Bates gained prominence during the Era of Manifestations, and was one of the most notable receivers and interpreters of spirit messages during that era.[1]
Life
editPaulina was one of a number of children with the surname "Bates" who came to the Shaker community at Watervliet from Jefferson County, New York, and may have been a member of the extended family of Issachar Bates, although their relationship is unclear; she joined the Shakers as an adult after confessing her sins.[1] She became eldress of the South Family at Watervliet in 1848.[2]
Bates is also remembered for her association with Rebecca Cox Jackson. In 1850, while Jackson was living at Watervliet, Bates provided her with a pamphlet describing the so-called "Rochester rappings", which sparked in Jackson an interest in visions and manifestations.[3] Jackson and her companion, Rebecca Perot, left the Watervliet community in 1851 but returned in 1857, seeking a blessing to found a community in Philadelphia.[4] The process was not without its difficulties; in her writings, Jackson indicates that she believed that Eldress Bates was providing misinformation about her to Issachar Bates. A formal blessing was provided by Bates in 1858, at which point she also provided an offer of financial support to the community in Philadelphia, although some sources have noted that no records indicate that any support ever materialized.[5] Bates served as overseeing eldress of the Philadelphia community until her death.[6]
References
edit- ^ a b Medlicott, C. (2013). Issachar Bates: A Shaker's Journey. University Press of New England. p. 199. ISBN 978-1-61168-434-6. Retrieved 2024-05-11.
- ^ Haynes, R.R. (2011). Radical Spiritual Motherhood: Autobiography and Empowerment in Nineteenth-Century African American Women. LSU Press. p. 127. ISBN 978-0-8071-4693-4. Retrieved 2024-05-11.
- ^ Albanese, C.L. (2007). A Republic of Mind and Spirit: A Cultural History of American Metaphysical Religion. Yale University Press. p. 239. ISBN 978-0-300-13477-3. Retrieved 2024-05-11.
- ^ Paterwic, S.J. (2017). Historical Dictionary of the Shakers. Historical Dictionaries of Religions, Philosophies, and Movements Series. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. p. 240. ISBN 978-1-5381-0231-2. Retrieved 2024-05-11.
- ^ Bostic, J.R. (2013). African American Female Mysticism: Nineteenth-Century Religious Activism. Black Religion/Womanist Thought/Social Justice. Palgrave Macmillan US. p. 146. ISBN 978-1-137-37505-6. Retrieved 2024-05-11.
- ^ Jackson, R.; Humez, J.M.M. (1981). Gifts of Power: The Writings of Rebecca Jackson, Black Visionary, Shaker Eldress. North American women's letters and diaries. University of Massachusetts Press. ISBN 978-0-87023-299-2. Retrieved 2024-05-11.