| Basic Concept: Unitarianism
In reaction, in part, to the dissolution of a strong, creedal-based Christian tradition, Unitarianism arose as an answer to the vagaries of deism. One of the most outspoken adherents to the faith and one of its strongest advocates, William Elery Channing helped define its precepts in an 1819 essay. While Unitarianism denied the concept of the "Trinity," it affirmed Christ and his ministry, revelation through the Holy Bible, and the concept of God as a benevolent "parent." . Unitarians attempted to reconcile reason with doctrines that affirmed the "positive side" New Testament theology and dismissed the harsher views of God suggested in the Old Testament. Many New England intellectuals found intellectual sanctuary in Unitarianism that came to dominate theological discourse in a number of Protestant divinity schools. . Unitarianism was challenged in the 1830's by the emergence of New England Transcendentalism with its devotees like Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller, and Orestes Bronson, and Henry David Thoreau. In their orientation to new translations of Eastern sacred texts, the Transcendentalists rejected Unitarian reaffirmation of Biblical miracles and the ancient creeds of faith. Online Connections
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