The Philadelphians, or the Philadelphian Society, were a 17th-century

English dissenter English Dissenters or English Separatists were Protestant Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 17th and 18th centuries. A dissenter (from the Latin ''dissentire'', "to disagree") is one who disagrees in opinion, belief and ...

group. They were organized around

John Pordage John Pordage (1607–1681) was an Anglican priest, astrologer, alchemist and Christian mystic. He founded the 17th-century English Behmenist group, which would later become known as the Philadelphian Society when it was led by his disciple a ...

(1607–1681), an

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

from Bradfield, Berkshire, who had been ejected from his

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

in 1655 because of differing views, but then reinstated in 1660 during the

English Restoration The Restoration of the Stuart monarchy in the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland took place in 1660 when King Charles II returned from exile in continental Europe. The preceding period of the Protectorate and the civil wars came to be ...

. Pordage was attracted to the ideas of

Jakob Böhme Jakob Böhme (; ; 24 April 1575 – 17 November 1624) was a German philosopher, Christian mystic, and Lutheran Protestant theologian. He was considered an original thinker by many of his contemporaries within the Lutheran tradition, and his first ...

, a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

theosophist Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion a ...

and

Christian mystic Christian mysticism is the tradition of mystical practices and mystical theology within Christianity which "concerns the preparation f the personfor, the consciousness of, and the effect of ..a direct and transformative presence of God" ...

Origins

A group of followers came to Pordage, including

Ann Bathurst Ann Bathurst was a prophet and member of the 17th century English dissenter group, the Philadelphian Society. Not much is known of Bathurst's family, and what is known is due to her two-volume manuscript diary covering the period 1679 to 1696. Th ...

and led by Mrs.

Jane Leade Jane Lead (; March 1624 – 19 August 1704) was a Christian mystic born in Norfolk, England, whose spiritual visions, recorded in a series of publications, were central in the founding and philosophy of the Philadelphian Society in London at ...

(1624–1704), who experienced a number of

visions Vision, Visions, or The Vision may refer to: Perception Optical perception * Visual perception, the sense of sight * Visual system, the physical mechanism of eyesight * Computer vision, a field dealing with how computers can be made to gain un ...

and later published them in her book ''

A Fountain of Gardens A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes' ...

''. The group incorporated as The Philadelphian Society for the Advancement of Piety and Divine Philosophy in 1694 (their name was inspired by the

Philadelphians The Philadelphians, or the Philadelphian Society, were a 17th-century English dissenter group. They were organized around John Pordage (1607–1681), an Anglican priest from Bradfield, Berkshire, who had been ejected from his parish in 1655 bec ...

mentioned in the

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of R ...

.) They rejected the idea of being a church, preferring the term society, and none of the members ceased their memberships in existing churches. Together, the group held views that were somewhat similar to

Panentheism Panentheism ("all in God", from the Greek language, Greek grc, πᾶν, pân, all, label=none, grc, ἐν, en, in, label=none and grc, Θεός, Theós, God, label=none) is the belief that the Divinity, divine intersects every part of Univers ...

, regarding the belief in the presence of

God In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...

in all things, and with a Nondualist component, in that they also believed the presence of the

Holy Spirit In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...

exists in each and everyone's

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

, and that one can become enlightened and illuminated by living a virtuous life and seeking truth through the

wisdom of God Sophia ( grc-koi, σοφία ''sophía'' "wisdom") is a central idea in Hellenistic philosophy and religion, Platonism, Gnosticism and Christian theology. Originally carrying a meaning of "cleverness, skill", the later meaning of the term, cl ...

Basic beliefs

Mrs. Leade's visions were a central part of the group. Around 1694, she became a

Christian Universalist Christian universalism is a school of Christian theology focused around the doctrine of universal reconciliation – the view that all human beings will ultimately be saved and restored to a right relationship with God. "Christian universalism" ...

, rejecting the "Doctrine that hath been preached of an endless Misery and Torment" which had "wrought little effect in frightening or terrifying 'em from their evil Courses." She believed that punishment after death was purgative, not punitive.Hirst, Julie. ''Jane Leade: Biography of a Seventeenth-Century Mystic.'' Aldershot: Ashgate, 2005. p. 27. The group's views were spread to continental

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

by Francis Lee, a non-juror at the accession of William III. The group drew up a formal confession of beliefs in 1703. However, after the death of Mrs. Leade in 1704, the group's numbers dwindled quickly.

Influences

In later years, although no longer officially a functioning group, many of the Philadelphian Society's views and writings, particularly those by

, remained influential among certain groups of Behmenists,

Pietists Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christianity, Christian life, including a social concern for ...

, Radical Pietists,

Christian mystics Christian mysticism is the tradition of mystical practices and mystical theology within Christianity which "concerns the preparation f the personfor, the consciousness of, and the effect of ..a direct and transformative presence of God" ...

, and Esoteric Christians, such as the Society of the Woman in the Wilderness (led by

Johannes Kelpius Johannes Kelpius (; 1667 – 1708) was a German Pietist, mystic, musician, and writer. He was also interested in the occult, botany, and astronomy. He came to believe with his followers – called the "Society of the Woman in the Wilderness" – ...

), the

Ephrata Cloister The Ephrata Cloister or Ephrata Community was a Intentional community, religious community, established in 1732 by Conrad Beissel, Johann Conrad Beissel at Ephrata, Pennsylvania, Ephrata, in what is now Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, Lancaster ...

, and the

Harmony Society The Harmony Society was a Christian theosophy and pietist society founded in Iptingen, Germany, in . Due to religious persecution by the Lutheran Church and the government in Württemberg, the group moved to the United States,Robert Paul Sutto ...

, among others.

Notable Philadelphians

Samuel Pordage Samuel Pordage (1633 – c. 1691) was a 17th-century English poet. He is best known by his '' Azaria and Hushai'' (1682), a reply to John Dryden's '' Absalom and Achitophel''. Life Samuel was the eldest son of John Pordage, a clergyman from Brad ...

Roger Crab Roger Crab (1621 – 11 September 1680)Bowlt 2007, p. 101–102 was an English soldier, haberdasher, herbal doctor and writer who is best known for his ascetic lifestyle which included Christian vegetarianism. Crab fought in the Parliamentary ...

References

{{Reflist 17th century in England 18th century in England Christian groups with universalist beliefs Christian mysticism Esoteric Christianity Radical Pietism English Dissenters 1670 establishments in England Christian denominations founded in Great Britain

Origins

Basic beliefs

Influences

Notable Philadelphians

See also

References