Discipline and Divinity: Colonial Quakerism, Christianity, and “Heathenism” in the Seventeenth Century

Quakers began arriving in the Caribbean and North America when their religious society was still new and struggling to define its core beliefs and institutional structure. There were tensions within the Society of Friends stemming from the Quakers’ validation of individual inspiration and their comm...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Plank, Geoffrey 1960- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Published: Cambridge Univ. Press [2016]
In: Church history
Year: 2016, Volume: 85, Issue: 3, Pages: 502-528
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B The Americas / Quakers / Colonialism / Piety / Indians / History 1600-1700
IxTheo Classification:CB Christian life; spirituality
CC Christianity and Non-Christian religion; Inter-religious relations
CG Christianity and Politics
KAH Church history 1648-1913; modern history
KBQ North America
KDG Free church
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:Quakers began arriving in the Caribbean and North America when their religious society was still new and struggling to define its core beliefs and institutional structure. There were tensions within the Society of Friends stemming from the Quakers’ validation of individual inspiration and their communal commitment to the Christian message as contained in the Bible. A bitter debate over scriptural authority wracked Quaker meetings for the remainder of the seventeenth century, and the controversy included arguments over the Quakers’ relations with Native Americans, Africans, and others outside of Europe beyond the reach of formal Christian teaching. On both sides of the Atlantic opponents of Quaker discipline challenged long-standing assumptions about the source and content of the Christian message and the social hierarchies that resulted when some groups claimed privileged access to truth. The ensuing argument influenced the Quakers’ plans for their colonies in North America, and their debate over slavery.
ISSN:1755-2613
Contains:Enthalten in: Church history
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1017/S0009640716000457