) was an American author, historian, and Unitarian minister , best known for his writings such as " The Man Without a Country ", published in Atlantic Monthly , in support of the Union during the Civil War . He was the grand-nephew of Nathan Hale , the American spy during the Revolutionary War . Hale was born on April 3, 1822, in Boston , Massachusetts ,
164-501: A "Socinian" view was James Freeman . Regarding the virgin birth of Jesus among those who denied the preexistence of Christ, some held to it and others did not. Its denial is sometimes ascribed to the Ebionites ; however, Origen ( Contra Celsum v.61) and Eusebius ( HE iii.27) both indicate that some Ebionites did accept the virgin birth. On the other hand, Theodotus of Byzantium , Artemon , and Paul of Samosata all accepted
246-1027: A church hierarchy that includes the election by the synod of a national bishop who serves as superintendent of the Church. Many Hungarian Unitarians embrace the principles of rationalist Unitarianism. Unitarian high schools exist only in Transylvania (Romania), including the John Sigismund Unitarian Academy in Cluj-Napoca , the Protestant Theological Institute of Cluj , and the Berde Mózes Unitárius Gimnázium in Cristuru Secuiesc ; both teach Rationalist Unitarianism. The Unitarian Christian Association (UCA)
328-684: A collection of both existing and extinct Christian groups (whether historically related to each other or not) that share a common theological concept of the unitary nature of God. Unitarian Christian communities and churches have developed in Central Europe (mostly Romania and Hungary ), Ireland , India , Jamaica , Japan , Canada , Nigeria , South Africa , the United Kingdom , and the United States . In British America , different schools of Unitarian theology first spread in
410-430: A cultural and intellectual centre of a whole society, a place where ideas about society were openly and critically discussed. The Brick Moon " The Brick Moon " is a novella by American writer Edward Everett Hale , published serially in the magazine The Atlantic Monthly in 1869. It is a work of speculative fiction containing the first known fictional description of an artificial satellite (though in 1728
492-807: A few years he became the leader of the Unitarian movement. A theological battle with the Congregational Churches resulted in the formation of the American Unitarian Association at Boston in 1825. Certainly, the unitarian theology was being "adopted" by the Congregationalists from the 1820s onwards. This movement is also evident in England at this time. The first school founded by the Unitarians in
574-573: A forceful personality, organizing genius, and liberal practical theology , Hale was active in raising the tone of American life for half a century. He had a deep interest in the anti- slavery movement (especially in Kansas), as well as popular education (involving himself especially with the Chautauqua adult-education movement ), and the working-man's home. He published a wide variety of works in fiction, history and biography. He used his writings and
656-446: A lengthy term from 1858 to 1891, and as recording secretary from 1854 to 1858. He served as vice-president of the society from 1891 to 1906, served a shorter term as president from 1906 to 1907, then again took up the position of vice-president from 1907 to 1909. Hale first came to notice as a writer in 1859, when he contributed the short story "My Double and How He Undid Me" to the Atlantic Monthly . He soon published other stories in
738-523: A navigational aid, but is launched accidentally with people aboard. They survive, and so the story also provides the first known fictional description of a space station . The author even surmised correctly the idea of needing four satellites visible above the horizon for navigation, as for modern GPS . "The Brick Moon" was first released serially in three parts in The Atlantic Monthly in 1869. A fourth part or sequel, entitled "Life on
820-650: A pre-existent Jesus who was subordinate to God the Father were Lucian of Antioch , Eusebius of Caesarea , Arius , Eusebius of Nicomedia , Asterius the Sophist , Eunomius , and Ulfilas , as well as Felix, Bishop of Urgell . Proponents of this Christology also associate it (more controversially) with Justin Martyr and Hippolytus of Rome . Antitrinitarian Michael Servetus did not deny the pre-existence of Christ, so he may have believed in it. (In his "Treatise Concerning
