Account of the Present State of the Churches in New England, Appendix
APPENDIX.
WHOEVER impartially conſults the Antiquities of New-England, will find that many of theſe Churches in their infant State, were infeſted with Antinomian, Enthuſiaſtick and many other Errors, which gave them and the People of GOD here much trouble: As a direct and neceſſary Effect of ſuch Errors, nothing leſs can be expected but Factions and Parties, evil Surmiſings and open Reflections, on ſuch eſpecially as adhere to the Truth, and labour to ſtem the Torrent of Corruption flowing in upon them: Thus it was in that Day, and thus it is with us in this Day of our Zion's Trouble, as ſorrowful Experience teaches us.
The faithful Miniſters of CHRIST were then loaded with Obloquy and open Contempt, termed, No better than legal Preachers, Baal's Prieſts, Popiſh Factors, Scribes, Phariſees, and oppoſers of CHRIST himſelf — Such a Church-Officer is an ignorant Man, and knows not CHRIST: Such an one is under a Covenant of Works: Such a Paſtor is a proud Man, and would make a good Perſecutor: Such a Teacher is groſly Popiſh.—That they did not preach the Covenant of free Grace, and that they themſelves had not the Seal of the Spirit, &c
And in theſe Times (as the ſame Author obſerves) You might ſee many of the Opinioniſts riſing up and contemptuouſly turning their Backs upon the faithful Paſtor of that Church, and going forth from the Aſſembly when he began to Pray or Preach.—
Then alſo, You might have ſeen open Contempt caſt upon the Face of the whole General-Court in ſubtle Words, to this very Effect, that the Magiſtrates were Ahab's, Amaziab's, Scribes and Phariſees, Enemies to CHRIST, led by Satan, that old Enemy of free Grace; and that it were better that a Mill-ſtone were hung about their Necks, and they were drowned in the Sea, than they ſhould cenſure one of their Judgement.—
The worthy Author proceeds to ſay, By a little taſte of a few Paſſages (inſtead of Multitudes) here preſented, you may ſee what a Height they were grown to in a ſhort Time; and what a Spirit of Pride, Inſolency, Contempt of Authority, Diviſion, Sedition, they were acted by. It was a wonder of Mercy that they had not ſet our Common wealth and Churches on fire, and conſumed us all therein.—
Theſe are a few Hints taken from the Rev. Dr. Chauncy's Preface to his Book, entitled, — Seaſonable Thoughts on the State of Religion in NEW-ENGLAND. — A Performance aptly calculated to obviate the Objections of the preſent Day, raiſed in our Churches againſt Miniſters and others, by Perſons of the like cenſorious corrupt Diſpoſitions, with thoſe refer'd to above. Would to GOD, there were more found among us of the like Zeal and Concern for theſe Churches of our Lord JESUS CHRIST, with the renowned Patriots of the firſt Times, who have endeared their Memory to after-Poſterities, by bearing down thoſe Errors than then did ſo ſadly aſſault them, like theſe which we now feel the miſerable Effects of.
It may alſo ſerve for our Caution to take a ſhort View of ſome later Occurences of the like kind, which fall within the Compaſs of the Memories of many of us, as we find them tranſmitted from a Number of our venerable Fathers (two of whom are yet ſurviving*The venerable Mr. Nehemiah Walter and Dr. Colman.) bearing the Title of A faithful Advice from ſeveral Miniſters of the Goſpel, in and near Boſton, unto the Churches of New England; Relating to the Dangers that may ariſe from Impoſtors, pretending to be Miniſters.
The manifeſt Reaſons leading to the Publication of this faithful Advice was partly from a Number of illiterate and unqualified Perſons in Succeſſion, who appeared in their Day, to ſet up for Preachers; who were of the like make with the numerous Exhorters of theſe Times, and partly from the over-fondneſs of the People (eſpecially the weaker ſort) to hear them, which is alſo remarkably exemplified among us in this our Day—As a Proof whereof we have the Teſtimony of the Rev. Dr. Cotton Mather, in his Hiſtory of ſome Impoſters, — annexed to the above Advice, and written to maintain it, as he there tells us.
