Unitarianism in America: A History of its Origin and Development Part 12

[3] Ibid., 30. For other statements made at this time see pp. 22 and 26 of this report; Quarterly Journal, L 44, 228, 243, 275, 333; and O.B.

Frothingham's Transcendentalism in New England, 123. John Gorham Palfrey said (Twenty-eighth Report, 31) that "the evidence of Christianity is identical with the evidence of the miraculous character of Jesus," and that "his miraculous powers were the highest evidence that he came from G.o.d." Parker replied to this report of the a.s.sociation in his Friendly Letter to the Executive Committee. Of this report John W. Chadwick has said that it is "the most curious, not to say amusing, doc.u.ment in our denominational archives." See The Organization of our Liberty, Christian Register, July 19, 1900.

[4] In 1854 the receipts from all sources for the year preceding, except from sales of books and interest on investments, was $4,267.32. For the next two years there was a rapid gain, the sum reported in 1856 being $11,615.90; but there was a slight decrease the next year, and the financial panic of 1857 brought the donations down to $4,602.38, the amount reported at the annual meeting of 1858. Then there was a steady gain until the civil war began, after which the contributions were small, the general donations being only $3,056.03 in 1863, which sum was brought up to $5,547.73 by contributions for special purposes, more than one-third of the whole being for the Army Fund.

[5] The Christian Register, October 17, 1863.

[6] The Monthly Journal, I. 350.

[7] Mr. Fox entered the employ of the a.s.sociation in 1855 as a clerk, and then he became the a.s.sistant of the secretary by the appointment of the directors. From 1864 to the present time he has served as the a.s.sistant secretary. His services have been invaluable to the a.s.sociation in many ways, because of his diligence, fidelity, unfailing devotion to its interests, and loyalty to the Unitarian cause.

[8] The beginning of a general fund seems to have been made in 1835, and was secured by special subscriptions for the purpose of paying the salary of a general secretary or missionary agent. The treasurer reported in 1836 that during the previous year $2,408.37 had been collected for this purpose.

[9] Of the churches now in existence the first in Chicago was organized in 1836, that at Quincy in 1840, Milwaukee and Geneva in 1842, Detroit in 1850. After the conference began its work, they appear more frequently, Keokuk coming into existence in 1853, Marietta in 1855, Lawrence in 1856, Unity of Chicago, Kalamazoo, and Buda in 1858, Bloomington in 1859. Then comes a blank during the war period, and a more rapid growth after it, especially when the National Conference had given impetus to missionary activities. Janesville was organized in 1864; Ann Arbor, Kenosha, and Baraboo, in 1865; Tremont, in 1866; Cleveland and Mattoon, in 1867; Unity of St. Louis, Kansas City, St. Joseph, Shelbyville, Davenport, Geneseo, Third of Chicago, and Sheffield, in 1868; Omaha, in 1869.

[10] Written by William G. Eliot, of St. Louis.

[11] Joseph Allen, The Worcester a.s.sociation and its Antecedents, 268.

[12] Through the business committee the following resolutions were submitted for the consideration of the convention, and they were taken up in order:--

_Resolved_, That we acknowledge with profound grat.i.tude the success which has attended our labors in the cause of religious freedom, virtue, and piety, and are encouraged to persevere with renewed zeal and energy.

_Resolved_, That in the character and life of Rev. William E.

Channing, just removed from us, we acknowledge one of the richest gifts of G.o.d, in intellectual endowments, pure aspiration, moral courage, and disinterested devotion to the cause of truth, freedom, and humanity, and that in view of this, we feel out increased obligation to Christian fidelity and heavenward progress.

_Resolved_, That viewing with anxiety prevailing fanaticism and growing disregard of public trusts and private relations, we should earnestly labor for a higher religious principle, and especially urge the paramount claims of moral duty.

[13] The places and dates of the Autumnal Conventions were as follows: Worcester, 1842; Provence, 1843; Albany, 1844; New York, 1845; Philadelphia, 1846; Salem, 1847; New Bedford, 1848; Portland, 1849; Springfield, 1850; Portsmouth, 1851; Baltimore, 1852; Worcester, 1853; Montreal, 1854; Providence, 1855; Bangor, 1856; Syracuse, 1857; Salem, 1858; Lowell, 1859; New Bedford, 1860; Boston, 1861; Brooklyn, 1862; Springfield, 1863.

