Adamites holy christian nudists
The Adamites (a Middle Ages incarnation of the early Adamianis) were an active sect in Bohemia during the fifteenth century A.D. They were part of the Hussite Reformation. This group set up numerous religious nude communities. 1Therapy, Nudity & Joy Adamite Communities existed as early as the 13th century in the Netherlands ans Germany. There were among a group of about five Christian sects that were branded as heretical because they adopted nudity as part of their religious practice. They followed the practice of nude worship initiated by the earlier Adamianis. 2Sects That Professed Their Faith in the Nude
The Adamites practiced holy nudism, described as an attempt to return to the “pure state of innocence” of Adam and Eve. Some early baptismal practices required complete nudity, and several Christian sects (Adamites, Adamianis, Carpocrations, Aquarii, and Marcosians) practice social nudity (nudity in public and private locations). 3Nudism – Pamela Black Pennsylvania State University
4Sects That Professed Their Faith in the Nude
People were drawn to this Bohemism Adamite way of life that in practice bears some resemblance to the bohemian life of of the hippie culture. 5The Adamites: Hippie Heretics of the Middle Ages similar to their predecessors the Adamites choose an ascetic life connected close to nature and preferred to wear no clothing at all. Clothing was considered part of the legacy of Adam’s sinful.6The Adamites: Hippie Heretics of the Middle Ages Other accounts suggest they also eschewed marriage and had open sexual relationships.
This way of life was thought too radical by the established church and members of the Adamite sect of the Middle Ages were routinely arrested and attacked. In 1491 almost all the Adamites on Czech lands were rounded up by the Taborites and burned as heretics. It is believed a few may have managed to survive but the Adamite way of life was effectively snuffed out.7The Adamites: Hippie Heretics of the Middle Ages
Adamite faith and practice later spread north to the Netherlands and then to England where reports of worshippers getting undressed to receive the preacher sermon has some similarity to the modern naked quakers.
“…where were gathered at least one hundred men and women…[who] instantly stripped themselves to the bare skin, both men and women’ to listen to the Adamite’s sermon8Sects That Professed Their Faith in the Nude
Some Christian naturists today continue the practice of worshipping without clothing carry this ancient religious practice forward into the modern world.
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