The allure of immortality : an American cult, a Florida swamp, and a renegade prophet
(Book)
Author
Published
Gainesville, FL : University Press of Florida ;, [2019].
ISBN
9780813064406 :, 0813064406 :
Physical Desc
xiv, 338 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
Status
Headquarters - Ocala Public Library - Non-Fiction - Adult
976 MIL
1 available
976 MIL
1 available
Dunnellon Public Library - Non-Fiction - Adult
976 MIL
1 available
976 MIL
1 available
Description
Loading Description...
Also in this Series
Checking series information...
Copies
Location | Call Number | Status |
---|---|---|
Headquarters - Ocala Public Library - Non-Fiction - Adult | 976 MIL | On Shelf |
Dunnellon Public Library - Non-Fiction - Adult | 976 MIL | On Shelf |
Subjects
LC Subjects
More Details
Published
Gainesville, FL : University Press of Florida ;, [2019].
Format
Book
Language
English
ISBN
9780813064406 :, 0813064406 :
Notes
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Description
Wall Street Journal's Five Best Books About Cults. For five days in December 1908 the body of Cyrus Teed lay in a bathtub at a beach house just south of Fort Myers, Florida. His followers, the Koreshans, waited for signs that he was coming back to life. They watched hieroglyphics emerge on his skin and observed what looked like the formation of a third arm. They saw his belly fall and rise with breath, even though his swollen tongue sealed his mouth. As his corpse turned black, they declared that their leader was transforming into the Egyptian god Horus. Teed was a charismatic and controversial guru who at the age of 30 had been "illuminated" by an angel in his electro-alchemical laboratory. At the turn of the twentieth century, surrounded by the marvels of the Second Industrial Revolution, he proclaimed himself a prophet and led 200 people out of Chicago and into a new age. Or so he promised. The Koreshans settled in a mosquito-infested scrubland and set to building a communal utopia inside what they believed was a hollow earth--with humans living on the inside crust and the entire universe contained within. According to Teed's socialist and millennialist teachings, if his people practiced celibacy and focused their love on him, he would return after death and they would all become immortal. Was Teed a visionary or villain, savior or two-bit charlatan? Why did his promises and his theory of "cellular cosmogony" persuade so many? In The Allure of Immortality, Lyn Millner weaves the many bizarre strands of Teed's life and those of his followers into a riveting story of angels, conmen, angry husbands, yellow journalism, and ultimately, hope.
Reviews from GoodReads
Loading GoodReads Reviews.
Citations
APA Citation, 7th Edition (style guide)
Millner, L. (2019). The allure of immortality: an American cult, a Florida swamp, and a renegade prophet . University Press of Florida ;.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)Millner, Lyn. 2019. The Allure of Immortality: An American Cult, a Florida Swamp, and a Renegade Prophet. University Press of Florida.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities (Notes and Bibliography) Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)Millner, Lyn. The Allure of Immortality: An American Cult, a Florida Swamp, and a Renegade Prophet University Press of Florida, 2019.
MLA Citation, 9th Edition (style guide)Millner, Lyn. The Allure of Immortality: An American Cult, a Florida Swamp, and a Renegade Prophet University Press of Florida ;, 2019.
Note! Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy. Citation formats are based on standards as of August 2021.