902-812: A psalm on the balcony of the Massachusetts State House . In 1903 he became Chaplain of the United States Senate , and joined the Literary Society of Washington . The next year, he was elected as a member of the Academy of Arts and Sciences. Also in 1904, he was one of several high-profile investors who backed the Intercontinental Correspondence University , but the institution folded by 1915. Hale lived from 1869 to his death at
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#1732765377470984-403: A publication by Isaac Newton included a description of Newton's cannonball , a hypothetical artificial object which is projected from a mountain, as a thought experiment to explain why natural satellites move as they do). "The Brick Moon" is presented as a journal. It describes the construction and launch into orbit of a sphere, 200 feet in diameter, built of bricks. The device is intended as
1066-610: A series of letters in the Boston Daily Advertiser , he noted the "inferiority" of immigrants: "[it] compels them to go the bottom; and the consequence is that we are, all of us, the higher lifted." Edward Everett Hale's story " The Man Without a Country " (1863) opened with the sentence: "I was stranded at the old Mission House in Mackinaw, waiting for a Lake Superior steamer which did not choose to come." In his 1893 and 1900 reminiscences, Hale states that "To write
1148-554: A signatory to the Oregon State Constitution, founded the first Unitarian church in Oregon in 1865. Eleven Nobel Prizes have been awarded to Unitarians: Robert Millikan and John Bardeen (twice) in physics; Emily Green Balch , Albert Schweitzer and Linus Pauling for peace; George Wald and David H. Hubel in medicine; Linus Pauling in chemistry; and Herbert A. Simon in economics. Four presidents of
1230-446: A story for all ages; and include sermons, prayers, hymns and songs. Some will allow attendees to publicly share their recent joys or concerns. This section relates to Unitarian churches and organizations today which are still specifically Christian, whether within or outside Unitarian Universalism. Unitarian Universalism, conversely, refers to the embracing of non-Christian religions. Some Unitarian Christian groups are affiliated with
1312-621: A theology and as a denominational family of churches , was defined and developed in Poland, Transylvania, England, Wales, India, Japan, Jamaica, the United States, and beyond in the 16th century through the present. Although common beliefs existed among Unitarians in each of these regions, they initially grew independently from each other. Only later did they influence one another and accumulate more similarities. The Ecclesia minor or Minor Reformed Church of Poland , better known today as
1394-719: A tool for missionary work or encouraging conversions. In India, three different schools of Unitarian thought influenced varying movements, including the Brahmo Samaj , the Unitarian Church of the Khasi Hills , and the Unitarian Christian Church of Chennai , in Madras, founded in 1795. As of 2011, "Thirty-five congregations and eight fellowships comprising almost 10,000 Unitarians now form
1476-423: Is a proper noun and follows the same English usage as other Christian theologies that have developed within a religious group or denomination (such as Calvinism , Anabaptism , Adventism , Lutheranism , Wesleyanism , etc.). The term existed shortly before it became the name of a distinct religious tradition, thus occasionally it is used as a common noun to describe any understanding of Jesus Christ that denies
1558-423: Is considered a factor in the decline of classical deism because there were people who increasingly preferred to identify themselves as Unitarians rather than deists. Several tenets of Unitarianism overlap with the predominant Muslim view of Jesus and Islamic understanding of monotheism . The Christology commonly called " Socinian " (after Fausto Sozzini , one of the founders of Unitarian theology) refers to
1640-737: Is not required. The modern Unitarian Church in Hungary (25,000 members) and the Transylvanian Unitarian Church (75,000 members) are affiliated with the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU) and claim continuity with the historical Unitarian Christian tradition established by Ferenc Dávid in 1565 in Transylvania under John II Sigismund Zápolya . The Unitarian churches in Hungary and Transylvania are structured and organized along
1722-513: The American Unitarian Association began to allow non-Christian and non-theistic churches and individuals to be part of their fellowship. As a result, people who held no Unitarian belief began to be called Unitarians because they were members of churches that belonged to the American Unitarian Association. After several decades, the non-theistic members outnumbered the theological Unitarians. Unitarianism, both as
