Unitarian Universalist History
United First Parish Church, 1887
bullet the short version
bullet the long version

THE SHORT VERSION
Unitarian Universalism started as two separate schools of thought within the Christian church. Universalist thought can be traced as far back as the second century, and unitarian ideas are usually traced to a Transylvanian king in the mid-1500's. The ideas (universal salvation and God as a unity and not a trinity) existed quietly until the seventeen and eighteen-hundreds, when they became more popular, especially in America. Both schools of thought eventually developed into separate Protestant Christian denominations, Universalists typically lower-class and less inclined to radical thought, Unitarians higher-class and quickly strained by the transcendentalist ideas which became more widespread with thinkers and writers like Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson. As time passed the denominations grew increasingly similar in polity and thought, and by the turn of the century they began to think about merging. In the 1930's they were beginning to formulate ideas about moving "beyond Christianity" as well, but residual differences prevented them from merging. As they approached midcentury, they had begun to formulate ideas about being so inclusive that the other denomination was too exclusive to be included, but since they were both developing these ideas, it is clear that they were rapidly approaching complete theological overlap. Finally, after two failed attempts at merging with each other and a partial merger (like living together to test the waters before getting married) they were merged in 1961, and Dana McLean Greely was elected first president of the Unitarian Universalist Association.
THE LONG VERSION

very old history

universalists

Some scholars trace universalist thought back to the second-century theologian, Origen of Alexandria (Marshall, 64). In the sixth century, a church council condemned as heresy the belief in universal salvation, so by that time it probably existed as a religious belief (Buherens, 187). From there, Universalism made its way to England, where it flourished during the eighteenth century. Dr. George DeBenneville, James Relly and John Murray heard it, among others. Murray lost his wife and son and spent some time in debtors prison, and upon his release in 1770, he set sail for the Americas to leave religion behind and start anew. When his ship ran aground off the coast of New Jersey, he was sent ashore for supplies. There he met a farmer, Thomas Potter, who had built a chapel but was waiting for a preacher with a new message to fill its pulpit (Buherens, 32). With this serendipitous event, Universalism came to this country.

unitarians

The Unitarian story is not nearly as dramatic, but is equally important. Unitarianism, belief in the unity and not the trinity of God, is traced to and before King John Sigismund of Transylvania and Francis David, his court chaplain. Sigismund reigned during the mid-1500's, and was the only Unitarian king that we know of. Despite the name, this unity-not-trinity belief was not the cornerstone of Unitarianism when it developed as a denomination, although it was important. In America, its story begins with a reaction to the Great Awakening. Charles Chauncy, a Harvard-educated minister at the time, formulated his dissent with the Great Awakening into a "set of ideas" which would later become the basis for Unitarianism. These ideas "fall into three major categories: a commitment to logic and reason in theology, a biblicism that was strict but demanded critical and historical analysis, and an overriding concern for moral aspiration as the focal point of the Christian religion" (Robinson, 9). The next major transition occurred in the early 1800's with the appearance of William Ellery Channing, Hosea Ballou, and Henry David Thoreau, among others. The issues and questions of transcendentalism, along with a more liberal ministry and flexible sermon (Robinson, 26), came of age at that time.

less old history

By 1900, both denominations had evolved considerably since their origins. Both had established systems of polity, youth and religious education, and various auxiliary groups. Further, their theology had undergone some subtle changes. Since the 1700's they had been slowly growing together, toward a similar liberal theology. There were a few people, Hosea Ballou for one, who embraced both the Unitarian and the Universalist ideas nearly one hundred and fifty years before the denominations themselves merged (Cassara, 18-20), but as the century passed the numbers grew. Too, their liberal politics (except in cases of alcohol consumption) had brought them closer together, especially on issues such as women's rights. By 1880, the denominations had together ordained 33 women ministers, of whom Antoinette Brown Blackwell (ordained Congregationalist, later Unitarian) and Olympia Brown (Universalist) were among the first (Cazden, 77). In 1899 the Unitarians and the Universalists formed the first of several joint commissions to discuss the possibility of a merger (Buehrens, 191). Several years earlier, in 1895, the Universalist youth1 organization (Young People's Christian Union) had recognized the similarity between their goals and those of the Unitarian youth, who would organize nationally during the following year, taking as their name "Young People's Religious Union" (Miller, 209). It was with this basis, then, that they entered the 20th century.

