Slocum, John (1842-1897)

John Slocum, a Native American prophet and visionary, was a member of the Squaxin people who resided on Puget Sound in the state of Washington. Among his people he was known as Squ-sacht-un. As a young man he had lived on the Skokomish reservation, where he attended a Presbyterian church and also became familiar with the Roman Catholic faith. In October of 1881 he found himself giving strong consideration to the problems that afflicted the Native Americans of Puget Sound and the manner in which they had been ravaged by alcohol, gambling, and general immorality. He was himself among the guilty. As he contemplated his condition, he became ill and apparently died one morning about 4 a.m. He was considered dead by those present and preparation began for his burial. Then in the middle of the afternoon, he awoke and announced to all present that he had been to heaven. He saw the light, so frequently mentioned in accounts of near-death experiences, and faced a life review. He also, at one point, looked down upon his own body.

At the gates of heaven, according to Slocum's account, he had been turned back because of his immoral life. He encountered some angelic beings who gave him a choice of going to Hell or returning to Earth to teach his people the way to heaven. He announced that all should be Christians and requested that a church be built. Within a short time, some 50 people associated with the church. The movement subsequently spread among the various Native American groups in the area.

The teachings of the new church combined elements of Presbyterianism, Catholicism, and the traditional religion of his people. Among the traditional practices, members of a secret society were known to go into a trance and commune with various spirit entities. Slocum taught a form of Christianity, but downplayed the Bible in favor of his own contacts with heaven that he felt were more immediate and relevant than an old book. He emphasized moral living as a prerequisite to heaven.

A short time after the founding of the church, he fell ill again. His wife, Mary, began to pray for him. In her concern she began to shake and tremble. When Slocum recovered, he attributed his getting better to the shaking. Very soon afterwards, the members began to copy Mary Slocum's movements and soon were demonstrating a range of exuberant body movements that had been a familiar part of revival and camp meetings among Protestant religious groups. Because of this shaking, they became known as the Shaker religion. The members also adopted a form of ritualized prayer for the sick.

The Shaker Church was incorporated in 1892. Slocum led it for the rest of his life but as the end of his earthly life drew near, he withdrew from the public, and the exact place and date of his death is unknown. His church continues to the present.

Sources:

Barnett, H. G. Indian Shakers: A Messianic Cult of the Pacific Northwest. Carbondale, Ill.: Southern Illinois University, 1957.

Mooney, James. "The Ghost-Dance Religion and the Sioux Outbreak of 1890." In the Fourteenth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology. Compiled by J. W. Powell. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1896.