Letter to Mr Clap, Letter

Letter to Mr Clap · Letter

AN Expoſtulatory Letter From the Rev. Mr. Edwards of Northampton, TO THE Rev. Mr. Clap, Rector of Yale College in New-Haven, In Reply to his late printed Letter to him, relating to what he reported concerning the Rev. Mr. WHITEFIELD, at Boſton and Cambridge and elſewhere, as from Mr. Edwards; making the Falſity of that Report yet much more manifeſt.

Job. 34.4.

Let us chuſe to ourſelves Judgment; let us know among ourſelves what is good.

BOSTON: Printed and Sold by Kneeland and Green in Queenſtreet. 1745.

p. 3A Letter, &c.

Rev. Sir,

I Have ſeen the Pamphlet you lately publiſhed, in Form of a Letter to me, relating to the Controverſy that has been between us, about what you have reported that I told you, concerning Mr. Whitefield, viz. that He told me he deſigned to turn the generality of Miniſters in the Country out of their Places, and bring over Miniſters from England, Scotland, and Ireland, and place them in their Room.

And concerning this Letter of yours, which is your pretended Anſwer to what I have publiſhed about that Matter, in Anſwer to your printed Letter to a Friend in Boſton, wherein you aſſerted, that I had in two private Letters to you, in Effect, in very full and ſtrong Terms own'd the whole Matter to you that you had reported; I ſay, concerning this Letter of yours, I would obſerve, that you don't deny the Genuineneſs of the Copies of my Letters that I have publiſh'd; nor do you produce any Atteſtations of what you have reported of me, which you ſay was in a Journey to Boſton, in May 1743: Altho' there were many Perſons in Company with us in that Journey, at the Time you ſpeak of, viz. the Rev. Mr. Breck of Springfield, and the Rev. Mr. Gay of Suffield and his Wife, and Mrs. Clap your own Lady, (who, I am p. 4confident, was not wont to be at ſo great a Diſtance from you as to be out of hearing of Converſation) and your Son in Law that waited on you, and one with me on the ſame Horſe, viz. my eldeſt Daughter, at the very Time when you ſay I told you this remarkable Story, who has liv'd at New-Haven all the Time of this Controverſy between us, and moſt of the Time at Mr. Noyes's Houſe, where you are very converſant, and ſhe was often in your Way; and not only ſo, but ſhe was very converſant at your own Houſe, with your Daughters; and if you had ſeen Cauſe to have enquired of her, would have informed you, that ſhe well remember'd other Converſation that we had in that Journey, particularly the long Diſpute we had about ſome Things you found Fault with in my Book, concerning the late Revival of Religion; but that ſhe remember'd not a Word ſaid about Mr. Whitefield in that Journey. Nor did you in your Letter produce one Perſon that you have found any where, who ever heard me ſay any ſuch Thing as you have reported, or any Thing like it at any Time; tho' I have publickly declared that I was willing all my Acquaintance, and thoſe that I have been moſt converſant with, Miniſters or others, in this Town and elſewhere, ſhould be enquired of; and have openly challeng'd the whole World, beſides you, to declare if they ever heard me report any ſuch Thing. But all the World beſides you are wholly ſilent: Tho' there are many Hundreds to whom it is every Way more likely I ſhould reveal ſuch a Secret, than to you, if I had it to reveal.

