History of Unitarianism

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Unitarianism, as a Christian denominational family of churches, was first defined in Poland-Lithuania and Transylvania in the late 16th century. It was then further developed in England and America until the early 19th century, although theological ancestors are to be found as far back as the early days of Christianity. It matured and reached its classical form in the middle 19th century. Later historical development has been diverse in different countries.

Historical antecedents

First century

Scholars have noted that the early first century form of Christianity sprang from Judaism. Hence they say "they [the earliest Christians] also incorporated the insistent monotheism of Judaism"^[1] Hence it is thought by many historians that the trinity doctrine "developed gradually over several centuries and through many controversies."^[2] These scholars argue that "It was the Nicene Council and even more especially the Athanasian Creed that first gave the dogma its definite formulation".^[3] One proponent of this viewpoint, scholar Jerome H. Neyrey, Ph.D. says "Jesus honors God by confessing the traditional and orthodox understanding of Israel's God" and that "He understands Israel's God in a completely traditional way."^[4]

Fourth century

Arianism was a position that God created Jesus; the presbyter Arius believed it. This view remained popular throughout much of Eastern and Western empires even after the Council of Nicea declared the idea heretical in 325 A.D. ^[5] The viewpoint of Arius was again outlawed at the First Council of Constantinople in 381 A.D.^[6]

The Protestant Reformation

In many European countries, the

. Another evidence, then, of the faithfulness of an ultimate development is its definite anticipation at an early period in the history of the idea to which it belongs."[8]

Suppressed as a rule in individual cases, this type of doctrine ultimately became the badge of separate religious communities, in Poland, Hungary and, at a much later date, England. By contrast, Sabellianism (also known as modalism, modalistic monarchianism, or modal monarchism) is the nontrinitarian belief that the Heavenly Father, Resurrected Son, and Holy Spirit are different modes or aspects of one God, as perceived by the believer, rather than three distinct persons in God Himself.

Along with the fundamental doctrine, certain characteristics have always marked those who profess unitarianism: a large degree of

.

Michael Servetus (1511?–1553) stimulated thought in this direction and heavily influenced other reformers both by his writings and by his death at the stake. In 1531, he had published his theological treatise De Trinitatis Erroribus (On the Errors About the Trinity), in which he rejected the Nicene dogma of the Trinity and proposed that the Son was the union of the divine Logos with the man Jesus, miraculously born from the Virgin Mary through the intervention of God's spirit. This was generally interpreted as a denial of the Trinitarian dogma. (Actually, Servetus had described the Trinity as a "three-headed Cerberus" and "three ghosts", which only led believers to confusion and error.) Servetus expanded his ideas on the nature of God and Christ 20 years later in his major work, Christianismi Restitutio (The Restoration of Christianity), which caused his burning at the stake in Calvin's Geneva (as well as in effigy by the Catholic Inquisition in France) in 1553 . Nowadays, most Unitarians see Servetus as their pioneer and first martyr, and his thought was a remarkable influence in the beginnings of Polish and Transylvanian anti-Trinitarian churches,^[10] even though his Arian views on Jesus Christ (for example, retaining belief in the pre-existence of Christ) were different from those of the Polish Socinians (rejecting belief in Jesus' pre-existence), and again from the generation of Thomas Belsham (rejecting also the virgin birth), and very different from what the Unitarian Church generally believes today.

The

. The Italian exiles spread anti-Trinitarian views to Switzerland, Germany, Poland, Transylvania, and Holland.

The Dialogues (1563) of Bernardino Ochino, while defending the Trinity, stated objections and difficulties with a force that captivated many. In his 27th Dialogue, Ochino points to Hungary as a possible home of religious liberty. And in Poland and Hungary definitely anti-Trinitarian religious communities first formed and were tolerated.

Classical period of Unitarianism

Poland

Scattered expressions of

in 1558 furnished the party with a temporary leader.

