Unitarianism

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the Christian theological tradition. For the doctrinal position, see Nontrinitarianism. For the liberal religious movement, see Unitarian Universalism. For its British counterpart, see General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches. For other uses, see Unitarian.
Part of a series on
Theism
Types of faith
Specific conceptions
In particular religions
Abrahamic
Indo-Iranian
Chinese
Attributes
  • Experiences
  • Practices
Related topics

Unitarianism (from

Jesus Christ was inspired by God in his moral teachings and that he is the savior of humankind,[1][2][3] but he is not equal to God himself.[1][2][4]

Unitarianism was established in order to restore "

denominations or Unitarian Christian denominations that are more conservative, with the latter being known as biblical Unitarians.[8][9]

The birth of the Unitarian faith is proximate to the Radical Reformation, beginning almost simultaneously among the Protestant[10] Polish Brethren in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and in the Principality of Transylvania in the mid-16th century;[11] the first Unitarian Christian denomination known to have emerged during that time was the Unitarian Church of Transylvania, founded by the Unitarian preacher and theologian Ferenc Dávid (c. 1520–1579).[11] 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.[11][12][13][14] In the 17th century, significant repression in Poland led many Unitarians to flee or be killed for their faith.[12] From 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,[15] where today's British Unitarian headquarters is still located.[16]

As is typical of dissenters and nonconformists, Unitarianism does not constitute one single Christian denomination; rather, it refers to 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 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.[17]

Terminology

liberal religious movement, while retaining its distinctiveness in continental Europe
and elsewhere.

Unitarianism is a

biblical unitarianism to distinguish their theologies from Unitarianism.[22]

The term Unitarian is sometimes applied today to those who belong to a Unitarian church but do not hold a Unitarian theological belief.

liberal religious movement, see Unitarian Universalism (and its national groups the Unitarian Universalist Association in the United States, the Canadian Unitarian Council in Canada, the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches in the United Kingdom, and the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists).[citation needed
]

History

Main article: History of Unitarianism
Further information: Radical Reformation and Reformation in the Kingdom of Hungary
Ferenc Dávid holding his speech at the Diet of Torda (1568), in the Kingdom of Hungary (today Turda, Romania). Painting by Aladár Körösfői-Kriesch (1896).

Unitarianism, both as 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.[29][30] 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.[31]

The Ecclesia minor or Minor Reformed Church of Poland, better known today as the

Bibliotheca Fratrum Polonorum quos Unitarios vocant (Library of the Polish Brethren who are called Unitarians 4 vols. 1665–1669).[citation needed
]

The Unitarian Church in Transylvania was first recognized by the

Lécfalva, Transylvania, on 25 October 1600, though it was not widely used in Transylvania until 1638, when the formal recepta Unitaria Religio was published.[citation needed
]

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

Essex Street Church in London.[15] Official toleration came in 1813
.

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

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 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.[35]

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

Beliefs

"God is One" (Egy az Isten) stained glass window in a Unitarian church in Budapest, Hungary.

Christology

Unitarians charge that the

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.[36]

In the early 19th century, Unitarian Robert Wallace identified three particular classes of Unitarian doctrines in history:

  • Arian, which believed in a pre-existence of the Logos;
  • Socinian, which denied his pre-existence, but agreed that Christ should be worshipped;
  • "Strict Unitarian", which, believing in an "incommunicable divinity of God", denied the worship of "the man Christ."[37][38]

Unitarianism 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.[39]

Several tenets of Unitarianism overlap with the predominant Muslim view of Jesus and Islamic understanding of monotheism.[40]

"Socinian" Christology

Main article: Socinianism
Fausto Sozzini was an Italian theologian who helped define Unitarianism and also served the Polish Brethren church.

The Christology commonly called "

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 the Holy Spirit.[citation needed
]

This Christology existed in some form or another prior to Sozzini.

Anabaptist movements of the 16th century this idea resurfaced with Sozzini's uncle, Lelio Sozzini. Having influenced 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,[46] 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 a "Socinian" view was James Freeman.[citation needed
]

Regarding the

Transcendentalist Unitarianism, which emerged from the German liberal theology associated primarily with Friedrich Schleiermacher, the psilanthropist view increased in popularity.[53] 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 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.[54][55][56]

Arianism

Arian
books, illustration from a book of canon law, c. 825.

