Unitarians

Unitarians are followers of a nontrinitarian religious tradition that developed within Christianity and, in the modern era, within a broader pluralist movement. Traditional Unitarianism rejects the doctrine of the Trinity and emphasizes the oneness of God, the humanity or ethical teaching of Jesus, and the use of reason in religious belief. Over time, the term has also encompassed a broader, non-creedal liberal approach to spirituality that includes people who identify with Unitarian or Unitarian Universalist communities regardless of specific doctrinal positions.

Historically, Unitarian ideas emerged in the 16th and 17th centuries among anti-Trinitarian groups in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Transylvania, and Italy, with influential figures such as Fausto Sozzini and Lelio Sozzini. The movement spread to England and North America, where some Congregationalist and other Protestant congregations identified as Unitarians. In the United States, Unitarians formed a distinct liberal Christian movement and later largely merged with the Universalist tradition in 1961 to form the Unitarian Universalist Association.

Today, Unitarianism is often associated with a broader Unitarian Universalist (UU) framework, which emphasizes pluralism, social justice, human dignity, and the freedom of individual belief. UU congregations typically adopt diverse worship styles and beliefs, and they emphasize ethics, community, and inclusion rather than adherence to a single creed. Some congregations retain traditional Unitarian identities, while others participate in the UU movement as a whole.

See also: Unitarian Universalism, Socinianism, Nontrinitarianism.