The term "Unitarian" first appeared as unitaria religio in a document of the Diet of

in 1673. Afterwards, the term was commonly used in English, though their detractors continued to label both Arian and Unitarian views as "Socinian".

In 1565, the Diet (

).

In 1602, the nobleman Jakub Sienieński established among the anti-Trinitarian community founded by his father at Raków, Kielce County the Racovian Academy and a printing-press, from which the Racovian Catechism was issued in 1605. In 1610, a Catholic reaction led by Jesuits began. The establishment at Raków was suppressed in 1638, after two boys allegedly pelted a crucifix outside the town.

For 20 years (1639–1659), the Arians were tolerated, but public opinion widely considered them as collaborators with Sweden during

gave anti-Trinitarians the option of conformity or exile. The Ecclesia minor or Minor Church included many Polish magnates, but their adoption of the views of Sozzini, which precluded Christians from magisterial office, rendered them politically powerless.

The execution of the decree, hastened by a year, took place in 1660. While some conformed, a large number made their way to the Netherlands, where the

until 1793.

The refugees who reached Amsterdam published the Bibliotheca fratrum polonorum (1665–1669), with the assistance of the Prussian emigre Christopher Sandius, embracing the works of Johannes Crellius (their leading theologian), Jonasz Szlichtyng (their chief Biblical commentator), Fausto Sozzini, and Johann Ludwig von Wolzogen. The title page of this collection, bearing the words quos Unitarios vocant, introduced the term Unitarian to Western Europe.

The term Unitarian (in Latin) was first used by Polish and Dutch

Transylvania and Hungary

Further information:

Islam and Protestantism

John Sigismund of Hungary with Suleiman the Magnificent

in 1556.

No distinct trace of

In 1564, Dávid was elected by the Calvinists as "bishop of the Hungarian churches in Transylvania", and appointed court preacher to

].

His antagonist in public disputes was the Calvinist leader,

being evacuated by all but his followers.

In 1571, John Sigismund was succeeded by

(1579). The cultus of Christ became an established usage of the Church; it is recognized in the 1837 edition of the official hymnal, but removed in later editions.

The term unitarius made its first documented appearance, unitaria religio, in a decree of the Diet of

(1600); though, it was not officially adopted by the Church until 1638.

In 1618, the Unitarian Church condemned and withdrew from Simon Péchi and the Sabbatarians, a group with Judaic tendencies. The group continued to exist till the 1840s by which time many had converted to Judaism. In 1626 the Disciplina ecclesiastica was published by Bishop Bálint Radeczki (Latin: Valentinus Radecius, bishop 1616–1632). 1638 saw the Accord of Dés and suppression of the Unitarians.

Of the line of twenty-three bishops, the most distinguished were George Enyedi (1592–1597), whose Explicationes obtained European vogue, and Mihály Lombard de Szentábrahám (1737–1758), who rallied the forces of his Church, broken by persecution and deprivation of property, and gave them their traditional statement of faith. His Summa Universae Theologiae Christianae secundum Unitarios (published 1787), Socinian with Arminian modifications, was accepted by Joseph II as the official manifesto of doctrine, and so remains, though subscription to it has not been required since the 19th century.

Hungarian Runes

. Inscription (1668) reads "Egy az Isten Georgyius Musnai diakon", or "God is One Georgius Musnai deacon."

The first secondary school in Transylvania was established in the late 18th century in Székelykeresztúr (Cristuru Secuiesc); this functions to this day, although as a state school.

The official title in Hungary is the Hungarian Unitarian Church, with a membership of about 25,000 members. In Romania, there is a separate church with the name of Unitarian Church of Transylvania and about 65,000 members, especially among the Székely population. In the past, the Unitarian bishop had a seat in the Hungarian parliament. The principal college of both churches is located at Cluj-Napoca (Kolozsvár), which is also the seat of the Transylvanian consistory; there were others at Turda (Torda) and at Cristuru Secuiesc.

Until 1818, the continued existence of this body was largely unknown to English Unitarians ^{[citation needed]}. Relations subsequently became intimate. After 1860, a succession of students finished their theological education at Manchester College, Oxford; others at the Unitarian Home Missionary College.