Nor is any Body produced in your Letter that ſays he heard you ſpeak of my ſaying this to you, ſoon after the Time you ſay I ſaid it; tho' in your firſt Letter you ſay, you took good Notice of my Words, and laid them up in your Mind, and ſoon related them to others ▪ ſo that by p. 5your own Account, you was under no Reſtraint or Difficulty as to ſpeaking of this grand Secret I revealed to you. But however, it is ſomething remarkable, that you was then in a Journey to Boſton and Cambridge, at that Time when you ſay I told you this, and was in thoſe Parts at the Time of the Election, and Convention of Miniſters; and yet it ſeems you was wholly ſilent about it then, nothing was ſaid or heard about it in Boſton or Cambridge; tho' one would think, if I had indeed declared ſo extraordinary a Thing to you, it would upon every Account have been moſt likely that you ſhould ſpeak of it then, when we muſt ſuppoſe your Mind was moſt affected with it, and your Heart fulleſt of it, having but juſt received it from my Mouth; and then the Country was fuller of Talk about Mr. Whitefield, his Coming, and the remarkable Conſequences of it were more recent and freſh in Memory: Yet not a Word is heard of it in thoſe Parts that Year. But when you go to Boſton, the Year following, even the laſt Summer, more than a Twelvemonth after, then you are prepared to tell the Story, and tell it abundantly, in Cambridge and Boſton, and ſurprize Miniſters and others with the remarkable Report; and thoſe Parts, and the Country in general, are quickly fill'd with it. — The Title-Page of your firſt printed Letter, dated laſt December, ſpeaks of the Report, as what you declared when in Boſton laſt, which was the laſt Summer; tho' the Time when we were going to Boſton together, when you ſay I told you the Story, was the Year before. And it is publick, and apparent, that the Report was new in thoſe Parts then; every one ſpake of it, as well as you yourſelf, as coming from you when you was in Boſton laſt Summer.

And tho' it be true, that I had a Suſpicion of Mr. Whitefield's aiming at People's forſaking unconverted Miniſters; p. 6and ſo it was not wholly impoſſible that I ſhould mention it to you, going to Boſton; and therefore I can't abſolutely deny that, and have hitherto ſtrain'd my Charity towards you to the utmoſt, with Reſpect to that Matter (tho' as I often ſaid before, I had no Remembrance of it) yet the more I think of it, the more improbable it appears to me that I ſhould; my Daughter, that was with me at the particular Time you fix upon, remembers nothing of it; and beſides there is that in particular, that makes it very unlikely that I ſhould ſay any Thing to you at that Time, of ſo much as that Suſpicion, viz. That preſently after Mr. Whitefield went from theſe Parts, being in Converſation with the Rev. Mr. Hopkins of Springfield, even the next Day after we parted with Mr. Whitefield at Windſor, Mr. Hopkins being my Brother-in-Law, and then appearing friendly to Mr. Whitefield, I mention'd that Suſpicion to him (which is the only Time that I know of that I ever mention'd it to any Body, any otherwiſe than on its being reported from him, I might give an Account what I ſaid to him) I gave him ſeveral Reaſons of my Suſpicion: (But that Mr. Whitefield had told me any ſuch Thing, was not among theſe Reaſons.) After this, before our foremention'd Journey to Boſton, I heard that Mr. Hopkins had reported it to others, and that the Report was carried to New-Haven to you and others there, and much taken Notice of by you; which gave me no ſmall Uneaſineſs: I was not a little concerned, that what I had thus ſaid privately to my Brother Hopkins, ſhould be thus carried abroad, and eſpecially that it ſhould be handed to you. Now after this, it is not very likely that I ſhould go, and more fully declare the ſame Thing to you myſelf; and eſpecially that I ſhould tell you much more than that; and that, which if it was true, I cloſely concealed from my p. 7Brother Hopkins. Some of the Miniſters of this County, that have lately ſigned a Teſtimony againſt Mr. Whitefield, had before heard Mr. Hopkins relate what I told him of my Suſpicion, with the Reaſons I gave him; and ſince this Controverſy between you and me, have declared freely that it is a convincing Argument with them, that I never told you, that Mr. Whitefield inform'd me that he had any ſuch Deſign as you mention, becauſe it is to them inconceivable, that I ſhould ſignify my Suſpicion to Mr. Hopkins, and gather up theſe and thoſe Arguments to confirm it, without ſaying any Thing to him, as if Mr. Whitefield had told me, that it was his Deſign, when it was ſo indeed, and tho' I afterwards freely declar'd it to you.

