After suffering a severe illness in 1776, the Friend claimed to have died and been reanimated as a genderless evangelist named the Public Universal Friend, and afterward shunned both birth name and gendered pronouns. Locally, the Public Universal Friend and a group of followers, the Society of Universal Friends, formed the first non-native settlement in what is presently Yates County. She read from the works of Quakers, a religious group to which her family belonged, and she never married. [12][13] An avid reader,[c] Wilkinson could quote long passages of the Bible and prominent Quaker texts from memory. Yes, weve already had one, and here are her love letters. But the Friend was not deterred. I think weve just become a little more aware of the magnitude of what the Friend was doing, Noel said. But this plan ultimately failed. [7][8], The Friend refused to answer to the previous name any longer,[9] quoted Luke 23:3 ("thou sayest it") when visitors asked if it was the name of the person they were addressing, and ignored or chastised those who insisted on using it. Sarah, together with her infant daughter, took up residence with the Friend, adopted a similarly androgynous hairstyle, dress, and mannerisms (as did a few other close female friends), and came to be called Sarah Friend. Public Universal Friend, born Jemima Wilkinson, was an American preacher known for their activism and unorthodox beliefs compared to other Quakers, including rejecting gender-specific pronouns. The Friend stressed free will, opposed slavery, and supported sexual abstinence. This outbreak was said to have been brought to the shores of Providence from the Continental navy ship Columbus, and the sickness earned the nickname Columbus fever, according to the Friends own account: A Memorandum of the introduction of that fatal Fever, calld in the Year 1776, The Columbus fever: Since calld the Typhus, or the malignant fever: - The Ship calld Columbus which sailed out of Providence in the State of Rhode Island, Being a Ship of war, on her return brought wither her Prisoners, This Awful, and allarming disease, Of which many of the inhabitants in providence died: And on the fourth of the 10th Month, it reached the house of Jeremia[ah] Wilkison, ten Miles from Providence.. The Universal Friends followers split along predictable lines. The sect was born in 1776. Frankfurter Str. A history lesson for Trump: Transgender soldiers served in the Civil War. But that does not make it any less sincere, he said. The second issue, however, came to a head in the fall of 1799. They were part of a larger religious movement that historians now call the First Great Awakening, a movement in which religious enthusiasm spiked and people came up with new ways of worshipping. He offered the Society of Universal Friends use of some of his land and built the Friend a 14-room addition to his house. [133][134], Juster and others state that, to followers, the Friend may have embodied Paul's statement in Galatians 3:28 that "there is neither male nor female" in Christ. Oportunidades Iguales Para Las Mujeres En El Trabajo y La Educaccion, Womens Strike for Equality, New York, Fifth Avenue, 1970, Eugene Gordon photograph collection, 1970-1990. Holding worship meetings around Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania, this preacher attracted a fervent following and went on to found a new religious society. Despite the open criticism, the Friends following continued to gather members and made a plan to establish a settlement in Western New York. The Public Universal Friend instead asserted that it was every persons right to speak their mind. [74][75] Several members of the congregation of Universal Friends were black, and they acted as witnesses for manumission papers. [5] Free Quakers, disowned by the main Society of Friends for participating in the American War of Independence, were particularly sympathetic and opened meeting houses to the Universal Friends, appreciating that many of them had also sympathized with the Patriot cause, including members of the Friend's family. [103] A third attempt was carefully planned by a posse of 30 men who surrounded the home after midnight, broke down the door with an ax, and intended to carry the preacher off in an oxcart. [15][16] Followers considered the Friend's androgynous clothing consistent with the evangelist's genderless spirit, and Susan Juster and other writers speculate that, for followers, the Friend embodied Paul's statement in Galatians 3:28 that "there is neither male nor female" in Christ. This week on Cultural Manifesto, Jody Friend, of the Indianapolis-based rock band Public Universal Friend. The figure would be known simply as the Public Universal Friend.. [15][19] Amid these family disturbances and the broader ones of the American Revolutionary War, dissatisfied with the New Light Baptists and shunned by mainstream Quakers, Wilkinson faced much stress in 1776. [128][129], Modern writers have often portrayed the Friend as a pioneer, an early figure in the history of women's rights (a view taken by Susan Juster and Catherine Brekus) or in transgender history (a view explored by Scott Larson and Rachel Hope Cleves). Moyer argued that men like Potter and Parker turned on the Friend in part because the prophets influence threatened that of a mans. This was a movement that inspired colonists to find new ways of worship and presented an opportunity for women to have a stronger voice in church. [103] The officer and an assistant later tried to arrest the preacher at home in Jerusalem, but the women of the house drove the men off and tore their clothes. [64], Popular newspapers and pamphlets covered the Friend's sermons in detail by the mid-1780s,[65][66] with several Philadelphia newspapers being particularly critical; they fomented enough opposition that noisy crowds gathered outside each place the preacher stayed or spoke in 1788. [96] Others wanted to profit by taking ownership of the land for themselves, including Parker and William Potter. Many writers have portrayed the Friend as a woman, and either a manipulative fraudster, or a pioneer for women's rights; others have viewed the Friend as transgender or non-binary and a figure in trans history. How does the Friends story connect to the larger movement