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#17327653774701804-904: The Christian Examiner merged with Scribner's Magazine. In 1881, Hale published the story "Hands Off" in Harper's New Monthly Magazine . In the tale, a narrator goes through time to alter events in the past, thereby creating an alternate timeline. Paul J. Nahin writes that this story makes Hale a pioneer in emerging science fiction, time travel, and stories about changing the past. In the early 1880s Harriet E. "Hattie" Freeman became one of Hale's volunteer secretaries. Her family had been connected with Hale's church since 1861. As Hattie and Hale worked together they grew closer and closer. According to historian Sara Day, their relationship became loving and intimate. Day came to this conclusion after studying 3,000 Hale-Freeman love letters (1884–1909) held by
1886-764: The Edward Everett Hale House in Roxbury. He maintained a summer home in South Kingstown, Rhode Island where he and his family often spent summer months. Hale died in Roxbury, by then part of Boston, in 1909. He was buried at Forest Hills Cemetery in Jamaica Plain , Suffolk County, Massachusetts. A life-size likeness in bronze statue memorializing the man and his works stands in the Boston Public Garden . Combining
1968-571: The Holy Spirit . This Christology existed in some form or another prior to Sozzini. Theodotus of Byzantium , Artemon and Paul of Samosata denied the pre-existence of Christ. These ideas were continued by Marcellus of Ancyra and his pupil Photinus in the 4th century AD. In the Radical Reformation and Anabaptist movements of the 16th century this idea resurfaced with Sozzini's uncle, Lelio Sozzini . Having influenced
2050-644: The International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU), founded in 1995. The ICUU has "full member" groups in Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, EUU, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Romania, South Africa, Spain. Sri Lanka and the United States. Brazil is a Provisional Member. The ICUU includes small "Associate Groups", including Congregazione Italiana Cristiano Unitariana, Turin (founded in 2004) and
2132-637: The Logos , or the Word, a being begotten or created by God, who dwelt with God in heaven. There are many varieties of this form of Unitarianism, ranging from the belief that the Son was a divine spirit of the same substance (called Subordinationism ) or of a similar substance to that of God (called Semi-Arianism ) to the belief that he was an angel or other lesser spirit creature of a wholly different nature from God. Not all of these views necessarily were held by Arius ,
2214-478: The National Urban League , and Florence Nightingale in humanitarianism and social justice; John Bowring , Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Elizabeth Gaskell in literature; Frank Lloyd Wright in the arts; Josiah Wedgwood , Richard Peacock and Samuel Carter MP in industry; Thomas Starr King in ministry and politics; and Charles William Eliot in education. Julia Ward Howe was a leader in
2296-672: The New England Colonies and subsequently in the Mid-Atlantic States . The first official acceptance of the Unitarian faith on the part of a congregation in North America was by King's Chapel in Boston, from where James Freeman began teaching Unitarian doctrine in 1784 and was appointed rector. Later in 1785, he created a revised Unitarian Book of Common Prayer based on Lindsey's work. Unitarianism
2378-781: The North American Review , the Atlantic Monthly , the Christian Register , the Outlook , and many more. He was the author or editor of more than sixty books—fiction, travel, sermons, biography and history. On November 20, 1891, Hale founded the Ten Times One Corporation to implement the ideas laid out in the original story. In 1898, the organization changed its name to Lend A Hand Society , and continues to serve those in need in
2460-605: The Polish Brethren to a formal declaration of this belief in the Racovian Catechism , Fausto Sozzini involuntarily ended up giving his name to this Christological position, which continued with English Unitarians such as John Biddle , Thomas Belsham , Theophilus Lindsey , and James Martineau . In America, most of the early Unitarians were "Arian" in Christology (see below), but among those who held to
2542-524: The Polish Brethren , was born as the result of a controversy that started on January 22, 1556, when Piotr of Goniądz (Peter Gonesius), a Polish student, spoke out against the doctrine of the Trinity during the general synod of the Reformed ( Calvinist ) churches of Poland held in the village of Secemin . After nine years of debate, in 1565, the anti-Trinitarians were excluded from the existing synod of
