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  • Curriculum Vitae
  • Earl Clement Davis
    • The Manuscripts
      • String-Bound Collection from 1906
      • Four-twine-bound Collection of Manuscripts, 1909-1911
      • Three-Top-Brad-bound Collection of Manuscripts, 1912-1918
      • 1918 Four-brad Bundle of Manuscripts
    • Before, -1902
      • Early Genealogy of the Davis Family
      • First Sermon Preached: The Church as a Social Institution, 1901
    • Harvard, 1902-1904
      • Divinity School Class Papers and Thesis, 1902-1904
        • Theology I: Borden P. Bowne’s Philosophy of Theism, December 15, 1902
        • Philosophy V: The Country Manufacturing Plant: A Solution of One Aspect of Housing the Poor, December 16, 1902
        • History VI: Saint Columbanus, January 20, 1903
        • Sermons I: The Leadership of Jesus, February 19, 1903
        • Church History VI: Suppression of the English Monasteries, May 16, 1903
        • Homiletics II: The Conquest of Unconscious Sins, January 7, 1904
        • New Testament II: Greek, February 2, 1904
        • Thesis: A Prophet of Democracy, June, 1904
        • An Unknown Sacrifice, No Date
      • Sermons, 1902-1904
        • Theology I: Being of God, February 9, 1903
        • Simple Religion, No Date
        • The Motive Power of Vision, 1903
        • Feed the Whole Man, 1903
        • Labor and Brotherly Love, 1903
        • The Renewal of the Spirit, No Date, probably 1903
        • Education the Means; Religion the Dynamic, 1904
        • The Roots of Victory, 1904
        • Sympathy, 1904
        • The World of Fancy, No Date
        • Authority in Religious Life, No Date
        • Action and Reaction, No Date
        • Some Helps by the Way, No Date
        • From Confusion Unto Faith, No Date
        • Not Alms, But a Friend, No Date
        • Community of Purpose, No Date
        • The Modern Pioneer, 1904
        • Man’s Responsibility, 1904
    • Pittsfield, Unity Church, 1905-1919
      • 1905-1907 Sermons & Manuscripts
        • Sermons, 1905-1907
          • A Plea for the Principle of a Creedless Church, 1905
          • Growth and Salvation, No Date
          • The Richness of the Religious Life, No Date
          • Obedience to the Will of God, No Date
          • Why Does One Go To Church?
          • What is Christianity? The Letter Killeth but the Spirit Giveth Power, No Date
          • The Compelling Power of the Christ Like Life, Sermon Notes, No Date
          • Choosing the Noble Life, 1906
          • The Missionary Spirit, 1906
          • Abraham Lincoln and the Needs of the Times, 1906
          • Religion in a Democracy, 1906
          • Broken Ideals and Discouraged Worshippers, 1906
          • The Relation of Religion to Health, 1906
          • The Finality of Christianity, 1906
          • Take Time to Live, 1906
          • The Rejected Corner Stone, 1906
          • From Smoke to Pen, 1906
          • Jesus, The Lover of Human Nature, 1906
          • Temptation, 1906
        • Manuscripts, 1905-1907
          • Origins of Modern Religion, Modern Charity and Modern Labor Problems
            • Lecture One, Freehand Charity of the 14th Century, 1905
            • Lecture Two, [Late Medieval Period, Frederick II, John Wyclif]
            • [Lecture Three:] The Peasants Revolt, [Late Medieval Period 2, 1350-1381]
            • [Lecture Four:] Charity, A Degrading Influence of the 18th Century, [18th Century]
            • What Authority has Experience Over a Man’s Religious Life? [Early Modern Period, Methodism, George Whitefield, John and Charles Wesley]
            • [Lecture Six:] The Iron Law of Wages, The Poor Man Pushed to the Wall, [Early Modern Period, Late 1700s]
            • [Lecture Seven:] The Beginnings of Modern Charity, [19th Century]
            • [Lecture Eight:] The Place of Charity in a Democratic Community, 1905
          • Rise and Development of the Congregational Polity and Spirit
            • Lecture I: The Church at Scrooby
            • Lecture II. Earliest Traces of Congregational Churches
