Henry Ware (April 1, 1764 – July 12, 1845) was a

preacher A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who Open-air preaching, preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach com ...

and

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

influential in the formation of

Unitarianism Unitarianism () is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian sect of Christianity. Unitarian Christians affirm the wikt:unitary, unitary God in Christianity, nature of God as the singular and unique Creator deity, creator of the universe, believe that ...

and the American Unitarian Association in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Born in

Sherborn, Massachusetts Sherborn is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. Located in Boston's MetroWest (Massachusetts), MetroWest region, the community is within area code 508 and has the ZIP Code 01770. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...

(in

a house A House were an Irish rock band that where active in Dublin from 1985 to 1997, and recognized for the clever, "often bitter or irony laden lyrics of frontman Dave Couse ... bolstered by the and'sseemingly effortless musicality". The single " En ...

that survived into the 20th century), Ware was educated at

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate education, undergraduate college of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Part of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Scienc ...

, earning his A.B. in 1785. He was from 1787 to 1805 the minister of the First Parish in

Hingham, Massachusetts Hingham ( ) is a town in northern Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Plymouth County in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Part of the Greater Boston region, it is located on the South Shore (Massachusetts), South Shore of Massachusetts. At the 2020 ...

. He was elected a Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

in 1804. In 1805 he was elected to the Hollis Chair at Harvard, precipitating a controversy between Unitarians and more conservative

Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...

s. He took part in the formation of the

Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the religious studies, academic study of religion or for leadership role ...

and the establishment of Unitarianism there in the following decades, publishing his debates with eminent Calvinists in the 1820s. His son, Henry Ware Jr., followed his father as a Harvard Divinity professor and Unitarian theologian. He is also the grandfather of Mary Lee Ware through one of his other sons, Dr. Charles Eliot Ware - Mary and her mother (his daughter-in-law) being the patron sponsors of Harvard's famed Glass Flowers exhibit. Henry Ware Sr. was married three times. From his first marriage there were seven daughters and three sons. From his third marriage there were five sons and four daughters.

References

External links

Ware biography
from ''The Unitarians and the Universalists'' by David Robinson 1764 births 1845 deaths American Unitarians American Unitarian clergy Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Harvard College alumni Harvard Divinity School faculty People from Sherborn, Massachusetts {{Christianity-bio-stub