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2624-629: The Polish Reformed Church (henceforth the Ecclesia maior ) and they began to hold their own synods as the Ecclesia minor . Though frequently called " Arians " by those on the outside, the views of Fausto Sozzini (Faustus Socinus) became the standard in the church, and these doctrines were quite removed from Arianism. So important was Socinus to the formulation of their beliefs that those outside Poland usually referred to them as Socinians . The Polish Brethren were disbanded in 1658 by
2706-557: The Sejm (Polish Parliament). They were ordered to convert to Roman Catholicism or leave Poland. Most of them went to Transylvania or Holland, where they embraced the name "Unitarian". Between 1665 and 1668 a grandson of Socinus, Andrzej Wiszowaty Sr. , published Bibliotheca Fratrum Polonorum quos Unitarios vocant ( Library of the Polish Brethren who are called Unitarians 4 vols. 1665–1669). The Unitarian Church in Transylvania
2788-469: The True Jesus Church , and the writings of Michael Servetus (all of which maintain that Jesus is God as a single person). Recently, some religious groups have adopted the 19th-century term biblical unitarianism to distinguish their theologies from Unitarianism. Unitarianism is a Christian theology and practice that precedes and is distinct from Unitarian Universalism . In the 1890s
2870-898: The University of Leiden in the Netherlands for the ministry of the Dutch Reformed Church in Cape Town . There are two active Unitarian churches in Ireland, one in Dublin and the other in Cork. Both are member churches of the Non-subscribing Presbyterian Church of Ireland . Unitarianism was a latecomer to Denmark. Some of the inspiration came from Norway and England – family members of
2952-548: The religion of Jesus, not a religion about Jesus" to Unitarians, though the phrase was used earlier by Congregationalist Rollin Lynde Hartt in 1924. Worship within the Unitarian tradition accommodates a wide range of understandings of God , while the focus of the service may be simply the celebration of life itself. Each Unitarian congregation is at liberty to devise its own form of worship, though commonly, Unitarians will light their chalice (symbol of faith), have
3034-530: The 16th to 18th centuries, Unitarians in Britain often faced significant political persecution, including John Biddle , Mary Wollstonecraft , and Theophilus Lindsey . In England, the first Unitarian Church was established in 1774 on Essex Street, London , where today's British Unitarian headquarters is still located. As is typical of dissenters and nonconformists , Unitarianism does not constitute one single Christian denomination ; rather, it refers to
3116-512: The Boston, MA area. He was awarded American Library Association Honorary Membership in 1895. Hale retired as minister from the South Congregational Church in 1899 and chose as his successor Edward Cummings, father of E. E. Cummings . By the turn of the century, Hale was recognized as among the nation's most important men of letters. Bostonians asked him to help ring in the new century on December 31, 1900, by presenting
3198-666: The Brick Moon", was also published in The Atlantic Monthly in 1870. It was collected as the title work in Hale's anthology The Brick Moon and Other Stories in 1899. In 1877, Asaph Hall discovered the two moons of Mars. He wrote to Hale, comparing the smaller Martian moon, Deimos , to the Brick Moon. In the Long Earth series by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter a space station built in "The Gap" (where
3280-845: The Bét Dávid Unitarian Association, Oslo (founded 2005). The largest Unitarian denomination worldwide today is also the oldest Unitarian denomination (since 1565, first use of the term "Unitarian" 1600): the Unitarian Church of Transylvania (in Romania , which is in union with the Unitarian Church in Hungary). The church in Transylvania still looks to the statement of faith, the Summa Universae Theologiae Christianae secundum Unitarios (1787), though today assent to this
3362-414: The Closet", gave him a prominent position among short-story writers of 19th century America. His short story " The Brick Moon ", serialized in the Atlantic Monthly , is the first known fictional description of an artificial satellite . It was possibly an influence on the novel The Begum's Fortune by Jules Verne . He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1865. In 1870, he
