1802 – Harriet Martineau was born in Norwich, England. A well known novelist and economist, she wrote several books including one about her journeys in America. A fervent Unitarian in her early years, she broke with her Unitarian theologian brother James over her devotion to the positivist philosophy of Auguste Comte, which predicted that theological … Continue reading This Day in Unitarian Universalist History June 12
1814 – Henry Whitney Bellows was born in Boston. He became a minister of the First Unitarian Church in New York, which he helped rename All Souls Church of New York. He preached vigorously on public issues. During the Civil War, he united Unitarian and other churchwomen to provide medical and social support for Union … Continue reading This Day in Unitarian Universalist History June 11
1645 – The Socinian church, properly called the Minor Reformed Church of Poland, was formed. Named after Faustus Socinus, Sociniamism was a strong movement in Poland in the 16th and 17th centuries and had a strong influence on the development of Unitarianism in Poland and England. Socinians were noted for their rigid moral standards; they … Continue reading This Day in Unitarian Universalist History June 10
1867 – Under pressure from the Rev. Henry Whitney Bellows of the Unitarian Church of All Souls in New York City, U.S. Secretary of War Simon Cameron signed a document authorizing the U.S. Sanitary Commission, whose purposes were to provide for the care of wounded Union soldiers in the Civil War and to assist them … Continue reading This Day in Unitarian Universalist History June 9
1867 – Frank Lloyd Wright was born in Wisconsin. Considered by many to be America’s foremost architect, a champion of what is known as the Prairie Style, He built 532 homes and other buildings, including Unity Temple (Universalist) in Oak Park, Illinois; the First Unitarian Society of Madison, Wisconsin; the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo; and … Continue reading This Day in Unitarian Universalist History June 8
1857 – Samuel McChord Crothers was born in Oswego Illinois. Originally a Presbyterian, after his thinking turned Unitarian he secured a pastorate in Brattleboro, Vermont, then in St. Paul, Minnesota, and finally in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he remained for 33 years. With a gentle sense of humor, he won fame with his books of sermons … Continue reading This Day in Unitarian Universalist History June 7
The Library at Universität Tübingen 1557 – Matteo Gribaldo, a former Catholic teacher and professor of civil law at the University of Tübingen, Germany, was tried there for his anti-Trinitarian views. He had been in Geneva during the martyrdom of Michael Servetus in 1553. He tried to intervene with John Calvin on behalf of Servetus … Continue reading This Day in Unitarian Universalist History June 6
1897 – Charles Hartshorne was born in Kittanning, Pennsylvania. He was a profound thinker and philosopher who taught at Harvard University, the University of Chicago, and the University of Texas. His focus was process theology, which he equated with idealist philosophy. He was an active Unitarian layman. Among his books are Creative Synthesis and the … Continue reading This Day in Unitarian Universalist History June 5
1901 – Joseph H. Jordan died at the age of 59. He was born a black free man in West Norfolk, Virginia, in June of 1842. After trying his hand as a laborer and grocer, he achieved financial success as a carpenter. Jordan was ordained as a Baptist minister in 1880 but he became a … Continue reading This Day in Unitarian Universalist History June 4
1870 – Norbert Čapek was born in Bohemia (now the Czech Republic). After a Roman Catholic childhood and early career as a Baptist minister, he converted to Unitarianism and became one of its leaders. During World War II, he was imprisoned by the Germans in 1942 and murdered at Dachau for speaking out against the Nazis. … Continue reading This Day in Unitarian Universalist History June 3
