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66 INTER-FAITH
QUESTIONING ORTHODOXY
RAY WALDER FINDS A MEETING BETWEEN ANCIENT WISDOMS AND THE MODERN INSIGHTS OF UNITARIANISM
It is now beyond all doubt that the orthodox Christian churches are dying with the exception of the evangelical or fundamentalist churches, many of which are actually growing in terms of numbers attending their services. But as for the conventional churches - the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Methodist, Baptist and other 'Free Churches' - the numbers of people attending have been consistently falling during the last few decades and are continuing to fall.
However, Servetus' ideas were, in a way, a culmination of thoughts that various thinkers had had during the previous centuries. These thoughts were
U
nitarian churches are also, in general, facing decline in
numbers attending, and the size generally contrary to the teachings of of the denomination as a whole is diminishing at a rate which some people find alarming. Since Unitarianism in this country was small to start with, the decline in numbers could prove fatal to the denomination.
the established Church and, considering the power of the Church, did not easily surface. However, it seems to some people that what had really happened was that from the fourth century onwards, through the centuries following the establishment of orthodox Christianity, an earlier form of religion, which held the teachings of Jesus as central rather than the teachings of the Church, had gone underground.
On the other side of the coin, many evangelical or fundamentalist churches are growing. As I see it, the appeal of the religion offered by these churches is at a strictly emotional level. That is to say, people are attracted to the religion because it provides an outlet for emotions that cannot find release elsewhere within our society. In addition, fundamentalist religion provides a way of incorporating into life a sense of meaning and purpose that is otherwise denied - although I would say that it can only do this so long as one is prepared to suspend one's rational faculties.
The roots of Unitarianism can be traced to a series of events in the sixteenth
century and, in particular, to the publication of a book in 1532 written by Michael Servetus with the Latin title De Erroribus Trinitatis - 'On the Errors of the Trinity. In this book Servetus set the scene for radical questioning of much of the doctrine of the Christian churches - a questioning which eventually led to the founding of the Unitarian denomination.
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That earlier form of religion is contained in ancient texts which have
been discovered during the last century - in particular those from which I have read in my service. These discoveries have brought to light a form of religion based on the teachings of Jesus, the Nazarene, which is totally different from that which is given by the Christian churches. This form of religion places the responsibility for gaining knowledge and understanding of the Divine firmly on the individual. This
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form of religion is called 'Gnosticism! The word is derived from the Greek word 'gnosis', which is usually translated as 'knowledge' but it is more from experience - which we might call particularly the knowledge derived 'insight. The adherents of this religion are referred to as Gnostics.
In the gnostic teachings we find Jesus talking in terms of illusion and enlightenment rather than sin and repentance - speaking as a guide who opens access to spiritual understanding rather than one who has come to save us from sin. Speaking in terms of
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