England

In England, Unitarianism was a Protestant sect with roots in the

for British Unitarianism.

Early beginnings

Between 1548 (

(1609).

Socinian influence

Fausto Sozzini had died on the road, after expulsion from Kraków, Poland on 4 March 1604, but the Racovian Academy and printing press continued till 1639, exerting influence in England via the Netherlands.

The popularity of

(1616–1662).

In 1652–1654 and 1658–1662, Biddle held a

(1648–1719), a clergyman. Firmin promoted a remarkable series of controversial tracts (1690–1699).

In England, the Socinian controversy initiated by Biddle preceded the Arian controversy initiated by Samuel Clarke's Scripture Doctrine of the Trinity (1712), although John Knowles was an Arian lay preacher at Chester in 1650. Arian or semi-Arian views had great popularity during the 18th century, both in the Church and among dissenters.

"Unitarian" 1673

The word Unitarian had been circulating in private letters in England, in reference to imported copies of such publications as the

's A brief history of the Unitarians, called also Socinians (1687). It was construed in a broad sense to cover all who, with whatever differences, held to the unipersonality of the Divine Being. Firmin later had a project of Unitarian societies "within the Church".

Act of Toleration 1689

The first preacher to describe himself as Unitarian was

Act of Toleration 1689

, which excluded all who should preach or write against the Trinity.

In 1689,

Congregationalists

.

Salters' Hall conference 1719

Further information:

Salter's Hall controversy

The free atmosphere of dissenting academies (colleges) favoured new ideas. The effect of the Salters' Hall conference (1719), called for by the views of James Peirce (1673–1726) of Exeter, was to leave dissenting congregations to determine their own orthodoxy. The General Baptists had already (1700) condoned defections from the common doctrine. Leaders in the advocacy of a purely humanitarian christology came largely from the Independents, such as Nathaniel Lardner (1684–1768), Caleb Fleming (1698–1779), Joseph Priestley (1733–1804), and Thomas Belsham (1750–1829).

Isaac Newton was an anti-Trinitarian, and possibly a Unitarian (though he may have been Sabellian).^[15] One of his last visitors before his death in 1727 was Samuel Crellius from Lithuania.

The Unitarian Church 1774

The formation of a distinct Unitarian denomination dates from the secession (1773) of

in a considerable number of dissenting congregations.

The

was formed as a combination of three older societies for literature (1791), mission work (1806), and civil rights (1818).

Attacks were made on properties held by Unitarians, but created before 1813. The Wolverhampton Chapel case began in 1817, the more important

Dissenters' Chapels Act

(1844), which secured that, so far as trusts did not specify doctrines, twenty-five years tenure legitimated existing usage.

The waning of the miraculous

In the 1700s, the leading Unitarian theologian, Joseph Priestley (who was also the scientist credited with the discovery oxygen), believed that God performed many miracles. Priestly said that “it appears to me that no facts, in the whole compass of history, are so well authenticated as those of the miracles, the death, and the resurrection of Christ, and also what is related of the apostles in the book of Acts”[16] and that the “christian faith implies a belief of all the great historical facts recorded in the Old and New Testament.”^[17]

But the period 1800–1850 is characterized by a shift in the British Unitarian movement's position from questioning the

Influence from America

During the 19th century, the drier Priestley-Belsham type of Unitarianism, bound up with a

(1808–1894).

Notable people and institutions

English Unitarianism produced some well-known scholars, e.g.

and Tate industrialist dynasties.

Notable publications

English Unitarian periodical literature begins with Priestley's Theological Repository (1769–1788) and includes the Monthly Repository (1806–1838), The Christian Reformer (1834–1863), The Christian Teacher (1835–1844), The Prospective Review (1845–1854), The National Review (1855–1864), The Theological Review (1864–1879), and The Hibbert Journal, one of the enterprises of the Hibbert Trust, founded by Robert Hibbert (1770–1849) and originally designated the Anti-Trinitarian Fund. This came into operation in 1853, awarded scholarships and fellowships, supported an annual lectureship (1878–1894), and maintained (from 1894) a chair of ecclesiastical history at Manchester College.