And now I have mention'd this, I would pray you, Sir, ſeriouſly to conſider, whether that Report you had as coming from Mr. Hopkins, of what I told him of my Suſpicion, was not the ſole Foundation, on which you in Length of Time gradually framed in your Imagination the whole Story, which you afterwards reported, as being told immediately by me to you, in our Journey to Boſton.

But you, Sir, have ſaid it, in your firſt printed Letter, and you will ſtand to it ſtill, that I have in Effect own'd the very ſame Thing that you have reported, in a Variety of Terms that are equally full and ſtrong; yea, that you may be ſure not to be wanting to yourſelf, you go further now than before, and ſay that my Terms are fuller and ſtronger than yours; and are abundant in affirming it, that what I have ſaid of MY OPINION of Mr. Whitefield's aiming at People's forſaking unconverted Miniſters, and at converted ones being introduced, is moſt plainly, and manifeſtly, and fully the ſame Thing as ſaying, that Mr. Whitefield TOLD ME that he deſigned to p. 8turn the generality of Miniſters in the Country out of their Places, and bring over Miniſters from England, Scotland and Ireland, and place them in their Room; ſo that for me to own the Former, and deny the Latter, is a moſt plain, flat, amazing ſelf-Contradiction; and repreſent it (p. 7.) as an abſurd Thing to make any Diſtinction between expreſſing what I ſuppoſed of Mr. Whitefield, as my Opinion, and expreſſing it as a declared Deſign of Mr. Whitefield; and cry out, What can you mean by this Diſtinction? If I had only heard this of you from others, I ſhould hardly have believed it: But if I may believe my own Eyes, I have ſeen a Gentleman of your Underſtanding, not in Jeſt or only to make Sport, but gravely and ſeriouſly and in great earneſt, go about to ſhew that theſe two Things are exactly the ſame, and to make it plain, even to a Demonſtration, by rehearſing over Words on both Sides, and elaborately finding out, and cutting off Evaſions, and placing the Words one againſt another in parallel Columns, that the World might ſee the exact Identity; and the aſtoniſhing Contradiction there is in owning one and denying the other.

This cannot be accounted for, any other Way, than that you was driven to great Straits. You had before reported to the World, in Print, that I, in two private Letters that I had written to you, had in Effect own'd the whole Matter that you had ſaid concerning me: But now thoſe entire Letters were publiſhed to the World, wherein the contrary, to the higheſt Degree, appears to be true; that altho' therein I own it had been my Opinion, that Mr. Whitefield would endeavour to promote the forſaking unconverted Miniſters, and the introducing of converted ones, yet ſay expreſly, that I never mentioned this as a declared Deſign of Mr. Whitefield, but only my Opinion; and do in many Ways, over and over, and p. 9in a great Variety of Expreſſions, ſtrenuouſly and ſolemnly deny the whole Fact that you had reported of me. You therefore doubtleſs eaſily ſaw that there was nothing that you could do to juſtify yourſelf, no other Way in the World that you could take to maintain the Credit of your Uprightneſs and Veracity in what you had reported of thoſe private Letters, but only ſtiffly to ſtand to it (however ridiculouſly) that for me to ſay that it was my Opinion that Mr. Whitefield intended what I ſpake of, was to all Intents and Purpoſes telling you, that Mr. Whitefield told me that he intended that which you have reported.

But dear Sir, tho' your Circumſtances are difficult, and your Temptations great, yet let me intreat you once to look back on what you have laid down; and after all your Poſitiveneſs and high Charges, to ſuffer in yourſelf a little Reflection and Exerciſe of Reaſon.