[14] The first regiments from Ma.s.sachusetts, Rhode Island, and Kansas, had as their chaplains Warren H. Cudworth, Augustus Woodbury, and Ephraim Nute. Charles Babbidge was the chaplain of the sixth Ma.s.sachusetts regiment, that which was fired upon in Baltimore. The first artillery company from Ma.s.sachusetts had as its chaplain Stephen Barker. Others who served as army chaplains were John Pierpont, Edmund B. Willson, Francis C. Williams, Arthur B. Fuller, Sylvan S. Hunting, Charles T.

Canfield, Edward H. Hall, George H. Hepworth, Joseph F. Lovering, Edwin M. Wheelock, George W. Bartlett, John C. Kimball, Augustus M.

Haskell, Charles A. Humphreys, Milton J. Miller, George A. Ball, William G. Scandlin, E.B. Fairchild, Samuel W. McDaniel, Frederick R.

Newell, George W. Woodward, Stephen H. Camp, William D. Haley, Leonard Whitney, Gilbert c.u.mmings, Nahor A. Staples, Carlton A.

Staples, Martin M. Willis, John F. Moors, L.B. Mason, Robert Ha.s.sall, Liberty Billings, Daniel Foster, J.G. Forman, and Augustus H. Conant.

Robert Collyer was chaplain-at-large in the Army of the Potomac.

Charles J. Bowen, William J. Potter, Charles Noyes, James Richardson, and William H. Channing served as hospital chaplains.

Among the ministers who served as officers were: Hasbrouck Davis, who became a general; William B. Greene, colonel; Gerald Fitzgerald, who enlisted as a private, rose to the rank of first lieutenant, and was elected chaplain of his regiment; Edward I. Galvin, lieutenant, also elected chaplain; James K. Hosmer, who served through the war, at first as a private and then as a corporal, writing his experiences into The Color Guard and The Thinking Bayonet; George W. Shaw and Alvin Allen, privates. Thomas D. Howard and James H. Fowler were chaplains in colored regiments. After service as a chaplain of a Hew Hamps.h.i.+re regiment, Edwin M. Wheelock became a lieutenant in a colored regiment, as did Charles B. Webster. Thomas W. Higginson was colonel of a colored regiment, and in another Henry Stone was lieutenant colonel. It is doubtful if this list is complete, though an effort has been made to have it as nearly so as possible. Those who served in the army, and became ministers after leaving it, have not been included. So far as known, only ordained ministers are named.

[15] History of the United States Sanitary Commission, being the General Report of its Work during the War of the Rebellion.

[16] J.H. Allen, Our Liberal Movement in Theology, 210.

[17] Henry W. Bellows, article on the Sanitary Commission, in Johnson's Cyclopedia, revised edition.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Henry W. Bellows, article on the Sanitary Commission, in Johnson's Cyclopedia, revised edition.

[20] History of the Sanitary Commission.

[21] Thoughts selected from Channing's Works, Ware's The Silent Pastor, and Eliot's Discipline of Sorrow. The a.s.sociation also issued one number of the Monthly Journal as an Army Companion, which contained fifty hymns of a patriotic and religions character, with appropriate tunes, selections from the Bible, directions for preserving health in the army, and selections from addresses on the injustice of the rebellion and the spirit in which it should be put down.

[22] Twenty tracts were published. The first was written by Dr. George Putnam; and was on The Man and the Soldier. The second was The Soldier of the Good Cause, by Prof. C.E. Norton. Others were A Letter to a Sick Soldier, by Rev. Robert Collyer; An Enemy within the Lines, by Rev. S.H. Winkley. Rev. John F.W. Ware wrote fourteen of these tracts, the following being some of the subjects: The Home to the Camp, The Home to the Hospital, Wounded and in the Hands of the Enemy, Traitors in Camp, A Change of Base, On Picket, The Rebel, The Recruit, A Few Words with the Convalescent, Mustered Out, A Few Words with the Rank and File at Parting.

VIII.

THE DENOMINATIONAL AWAKENING.

The war had an inspiring influence upon Unitarians, awakening them to a consciousness of their strength, and drawing them together to work for common purposes as nothing else had ever done. From the beginning they saw in the effort to save the Union, and in the spirit of liberty that animated the nation, an expression of their own principles. Whatever its effect upon other religious bodies, the war gave to Unitarians new faith, courage, and enthusiasm. For the first time they became conscious of their opportunity, and united in a determined purpose to meet its demands with fidelity to their convictions and loyalty to the call of humanity.[1]