the twentieth century

What greeted them upon their arrival? An age of reform. Theodore Roosevelt had just been elected, and change was going to happen. There were labor reforms and conservation reforms, political reforms and rail reforms. In the midst of all this, the Unitarians and Universalists began to develop a modern, liberal, social and political religion.

the universalists

evolution

For the Universalists, one of the first challenges of the century was the resolution of a debate which had begun in the mid-1800's: that of evolution versus creation. Although no statement of the denomination called for a literal interpretation of the Bible (Miller, 97) the Universalists had always held it as "a revelation of the character of God, and of the duty, interest and final destination of mankind" (Miller, 65). People who tended toward a stronger interpretation of that creed regarded science as incompatible with their faith (Miller, 97). At the same time, however, the intellectual character of the movement was essentially open-minded , and, accordingly, people were receptive to the ideas of science (Miller 94). The result was an attempt to minimize the conflict, such that one could believe in the Bible as "a revelation" and simultaneously believe the Darwinian ideas of evolution. In 1900, Applied Evolution was published by Marion Shutter (Cassara, 38). It marked the denominational resolution of an issue which had caused problems for almost every Christian in the country. Universalists had settled the questions of evolution and creation for themselves.

By the turn of the century, many Universalists had long regarded their faith as a creedless one (Miller, 66), so it is not without irony that 1903 marked the 100th anniversary of the adoption of their creed. Although the Winchester Profession was regarded more as a theological statement than a binding agreement, its use in the Bisbee heresy trial during the 1870's implies otherwise. The Profession read:

We believe that the Holy Scriptures of the Old an New Testament contain a revelation of the character of God, and of the duty, interest and final destination of mankind. We believe that there is one God, whose nature is Love, revealed in one Lord Jesus Christ, by one Holy Spirit of Grace, who will finally restore the whole family of mankind to holiness and happiness. We believe that holiness and true happiness are inseparably connected, and that believers ought to be careful to maintain order and practice good works; for these things are good and profitable unto men.
While it was disputed starting in 1875, the Winchester Profession remained in place until the 1961 merger of the Unitarians and the Universalists (Miller, 93). It was, however, joined and influenced by several other professions of faith, the most significant of which was the 1933 Humanist Manifesto.