If I had told you that it was my Opinion that Mr. Whitefield intended to do all that which you ſpeak of, would this have been for me to tell you that Mr. Whitefield TOLD ME that he intended it, ſo that you might truly from thence, in Terms, report and affirm that I ſaid the Latter, and ſo that it is a flat contradicting my ſelf for me to deny ſuch a Report? Is it exactly the ſame Thing for a Man to ſay he has ſuch an Opinion of another's Deſigns, as to ſay that that other Perſon told him they were his Deſigns? And is it indeed a ſenſeleſs Thing to make a Diſtinction between theſe two, as you ſignify? (p. 7.) I have been of Opinion that the Governour of Canada intended to ſend an Army to Annapolis this Year, which I may poſſibly have told to others; may they therefore go and report in Terms, without Heſitation, that I told them, that the Governour of Canada told me, that he did intend this? And if I hear p. 10of it afterwards, and deny that I told 'em ſo, withal declaring what I did ſay, making the Diſtinction, am I therefore guilty of the plaineſt and moſt aſtoniſhing ſelf-Contradiction, even in the very Relation I give myſelf, and of the greateſt Abſurdity in making the Diſtinction?

Suppoſing me to be of Opinion that Rector Clap has had a Deſign to do his utmoſt to ruin my Reputation, by artfully miſleading the Minds of his unwary curſory Readers, into a Belief that I have evidently perjured my ſelf, by flatly contradicting myſelf upon Oath, when he himſelf knew in his Heart that there was no real Contradiction at all; I ſay, ſuppoſing this to be my Opinion, I can declare it to be my Opinion with Truth: But can I therefore truly declare to others, that Mr. Clap told me that this very Thing was his Deſign? And if I ſhould declare ſo, would not you reſent it, as an injurious Falſhood and Slander? And if I ſhould excuſe my ſelf, and ſay, No, I had that Opinion of you, and that was the ſame Thing as for me to hear you ſay ſo; would you then think there was no Diſtinction, and that it was a ſenſeleſs Thing to pretend any?

And then beſides, I not only don't ſay in my Letters, that Mr. Whitefield told me that he intended to do thoſe Things that you reported, but am far from ſaying ſo much as that it was my Opinion that he intended thoſe Things. My ſaying, it was my Opinion that Mr. Whitefield did aim at People's forſaking unconverted Miniſters, and at the introducing of converted ones, is ſurely not the ſame Thing as to ſay, it was my Opinion that Mr. Whitefield intended to turn the bigger Part of the Miniſters of the Country out of their Places, and bring over Miniſters from England, Scotland, and Ireland, and place them in their Room. It is my Opinion of many Perſons in the World, that I know of, that they are in the Opinion and Scheme p. 11that Popiſh Miniſters ought not to preach, and that they would do their Endeavour, what in them lies, to have it otherwiſe, that Proteſtant Miniſters ſhould be introduced. But is this the ſame Thing as to ſay, that 'tis my Opinion that they intend to turn out all the Popiſh Miniſters in the World, and introduce Proteſtant Miniſters into their Places, mentioning the particular Countries whence they intend to bring them? My ſaying that Mr. Whitefield told me, he intended to bring over a Number of young Scholars into the Jerſeys, to be ordained by the Tennents, don't imply that it was my Opinion that he intended to bring Miniſters from thoſe three Countries you mention, or any Country or Countries, to ſupply any Pulpits in New-England, or any where elſe, made vacant by others being turned out: Nor ever was it my Opinion: Nor did ever a Thought enter into my Heart, of Mr. Whitefield's meaning to bring over one tenth Part enough to ſupply the greater Part of the Pulpits in New-England; but only a few young Men, of the People called Methodiſts, that were Scholars, to get Ordination.

