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times a day. Water A could then be diluted with additional water, producing "Water B," which should be applied to the body as bath water or through sponges. From 1924 to 2012, some 130,000 applicants received the pieces of linen for free, and were only asked to write back and report on the results of the cure. The correspondence, coming from all over the world, is still conserved in the
Bedford Panacea Museum, and has been studied in 2019 in a book by British scholar Alastair Lockhart.
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In late 2012, it was announced that the charitable trust would be opening a museum detailing the history of the society, at 9 Newnham Road, Bedford. The
Panacea Museum is in 'Castleside', a Victorian house that was part of the community's headquarters. It tells the story of the Panacea Society and
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Another main activity of the
Panacea Society was to offer healing of all diseases, including cancer, to those who would write to its headquarters in Bedford and receive a piece of linen blessed by Octavia. They were instructed to put the linen in a jug of water, pray, and drink this "Water A" four
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bishops to open
Southcott's sealed box of prophecies, and to this end, advertisements were placed in newspapers, both national and local. In the late 1920s and early 1930s the Society generated over 100,000 petitions for the box to be opened. The Society claimed to be in possession of the original
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Whilst the religious society is no longer functioning, there still exists a charity whose main remit is to sponsor academic research into the history and development of prophetic and millenarian movements, as well as provide financial assistance to support the work of registered charities and
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Despite this, the group continued placing advertisements in newspapers calling for action from the Church of
England. In the 1970s, the Society rented billboards which proclaimed "War, disease, crime and banditry, distress of nations and perplexity will increase until the Bishops open Joanna
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Although small in size, the
Society was relatively wealthy, owning several properties in the Castle Road area of Bedford. By 2001, when the Society started to sell off some of its property in order to retain its status as a charity, it was reported to have assets valued at £14m.
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The museum also incorporates several other buildings, set within the gardens, that formed the original community's 'campus'. The museum is open every
Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday between February half term and the end of October.
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60:, who died in 1814, and campaigned for Southcott's sealed box of prophecies to be opened according to her instructions. The society believed Bedford to be the original site of the
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reported about 30 members living there. When the last member, Ruth Klein (born 1932), died in 2012, the
Society ceased to exist as a religious community.
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and believed herself to be the Shiloh of
Southcott's prophecies. Barltrop had originally heard of Southcott via a leaflet written by
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in 1919 at 12 Albany Road, Bedford. A clergyman's widow, Barltrop declared herself the 'daughter of God', took the name
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recognised groups concerned with poverty and health in the
Bedford area. The charity officially changed its name to
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The market town of Bedford, England was once home to a cult of women who thought they could avert Armageddon
407:"Seymour, Alice (1857–1947), schoolteacher and expositor and publisher of the writings of Joanna Southcott"
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box. The Panaceans also believed that the one that was opened in 1927 and found to contain a broken
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In the 1930s, about 70 members were said to be living in the Bedford community. In 1967, the
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During the 1930s the membership began to dwindle as did Alice Seymour's smaller rival group.
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Personal Religion and Spiritual Healing: The Panacea Society in the Twentieth Century
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Personal Religion and Spiritual Healing: The Panacea Society in the Twentieth Century
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The Society's allotments. The members claimed Bedford to be the original site of the
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by the society on the outbreak of the Second World War on 4 September 1939.
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56:. Founded in 1919, it followed the teachings of the Devonshire prophetess
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Review of Jane Shaw: Octavia, Daughter of God. The Times Higher, 25.08.11
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The Society had its headquarters on Albany Road, close to the remains of
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The Society's inspiration was the teachings of the Devonshire prophetess
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Review of Jane Shaw: Octavia, Daughter of God. The Guardian, 02.07.11
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The Founder's House at the Panacea Museum viewed from the garden.
151:. Another property, an end-of-terrace house on Albany Road named
100:. She and 12 apostles founded the Society, originally called the
585:"Bedford Times and Citizen: A house of God in the heart of town"
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The History of a Modern Millennial Movement: The Southcottians
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509:"Mystic society charitably sells off the followers' silver"
155:, was maintained as a residence for the Messiah after the
352:"Delving into the mystery of Joanna Southcott's box"
228:"The woman who said Jesus would return - to Bedford"
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A central purpose of the Society was to persuade 24
672:. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
416:(online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004.
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384:. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
642:Panacea Museum, Bedford : a souvenir guide
116:and a lottery ticket, was not the genuine box.
27:Millenarian religious group in Bedford, England
791:Intentional communities in the United Kingdom
291:"Octavia, the founder of the Panacea Society"
8:
786:Christian organizations established in 1918
623:Joanna Southcott's Box of Sealed Prophecies
263:Shaw, Jane; Lockley, Philip (30 May 2017).
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709:Details on the Charity Commission website
526:Bedfordshire Times report, October 1967
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413:Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
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714:Report on Channel 4's 2003 documentary
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325:Panacea Charitable Trust and Museum
295:Panacea Charitable Trust and Museum
490:"Bedfordshire onsunday has closed"
350:Coates, Stephen (7 October 2016).
25:
515:– via www.theguardian.com.
205:other similar religious groups.
507:Bates, Stephen (13 July 2001).
226:Pope, Alex (17 November 2019).
88:(1750–1814). It was founded by
771:Organisations based in Bedford
565:. The Panacea Charitable Trust
563:"The Panacea Charitable Trust"
1:
703:The Panacea Charitable Trust
447:UK public library membership
186:The Panacea Charitable Trust
668:Lockhart, Alastair (2019).
644:. Panacea Charitable Trust.
494:www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk
380:Lockhart, Alastair (2019).
246:"Private lives made public"
102:Community of the Holy Ghost
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545:"Panacea Society Homepage"
781:Religion in Bedfordshire
776:Churches in Bedfordshire
640:Lockley, Philip (2012).
604:Octavia, Daughter of God
621:Brown, Frances (2003).
531:1 December 2008 at the
422:10.1093/ref:odnb/93403
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649:Bean, Adrian (2018).
625:. Lutterworth Press.
250:www.churchtimes.co.uk
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76:The notice placed in
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36:"The Ark" in Bedford.
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653:. Brown Dog Books.
602:Shaw, Jane (2011).
78:The Daily Telegraph
48:religious group in
747:52.1354°N 0.4614°W
331:on 30 January 2017
301:on 30 January 2017
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173:Bedfordshire Times
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123:Southcott's box."
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796:Charitable trusts
679:978-1-4384-7286-7
660:978-1-78545-316-8
613:978-0-224-07500-8
445:(Subscription or
391:978-1-4384-7286-7
321:"Panacea Society"
16:(Redirected from
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58:Joanna Southcott
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569:4 September
46:millenarian
765:Categories
735:52°08′07″N
632:0718830415
471:24 January
449:required.)
362:24 January
335:24 January
305:24 January
213:References
167:Membership
738:0°27′41″W
356:Londonist
188:in 2012.
529:Archived
232:BBC News
143:Premises
109:Anglican
696:at the
153:The Ark
94:Octavia
68:History
54:England
50:Bedford
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437:9 July
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44:was a
674:ISBN
655:ISBN
627:ISBN
608:ISBN
571:2013
473:2017
439:2019
426:ISBN
386:ISBN
364:2017
337:2017
307:2017
271:ISBN
40:The
698:BBC
418:doi
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