No Autumnal Convention having been held in 1864, owing to the failure of the committee appointed for that purpose to make the necessary arrangements, a special meeting of the Unitarian a.s.sociation was held in the Hollis Street Church, Boston, December 6-7, at the call of the executive committee, "to awaken interest in the work of the a.s.sociation by laying before the churches the condition of our funds and the demand for our labor." The attendance was large, and the tone of the meeting was hopeful and enthusiastic. After Dr. Stebbins, the president, had stated the purpose of the meeting, Dr. Bellows urged the importance of a more effective organization of the Unitarian body. His success with the Sanitary Commission had evidently prepared his mind for a like work on the part of Unitarians, and for a strong faith in the value of organized effort in behalf of liberal religion. His capacity as leader during the war had prepared men to accept it in other fields of effort, and Unitarians were ready to use it in their behalf. The hopefulness that existed, in view of the success of the Union cause, and the enthusiastic interest in the methods of moral and spiritual reform that was manifested because of the triumph of the spirit of freedom in the nation, led many to think that like efforts in behalf of liberal Christianity would result in like successes.

On the afternoon of the second day (a meeting in the evening of the first day only having been held) James P. Walker, the publisher, gave a resume of the activities of the a.s.sociation during the forty years of its existence, and said that its receipts had been on the average only $8,038.88 yearly.

He showed that much had been done with this small sum, and that the results were much larger than the amount of money invested would indicate. He pointed out the fact that the demands upon the a.s.sociation were rapidly increasing, and far more rapidly than the contributions. There was an urgent need for larger giving, he said, and for a more loyal support of the missionary arm of the denomination. He offered a series of resolutions calling for the raising of $25,000 during the year. Rev. Edward Everett Hale said that $100,000 ought to be given to the proposed object, and urged that more missionaries should be sent into the field. Thereupon Mr. Henry P. Kidder arose, and said: "It is often easier to do a great thing than a small one. I move that this meeting undertake to raise $100,000 for the service of the next year." Dr. Bellows then called the attention of the conference to the importance of considering the manner of securing this large sum and of devising methods to insure success. He proposed "that a committee of ten persons, three ministers and seven laymen, should be appointed to call a convention, to consist of the pastor and two delegates from each church or parish in the Unitarian denomination, to meet in the city of New York, to consider the interests of our cause and to inst.i.tute measures for its good." The two resolutions were unanimously adopted, pledging the denomination to raise $100,000, and to the holding of a delegate convention in New York. The president appointed, as members of the committee of arrangements for the convention, Rev. Henry W. Bellows, Messrs. A.A. Low, U.A. Murdock, Henry P. Kidder, Atherton Blight, Enoch Pratt, and Artemas Carter, Rev. Edward E. Hale, and Rev. Charles H.

Brigham.

The convention in New York was not waited for in order to make an effort to secure the $100,000 it was proposed to raise; and early in January the president of the a.s.sociation, Dr. Rufus P. Stebbins, was authorized to devote his whole time to securing that sum. A circular was sent to the churches saying that such a sum "was needed, and should and could be raised." "The hour has come," said the executive committee in their appeal to the churches, "which the fathers longed to see, but were denied the sight,--of taking our true position among other branches of the church of our Lord Jesus Christ in the spread and establishment of the Gospel."

The response to this call was prompt and enthusiastic beyond any precedent.

The war had made money plentiful, and it came easily to those who were successful. Great fortunes had been rapidly gathered; and the country had never known an equal prosperity, even though the burden of the war had not yet been removed. In February the president of the a.s.sociation was able to announce that $28,871.47 had been subscribed by twelve churches. By the end of March the pledges had reached $63,862.63; and when the convention met in New York, April 5, 1865, the contributions then pledged were only a few thousand dollars short of the sum desired. By the end of May the sum reported was $111,676.74, which was increased by several hundred dollars more.

[Sidenote: The New York Convention of 1865.]

It was when this success was certain that the convention met in New York.

The victory of the Union cause was then a.s.sured, and the utmost enthusiasm prevailed. Some of the final and most important scenes of the great national struggle were enacted while the convention was in session. Courage and hope ran high under these circ.u.mstances; and the convention was not only enthusiastically loyal to the nation, but equally so to its own denominational interests. For the first time in the history of the Unitarian body in this country the churches were directly represented at a general gathering. The number of churches represented was two hundred and two, and they sent three hundred and eighty-five delegates. Many other persons attended, however; and throughout all the sittings of the convention the audience was a large one. Many women were present, though not as delegates, the men only having official recognition in this gathering. It is evident from the records, the newspaper reports, and the memories of those present, that the interest in this meeting was very large, and that the attendance was quite beyond what was antic.i.p.ated by any one concerned in planning it. The call to all the churches, and the giving them an equality of representation in the convention, was doubtless one of the causes of its success. As a result, an able body of laymen appeared in the convention, who were accustomed to business methods and familiar with legislative procedure, and who carried through the work of the convention with deliberation and skill.