humanism

The debate over humanism moved to the fore slowly, arriving in the late twenties and early thirties. Even before the Manifesto was issued in 1933, some individuals, congregations, and groups were moving toward a less necessarily theistic religion. This is not to say that theism was no longer permitted, simply that other viewpoints were accepted also. One group which marked this trend was the YPCU, the youth organization of the Universalists at the time. In 1931, two years before the Humanist Manifesto, they deleted "For Christ and His Church" from the masthead of Onward, their national publication, and asked the 1931 convention to "start a movement to revise the statement of faith 'in the direction of the universals and unities of world religion'" (Miller, 113). This was not the first or the last time that the youth would make a change before the adults of their denomination. When the Humanist Manifesto was finally issued, several men with Universalist affiliations signed it, but only one, Clinton Lee Scott, was exclusively Universalist. He was the minister to a congregation in Peoria, Illinois, and had a distinctly humanist viewpoint. In a radio interview he once said, "Truth is discovered by the ministers of religion. It is also discovered by scientists, poets, prophets, garage mechanics, and housewives. And always by the one way of human experience!" (Cassara, 263). By contrast, most Universalists at the time held to a more theistic humanism, believing in the importance and presence of a God for whom the framers of the Manifesto had left no room (Miller, 109). As a denomination, the Universalists waited until 1935 to respond to the call of the YPCU and others, at last adopting a revised statement of faith in addition to the 1803 Winchester Profession and the 1899 Five Principles. The new document went by many names, including the Washington Statement of Faith and/or the Bond of Fellowship (Buherens, 191; Miller, 115). Contained in this document was a working statement of belief that finally left room for a wider theology than had previously been allowed. As finally adopted, it read as follows:
1) The bond of fellowship in this Convention [church] shall be a common purpose to do the will of God as Jesus revealed it and to co-operate in establishing the kingdom for which he lived and died. To that end we avow our faith in God as Eternal and All-Conquering Love, in the spiritual leadership of Jesus, in the supreme worth of every human personality, in the authority of truth known or to be known, and in the power of men of good-will and sacrificial spirit to overcome all evil and progressively establish the kingdom of God. Neither this nor any other statement shall be imposed as a creedal test, provided that the faith thus indicated be professed. 2a) [text of the Winchester Profession of Faith] 2b) [text of the Declaration of Faith adopted in 1899, including this statement: The essential principles of the Universalist faith, to wit: The Universal Fatherhood of God; the spiritual authority and leadership of His Son Jesus Christ; the trustworthiness of the Bible as containing a revelation from God; the certainty of just retribution for sin; the final harmony of all souls with God. The Winchester Profession is commended as containing these principles, but neither this, nor any other precise form of words, is required as a condition of fellowship, provided always that the principles above stated be professed. ] 2c) These historic declarations of faith with liberty of interpretation are dear and acceptable to many Universalists. They are commended not as tests but as testimonies in the free quest for truth that accords with the genius of the Universalist Church. 3) The conditions of fellowship in this Convention [church] shall be acceptance of the essential principles of the Universalist faith and acknowledgment of the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Universalist General Convention.
For some members of the denomination, this did not go far enough in the direction of non-theology, but for most and for the purposes of the Convention, it was more than adequate. Some people tried to modify it in their state Conventions, but the modifications were rejected-sometimes because they would have made the organization too exclusive (Miller, 115).

away from Christianity

For several years the denomination carried on relatively uneventfully. Then, in 1942, the Universalist Church of America applied to the Federal Council of Churches for membership. The consideration of their application seems to have hinged upon the phrase "divine Lord and Savior" in the preamble to the constitution of the FCF (Miller, 612). The Universalists apparently did not adhere sufficiently to that idea, and their rejection was probably one of many events which caused the Universalists to see themselves as a denomination with Protestant roots but a future outside of Christianity (Cassara, 269).

women and children

Thus far I have committed one of the common and grievous errors of scholarship: slighting women, minorities, and children's contributions. Unfortunately, even now minorities are not large presence in the denomination, and at the time they were even less so. Women and youth, however, were virtually inevitable, and their presence certainly had an effect. At the turn of the century, women, were turning from their pre- Civil War literary emphasis to a more hands-on approach to social issues and problems of the time. Many Universalist women were involved in the suffrage movement, lecturing and campaigning in addition to writing essays for papers and journals. Women became increasingly active in denominational polity, and two women sat on the 1927-29 committee which was formed to examine the question of legal birth control. When they presented their resolution, favoring legal birth control, at the General Convention in 1929 it passed with a vote of 97-62. Universalist women such as Mrs. Ellen Johnson were active in penal reform as well, in many cases linking it to the death penalty and decrying both as unethical (Miller, 469).

