The Valiant Sixty-First? John Woolman’s Apocalyptic Eschatology and the Restoration of the Lamb’s War

Abstract

This article argues that John Woolman’s abolitionism and reform efforts are usefully understood through the lens of a theological restoration of the Lamb’s War. Specifically, this article explores Woolman’s apocalyptic eschatology, which is demonstrated through his conceptions of a realizing eschatology, protology, impending judgment, perfection and a new order on earth. Through acts of social confrontation and the direct inward revelation of Christ, both the first generation of Quakers and Woolman a century later proclaimed a message of transformation in a way that illumines broader tropes in Quaker experience.