Our History The founder of Hopedale and our first minister, Adin Ballou, had an intense desire to put his religious faith into practice. He conceived and promoted the Fraternal Community No. 1, the forerunner of this parish. From 1842 to 1856, he and his followers lived on farmland that now is the town of Hopedale. It was here that they worked to embrace an ethical idealism. Although his experiment made a promising beginning, it eventually dissolved. Many who had taken part in the noble effort to live out the demands of Christian socialist principles continued to worship with Adin Ballou, thus establishing this Parish. The Hopedale Unitarian Parish was formed October 2, 1867. The Parish accepted the remaining members of the Community, its Meeting House, Sunday School, Cemetery and Funds. The building which is standing is a memorial church. It was erected through the generosity of Eben S. Draper and George Albert Draper in memory of their father and mother. Dedication services for the church edifice were held on September 15, 1898. The architectural style is English Gothic.   Our Free Faith Today We are a free spiritual community with a rich variety of opinions among us, but we are united in believing that it is love that inspires us in our lives, our worship and our service to others. We experience a deep unity within the colorful diversity of this world and are open to the truths found in other religious traditions. Our tradition calls this the Unity of God. Our congregation affirms spiritual freedom, informed reason, and active tolerance.   Conservative and Progressive "We rejoice in every advance of knowledge and gladly assimilate new truth and grow strong as it changes. But we also claim the wisdom of the ages as our spiritual heritage. We preserve the old, time-tested principles and abiding values of world religions, thereby enabling the new to grow out of the old as buds on trees grow out of well established branches."   Emotionally Satisfying "We recognize both the feeling side and the thinking side of religion. We affirm that emotion, reverence and a sense of mystery are necessary for a balanced life. Our faith…fosters both the warm heart and the informed mind."   Ethical "Our faith demands and promotes the highest standard of conduct, sensitizes our moral sense of right and wrong, points to a way of living that is noble, gives us a frame of reference by which to decide what is good and evil, and guides and energizes our wills so as to help us to achieve our ethical goals of justice, righteousness, and peace. If offers us a natural moral and ethical code." --From A.J. Mattill   The Parish holds regular Sunday Services at 10:30 a.m.   The Hopedale Unitarian Parish is a member of the Unitarian Universalist Association , which has headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts.   Watch a Video about Unitarian Universalism!