Scotland

Much has been made of the execution (1697) at

from one of the "fellowship societies" formed by James Fraser, of Brea (1639–1699). The mission enterprises of Richard Wright (1764–1836) and George Harris (1794–1859) produced results of no great permanence.

The Scottish Unitarian Association^[19] was founded in 1813, mainly by Thomas Southwood Smith, M.D., the sanitary reformer. The McQuaker Trust was founded (1889) for propagandist purposes.

Paradoxically, one of the reasons for the relative weakness of Unitarian movement in Scotland in the early 19th century may be the continuing presence of conservative, and therefore Bible-fundamentalist,

Currently, there are four Unitarian churches in Scotland:[23] Aberdeen,^[24] Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Ireland

Controversy respecting the Trinity was excited in Ireland by the prosecution at Dublin (1703) of

, comprising three presbyteries.

In 1910, the Antrim Presbytery, Remonstrant Synod and

United States

The history of Unitarian thought in the United States can be roughly divided into four periods:

• a period of precursor movements (early 18th century to c. 1800)
• the formative period (c. 1800–1835)
• a Transcendentalist period (c. 1835–1885)
• the modern period (since 1885)

Precursor movements and early Unitarianism

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Unitarianism in the United States followed essentially the same development as in England, passing through the stages of

Arianism showed itself in individual instances, and French influences were widespread in the direction of deism, though they were not organized into any definite utterance by religious bodies.

As early as the middle of the 18th century,

, and several others.

The first official acceptance of the Unitarian faith on the part of a congregation was by

in 1796. His writings had a considerable influence.

Thus, from 1725 to 1825, Unitarianism was gaining ground in New England, and to some extent elsewhere. The first distinctive manifestation of the change was the inauguration of Henry Ware (1764–1845) as professor of divinity at Harvard College, in 1805.

In the same year appeared Unitarian books by

, Charleston, and elsewhere during this period.

Formative period

The next period of American Unitarianism, from about 1800 to about 1835, can be thought of as formative, mainly influenced by English philosophy, semi-supernatural, imperfectly rationalistic, devoted to philanthropy and practical Christianity. Dr. Channing was its distinguished exponent.

The first official acceptance of the Unitarian faith on the part of a congregation in America was by King's Chapel in Boston, which took James Freeman (1759–1853) as its pastor 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 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, instead, Unitarian theology.^{[26]: 4–5 [27]: 24} Buckminster's close associate William Ellery Channing (1780–1842) became pastor of the Federal Street Church in Boston, 1803; in a few years he became the leader of the Unitarian movement. At first mystical rather than rationalistic in his theology, he took part with the "Catholic Christians", as they called themselves, who aimed at bringing Christianity into harmony with the progressive spirit of the time. His essays on The System of Exclusion and Denunciation in Religion (1815) and Objections to Unitarian Christianity Considered (1819) made him a defender of Unitarianism. His sermon on "Unitarian Christianity", preached at First Unitarian Church of Baltimore in 1819, at the ordination of Jared Sparks, and that at New York in 1821, made him its interpreter.

The result of the "Unitarian Controversy" (1815)^[28][29] was a growing division in the Congregational churches, which was emphasized in 1825 by the formation of the American Unitarian Association at Boston. It was organized "to diffuse the knowledge and promote the interests of pure Christianity" and it published tracts and books, supported poor churches, sent out missionaries into every part of the country, and established new churches in nearly all the states. Essentially non-sectarian, with little missionary zeal, the Unitarian movement has grown slowly, and its influence had chiefly operated through general culture and the literature of the country. Many of its clergymen had been trained in other denominations, but the Harvard Divinity School was distinctly Unitarian from its formation, in 1816, until 1870, when it became a non-sectarian department of the university. The Meadville Lombard Theological School was founded at Meadville, Pennsylvania, in 1844, and the Starr King School for the Ministry at Berkeley, California, in 1904.

