Millerism - an historical enigma?

Authors

• Ingemar Lindén

DOI: https://doi.org/10.30674/scripta.67086

Keywords:

Millerites, Millennialism, Authority, Leadership, Religious, Apocalypticism, United States, Protestantism, Revivalism, Revivals -- United States

Abstract

It is a wellknown fact in history that strong bias in the writers and a wishful thinking radically prevent the analysis of any event or religious activity. For this reason Catholic ecclesiastical writers of the old school distorted the role of Martin Luther and his movement; likewise the Radical Reformation fared badly in old handbooks, whether they were composed by Catholics or Lutherans. Again the same principle applies to many of the modern "sects" in America and in Europe. Millerism is an excellent case for illustrating this unfelicitious type of writing. The layman-evangelist William Miller (1782-1849) claimed that the world would never be converted; only the second coming of Christ could usher in the millennium. In order to obtain a better understanding of Millerism, the movement should be divided into three main periods, which differed in character. At first, Miller's own development needs to be ascertained. Though he lacked any thorough intellectual training and remained an autodidact, he nevertheless belonged to the wide range of middle class Yankees. To be sure, Miller lived not too far from the famous frontier in his youth, but despite preconceived ideas in some writers, Miller had his cultural roots in the built-up areas of a New England society. The second important stratum in his personality was the warm Baptist revivalism, which prevailed in his home. Deism and revivalism thus contended for the supremacy of his soul; admitting the later dominance of evangelical revivalism, reason and order continued to hold a place in his mental set-up.