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![thou: Public Universal Friend
The Public Universal Friend
(born Jemima Wilkinson;
November 29, 1752 – July 1,
1819), was born as an English-
American to a Quaker family on
Rhode Island, and was assigned
female at birth. This person
suffered a severe illness in 1776
(age 24), and reported having died
and been reanimated by the power
of God as a genderless evangelist
named the Public Universal Friend.
The Friend refused to answer any
A portrait of the Public Universal a
longer to the previous name,
Friend, from the Friend's biography
Jemima Wilkinson, (1 quoted Luke
written by David Hudson in 1821.
23:3 ("thou sayest it") when visitors
asked if it was the name of the
person they were addressing, and ignored or chastised those who
insisted on using it. The preacher shunned the name "Jemima"
completely, having friends hold realty in trust rather than see the name
on deeds and titles. Even when a lawyer insisted that the person's Will
should identify its subject as having been born under the name Jemima,
the preacher refused to sign that name, only making an X which others
witnessed, even though the Friend could read and write.2)
The Friend asked not to be referred to with gendered pronouns.
Followers respected these wishes, avoiding gender-specific pronouns
even in private diaries, and referring only to "the Public Universal
Friend" or short forms such as "the Friend" or "P.U.F."3]
madnessofmen:only address me as The Friend from now on](https://pics.onsizzle.com/public-universal-friend-the-public-universal-friend-born-jemima-wilkinson-66487044.png)
