The House of David Adaptation, Marketing, and Millenarianism

While some religious groups emphasize separation from society at large, other groups prioritize understanding and utilizing mainstream cultural expressions. The House of David, one of America’s most successful communal religious groups, drew on a wide variety of mainstream cultural influences to share the message that their founders Benjamin (1861-1927) and Mary (1862-1953) Purnell were the last in a long line of British millenarian prophets. Finding inspiration in popular evangelists, jazz music, and theme parks, the House of David would successfully adapt the distinctly British tradition of the Southcottian Israelitism to the needs of the American religious market, and gives us a clear example of the role innovation plays in the crowded religious marketplace.