Posted on by David Steers

Faith and Freedom issue 202

The newest issue of Faith and Freedom is out now.

In this new issue (Volume 79, Part 1, Spring and Summer 2026, Number 202) we are delighted to include some of the papers, addresses and reflections given at the MOSA (Ministerial Old Students’ Association) meeting held at Harris Manchester College at the end of June 2026 with the theme of ‘Exploring Spiritual Experience’.

‘The Ascent of the Blessed’ by Hieronymous Bosch (1450-1516)

Our cover picture includes ‘Paths up the Mountain’ a picture by Dr Marianne Rankin, one of our speakers and also a painter who mixes Oriental and Western styles. As such it is a great illustration of one of the themes of this issue. Dr Rankin contributes Alister Hardy and Research into Spiritual Experience. A former Chair of the Alister Hardy Society and a former Director of Communications for the Alister Hardy Trust, and the author of An Introduction to Religious and Spiritual Experience, Dr Rankin re-acquaints us with the work, thought and activity of Alister Hardy. This was an important part of Harris Manchester College for such a long time as well as for Faith and Freedom which carried regular reports and papers from Sir Alister Hardy and his co-workers in what was initially called the Religious Experience Research Unit. Alister Hardy began his research by asking a simple question:

Have you ever been aware of or influenced by a presence or power, whether you call it God or not, which is different from your everyday self?

We are pleased to include too Peter Godfrey’s Morning Devotions from 30th June. These Devotions, which incorporate Cliff Reed’s reading ‘Partakers of the Divine’, proved such an appropriate focus for our day’s activity.

At the end of our gathering Jo James delivered a masterful summary of all our deliberations. A pattern in spiritual experience: a plenary summary to Manchester College Old Students Association was delivered with such erudition and insight on our last morning and summarised our experience so fluently that there was much demand to see Jo’s remarks committed to print. It is so kind of him to bring all his thoughts together in time for this issue.

The Sermon has always been an important literary form, for Unitarians and others. We have perhaps lost sight of what a powerful means of communication it can be but in this issue we also celebrate the Sermon with four marvellous examples of preaching in different places and different contexts. The first is Jim Corrigall’s  Becoming a Servant-Leader preached at the ordination of the Rev Robert Foreman at Padiham last November. Moving on consecutively the next is Feargus O’Connor’s exposition of The Global Ethic delivered at an inter-faith event held at Golders Green in May. The third sermon – When the Spirit Will Not Be Contained  – was preached in the Non-Subscribing Presbyterian meeting-house in Downpatrick on the occasion of the annual meeting of the Remonstrant Synod of Ulster on the day of Pentecost in May 2026. The Remonstrant Synod dates back to 1830 but has undergone a revival in the last couple of years and now again meets as a public body which is exploring its purpose and direction in the 21st century. There was added poignancy to the occasion in that the preacher, Brian Moodie, minister of Dromore and Banbridge, was attending the Synod for the last time before returning to his native South Africa. Our fourth sermon is Robin Hanford’s address given at the College Service on Wednesday, 1st July. It was an exemplary expression of the connection between Unitarianism, spirituality, academia and ministry. As such it fits perfectly with our emphasis in this issue on Sermons – as Literature.

The Chapel, Harris Manchester College

Following the Sermons we have A Tribute to Dan C. West one of our most loyal supporters and contributors in recent years who died in March 2026. Dan was a Presbyterian minister, an academic and a college administrator who supported our journal with powerful articles that questioned the way we looked at the world and those in power.

All this is followed by reviews contributed by Professor David Williams (Paul Morland. No One Left: Why the World Needs More Children) and Rev Jim Corrigall (Sean J. McGrath, The Lost Road – A Search for the Soul of the West).

You can take out a subscription via Nigel Clarke, our Business Manager, or online via PayPal. The details of how to subscribe can be found on our website here: https://www.faithandfreedom.org.uk/subs.htm

Posted on by David Steers · 1 Comment

A Silk-hatted Veteran

It was a great delight for us to welcome to Dunmurry last week Patrick Robertson, a direct descendant of the Rev Alexander Gordon, his great great grandson no less. He brought with him a mass of wonderful material relating to AG and his family which will provide the basis for much important research in times to come. But the most poignant item he brought along was Alexander Gordon’s silk top hat.

