John Slocum
John Slocum (Squ-sacht-un) was a member of the Squaxin Island Tribe, Coast Salish, and a reputed holy man and prophet who founded the Indian Shaker Church in 1881.
Slocum was introduced to Christianity by missionaries working in Washington's Puget Sound region. In 1881 he became ill and subsequently fell into a trance where he was transported to heaven. While in trance he was told how to bring Native American peoples to salvation. This experience was similar to that described by other 19th-century Native American prophets, including Wovoka, Tavibo and Smohalla. In 1886, he began preaching a message he designated "Tschadam".
About a year later, Slocum once again became ill. While his wife, Mary Thompson Slocum, cared for him, she started shaking uncontrollably in his presence. When he recovered, he interpreted her shaking as a spiritual manifestation which saved him from death. Slocum incorporated shaking or twitching into the religion as a way to brush off sin, sickness, or bad feelings. This practice led non-natives to call the Church the "Indian Shaker Religion." Slocum and some of his followers were imprisoned regularly for their opposition to government-mandated acculturation programs for Pacific Coast peoples.
The Indian Shaker Religion is still practiced and combines many traditional native beliefs and customs with Christian beliefs about God and the realities of heaven and hell.
See also
References
- Ruby, Robert H. and John Arthur Brown. John Slocum and the Indian Shaker Church. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1996. ISBN 0-8061-2865-8.