Meanwhile, the youth of the denomination were hard at work. Since its inception in 1889, the Young People's Christian Union (YPCU) had been working enthusiastically and hard toward a strong program. They established mission funds, tried to publish a national newsletter, and started summer programs. In 1901 the denomination acquired Ferry Beach, a Maine camp and conference center which has maintained the affiliation ever since. It was there that the YPCU held its first convention. Beginning in 1919, the YPCU held one-week long "summer institutes" there, each of which had a theme, workshops, and speakers. It is a format that is still employed by a number of Unitarian Universalist camps and conference centers across the country. They instituted a nationwide "Young People's Sunday", still found in many congregations as "Youth Sunday" when the youth group designs and leads the service. Between 1927 and 1930, they also held leadership conferences for "older young people" (now referred to as "young adults" - persons of and near college age) at Ferry Beach. Both "institutes" are once again in place as YRUU and UUYAN2 weeks at Ferry Beach. In addition to increasing youth involvement and visibility, the YPCU had become involved in social and mission work. At their first national convention they pledged eradication of the "degradation . . . [of] drink and alcohol habits" (Miller, 186) and at the same convention they undertook to start a parish, build a church, and partially fund its minister. This was successful, if precarious, and by 1939, when the YPCU celebrated its fiftieth anniversary, the YPCU had been responsible for the building of 5 churches. It was also in that year that the programs at Ferry Beach were expanded and separated to form a junior camp (7-15), a senior camp (15-18), and a young adult camp (Miller, 181). As previously mentioned, they removed the reference to Christ from the masthead of their national publication in 1931, and ten years later they changed their name to reflect their denominational affiliation, calling themselves the Universalist Youth Fellowship (Marshall, 214).

unitarians

Returning to the beginning of the century, the well-established and wealthy Unitarians had, like the Universalists, begun to move towards a more liberal faith. Their movement in that direction had been sparked by the Transcendentalist trends which surfaced in the mid eighteen-hundreds. The movement claims such thinkers as Joseph Priestly and William Ellery Channing, and focused, not on rejection of the Trinity (although that was included) but on "moral culture and the corresponding rejection of innate depravity" (Robinson, 29). Any denomination so diverse and so outspoken will eventually need to develop a press, and in 1902 Beacon Press was launched by the American Unitarian Association (AUA), broadening their publishing program, and establishing a liberal press which is still very much in existence today (Buehrens, 191) .

humanism

Theologically, the Unitarians were slowly drifting towards their Universalist counterparts, and in 1887, the Western Conference (one of the more liberal subdivisions of the denomination) adopted a document, written by Ezra Stiles Gannett, as a "nonbinding explanation of its theology" (Robinson, 121). The text of this document is startlingly close to the current statement of Purposes and Principles now adhered to by the Unitarian Universalist Association (see appendices). The emphasis on "nonbinding" echoed the sentiments in the Universalist church which would finally be documented in 1935, and was a sign of the growth together that the two denominations were experiencing. A number of years later, in 1917, Curtis Reese and John Dietrich met at the Western Unitarian Conference, professing a "democratic theology" which would later be labeled "Humanism" and enter the debate (Robinson, 144). That humanist movement which caused so much debate in the Universalist circles caused similar discussions among the Unitarians. It was not quite as serious a disruption, since the Unitarians had been entertaining similar thoughts for a while, but debate it was, none the less. (Let it never be said that a good Unitarian passed up a good "discussion"). When the Manifesto was issued in 1933, of the 34 signatories, thirteen were Unitarian. The Unitarians were skittish, but there were more Unitarians than Universalists willing to sign a document which, if not denying the existence of God, denied His(her, its) importance (Robinson, 147).

