Shaker Overview

Here's a brief overview of Shakerism, from the information found in JM Phillippi's book Shakerism, or the Romance of a Religion (Dayton, Ohio: Otterbein Press, 1912).


The “Shakers,” or United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, believe that Ann Lee was the second bodily appearance of Christ (the first being Jesus). Ann Lee, a Quaker, was born in England in 1736. She moved to America following religious persecution, and died in New York in 1784. She received revelations from God. Among these were the fact that she was God’s second incarnation – this spoke to the duality (male/female) of God’s character. She also learned through revelation that the highest spiritual state could only be attained through the complete separation of the sexes and strict sexual abstinence.
Ann Lee’s theology led to the distinct character of the two sexes in Shakerism. Every Shaker community was guided by four elders – two male and two female. Two sects of Shakerism arose, with different perceptions of familial relations. The Adamic order permitted family groups to live together, and allowed married couples to engage in sexual activity for the sole purpose of creating offspring. The Spiritual order, meanwhile, strictly forbade marriage. Married couples who entered this order separated and became known as brother and sister. The Spiritual order made perfectly clear that everyone was to love everyone else the same, with no hint of favouritism.
The other distinct aspect of Shakerism was its use of communal property. Upon entering the Shakers, new members turned over all their property to the common treasury. Even if the new members decided to leave the community at a later point, their property remained in the common treasury. All property was to be used for the benefit of all.
Shakers generally worshipped in an oblong sanctuary, the men at one end and the women at the other. The preacher stood in the middle. Worship services lasted as long as necessary, with everyone permitted to speak if they felt led. Services often involved set dances, accompanied by singing. (This dancing often drew outside observers, sometimes from neighbouring universities, to the services to observe.) Shaker communities held a special outdoor service once a year, in the summer, to receive special blessings and gifts from the Spirit. They also held yearly confessions: men confessed all their sins to other men, and women to women.