Faith

The Religion of the House of David  

What follows is a simplified sketch of this complex form of esoteric Christianity. 

The religion of the House of David grew out of the earlier Southcottian, or Christian Israelite, tradition born in England in the late eighteenth century.  The faithful at the House of David at the start of the twentieth century felt they were living in the final years or decades of history. They saw themselves playing a key role in the destiny of the universe as their coming together and forming a commune in Benton Harbor—the Ingathering—would trigger the millennium and purge all sin from the world, allowing them to live forever. Reflecting this sentiment, many early members signed their letters to each other “Your Friend in the Race for Immortality,” or simply “Your Friend in the Race.” 

Founders Benjamin and Mary Purnell.

Believers focused on the events chronicled in the Book of Genesis, particularly the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, and the end times prophecies from the Book of Revelations. For Christian Israelites at the House of David, the key moment in history was Satan’s corruption of Eve, which introduced evil into the world. They believed Eve ultimately passed this evil on to all humans in the form of original sin. This is why Christian Israelites at the House of David were celibate. They believed sex and procreation spread by inherently impure people passed evil from one generation to the next. The only way to stop Satan’s influence and cease evil from spreading was to not only stop having children but to also stop having sex altogether, as the act itself was spiritually defiling. 

They also drew inspiration from the Apocrypha, the 'lost' or 'banned' books of the bible. The religion further drew heavily from the British Israelism movement popular in the nineteenth century. The core belief of that movement was that the English people were the direct descendants of the ‘Ten Lost Tribes’ of ancient Israelites mentioned in the Bible, making the British and their descendants God’s chosen people. 

Christian Israelites at the House of David believed that peppered among the inherently corrupt and evil population of the world were 288,000 pure souls (144,000 men and 144,000 women), the elect, who are the descendants of the Lost Tribes of Israel. House of David believers felt that they were the elect, these 'pure souls.' Their coming together, at an event called the ‘Ingathering,’ would usher in the birth of the prophesized God-child Shiloh, as well as the Second Coming of Jesus, and, ultimately, the apocalypse. Only the elect would survive the millennium and never die, what Israelites called 'The Life of the Body'—an idea central to the faith. 

Roxie Holliday and Gordon Holliday, traveling preachers for the House of David; the image was taken at the colony's photo studio. 

Another core doctrine among Christian Israelites was the belief in modern-day prophecies issued by a series of seven prophets or divine messengers. The most prominent of whom are Joanna Southcott (1750-1814), John Wroe (1782-1863), and James Jezreel (1851-1885). Followers believed that husband and wife Benjamin Purnell (1861-1927) and Mary Purnell (1862-1953) together formed the final Seventh Messenger, and further constitute the male and female aspects of Shiloh, who will lead the faithful into everlasting life. As such, practitioners of the faith read the writings of Southcott, Wroe, and Jezreel and considered them scripture on par with the Bible. Particular weight was also placed on the centrality of Benjamin and Mary’s Star of Bethlehem: The Living Roll of Life (1903), as well as sermons, letters, utterances, and other published writings by the pair.  

In addition to being celibate, House of David members were strict vegetarians, as they believed dead animal flesh was spiritually unclean and therefore corrupt. This prohibition also dictated that they never touch a dead human body. They were also staunch pacifists who believed acts of violence and war were indicative of the fallen or inherently evil nature of humanity. As a result, members of the House of David were conscientious objectors during wartime. While some served in the military during World War I and World War II, they did so in noncombat roles. Members were also encouraged to avoid other influences associated with the modern world that Israelites felt reflected a corrupt and decadent world and contributed to humanity’s decline. These included smoking, drinking, gambling, and other vices.  Members also avoided wearing black as they felt it symbolized evil and was associated with death and Satan.

J.D. Tucker and Charles Norris (Francis de Norrisa) preaching made the London magazine The Sketch, August 30, 1905, which stated, 'James and Charles ... have settled in the Romford Road. In the window of their house may be seen a poster bearing a reproduction of the famous Flying Roll, which the founder of the sect claimed contained sacred writings from Jerusalem interpreting the Scriptures." 

Above: Charles Jeffery and Gladys Jeffery, members of the House of David. Gladys was a prominent preacher at the HoD. 

Below: Clarence 'Chic' Bell in 1956. 

They also draw inspiration from Old Testament teachings from the Book of Leviticus, observed by some orthodox sects of Judaism, such as not cutting one’s hair or men not shaving their beards. The faith was also heavily tinged with mysticism and esoteric theology claiming divine wisdom was available only to the elect who could understand it. Their modes of worship consisted mostly of individual prayer, reflection, and contemplation.  Despite Benjamin and Mary delivering occasional public sermons during their lifetimes, the religion had no regular religious services. However, at occasional meetings, men or women were encouraged to preach if the spirit moved them. Although the House of David faith had no formal clergy, there was an elected board called the ‘Pillars’ that oversaw religious affairs at the commune. 

Some aspects of the day-to-day lived religion practiced by early members at the House of David commune cannot be derived from official writings or doctrines but only gleaned from members’ personal writings and surviving devotional diaries now housed in the House of David’s Archives & Collections. These reveal members were intensely interested in numerology and alternative healing, particularly holistic medicine. They were also fascinated by modern-day prophecies of all kinds, not just those limited to the Christian Israelite tradition. As such, they fixated on ‘Washington’s Vision’ (first published in 1861), Jane Lead’s divinations from seventeenth-century England, and other prophecies associated with the Latter-Day Saints, Seventh-Day Adventists, and other religions, as well as those issued from a variety of other modern-day and New Age mystics. 


Written by Brian Carroll, PhD., 2024


Learn More: 

This audio recording is from a c.1950 sermon by Clarence 'Chic' Bell; in which he speaks about the Ingathering. 

Chic (1953) Preaching Excerpt - Israel Ingathering in USA.mp3