Arianism is often considered a form of Unitarianism.[57]

The Christology of Arianism holds that Jesus, before his human life, existed as the Logos, or the Word, a being begotten or created by God, who dwelt with God in heaven.[citation needed] 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.[citation needed] Not all of these views necessarily were held by Arius, 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.[citation needed]

Among early Christian theologians who believed in a pre-existent Jesus who was subordinate to God the Father were

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.[58][unreliable source?] (In his "Treatise Concerning 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"[59] 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 the face and personality of Christ shone bright."[59]) Isaac Newton had Arian beliefs as well.[60][61][62] Famous 19th-century Arian Unitarians include Andrews Norton[63] and William Ellery Channing (in his earlier years).[64]

Other beliefs

Although there is no specific authority on convictions of Unitarian belief aside from rejection of the Trinity, the following beliefs are generally accepted:[65][66][67][68][69][70]

  • One God and the oneness or unity of God.
  • The life and teachings of Jesus Christ constitute the exemplary model for living one's own life.
  • Reason, rational thought, science, and philosophy coexist with faith in God.
  • Humans have the ability to exercise free will in a responsible, constructive and ethical manner with the assistance of religion.
  • Human nature in its present condition is neither inherently corrupt nor depraved (see original sin) but capable of both good and evil, as God intended.
  • No religion can claim an absolute monopoly on the Holy Spirit or
    theological
    truth.
  • Though the authors of the Bible were inspired by God, they were humans and therefore subject to human error.
  • The traditional
    Atonement are invalid because they malign God's character and veil the true nature and mission of Jesus Christ.[71]

In 1938, The Christian Leader attributed "the religion of Jesus, not a religion about Jesus" to Unitarians,

Congregationalist Rollin Lynde Hartt in 1924.[73]

Worship

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 a story for all ages; and include sermons, prayers, hymns and songs. Some will allow attendees to publicly share their recent joys or concerns.[74]

Modern Christian Unitarian organizations

Main article: History of Unitarianism
First Unitarian Meeting House in Madison, Wisconsin, designed by Unitarian Frank Lloyd Wright

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.

International groups

See also: International Council of Unitarians and Universalists

Some Unitarian Christian groups are affiliated with the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU), founded in 1995.[75] 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,[76] Romania, South Africa, Spain. Sri Lanka and the United States. Brazil is a Provisional Member.[77]

The ICUU includes small "Associate Groups", including Congregazione Italiana Cristiano Unitariana, Turin (founded in 2004)[78][79] and the Bét Dávid Unitarian Association, Oslo (founded 2005).[80]

Transylvania (Romania)

World Heritage List
.

The largest Unitarian denomination worldwide today is also the oldest Unitarian denomination (since 1565, first use of the term "Unitarian" 1600):

John II Sigismund Zápolya. The Unitarian churches in Hungary and Transylvania are structured and organized along 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.[82] 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.[citation needed
]

United Kingdom

Newington Green Unitarian Church in London, England. Built in 1708, this is the oldest nonconformist church in London still in use.

The Unitarian Christian Association (UCA) was founded in the United Kingdom in 1991 by Rev. Lancelot Garrard (1904–93)[83] 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.[citation needed]

The majority of Unitarian Christian publications are sponsored by an organization and published specifically for their membership. Generally, they do not serve as a tool for missionary work or encouraging conversions.[citation needed]

India

In India, three different schools of Unitarian thought influenced varying movements, including the Brahmo Samaj, the Unitarian Church of the Khasi Hills,[84] and the Unitarian Christian Church of Chennai, in Madras, founded in 1795.[85] As of 2011, "Thirty-five congregations and eight fellowships comprising almost 10,000 Unitarians now form the Unitarian Union of North East India."[86]

United States

Whitney Young, executive director of the National Urban League (1961–1971), and Unitarian Universalist.

Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) is a network of liberal religious congregations affirming the worth and dignity of every person, shared ethical principles and reverence for a variety of theological sources.[87] The UUA was formed in 1961 by the consolidation of the American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church of America.