            • Lecture III: Brief Definition of Certain Terms Used in the History of Free Churches
            • Lecture IV: The Pilgrim Church in Holland
            • Lecture V: The Pilgrim Church at Plymouth
            • Lecture VI: The Puritan-Pilgrim Church
            • Lecture VII: The Forces Without the Theocracy
            • Lecture VIII: John Murray and the Beginning of the Universalist Movement
            • Lecture IX: Thomas Paine and Theology Without the Church
            • Lecture X: Henry Ware and Harvard University
          • Biographical Sketches of Important 17th and 18th century New England Congregational Preachers
            • Cotton Mather [1663-1728], No Date
            • John Wise [1652-1725], No Date
            • Charles Chauncy [1705-1787], No Date
            • Charles Chauncy [1705-1787], Continued, No Date
            • Jonathan Edwards [1703-1758], No Date
            • Samuel Hopkins [1721-1803], No Date
            • Nathanael Emmons [1745-1850], No Date
          • Industrial Cooperation, 1906
          • Boston Herald: “Church Fairs and Suppers Graft and Blackmail, Says Minister,” January 20, 1907.
      • 1908 Sermons and Manuscripts
        • Address at the Lincoln Celebration Held Under the Auspices of the Colored M.E. Church, 1908
        • In the Service of the Country, May 22, 1908
        • The Open Way and the Life of Man, May 31, 1908
        • The Motive of Right Living (Outline of a Sermon), June 7, 1908
        • The Moral Significance of the Evolution of Religious Faith: From the Idea of God as an Occasional Visitor, To the Idea of God as the Indwelling Goodwill, June 14, 1908
        • The Place of the Church in the Life of the Individual and in Society, June 21, 1908
        • Mountain Climbing, June 28, 1908
        • The Spirit of the Evangel, July 5, 1908
        • The Moral Conscience and the Needs of the Times, July 12, 1908
        • The Bearing of Burdens, July 19, 1908
        • Helping the Other Man: The Moral and Religious Problem of the Present, July 26, 1908
        • For the Joy of Living, August 2, 1908
        • The Educated Good Will, August 9, 1908
        • Keeping Back a Part of the Price, August 30, 1908
        • The Conservation of Resources, September 6, 1908
        • Some Religious and Social Ideas of Tolstoy, September 13, 1908
        • Faith in Life, September 20, 1908
        • The Value of Doubt in Religious Life, September 27, 1908
        • The Religion of Humanity, October 18, 1908
        • The Need for Extending More Rational Methods in Dealing with the Small Offenders Against the Social Order, October 25, 1908
        • Record [of Experience of Psychic Phenomenon], 1908
        • Practical Politics and Civic Righteousness, November 1, 1908
        • Our Growing Hunger for an Absorbing Service, November 6, 1908
        • Clear Thinking and Right Living in the Individual, November 13, 1908
        • The Puritan Spirit in the Life of Today, November 26, 1908
        • The Motive of Conduct in a World of Righteousness, 1908
        • Report to the Parish, 1908
        • Report to the Unity Workers, 1908
        • Lincoln Steffens to Speak at Colonial Theatre, 1908
        • The Social Unrest, 1908
      • 1909 Sermons and Manuscripts
        • The Value and the Limitation of Allegiance to Religious Leaders, February 14, 1909
        • The Spiritual Realities of Everyday Life, February 28, 1909
        • The Inevitable Compensation of Thought and Conduct, March 14, 1909
        • The Nature and Function of the Church, April 4, 1909
        • The Festival of the New Life, Easter Sunday Service, April 11, 1909
        • Moral Responsibility and Moral Accountability, April 25, 1909
        • The Travail and Pain of Human Life, What Can It Mean? May 2, 1909
        • The Adventurous Task of the Church, May 16, 1909
        • The Fate of Tomlinson, May 23, 1909
        • The Making of Reality, June 13, 1909
        • Our Debt to Thomas Paine, Patriot and Freethinker, June 27, 1909
        • What Go Ye Out To Seek? July 18, 1909
