First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis is a non-theistic humanist community and member of the
Unitarian-Universalist Association located at 900 Mount Curve,
Minneapolis
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
, Minnesota. Once led by the influential minister
John H. Dietrich who is known as the "Father of Religious Humanism," First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis is considered in today's terminology the "birthplace of Congregational Humanism."
History
In the 1870s, the Minneapolis chapter of the
National Liberal League began meeting to discuss the ideas of geologist
Charles Lyell
Sir Charles Lyell, 1st Baronet, (14 November 1797 – 22 February 1875) was a Scottish geologist who demonstrated the power of known natural causes in explaining the earth's history. He is best known as the author of ''Principles of Geolo ...
and naturalist
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...
. Upon hearing visiting Unitarian minister Henry Martyn Simmons (1841-1905) lecture, eighteen members of the Liberal League voted to incorporate as a Unitarian congregation on November 18, 1881
so that Simmons would join them in Minneapolis.
The articles of incorporation defined the Society's purpose as to form an association where "people without regard to theological differences may unite for mutual helpfulness in intellectual, moral, and religious culture, and humane work."
The sermons of Rev. Simmons on evolution, science, and ethics drew large crowds. Simmons was a vocal opponent of the U.S. invasion of the Philippines and the congregation was instrumental in convincing the state of Minnesota to withdraw its troops from the war.
The Society's first building, designed by noted architect
Leroy Buffington, was dedicated in June 1887.
The Society has always attracted progressive social activists. Congregants set up literacy programs for working children and made clothes for the needy. The Women's Alliance of the congregation funded a free delivery room for unwed mothers at the Maternity Hospital of physician and social reformer
Martha Ripley
Martha George Rogers Ripley (November 30, 1843 – April 18, 1912) was an American physician, suffragist, and professor of medicine. Founder of the Maternity Hospital in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Ripley was one of the most outspoken activists for ...
.
Two congregants,
Maud Conkey Stockwell and
Clara Ueland, served as president of the
Minnesota Woman Suffrage Association from 1901-1919. After voting rights had been achieved, the organization
became the Minnesota
League of Women Voters
The League of Women Voters (LWV or the League) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan political organization in the United States. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include registering voters, providing voter information, and advocating for vot ...
, with Clara Ueland as its first president.
Beginning in 1906, the congregation sponsored the Saturday Lunch Club, often called the "university for progressive ideas." Lecturers included
Clarence Darrow
Clarence Seward Darrow (; April 18, 1857 – March 13, 1938) was an American lawyer who became famous in the early 20th century for his involvement in the Leopold and Loeb murder trial and the Scopes "Monkey" Trial. He was a leading member of t ...
,
John Haynes Holmes
John Haynes Holmes (November 29, 1879 – April 3, 1964) was an American Unitarian minister, pacifist, and co-founder of the NAACP and the ACLU. He is noted for his anti-war activism.
Early life
Holmes was born in Philadelphia on November 2 ...
, Minnesota Governor
Floyd B. Olson
Floyd Bjørnstjerne "Skipper" Olson (November 13, 1891 – August 22, 1936) was an American politician and lawyer. He served as the 22nd Governor of Minnesota from January 6, 1931, to August 22, 1936, dying in office of stomach cancer. Olson wa ...
, and
Louis Brandeis
Louis Dembitz Brandeis (; November 13, 1856 – October 5, 1941) was an American lawyer and associate justice on the Supreme Court of the United States from 1916 to 1939.
Starting in 1890, he helped develop the "right to privacy" concept ...
.
In 1916, the Society called
John H. Dietrich as its minister. Dietrich
is considered the father of "
Religious Humanism," a secularization of
the Sunday morning liturgical experience.
Dietrich's talks proved so popular that services were moved to the Garrick Theater in downtown Minneapolis and later to another large downtown theater, the Shubert, to accommodate the audiences that regularly exceeded 1,000. Dietrich's talks were broadcast on radio and published as pamphlets.
In 1917, Dietrich met
Curtis W. Reese, another midwestern Unitarian minister who was advancing similar humanistic ideals. They formed the core of a growing number of Humanist ministers among Unitarian clergy.
This movement led to the publication of
A Humanist Manifesto in 1933. One of the principal authors of Manifesto I was Rev. Raymond Bragg, who would succeed John Dietrich as minister of the Society.
