The Archaeology of Institutional Life

10. Ideology, Idealism, and Reality: Investigating the Ephrata Commune

10 Ideology, Idealism, and Reality Investigating the Ephrata Commune Stephen G. Warfel From 1993 through 2003 I was privileged to direct summer archaeological field programs at Ephrata Cloister, a German religious commune founded in 1732. In the process of researching documents and histories pertaining to this National Historic Landmark site, I became familiar with many primary and secondary accounts of the historic Ephrata community. Most accounts reference and emphasize rules, devised early in the community’s history, to regulate human behavior. Without question, the issue of social control is central to all institutions. But how did the Ephrata findings relate to social science theory? To answer this question I went to my bookshelf and dusted off a copy of Harry Turney-High’s classic work Man and System (1968). Sure enough, his study of human relations contains an entire chapter dedicated to institutions . According to Turney-High, there was, and probably still is, considerable disagreement regarding the scholarly definition of “institution” (345). He admits, however, that institutions are absolutely universal: “whenever one meets them, institutions have structural similarities no matter what their goal or function may be, or whether in civilization or in ‘primitive’ societies” (346). Turney-High proceeds to offer a working definition of institution—“a ritualized system of groups in equilibrium organized around goals considered too important to trust to informality” (346; emphasis added). Indeed, it is the last part of this definition that intrigues me most, for it relates directly to the Ephrata experiment. 138 / Stephen G. Warfel The Ephrata Community The Ephrata community was not an intentional communal society per se. From the Chronicon Ephratense, a 1786 history of the commune written by Brothers Lamech and Agrippa, we learn that the group’s charismatic leader, Conrad Beissel, intended to live the life of a hermit. Influenced by the theosophy of Jacob Boehme and Johann Gichtel and drawing from the principles of German Radical Pietism, Mysticism, and Anabaptism, Beissel believed an individual could achieve union with God only through selfdenial (see Bach 1997:71–116; Bradley 2000:14–17). Beissel was a dissenter from established European churches and sought a “personal, close, intense relationship with God . . . no pastor or other intermediary was necessary” (Bradley 2000:14). Because social contact and worldly distractions might compromise such a relationship, Beissel adopted a solitary life in a cabin along the banks of the Cocalico Creek in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Yet, because he believed that God had chosen him to establish a true Christian church, he sought opportunities to share his views, particularly with Germans of the Dunker and Brethren faiths (Bach 2003:41–42). Numerous individuals, captivated by Beissel’s message and charisma, abandoned their congregations to join him. The enclave that formed around Beissel in 1732 was called the Camp of the Solitary. Men and women, housed in cabins, lived alone or in small groups separated by sex. Men lived on one side of the creek; women lived on the other. From the beginning, though, this collective of hermits built and shared common buildings, including a storehouse and bake house (Lamech and Agrippa 1786:66). By 1735 the group’s membership had swelled and a decision was made to adopt a monastic style of living. Many contradictions are found in the Ephrata story. For example, Pietistic emphasis on individual experience is set in opposition to that of community and congregation. This phenomenon is reflected in communal architecture , where the interiors of dormitories are divided into individual sleeping rooms or cells that adjoin common space, such as kitchens and workrooms. The biblical name “Ephrata” was selected for the community because it signified a place of suffering (Bach 2003:42). A community of true believers , ideally willing to deny themselves of all worldly pleasures, was born. Ideology, Idealism, and Reality / 139 Clearly, their quest for spiritual paradise was too important to trust to informality or chance. The Ephrata Community as an Institution Before examining the archaeological record of the site, we will look more closely at the structure and behavior of the Ephrata community as it is known from documentary sources and in light of Turney-High’s analysis of institutions. Turney-High (1968:347) states, “Institutions represent man’s greatest attempt to build system, to produce expectable behavior in areas which the particular society thinks are paramount and necessary. It therefore institutes procedures.” The Ephrata community consisted of two celibate orders devoted...