On the steps of Dunmurry Church with Alexander Gordon silk hat

The last time this hat was in Dunmurry was on 18th January 1931 when AG preached in Dunmurry for the last time shortly before his death in February of that year. This visit was preserved in a photograph taken as he entered the Church which can be seen in this post. Alexander Gordon was a member of Dunmurry from the time he moved to Manchester in 1890 to take over as Principal of the Unitarian Home Missionary College. He seems to have valued this link above all else and returned regularly to Dunmurry to attend communion, to serve on the committee and to participate in other aspects of congregational life.

Patrick has another printed postcard image of AG’s visit to Dunmurry in 1931. This view is actually the same shot as the original picture used on this blog before but it is cropped differently. This is it:

The venerable figure of Alexander Gordon coming to preach at Dunmurry at the age of 89 in 1931. Wearing his silk hat

Alexander Gordon was known for his hats. He was said to wear an ancient silk hat inscribed ‘Not Yours!’ But this one wasn’t it. It is actually in excellent condition and though it must be nearly 100 years old it is probably not much older than that.

But his hat was noticed in a newspaper article which is preserved in the Very Rev William McMillan Library in Dunmurry. Probably from the Belfast Newsletter and dating from early in 1931 the writer gives an account of Gordon’s visit to the Linen Hall Library to hear Shannon Millin’s lecture on Belfast historian George Benn. For the writer Gordon was the ‘Silk-hatted veteran’:

Patrick has a lot of fascinating material relating to Alexander Gordon including his certificate from Manchester New College, London dated June 1862 and signed by James Martineau, J.J. Tayler, William Gaskell and many other prominent Unitarians. In later years AG corresponded regularly with his granddaughter Nellie and these lively and engaging letters shed a lot of light on his activities and interests in the 1920s and will be the subject of a future article. The family history is fully covered by a range of letters from across the generations which show the Gordon family’s removal from the north east of Scotland to Dudley in the English west midlands where Alexander Gordon’s grandfather and namesake established himself as a highly successful spirit and wine merchant.

Alexander Gordon senior announces his entry into business

His grandfather was not only a very successful business man (helped no doubt by his wife Maria Loxton whose aide memoire for calculating measures survives to this day) but was Mayor of Dudley, and was also a leading Methodist in the west midlands. Converted by Wesley he kept an illustrated document detailing his spiritual state. This was before Methodists began to be advocates for temperance or teetotalism, which was quite a late development, most people won’t realise that as late as 1841 the Methodist Conference ruled against Methodist Chapels being used to host teetotal meetings and against using unfermented wine at communion.

Other documents that will provide more insight into Alexander Gordon’s life and activity include his ‘Essay on the Results of the Late [Crimean] War’, probably his oldest surviving written work, dating from 1856 at the age of 15; congregational addresses from Norwich and Hope Street, Liverpool, presented on his removal; a testimonial given to his father on removing from Coventry in 1854; photographs and more.

All this helps us expand our knowledge of Alexander Gordon and the world he belonged to, someone whose significance as a scholar has not diminished and whose personal religious bonds, it is becoming increasingly clear, were strongest with the Remonstrant congregation of Dunmurry.

Posted on by David Steers

Transactions of the Unitarian Historical Society 2026

TUHS Volume 29 Number 1 June 2026

The latest issue is now on its way to members. This issue contains:

Unitarianism in late eighteenth and early nineteenth-century Wiltshire
David L. Wykes

Trowbridge Conigre Chapel (Unitarian Historical Society)

Beginnings of a Global Faith – Celebrating the 200th Anniversary of the American Unitarian Association and the British and Foreign Unitarian Association
Mark W. Harris



The Fordham family of Hertfordshire, as seen in the Diary and Reminiscences of Henry Crabb Robinson
Alan Ruston

H. Crabb Robinson from ‘Diary, reminiscences, and correspondence of Henry Crabb Robinson‘ 1869 (Wikipedia)

Friargate Unitarian Chapel, Derby – A regrettable closure
David Burton

With thanks to David Burton for this image

Unitarian Biographical Dictionary 1902
Alan Ruston

Review

Supplement: Obituaries of Ministers of Unitarian and Free Christian Congregations

Alan Ruston

To join the Unitarian Historical Society and receive the Transactions go to https://unitarianhistory.org.uk/membership/

Posted on by David Steers

Dunmurry 350th Anniversary

On Sunday, 7th June 2026 the First Dunmurry (Non-Subscribing) Presbyterian Church celebrated its 350th anniversary. The church dates its foundation to 1676 with the first minister being called in 1683, the Rev Alexander Glass, the first of the 15 ministers who have served the church in those 350 years.

