Christian universalism

Christian universalism is a school of Christian theology focused around the doctrine of universal reconciliation – the view that all human beings will ultimately be saved and restored to a right relationship with God. "Christian universalism" and "the belief or hope in the universal reconciliation through Christ" are typically understood as synonyms. However, reconciliation and salvation may be viewed as different concepts entirely, as posited by John Murray in the 18th century, who believed everyone already to be saved, yet still awaiting reconciliation after death.

The term Christian universalism was used in the Christian Intelligencer in the 1820s by Russell Streeter—a descendant of Adams Streeter who had founded one of the first Universalist Churches on September 14, 1785. Some Christian universalists claim that in Early Christianity (prior to the 6th century), this was the most common interpretation of Christianity.

As a formal Christian denomination, Christian universalism originated in the late 18th century with the Universalist Church of America. Their membership has been consolidated with the American Unitarian Association into the Unitarian Universalist Association on May 15, 1961. There is no single denomination uniting Christian universalists, but a few denominations teach some of the principles of Christian universalism or are open to them.

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