fellowships

The Unitarians, like the Universalists, emphasized a Congregationalist type of denominational structure, in which the congregations really made their own decisions, independent of a higher authority. One natural result of this was the development of lay-led congregations. Published in 1907, the Handbook for the Unitarian League of Lay Centers was the first denominational publication designed to help people who wanted a congregation, but could not find or afford a minister and/or a building. While poorly designed, it was well-intended, and when the denomination again sought to aid lay-leadership in 1947, it turned to the little book for ideas of what to do and what to avoid. The investigating committee eventually decided that the Handbook had not been nearly flexible enough for the varied needs and strengths of lay-led spiritual groups, and to that end it set about establishing for such congregations a pattern, support structure, and method of affiliation (Bartlett, 44). Three years earlier the Church of the Larger Fellowship had been established, a kind of correspondence-church, but many people felt a need for the community of a flesh-and- blood congregation (Bartlett, 43). In 1948, under the new plan, the Unitarian Fellowship of Boulder, Colorado, submitted an application, was accepted and became first officially recognized fellowship in the denomination (Bartlett, 47).

social justice, wars, and organizations

The Unitarians were also involved in issues of social justice. As with the Universalists, the women were not unwilling to get their hands dirty, and many of them worked giving speeches and organizing demonstrations. However, many others of them did not agree. By and large it was the female clergy that organized and spoke, while the laywomen even went so far as to protest the ministers' efforts. Eleanor Gordon, one minister, became president of the Equal Suffrage Association in Iowa, and in 1908 she staged the first full-fledged parade in favor of suffrage in the country. In that same year, the Unitarian Fellowship for Social Justice was organized by John Haynes Holmes. This came just a year after he had accepted a call as associate minister from the Church of the Messiah, a Unitarian congregation (Robinson, 277).

When the First World War came, it posed some problems for a number of people in the church.

Many were fiercely patriotic, having grown up during and after the Civil War, and they threw their support behind the "fight for freedom". Others, however, were more inclined to a neutral pacifism, and some, of German ancestry, felt alienated and abandoned. In 1917, former president Taft was serving as moderator of the AUA national convention when John Haynes Holmes took the floor in favor of peace. Taft delivered a "scathing rebuttal" and the pacifists lost overwhelmingly. At the convention the following year, the pacifists in the pulpit were silenced when the national conference voted to suspend funding to any church which did not remove a minister who was known to preach a pacifistic message (Tucker, 216).

With the rise of fascism in Europe came a denominational need to respond with social action. In 1939, the Unitarian Service Committee was formed in response to that need, and it remained active and in place until the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee took its place in 1963 (Marshall, 215; Robinson, 166).

the unitarians and the universalists

In 1899, the Unitarians and the Universalists held their first commission on the possibility of merging the two denominations. After a little more than a century of coexistence, they had reached the point where their theologies, principles, and organizations were beginning to overlap considerably. In 1884 the American Unitarian Association became a congregational and representative body, like the Universalist Church of America. In 1895, a year before the formal national organization of the Unitarian youth (YPRU, Young People's Religious Union) was formed, the YPCU (Universalist youth) first recognized the similarity in the missions of the groups and recommended more and closer interaction between them (Miller, 209). In 1900, the International Congress of Free Christians and Other Religious Liberals was formed, one of the first organizations that brought liberal religious thinkers of different denominations together. It later became known as the International Association. for Religious Freedom. In 1931 the Second Commission on a Unitarian Universalist merger was held (Buehrens, 191). This, like its forerunner, was unsuccessful, but it once again brought the denominations closer, and in that same year the Free Church Fellowship was formed (Cassara, 40). While it was not exclusively Unitarian and Universalist, it was the first organization under which they came together officially.

Although the initial overtures failed, the denominations were, indeed, growing into unavoidable similarity. In 1943, Robert Cummins spoke before the General Assembly of the Universalist Church of America, saying,

Universalism cannot be limited to Protestantism or to Christianity, not without denying its very name. Ours is a world fellowship, not just a Christian sect. For so long as Universalism is universalism and not partialism, the fellowship bearing its name must succeed in making it unmistakably clear that all are welcome: theist and humanist, unitarian and trinitarian, colored and color-less. A circumscribed Universalism is unthinkable(Cassara, 269).
Ironically, this statement which incorporates trinitarians and unitarians alike is an indication of just how close the denominations had grown. In the 1930's, a commission formed to assess the status of the denomination offered the following statement of agreements and disagreements among Unitarians as it saw them at the time:

