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Archiver > QUAKER-ROOTS > 1999-04 > 0923163310


From: <>
Subject: Re: Brethren vs Quakers
Date: Sat, 3 Apr 1999 13:15:10 EST


In a message dated 99-04-03 13:12:11 EST, writes:

> I saw a post to the list that spoke about different offshoots (is that the
> correct word?) of the Quaker faith, the Mennonites, Anabaptists, etc.
One
> was The Cloisters in Ephratha, PA. Can anyone elighten me about this
> particular sect, please. Thanks :))

Peggy-

An offshoot of the Brethren was the Ephrata Cloister settlement
founded by Conrad Beissel, a Dunkard preacher who had spent four years at
Conestoga. He began to develop anti-Brethren ideology and separated from the
Brethren in 1728; rebaptizing his followers from Conestoga and elsewhere (and
renaming them at baptism) at Ephrata which he named himself from a Biblical
reference. Beissel was an ardent preacher and converted many followers
including, for a time, Alexander Mack, Jr. (son of the founder of the
Brethren faith). He preached that the celibate state was preferable, and on
a higher plain, than the married state. He advocated a strict diet which was
mainly vegetarian, and preached that the Sabath should be observed on
Saturday (the Seventh Day). The followers who took the vowel of celibacy and
came to live at the Cloister in Ephrata were subjected to strict disciplines
and austere conditions. Doorways in the dormatories were low to force one to
bow when passing under the arches, and the sisters slept on wooden beds 15
inches wide with hard wooden pillows. They were awakened each night from
midnight to 2 AM for worship. Music and original hymns were important.
Daily tasks were divided up among the followers living at the Cloister. It
was a fairly self-sufficient community. Others, who did not follow the
celibate teachings, and who lived in the nearby farms and towns, were
encouraged to worship at the Cloister. They were referred to as
householders.

Joan

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