Individual congregations may choose to elevate all of the sources of faith in their worship, or, in their context, move toward affirming particular sources as predominant. As of 2020, the UUA reports 187,689 individual members active in 1,027 congregations.[88]

During the US Civil Rights Movements, the murders of the US veteran

Jimmie Lee Jackson, the Unitarian Universalist Minister James Reeb, and Unitarian Universalist lay leader Viola Liuzzo during the time of the marches from Selma to Montgomery highlighted the bigotry and violence of racial injustice to the wider American public.[89][90] According to the historian Rev. Mark Morrison-Reed, on the final day of the march, "among the 30,000 who marched were about 500 UU lay people and about 250 UU ministers. The ministers who went to Selma represented a quarter to a third of all UU ministers in full fellowship."[91] The Selma protests were critical to supporting passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.[92]

The current President of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) is Rev. Dr. Sofía Betancourt. Former president Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray (2017-2023) noted, for Unitarian Universalists, "Our work for justice and equity—our work to dismantle white supremacy culture, racism, and oppression in ourselves and in our world—is the faithful response to our theology of interdependence."[93]

A Unitarian Assembly in Louisville, Kentucky

The Unitarian Universalist Christian Fellowship (UUCF) was founded in 1945, originally to support Unitarian Christians in the American Unitarian Association. The mission expanded to support Christian members of Universalist Church of America (UCA) in the newly formed Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) in 1961. UUCF continues as an affiliate of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) serving Christian members seeking to "freely follow Jesus".[94]

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

deists.[95] As of 2009, The AUC has three congregations in the United States.[96]

Unitarian Christian Ministries International 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. [97]

The Unitarian Christian Church of America (UCCA) 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.[98]

Australia and New Zealand

Further information: Australia and New Zealand Unitarian Universalist Association

The first Unitarian Church in Australia was built in 1854 in Melbourne and was followed soon afterwards by chapels in Sydney and Adelaide, and later regional centres including Ballarat.[99][100] The modern church, no longer unitarian Christian, retains properties in Adelaide, Sydney and Melbourne, and smaller congregations elsewhere in Australia and New Zealand.[101]

South Africa

The Unitarian movement in South Africa was founded in 1867 by

University of Leiden in the Netherlands for the ministry of the Dutch Reformed Church in Cape Town
.

Ireland

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.

Denmark

Unitarianism was a latecomer to Denmark. Some of the inspiration came from Norway and England – family members of 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 the Danish Lutheran Church, to one where this was no longer assumed ([103]).

Biblical Unitarians

Main article:
Biblical Unitarianism

A few denominations use this term to describe themselves, clarifying the distinction between them and those churches which, from the late 19th century, evolved into modern British Unitarianism and, primarily in the United States, Unitarian Universalism.[104] In 16th-century Italy, Biblical Unitarianism was powered by the ideas of the Non-trinitarian theologians Lelio and Fausto Sozzini, founders of Socinianism;[105] their doctrine was embraced and further developed by the Unitarian Church of Transylvania during the 16th and 17th centuries.[106] Today, it's represented by the churches associated with the Christian Church in Italy.[107]

Notable Unitarians

Main article: List of Unitarians, Universalists, and Unitarian Universalists
Arian
views

Notable Unitarians include classical composers

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Whitney Young of 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[111] and Samuel Carter MP[112] in industry; Thomas Starr King in ministry and politics; and Charles William Eliot in education. Julia Ward Howe was a leader in 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, a signatory to the Oregon State Constitution, founded the first Unitarian church in Oregon in 1865.[113]

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was an abolitionist, journalist, and suffragist associated with both American Unitarianism and the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

Eleven Nobel Prizes have been awarded to Unitarians:

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.[citation needed
]

Four presidents of the United States were Unitarians: John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Millard Fillmore, and William Howard Taft.[115] 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 2020.[citation needed] Although a self-styled materialist, Thomas Jefferson was pro-Unitarian to the extent of suggesting that it would become the predominant religion in the United States.[116]

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, England, a Unitarian church – the Church of the Messiah – was opened in 1862. It became a cultural and intellectual centre of a whole society, a place where ideas about society were openly and critically discussed.[note 1]

Other Unitarians include Sir

Ram Mohan Roy, an Indian reformer of the 18th century, was a Unitarian who published a book called Precepts of Jesus.[123]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Henry W. Crosskey's congregation included Joseph Chamberlain, father of British prime minister Neville Chamberlain[117] and Arthur, his younger brother, who was married to Louisa Kenrick; William Kenrick, his brother-in-law, who was married to Mary Chamberlain; and Sir Thomas Martineau, who was the nephew of Harriet Martineau, another outspoken public figure and author. Sir Thomas Martineau (died 1893) was related to the Chamberlain family by marriage; Sir Thomas had married Emily Kenrick, the sister of Florence Chamberlain, née Kenrick.[120] In Lambeth, South London, another two members of the Martineau family, Caroline and Constance, worked at Morley College, the former acting as (unpaid) principal for over 11 years. Several other prominent Unitarians were involved in the development of this liberal arts college, which was founded by actors at the Old Vic theatre.[121]