The Story of Essex Hall,^[30] written in 1959 by Mortimer Rowe, the Secretary (i.e. chief executive) of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches for its first twenty years, claims that the BFUA and AUA^{[further explanation needed]} were founded entirely coincidentally on the same day, 26 May 1825.^[13][31]

The first school founded by the Unitarians was the Clinton Liberal Institute, in Clinton, Oneida County, New York, in 1831.

Influence of Transcendentalism; reaction

A third period (see Transcendentalism), from about 1835 to about 1885 and profoundly influenced by German idealism, was increasingly rationalistic, though its theology was largely flavoured by mysticism.^[32] As a reaction against this, the National Unitarian Conference was organized in 1865 and adopted a distinctly Christian platform, affirming that its members were "disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ".

The more rationalistic minority thereupon formed the Free Religious Association, "to encourage the scientific study of theology and to increase fellowship in the spirit." The Western Unitarian Conference later accepted the same position and based its "fellowship on no dogmatic tests", instead affirming a desire "to establish truth, righteousness and love in the world."^[33] In addition, the Western Unitarian Conference claimed that belief in God was not a necessary component of Unitarian belief.

This period of controversy and of vigorous theological development nearly came to an end soon after 1885. Its cessation was assured by the action of the national conference at Saratoga Springs, New York, in 1894, when it was affirmed by an almost unanimous vote that: "These churches accept the religion of Jesus, holding, in accordance with his teaching, that practical religion is summed up in love to God and love to man. The conference recognizes the fact that its constituency is Congregational in tradition and polity. Therefore it declares that nothing in this constitution is to be construed as an authoritative test; and we cordially invite to our working fellowship any who, while differing from us in belief, are in general sympathy with our spirit and our practical aims."^[34] The leaders of this period were Ralph Waldo Emerson with his idealism and Theodore Parker with his acceptance of Christianity as absolute religion.

Modern period

The fourth period, beginning about 1885, has been one of rationalism, recognition of universal religion, large acceptance of the scientific method and ideas, and an ethical attempt to realize what was perceived as the higher affirmations of Christianity. It has been marked by a general harmony and unity, by steady growth in the number of churches, and by a widening fellowship with all other similarly minded movements.

This phase was shown in the organization of The International Council of Unitarian and other Liberal Religious Thinkers and Workers at Boston on 25 May 1900, "to open communication with those in all lands who are striving to unite pure religion and perfect liberty, and to increase fellowship and co-operation among them."^[35] This council has held biennial sessions in London, Amsterdam, Geneva, and Boston. During the period after 1885, the influence of Emerson became predominant, modified by the more scientific preaching of Minot Judson Savage, who found his guides in Darwin and Spencer.

Beyond its own borders, the body obtained recognition through the public work of such men as Henry Whitney Bellows and Edward Everett Hale, the remarkable influence of James Freeman Clarke and Thomas Lamb Eliot, and the popular power of Robert Collyer. The number of Unitarian churches in the United States in 1909 was 461, with 541 ministers. The church membership then may be estimated at 100,000. The periodicals were The Christian Register, weekly, Boston; Unity, weekly, Chicago; The Unitarian, monthly, New York; Old and New, monthly, Des Moines; Pacific Unitarian, San Francisco.

In 1961, the American Unitarian Association merged with the Universalist Church of America, forming the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA).

Strictly speaking, modern-day Unitarian Universalism is not Unitarian in theology. Despite its name, this denomination does not necessarily promote either belief in One God or universal salvation. It is merely the inheritor of the Unitarian and Universalist church system in America. Though there are Unitarians within the UUA, there is no creed or doctrine that one must affirm to join a Unitarian Universalist congregation. This makes it very different from many other faith groups. Today, the majority of Unitarian Universalists do not identify themselves as Christians.^[36] Jesus and the Bible are generally treated as exceptional sources of inspiration, along with the holy people and traditions around the world. Unitarian Universalists base their community on a set of Principles and Purposes, rather than on a prophet or creed. Notable Unitarian Universalists include Tim Berners-Lee (founder of the World Wide Web), Pete Seeger, U. S. Congressman Pete Stark, former U. S. Senator Mike Gravel, and Christopher Reeve.

