House of David (commune)

==Baseball teams==
{{Unreferenced section|date=May 2023}}
[[File:House of David Baseball Team.jpg|thumb|Stadium for the House of David traveling baseball team from Benton Harbor, Michigan. Photo taken in 1925.]]
Purnell was a sports enthusiast and encouraged the members of the Israelite Community to play sports, especially [[baseball]], to build physical and spiritual discipline.

In 1913, the Israelite House of David began to play competitive baseball and by 1915, they were following a grueling schedule. The House of David became famous as a [[barnstorm (sports)|barnstorming]] baseball team which toured rural America from the 1920s through the 1950s, playing amateur and [[Semi-professional|semi-pro]] teams in [[exhibition game]]s.  They were motivated by the need to make money for their families and colony back home and by the opportunity to share their beliefs. The team members wore long hair and beards as they played.

By the late 1920s, needing more skilled players, the House began hiring professionals, the most notable being [[Grover Cleveland Alexander]], [[Satchel Paige]], and [[Mordecai Brown]]. Some professional players grew their beards out to show respect towards the God of Israel, while others wore false beards. They were known for their skill and played against some of the greatest teams in the country. The House of David played against Major League, Minor League, independent and [[Negro league]] teams, with all the same spirit of competition and fair play. At one point, the community had three separate barnstorming teams touring the country, playing and evangelizing wherever they went. The House of David teams were famous for inventing "pepper" baseball tricks, along the lines of the fancy basketball moves of the [[Harlem Globetrotters]].

The House of David continued to sponsor barnstorming teams well into the 1930s and then sponsored weekend [[semi-professional]] teams until the 1940s. Mary's City of David sent out barnstorming teams from 1930 until 1940 and then again from 1946 until 1955. Throughout this period, there were numerous teams which bore the House of David name and wore beards. The most famous was probably the Black House of David, an all [[African-American]] "Barn-storming" team that played solely against teams of the Negro leagues.

The House of David was the inspiration behind the [[James Sturm]] [[graphic novel]], ''The Golem's Mighty Swing'' (in which the team was called the "Stars of David") as well as [[Harry Turtledove]]'s fantasy novel ''[[The House of Daniel]]''. The House of David was also featured in a segment of [[Ken Burns]]' [[Baseball (TV series)|''Baseball'']] and in the movie ''[[The Winning Team]]'' (1952) about the life of pitcher [[Grover Cleveland Alexander]].

A [[vintage base ball]] club (the ''House of David Echoes BBC'') has been honoring the legacy of the House of David teams since 2001, playing vintage base ball under the 1858 rules while growing their beards and playing at historic Eastman Field near Benton Harbor, Michigan. Starting with the 2016 season, the Echoes moved to the original 1914 baseball field at Eden Springs Park, and will continue to use the field for the foreseeable future.