        • Two Great Principles of the Modern World, September 19, 1909
        • What To Do? September 26, 1909
        • Confidence in the Amateur Thinker, October 3, 1909
        • Ex-President Eliot as a Religious Thinker, October 17, 1909
        • The Spirit of the Times, October 24, 1909
        • The Individual and Society, November 14, 1909
        • John Brown and the Passion for Justice, November 21, 1909
        • Is Your God Dead? December 5, 1909
        • Robert Louis Stevenson, The Man of an Understanding Heart, December 12, 1909
        • Good Will Among Men, Is it a Fact or a Theory? December 19, 1909
        • That Man May Live, December 26, 1909
        • The Significance of Count Tolstoi, 1909
        • Edgar Allen Poe, 1909
        • Robert Louis Stevenson, the Writer and the Man, 1909
      • 1910 Sermons and Manuscripts
        • An Appeal for Self-Assertion, January 2, 1910
        • Is There Any Sense in Praying? January 9, 1910
        • A Carpenter in the Face of Danger, Easter Service, March 27, 1910
        • Theodore Parker, The Man of Conviction, June 10, 1910
        • A More Abundant Life, June 19, 1910
        • The Democracy of God, September 25, 1910
        • The Democracy of the Bible, October 2, 1910
        • Some Questions of Municipal Housekeeping, December 4, 1910
        • The Joy of a Pagan Christmas, December 25, 1910
        • Socialism: A Reply, 1910
        • Churches for Truth and Justice, 1910
        • The Work of a Church Today, 1910
        • The Class Struggle, 1910
        • What about City Government, Pipe and Pen Club, 1910
        • Marriage and Divorce, 1910
        • The Churches and Socialism, 1910
        • The Social Ideal of the Modern World, 1910
        • Socialism, 1910
      • 1911-1913 Sermons and Manuscripts
        • The Demands of the New Year, January 1, 1911
        • The Essence of Manhood, January 8, 1911
        • Plodding Illuminated by Imagination, January 15, 1911
        • Address Given at the Presentation of Diplomas to Members of the Graduating Classes of Grammar Schools in Pittsfield, 1911
        • Robert Burns: The Poet of Common Life, 1912
        • The Influence of Democracy on Religious Thought and Practice, 1913
        • The Court Jester to King Bourgeois, 1913
      • 1914-1919 Sermons and Manuscripts, including sermons During the War
        • The New Era, 1914
        • The Social Message of William Ellery Channing
        • The Other End of a Shad Dinner, 1916
        • The Dream of a Christmas Shopper, 1916
        • The Church as Fellowship for Common Purpose, April 8, 1917, Easter Sunday
        • A Sermon on Patriotism and The Spirit of ’76, April 15, 1917
        • The Undercurrent of the Times, April 29, 1917
        • The Great Tradition Becomes The Great Faith, 1918
        • Five Months at Camp Devens, 1918
        • Peace Service Sermon: A Dynamic Peace, 1918
        • The Significance of Labor Strikes from the Point of View of Evolution of Religion, 1918
        • Review of God of the New Age by Eugene W. Lyman, 1918
        • Religion, In Life and In Reality, 1918
        • Democracy and Socialism, 1918
        • Liberty and Responsibility in Religion, 1918
        • The Democratization of Industry, 1918
        • The Strike of the General Electric Company Employees, 1919
        • Letter to the Pittsfield Eagle Comparing the French Revolution with the Russian Revolution, April 8, 1919
        • Channing, The Apostle of Liberty, 1919
        • Report of a Survey of Industrial Relations, September 22, 1919
      • 1916, History Manuscript: The Origins and History of the Bible
        • Lecture I: The English Bible
        • Lecture II: History of Early Bible Manuscripts
        • Lecture III: The Origin of the Books of the Old Testament, Part 1
        • Lecture IV: The Origin of the Books of the Old Testament, Part 2
        • Lecture V: Amos and the Prophets
        • Lecture VI: Finding the Book of Instruction in the Temple
        • Lecture VII: When and Where did the Hebrew Bible Become a Canonical Text?