But you ſay (p. 8 and 9.) It is an immaterial Circumſtance what Countries the Miniſters were to be brought from, and that it matters not whether I ſaid one Word of Foreigners ſupplying the Pulpits of other Miniſters, or no: And therefore inſiſt upon it, that for me to ſay, that it was my Opinion, that Mr. Whitefield aim'd at People's forſaking unconverted Miniſters, and introducing converted Miniſters, was for me to ſay, that it was my Opinion Mr. Whitefield intended all that you have repreſented; and not only this, but to ſay that Mr. Whitefield told me ſo; inſomuch that to ſay otherwiſe is a flat Contradiction; and you repreſent that to make any Diſtinction is abſurd.

p. 12Now Sir, if it be really ſo, I would aſk, Why, inſtead of reporting that you heard me ſay that Mr. Whitefield told me that he intended to turn out the bigger Part of the Miniſters in the Country &c. you did not rather declare plainly and poſitively, at Boſton and Cambridge and elſewhere, that Mr. Whitefield told you this Story of his Intentions? For you ſignify over and over in your two printed Letters, that it was your Opinion that he intended to turn out unconverted Miniſters and introduce others, before you talked with me. And therefore by your own Account it is really true, that Mr. Whitefield told you all that you reported as from me (at leaſt every Thing that was material, or worthy of any Notice in it) and you can't deny it with Truth, and without making abſurd Diſtinctions, and ſtrange Quibbling and Equivocation, yea, plain and flat Self-Contradiction. Surely it would have been more to your Purpoſe to have declared this Thing, as one that was an Ear-Witneſs; without having Recourſe to a Report you had heard from another. Yea, and not only ſo, but you might have produced a great many Witneſſes to vouch the Truth of the ſame, and might have ſaid that you heard a great many Perſons ſay that Mr. Whitefield told them ſo too. For you ſpeak of the generality of others that were exactly of the ſame Opinion with you and me in this Point. (Letter 1ſt. p. 6. Letter 2d. p. 5.)

And there is another Difficulty that needs to be clear'd up, with Reſpect to your Conduct in this Matter. — When you firſt appear'd in this Controverſy in Print you repreſent the Matter as tho' you and I were well agreed in our private Letters, and ſaid the ſame Thing; and ſignify as much as that it appear'd ſo to you on the Receipt of my Letters, and that therefore it appear'd unaccountable to you that any Contradiction ſhould be p. 13inſiſted on between you and me (Letter 2d. at the Beginning) And this is almoſt the only Argument you have inſiſted on in both your printed Letters, that your Report is true. And yet in the Controverſy, as it was managed between us in private Letters, a conſiderable Time before you appear'd in publick, this was never ſo much as once mention'd, or pretended. There is no Appearance in your private Letters to me, as tho' you ſuppoſed that you and I agreed in the leaſt Meaſure, not a Liſp of my unaccountably inſiſting on a Contradiction where there was none, no Intimation of any Difficulty you found in my Letters of that Nature. Which is ſomething ſtrange, if it was ſo, that you did really then think that there was ſuch an Agreement, and that I in Effect own'd all, & you was then aſtoniſhed at a Pretence of a Contradiction between you and me where there was none, but ſaw ſo great & manifeſt a Contradiction between the various Parts of my Letters, as you ſpeak of. You repreſent as tho' you wrote to me in a friendly and pacific Manner; but then it was ſtrange you did not mention that which you took ſo much Notice of, that you muſt think would tend above all Things to my Conviction. But there is not a Hint of any ſuch Thing in your private pacific Letters (as you call 'em) either for my Conviction, or your Vindication; but when you come to appear in publick, then you are full of it, for my Reproach, and inſiſt on ſcarce any Thing elſe.

If you deny this that I have ſaid concerning your private Letters, I am willing you ſhould produce them to the World, for your Vindication: And if you han't kept Copies, I promiſe to lend you the Originals, on your Promiſe that you will publiſh them.

