Holy Flesh movement

The term Holy Flesh movement is a derogatory term given to a brief but controversial religious movement within the Seventh-day Adventist Church from the late 1890s till 1901. They sought a physical demonstration of the "spirit" and shouted and prayed and sang until someone in the congregation would fall, prostrate and unconscious, from his seat. When the subject revived, he was counted among those who had passed through the "Gethsemane experience", had obtained holy flesh, and had translation faith. Thereafter, it was asserted, he could not sin and had obtained a form of immortal assurance. The doctrinal teachings of this movement regarding the nature of Christ's humanity is that He took the nature of Adam before the Fall.

The movement in Indiana, just before the wider outbreak of Pentecostal-like phenomena in the U.S. state, combined enthusiastic forms of worship with millenarian ideas about the perfectibility of human nature. Recent research suggests that the movement shaped Adventist attitudes towards charismatic religious experiences and worship styles for a century after......

In the 19th century, sporadic outbreaks of emotionally expressive and body-centered worship styles occurred in various branches of evangelical Protestantism. The Holiness movement in particular spawned dozens of these, each with unique doctrinal content and associated personalities. An Adventist version, the so-called "holy flesh movement," followed the teachings of A. F. Ballenger (1861–1921), who was in turn influenced by the Holiness movement and who advocated an emphasis on the Holy Spirit in Christian thought and life.

In Indiana, Ballenger's ideas were picked up by S. S. Davis, a minister and evangelist, who was supported by his Conference president, Robert Donnell (1844–1937). Davis was impressed by the enthusiasm of a group of Pentecostals he worked with.

"The Holy Flesh theory alleged that those who follow the Saviour must have their fallen natures perfected by passing through a “Garden of Gethsemane” experience... Eyewitness accounts report that in their services the fanatics worked up a high pitch of excitement by use of musical instruments such as organs, flutes, fiddles, tambourines, horns, and even a big bass drum. They sought a physical demonstration and shouted and prayed and sang until someone in the congregation would fall, prostrate and unconscious, from his seat. One or two men, walking up and down the aisle for the purpose, would drag the fallen person up on the rostrum. Then about a dozen individuals would gather around the prostrate body, some singing, some shouting, and some praying, all at the same time. When the subject revived, he was counted among those who had passed through the Gethsemane experience, had obtained holy flesh, and had translation faith. Thereafter, it was asserted, he could not sin and would never die."

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