Church Organization
Universalist congregations tended towards independence and were not easily prone to centralization. They generally met in State Conventions, which usually had more authority than was vested in national Conventions. The church had three divinity schools: Theological School of St. Lawrence University (1856–1965), the Ryder Divinity School (c. 1885–1913) at Lombard College, and the Crane Theological School of Tufts University (1869–1968).
The Philadelphia Convention was an independent National Convention from 1790 to about 1810.
Notwithstanding its tendency toward independence, Universalist congregations supported the construction of The Universalist National Memorial Church in Washington, D.C., to serve as the official church of Universalism. In 1921, the Universalist General Convention approved funds for the building of the church and services began in 1925. The present church, located at 1810 Sixteenth Street NW, Washington DC, was established in 1930 and its current congregation continues to follow Universalist principles.
Read more about this topic: Universalist Church Of America
Famous quotes containing the words church and/or organization:
“Let us pray for the whole state of Christ’s Church Militant here in earth.”
—Book Of Common Prayer, The. Holy Communion, “Prayer for the Church Militant,” (1662)
“One of the many reasons for the bewildering and tragic character of human existence is the fact that social organization is at once necessary and fatal. Men are forever creating such organizations for their own convenience and forever finding themselves the victims of their home-made monsters.”
—Aldous Huxley (1894–1963)