Philadelphian Society

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Not to be confused with Philadelphia Society.

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

theosophist and Christian mystic
.

Origins

A group of followers came to Pordage, including

Nondualist component, in that they also believed the presence of the Holy Spirit exists in each and everyone's soul, and that one can become enlightened and illuminated by living a virtuous life and seeking truth through the wisdom of God
.

Basic beliefs

Leade's visions were a central part of the group. Around 1694, she became a Christian Universalist, 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.[1] The group's views were spread to continental Europe 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 Leade, remained influential among certain groups of

Behmenists, Pietists, Radical Pietists, Christian mystics, and Esoteric Christians, such as the Society of the Woman in the Wilderness (led by Johannes Kelpius), the Ephrata Cloister, and the Harmony Society, among others.[2]

Notable members

See also

References

  1. ^ Hirst, Julie. Jane Leade: Biography of a Seventeenth-Century Mystic. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2005. p. 27.
  2. ISSN 0031-4587
    .
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