On the first evening of the convention a sermon was preached by Dr. James Freeman Clarke that was a n.o.ble and generous introduction to its deliberations. He called for the exercise of the spirit of inclusiveness, a broad and tolerant catholicity, and union on the basis of the work to be done. On the morning of April 5, 1865, at eleven o'clock, the convention met for the transaction of business in All Souls' Church, of which Henry Whitney Bellows was the minister. Hon. John A. Andrew, then the governor of Ma.s.sachusetts, was elected to preside over the convention; and among the vice-presidents were William Cullen Bryant, Rev. John Gorham Palfrey, Hon.

Ebenezer Rockwood h.o.a.r, Rev. Orville Dewey, and Rev. Ezra Stiles Gannett, while Rev. Edward Everett Hale was made the secretary. In Governor Andrew the convention had as its presiding officer a man of a broad and generous spirit, who was insistent that the main purpose of the meeting should be kept always steadily in view, and yet that all the members and all the varying opinions should have just recognition. In a large degree the success of the convention was due to his catholicity and to his skill in reconciling opposing interests.

The time of the convention was devoted almost wholly to legislating for the denomination and to planning for its future work. On the morning of the second day the subject of organization came up for consideration, and the committee selected for that purpose presented a const.i.tution providing for a National Conference that should meet annually, and that should be const.i.tuted of the minister and two lay delegates from each church, together with three delegates each from the American Unitarian a.s.sociation, the Western Conference, and such other bodies as might be invited to partic.i.p.ate in its deliberations. This Conference was to be only recommendatory in its character, adopting "the existing organizations of the Unitarian body as the instruments of its power." The name of the new organization was the subject of some discussion, James Freeman Clarke wis.h.i.+ng to make the Conference one of Independent and Unitarian churches, while another delegate desired to subst.i.tute "free Christian" for Unitarian. The desire strongly manifested by a considerable number to make the Conference include in its members.h.i.+p all liberal churches of whatever name not acceptable to the majority of the delegates, voted with a decided emphasis to organize strictly on the Unitarian basis.

As soon as the convention was organized, expression was given to the demand for a doctrinal basis for its deliberations. Though several attempts were made to bring about the acceptance of a creed, these met with complete failure. In the preamble to the const.i.tution, however, it was a.s.serted that the delegates were "disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ," while the first article declared that the conference was organized to promote "the cause of Christian faith and work." It was quite evident that a large majority of the delegates regarded the convention as Christian in its purposes and distinctly Unitarian in its denominational mission. A minority desired a platform that should have no theological implications, and that should permit the co-operation of every kind of liberal church. The use of the phrase Lord Jesus Christ was strongly opposed by the more radical section of the convention, but the members of it were not organized or ready to give utterance to their protest in an effective manner.

The convention gave its approval to the efforts of the Unitarian a.s.sociation to secure the sum of $100,000, and urged the churches, that had not already done so, to contribute. It also advised the securing of a like sum as an endowment for Antioch College, and commended to men of wealth the needs of the Harvard and Meadville Theological Schools. The council of the Conference was asked to give its attention to the necessity and duty of creating an organ for the denomination, to be called The Liberal Christian.

A resolution looking to union with the Universalist body was presented, and one was pa.s.sed declaring "that there should be recognition, fellows.h.i.+p, and co-operation between all those various elements in our population that are prepared to meet on the basis of Christianity." James Freeman Clarke, Samuel J. May, and Robert Collyer were const.i.tuted a committee of correspondence, to promote acquaintance, fraternity, and unity between Unitarians and all of like liberal faith.[2]

A resolution offered by William Cullen Bryant expressive of thanksgiving because of the near approach of peace, and for the opening made by the extinction of slavery for the diffusion of Christianity in its true spirit as a religion of love, mercy, and universal liberty, was unanimously adopted by a rising vote.

The convention was a remarkable success in the number who attended its sessions, the character of the men who partic.i.p.ated in its deliberations, and the skill with which the unsectarian sect had been organized for effective co-operation and work. Its influence was immediately felt throughout the denomination and upon all its activities. The change in att.i.tude was very great, and the depressed and discouraged tone of many Unitarian utterances for a number of years preceding and following 1860 gave way to one of enthusiasm and courage.[3]

[Sidenote: New Life in the Unitarian a.s.sociation.]

The annual meeting of the Unitarian a.s.sociation, that soon followed, felt the new stir of life, and the awakening to a larger consciousness of power.

The chief attention was directed to meeting the new opportunities that had been presented, and to preparing for the larger work required. Dr. Rufus P.