Unitarian Universalism
Unitarian Universalism “What is a Unitarian Universalist?” This is a question that many people have asked and will continue to ask in the future. There are many ways you can choose to answer this question and perhaps none of them will be able to tell the whole story. One way to answer the question is to go back to the start and show the history of the group and how it merged from two similar yet different liberal Christian denominations, into what it is today. From this we can find that Unitarianism, Universalism, and Unitarian Universalism represent a diverse and distinct liberal religious background, which can be seen through the group’s history, theology, and the beliefs of individual members of each congregation.
Unitarian Christianity began as a countermovement of sorts to the growing influence of Orthodox Christianity during the First Great Awakening in the 1730’s and 1740’s. The first organized members of the group formed from a liberal wing of the Congregational Church in Eastern Massachusetts. In 1784, the first Unitarian Church was formed at the former Episcopal King’s Chapel in Boston. At its earliest form, Unitarian theology and practice was very unorganized and its congregants often disagreed about what principles the group should adhere to as a whole. The issue that defined most Unitarian belief was the nature of the Trinity and divinity of Jesus Christ. Most early Unitarians argued that the concept of the Trinity, or the idea that God was three separate entities, had no biblical warrant and was instead just a manmade metaphysical abstraction. Historically, American Unitarians were not the first Christians to believe in the oneness of God. Since the death of Jesus, many early Christians held the belief that Jesus was fully himself God. Even after the Nicene Creed officially adopted the idea of the Trinity in Christianity in the year 325 AD, many Christians challenged this idea and offered various other views on God and Jesus. Many
Unitarian Christianity began as a countermovement of sorts to the growing influence of Orthodox Christianity during the First Great Awakening in the 1730’s and 1740’s. The first organized members of the group formed from a liberal wing of the Congregational Church in Eastern Massachusetts. In 1784, the first Unitarian Church was formed at the former Episcopal King’s Chapel in Boston. At its earliest form, Unitarian theology and practice was very unorganized and its congregants often disagreed about what principles the group should adhere to as a whole. The issue that defined most Unitarian belief was the nature of the Trinity and divinity of Jesus Christ. Most early Unitarians argued that the concept of the Trinity, or the idea that God was three separate entities, had no biblical warrant and was instead just a manmade metaphysical abstraction. Historically, American Unitarians were not the first Christians to believe in the oneness of God. Since the death of Jesus, many early Christians held the belief that Jesus was fully himself God. Even after the Nicene Creed officially adopted the idea of the Trinity in Christianity in the year 325 AD, many Christians challenged this idea and offered various other views on God and Jesus. Many
Bibliography: Buehrens, J., & Forrest, C. (1998). A Chosen Fatih: An Introduction to Unitarian Universalsim. Boston: Beacon Bress. Fox, R. (2004). Jesus In America: A History. New York: HarperCollins. Holifield, B. (2003). Theology in America: Christian Thought From the Age of the Puritans to the Civil War. New Haven: Yale University Press. Jefferson, T. (1822, June 26). Letter To Dr. Benjamin Waterhouse. Mead, F. (1995). Handbook of Denominations in the United States (10th ed.). Nasville: Abingdom Press. Prothero, S. (2003). American Jesus, How the Son of God Became a National Icon. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux. Robinson, D. (1985). The Unitarians and the Universalists. Westport: Greenwood Press. Waldman, S. (2009). Founding Faith: How Our Founding Fathers Forged a Radical New Approach to Religious Liberty. New York: Random House Trade Paperbacks.