| Shakers | ||
| I Hear America Singing "New Religious Movements" Profile
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The Shakers formed celibate communities with
men and women living in separate dormitories. The movement was able to expand
through proselytism and adoption. (They were so successful in growing and storing
food that many people became Shakers during the winter.) Their growth slowed
considerably when adoptions became less commonplace. Today there are only a handful. Shakers believed ornamentation to be frivolous, so their furniture and other objects were very plain. Their craftsmanship, though, was of the highest quality. They were responsible for many inventions, including: Interestingly, they produced colorful "spirit
drawings" of their visions of heaven.
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The
Shakers were industrious...they were real shakers and movers.