Many of the tendencies of the Unitarian movement found utterance on the occasion of the seventy-fifth anniversary of the American Unitarian a.s.sociation. The meetings were held in Tremont Temple, May 22, 1900; and the attendance was large and enthusiastic, many persons coming from distant parts of the country. This meeting brought into full expression the denominational consciousness, and showed the harmony that had been secured as the result of the controversies of many years. As never before, it was realized that the Unitarian body has a distinct mission, that it has organic and vital power, and that its individual members are united by a common faith for the promotion of the interests of a rational and humanitarian religion.

This was also a notable occasion because it brought together representatives from nearly all the countries in which Unitarianism exists in an organized form, thus clearly indicating that it is a cosmopolitan movement, and not one of merely local significance. At the morning session addresses were made by the representatives from Hungary, Great Britain, Germany, Belgium, India, and j.a.pan. In the afternoon addresses were delivered by the missionaries of the a.s.sociation. Other meetings of much interest were held during the week, that were of value as interpretations of the past of Unitarianism in this country.

During this anniversary week, on May 26, 1900, upon the suggestion of Rev.

S.A. Eliot, there was organized The International Council of Unitarian and Other Liberal Religious Thinkers and Workers, its object being "to open communication with those in all lands who are striving to unite pure religion and perfect liberty, and to increase fellowship and co-operation among them." Professor J. Estlin Carpenter, of Oxford, England, was selected as the president, and Rev. Charles W. Wendte, who shortly after became the minister of the Parker Memorial in Boston, was made the secretary. The executive committee included representatives from the United States, Great Britain, j.a.pan, Hungary, Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, and Switzerland. The first annual meeting was held in London, May 30 and 31, 1901, with delegates present from the above-named countries, as well as from Holland, Norway, India, Denmark, Australia, and Canada.[14]

The anniversary exercises, as well as the organization of the International Council, gave concrete emphasis to the growing interest in Unitarian ideas and principles in many parts of the world. They gave the sense of a large fellowship, and kindled new enthusiasm. As interpreted by these meetings, the Unitarian name has largely ceased to be one of merely theological signification, and has come to mean "an endeavor to unite for common and unselfish endeavors all believers in pure religion and perfect liberty."[15]

[1] The Unitarian, June, 1887, II. 156. For historical accounts of this controversy see Mrs. S.C.Ll. Jones's Western Unitarian Conference: Its Work and its Mission, Unity Mission Tract, No. 38; W.C. Gannett's The Flowering of Christianity, Lesson XII., Part IV.; and The Unitarian, II. and III. A Western Unitarian a.s.sociation was organized in Chicago, June 21, 1886. Some of the older and leading churches were connected with it, including those at Meadville, Ann Arbor, Louisville, Shelbyville, Church of the Messiah and Unity in Chicago, Church of the Messiah in St. Louis, Keokuk, and others. Hon. George W. McCrary was elected the president, and Mrs. Jonathan Slade the recording secretary. In October, 1887, Rev. George Batchelor became the Western agent of the American Unitarian a.s.sociation. He was succeeded the next year by Rev. George W. Cutter. In September, 1890, Rev. T.B. Forbush was made the Western superintendent of the American Unitarian a.s.sociation, with headquarters in Chicago; and he held this position until 1896. During the period covered by these dates Rev.

J.R. Effinger was the general missionary of the Western Unitarian Conference, and he was succeeded by Rev. F.L. Hosmer and Rev. A.W.

Gould. In 1896 the Western churches were reunited in the Western Conference, and its secretary has been the superintendent of the American Unitarian a.s.sociation. As defining the position of the American Unitarian a.s.sociation during this period of controversy, it may be recalled that in June, 1886, the directors adopted a resolution, in which they said they "would regard it as a subversion of the purpose for which its funds have been contributed, as well as of the principles cherished by its officers, to give a.s.sistance to any church or organization which does not rest emphatically on the Christian basis."

[2] New England, Middle States and Canada, Western States, Southern States, and Pacific Coast.

[3] These loans are made without interest under established conditions, one of which is that they must be repaid in ten annual instalments.

[4] Annual Report of 1873, 7.