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3444-404: The Danish Lutheran Church, to one where this was no longer assumed ( ). Biblical Unitarianism identifies the Christian belief that the Bible teaches that God the Father is one singular being , and that Jesus Christ is a distinct being, his son, but not divine. A few denominations use this term to describe themselves, clarifying the distinction between them and those churches which, from
3526-456: The Divine Trinity" Servetus taught that the Logos (Word) was the reflection of Christ, and "that reflection of Christ was 'the Word with God" that consisted of God Himself, shining brightly in heaven, "and it was God Himself" and that "the Word was the very essence of God or the manifestation of God's essence, and there was in God no other substance or hypostasis than His Word, in a bright cloud where God then seemed to subsist. And in that very spot
3608-402: The German liberal theology associated primarily with Friedrich Schleiermacher , the psilanthropist view increased in popularity. Its proponents took an intellectual and humanistic approach to religion. They embraced evolutionary concepts, asserted the "inherent goodness of man", and abandoned the doctrine of biblical infallibility , rejecting most of the miraculous events in the Bible (including
3690-419: The Library of Congress. The letters, donated to the library in 1969, had held their secrets until 2006 when Day realized that the intimate passages were written in Towndrow's shorthand. In 1886, Hale founded Lend a Hand , which merged with the Charities Review in 1897, and the Lend a Hand Record . Throughout his life he contributed many articles on a variety of subjects to the periodicals of his day including
3772-411: The Unitarian Chapel was known as the "Mayors' Nest". Numerous Unitarian families were highly significant in the social and political life of Britain from Victorian times to the middle of the 20th century. They included the Nettlefolds , Martineaus , Luptons , Kitsons , Chamberlains and Kenricks. In Birmingham, England , a Unitarian church – the Church of the Messiah – was opened in 1862. It became
3854-454: The Unitarian Union of North East India." The American Unitarian Conference (AUC) was formed in 2000 and stands between UUA and ICUU in attachment to the Christian element of modern Unitarianism. The American Unitarian Conference is open to non-Christian Unitarians, being particularly popular with non-Christian theists and deists . As of 2009, The AUC has three congregations in the United States. Unitarian Christian Ministries International
3936-426: The Unitarian faith on the part of a congregation in America was by King's Chapel in Boston, which settled James Freeman (1759–1835) in 1782, and revised the Prayer Book into a mild Unitarian liturgy in 1785. In 1800, Joseph Stevens Buckminster became minister of the Brattle Street Church in Boston, where his brilliant sermons, literary activities, and academic attention to the German "New Criticism" helped shape
4018-472: The Unitarian preacher and theologian Ferenc Dávid ( c. 1520 –1579). Among its adherents were a significant number of Italians who took refuge in Bohemia , Moravia , Poland, and Transylvania in order to escape from the religious persecution perpetrated against them by the Roman Catholic and Magisterial Protestant churches. In the 17th century, significant repression in Poland led many Unitarians to flee or be killed for their faith. From
4100-421: The United States was the Clinton Liberal Institute , in Clinton, Oneida County, New York , founded in 1831. Unitarians charge that the Trinity , unlike unitarianism, fails to adhere to strict monotheism. Unitarians maintain that Jesus was a great man and a prophet of God, perhaps even a supernatural being, but not God himself. They believe Jesus did not claim to be God and that his teachings did not suggest
4182-418: The United States were Unitarians: John Adams , John Quincy Adams , Millard Fillmore , and William Howard Taft . Adlai Stevenson II , the Democratic presidential nominee in 1952 and 1956, was a Unitarian; he was the last Unitarian to be nominated by a major party for president as of 2024. Although a self-styled materialist, Thomas Jefferson was pro-Unitarian to the extent of suggesting that it would become
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#17327653774704264-401: The Unity Church in 1856 to become pastor at the South Congregational Church, Boston, where he served until 1899. In 1847 Hale was elected a member of the American Antiquarian Society, and he would be involved with the society for the rest of his life, taking up various positions in the service of the society. He served two non-consecutive terms on its board of councilors, from 1852 to 1854, and
