Jesus is femal: Mravians and Radical Religion in Early America

Dalea Kandela
HSPC 106
10-25-2010
                 Jesus is female: Moravian and Radical Religion in Early America
When the word colonial period comes up, the first thing that we tend to think of is its religious freedom, and the opportunity for European to live safely practicing and worshiping what they believe in without being exposed to persecution . This heaven for Europeans was North America, and more specifically Pennsylvania. The religion freedom in Pennsylvania did not stop on simple differences in believes between the different group, but it was extended to include practices and believes regarding gender, and what is a proper and improper gender role in society. These new ideas about gender were considered a threat to other religious groups and state members. Some of these radical groups that were supporting women`s rule in society were Quakers an Moravians, which were strongly opposed by the Protestant and Orthodox.
The new immigrant radical groups were seen as a serious threat to the protestant and Orthodox believer, especially during the mid- eighteenth century because it was the time in which immigration rate was increasing rapidly. Those radical groups brought with them new practices and believes that were so different from the believes of those Orthodox and Protestant. Such believes included different views about family, marriage life, sex notion and women role in society, which played a big role in creating fraction and controversy between the religious groups. The reason for such fraction between the religious groups was because religion played a big role in shaping and understanding the meaning of such practices. For example the trinity

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concept, circumcision, marriage, sexual behavior, and some of these concepts or practices gave power and authority to women.
one of the issues concerning gender that the radical groups Moravian brought was their believing  in that Jesus is female, and that the side wound or hole on his side when he was crucified is a vagina like wound that is bleeding giving warmness and protections to all he believers just like a mother. Having this much freedom in North America was too much because it threatened the values concerning the community or the society. The Moravians challenged the doctrine and respect for territorial churches including its state members, by bringing the issue of gender and believing that the Holy Spirit is the mother of Jesus. They also broke the boundaries by refereeing to Christ as the creator instead of God.
In the 1700 a new society was formed that was a big contributor in giving women power. This society was called Mother Eva Society, which was established by Eva Margretha Von Bottlar. This society had certain believes and practices concerning gender, sexuality, marriage and birth rituals. They believed that in order for a woman to be purified, she needs to be circumcised: it is a ritual in which the women is taken into a room and put on a bed while Mother Eva herself sings a song from “Songs of Solomon”. Also there is her husband in this ritual with his associate who comforts the women that she should have no fear, because Jesus is coming to cleanse her. In this ritual “old Adam” dwells in her womb, first with one finger, with two, then with the whole hand until he reaches her ovary and crushes it. This ritual was very painful for women, and some preferred going through labor than going through this ritual. On the other hand, for men in order to be purified they had to have sex with Mother Eva herself in the
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presence of her husband , so they will go through a rebirth that will free them from all the sexual urges. All these rituals prompted women and gave them more power. Mother Eva society believed in trinity being father mother and holly spirit. Mother Eva got in trouble for violating marriage concepts, sexuality, and most importantly; women`s body.
The religious view played a big role in shaping what some religious groups and religious figures believe in concerning trinity and gender role in society. For example the protestant believed in a masculine view for trinity (Father, Son and the Holy Spirit)and that authority and functions such as reformation are men`s job. From the 17th century we have the radical German who believed in giving power to women and allowing them to preach. From the mid 18th century we have John Wesley who his believes were inconsistent between allowing the women to preach or not, but by the end of his live he limited women to just missionary work and testimony  . Also we have John Galvin`s point of view, from the Calvinist church, who believed in the trinity concept (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). John symbolized Jesus by being the attributes of wisdom, God by the beginner of activity, and the Holy Spirit by the power of efficacy. He also believed that Jesus helped God in performing the miracles.
The concept of marriage and sexual behavior was considered one of the important issues in shaping a good society. Protestant wanted to control sex life and they believed that it is a negative thing unless it is used to produce Christians. Protestant struggled with the idea of whether sex within marriage is a sin or not, and Martin Luther was one of those. Protestant believed in natural sex, which is the use of privacy which not a lot of people had, and use of missionary which its meaning differ from one to another. While the Moravian believed that sex
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is a positive  thing as long as it is within marriage and  they believed that married believers received a blessing by intercourse.
In conclusion, People `s view of what is a proper role for men and women now a days, had drastically changed from what it was in the colonial period, although the protestant and orthodox did their best to prevent changes and they even used violence if needed to stop such changes that were done by the Quakers, Moravian, Mother Eva society and other group. but we can see today, that a lot of these concept of what is proper gender role in society had changed completely.