This thesis looks at the religious beliefs of John Adams and argues that the proper definition of Adams's belief system should only be \"Unitarianism.\" It goes through the basic history of Unitarianism and the religious context of the Founding Fathers, and it analyzes relevant historiography on Adams's theological system, arguing against terms such as \"Christian Deist\" and \"Theistic Rationalist.\" Then, the thesis suggests possible applications for Adams's religion, particularly when considering his emphasis on the ethical Jesus in relation to his desire for a moral society brought about by religion. Adams's theology can be applied to political actions he took during his life, including the drafting of the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780, the signing of the Treaty of Tripoli of 1797, and the issuing of national days of fasting and prayer during his presidency.
","abstract_html":"<p>This thesis looks at the religious beliefs of John Adams and argues that the proper definition of Adams's belief system should only be "Unitarianism." It goes through the basic history of Unitarianism and the religious context of the Founding Fathers, and it analyzes relevant historiography on Adams's theological system, arguing against terms such as "Christian Deist" and "Theistic Rationalist." Then, the thesis suggests possible applications for Adams's religion, particularly when considering his emphasis on the ethical Jesus in relation to his desire for a moral society brought about by religion. Adams's theology can be applied to political actions he took during his life, including the drafting of the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780, the signing of the Treaty of Tripoli of 1797, and the issuing of national days of fasting and prayer during his presidency. </p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Farmer, Wesley Edward"],"institution":"Eastern Kentucky University","degree_name":"Master of Arts (MA)","degree_level":"Master's","degree_discipline":"History","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2015,"date_issued":"2015-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2015-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:15:25Z","subjects":["John Adams","History","presidents","Religion","Theology","Unitarian","United States History"],"languages":[],"rights":["Copyright 2015 Wesley Edward Farmer"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/256","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Farmer, Wesley Edward"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Encompass Digital Archive, Eastern Kentucky University"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Master Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["History"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Master's"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts (MA)"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Eastern Kentucky University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["John Adams","History","presidents","Religion","Theology","Unitarian","United States History"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2015 Wesley Edward Farmer"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/256"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This thesis looks at the religious beliefs of John Adams and argues that the proper definition of Adams's belief system should only be \"Unitarianism.\" It goes through the basic history of Unitarianism and the religious context of the Founding Fathers, and it analyzes relevant historiography on Adams's theological system, arguing against terms such as \"Christian Deist\" and \"Theistic Rationalist.\" Then, the thesis suggests possible applications for Adams's religion, particularly when considering his emphasis on the ethical Jesus in relation to his desire for a moral society brought about by religion. Adams's theology can be applied to political actions he took during his life, including the drafting of the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780, the signing of the Treaty of Tripoli of 1797, and the issuing of national days of fasting and prayer during his presidency.
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"],"dc:format":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/256"],"dc:publisher":["Encompass Digital Archive, Eastern Kentucky University"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2015 Wesley Edward Farmer"],"dc:source":["Encompass Digital Archive: Online Theses and Dissertations"],"dc:subject":["John Adams","History","presidents","Religion","Theology","Unitarian","United States History"],"dc:title":["John Adams and Unitarian Theology"],"dc:type":["Master Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["History"],"thesis:degree_level":["Master's"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts (MA)"],"thesis:institution_name":["Eastern Kentucky University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:15:25Z"}