        • Lecture VIII: The Historical Setting to the Early Origins of the Christian Bible
        • Lecture IX: the Bible of the Early Christians
        • Lecture X: Unfortunately Missing, Likely on the Epistles
        • Lecture XI: The Words of Jesus
        • Lecture XII: Establishing the New Testament Canon
        • Lecture XIII: the Bible as a Whole
        • Lecture XIV: The New Testament Story of the Resurrection
        • Lecture XV: Bibliography
        • Lecture XVI: Appendix: Additional Materials
      • 1908-1919 Undated Sermons from Pittsfield
        • Count Leo Tolstoy: A Tragedy of the Times, undated
        • Behold: A Man, No Date
        • What Think Ye of Man? No Date
        • Sermon on Labor, No Date
        • The Thirst for a Living God
        • The Ethical Significance of the Changing Social Order in its Bearing on the Institution of Government
        • The Ethical Significance of the Changing Social Order in its Bearing on the Institution of Education
        • What is the Nature of Worship and Will it Have a Place in the Coming Age?
        • Sermon: Can the Christian Churches Adjust Themselves to the Coming Age?
        • Reformation Without Tarrying for Any
        • The Ethical Aspect of Socialism, No Date
        • Permanent Characteristics of Liberal Religion, No Date
        • Review of “The Introduction of Androcles and the Lion” by G. B. Shaw, No Date
        • The Hope for a New Age, Sermon Notes, No Date
        • The Relation of Public Schools to Life, No Date
        • The Bible as Literature, 191X
        • Why Cardinal O’Connell is Wrong! 191X
    • Lancaster, Church of Our Father, 1919-1924
      • Sermons, Manuscripts and Publications, 1919-1924
        • God and My Neighbor, September 21, 1919
        • Letter Exchange between C. E. Haupt and E. C. Davis, January, 1920
        • True Meaning of “the Coming Crisis,” 1920
        • Will a Belief in Immortality Survive? April 4, 1920
        • Remarks at Unveiling of the Frieze of the Prophets, 1920
        • Letter to the Editor of the Lancaster Public Ledger, 1920
        • Thanksgiving, Then and Now, November 28, 1920
        • Review of The Behavior of Crowds by Everett Dean Martin, 1920
        • An American Sunday, January 16, 1921
        • Research in Preparation for the Unveiling of a Reproduction of Da Vinci’s Last Supper, March 21, 1921
        • The Dilemma Of the Minister, 1921
        • Music in Religion, Sermon Notes and Preparatory Notes, October 21, 1921
        • Notes on The Mirrors of Downing Street by Gentleman with a Duster, 1921
        • Speech by James H. Maurer, “The Open Shop?” and Maurer’s correspondence with Earl Davis ahead of a meeting on March 9, 1921
        • Questionnaire Responses, “Young People: Why go to Church?” collected in preparation for a sermon on February 5, 1922
        • The Power of Understanding: Not Illusion but Truth is Divinity, 1922
        • Notes on The Glass of Fashion by Gentleman with a Duster, 1922
        • The Fact of God in Human Experience, September 17, 1922
        • Two Sermons for October 15, 1922: Morning Service, “The Mind in the Making;” Evening Service, “The Golden Rule in Religion”
        • The Great Relay Race, Notes on an Address to the Students at the YMCA F+M Academy, October 20, 1922
        • The Well Fed Mind, 1922
        • Notes on Silhouettes of my Contemporaries by Lyman Abbott, 1922.