Click on the video to see the 350th anniversary service

There was a good attendance and it was very pleasing to welcome the Choir of Dunmurry Primary School who sang Hakuna Mungu Kama Wewe and When you believe.

Dunmurry Primary School Choir

Our organist Allen Yarr played the hymns, accompanied by Jack Steers on the trumpet. Jack also played Jeremiah Clarke’s Trumpet Voluntary accompanied by Allen on the organ. Readings were given by Adele Johnston, Clerk of Session, and Kathy Yuillle, Church Secretary. Sue Steers led the congregation in prayer.

During the worship

The Dunmurry Youth Group had created a series of panels detailing prominent people in the history of the Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church and these were displayed along the outside of the organ loft.

Panels depicting NSPCI history

And following the service a large number of those present went over to the Hall for refreshments. It was encouraging to see so many visiting clergy from the Synod and many different denominations.

Refreshments in the hall

Visiting clergy

Posted on by David Steers

Easter at Dunmurry

Click on the video for readings from Holy Week 2026

During Holy Week members of the Church and Youth Group at First Dunmurry gave a reading each day which was uploaded to Facebook. These are now collected together in this video marking Easter along with Isaac Watts’s famous hymn When I survey the wondrous Cross played by church organist Allen Yarr on the piano. Isaac Watts (1674-1748) was an Independent minister who was forced by circumstances to live a quiet life but who became a prolific and deservedly popular hymn writer. James Moffatt says of him ‘His tolerant spirit, his liberal views, and above all his deservedly popular hymns, did much to sweeten relations between Anglicans and Dissenters…Judged by his best hymns, he takes rank with the greatest of English hymn-writers.’

On Easter Day we held our own service at 11.30 am and prior to that at 7.00 am shared in a Dawn Service in Dunmurry Park with the local churches as part of Dunmurry Churches Together. This was followed by breakfast in our Church Hall. ‘Storm Dave’ threatened to disrupt our plans but thankfully had no impact, by 7.00 am the weather was calm and serene and we had a wonderful act of worship together to mark Easter.

Some images from our service in Dunmurry at dawn followed by breakfast in the Church Hall and some of our members who provided the breakfasts.

Posted on by David Steers · 1 Comment

St Agnes, Toxteth Park, Liverpool

I recently acquired this postcard of St Agnes Church, Ullet Road, Liverpool. It’s a church that often features in Edwardian postcards but this was the first time I had seen this view which is interesting because it shows the church before the houses were constructed on the end of Buckingham Avenue and Ullet Road. The church itself was built between 1883 and 1885, the hall and vicarage being added in 1887. This picture must date from the around the turn of the century, the side and the front are already covered in ivy.

St Agnes Church, postmarked 28 September 1903
The view of the church from a similar point in 2026

A modern view of the church from the same angle shows no ivy clinging to the side of the building. Like the nearby Unitarian Church the exterior is brick but the interior is stone. St Agnes, the Unitarian Church on Ullet Road and St Clare’s RC Church just a short walk away, are all very significant ecclesiastical buildings which caught the eye of Andrew Lloyd-Webber back in the 1990s when he provided funding for all three churches to be made open to the public. They remain remarkable buildings which illustrate the ability of churches to follow suburban expansion at the end of the 19th and start of the 20th century and build churches of the highest quality which were pleasing to the eye and built of the best materials. There was once a fourth church in this group, much less celebrated in architectural terms but the first of the suburban outreach churches to move into the locality and a striking edifice with a spire placed at the top of the hill of avenues in 1879. This was Sefton Park Presbyterian Church, which was demolished just over 100 years later and of which there is today no trace, although it would have remained an appropriate reformed companion to the other three churches.

St Agnes, or the Parish Church of St Agnes and St Pancras to give it its full name, was paid for by Liverpool stockbroker Douglas Horsfall to represent the Anglo-Catholic tradition within the new diocese of Liverpool. A low church, evangelical spirit was the dominant mood within Liverpool but Douglas Horsfall was a keen proponent of the ritualism that was so controversial within the Church of England at the time.

Interior of the church from about 1910. One of a number of Toxteth church postcards in my collection which record handwritten details of the organs in use. In this case ‘Organ built by Wordsworth (3) Rebuilt by R[ushworth] & D[reaper] 1908-9.

The architect was J.L. Pearson, the newly appointed architect of Truro Cathedral, and he created a remarkable building which, in the words of Joseph Sharples, ‘conveys an impression of cathedral-like dignity’.