Unitarians Agree
  1. In affirming the primacy of the free exercise of intelligence in religion, believing that in the long run the safest guide to truth is human intelligence.
  2. In affirming the paramount importance for the individual of his own moral convictions and purposes.
  3. In affirming that the social implications of religion are indispensable to its vitality and validity, as expressed in terms of concern for social conditions and the struggle to create a just social order.
  4. In affirming the importance of the church as the organized expression of religion.
  5. In affirming the necessity for worship as a deliberate effort to strengthen the individual's grasp of the highest spiritual values of which he is aware.
  6. In affirming the rational nature of the universe.
Unitarians Disagree
  1. As to the expediency of using the traditional vocabulary of religion, within a fellowship which includes many who have rejected the ideas commonly associated with such words as "God", "prayer", "communion", "salvation", "immortality".
  2. As to the wisdom of maintaining the definitely Christian tradition, and the traditional forms of Christian worship.
  3. As to the religious values of a purely naturalistic philosophy.
  4. As to the adequacy and competency of man to solve his own problems, both individual and social.
  5. As to the advisability of direct action by churches in the field of social and political problems. (Robinson, 163)

Nowhere does this document mention a belief in the unity of God, and it implies that there are people in their congregations who do not believe in God, or do not find prayer helpful, communion meaningful, or ideas of salvation and immortality comforting or enlightening. It does, however, explicitly state that "Unitarians disagree as to the wisdom of maintaining the definitely Christian tradition". While this list was never voted on or adopted by a representative body, it probably serves as a good gauge of where the denomination stood.

Finally, in 1953 the two denominations formed the Council of Liberal Churches, the first exclusively Universalist and Unitarian organization, under which they began to merge administrative functions. It brought together the religious education, public relations, and publishing sections of the two denominations (Cassara, 40). It was also in 1953 that LRY, Liberal Religious Youth, was formed with the official merger of the American Unitarian Youth and the Universalist Youth Fellowship (Marshall, 215). In 1956 the third merger commission established, with William B. Rice as chairman (Cassara, 40). Having been preceded by two other commissions of similar purpose and the tentative joinings embodied in the FCF and the CLC, its way had been paved, and in 1961 the two bodies were joined in the Unitarian Universalist Association. Dana McLean Greeley was the first president, and he served in that capacity until 1969 (Marshall, 215).

Once the denominations had merged, their constituent and affiliate groups proceeded to make the required changes so that similar organizations could unify as well. The Unitarian Universalist Service Committee was one of a number of groups which accomplished this by 1963. Others included the newsletters (merged in 1961) and the men's and women's associations (1962 and 1963, respectively) (Marshall, 215). 1963 also heralded the arrival of the first UU hymnal, Hymns for the Celebration of Life (Buehrens, 192). It was revised to use more inclusive language shortly thereafter, and the resulting hymnal remained in place until 1994, when the UUA published Singing the Living Tradition.

For the most part, that ended the major denominational reorganization. In the late seventies the adults began to dismantle and disable LRY because of trouble with drugs and sex at local and national gatherings, and a committee was formed to create a new youth organization. After several years of organizational conferences known collectively as "Common Ground", Young Religious Unitarian Universalists (YRUU) was born, in 1983. Instead of being independently incorporated as LRY was, YRUU is part of the Unitarian Universalist Association, and as such is administered and supervised by the larger denomination. The structure provides for rules, supervision, and support as well as fun (Miller, 208-9).

And what of the Unitarians and Universalists? According to Walter Donald Kring, president of the Unitarian Universalist Historical Society in 1984, "the Universalist Church of America ceased to exist as such in 1961 when it merged with the American Unitarian Association" (Miller, xi). The American Unitarian Association did likewise, and thus ended the separation of two liberal faiths in America.