References

Citations

  1. ^
    Jesus Christ retains highest respect as a spiritual and moral teacher of unparalleled insight and sensitivity, but he is not regarded as divine, or at least his divine nature is not on the same level as the singular and unique Creator God
    .
  2. ^ a b c Miano, David (2003), An Explanation of Unitarian Christianity, AUC, p. 15, archived from the original on 2019-05-21, retrieved 2012-10-01.
  3. ^ Drzymala, Daren. 2002. Biblical Christianity. Xulon press. p. 122: "Classically, Unitarian Universalist Christians [and Unitarian Christians] have understood Jesus as a Savior because he was a God-filled human being, not a supernatural being."
  4. ^ "Jesus Christ: Incarnated or Created? – Was he actually born?". BiblicalUnitarian.com. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  5. ^ Joseph Priestley, one of the founders of the Unitarian movement, defined Unitarianism as the belief of primitive Christianity before later corruptions set in. Among these corruptions, he included not only the doctrine of the Trinity, but also various other orthodox doctrines and usages (Earl Morse Wilbur, A History of Unitarianism, Harvard University Press 1952, pp. 302–303).
  6. ^ From The Catechism of the Hungarian Unitarian Church in Transylvanian Romania: "Unitarians do not teach original sin. We do not believe that through the sin of the first human couple we all became corrupted. It would contradict the love and justice of God to attribute to us the sin of others, because sin is one's own personal action" (Ferencz Jozsef, 20th ed., 1991. Translated from Hungarian by Gyorgy Andrasi, published in The Unitarian Universalist Christian, Fall/Winter, 1994, Volume 49, Nos. 3–4; VII:107).
  7. ^ In his history of the Unitarians, David Robinson writes: "At their inception, both Unitarians and Universalists shared a common theological enemy: Calvinism." He explains that they "consistently attacked Calvinism on the related issues of original sin and election to salvation, doctrines that in their view undermined human moral exertion." (D. Robinson, The Unitarians and the Universalists, Greenwood Press, 1985, pp. 3, 17).
  8. ISBN 978-0-19-161433-0
    . Biblical Unitarians are standardly portrayed as denouncing liberal Unitarians
  9. ISBN 978-0-19-960841-6
    . Although a biblical Unitarian, Mary Carpenter was lifelong friends with James Martineau, the pioneer of English liberal Unitarianism.
  10. ISBN 978-0313260070. Archived
    from the original on 2023-09-28. Retrieved 2021-12-25.
  11. ^
    ISBN 978-0-943549-83-5. Archived
    from the original on 2023-01-13. Retrieved 2023-01-13.
  12. ^
    S2CID 158456664. Archived
    from the original on 2023-02-10. Retrieved 2023-02-10.
  13. ^ James Hastings Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics: Algonquins-Art p. 785 – 2001 "The first Unitarians were Italians, and the majority took refuge in Poland, where the laxity of the laws and the independence of the nobility secured for them a toleration which would have been denied to their views in other countries."
  14. ^ The encyclopedia of Protestantism 137 Hans Joachim Hillerbrand – 2004 "The so-called Golden Age of Unitarianism in Transylvania (1540–1571) resulted in a rich production of works both in Hungarian and Latin".
  15. ^
    ISBN 978-0-271-04624-2. Archived
    from the original on 2023-09-28. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
  16. ^ Erwin Fahlbusch The encyclopedia of Christianity 5 603 2008 "Lindsey attempted but failed to gain legal relief for Anglican Unitarians, so in 1774 he opened his own distinctly Unitarian church on Essex Street, London, where today's British Unitarian headquarters are still located."
  17. ^ American Unitarianism: or, A Brief history of "The progress and State of the Unitarian Churches in America, third edition, 1815 "So early as the year 1786, Dr. Freeman had persuaded his church to adopt a liturgy, which the Rev. ... Thus much for the history of Unitarianism at the Stone Chapel."
  18. ISBN 978-0844258218
    ). Second Edition 1994, p. 59: "Religious Names and Terms: The names of all religions, denominations, and local groups are capitalized."
  19. ^ J. Gordon Melton, Encyclopedia of Protestantism, 2005, p. 543: "Unitarianism – The word unitarian [italics] means one who believes in the oneness of God; historically it refers to those in the Christian community who rejected the doctrine of the Trinity (one God expressed in three persons). Non-Trinitarian Protestant churches emerged in the 16th century in ITALY, POLAND, and TRANSYLVANIA."
