Millenarianism

It is impossible to understand the Oneida Community without a firm grasp of its core theology. In the next few posts I will explore some key concepts, then return to the story of how exactly John Humphrey Noyes came to found the Oneida Community.

One of the central functions of any system of religious belief to make sense out of the fact that human beings are mortal. This branch of theology is called “eschatology.” Christian eschatology holds that after death an individual's life is judged by God. If the person led a good and holy life in accordance with the dictates of scripture, they are sent to heaven. If not, they go to hell. The Bible contains many passages that discuss life after death, especially the books of Isaiah and Daniel in the Old Testament and the book of Revelation in the New Testament. What sets Christian eschatology apart is its view of time. Christians believe that time is an arrow always speeding toward the destruction of the corrupt physical world and the creation of heaven on earth.

To be sure, various branches of Christian theology have significantly differing views on the details, but all roughly agree on these basics: 1) when a person dies their life is judged by God and they are dispatched to an intermediate state of being, i.e. Heaven or Hell; 2) a time will come when Jesus will return to earth in some form; 3) following the return of Jesus, according to prophecies in the Book of Revelation, the kingdom of God on Earth will last a thousand years, i.e. a millennium; 4) following this thousand years of peace, the world as we know it will come to an end in a Last Judgment where the dead will be resurrected, evil will be banished and a new heaven and new earth under God's command will be created.

Christian time, then, is lineal. It begins with the creation of the Universe by God and ends with the creation of a new Universe free from the corrupting influences of sin. The milestones along the way are the miraculous birth and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the second coming of Christ, the Last Judgment and finally the creation of the Kingdom of God.

Historically, the various elements of Christian eschatology have waxed and waned in importance. During Roman times, there was a great debate over the meaning of the Biblical passages that establish the outlines of Christian belief. Tertullian and a host of other thinkers in the early Christian churches attempted to understand the Biblical prophesies in the context their own time. For those who want to know more about this discussion see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennialism.

One artifact of this early Christian debate was the idea that the dates of the key elements could be calculated from scriptural sources. Specifically, some thinkers advanced the idea that the fall of Jerusalem to the Romans in 70 A.D. in some way marked the beginning of the millennium of Christ's rule on earth. As I pointed out in an earlier post [on 12/18/10], this view was current when John Humphrey Noyes attended Yale Theological School in the 1832 and he found it to be persuasive. Indeed, in his autobiography Noyes admits that for a time he was enamored by the teachings of the “Millerites” on this subject.

In 1832 a Central New York farmer and lay preacher named William Miller began to widely publish the claim that he had discovered Biblical sources which made it possible to accurately calculate the Second Coming and the time of the final judgment. The time was near. Over the next ten years Miller gathered a substantial following as a result of extensive publishing, revivals and tent-meetings. Pressed to release his calculations, he told his followers that judgment day would occur on October 22, 1844. On that day an estimated 100,000 people across New York and New England sold their possessions, dressed in white and stood on hillsides near their homes (including in Syracuse) to await the rapture that never occurred. The “Great Disappointment” caused Miller to stop preaching, but his followers went on to found a number of “Adventist” churches, some of which flourish to this day. See, http://www.fact-index.com/m/mi/millerites.html

Why, we might ask, in the period from 1825 – 1845 were so many people in America convinced that the end times were at hand? Whitney Cross, in his amazing book The Burned-over District, proposes an intriguing answer – American optimism. To be sure, there were major social changes happening as the western frontier opened. Masses of people joined the exodus to the growing urban areas or to new territory out west. The established churches seemed to many to be out of step with the changing times. Newer congregations, primarily Methodists, sent out circuit riding missionaries preaching personal salvation through good works. A wave of religious revivals crossed the land, centered in upstate New York. “Just as the American political system would lead the world to equality and justice, so would American revivals inaugurate the thousand years of Christ's reign on earth before the Second Coming and the end of the world.” (p. 79)

In this context, where all things seemed possible, including creating heaven on earth, John Humphrey Noyes started to gather a small group of believers.

Little Venice

Should you by some wild chance find yourself with a little time on your hands in downtown Binghamton, NY, I have two suggestions. First, take a little stroll around the city center and look at the historic architecture. There certainly are a good number of beautiful buildings illustrating a variety of styles. There is an iconic 1930's Federal Courthouse, the still beautiful 1905 beaux-arts Security Mutual building, the 1898 neo-classical County Courthouse and the complementary 1897 Municipal Building across the street, now reborn as the Grand Royale Hotel. All of these are definitely worth a look. Unfortunately, the overall impression of the downtown is of a struggling, economically starved relic of a bygone era. In fact, all our Upstate NY cities fit that description to some extent. That fact doesn't mean they don't contain some real gems if you are willing to look closely for them.

Now head for the recently upgraded art deco bus station, complete with classic running Greyhound neon sign. The bus station is on the corner of Chenango and Henry Streets. Only half a block further along, right next to the bus station parking lot at 111 Chenango St. you find Little Venice. http://www.littlevenicerestaurant.com/

The same Italian family has run this restaurant since 1946. It's had three prior locations all nearby in downtown, all victims of redevelopment. It's been at the current location since 1969. When you enter through the front door you find yourself in a modest size room with a bar. This is the original. Down a long dim hall on the right you reach the large main dining room with an attached smaller private room. Locals often enter the dining room directly from the parking lot in the back. Cozy booths line the walls, and boy-o-boy what walls.

Every square inch of the walls is covered by original art, mostly oil paintings from the early 20^th and later 19^th centuries. The placemat claims that some are “old masters” but I think they are using that term loosely. The subject matter is incredibly varied. The only theme I could discern was “people laughing.” There are hokey-jokey paintings hung right next to formal portraits from the 17^th century. We sat beneath a tableaux of two stuffed quail in a natural setting preserved under a glass dome. Such bird taxidermy art was once quite popular but seldom seen today.

To find the bathrooms you need to take a tour of the entire premises: back down the hall to the front door, the whole way around the bar in the front room and then to the back on the left. This little excursion allowed me to get a better look at the art and to review the celebrity wall in the hallway with signed pictures of Ernest Borgnine next to Liberace next to pictures of many formerly famous people I didn't recognize. Perfect.

The place seems to always be bustling. It's not really fit for a romantic get away, if that's what you have in mind. The food and the service were great when we visited last week. I have some simple advice on the food – eat the pasta. Amazingly all the pasta dough is made fresh daily. The pasta you eat will be rolled and cut after you order it. That's fresh, so fresh you may not recognize it. Gluten-free pasta is also available. I had ravioli that was amazing. The manicotti is actually made with a crepe, not pasta. I'm going to try that next time. Merry had capellini that she pronounced wonderful. On top of this you should order the original Little Venice “sweet” sauce and a meat “log” [not a ball]. The sauce is definitely sweeter than any I have had before. We both liked it a lot. We're still debating what makes it so sweet. Caramelized onions? Brown sugar? Pears? Only the family knows, and they aren't telling.

We enjoyed ourselves thoroughly and I know you will too.