The decline of specifically Christian theology in the Unitarian churches in the United States has prompted several revival movements. Unitarian Christians within the UUA formed the Unitarian Universalist Christian Fellowship (UUCF) in 1945, a fellowship within UUA just for Christians, who were gradually becoming a minority. Similarly, the American Unitarian Conference (AUC) was founded in 2000 with four congregations, but unlike the UUCF, the AUC remains outside the UUA. The AUC's mission is "renewal of the historic Unitarian faith", and promotes a set of God-centered religious principles, but like Unitarian Universalism, it does not impose a creed on its members.

Unitarians in America, because of the developments with the Unitarian churches, have generally taken one of three courses of action to find communities in which to worship God. Some have stayed within the Unitarian churches, accepting the non-Christian nature of their congregation, but have found their needs met in the UUCF. Some Unitarians, because they felt that the mainstream UUA churches are not accepting of Christians, or that the larger Unitarian Universalist organizations are becoming too political and liberal to be considered a religious movement or faith, have decided to affiliate with the American Unitarian Conference. Most Christian Unitarians have sought out liberal Christian churches in other denominations and have made homes there.^[37]

Canada

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Unitarianism arrived in Canada from Iceland and Britain. Some Canadian congregations had services in Icelandic into living memory. The first Unitarian service in Canada was held in 1832 by a minister from England, Rev. David Hughes, in a school owned by the Workman family, who were Unitarians from Belfast. The Montreal congregation, founded in 1842, called their first permanent minister, the Rev. John Cordner, of the

in Toronto was founded whose first minister, William Adam, was a Scottish Baptist missionary who had served in India. Then, other congregations formed: Hamilton in 1889, Ottawa in 1898, the First Icelandic Unitarian Church in Winnipeg in 1891, a congregation in Vancouver in 1909, and a congregation in Victoria in 1910. Individual Canadian congregations had ties to the British association until they were disrupted by World War II, when relations to Unitarians in the United States became stronger.

(CUC).

The CUC was formed on 14 May 1961, one day before the UUA in the United States, but the two functioned in close association until money exchange and other complications led to greater independence, with the CUC in 2002 assuming the direct delivery of services to Canadian congregations that were formerly delivered by the UUA. The UUA continues to provide ministerial settlement services to CUC member congregations.

The Unitarian Service Committee, established during World War II as an overseas emergency relief agency, began under the capable direction of

USC Canada

and draws support throughout Canada for its humanitarian work in many parts of the world.

The first ordination of a Canadian Unitarian minister after the organizational separation of the CUC and the UUA was held at the First Unitarian Church of Victoria, British Columbia, in 2002. Rev. Brian Kiely, who was to give the ordination sermon, was told (partly in jest) that he must define Canadian Unitarianism, as Rev. Channing had at that New England ordination sermon of 1819. The simile Rev. Kiely chose was that Canadian Unitarianism is like a doughnut, the richness is in the circle of fellowship, not a creedal centre.

Modern period

20th century

In 1928, the British and Foreign Unitarian Association merged with the Sunday School Association, with which it had been sharing offices for decades as the

.

