British Unitarianism
| General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches | |
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The official logo of the GAUFCC, based upon the flaming chalice motif.
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| Abbreviation | GAUFCC, or colloquially British Unitarians |
| Classification | Nontrinitarian, Protestant |
| Orientation | Unitarianism, Free Christian, Liberal religion |
| Associations | International Council of Unitarians and Universalists, European Liberal Protestant Network |
| Region | United Kingdom |
| Headquarters | Essex Hall in central London, United Kingdom |
| Origin | 1928 |
| Congregations | 170 |
| Official website | www |
The General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches (GAUFCC or colloquially British Unitarians) is the umbrella organisation for Unitarian, Free Christians and other liberal religious congregations in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was formed in 1928, with denominational roots going back to the Great Ejection of 1662. Its headquarters building is Essex Hall in central London, on the site of the first avowedly Unitarian chapel in England, set up in 1774.
The GAUFCC brought together various strands and traditions besides Unitarianism. These included English Presbyterianism, General Baptist, Methodism, Liberal Christianity, Christian Universalism, Religious Humanism and Unitarian Universalism. Unitarians are now an open faith community celebrating diverse beliefs; some of its members would describe themselves as Buddhist, Pagan, or Jewish, while many others are humanist, agnostic, or atheist. Unitarianism differs from many other religions in that it helps people find their own spiritual path rather than defining it for them.
Christopher Hill states that ideas such as anti-Trinitarianism, which scholars solemnly trace back to ancient times, were an integral part of “the lower-class heretical culture which burst into the open in the 16th century”. The cornerstones of this culture were anti-clericalism (opposition to the power of the Church) and a strong emphasis on biblical study, but there were specific heretical doctrines that had “an uncanny persistence”. In addition to anti-Trinitarianism, there was a rejection of predestination and an embrace of millenarianism, mortalism and hermeticism. Such ideas became "commonplace to 17th century Baptists, Levellers, Diggers, Seekers, … early Quakers and other radical groupings which took part in the free-for-all discussions of the English Revolution".
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