Early Quakers and "Going Naked as a Sign"

EARLY QUAKERS AND "GOING NAKED AS A SIGN" By Kenneth L. Carroll One of the least understood aspects of early Quakerism was the widespread appearance of "going naked as a sign," a practice that was increasingly accompanied by other "signs and wonders" throughout the 1650s and the beginning of the 1660s. Later Quaker writers, either out of embarrassment or lack of comprehension , tended either to ignore these shortlived acts or to dismiss them as the expressions of unbalanced persons. When the religious mind and outlook of seventeenth century England are fully understood, however, it becomes clear that these manifestations can neither be ignored nor dismissed simply as the behavior of abnormal people. What is viewed as abnormal or unacceptable in the twentieth century may not always have been so interpreted (and may not continue to be so interpreted in future ages). There even appears to be a certain degree of kinship between these striking acts of certain seventeenth-century Quakers and the attitudes and expressions of many of today's youth who are protesting today's hypocrisy and social ills. As the understanding of the origins of Quakerism has changed, it has become increasingly clear that Quakerism had its main roots in Puritanism rather than the mysticism of earlier ages.1 The work of Barbour, Brinton, Nuttall, Tolles and others has made it almost certain that it was largely out of radical Puritanism that Quakerism first developed. It is only in light of this relationship of Quakerism to radical Puritanism that early Quaker "signs and wonders" can be viewed in their true meaning, purpose, and significance. *Professor of Religion, Southern Methodist University. 1. Gf. Hugh Doncaster's foreword to William C. Braithwaite (second edition, revised by Henry J. Cadbury), The Beginnings of Quakerism (Cambridge ,1953), vi-vii. One of the most important developments in the preparation of this second edition was the omission of the earlier introduction by Rufus M. Jones, in which he linked Quakerism to the earlier mystical movements and interpreted the religious experiences of Quakers in light of that relationship. Cf. Donald F. Durnbaugh, "Baptists and Quakers—Left Wing Puritans?" Quaker History, LXII(1973), 67-82, and James L. Ash, Jr., "Oh No, It is Not the Scriptures," Quaker History, LXIII (1974), 94107 . 69 70QUAKER HISTORY England in 1650 stood at the end of a century of religious ferment . During this period there had been many efforts to purify the Christian Church in England, producing what Howard Brinton has labeled a "whole spectrum of 'puritans' or 'purifiers.' "a It is important to grasp the wide variety of outlooks within Puritanism , stretching all the way from a conservative stance within the Church of England to the radical position of the Baptists and Seekers . The more radical approach became increasingly popular as the century progressed—reaching its greatest peak at the time of the Commonwealth.3 It was at this very point in history that Quakerism appeared, drawing upon a number of widely accepted practices and ideas which it then shaped not only in the light of Fox's own religious experiences and understanding but also those of other early Quaker leaders. Nuttall notes that radical Puritans were greatly impressed by the large number of powerful preachers which marked their day. Coupled with this was their belief that the "pouring out of the Spirit" was promised in the "latter days." As a result of these factors they came to view themselves as being "spiritually close to the apostles." Radical Puritans believed in the continued indwelling of the Holy Spirit, so that one of them was even able to say "It was brought in that it was the same Spirit I now felt, that Spirit that did write the Scriptures. . . I did see, and could not doubt of it, that the very administration was given to me, which was given to the Apostles and Saints of old."4 The practice of speaking in "prophecy" in some English Puritan groups had already begun several generations before George Fox's time. "Prophesying," really a type of biblical exegesis, usually followed the sermon. Among the Independents it was permitted "to any private man of the flock, or to any stranger whom they take...