4346-412: The belief that Jesus Christ began his life when he was born as a human. In other words, the teaching that Jesus pre-existed his human body is rejected. There are various views ranging from the belief that Jesus was simply a human ( psilanthropism ) who, because of his greatness, was adopted by God as his Son ( adoptionism ) to the belief that Jesus literally became the son of God when he was conceived by
4428-542: The churches associated with the Christian Church in Italy . Notable Unitarians include classical composers Edvard Grieg and Béla Bartók ; Ralph Waldo Emerson , Theodore Parker , Yveon Seon and Thomas Lamb Eliot in theology and ministry; Oliver Heaviside , Erasmus Darwin , Joseph Priestley , John Archibald Wheeler , Linus Pauling , Sir Isaac Newton and inventor Sir Francis Ronalds in science; George Boole in mathematics; Susan B. Anthony in civil government; Frances Ellen Watkins Harper , Whitney Young of
4510-432: The doctrine of the Trinity or affirms the belief that God is only one person . In that case, it would be a Nontrinitarian belief system not necessarily associated with the Unitarian movement. For example, the Unitarian movement has never accepted the Godhood of Jesus, and therefore does not include those nontrinitarian belief systems that do, such as Oneness Pentecostalism , United Pentecostal Church International ,
4592-432: The existence of a triune God . Unitarian Christology can be divided according to whether or not Jesus is believed to have had a pre-human existence. Both forms maintain that God is one being and one person and that Jesus is the (or a) Son of God , but generally not God himself. In the early 19th century, Unitarian Robert Wallace identified three particular classes of Unitarian doctrines in history: Unitarianism
4674-427: The face and personality of Christ shone bright." ) Isaac Newton had Arian beliefs as well. Famous 19th-century Arian Unitarians include Andrews Norton and William Ellery Channing (in his earlier years). Although there is no specific authority on convictions of Unitarian belief aside from rejection of the Trinity, the following beliefs are generally accepted: In 1938, The Christian Leader attributed "
4756-442: The founders, and the wife of Edward Grieg. 1900–1918 the society priest was Uffe Birkedal, who had previously been a Lutheran priest. He held the first worship 18 February 1900. A founding general assembly 18 May 1900 elected Mary Bess Westenholz as the first chairman of the Society. The Society newsletter was named 'Protestantisk Tidende' 1904–1993, and then renamed 'Unitaren', reflecting a gradually changing perception of being part of
4838-448: The late 19th century, evolved into modern British Unitarianism and, primarily in the United States, Unitarian Universalism . In 16th-century Italy, Biblical Unitarianism was powered by the ideas of the Non-trinitarian theologians Lelio and Fausto Sozzini , founders of Socinianism ; their doctrine was embraced and further developed by the Unitarian Church of Transylvania during the 16th and 17th centuries. Today, it's represented by
4920-445: The latter being known as biblical Unitarians . The birth of the Unitarian faith is proximate to the Radical Reformation , beginning almost simultaneously among the Protestant Polish Brethren in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and in the Principality of Transylvania in the mid-16th century; the first Unitarian Christian denomination known to have emerged during that time was the Unitarian Church of Transylvania , founded by
5002-465: The motto, first enunciated in 1869 in his Lowell Institute lectures: "Look up and not down, look forward and not back, look out and not in, and lend a hand." This motto was the basis for the formation of Lend-a-Hand Clubs, Look-up Legions and Harry Wadsworth Clubs for young people. Out of the romantic Waldensian story "In His Name" (1873) there similarly grew several other organizations for religious work, such as King's Daughters, and King's Sons. In 1875,
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#17327653774705084-418: The namesake of this Christology. It is still Nontrinitarian because, according to this belief system, Jesus has always been beneath God, though higher than humans. Arian Christology was not a majority view among Unitarians in Poland, Transylvania or England. It was only with the advent of American Unitarianism that it gained a foothold in the Unitarian movement. Among early Christian theologians who believed in
