John Ward (25 December 1781 – 12 March 1837), known as Zion Ward, was an Irish preacher, mystic and self-styled prophet, active (in the latter capacity) in England from around 1828 to 1835. He was one of those claiming to be the successor of prophetess Joanna Southcott after her death. His imprisonment for

blasphemy Blasphemy is a speech crime and religious crime usually defined as an utterance that shows contempt, disrespects or insults a deity, an object considered sacred or something considered inviolable. Some religions regard blasphemy as a religiou ...

prompted the intervention of Member of Parliament Joseph Hume.

Early life and career

Ward was born at the Cove of Cork (now

Cobh Cobh ( ,), known from 1849 until 1920 as Queenstown, is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Ireland. With a population of around 13,000 inhabitants, Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour and home to Ireland's ...

), in County Cork, Ireland, on 25 December 1781. In July 1790, his parents took him to Bristol, England, where, at twelve years of age, he was apprenticed to a

shipwright Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...

. His father took him to London in 1797, where he learned

shoemaking Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or cobblers (also known as '' cordwainers''). In the 18th century, dozens or even hundreds of masters, journeymen ...

from his brother, but soon went back to his former trade and served on board the

man-of-war The man-of-war (also man-o'-war, or simply man) was a Royal Navy expression for a powerful warship or frigate from the 16th to the 19th century. Although the term never acquired a specific meaning, it was usually reserved for a ship armed wi ...

''Blanche'' as a shipwright; in this capacity he saw action at the Battle of Copenhagen on 2 April 1801. In 1803, Ward was paid off from the Navy at

Sheerness Sheerness () is a town and civil parish beside the mouth of the River Medway on the north-west corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 11,938, it is the second largest town on the island after the nearby town ...

, Kent. He married and returned to the trade of shoemaker. Ward had been brought up a Calvinist, but became a Methodist at his wife's insistence, after moving to Carmarthen in Wales. Unable to experience conversion, he returned to London, resolving to "never more have anything to do with religion". However, after hearing dissenter

Jeremiah Learnoult Garrett Jeremiah Learnoult Garrett ( fl. 1809) was an English dissenting minister. Life Garrett was born at Horselydown, Southwark, near the Old Stairs, on 29 February 1764. His parents were boatbuilders. Before he was eight he had 'strict views of the w ...

preach at Lant Street Chapel in

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, he joined the

Baptists Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...

. On Garrett's death in 1806, he aligned himself with the independents, and in 1813, joined the

Sandemanians The Glasites or Glassites were a small Christian church founded in about 1730 in Scotland by John Glas.John Glas preached supremacy of God's word (Bible) over allegiance to Church and state to his congregation in Tealing near Dundee in July 172 ...

, becoming a village preacher.

Preacher

Just after the death of prophetess Joanna Southcott in 1814, Ward came across her ''Fifth Book of Wonders''.Joanna Southcott.
Life and works: A collection of pamphlets, Volume 7
' (1813). Its universalism captivated him, and he began to preach it. This led to him rejoining the Methodists, who made him a local preacher, but soon dismissed him for his heretical views. The Southcottians would not receive him either. Convinced by the example of Joanna Southcott that prophecy was "a living gift", Ward looked for another prophet to guide him, falling in with Mary Boon of Staverton, Devon. Boon was a

Seventh-day Sabbatarian The seventh-day Sabbath, observed from Friday evening to Saturday evening, is an important part of the beliefs and practices of list of Sabbath-keeping churches, seventh-day churches. These churches emphasize biblical references such as the ancien ...

fanatic who claimed to be Joanna Southcott reborn. Ward became the "reader" of the letters she dictated (for she could neither read nor write), for the benefit of her London followers. Around 1825, Ward began to experience visions in which he was supposedly visited by Southcott in spirit form. His followers reckoned their years from this point, designating 1826 ''First year, new date''.

Prophet

In 1827, Ward gave up shoemaking to proclaim his divine call; his wife and family were convinced that he was mad, and he was reported to the parish officers. He was brought before a Southwark magistrate (Chambers), declared insane, and committed to Newington Workhouse for six months. He continued to experience visions, claiming to have received instruction and a sense of "call and mission". Upon being freed, on 20 November 1828, he claimed to be "a new man, having a new name", ''Zion''. He also called himself ''Shiloh'', as he was convinced that he was the biblical messiah of that name, to whom Southcott had claimed she would give birth. In 1829, with the help of a follower, Charles William Twort (d. 1878, aged 93), he began to print tracts. He visited and preached in various towns and cities in England, making converts in Nottingham,

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, Worksop, Blyth,

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...

