|
The Unitarian Church in Summit is a Unitarian Universalist ("UU") church in Summit, New Jersey, founded in 1908. The church is active in social justice initiatives and received the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee Social Justice Award in 2010. It has also been recognized as an outstanding UU congregation by various UU groups〔 〕 and has one of the largest UU Youth Groups in the country. It also features a "top–notch music program and has had a string of renowned preachers." The church was founded by a group of area residents, who felt that Summit needed a liberal church, emphasizing ethics and love as the core of religion, and encouraging all members to search for their own religious truths. Today, the church is led by Interim Minister Terry Sweetser, Executive Director Tuli Patel, and Minister of Congregational Life Emilie Boggis.〔 ==History== At the turn of the century in Summit, NJ, a number of men and women were interested in founding a church based on ethics and love rather than a specific system of beliefs. Parker D. King, a successful local businessman, was one of these. In the summer of 1906, he encountered a childhood friend, Unitarian minister Curtis Brown, on the Long Island Railroad. They discussed how to start a liberal church in Summit. Starting in January, 1907, King and a small committee planned a series of “Unitarian Meetings” in Summit, which took place on Sundays throughout that year. On January 14, 1908, a small group met in Summit to consider establishing a Unitarian congregation. The group was indecisive and hesitant, so Russell Hinman, a strong supporter of liberal religion, made a motion that they not found a Unitarian church in Summit. Having rejected this option, seventeen charter members proceeded to organize a Unitarian Church in Summit and called Reverend Brown to be its first minister. The group met in rented locations until funds were allocated to construct a building. Financial assistance from the American Unitarian Association and the New Jersey Universalist Convention made it possible to purchase the land at the current location on Springfield and Waldron Avenues. An existiing house (later called "Community House") was moved up Waldron to make room for a new building facing Springfield Avenue. Architect and member Joy Wheeler Brown designed the building to reflect the style of Colonial New England meeting houses, and incorporated elements of St. Paul's Chapel in New York City and King's Chapel in Boston. Construction began in 1912 and the sanctuary was formally dedicated on October 21, 1913. Also in 1912, the church adopted the name All Souls' Church, Unitarian-Universalist, having members from both denominations. This prefigures the later merger of the Unitarian and Universalist churches in 1961.〔〔 〕 In 1914, the church called Rev. Frank C. Doan to the pulpit. Doan was a pacifist who voiced his opposition to war in April, 1917, when the United States joined in the "Great War." This was extremely unpopular in New Jersey, and given strong criticism from the state's newspapers, he offered his resignation to the Board of Trustees. They refused it, setting a high standard for freedom of the pulpit in Summit. From 1933 to 1944, A. Powell Davies was the minister. Davies, a former Methodist, had a profound influence on this church of "intellectuals, scientists, professionals, independent thinkers, and those not satisfied with traditional Protestantism"〔 and also on the Unitarian movement. His preaching emphasized not just political action, but the importance of a 'world religion', a religion that underlies all existing religions. He said of religions that "what is deeply true in one of them is just as true in all of them."〔 Davies life work was to seek to express this basic religion and to advance Unitarian thought. In 1942, a convocation of Unitarian ministers was held in Summit to develop a Unitarian statement of faith.〔〔 More prosaically, Davies convinced the church, then unaffiliated and named the "Summit Community Church," that since it was accepting support from the American Unitarian Association, it should rejoin the Unitarian Association. He also devoted himself to developing the Religious Education program and a vital Youth Group.〔 In the 1940s, the church continued to grow, assisted by administrators such as Marjorie Mettee. In the congregation were inventors such as James William Welsh. In 1961, Unitarianism merged with Universalism, to become known as the ''Unitarian Universalism Association'' or UUA, and had a position once described in a newspaper report as "One God, no one left behind."〔 In the late 1970s, the steeple became structurally unsound, and was removed and remained gone for about two decades. In the late 1990s, the building underwent a major renovation, with the building lifted off the ground to permit excavation and installation of a basement, among other projects; a new steeple was built and attached to the top using a crane. Under the leadership of minister Vanessa Southern (2001–2014), Summit membership grew from 407 members in 2001 to 529 members in 2012, children's education numbers grew to 200, and charitable and social action efforts increased. In late 2011, the congregation voted to pursue the purchase of an adjacent property. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Unitarian Church in Summit」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|