![]() ![]() In the early nineteenth century, many experimental communities sprang up, created by men and women who hoped to recast American civilization so that greater equality and harmony would prevail. These economic transformations generated various reactions some people were nostalgic for what they viewed as simpler, earlier times, whereas others were willing to try new ways of living and working. Economic forces unleashed after 1815, however, forced more and more people to buy their food and goods in the thriving market economy, a shift that opened the door to a new way of life. This largely pre-capitalist culture centered on large family units whose members all lived in the same towns, counties, and parishes. Prior to 1815, in the years before the Industrial Revolution, most Americans lived on farms where they produced much of the foods and goods they used. Self-declared prophets claimed that God had called them to establish new churches and introduce new (or, in their understanding, restore lost) teachings, forms of worship, and even scripture. Some, like Alexander Campbell and Barton Stone, proposed a return to (or “restoration” of) New Testament Christianity, stripped of centuries of additional teachings and practices. Other restorationists built on the foundation laid by the evangelical churches to critique the Protestant mainstream and move beyond the accepted boundaries of contemporary Christian orthodoxy. Many others left mainstream Protestantism altogether, opting instead to form their own churches. Each witnessed several schisms during the 1820s and 1830s as reformers advocated for a return to the practices and policies of an earlier generation. ![]() In addition to the divisions between evangelical and nonevangelical denominations wrought by the Second Great Awakening, the revivals and subsequent evangelical growth also revealed strains within the Methodist and Baptist churches. By any measure, the Mormons emerged as the most successful of these. The Second Great Awakening also prompted many religious utopias, like those of the Rappites and Shakers. Their ideas took many forms, from early socialist experiments (such as the Fourierists and the Owenites) to the dreams of the New England intellectual elite (such as Brook Farm). Some reformers, focused more on social ills than the transgressions of the church, engaged in communal experiments designed to create a more stable and equitable society by reimagining social and economic relationships. Describe the beliefs and practices of religious utopian groups of the antebellum era.This book is a compendium of astounding misadventures as well as an intriguing analysis of what moves people to search for paradise. With careful research and engaging first-person accounts, Scott sifts through the wreckage of the utopia-seekers' dreams and delves into the practices and philosophies of contemporary intentional communities. Congregate with Jerry LeBourdais and fellow members of the Ochiltree Organic Commune, who rebelled from hippie communes by embracing meat eating and coffee drinking. Hear from Richard "The Troll" Schaller, who founded the Legal Front Commune, General Store and Funny Food Farm on the Sunshine Coast, setting off a storm of hostility from locals. Meet the quick-tempered, slave-driving Madame Zee (partner of the infamous Brother XII), who reportedly beat followers with a riding crop. While most discovered hardship, disillusionment and failure, new groups sprang up-and continue to spring up-to take their place. ![]() Andrew Scott delves into the dramatic stories of these fascinating, but often doomed, communities.įrom Doukhobor farmers to Finnish coal miners, Quakers and hippies, many groups have struggled to build idealistic colonies in BC's inspiring landscape. And no other region in North America can outstrip British Columbia for the number of utopian or intentional settlement attempts in the past 150 years. ![]() The West has long attracted visionaries and schemers from around the world. ![]()
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