, Birmingham, and Sheffield. In 1831, he preached regularly at Borough Chapel in Southwark (London), and in September, attracted notice for two discourses at the Rotunda on Blackfriars Road, previously made notorious by the preaching of Robert Taylor (1784–1844).

Imprisonment and final years

In 1832, Ward and Twort came into conflict with the authorities at Derby. They had posted placards announcing an address on a religious

fast day Fast Day was a holiday observed in some parts of the United States between 1670 and 1991. "A day of public fasting and prayer," it was traditionally observed in the New England states. It had its origin in days of prayer and repentance proclai ...

, 15 July. These were torn down three times by a local clergyman, James Dean (d. 1882), whom Twort

assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...

ed. Ward and Twort were subsequently indicted for blasphemy and assault. Tried on 4 August before Sir James Alan Park, Twort was convicted of the assault, and both were found guilty of blasphemy, and sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment in Derby Gaol. The case had already become something of a ''cause célèbre'', attracting the attention of the radical

Richard Carlile Richard Carlile (8 December 1790 – 10 February 1843) was an important agitator for the establishment of universal suffrage and freedom of the press in the United Kingdom. Early life Born in Ashburton, Devon, he was the son of a shoemaker wh ...

, amongst others. On 15 August, Henry Hunt, another political radical and agitator, presented a petition to the House of Commons from 200 citizens of London, expressing "disgust and indignation" at the sentence, and praying for the release of Ward and Twort. Hunt made a violent attack on the government for prosecuting opinions; Member of Parliament Joseph Hume spoke in favour of the petition, and the

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

opposed. On Hunt's motion, the house was counted out while

Alexander Perceval Colonel Alexander Perceval (1787 – 9 December 1858) was an Irish politician. He was the eldest surviving son of Rev. Philip Perceval of Temple House, Ballymote, Sligo. He succeeded his father in 1800. He sat in the House of Commons for Sl ...

was speaking. No mitigation of the sentence was obtained, but the confinement, as Ward described it, was by no means harsh. Freed on 3 February 1834, Ward travelled to Bristol and preached to a congregation there. At the end of 1835 he had a paralytic

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

. On October 1836, he settled in Leeds. He died at 91 Park Lane, Leeds, on 12 March 1837.

Personality and influences

Though said to be of "gentle disposition" and "modest demeanour", Ward was a persuasive speaker, and in conversation and writing, was able to argue with some authority and even humour. His attempts at

verse Verse may refer to: Poetry * Verse, an occasional synonym for poetry * Verse, a metrical structure, a stanza * Blank verse, a type of poetry having regular meter but no rhyme * Free verse, a type of poetry written without the use of strict me ...

are uncouth, but often effective. His main influence was Joanna Southcott and her school, but he was also familiar with the ideas of

George Fox George Fox (July 1624 – 13 January 1691) was an English Dissenter, who was a founder of the Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as the Quakers or Friends. The son of a Leicestershire weaver, he lived in times of social upheaval and ...

(1624–1691) and Lodowicke Muggleton (1609–1698); however, most of his teaching came from his own considerations on the Bible. He regarded biblical scripture as allegorical, and elaborated a key for eliciting its hidden meanings. His theology is a spiritual pantheism, which allows immortality only to the regenerate.

Printed works

Ward's printed works include over thirty pieces, among which are: * ''Vision of Judgment'' (1829, 2 parts) * ''Living Oracle'' (1830) * ''Book of Letters'' (1831) * ''Discourses at the Rotunda'' (1831) * ''Review of Trial and Sentence'' (1832) * ''Creed'' (1832) * ''Spiritual Alphabet'' (1833) * ''Origin of Evil'' (1837) * ''New Light on the Bible'' (1873) In 1874, a "jubilee" edition of his works was planned, with the title ''Writings of Zion Ward, or Shiloh, the Spiritual Man'', but only three parts were actually published (Birmingham, 1874–5). However, some additional tracts were printed separately, e.g. ''Good and Evil made One'' (1877).

References

Bibliography

*
Zion Ward's answer to Mr. Howitt's History of priestcraft
' (1863). *Ward, John & Holinsworth, C. ''Zions̓ Works: New Light on the Bible, from the Coming of Shiloh, the Spirit of Truth, 1828-1837'' (J. Macqueen, 1900):
Volume 2

Volume 3

Volume 4

Volume 5

Volume 6

Volume 7

Volume 9

Volume 10

Volume 11

Volume 12

Volume 13

Volume 14

Volume 15

Volume 16
*Balleine, G. R. ''Past finding out: the tragic story of Joanna Southcott and her successors'' (S. P. C. K., 1956). * Republished as *