Communities of dissent: a history of alternative religions in America

185 Pages·2003·7.468 MB·English

by  Stein, Stephen J

COMMUNITIES OF DISSENT

COMMUNITIES OF DISSENT
A History of Alternative Religions in America
STEPHEN J. STEIN
OXFORD
UNIVERSITY PRESS
OXFORD
UNIVERSITY PRESS
Oxford University Press
Oxford New York
Auckland Bangkok Buenos Aires Cape Town Chennai
Dar es Salaam Delhi Hong Kong Istanbul Karachi Kolkata
Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Mumbai Nairobi
Sao Paulo Shanghai Singapore Taipei Tokyo Toronto
Copyright © 2000, 2003 by Stephen J. Stein
Published by Oxford University Press, Inc.
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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic,
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permission of Oxford University Press.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Stein, Stephen J.,
Communities of dissent: a history of alternative religions in America/
Stephen J. Stein.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-19-515825-3 (alk. paper)
1. Cults—United States—History. 2. Sects—United States—History.
3. United States—Religion. I. Title.
BL2525 .S74 2002
291.9'0973—dc21
2002006219
98765432 1
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
On the cover: The Shakers of New Lebanon, New York, Religious Exercises in
the Meeting-house by Joseph Becker.
Frontispiece: Two Shaker sisters at Canterbury, New Hampshire, display their
saxophones. Members of alternative religions do not always conform to uninformed
stereotypes. These religious women obviously enjoy secular music.
To many friends among members of alternative religions
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CONTENTS
PREFACE
ix
INTRODUCTION: Talking About Religious Outsiders
2
CHAPTER ONE Early Dissenters and Popular Religion
15
CHAPTER TWO Peace Movements in Colonial America
31
CHAPTER THREE Communitarians Living on the Margins
49
CHAPTER FOUR Apocalyptic Traditions:
Watching and Waiting for the End
69
CHAPTER FIVE Healers and Occultists:
Women of Spiritual Means
87
CHAPTER six Sectarians in the City
105
CHAPTER SEVEN Twentieth-Century Sects and Cults
123
CHRONOLOGY
144
FURTHER READING
147
INDEX
156
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PREFACE
T
he citizens of the founding generation of the
United States dissented from English rule and bold-
ly asserted their independence. The Declaration of
Independence gave voice to the political aspirations of those
who rebelled against a parliament that taxed colonists who
had no representation in those proceedings. The U.S.
Constitution, crafted after the turmoil of warfare and an
era of political disunity, sought to secure peace and unity
and to guarantee fundamental liberties, including the free
exercise of religion. Dissent in a political context has been
an honored tradition in America, and we celebrate the
founders as patriots.
But Americans have not uniformly celebrated commu-
nities of religious dissent, endorsed in the Constitution
by the principle of the free exercise of religion. On the
contrary, the public expression of religious dissent has
often resulted in opposition. People, whose views or
ix