Nikolaus Pevsner was very impressed, calling it, ‘the noblest Victorian church in Liverpool, erect and vigorous, and not in the least humbled by being of red brick. The style is that of the C13, English with French touches, combined to achieve perfect unity.’

Another postcard c.1910, and recording the same details of the organ

The St Pancras part of the name refers to a relatively short-lived continuation of the suburban extension of the churches into the Smithdown Road area early in the 20th century. St Pancras was built on Lidderdale Road but was later utilised as part of the infant school there, and is now demolished.

But St Agnes remains, a surviving symbol of 19th century Anglican controversies, but one of the most impressive churches in Liverpool.

Another view of the interior, this time published by Sidley’s Library, Lark Lane and posted on 14 January 1910 by Esme to Miss Jones of Raby Hall, Bromborough (a house designed in 1847 by Harvey Lonsdale Elmes, who also designed St George’s Hall in Liverpool)
Posted on by David Steers

Knutsford

I was really pleased to be invited to Knutsford to give a talk on Unitarian history earlier in January and so pleased to see such a good turnout and to find such a lot of interest in the topics discussed. I was delighted too to be asked to preach on the Sunday in the impressive meeting-house of 1689.

I have put together a short video that looks at one of the connections between Knutsford and Dunmurry, mainly that represented by Rev Alexander Gordon and his wife Clara Maria Gordon (née Boult). It can be viewed here:

Elizabeth Gaskell, Clara Boult & Alexander Gordon. Click above to see the video

Alexander Gordon himself was descended on his mother’s side from an ejected minister of 1662 and part of his enornous contribution to history was to produce Freedom after Ejection and the Minutes of the Cheshire Classis, both still important works of reference which have close connections to the story of the early dissenting community of Knutsford.

Of course, the most famous person connected with the chapel is undoubtedly Elizabeth Gaskell, who is buried in the chapel graveyard along with her husband Rev William Gaskell.

An old plaque commemorates ‘Mrs Gaskell, the Authoress’

Elizabeth Gaskell is possibly the most famous nineteenth-century Unitarian of all in terms of her continuing impact on modern culture and literature. She is also someone claimed as a Unitarian who really was exactly that; the daughter of a minister, raised in Knutsford Chapel, married to a prominent Unitarian minister and part of that extended community throughout the north west. Her religion was part of her, even to the extent of utlisiing some of the reports of the Manchester Domestic Mission for her descriptions of urban hardship in nineteenth-century Manchester in her novel North and South.

The exterior of the Chapel

Along with Elizabeth Gaskell, Knutsford is also the burial place of Clara Gordon and her gravestone is an invaluable aid in uncovering the tragedy of her and Alexander Gordon’s home life. Two children killed in war, a young daughter died in Rostrevor, county Down, and buried in Warrenpoint, a fact that can hardly be discovered anywhere else than from Clara’s gravestone.

Mary (May) Gordon 1879-1904

The tragic story of the family is told in the video. May was born in Belfast, the above picture was taken in Manchester, in a studio in Rusholme.

The video also shows Alexander Gordon’s close allegiance to Dunmurry. A dedicated member there from 1889 to 1931 despite his commitments to the Unitarian Home Missionary College, the University of Manchester Faculty of Theology, and the churches in North West England.

The interior of Knutsford Chapel

Posted on by David Steers

Christmas at Dunmurry

We’ve had a splendid succession of Christmas events and services at Dunmurry beginning with the Visit of the Choir of Malone Integrated College.

We were delighted to welcome the Malone Choir with their musical director Caroline Mitchell to our Warm Space on Thursday, 4th December. The Choir sang a wonderful, varied programme for the best part of two hours. It is always such a treat to have them with us and above is a video of some of the pieces they sang.

On Friday, 12th December we held our Candlelight Carol Service with Harmonic Sounds Concert Band. It was an excellent night with readings given by Church members and two special guests – John Neill, Kathy Yuille, Sylvia McBride, Claire Cromie, Adele Johnston, Diana Taggart, Des McKeown (First Church), Rt Rev Alister Bell (Moderator NSPCI) and Dr Chamindra Weerawardhana.

Click on the video to see our Candlelight Carol Service with Harmonic Sounds

During the service a Collection was taken for the Motor Neurone Disease Association Northern Ireland. This raised the magnificent total of £344.50. When that is added to the £1,405 already raised for the MND Association at our Table Quiz that means that we have raised £1,749.50 altogether for our charity. An excellent result that will be presented to the Association in the New Year. Well done everyone.