Now Sir, I deſire you to take a View of your Conduct in this Affair, in the whole Series of it from the p. 14Beginning. You did publickly and abundantly report that I told you, that Mr. Whitefield told me, that he intended to make that fore-mention'd general Change, and great Revolution in the Country, and accompliſh it in that particular Manner: A Report, in a peculiar Manner tending to render Mr. Whitefield the Object of general Deteſtation and Abhorrence thro' the Country; (and indeed you could have no other End in it) which Report had no Foundation, becauſe Mr. Whitefield never told me any Thing of that Nature, nor did I ever tell you any ſuch Thing: And therefore both of us were greatly injured by it.—If I had really handed this Report to you, yet for you to make ſuch an Uſe of it, ſo to ruin the Reputation of a Miniſter of the Goſpel, and make him the Object of general Odium, would have been directly in the Face of that Rule, 1 Tim. 5.19. Againſt an Elder receive not an Accuſation, but before two or three Witneſſes. When I underſtood that you had thus reported, I wrote to you in a friendly Manner, expoſtulating with you about it, declaring to you your Miſtake, and by all Means poſſible endeavouring to convince you of it, mentioning many Things that ſhewed the Unreaſonableneſs of ſuppoſing it to be true. And when ſtill you did not ſeem to be convinced, I wrote to you again more largely, mentioning all the Ways I could deviſe that the Miſtake could poſſibly ariſe, hoping ſome Way or other to lead you to a Senſe of your Miſtake. But you ſtill immoveably perſiſted in it; and not only ſo, but inſtead of retracting, as Juſtice greatly required, and I much inſiſted in my Letters, you on the contrary, againſt the moſt earneſt Remonſtrances, go on to declare it more openly than ever, even in the midſt of our private Correſpondence about it, and in a poſitive and peremptory Manner aſſert it and publiſh it to the World from the Preſs; p. 15and not only ſo, but tell the World that I had in Effect own'd the whole Matter to you in thoſe very private Letters, in which I had been repeatedly & moſt ſolemnly denying it, and reaſoning and expoſtulating with you for ſo greatly injuring Mr. Whitefield and me in the Report, and inſiſting that you ſhould retract it; and which Letters were written for that very End, and of which it was the whole Drift, as you was very ſenſible, as appears by your Anſwers written to me, never once pretending to me in thoſe Letters, that I own'd it, or agreed with you (as you tell the World) or ſaid any Thing looking that Way, but all along going wholly upon the Suppoſition that I denied it only. When it came to this, I had no other Way left for me to take, tho' it was very contrary to my Inclination, but to go into the Preſs too, and from thence declare the Matter as it was, and publiſh thoſe very Letters of mine, and endeavour to convince the World that you had greatly abuſed Mr. Whitefield and me. Upon this you go on ſtill, and reſolutely perſiſt in what you ſaid before; and becauſe I ſay that I once was of Opinion that Mr. Whitefield endeavour'd to promote People's forſaking unconverted Miniſters, and the introducing of others, but deny that ever he told me what you have reported, or that he ever hinted to me any Thing like it, You charge me before the World with the moſt plain, flat, amazing, aſtoniſhing, unaccountable Self-Contradiction, and ſtrange and ſolemn Quibbling and Equivocating to amuſe and deceive the World; and intimate that I have been guilty of Jeſuitical Management in a ſolemn Oath (p. 6.) And then when you have done all this, you finiſh with complaining that I have treated you with very unhandſome and unchriſtian Reflections; yet ſay you won't render Evil for Evil, or Railing for Railing; p. 16but that you are ſo far from it, that you will forgive me without my aſking it.

Here I forbear to add any Reflections; I truſt that your own Conſcience will be full of thoſe that are proper when you have read this: And if you don't ſuitably reflect juſt now, yet I hope the Time will come when you will be ſedate, and will with Solemnity of Spirit think of theſe Things, and be enabled to look on your own Conduct with real Seriouſneſs, as in the Sight of God. That you may obtain this Mercy is the Deſire of,

Rev. Sir, your Brother and Servant, Jonathan Edwards. Northampton, May 20. 1745.

End of the text · Jonathan Edwards, Letter to Mr Clap (1745)