5166-434: The new liberal theology there: The group of leaders who surrounded Dr. [William Ellery] Channing had, with him, broken forever from the fetters of Calvinistic theology. These young people were trained to know that human nature is not totally depraved. They were taught that there is nothing of which it is not capable... For such reasons, and many more, the young New Englanders of liberal training rushed into life, certain that
5248-818: The next half century was to see a complete moral revolution in the world. Hale was licensed to preach as a Unitarian minister in 1842 by the Boston Association of Ministers. In 1846 he became pastor of the Church of the Unity in Worcester, Massachusetts . Hale married Emily Baldwin Perkins in 1852; she was the niece of Connecticut Governor and U.S. Senator Roger Sherman Baldwin and Emily Pitkin Perkins Baldwin on her father's side and Lyman Beecher , Harriet Beecher Stowe and Henry Ward Beecher on her mother's side. They had nine children: Alexander, born and died 1853; Ellen Day , 1854–1939; Arthur, 1859–1939;Charles Alexander, 1861–1867; Edward Everett Jr., 1863–1932; Philip Leslie Hale , 1865–1931; Herbert Dudley, 1866–1908; Henry Kidder, 1868–1876; Robert Beverly, 1869–1895. Hale left
5330-400: The predominant religion in the United States. In the United Kingdom, although Unitarianism was the religion of only a small minority of the population, its practitioners had an enormous impact on Victorian politics, not only in the larger cities – Birmingham , Leeds , Manchester and Liverpool – but in smaller communities such as Leicester , where there were so many Unitarian mayors that
5412-408: The same periodical. His best known work was " The Man Without a Country ", published in the Atlantic in 1863 and intended to strengthen support for the Union cause in the North. As in some of his other non-romantic tales, he employed a minute realism which led his readers to suppose the narrative a record of fact. These two stories and such others as "The Rag-Man and the Rag-Woman" and "The Skeleton in
5494-405: The son of Nathan Hale (1784–1863), proprietor and editor of the Boston Daily Advertiser , and Sarah Preston Everett ; and the brother of Lucretia Peabody Hale , Susan Hale , and Charles Hale . Edward Hale was a nephew of Edward Everett , the orator and statesman, and grand-nephew of Nathan Hale (1755–1776), the Revolutionary War hero executed by the British for espionage. Edward Everett Hale
5576-567: The story of 'The Man Without a Country' and its sequel, 'Philip Nolan's Friends,' I had to make as careful a study as I could of the history of the acquisition of Louisiana by the United States." Christian Unitarianism Unitarianism was established in order to restore " primitive Christianity before later corruptions set in". Likewise, Unitarian Christians generally reject the doctrine of original sin . The churchmanship of Unitarianism may include liberal denominations or Unitarian Christian denominations that are more conservative , with
5658-435: The subsequent growth of Unitarianism in New England. Unitarian Henry Ware (1764–1845) was appointed as the Hollis professor of divinity at Harvard College, in 1805. Harvard Divinity School then shifted from its conservative roots to teach Unitarian theology (see Harvard and Unitarianism ). Buckminster's close associate William Ellery Channing (1780–1842) was settled over the Federal Street Church in Boston, 1803, and in
5740-431: The two magazines he founded, Old and New (1870–75) and Lend a Hand (1886–97), to advance a number of social reforms, including religious tolerance, the abolition of slavery and wider education. Writer-educator Mary Lowe Dickinson served as Hale's associate editor for Lend a Hand . Hale supported Irish immigration in the mid-19th century, as he felt the new workers freed Americans from performing menial, hard labor. In
5822-448: The virgin birth). Notable examples are James Martineau , Theodore Parker , Ralph Waldo Emerson and Frederic Henry Hedge . Famous American Unitarian William Ellery Channing was a believer in the virgin birth until later in his life, after he had begun his association with the Transcendentalists. Arianism is often considered a form of Unitarianism. The Christology of Arianism holds that Jesus, before his human life, existed as
5904-607: The virgin birth. In the early days of Unitarianism, the stories of the virgin birth were accepted by most. There were a number of Unitarians who questioned the historical accuracy of the Bible, including Symon Budny , Jacob Palaeologus , Thomas Belsham, and Richard Wright , and this made them question the virgin birth story. Beginning in England and America in the 1830s, and manifesting itself primarily in Transcendentalist Unitarianism , which emerged from
