Children of the Same God: The Historical Relationship Between Unitarianism, Judaism, and Islam

In Children of the Same God, Susan J. Ritchie makes the groundbreaking historical argument that, long before Unitarianism and Universalism merged in the United States, Unitarianism itself was inherently multireligious. She demonstrates how Unitarians in Eastern Europe claimed a strong affinity with Jews and Muslims from the very beginning and how mutual theological underpinnings and active cooperation underpin Unitarian history but have largely disappeared from the written accounts. With clear implications for the religious identity of Christians, Jews, and Muslims as well as Unitarian Universalists, and especially for interfaith work, Children of the Same God illuminates the intertwining histories and destinies of these traditions.

Susan J. Ritchie is associate professor of Unitarian Universalist History and Ministry at Starr King School for the Ministry and parish minister at North Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Lewis Center, Ohio. She holds a doctorate in cultural/religious studies from Ohio State University. She has published many articles and chapters on Unitarian Universalist history and polity, American religious history, comparative religion, cultural theories of religion, and the literature, theology, and history of Ottoman Islam.