        • The Essential Christ, 1922
        • Notes on “The Renaissance of Prayer” by Samuel McComb, November, 1922
        • The Need For A Spirit of Broad Fellowship. What shall we do with the Heretics? 1923
        • Did Christ Have the Power of God, February 25, 1923
        • Mennonites: Notes for Talk Given at Wilmington, Delaware, March 1, 1923
        • Is Protestantism in the Midst of a Revolution? March 18, 1923
        • The Lost Stream of Frankness and Freedom, 1923
        • The Land of Promise, October 21,1923
    • Concord, Unitarian Church, 1924-1933
      • Sermons and Manuscripts, 1924-1933
        • Life Has Meaning, 1923
        • The Search for Life, 1923
        • The Great Experiment in Religion: A Church Without a Creed, 1925
        • Into the Great Silences, 1925
        • Report to the Second Congregational Society, 1929
        • The Results of Protestantism, February, 1931
        • Abigail Adams Makes a Suggestion & Brooks Adams Asks a Question, 1932
        • Final Report of the Commission on Free Publications of the American Unitarian Association, September 24, 1932
        • Mutual Aid a Factor in Evolution, 1933
    • Petersham, First Congregational Parish Church, 1933-1953
      • Sermons, Manuscripts, Publications 1933-1937
        • The Beginning of a Long Trail, March 4, 1934, Loomis School
        • The Next Step for Our Unitarian Churches, c. 1934
        • A Pilgrimage to Senexet, 1934
        • Centralization of Denominational Government: Do We Need More or Less? 1935
        • A New Note in Fiction, 1935
        • Democracy Versus Authority in Church (and State), 1936
        • Norman Hapgood, Editor, 1936
        • Order of Worship for Children’s Sunday, June 7, 1936
        • A Man in Search of New Saints, 1936
        • The Congregational Genius of Our Churches, 1936
        • Memorial Remarks: Norman Hapgood in Petersham, 1937
      • Sermon Notes for 1938
      • Sermon Notes for 1939-1940
      • Sermon Notes for 1941
      • Sermons, Manuscripts and Publications, 1942-1943
        • Sermon Notes for 1942 and 1943
        • Remarks at Tenth Anniversary, 1943
        • From Copernicus to Galileo, 1943
      • Sermon Notes, Publications and Manuscripts for 1944
        • Sermon Notes for 1944
        • The Village Church, 1944
        • Modern Christianity at Work in the Country, 1944
      • Sermons and Manuscripts, 1945-1946
        • Memorial Day Union Service, May 27, 1945
        • Community Peace Service for Praise and Thanksgiving, August 15, 1945
        • Union Thanksgiving Service, Petersham, November 18, 1945
        • Service of Commemoration, 1946
      • Sermon Notes and Sermon for 1947
        • Sermon Notes for 1947
        • Not Revelation but Discovery, Not Forms but the Holy Spirit, 1947
        • Channing Day by Day, 1947
    • Undated Materials
      • No Title. Notes on the Ministry, No Date
      • Communion Service, No Date
      • Notes on Mutual Aid: A Factor in Evolution, by P. Kropotkin, No Date
      • Outline of Points on English Bible, No Date
      • Grounds for Faith in Religious Liberty, No Date
    • Funeral, 1953, and After
      • Funeral Service for Earl Clement Davis, May 21, 1953
      • Obituary for Earl Clement Davis, American Unitarian Association Yearbook
      • Obituary for Earl Clement Davis, May 21, 1953

A Plea for the Principle of a Creedless Church, 1905

Outline notes for an address in connection with Earl Clement Davis’ ordination as minister of the Unity Church, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, April, 1905

05SermonOrdinationPleaForThePrincipleOfACreedlessChurch1905

05SermonOrdinationPleaForThePrincipleOfACreedlessChurch1905Transcribed

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