5986-566: The woman suffrage movement, the first ever woman to be elected to the Academy of Arts and Letters, and author of the " Battle Hymn of the Republic ", volumes of poetry, and other writing. Although raised a Quaker, Ezra Cornell , founder of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, attended the Unitarian church and was one of the founders of Ithaca's First Unitarian Church. Eramus Darwin Shattuck,
6068-679: The word first appears in a title in Stephen Nye 's A Brief History of the Unitarians, called also Socinians (1687). The movement gained popularity in England in the wake of the Enlightenment and began to become a formal denomination in 1774 when Theophilus Lindsey organised meetings with Joseph Priestley , founding the first avowedly Unitarian congregation in the country. This occurred at Essex Street Church in London. Official toleration came in 1813 . The first official acceptance of
6150-748: Was a Unitarian ministry incorporated in South Carolina until its dissolution in 2013 when it merged with the Unitarian Christian Emerging Church. The Unitarian Christian Emerging Church has recently undergone reorganization and today is known as the Unitarian Christian Church of America. In addition, the Unitarian Universalist Faith Alliance and Ministries follow a Progressive Christian format honoring Sacred Space and Creation Spirituality. The Unitarian Christian Church of America (UCCA)
6232-635: Was also a descendant of Richard Everett and related to Helen Keller . Hale was a child prodigy who exhibited extraordinary literary skills. He graduated from Boston Latin School at age 13 and enrolled at Harvard College immediately after. There, he settled in with the literary set, won two Bowdoin Prizes and was elected the Class Poet. He graduated second in his class in 1839 and then studied at Harvard Divinity School . Decades later, he reflected on
6314-829: Was elected as a member to the American Philosophical Society . In recognition of his support for the Union during the American Civil War , Hale was elected as a Third Class Companion of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States . Hale assisted in founding the Christian Examiner, Old and New in 1869 and became its editor. The story "Ten Times One is Ten" (1870), with its hero Harry Wadsworth, contained
6396-572: Was first recognized by the Edict of Torda , issued by the Transylvanian Diet under Prince John II Sigismund Zápolya (January 1568), and was first led by Ferenc Dávid (a former Calvinist bishop, who had begun preaching the new doctrine in 1566). The term "Unitarian" first appeared as unitaria religio in a document of the Diet of Lécfalva , Transylvania , on 25 October 1600, though it
6478-651: Was followed soon afterwards by chapels in Sydney and Adelaide, and later regional centres including Ballarat. The modern church, no longer unitarian Christian, retains properties in Adelaide, Sydney and Melbourne, and smaller congregations elsewhere in Australia and New Zealand. The Unitarian movement in South Africa was founded in 1867 by David Faure , member of a well-known Cape family. He encountered advanced liberal religious thought while completing his studies at
6560-684: Was formed on 1 October 2016 through the merging of the Unitarian Christian Emerging Church and the Unitarian Christian Conference. The church's current ministry in on-line and through local fellowship gatherings. The current senior pastor and current president of the UCCA is the Reverend Dr. Shannon Rogers. The UCCA has both ordained and lay members. The first Unitarian Church in Australia was built in 1854 in Melbourne and
6642-1076: Was founded in the United Kingdom in 1991 by Rev. Lancelot Garrard (1904–93) and others to promote specifically Christian ideas within the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches (GAUFCC), the national Unitarian body in Great Britain. Just as the UUCF and ICUU maintain formal links with the Unitarian Universalist Association in the US, so the UCA is an affiliate body of the GAUFCC in Great Britain. The majority of Unitarian Christian publications are sponsored by an organization and published specifically for their membership. Generally, they do not serve as
6724-509: Was not widely used in Transylvania until 1638, when the formal recepta Unitaria Religio was published. The word Unitarian had been circulating in private letters in England, in reference to imported copies of such publications as the Library of the Polish Brethren who are called Unitarians (1665). Henry Hedworth was the first to use the word "Unitarian" in print in English (1673), and
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