The Doctor gives a Relation in that ſhort Hiſtory of ſeveral of theſe Impoſters appearing on the Stage; and alſo the Manner of their Exit, within the Compaſs of Time, between 1624 and 1699. I ſhall for brevity ſake take Notice here only of one Samuel May, (who appeared the laſt mentioned in that Account) as the moſt remarkable in the Influence he had on many of the People in Boſton. Of this Samuel May the Dr. writes thus,— Faſcination is a Thing whereof Mankind has more Experience than Comprehenſion; and Facination is never more notoriouſly ſenſible, than in Men's running after Falſe Teachers of Religion. — One cannot eaſily aſcribe unto a truer Cauſe than a ſatanick Energy, the ſtrange Biaſs upon the Minds of a Multitude, forcibly, and furiouſly; ſometimes carrying them into Follies, from whence the plaineſt Reaſon in the World will not reclaim them: What but ſuch an Energy could be upon the Minds of many People in Boſton, after the arrival of one that went by Name of Samuel May, about the Beginning of July, 1699? The wonderful Succeſs of Mahomet upon a World where Chriſtianity was to another Degree loſt, than it is yet in Boſton, was no longer a wonder to us, when we ſaw the Succeſs of May, in a Place of ſo Chriſtian a Character as Boſton.—It was all over pure Enchantment. — So ſilly and ſhallow a Perſon he was, that it was impoſſible for any but ſuch, to be many Minutes in his Company without being ſenſible of it. The firſt Thing that made ſome to ſuſpect him was, his uſing to lift up his Eyes and Hands, with Strains of Devotion, uſed by none others in the Aſſembly. He was able to imitate a plauſible Utterance and Action, and ſeem'd ſo zealouſly ſet upon inviting Men to CHRIST, that after Sermon was over he would make another Speech to put them in Mind on't. Abundance of the People became ſo fiercely ſet for him, that they pour'd out a Thouſand Expreſſions of Rage, upon the Faithful Paſtors of the Town.
He proceeds to ſay—
The Diſciples of this Money-Catcher, became ſo exceeding fierce many of them, that ſome ſober Men, became afraid of paſſing by that Way, where one muſt encounter them; tho' he were detected in ſeveral Crimes, — yet his Followers would go on, making Ridiculous Apologies for him, and malicious Invectives againſt any that would not believe him an Eminent Saint. Yea, they began to throw Libels into the Houſes of the Miniſters, the moſt Inſolent that ever I ſaw.
He proceeds to ſhew the Reflections the Miniſters made on the Carriage of the People, that were May's Admirers, which was to this purpoſe, — That however long and indefatigably, they had endeavour'd to ſerve them, &c. yet if any Wolf in Sheeps Cloathing do come with a few good Words among them; the ſimple Souls of many, will not only follow the Wolf, but on his Account bark at the Shepherds.— Applicable to what we now ſee and feel tragically acted among us.