The Society outgrew its Harmon Place building and built the Unitarian Center at 1526 Harmon Place in 1926. Sunday assemblies were still held in downtown theaters.
In 1929, the Society's Women's Alliance formed the
American Birth Control League
The American Birth Control League (ABCL) was founded by Margaret Sanger in 1921 at the First American Birth Control Conference in New York City. The organization promoted the founding of birth control clinics and encouraged women to control their ...
after sponsoring a lecture by
Margaret Sanger
Margaret Higgins Sanger (born Margaret Louise Higgins; September 14, 1879September 6, 1966), also known as Margaret Sanger Slee, was an American birth control activist, sex educator, writer, and nurse. Sanger popularized the term "birth control ...
. In 1930, the League opened the first birth control clinic in the state, which later became
Planned Parenthood
The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. It is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Reve ...
of Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota.
During the Great Depression the Society was instrumental in forming the Humanist Credit Union, which later became part of the Group Health Plan, Inc. and eventually Group Health in 1957 before becoming
HealthPartners, Inc., today the nation's largest health co-op.
The Society hosted the Minneapolis Theatre Union which, in collaboration with the Society's own acting group, the Assembly Players, produced plays concerning union organizing and liberal causes of the day. For example, the group raised money for the Scottsboro Defense Fund.
In the 1940s, when cremation was not easily available, members formed the Minnesota chapter of
Funeral Consumers Alliance
Funeral Consumers Alliance is a nonprofit federation of organizations ("''memorial societies''" or "''funeral planning societies''"), founded in 1963.
Funeral Consumers Alliance operates in the United States and Canada.
Mission
The alliance's ...
.
In 1951, the Society moved into its present building at 900 Mount Curve Avenue in urban Minneapolis. Designed by the architectural firm of Thorshov and Cerny, the building reflects the humanist values of the
congregation in its minimalist design and absence of religious symbols.
The progressive activism of the Society continued.
From 1966 through 1978, the Society's minister, Robert Lehman, offered draft counseling and facilitated support groups for gay men. Public assembly of gay people was illegal in the state at the time.
Minister Khoren Arisian participated in the formation of the North American Committee for Humanism and the establishment of the Humanist Institute, a national training center for humanist leadership. Rev.
Arisian was a signer of
Humanist Manifesto II
''Humanist Manifesto II'', written in 1973 by humanists Paul Kurtz and Edwin H. Wilson, was an update to the previous ''Humanist Manifesto'' published in 1933, and the second entry in the ''Humanist Manifesto'' series. It begins with a statemen ...
.
Today, First Unitarian Society remains a humanist congregation and is a focal point for humanist, freethought, and atheist groups in the Twin Cities. Senior minister Rev. Dr. David Breeden is leading the society down a new course of humanism, which he has rebranded from
Religious Humanism to Congregational Humanism in order to help clarify its non-theistic nature for the contemporary world. Breeden is committed to the work of "decolonizing Humanism," is a published poet and author of several works, works with several institutions providing advanced education to the next generation of Humanist leaders, and serves as chair of the Education Committee at the
American Humanist Association
The American Humanist Association (AHA) is a non-profit organization in the United States that advances secular humanism.
The American Humanist Association was founded in 1941 and currently provides legal assistance to defend the constitutiona ...
.
Settled ministers
*Henry Martyn Simmons, 1881-1905
*E. Stanton Hodgin, 1905-1909
*Wilson Backus, 1910-1916
*
John H. Dietrich, 1916-1938
*
Raymond Bragg Raymond Bennett Bragg (1902–1979) was an American Unitarian minister who played a key role in the writing of the original Humanist Manifesto (1933) and eventually signing Humanist Manifesto II (1973). Raymond Bragg was born in Massachusetts and ...
, 1938-1947
*Carl Storm, 1947-1965
*Robert Lehman, 1965-1978
*Khoren Arisian, 1979-1997
*Anne Heller, 1990-1994
*Kendyl Gibbons, 1998-2012
*David Breeden, 2013-
References
External links
First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis official websiteFirst Unitarian Society archives*
*
{{Authority control
Unitarian Universalist churches in Minnesota
1881 establishments in Minnesota
Religious organizations established in 1881