[5] The building seemed to be ample, when it was first occupied, for any growth that was likely to be made for many years to come. At the present time, only sixteen years later, it is crowded; and an extension is urgently demanded. It does not now afford room for the work required, and much of that work is done at a considerable disadvantage because of the want of room. The promise for the immediate future is that much more room will be required in order to facilitate the growing work of the a.s.sociation.

[6] The Church: in a Series of Sermons, Boston, 1857.

[7] The Birthright Church: A Discourse, printed for the a.s.sociation of the Unitarian Church of Maine, Augusta, 1854. Mr. Judd's conception of the church as a social organism was shown in the name given to the organization formed under his leadership in 1852, called The a.s.sociation of the Unitarian Church in Maine. In the preamble to the const.i.tution he wrote: "We, the Unitarian Christians of Maine, ourselves, and our posterity are a Church.... We are a church, not of creeds, but of the Bible; not of sect, but of humanity; seeking not uniformity of dogma, but communion in the religious life. We embrace in our fellowship all who will be in fellowship with us." In defining a local church, he says: "These Christians, with their families, uniting for religious worship, instruction, growth, and culture, having the ordinances and a pastor, const.i.tute a parochial church."

[8] Boston, 1858.

[9] Probably Dr. William G. Eliot, of St. Louis, was the first Unitarian minister to make a systematic use of this rite. He prepared a brief manual for use in his church, the preface to which bears date of December 6, 1868. Seth C. Beach, while minister in Dedham, printed a paper on the subject in the Unitarian Review, January, 1886. He held a confirmation service in the Dedham church, April 25, 1886. At a meeting of the Western Sunday School Society, held in Cincinnati, May 12, 1889, Rev. John C. Learned, read a paper on The Sacrament of Confirmation.

[10] The views of Bartol and Judd are appropriate to a state church, wherein they first found expression; and their motive is always distinctly social.

[11] Life of J.F. Clarke, by E.E. Hale, 145

[12] Memoir of Samuel Longfellow, by Joseph May, 193.

[13] Miss Scudder's best hymns were all written while she was a Unitarian.

Unitarian hymnology has been n.o.bly treated by Dr. Alfred P. Putnam, in his Singers and Songs of the Liberal Faith, Boston, 1875. It is understood that he is preparing a second volume. The tendency to a deeper recognition of the spirit of worship has found fitting expression in The Spiritual Life: Studies of Devotion and Worship, George H. Ellis, 1898.

[14] The addresses and papers of this meeting were published under the t.i.tle of Liberal Religious Thought at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century, London, 1901. They give the most complete account yet published of the various liberal movements in many parts of the world, and the book is one of great interest and value.

[15] From the first circular of the International Council.

X.

THE MINISTRY AT LARGE.

One of the most important of the philanthropies undertaken by the early Unitarians was the ministry to the poor and unchurched in Boston, usually known as the ministry at large. It began in 1822, came under the direction of the American Unitarian a.s.sociation and the shaping hand of Dr. Joseph Tuckerman in 1826, and was taken in charge by the Benevolent Fraternity of Churches in 1834. It was not begun by Tuckerman, though its origin is usually attributed to him. Even before 1822 attempts had been made to establish missions amongst the poor by the evangelical denominations; but their work was not thoroughly organized, and it had reached no efficient results when Tuckerman entered upon his labors. The work of Tuckerman was to take up what had been tentatively begun by others, give it a definite purpose and method, and so to inform it with his own genius for charity that it became a great philanthropy in its intent and in its methods.

[Sidenote: a.s.sociation of Young Men.]

When the Hanc.o.c.k Grammar School-house in the north end of Boston was being erected, a young man, in pa.s.sing it on a September evening, said to a companion, "Why cannot we have a Sunday-school here?" The proposition was received with favor, and the two discussed plans while they continued their walk. They met frequently to mature their methods of procedure, and they invited others to join them in the undertaking. On the evening of October 2, 1822, these two young men--Frederick T. Gray and Benjamin H. Greene--met with Moses Grant, William P. Rice, and others, to give more careful consideration to their purpose of forming a society for mutual religious improvement.[1]

