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Services
Services on Sundays
(6.0 p.m. March - October, 4.0 p.m. November - February)
The Religious Alternative
Unitarians believe that the whole truth about God, the Universe and humanity is too great to be captured in man-made dogmas. Instead we affirm the fundamental liberty of every person to be true to their own conscience and experience in matters of faith. We do not sit in judgement on other people's sincerely-held beliefs, but come together in a fellowship of freedom to praise God, celebrate life, and encourage each other in the nurture of a faith to live by. We are faithful - though not slavishly so - to our inheritance, and we're open to what the present and the future have to teach.
We affirm our Christian heritage, and revere Jesus as the human revealer of the divine nature and promise, but we accept that wisdom and truth can also be found in the other great spiritual traditions of humankind. We affirm the unity of the human family, regardless of race, creed, class or sex, and believe that peace, compassion and justice should be the hallmarks of a truly human society.
In our church we try to make this ideal a reality, respecting each other as temples of the divine and seeking ever to make love the guiding light of our community, even when beliefs and opinions differ. Our worship is simple, our organisation democratic, and all who sincerely seek the truth are welcome to join us.
History of the congregation
Our congregation traces its history to a group of dissenters, or nonconformists, who started meeting in Framlingham in 1660 when the Commonwealth period ended and they were excluded from the Church of England. Their first minister was the Rev Dr Henry Sampson, who had been ejected from the pulpit of St Michael's Parish Church when the monarchy was restored. The congregation prospered, and in 1717, during the ministry of the Rev Samuel Lodge, the present Meeting House was built. At that time the congregation seems to have included Presbyterians, Congregationalists and Baptists, and this situation continued until 1773 when the Rev Samuel Say Toms was appointed as minister.
Toms was, or became, Unitarian in his theology - that is, he affirmed the unity of God in contrast to orthodox Trinitarian belief which he, in common with other Unitarians of the time held to be unscriptural. The result was a split in the congregation, those holding to Trinitarian beliefs seceding to form the Congregational church.
Toms was minister until 1829. A widely respected figure in Framlingham, his fiftieth year as minister was marked by a public dinner at 'The Crown'. On this occasion he was presented with a silver teapot bearing an inscription which recognised his "steady perseverance in the cause of civil and religious liberty", a cause which remains in the forefront of Unitarian concerns. Toms was buried in St. Michael's churchyard where his imposing tomb can still be seen.
Since Toms' day a succession of pastors and layfolk has kept alive the Unitarian cause in Framlingham. They have never imposed a Unitarian creed on the congregation, holding always to the principle of individual freedom of belief. It was the conviction that all believers must be free to read the scriptures for themselves that allowed the first Unitarians to move away from set creeds. This belief that truth is better served by the free and honest expression of personal faith than by adherence to imposed doctrine remains our guiding principle.
The building is a simple, mellow red-brick 'preaching box' that reflects well its Puritan origins. It is a fine, though modest, example of its type. The interior does not, however retain the original arrangement. The present pulpit, with its dove representing the Holy Spirit, is on the short east wall, and the pews face east. There is a gallery on the west wall. Originally the gallery extended to three sides, the pulpit was on the long north wall, and the pews were probably of the 'box' type. Behind the building is a small burial-ground, in use from 1792 until the mid-19th century.
Lay Pastor
Ray Seal,
7 Church Road, Kettleburgh, Woodbridge, Suffolk
IP13 7LE
Tel: (01728) 724745
Email:
Contact information
Congregation's email contact:
As above
Email:
Links
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