  20. hypo-static belief system of someone not directly associated with the Unitarian movement, almost always applied to a person from the Christian tradition, as the word was coined in distinction to the orthodox 'Trinitarian' doctrine of Christianity. 'Unitarians' (capital 'U') are, of course, those who follow the Unitarian approach to religion and are formally associated with the movement. In neither case can it be claimed that there is an underlying agenda towards reductionism and uniformity. Quite the reverse, in fact. Modern Unitarianism is remarkable among religions in not only welcoming the variety of faiths that there are to be found but also, as a creedless church, welcoming and encouraging acceptance of the same. We readily accept that not all our members are 'realist' theists, for example. Our long-standing commitment to interfaith understanding, evident in our practical support of the International Association for Religious Freedom, the World Congress of Faiths and the newly established International Interfaith centre in Oxford cannot be taken to mean that Unitarians are seeking the creation of a single world religion out of the old. I do not know a single Unitarian who believes or seeks that. On the contrary, we reject uniformity and cherish instead the highest degree of spiritual integrity, both of the existing religious traditions of the world and of religious persons as unique, thinking individuals. Matthew F Smith, Information Officer" (Essex Street Chapel
    , Unitarian Church headquarters, UK)
  21. ^ "The name originated at the time of the great dispute at Gyulafehérvár in 1568, in the course of which Mélius quite often concluded his argument by saying, Ergo Deus est trinitarius.... Hence his party naturally came to be called Trinitarians and their opponents would naturally be called Unitarians. The name seems thus to have come into general use only gradually and it was long before it was employed in the formal proclamations of their Superintendents.... It is not found in print as the denomination of the church until 1600, when the unitaria religio is named as one of the four received religions in a decree of the Diet of Léczfalva (cf. Magyar Emlékek, iv, 551) in the extreme southeastern part of Transylvania. The name was never used by the Socinians in Poland; but late in the seventeenth century Transylvanian Unitarian students made it well-known in Holland, where the Socinians in exile, who had never adopted Socinian as the name of their movement and were more and more objecting to it, welcomed it as distinguishing them from Trinitarians. It thus gradually superseded the term Socinian, and spread to England and America." Earl Morse Wilbur, A History of Unitarianism, vol. 2, pp. 47–48.
  22. ^ Tuggy, Dale, (2009). Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy[permanent dead link].
  23. ^ Robinson, The Unitarians and the Universalists, pp. 159–184.
  24. ^ AW Gomes, EC Beisner, and RM Bowman, Unitarian Universalism (Zondervan, 1998), pp. 30–79.
  25. ^ American Unitarian association, 1886. The Unitarian Register. American Unitarian Association. p. 563
  26. ^ Rationalist Press Association Limited, 1957. Humanist, Volume 72. p. III
  27. ^ George Willis Cooke, Unitarianism in America (AUA, 1902), pp. 224–230.
  28. ^ Engaging Our Theological Diversity (PDF), UUA, pp. 70–72, archived (PDF) from the original on 2010-06-15, retrieved 2011-01-02
  29. ^ "Book Talk with Michel Mohr "Unitarianism in Japan: Unravelling Its Saga through the UUA Archives"". library.hds.harvard.edu. Archived from the original on 2021-07-31. Retrieved 2021-03-21.
  30. ^ "Unitarians, Universalists, and Unitarian Universalists Around the World | International Unitarian Universalism | UUA.org". www.uua.org. Archived from the original on 2021-04-11. Retrieved 2021-03-21.
  31. ^ "The religious movement whose history we are endeavoring to trace...became fully developed in thought and polity in only four countries, one after another, namely Poland, Transylvania, England and America, but in each of these it showed, along with certain individual characteristics, a general spirit, a common point of view, and a doctrinal pattern that tempt one to regard them as all outgrowths of a single movement which passed from one to another; for nothing could be more natural than to presume that these common features implied a common ancestry. Yet such is not the fact, for in each of these four lands the movement, instead of having originated elsewhere, and been translated only after attaining mature growth, appears to have sprung independently and directly from its own native roots, and to have been influenced by other and similar movements only after it had already developed an independent life and character of its own." Earl Morse Wilbur, A History of Unitarianism, vol. 2 (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1952), p. 166.
