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UNITARIANISM AND UNIVERSALISM COME TOGETHER

While the American Unitarian Association and its member congregations were thriving, the Universalist Church in America was struggling. With a slightly more traditionally Christian worship style than the Unitarians and based mostly on small town congregations, the Universlists had been declining in membership since the turn of the Century. On one hand most mainline Protestant denominations had long abandoned Calvinism and many had tacitly embraced variants of either universal salvation or universally available salvation thus robbing the Universalists of some of their uniqueness. On the other hand newly resurgent fundamentalist and Pentecostal churches were successfully competing with the denomination's evangelical style of outreach especially among rural and working class people. The Church's loose structure based on state conventions and lack of resources for ministerial training contributed to the decline.

Through most of the twentieth century cooperation between the two liberal religious bodies had been increasing. Dissuasions about improved relationships between them or out right affiliation had been sporadic since 1869. In 1939 a joint committee explored the possibilities of union and recommended the formation of The Free Church Fellowship which would connect the still independent denominations. Although adopted among some controversy the Free Church Fellowship failed as an effective tool and withered away.

Meanwhile cooperation did continue. A joint hymnal was published and widely used by both denominations. Cooperation was extended in the development of religious education curricula and materials. Ordained ministers of both denominations frequently were called to serve each other's congregations. The two youth departments were especially involved in cooperative activities and eventually merged into the Liberal Religious Youth.

Beginning in 1947 discussion intensified culminating the creation of the Council of Liberal Churches (Universalist-Unitarian) by a joint assembly in 1953. The Council merged each denomination's departments of education, publication and public relations. Meanwhile a Joint Interim Commission explored the possibility of further union. A Merger Commission was recommended which began work in 1957.

On May 23, 1960 delegates of the AUA and the UCA met simultaneously but separately to consider merger. Both bodies voted overwhelmingly to create the new Unitarian Universalist Association, which officially came into being the following May.

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