Over the period before Christmas there was another wonderful response from the congregation for the Salvation Army Christmas Appeal. Bags and bags of new toys were brought to the Church by our members and these were taken to the Salvation Army for distribution to children in need on Monday, 15th December. Our support of this appeal is greatly appreciated and helps make a difference to many children’s lives over Christmas.

View our Congregational Carol Service – click on the video above

Our Congregational Carol Service took place on Sunday, 21st December at 11.30 am and was a great occasion. The service was led by members of the Sunday School and Youth Group and readings were given for us by Lochlan, Erin, Darcee, Holly, Jenna, Bryn, Adele and Sue. Music was provided for us by Jack Steers on trumpet and Allen Yarr on organ and the members of the Sunday School decorated the Christmas Tree with decorations they had made.

On Christmas Day we were pleased to welcome Richard Yarr to the organ bench and enjoyed readings from Lochlan, Erin and Sue. It was a lovely short service.

Over we also received our Highly Commended certificate from the National Churches Trust in the Church and Community Volunteer Awards section for the work done in developing and cataloguing the Very Rev William McMillan Library. It’s great to see the Library taking shape and playing such an important role in the life of the congregation and the denomination, with visitors coming from across the UK. It’s a great achievement to reach the last 16 in a UK-wide event, and well done to Sue Steers and Kathy Yuille for all their hard work over the years. The Library will take on even more importance in the New Year when we celebrate our 350th Anniversary as a congregation.


 

Posted on by David Steers

Faith and Freedom Issue 201

The latest issue of Faith and Freedom (Volume 79 Part 1, Issue 201, Autumn and Winter 2025) is now on its way to subscribers. Having been in print since 1947 we have now reached issue 201.

Rev Sidney Spencer by John Stanton Ward, Harris Manchester College, Oxford.

Sidney Spencer is a much neglected figure in twentieth-century Unitarian history and Jo James gives a comprehensive examination of his theological ideas. A Unitarian minister noted for his strongly pacifist witness both before and during the Second World War, with only limited formal academic credentials to his name he nevertheless became Principal of Manchester College, Oxford as well as one of the acknowledged world experts on mysticism. His interest in this subject resulted in a number of publications culminating in the Pelican Mysticism in World Religion in 1963, an influential work and something of a best seller in its day. Jo illuminates Spencer’s theology, sets it in its context and seeks out its relevance to the present day.

This year is the 100th anniversary of the ‘Scopes Monkey Trial’, the famous trial which took place in Dayton, Tennessee when local teacher John Scopes was taken to court for teaching Darwin’s theories in his classes, contrary to the law of the state of Tennessee. John Midgley gives a timely account of this key event, forever made famous by the movie Inherit the Wind, starring Spencer Tracey.

One hundred years is a long time yet the whole case has many uncomfortable resonances in the present age and these perhaps feed into the current situation in the United States. Dan C. West, who has ‘lived through 15 presidents since the beginning of the Second World War’, gives a very insightful analysis of the current political, theological and cultural trends which mark America today.

How do we understand our place in the universe, how do we understand the universe itself in theological terms? Feargus O’Connor provides an excellent examination of Our Mysterious Universe: Accident or Design? looking at the philosophical notions that underpin the argument from design.

Following on from Barrie Needham’s article considering the Koran/Quran from Western, liberal Christian eyes in our last issue, we are pleased to include a response from Imran Usmani who brings considerable insight to the topic through his extensive researches on Christianity, Judaism and Islam.

We are delighted to once again include a number of reviews, including Peter B. Godfrey’s review of Diarmaid MacCulloch’s Lower than the Angels: A History of Sex and Christianity; Peter’s review of the late Rev Art Lester’s  Thank God I’m an Agnostic: Trusting your Hunch about God, the Universe and All That and the editor’s review article on A Short History of the Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church of Ireland. Including Sketches of Individual Congregations and a Fasti of Ministers who served in them by John Nelson.

You can take out a subscription via Nigel Clarke, our Business Manager, or online via PayPal. The details of how to subscribe can be found on our website here: https://www.faithandfreedom.org.uk/subs.htm

Posted on by David Steers

Homer’s Iliad 1686

Click above to watch the video

The oldest book in our Library at Dunmurry is this volume, the Third Edition of Thomas Hobbes’ translation of Homer’s Iliad published in London in 1686. The video tells the story of the book and its recent restoration in Belfast.

The book before restoration

The book following its recent restoration