  32. ^ Hewett, Racovia, pp. 20–21.
  33. ISBN 9780191744303. Archived
    from the original on 2023-09-28. Retrieved 2022-09-17. Poland, where Faustus Socinus was their leader from 1579 until his death.
  34. ISBN 0-8223-1241-7
    .
  35. ISBN 978-0271045818. Archived
    from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 21 July 2020. ...Before 1819, American Unitarians followed the teachings of [England's] Priestly...[in the next few decades] the liberal Congregationalists adopted their Unitarian theology.
  36. ^ Hastings, James, Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics, vol. 2, p. 785, Unitarianism started, on the other hand, with the denial of the pre-existence... These opinions, however, must be considered apart from Arianism proper.
  37. ^ Wallace, Robert. 1819. A Plain Statement and Scriptural Defence of the Leading Doctrines of Unitarianism Archived 2023-03-26 at the Wayback Machine. "Statement of The Peculiar Doctrines of Unitarians": pp. 7–10
  38. ^ See also Socinianism, Arianism and Unitarianism Archived 2015-01-20 at the Wayback Machine, by Christian Churches of God, Wade Cox, Summary No. 185z
  39. ^ Mossner, Ernest Campbell (1967). "Deism". Encyclopedia of Philosophy 2. Collier-MacMillan. pp. 326–336.
  40. ISBN 978-0299048341
    .
  41. ^ Hoben, Allan (1903), The Virgin Birth, Of the above-stated beliefs that of Theodotus of Byzantium is perhaps the most striking, in that, while it admits the virgin birth, it denies the deductions commonly made therefrom, attributing to Christ only pre-eminent righteousness.
  42. ^ Bright, William, Some Aspects of Primitive Church Life, p. 127, His original view was put into more definite form by Artemon, who regarded Jesus Christ as distinguished from prophets by (1) virgin-birth, (a) superior virtue.
  43. ^ Charles, Tutorial Prayer Book, p. 599.
  44. ^ Houdt, Toon, Self-Presentation and Social Identification, p. 238, Christian apologists traced the origin of Socinianism to the doctrine of Photinus (4th century), who according to St. Augustine denied the pre-existence of Christ.
  45. R. P. C. Hanson (1916–1988), Lightfoot Professor of Divinity
    The Search for the Christian Doctrine of God: The Arian Controversy, 318–381 (9780801031465): 1973 "Photinus' doctrine appears to have been a form of what might be called middle Marcellism, i.e. what Marcellus originally taught before his vicissitudes caused him to temper the edge of his doctrine and take account of the criticisms of his friends as well as of his enemies, a little more moderated."
  46. ^ Watson, R., A Biblical and Theological Dictionary, p. 999.
  47. ^ Bromiley, Geoffrey W. (1982), International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. E–J, p. 9, Origen was the first to distinguish between two types of Ebionites theologically: those who believed in the Virgin Birth and those who rejected it.
  48. ISBN 978-0-521-46955-5
    .
  49. ^ Webb, R. K. (2007), "Miracles in English Unitarian Thought", in Micale, Mark S.; Dietle, Robert L; Gay, Peter (eds.), Enlightenment, Passion, Modernity: Historical Essays in European Thought and Culture, p. 120.
  50. ^ Belsham (1806), "Remarks on Mr. Proud's Pamphlet", Monthly Repository, p. 423.
  51. ^ Wright, Richard (1808), An Essay on the Miraculous Conception of Jesus Christ, London.
  52. ^ Wright, R, A Review of the Missionary Life and Labors of Richard Wright, p. 68, After they were excited to think freely, some gave up the doctrine of the miraculous conception, from reading the scriptures only, and observing certain things there with which it could not be reconciled.
  53. ISBN 0-8090-3477-8
    .
  54. ^ Placher, William Carl (1983), A History of Christian Theology: An Introduction, p. 265, Rationalist Unitarians like William Ellery Channing had argued from the Bible and the evidence of its miracles.
  55. ^ Chadwick, John White, William Ellery Channing: Minister of Religion, p. 440.
  56. ^ Mendelsohn, Jack (1971), Channing, the Reluctant Radical: A Biography, A Suffolk County grand jury indicted him on three charges of blasphemy and obscenity: (1) he had quoted a scurrilous passage by Voltaire disparaging the virgin birth of Jesus.
  57. ^ "Arianism". Britannica. 28 August 2023. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  58. ^ Odhner, CT (1910), Michael Servetus, His Life and Teachings, p. 77, It will be seen from these extracts how completely without foundation is the assertion that Servetus denied the eternal pre-existence of Christ.