These young men met with little encouragement, and for some time there was small prospect of their succeeding in their undertaking. They continued to meet weekly, however; and on November 27 they formed The a.s.sociation of Young Men for their own Mutual Improvement and for the Religious Instruction of the Poor. In 1824 the name was changed to The a.s.sociation for Religious Improvement. The members met at each other's houses weekly, for the purpose of considering topics which related to their own personal improvement or to the wants of the community, always keeping in view the fact that their own religious growth must lie at the foundation of any great good which could be done by them for society. By degrees their number increased; and during the six years following, as appears from the records, the subjects to which their meetings were successively devoted were the desirableness of employing a missionary and building a mission-house, the condition and wants of vagrant children, the diffusion of Christianity in India, the importance of issuing tracts and other religions publications, the means and best method of improving our state prisons, the utility of forming a Unitarian a.s.sociation, the best means to be adopted to abolish intemperance, the character of theatrical entertainments, the want of infant schools, and the best methods which could be taken to aid in the promotion of peace. All of these subjects were then comparatively new, and they were but just beginning to attract attention. Their importance was by no means generally understood, and least of all was the place which they were soon to occupy in public estimation antic.i.p.ated.[2] The a.s.sociation was discontinued in December, 1835.

[Sidenote: Preaching to the Poor.]

One of the first enterprises entered upon by this society was the securing of preaching for the poor and those connected with no religious organization. In this effort they had the co-operation of the younger Henry Ware, then the minister of the Second Church, and of John G. Palfrey, then the minister of the Brattle Street Church. In November, 1822, Henry Ware began these meetings; and four series of them were held throughout the winter, in Charter Street, in Hatters' or Creek Square, in Pitts Court, and in Spring Street. The Charter Street meetings were at first held in a room of a primary school, and then in a small chapel that had been built by a benevolent man for teaching and preaching purposes. In this place Mr. Ware was a.s.sisted by Dr. Jenks of the Christian denomination, and the chapel was afterwards occupied by the latter as a minister at large. The meetings in Pitts Court were also held in a school-room. Those in Hatters' Square occupied a room in a large tenement house and "here the accommodations, and probably the audience, were of a humbler character than elsewhere."[3]

[Sidenote: Tuckerman as Minister to the Poor.]

Early in the year 1826 Dr. Joseph Tuckerman expressed his willingness to devote himself to this ministry; and the American Unitarian a.s.sociation was appealed to, that the necessary financial support might be secured. Dr.

Tuckerman had been for twenty-five years the parish minister in Chelsea, but his health was such that he had been obliged to relinquish that position. On September 4 the sum of $600 was appropriated to the support of Dr. Tuckerman for one year as a missionary among the poor in Boston; and Ware, Barrett, and Gannett were made a committee to ascertain what amount of money could be raised for this purpose. It was thought wise not to use the regular funds of the a.s.sociation for so special and local an object.

The women of the Boston churches were therefore appealed to in behalf of this cause; and during the first year contributions were received from those connected with the congregations of the Brattle Street, Federal Street, West, New South, New North, Twelfth, and Chauncey Place Churches, amounting to $712. These contributions by the women of the churches were continued until the Benevolent Fraternity was organized.

Tuckerman entered upon his work November 5, 1826. On the evening of that day he met with the a.s.sociation for, Religious Improvement, and discussed with its members the work to be undertaken. He began at once the visiting of the poor and the study of their condition in the several parts of the city, though confining himself largely to the north end. In making his first quarterly report to the Unitarian a.s.sociation, February 5, 1827, he said that he had taken fifty families into his pastoral charge. He had given special attention to the children, had arranged that those should be sent to school who had not previously attended, and provided them with shoes and clothes where these were necessary. He had also aided the sick, provided necessaries for those who were helpless and deserving, secured work for those out of employment, and given religious consolation and correction where these were required.

After Dr. Tuckerman had entered upon his work of visiting the poor, the Young Men's a.s.sociation arranged to have him resume the discontinued evening meetings. They accordingly secured the use of a room up two flights of stairs, in what was known as the "Circular Building," at the corner of Merrimac and Portland Streets. In this rude place, that had been used as a paint-shop, services were begun on Sunday evening, December 3, 1826.

