Editing Socinianism (section)

==Origins==
The beliefs of Socinianism date from the wing of the [[Protestant Reformation]] known as the [[Radical Reformation]] and have their root in the Italian [[Anabaptism|Anabaptist movement]] of the 1540s, such as the anti-trinitarian [[Council of Venice]] in 1550. [[Lelio Sozzini]] was the first of the Italian anti-trinitarians to go beyond [[Arianism|Arian beliefs]] in print and deny the pre-existence of Christ in his ''Brevis explicatio in primum Johannis caput'' – a commentary on the meaning of the [[Logos (Christianity)|Logos]] in [[John 1:1|John 1:1–15]] (1562).<ref>Wulfert De Greef, ''The writings of John Calvin: an introductory guide,'' 2008. Quote: "Lelio Sozzini's Brevis explicatio in primum Johannis caput appeared in 1561, which marked the beginning of the Socinian phase among the Italian."</ref> Lelio Sozzini considered that the "beginning" of {{Bibleverse|John|1:1|RSV}} was the same as {{Bibleverse|1 John|1:1|RSV}} and referred to the [[New creation (theology)|new creation]],{{citation needed|date=April 2021}} not the Genesis creation. His nephew [[Fausto Sozzini]] published his own longer ''Brevis explicatio'' later, developing his uncle's arguments. Many years after the death of his uncle in Switzerland, Fausto Sozzini was consulted by the [[Unitarian Church in Transylvania]], attempting to mediate in the dispute between [[Giorgio Biandrata]] and [[Ferenc Dávid]].

He moved to Poland, where he married the daughter of a leading member of the [[Polish Brethren]], the anti-trinitarian minority, or ''ecclesia minor''. In 1565, it had split from the [[Calvinist]] Reformed Church in Poland. Sozzini never joined the ''ecclesia minor'', but he was influential in reconciling several controversies among the Brethren: on [[Conscientious objector|conscientious objection]], on prayer to Christ, and on the [[Virgin birth of Jesus|virgin birth]]. Fausto persuaded many in the Polish Brethren who were formerly [[Arianism|Arian]], such as [[Marcin Czechowic]], to adopt his uncle Lelio's views.

Fausto Sozzini furthered his influence through his [[Racovian Catechism]], published posthumously, which set out his uncle Lelio's views on [[Christology]] and replaced earlier catechisms of the ''Ecclesia Minor''. His influence continued after his death through the writings of his students published in Polish and Latin from the press of the [[Racovian Academy]] at [[Raków, Kielce County]].

The term ''Socinian'' started to be used in the [[Dutch Republic]] and the [[Kingdom of England]] from the 1610s onward, as the Latin publications were circulated among early [[Arminianism|Arminians]], [[Remonstrants]], [[English Dissenters|Dissenters]], and early English [[Unitarianism|Unitarians]]. In the late 1660s, Fausto Sozzini's grandson [[Andreas Wiszowaty]] and great-grandson [[Benedykt Wiszowaty]] published the nine-volume ''[[Biblioteca Fratrum Polonorum|Biblioteca Fratrum Polonorum quos Unitarios vocant]]'' (1668) in Amsterdam, along with the works of F. Sozzini, the Austrian [[Johann Ludwig von Wolzogen]], and the Poles [[Johannes Crellius]], [[Jonasz Szlichtyng]], and [[Samuel Przypkowski]]. These books circulated among English and French thinkers, including [[Isaac Newton]], [[John Locke]], [[Voltaire]], and [[Pierre Bayle]].

In [[Great Britain]] and [[North America]], Socinianism later became a catch-all term for any kind of [[Dissenter|dissenting]] belief. Sources in the 18th and 19th centuries frequently attributed the term ''Socinian'' anachronistically, using it to refer to ideas that embraced a much wider range than the narrowly defined position of the Racovian catechisms and library.