  59. ^
    ISBN 978-0-7734-5520-7
    .
  60. ^ Pfizenmaier, Thomas C. (1997), "Was Isaac Newton an Arian?", Journal of the History of Ideas, pp. 57–80, Among contemporary scholars, the consensus is that Newton was an Arian.
  61. ^ Wiles, Maurice F (1996), Archetypal Heresy: Arianism Through the Centuries, p. 133, Modern Unitarianism emerged after Newton's death.
  62. ^ Nicholls, David (1995), God and Government in an 'age of Reason', p. 44, Unitarianism ideas emerged after Newton's death.
  63. ^ A Statement of Reasons for Not Believing the Doctrines of Trinitarians, 1859.
  64. ^ "Unitarian Christianity", The Works of WE Channing, DD, 1841.
  65. hdl:2027/hvd.32044081810715
    .
  66. ^ Henderson, AC (1886), What Do Unitarians Believe?
  67. ^ Dewey, Orville (1873), The Unitarian Belief, Boston{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link).
  68. ^ Clarke, James Freeman (1924) [1885], Manual of Unitarian Belief (20th ed.)
  69. ^ Ellis, George H (1890), What Do Unitarians Believe About Jesus Christ?, Boston{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link).
  70. ^ Sunderland, Jabez T (1891), What Do Unitarians Believe?, New York: AUA.
  71. ^ "The Unitarian Denomination". The Quarterly Journal of the American Unitarian Association. 5. Boston: American Unitarian Association: 168. 1858. Archived from the original on 2023-09-28. Retrieved 2020-11-22.
  72. ^ An esteemed Unitarian minister (1938), "2", The Christian Leader, vol. 120, p. 1034, This view finds pat expression in the dictum that Christianity is the religion of Jesus, not a religion about Jesus.
  73. ^ Hartt, Rollin Lynde (1924), The Man Himself.
  74. ^ "BBC – Religions – Unitarianism: Unitarian worship". www.bbc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2022-03-28. Retrieved 2022-03-28.
  75. ^ A Brief History on archived ICUU website. Retrieved 15 January 2020
  76. ^ Unitarians in Poland Archived 2020-01-15 at the Wayback Machine on official website, 15 April 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2020
  77. ^ Member Groups on archived ICUU website. Retrieved 15 January 2020
  78. ^ Italy – Emerging Group on archived ICUU website. Retrieved 15 January 2020
  79. ^ Rosso, Rev. Roberto, Protestanti radicale (in Italian), Cesnur, archived from the original on 2009-10-14, retrieved 2010-06-12
  80. ^ Unitarforbundet Bét Dávid (Den norske unitarkirke) (in Norwegian), archived from the original on 2009-04-22, retrieved 2010-06-12
  81. ^ a the Diet of Lécfalva 1600, in Gordon A. Heads of Unitarian History
  82. ^ Keyes, David (1999), Most Like An Arch, p. 106, And for those [UUs] who take the time to understand Transylvanian Unitarian beliefs, there may be some surprising discoveries to be made. They are humanists! Their Unitarian Christianity is steeped in rationalism, is heavily influenced by judaism
  83. PMID 17755824. Archived from the original on 2018-09-24. Retrieved 2017-11-01. {{cite book}}: |journal= ignored (help
    )
  84. ^ "Unitarianism in Khasi-Jaintia Hills: A unique movement". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 2018-10-31. Retrieved 2018-09-26.
  85. ^ "Our Partner Church in India". Unitarians in Edinburgh. Archived from the original on 2019-08-22. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
  86. ^ Jane, Greer (21 February 2011). "Morales visits Unitarians and humanitarian partners in India". UU World. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 27 February 2021.
  87. ^ "Bylaws and Rules | UUA.org". www.uua.org. Archived from the original on 2022-06-07. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  88. ^ "UUA Membership Statistics, 1961–2020 | UUA.org". www.uua.org. Archived from the original on 2021-04-10. Retrieved 2021-04-04.
  89. ^ "The story behind the unsolved 1965 murder of Rev. James Reeb". Newsweek. 2019-05-28. Archived from the original on 2022-06-07. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  90. ^ "The March at Selma | A Chorus of Faiths | Tapestry of Faith | UUA.org". www.uua.org. Archived from the original on 2022-07-06. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  91. ^ "Selma's challenge | UU World Magazine". www.uuworld.org. 4 January 2015. Archived from the original on 2022-07-01. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  92. ^ University, © Stanford; Stanford; California 94305 (2017-06-08). "Selma to Montgomery March". The Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute. Archived from the original on 2022-06-03. Retrieved 2022-06-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  93. ^ "Our Faith Calls Us to Antiracist Work | UU World Magazine". www.uuworld.org. December 2021. Archived from the original on 2022-06-07. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  94. ^ "UU Christian Fellowship". UU Christian Fellowship. Archived from the original on 2021-04-02. Retrieved 2021-04-04.