Tuckerman recorded in his diary that he had "a large and very attentive audience";[4] and on the same evening he met at the house of Dr. Channing "a large circle of ladies and gentlemen, who formed a society to help him visit."[5] As soon as services were begun in the Circular Building, it was proposed to form a Sunday-school; and on a very cold December day seven teachers and three children met to inaugurate it. They hovered about the little stove, by means of which the room was warmed, and began their work.

The school grew rapidly, soon filled the room, and was given the name of the Howard School. Very soon, also, this room became too small to accommodate the attendants at the preaching services. In recognition of this need the Friend Street Free Chapel was erected, and opened for use on November 1, 1828.

[Sidenote: Tuckerman's Methods.]

During the first year of his ministry Dr. Tuckerman reported quarterly to the American Unitarian a.s.sociation, and then semi-annually. In all there were printed four of the quarterly reports and fifteen of the others. It was not his custom in these reports to confine himself to an account of his work, which usually received only a brief statement at the end; but he discussed important topics relating to the condition of the poor and their needs. His third quarterly report was devoted to a consideration of the remedies to be used for confirmed intemperance. Others of the topics upon which he reported were the condition of the poor in cities, the duties of a minister at large (a t.i.tle invented by him, which he preferred to that of city or domestic missionary), the effects of poverty on the moral life of the poor, the means of relieving pauperism, the causes of poverty and the social remedies, the several cla.s.ses amongst the poor and the best means of reaching each of them, the means to be employed for the recovery of those sunk in pauperism, poor laws and outdoor relief. Among the subjects he discussed incidentally, and sometimes at considerable length, were the duty of providing seats for the poor in the churches at a small rental, the employment of children, education as a means of saving children from growing up to a life of vagrancy and pauperism, the wages of the poor and how they can be increased.[6] He was especially interested in the rescuing of children from ignorance and vice, and he strongly advocated the establishment of schools for the instruction of dull children and those whose education had been neglected. Through his efforts the Broad Street Infant School was established, in order to reach the younger children of the poor. In 1829 he made a careful study of the religious condition of the poor; and he found that out of a population of 55,000, which the city then contained, there were 4,200 families, or about 18,000 persons, who were not connected with any of the churches or who did not attend them with any degree of regularity. This gave him an opportunity to urge upon the public more strongly than before the importance of procuring free chapels, and a sufficient number of ministers to care for this large unchurched population. One or two ministers had labored amongst the poor before he began his work, and three or four had entered upon the same line of effort since he had done so; but these workers were too few in number to meet the large demands made upon them.

In carrying on his work, Dr. Tuckerman sought out all who were in need of his services, without distinction of nationality, color, creed, social position, or moral condition. If he gave the preference to any, it was those who were the most wretched and debased. "It is the first object of the ministry at large, never to be lost sight of," he wrote, "and to which no other is to be preferred, as far as shall be possible to extend its offices to the poor and the poorest, to the low and the lowest, to the most friendless and most uncared for, the most miserable."[7] He recognized the individuality of the poorest and the most vicious: he sought to foster it, and to make it the basis of moral reform and social recovery.

[Sidenote: Organization of Charities.]

The influence of Tuckerman's work was soon felt outside the city in which it was carried on. The people of the state came to take an interest in it, and to feel that its principles should be applied throughout the commonwealth. Therefore, a commission was appointed by the lower house of the state legislature, February 29, 1832, to inquire into the condition of the poor in all parts of the state, and to make such report as might be the basis of needed legislation. Dr. Tuckerman was made a member of this commission. The work of investigation largely fell upon him, as well as the writing of the report. His suggestions were accepted, and the results were beneficent. In the mean time the work of visiting the poor was carried on by a young man, Charles F. Barnard, then a student in the Divinity School, who entered upon his duties in April. In October he was joined by Frederick T. Gray, the founder of the a.s.sociation for Religious Improvement and of the first Sunday-schools for the poor. These workers were ordained in the Federal Street Church on the evening of November 5, 1834, after having thoroughly tested their capacities for the task they had a.s.sumed.

Dr. Tuckerman set forth all the principles which have since been described under the name of "scientific charity," and he put them all into practice.

In the spring of 1832 he organized a company of visitors to the poor, the members of which were to act as friends and advisers of those who were needy. In October, 1833, he brought about a union of the ministers at large of all denominations for purposes of consultation and mutual helpfulness.