of the First Great Awakening? [109] Close followers remained faithful,[112] but they too died over time; the congregation's numbers dwindled due to their inability to attract new converts amid a number of legal and religious disagreements. [7][10], Wilkinson had fine black hair and eyes,[11] and from an early age was strong and athletic,[7][5] becoming an adept equestrian as a child, remaining so in adulthood,[7][5] and liking spirited horses and ensuring that animals received good care. Public Universal Friend (also known as the Friend or PUF) was born in Cumberland, Rhode Island on November 39, 1752. Mathies, John. [61] These followers included roughly equal numbers of women and men who were predominantly under 40. Women played an important role in the First Great Awakening. Public Universal Friend, a band name inspired by a 1770s Rhode Island evangelist who rejected gender pronouns, released its debut album, "Perennials," in 2021. Moyer argues that the Friends genderless nature was primarily due to a religious calling. Use this life story as the starting point of a larger research project about the many different religious groups that arose in the English colonies. English cave may have ties to king-turned-saint and Viking invasion, archaeologists say. Excel and affinity to IT and Data Analysis Public Universal Friend - WFYI Public Media A mob pelted the Friends residence with bricks. In the 1790s, the Friend and the Universal Friends established the town of Jerusalem in New York. In 1784, the Friend began to publish advice for their followers, guidelines that they wanted their followers to live by. Historian Michael Bronski says that the Friend would not have been called transgender or transvestite "by the standards and the vocabulary" of the time,[130] but has called the Friend a "transgender evangelist". However, Jemimas life was that of a typical Quaker colonist, with no indication of the iconic figure they would become. [69] The Friend's theology was so similar to that of the mainstream Quakers' that one of two published works associated with the preacher was a plagiarism of Isaac Penington's Works because, according to Abner Brownell, the Friend felt that the sentiments would have more resonance if republished in the name of the Universal Friend. [84][86] Richards had a large part in planning and building the house in which she and the preacher lived in the town of Jerusalem,[87] and when she died in 1793, she left her child to the Friend's care. The Friend preached throughout the northeast dressed in androgynous, dark robes and a short hairstyle. In the decades that followed, the Friend would draw hundreds of disciples, traversing New England by horseback while wearing male ministers clothing, according to letters from the time. But the history center has seen an uptick in visits and questions about the Friends gender in recent years, and Noel said she has begun trying to shift away from using female pronouns for the Friend. Nonbinary remains? Experts say gender identity has been more than men But theres no question that the Friend encouraged more women than ever before to truly have their voices heard. Former followers testified that the Friend said she was the Son of God and that this blasphemy threatened the states authority. Jarena Lee, 1849. They wore mens robes with petticoats underneath and ties with skirts. [78] The Friend had few personal possessions, mostly given by followers, and never held any real property except in trust. Shortly before her illness, Wilkinson became intrigued by the New Light Baptists, a religious movement that had enthralled her community with its passionate and radical sermons. "Reborn" in their place was the Public Universal Friend, neither male nor female. The Friend quoted scripture to justify being neither male nor female. Historical societies are also excellent resources, like the Yates County History Center which maintains a permanent exhibit about the Public Universal Friend. At religious meetings, women made up the majority of the audience. Wisbey made use of documents which were, at the time of publication, relatively recently available . Before the Friend came to be, Jemima Wilkinson had been removed from the Quaker church for attending Baptist revivals, Noel said. [22][21], From that time on, the Friend refused to answer to "Jemima Wilkinson",[31][32] ignoring or chastising those who insisted on using it. This pioneering Howard dean lived with another woman in the 1930s. . By using our services, you agree to our use of cookies. The Friends remaining followers waited to bury the body in case of a second resurrection, and then the Friend was buried in an unmarked grave on the grounds of the Jerusalem colony according to their wishes. [114] It is believed to be located on the same branch of Keuka Lake as the birthplace of Seneca chief Red Jacket,[115] but his birthplace is disputed. The Friend passed away in 1819. New York Public LibraryBorn Jemima Wilkinson in 1752 and reborn the Public Universal Friend in 1776. A portrait of the Public Universal Friend (in black clerical robes and white cravat) from the biography written by David Hudson in 1821. clockThis article was published more than3 years ago. [10], The Friend asked not to be referred to with gendered pronouns. Public Universal Friend. This messenger from God told them that they were no longer male nor female, but that they were now named Public Universal Friend and were tasked with preaching God's word. Wilkinson reportedly died in 1776 and said that his soul was reborn under the name "Publick Universal Friend." In December 2019, the Wikipedia entry for . Most of these books refused to use the Friends chosen name, calling them Jemima Wilkinson. They told their family that they had died and the Spirit of God had brought them back to life as a new person who was neither male nor female. Cornell University Press Language English xii, 264 p. ; 25 cm "In The Public Universal Friend, Paul B. Moyer tells the story of Wilkinson and her remarkable church, the Society of Universal Friends. Friend said "Perennials" served. [109][110] Several years later, the coffin was removed and buried in an unmarked grave in accordance with the preacher's preference.
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