21st century

In May 2004, Rev. Peter Hughes, vice-chairman of the East Lancashire Unitarian Mission and a minister at Chowbent Chapel founded in 1645 in Atherton, Greater Manchester, published an article in the movement's journal, The Inquirer, and gave an interview to The Times where he warned of the extinction of the Unitarian Church. According to The Times, "the church has fewer than 6,000 members in Britain; half of whom are aged over 65." He added, referring to Toxteth Chapel in Liverpool, the movement's oldest building, where he was brought up, "they have had no minister since 1976 and the Unitarian cause there is effectively dead." The denomination's president, Dawn Buckle, a retired lecturer in education, denied that the movement was in a terminal phase and described it as a "thriving community capable of sustaining growth".^[38] There are more than 180 Unitarian congregations in Britain as part of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches.^[39]

Entirely separate from the General Assembly, and generally with no historical descent from the

Recently, some religious groups have adopted the term "

Unitarianism's spread to other countries

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Germany

There are currently five separate groups of Unitarians in Germany:

• The Unitarische Freie Religionsgemeinde (Unitarian Free Religious Community, then called German Catholics) was founded in 1845 in
  Frankfurt am Main.^[42]

• The Religionsgemeinschaft Freier Protestanten ("Religious Community of Free Protestants") was formed in 1876 in Germany's
  Deutsche Unitarier Religionsgemeinschaft ("German Unitarian Religious Community").^{[citation needed]} The organization's leaders and most of its members came from those Nazi groups and it was firmly anchored in the extreme far-right German scene well into the 1980s.^{[citation needed]} It is the only Unitarian group in Germany to belong to the ICUU
  .

• The Unitarische Kirche in Berlin (Unitarian Church in Berlin) was founded by Hansgeorg Remus in 1948.[45]

• The Christliche Unitarier (Christian Unitarians) a unitarian-christian group in Germany and Austria founded in 2018.^[46]

• The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Frankfurt is an international, English-speaking liberal religious community serving the Rhein-Main area.^[47] It is part of the European Unitarian Universalists.

Denmark

In 1900, Det fri Kirkesamfund (literally, The Free Congregation) was founded by a group of liberal Christians in Copenhagen. Since 1908, the church is outside the Folkekirke (the Danish Lutheran state church). In Aarhus, another Unitarian congregation was founded at this time by the Norwegian Unitarian pastor and writer Kristofer Janson (1841–1917); it has since closed. Often labeled and considered as a "pioneer" or "precursor"^[48] (in a spiritual manner) to the Unitarian movement in Denmark was the Icelandic theologian Magnús Eiríksson (1806–1881), who lived in Copenhagen from 1831 until his death in 1881.

Sweden

Inspired by the writings of Theodore Parker, the Swedish writer Klas Pontus Arnoldson founded in Gothenburg in 1871 the Unitarian association Sanningssökarna ("The Truth Seekers")—later also found in Stockholm. This association also published the periodical Sanningssökaren ("The Truth Seeker"). Two other Unitarian associations were founded in 1882 (one of them in Stockholm). In 1888, Unitarians asked the Swedish King for permission to establish yet another Unitarian association in Gothenburg but were turned down because Unitarianism was not regarded as a Christian religion. Later, many Unitarians turned to theosophy. In 1974, members of The Religion and Culture Association in Malmö founded The Free Church of Sweden and Rev. Ragnar Emilsen would be its pastor, ordained 1987 to Unitarian minister for Sweden and Finland and later the first to become Unitarian bishop of Scandinavia; he died February 2008. In 1999, the church changed its name to The Unitarian Church in Sweden.

Norway

In 1892 and 1893, the Norwegian Unitarian ministers

independent of The Norwegian Unitarian Church. This fellowship is located in the Oslo area.

Spain

Although the pioneer and first martyr of European Unitarianism was a Spaniard,

Roman Catholic Church

over both the State and the Spanish society, blocked for centuries any possibility of developing a Unitarian Church in Spain.

This situation began to change in the 19th century. A liberal Spanish writer and former priest,

, and wished that natural religion and religious rationalism were more present in Spain, although they did not create any liberal church to push that process forward.

The

Sociedad Unitaria Universalista de España

(SUUE) was founded in Barcelona, and in 2001 it became a member of the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU). In 2005, it changed its name to the Unitarian Universalist Religious Society of Spain to achieve legal status as a religious organization under the Spanish law on Religious Freedom, but the application was also rejected.

References