Insane Religious Fanatic?
Martha McWhirter and the Sanctified Sisters of Belton, Texas, are often looked upon as women who had no reason behind their beliefs other than insanity. They believed that God had spoken to them and they had become sanctified. McWhirter indeed showed some of the signs of schizophrenia, but many often forget that she is not the only person in history who changed his or her lifestyle because of hearing from God. Thus, the argument of insanity is null and void.
Martha McWhirter’s background in religion prepared her for what was to come in her later life. She was born in Jackson County, Tennessee where she grew up and then joined the Methodist church at age 16. She married George McWhirter and they then moved to Texas in 1855. McWhirter was the mother to at least twelve children, the majority of which died in infancy even before they moved to Texas. It was because of these events and the death of her brother that McWhirter began to believe that “God was chastising her and calling her to take thought of her life and of the evils around her.” [i] This began the rest of McWhirter’s life, as she became Sanctified and started what became the Woman’s Commonwealth. “On her way home from a church revival meeting one evening at the end of a dry and mercilessly hot August, a voice asked her to question herself and to see if the events of the meeting did not seem to her to work of the devil. She says that all night she had prayed and struggled against the suggestion; she experienced what she could only describe as a Pentecostal baptism through which it became clear to her that the voice had been God’s and that she was called for a particular work. Henceforth she professed sanctification.”[ii] This led to the belief that others could be sanctified and that one should not be wed to an unsanctified partner. This led to the formation of the Woman’s Commonwealth and an amazing religious movement in Bell County. Martha McWhirter heard the voice of God telling her to do a specific thing, and she then carried out the command of God.
There are many factors that determine proof of schizophrenia, several of which Martha possessed, but are simply cancelled out by the fact that hers was a religious experience. “Schizophrenia is a disorder that lasts for at least 6 months and includes at least one month of active phase symptoms (delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior, negative symptoms).”[iii] Though McWhirter experienced what could be called hallucinations and delusions, the DSM IV states that these symptoms may be a normal part of a religious experience. The symptoms also include catatonic motor behaviors which can be defined as “marked decrease in reactivity to the environment, sometimes reaching an extreme degree of complete unawareness.”[iv] Martha McWhirter did not diminish her activity at any point after being sanctified. She began working to make money for the commune, including operating the Central Hotel in Belton, a task that a person with schizophrenia would not be able to accomplish. She did not have any unawareness. A Professor Garrison came to stay at the Central Hotel and “saw Mrs. McWhirter as an intelligent woman with surprising breadth of vision.”[v] If McWhirter was indeed schizophrenic. she would not be seen as an intelligent person by any means. Tennessee Keys Embree also stated that she was a woman with whom one could hold a pleasant conversation which would not be true if she had the mental disorder. Martha McWhirter simply heard the voice of God and carried out what she then believed. She was not mentally disturbed.
Martha McWhirter heard God's command and carried it out by beginning the Woman’s Commonwealth of Belton. She used her influence to encourage other women into being sanctified and leaving the sinful life they were living. She had a great impact on the community and was simply trying to create a better atmosphere for women in Bell County.
Endnotes
[i] Carrington, Evelyn. Women in Early Texas. Austin, Texas: American Association of University Women - Austin Branch, 1994. (p. 182)
[ii] Carrington, Evelyn. Women in Early Texas. Austin, Texas: American Association of University Women - Austin Branch, 1994. (p. 183)
[iii] American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text rev.). Washington, DC: Author.
[iv] American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text rev.). Washington, DC: Author.
[v] Carrington, Evelyn. Women in Early Texas. Austin, Texas: American Association of University Women - Austin Branch, 1994. (p. 188)
Martha McWhirter’s background in religion prepared her for what was to come in her later life. She was born in Jackson County, Tennessee where she grew up and then joined the Methodist church at age 16. She married George McWhirter and they then moved to Texas in 1855. McWhirter was the mother to at least twelve children, the majority of which died in infancy even before they moved to Texas. It was because of these events and the death of her brother that McWhirter began to believe that “God was chastising her and calling her to take thought of her life and of the evils around her.” [i] This began the rest of McWhirter’s life, as she became Sanctified and started what became the Woman’s Commonwealth. “On her way home from a church revival meeting one evening at the end of a dry and mercilessly hot August, a voice asked her to question herself and to see if the events of the meeting did not seem to her to work of the devil. She says that all night she had prayed and struggled against the suggestion; she experienced what she could only describe as a Pentecostal baptism through which it became clear to her that the voice had been God’s and that she was called for a particular work. Henceforth she professed sanctification.”[ii] This led to the belief that others could be sanctified and that one should not be wed to an unsanctified partner. This led to the formation of the Woman’s Commonwealth and an amazing religious movement in Bell County. Martha McWhirter heard the voice of God telling her to do a specific thing, and she then carried out the command of God.
There are many factors that determine proof of schizophrenia, several of which Martha possessed, but are simply cancelled out by the fact that hers was a religious experience. “Schizophrenia is a disorder that lasts for at least 6 months and includes at least one month of active phase symptoms (delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior, negative symptoms).”[iii] Though McWhirter experienced what could be called hallucinations and delusions, the DSM IV states that these symptoms may be a normal part of a religious experience. The symptoms also include catatonic motor behaviors which can be defined as “marked decrease in reactivity to the environment, sometimes reaching an extreme degree of complete unawareness.”[iv] Martha McWhirter did not diminish her activity at any point after being sanctified. She began working to make money for the commune, including operating the Central Hotel in Belton, a task that a person with schizophrenia would not be able to accomplish. She did not have any unawareness. A Professor Garrison came to stay at the Central Hotel and “saw Mrs. McWhirter as an intelligent woman with surprising breadth of vision.”[v] If McWhirter was indeed schizophrenic. she would not be seen as an intelligent person by any means. Tennessee Keys Embree also stated that she was a woman with whom one could hold a pleasant conversation which would not be true if she had the mental disorder. Martha McWhirter simply heard the voice of God and carried out what she then believed. She was not mentally disturbed.
Martha McWhirter heard God's command and carried it out by beginning the Woman’s Commonwealth of Belton. She used her influence to encourage other women into being sanctified and leaving the sinful life they were living. She had a great impact on the community and was simply trying to create a better atmosphere for women in Bell County.
Endnotes
[i] Carrington, Evelyn. Women in Early Texas. Austin, Texas: American Association of University Women - Austin Branch, 1994. (p. 182)
[ii] Carrington, Evelyn. Women in Early Texas. Austin, Texas: American Association of University Women - Austin Branch, 1994. (p. 183)
[iii] American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text rev.). Washington, DC: Author.
[iv] American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text rev.). Washington, DC: Author.
[v] Carrington, Evelyn. Women in Early Texas. Austin, Texas: American Association of University Women - Austin Branch, 1994. (p. 188)