Editing Universal Life Church (section)

===Foundation and early growth===
The Universal Life Church was founded by [[Kirby J. Hensley]], "a self-educated Baptist minister who was deeply influenced by his reading in [[world religion]]".<ref name="Handbook"/> Religious scholar [[James R. Lewis (scholar)|James R. Lewis]] wrote that Hensley "began to conceive of a church that would, on the one hand, offer complete [[freedom of religion]], and could, on the other hand, bring all people of all religions together, instead of separating them".<ref name="Handbook"/> With this aim, he established "a new religion that would emphasize what all religions have in common",<ref name="J. R. Lewis"/> creating in 1959 the "Life Church" in [[Modesto, California]].<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Modesto messiah: The famous mail-order minister|last=Ashmore|first=Lewis|publisher=Universal Press|year=1977|isbn=0-918950-01-5|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/modestomessiahfa00ashmrich}}</ref> He first held services in his garage, and incorporated the organization in 1962.<ref name="J. R. Lewis"/><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Modesto messiah : the famous mail-order minister|author=Ashmore, Lewis|date=1977|publisher=Universal Press|isbn=0918950015|location=Bakersfield, Calif.|oclc=5551316|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/modestomessiahfa00ashmrich}}</ref>

The ULC began issuing mail-order ordinations shortly after its incorporation. The church's growth was affected in part by social movements; during the [[Vietnam War]], a widely circulated rumor claimed that ordination would qualify one for a [[Conscription in the United States|legal exemption from the draft]]. Ordination requests increased dramatically, but the rumor proved to be false.<ref name=":0" /> The ULC and its founder, Hensley, were also featured in several publications during this time, including ''[[Rolling Stone]]'', which further increased public awareness of the church.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://kernelmag.dailydot.com/issue-titles/religion/11097/universal-life-church-ordained/|title=Inside the Universal Life Church, the Internet's one true religion - The Kernel|date=2014-12-14|work=The Kernel|access-date=2018-09-16|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180916130426/https://kernelmag.dailydot.com/issue-titles/religion/11097/universal-life-church-ordained/|archive-date=September 16, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> In the late 1960s, Hensley "became something of a folk hero among the young", particularly with college students, whom he would mass-ordain at speaking events.<ref name="J. R. Lewis"/> In accordance with the [[Law of California]] that exempts religious schools from accreditation,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cga.ct.gov/2007/rpt/2007-R-0023.htm |title=Exemptions from the higher education licensing process for religious colleges |date=2007-01-09 |access-date=2023-02-21}}</ref> he offered an honorary [[Doctor of Divinity]] degree from the ULC for a free-will offering of twenty dollars,<ref name="JOURNAL ARTICLE">Bryan G. Petkanics, Sandra R. Petkanics, ''[https://www.jstor.org/action/doBasicSearch?Query=%22free-will+offering+of+twenty+dollars%22+%22Doctor+of+Divinity%22 Note—Mail Order Ministries, The Religious Purpose Exemption, and The Constitution]'' (1980), pp. 959-981.</ref> including "ten free lessons explaining how to set up a church". By 1974, the church had ordained over 1 million ministers. Also in 1974, a federal judge declared that the ULC was qualified for a religious tax exemption.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://law.justia.com/cases/virginia/supreme-court/1974/730336-1.html|title=Cramer v. Commonwealth|work=Justia Law|access-date=2018-09-16|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180916163940/https://law.justia.com/cases/virginia/supreme-court/1974/730336-1.html|archive-date=September 16, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>