The Invaſions theſe Impoſtors made on the Churches, as has been noted, moved our Fathers (above hinted at) to offer their Opinions on theſe Things, apprehenſive of Danger in Time to come, and have left this their Faithful Advice as a laſting Teſtimony and Caution to theſe Churches for the future. A few Paragraphs whereof, I ſhall Tranſcribe, with their Names, for the Benefit of the Publick.—
They ſay thus,—
It is not without ſome Concern on our Minds, that in the late Writings of our Presbyterian Brethren in England, we find awful Complaints about bold Intruders into the Work of the Miniſtry, &c. — And then they go on, and expreſs their Satisfaction in the Care that had been taken by their Brethren at Home, to prevent thoſe Confuſions. Pag. 3. by a Vote of this Importance, That they would employ none to Preach in any of their Pulpits, but ſuch as either arrived unto them with credible Teſtimonials, or ſubmitted themſelves unto a ſolemn Trial of their Qualifications for the evangelical Miniſtry. P. 4. And in Pag. 5. they ſay, In Conformity to this Watchfulneſs of our united Brethren, we cannot but in the moſt Publick Manner, call upon our Churches, that they beware of all undue Precipitancy, in their admitting unquallified Perſons, to be received and employed, in the Character of Preachers unto them.—See, Page 6. — We do alſo ſolemnly adviſe all our People to beware of running after new Preachers of whoſe Endowments and Principles they have not had a reaſonable Atteſtation, leſt they unawares run themſelves into ſhameful and woful Reflections. — And in Page 8, they ſay, We are not unſenſible, that one Thing which has much expoſed ſome injudicious People among us is, an Opinion that illiterate Men may be ſerviceable and admirable Preachers. Now inaſmuch as the Jeſuits have given this among their Inſtructions to their Emiſſaries to teach, that Learning is needleſs in a Miniſter; and if they underſtand the Goſpel, it is ſufficient. We are ſorry that any of our People ſhould be ſo beſotted not to ſay ſo be-jeſuited. When the Knowledge of the Tongues and Arts revived, Religion had a Revival with it: And tho' ſome unlearned Men have been uſeful to the Intereſts of Religion; yet no Man ever decried Learning but what was an Enemy to Religion, whether he knew it or no.—And then to conclude, they ſay Page 9, 10.
Upon the whole, as Luther obſerved, That GOD puniſhed the primitive Churches with falſe Teachers, for their ſtarving and ſlighting of their faithful Miniſters; thus we fear the Churches of New-England may ſuffer Miſchiefs in Time to come from falſe Teachers: And we ſee cauſe to admire the Compaſſion of Heaven unto this Land, that ſuch dangerous Things have all this Time done ſo little Damage unto any of our Churches. But as the Church of Epheſus, having been warned by the Apoſtles, That grievous Wolves would enter in among them, was afterward commended by our Saviour for ſo taking the Warning, that they tried them who ſaid they were Apoſtles when they were not ſo, and found them Liars: Even ſo we would hope, that after this Day, no untried Perſons will be entertained for Preachers in any of our Colonies.
We lay this Advice before our Churches, purpoſing to do our Part in attending to it.
Increaſe Mather
James Allen
Samuel Willard
Moſes Fiske
Benjamin Woodbridge
Nehemiah Hobart
John Danforth
Cotton Mather
Nehemiah Walter
Jonathan Pierpont
Joſeph Belcher
Benjamin Wadſworth
Benjamin Coſman.
BOSTON, December 28. 1699.
There are alſo in this Province above an Hundred Reverend Miniſters, who have appeared as a Cloud of Witneſſes at this Day in the Cauſe of CHRIST, for theſe Churches, and our Goſpel Conſtitution, who by their ſubſcribed publick Teſtimonies, either as aſſociated Bodies of Paſtors, or by ſingle Letters, ſhewing their Concurrence with the renowned Subſcribers above, in Teſtifying againſt Intruders into the Miniſtry, and all enthuſiaſtick, erroneous Itinerant Preachers, and illiterate irregular Exhorters.
And as a Proof of my concurrent Sentiment and Reſolution with theſe my Reverend Fathers and Brethren, I ſubjoin my Name, who am the weakeſt and moſt unworthy of the whole Body,
Samuel Niles.
Braintree, May 1ſt. 1745. Having obtained Help of GOD, I continue unto this Day:— The Day wherein I enter on the 72d Year of my Age; and in the 46th Year of my publick Labours in the Miniſtry, in which Time (praiſed be GOD) I have not been prevented Preaching publickly, by bodily Indiſpoſition, more than two Sabbaths.
End of the text · Samuel Niles, Account of the Present State of the Churches in New England (1745)