  95. ^ The Connection of Deism to American Unitarianism – Nathan De May
  96. ^ "AUC Congregations". americanunitarian.org. Archived from the original on October 21, 2019. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  97. ^ "Unitarian Christian Emerging Church ... a 21st century spiritual community, and faith ministry – Home". Unitarianministries.com. Archived from the original on 2012-05-29. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  98. ^ https://unitarianchristians.org/
  99. ^ Lee, E.R. (1926). A Brief History of the Unitarian Christian Church Melbourne. Privately Printed.
  100. ^ Ronalds, B.F. (2022). Alfred Ronalds: Angler, Artisan and Australian Pioneer. Medlar Press.
  101. ^ "Stephen Crittenden: The President of the Unitarian church in Sydney, Peter Crawford, speaking to John Russell". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 2010-04-18.
  102. ^ Heller-Wagner, E. "Radical religion and civil society: The Unitarians of South Africa" (PDF). University of South Africa. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2018-05-17. Retrieved 2018-10-09.
  103. ^ Unitarisk Kirkesamfund – Unitarian Church Society http://www.unitarerne.dk/ Archived 2022-07-03 at the Wayback Machine
  104. ^
    mainstream Christianity
    .
  105. LCCN 2010000384. Archived
    from the original on 2023-09-28. Retrieved 2021-08-09.
  106. ^ Wilbur, Earl Morse (1952) [1945]. "The Unitarian Church under Calvinist Princes: 1604–1691". A History of Unitarianism: In Transylvania, England, and America. Vol. 2. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. pp. 121–122. Archived from the original on 2023-09-28. Retrieved 2021-08-09.
  107. ^ cf. "Christian Church in Italy beliefs". Archived from the original on 2012-10-28.
  108. ISBN 0-521-42323-6
    .
  109. ISBN 978-1-78326-917-4
    .
  110. ^ "Francis Ronalds". Dictionary of Unitarian & Universalist Biography. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
  111. Beyer, Peacock & Company
    . p. 17.
  112. ^ "Samuel Carter". Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography. Archived from the original on 20 March 2018. Retrieved 20 March 2018.
  113. ^ The Centennial History of Oregon 1811–1912 by Joseph Gaston, p. 582.
  114. ^ "Caltech Alum and UCLA Professor Calls for Removal of Robert A. Millikan's Name, Bust From Caltech Campus Over Eugenics Support – Pasadena Now". www.pasadenanow.com. Archived from the original on 2022-02-09. Retrieved 2022-02-09.
  115. ^ "God in the White House". pbs.org. Archived from the original on 2019-12-04. Retrieved 2019-12-04.
  116. ^ "Jefferson's Religious Beliefs". monticello.org. Archived from the original on 2019-12-07. Retrieved 2019-12-04.
  117. ^
    ISBN 085022294X. Archived
    from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  118. ^ "Chapter 12 – William Chamberlain comes to London" (PDF). The Parliamentary Chamberlains. Ian Chamberlain – 2003. pp. 57–74. Retrieved March 2, 2013.[permanent dead link]
  119. ^ Holt, Raymond V. (1906). "Chapter 3, including Georgian and Victorian period. Ref Chamberlain, Lupton (Leeds) and Martineau, Nettlefold, Kenrick (Birmingham) families". The Unitarian Contribution to Social Progress in England (PDF). Lindsey Press. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 2, 2014. Retrieved March 1, 2013.
  120. ^ Times, Waikato. "Waikato Times, Volume XXVIII, Issue 2328, 11 June 1887, p. 2". Waikato Times (Papers Past) 11 June 1887. Archived from the original on 13 October 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  121. ^ Offspring of the Vic by Denis Richards, originally published in 1958
  122. ^ Tim Berners-Lee, The World Wide Web and the "Web of Life" Archived 2019-03-12 at the Wayback Machine
  123. ^ Rammohun Roy, Raja; Marshman, Joshua (1824). The precepts of Jesus : the guide to peace and happiness, extracted from the books of the New Testament ascribed to the four evangelists. To which are added, the first, second, and final appeal to the Christian public in reply to the observations of Dr. Marshman, of Serampore. University of California Libraries. London : The Unitarian Society.

Sources

Bibliography

Further reading

External links

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article "Unitarianism".
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Unitarianism&oldid=1218768607"