This union resulted in a meeting held in February, 1834, at which those interested in the proper care of the poor took counsel together as to the best methods to be followed. At a later meeting in March, it was decided to secure the aid of all the charitable societies in the city with a view to their co-operation and the prevention of the duplication of relief. There was accordingly organized the a.s.sociation of Delegates from the Benevolent Societies of Boston, the objects of which were "to adopt measures for the most effectual prevention of fraud and deception in the applicants for charity; to obtain accurate and thorough information with regard to the situation, character, and wants of the poor; and generally to interchange knowledge, experience, and advice upon all the important subjects connected with the duties and responsibilities of Benevolent Societies." The principle upon which this organization acted was that "the public good requires that the character and circ.u.mstances of the poor should be thoroughly investigated and known by those who administer our public charities, in order that all the relief which a pure and enlarged benevolence dictates may be freely bestowed, and that almsgiving may not encourage extravagance or vice, nor injuriously affect the claims of society at large upon the personal exertions and moral character of its members." The first annual report of this a.s.sociation, which appeared in October, 1835, was written by Dr. Tuckerman, and was one of the best he produced. He laid down certain rules he had accepted as the results of his experience: that beggary was to be broken up; that all misapplications of charity should be reported to the board of visitors; that those asking for alms should be relieved only at their homes and after investigation; that industry, forethought, economy, and self-denial were to be fostered in order to prevent pauperism, and that no help should be given where it led to dependence and reliance upon charity. Registration, investigation, prevention of duplication of alms, and the fostering of self-help were the methods brought to bear by Dr. Tuckerman in the organization of this a.s.sociation.[8]

[Sidenote: Benevolent Fraternity of Churches.]

In the spring of 1834 the part of the ministry at large in Boston supported by Unitarians consisted of Dr. Tuckerman's work in visiting and ministering to the poor in their own homes, two chapels, in which Barnard and Gray preached and conducted their Sunday-schools, and the office of the Visitors to the Poor. In order more effectually to organize the support of this work, the Benevolent Fraternity of Churches was then suggested. The Second, Brattle Street, New South, New North, King's Chapel, Federal Street, Hollis Street, Twelfth, and Purchase Street Churches entered upon the work; and there was organized in each a society for the purpose of aiding the ministry at large. Each of these societies was privileged to send five delegates to a central body that should undertake the support and direction of that ministry. At a meeting held April 27, 1834, an organization of such delegates was effected. It was distinctly stated that "it was not the wish to add another to the eleemosynary inst.i.tutions of the city to which the poor might resort either for the supply of the comforts or for the relief of necessities which belong to their bodily condition"; but the object of the Fraternity was described as being "the improvement of the moral state of the poor and irreligious of this city by the support of the ministry at large, and by other means."[9]

[Sidenote: Other Ministers at Large.]

Dr. Tuckerman continued his work of visiting the poor, so far as his health permitted, until his death, which occurred April 20, 1840. His a.s.sistants and successors continued the work of visitation outside of their own congregations. In August, 1844, Rev. Warren Burton was a.s.signed to this special form of ministry, and to that of a systematic investigation of the condition of the poor. He gave much attention to the needs of children, and made inquiry as to intemperance, licentiousness, and other forms of social degeneration. He was a diligent and successful worker until his ministry came to an end in October, 1848. For about a year, in 1847, Rev. William Ware also devoted himself to the house-to-house ministry; but failing health compelled his withdrawal. In April, 1845, Rev. Andrew Bigelow took charge of the Pitts Street Chapel for a few months; and then for thirty-two years, until his death, in April, 1877, he continued to visit the poor.

With the a.s.sistance of his wife, he went about to the homes of the people, administering to their physical needs, acting as their friend and adviser, and giving them such moral instruction and spiritual consolation as was possible.

For about one year, beginning in March, 1856, Rev. A. Rumpff visited German families in behalf of the Fraternity. He was succeeded in 1857 by Rev. A.

ubelacker, who continued the work for two or three years. From 1860 to 1864 Professor J.B. Torricelli carried on a ministry amongst the Italians, Spaniards, Greeks, and other natives of southern Europe resident in Boston.

After the death of Dr. Bigelow this personal ministry was discontinued, owing to the increase in the number of other agencies for doing this kind of work.