Daughters of Light: Quaker Women Preaching and Prophesying in the Colonies and Abroad, 1700-1775

by Rebecca Larson

More than a thousand Quaker female ministers were active in the Anglo-American world before the Revolutionary War, when the Society of Friends constituted the colonies' third-largest religious group. Some of these women circulated throughout British North America; others crossed the Atlantic to deliver their inspired messages. In this public role, they preached in courthouses, meeting houses, and private homes, to audiences of men and women, to Quakers and to those of other faiths, to Native Americans and to slaves.

Utilizing the Quakers' rich archival sources, as well as colonial newspapers and diaries, Rebecca Larson reconstructs the activities of these women. She offers striking insights into the ways their public, authoritative role affected the formation of their identities, their families, and their society. Extensively researched and compellingly written, Daughters of Light enriches our understanding of religion and women's lives in colonial America.

Genres: History, Religion, Womens, Feminism

416 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Carolina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a super fun read if you are into that kind of thing. Larson writes in a very storytellingy sort of voice, like a historian who is into something telling you some of the coolest stories from her research. Which, you know, is mostly what she is doing in the book. The notion (roughly) is that Quakers were pretty feminist-ahead-of-their time, in that they believed (right from the beginning of the movement) and taught that women and men were both equally qualified to teach and preach. Larson kind of spins out some of the social consequences of this doctrine, telling stories about how Quaker women in the 18th century went on speaking circuits and traveled transatlantically and had support and childcare to back them up and all sorts of stuf like that. It's really a delightful read for the sort of person who is into knowing cool stuff about interesting but obscure topics.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A help to understanding women ministers in the classic period of Quakerism; extends my understanding of John Woolman to include those who shared his work as traveling ministers.

[A. Johnson]

Excellent survey.