June 28 - 30, 2004
Preconference tour June 26-27, 2004
Our Eighth Conference will be held at the historic Amana Colonies in
Iowa, the heartland of the United States.
We will help Amana celebrate the sesquicentennial of the colonies' settlement in their current location in 1854.
The theme of our conference is "The Communitarian Vision"
The Amana Colonies emerged from Pietism, a Christian reform
movement that sought to inject passion into what its adherents regarded as the
cold and lifeless official churches of parts of Europe. One group of Pietists
further espoused "inspirationism," the claim that certain living individuals
could receive direct inspiration from the Holy Spirit. In 1714 a group of these
believers formed the Community of True Inspiration in Germany under the leadership
of Eberhard Gruber and Johann Rock, the latter a "Werkzeug," or inspired prophet.
More than a century later a new Werkzeug,
Christian Metz, arose among the inspirationists. Their faith had never been
popular with the public authorities, and, to escape more conflict at a particularly
difficult time, Metz led the group to America. They settled near Buffalo, New
York, in 1843 an 1844 in a communal settlement they called "Ebenezer." New
problems soon arose at Ebenezer, however, and in 1854 the group purchased a
large tract of land in Iowa, where seven communal villages were soon established.
Agriculture and industries were built up, forming the base for an extended period
of communal prosperity. Today the best-known of the Amana industries is its
large factory that manufactures refrigerators, air conditioners, microwave ovens,
and other appliances.
Social and economic problems led to the end of the fully communal economy at
Amana in 1932. Much of the Amana tradition continues, however. The distinctive
church still functions. The Amana Society continues to own a large tract of
farmland and several businesses. A million visitors a year now enjoy the community's
traditions, architecture, and friendly people.
Our conference will take place over three days in the heart of the Amana Colonies.
A two-day tour of historic and contemporary communal sites will be held just
before the opening of the conference. Information about conference and tour
registration will be published in the ICSA Bulletin and posted on the ICSA and
conference websites (www.communalstudies.info/icsa.shtml,
www.ic.org/icsa and www.antenna.nl/icsa).
Local arrangements will be handled by Lanny Haldy and staff members and volunteers
with the Amana Heritage Society, who may be contacted at amherit@juno.com.
To present a paper or to organize
a panel at the conference, or to propose the presentation of a film or other
creative project, submit a proposal in English by November 1, 2003. Proposals
should be limited to one page (about 250 words) and must include the following
information: title, author, mailing address, telephone number, fax number, and
email address. The program committee is chaired by Elizabeth A. De Wolfe, Associate
Professor of American Studies at the University of New England in Biddeford,
Maine, USA. Send abstracts via email to Professor De Wolfe at edewolfe@une.edu.
Tim Miller
Department of Religious Studies
University of Kansas
1300 Oread Street
Lawrence, Kansas 66045
785/864-7263
fax 864-5205
tkansas@ku.edu
ICSA on the Intenial Communities website
April 17, 2004