The founding of the Unitarian Church in the midst of the Unitarian Controversy, a religious debate between liberal and orthodox Congregationalists, marked the birth of a leading institution of religious and social reform in the United States.
The roots of Unitarianism go back to sixteenth century Spain and the teachings of Michael Servetus
In May, 1819, William Ellery Channing, the pastor of Boston’s Federal Street Church, traveled to Baltimore to preach at the ordination of a Unitarian minister, Jared Sparks. His sermon, “Unitarian Christianity,” was a landmark in the founding of the Unitarian Church of the United States. Channing delivered his sermon in the midst of the Unitarian Controversy, a religious debate between liberal and orthodox Congregationalists, which had begun officially in 1805 when Henry Ware
During the early 1780’s, anti-Trinitarian views were heard in King’s Chapel, which subsequently broke away from the Church of England. This established the first Universalist Church in the United States in 1785. However, other ministers preached anti-Trinitarian views. One of the earliest was Ebenezer Gay
William Ellery Channing.
Liberalism was particularly strong in Boston and among Congregationalists, and it was within that denomination that the Unitarian Controversy occurred. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, orthodox Congregationalists, led by such men as Jedidiah Morse
The decade following Ware’s
As the leader of the Boston liberals, Channing answered The Panoplist attack by a public letter to Samuel C. Thacher, minister of the New South Church. This letter brought a reply from Samuel Worchester of Salem, who defended the review. A long pamphlet debate between Channing and Worchester followed, with the issue shifting from The Panoplist
It was in this context of bitter theological debate that Channing decided in 1819 to deliver the now-famous Baltimore sermon, which laid the foundation for the Unitarian Church in the United States. “Unitarian Christianity” provided a comprehensive statement of the beliefs of U.S. Unitarians, as well as an eloquent defense of their faith. Unitarians, Channing declared, interpreted the Scriptures by “the constant exercise of reason” and rejected any theological doctrines repugnant to reason and moral sense. Thus they believed in the unity of God, rejecting the “irrational and unscriptural doctrine of the Trinity.” They also rejected the Calvinist God, worshiping instead a God who was “infinitely good, kind, and benevolent.” Such a God offered salvation not to a few elect, but to all.
Unitarians also rejected doctrines of natural depravity and predestination, not only because of their “unspeakable cruelty” but also because such doctrines were adverse to God’s “parental character.” Channing concluded his sermon on a conciliatory note, saying,
We have embraced this system not hastily or lightly, but after much deliberation, and we hold it fast, not merely because we believe it to be true, but because we regard it as purifying truth, as a doctrine according to godliness, as able to “work mightily” and to “bring forth fruit” in them that believe. . . . We see nothing in our views to give offence, save their purity, and it is their purity which makes us seek and hope their extension through the world.
Despite its conciliatory tone, Channing’s sermon made reconciliation between liberal and orthodox Congregationalists even less likely than before. Separation of Unitarians from Congregationalists and vice versa became commonplace, as one or the other group (usually the latter) within a church withdrew to form a new society. Unitarian organization was slow and met with resistance from within, but in May, 1825, the American Unitarian Association was founded “to diffuse the knowledge and promote the interests of pure Christianity.” This was the final act of separation that divided Unitarians and Congregationalists into two denominations and ended the long theological conflict that had begun more than a quarter of a century earlier. In 1961, the denomination merged with the Universalist Church to form the Unitarian Universalist Association.
The impact of Unitarianism reaches far beyond the splitting of the Congregationalist church. The Unitarians became leaders in promoting social progress. Dorothea Dix
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Buehrens, John, and F. Forrester Church. Our Chosen Faith: An Introduction to Unitarian Universalism. Boston: Beacon Press, 1989. Describes the philosophies and histories of Unitarians and Universalists. Includes information on famous Unitarians and Universalists and provides a chronology of the faith. -
Elgin, Kathleen. The Unitarians: The Unitarian Universalist Association. New York: David McKay, 1971. Some background on Unitarian history in general, but mainly discusses Dorothea Dix and her work with the mentally ill. -
Harris, Mark W. Historical Dictionary of Unitarian Universalism. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2004. A comprehensive resource that includes an editor’s introduction, a list of acronyms, a chronology, and bibliographical references. -
Mead, Frank S. “Unitarian Universalist Association.” In Handbook of Denominations in the United States, edited by Frank S. Mead, Samuel S. Hill, and Craig D. Atwood. 12th ed. Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 2005. Provides a brief history of Unitarian Universalism. Discusses the church in the late twentieth century and its philosophies. -
Robinson, David. The Unitarians and the Universalists. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1985. A comprehensive history of Unitarian Universalism in the United States and its impact. Includes a biographical dictionary of Unitarian Universalist leaders. -
Wright, Conrad. The Beginnings of Unitarianism in America. 1955. Reprint. Hamden, Conn.: Archon Books, 1976. Discusses the early roots of Unitarianism in America, from 1735 to 1805, and the events leading to the split in the Congregational churches. -
_______. The Unitarian Controversy: Essays on American Unitarian History. Boston: Skinner House Books, 1994. Articles on the Unitarian Controversy by a leading Unitarian scholar. One article is entitled “The Channing We Didn’t Know.”
Social Reform Movement
Smith Founds the Mormon Church
Finney Lectures on “Revivals of Religion”
Transcendental Movement Arises in New England
Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society Is Founded
Eddy Establishes the Christian Science Movement
Olympia Brown; William Ellery Channing; Dorothea Dix; Ralph Waldo Emerson; Nathaniel Hawthorne; Harriet Martineau; Frederick Denison Maurice; Theodore Parker; Elizabeth Palmer Peabody; Rammohan Ray.