Show notes
Jemima was born on November 29, 1752, in Cumberland, Rhode Island, She was the eighth of twelve children in a big, devout Quaker family. Her dad, Jeremiah Wilkinson, was super active in their local meeting house. Her mom, Amy's presence in Jemima's life was cut tragically short—she died in 1764 when Jemima was about 12 or 13.
According to accounts, Jemima was always a pretty girl, but after her mother passed away, she became lazy and combative. She would find anyway she could to get out of working, she would feign illnesses, argue and so on. She was just generally considered pretty but kind of mean and very entitled.
Then at some point in 1776, she starts acting sick, she stays in her room and won't talk to anyone. Her family calls the doctor, who says she's not physically ill, but clearly has mental issues. This goes on for months, until she confines herself to her bed. While later accounts say she had typhus, contemporary accounts say there was never a physical illness. But one day she emerged from her bedroom, talking in a deeper voice, and proclaiming:
That Jemima Wilkinson was dead. Their soul had left their body, and in its place was a new entity: the Publick Universal Friend, a genderless spirit sent by God to deliver a divine message to humanity.
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Script by: Soveriegn Syre
this weeks episode hosted by: Sovereign Syre and Josh Anderson
Produced by: Josh Anderson
Sources:
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Hudson, David. Memoir of Jemima Wilkinson: A Preacheress of the Eighteenth Century. London: Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy, 1821.
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Wisbey, Herbert A., Jr. Pioneer Prophetess: Jemima Wilkinson, the Publick Universal Friend. Cornell University Press, 1964.
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Brekus, Catherine A. Strangers and Pilgrims: Female Preaching in America, 1740–1845. University of North Carolina Press, 1998.
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Schmidt, Leigh Eric. Hearing Things: Religion, Illusion, and the American Enlightenment. Harvard University Press, 2000.
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Butler, Jon. Awash in a Sea of Faith: Christianizing the American People. Harvard University Press, 1990.
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"Publick Universal Friend." Wikipedia. Accessed [Insert Date].
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Foster, Lawrence. Religion and Sexuality: The Shakers, the Mormons, and the Oneida Community. University of Illinois Press, 1984.
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Newspapers.com
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Quaker Faith and Practice. Religious Society of Friends (Quakers).
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