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Francis Ellingwood Abbot

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Francis Ellingwood Abbot, b. Boston, Nov. 6, 1836, d. Oct. 23, 1903, was a philosopher and theologian who sought to reconstruct theology in accord with scientific method. As a spokesman for "free religion", he asserts that Christianity, understood as based on the lordship of Christ, is no longer tenable. He rejected all dogma and reliance on Scriptures or creeds, teaching the truth is open to every individual.

Abbot graduated from Harvard University and the Meadville Theological School. He served Unitarian churches in Dover, N.H., and Toledo, Ohio, but left the ministry in 1868 to write, edit, and teach. Abbot's theological position was stated in Scientific Theism (1885) and The Way of Agnosticism (1890). He committed suicide by taking poison at his wife's grave sight.