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Gc 974.402 Sa32w
Gc 974.402 Sa32w 1459226
M. L.
GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01095 5703
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015
https://archive.org/details/memorialofoldnew1854worc
NEW TABERNACLE, SALEM, MASS.
A
C
MEMORIAL
OF THE
OLD AND NEW
TABERNACLE
SALEM, MASS.
1854-5.
BY SAMUEL M. WORCESTER, D. D.,
Pastor of the Tabernacle Church.
BOSTON :
CROCKER AND BREWSTER.
SALEM : H. WHIPPLE AND SON.
1855.
10/26/63 Salem Public Library
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Salem, Dec. 8, 1854.
REV. S. M. WORCESTER, D. D.,-
DEAR SIR .- I have the pleasure of communicating to you the following vote of the Proprietors of the Tabernacle, passed at a meeting held on Monday evening last, viz :
"Voted unanimously, That the Proprietors ask of the Pastor copies for publication, of the very appropriate and excellent Discourse delivered by him at the dedication of the new Tabernacle, on Friday the 1st instant; and of the last Ser- mon delivered in the old house, on Sabbath afternoon, March 5th. And if he complies with their request, that they be published under the direction of the Standing Com- mittee."
GEORGE D. PHIPPEN, Clerk of the Proprietors.
1459226
Salem, March 21, 1855.
GEORGE D. PHIPPEN, EsQ.,-
DEAR SIR,-After receiving your note of the 8th of De- cember last, I hoped to be able, in a few weeks, to make a copy of the Discourses, which the Proprietors of the Taber- nacle have done me the honor to request for publication. But unavoidable avocations, with very unexpected absences from home, have prevented an earlier attention to the sub- ject. With a grateful sense of the kind regards of the Pro- prietors, I am now ready to place the manuscripts at their service.
It affords me much pleasure to be assured of their entire concurrence in the proposal, to add such historical state- ments and illustrations, as will render it proper to entitle the work a " Memorial of the Old and the New Taber- nacle."
With most sincere respect and esteem,
SAMUEL M. WORCESTER.
CONTENTS.
Page.
Preliminary Notices,
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The Farewell to the Old Tabernacle, .
.
13
Celebration of the Laying of the Corner-Stone of the
New Tabernacle,
41
Discourse at the Dedication of the New Tabernacle,
45
Supplementary Notices,
77
Appendix,
81
·
PRELIMINARY NOTICES.
The Records of the Tabernacle Church begin in 1743, as a continuation of those of the First Church, which was formed, 6th of Aug. 1629. They are so written, until May, 1762, when the long controversy, which had occasioned a violent division or disruption of the Church, in 1735, was honorably terminated. (See "Discourse at the First Centen- nial Anniversary of the Tabernacle Church, April 26, 1835.") From April 18, 1735, to Feb. 20, 1743-4, the Records were kept by the pastor, Rev. John Fisk. They were withheld by him, and are supposed to have been destroyed, or to be lost.
The Book of Records of the First Church, previous to 1660, is also lost, or was destroyed. Some portions were copied and are still preserved. It is not known when the Records actually began. As in respect to the affairs of the city, it is probable, that the early transactions of the First Church were not properly recorded. In the circumstances, this is not unaccountable, however much to be regretted.
We have, for instance, no accredited and no professed copy of the original "confession of faith," which, with a " covenant in Scripture language," was prepared by Rev. Francis Higginson. (See Morton's "New England's Memo- rial," Mather's " Magnalia," Hubbard's "History of New England," etc.) According to Hubbard, there were copies " retained by some " as late as 1680 or 1681. A printed copy of the confession of faith and covenant, "the same for sub- stance," is in the Boston Athenæum. (B. 76. Sermons.) It is entitled "Direction for a Public Profession in the Church Assembly, after giving examination by the elders, which direction is taken out of the Scripture, and points unto that faith and covenant in the Scripture ; being the
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same for substance, which was proposed to and agreed upon by the Church of Salem, at their beginning, the 6th of 6th month, 1629." This was prepared by Rev. John Higginson, of the First Church, and was ready for the members, in Oct. 1665. (See Records, First Church. A copy may be seen in Morton's " Memorial," etc, by the Congregational Board of Publication, 1855. pp. 459-64. Also, with the covenants of 1636 and 1680, in the Salem Gazette, March 31, etc. 1854.)
The original form of the covenant of 1629, very nearly, if not exactly, is inserted in the preamble of the Covenant of 1636. It is this : "We covenant with the Lord and one with another, and do bind ourselves in the presence of God, to walk together in all his ways, according as he is pleased to reveal himself unto us in his blessed word of truth." With the same brevity and beauty of expression, the First Church in Charlestown, which was the foundation of the First Church in Boston, entered into " covenant with the Lord and one with another." (See Morton's Mem .; Cong. Board Pub. p. 464.)
From the imperfect or incomplete mode of transcription upon a leaf, the oldest of the known manuscripts or papers of the First Church, it would seem most likely, that the Covenant of 1636 has been mistaken for that of 1629, and thus has been undesignedly but unfortunately misrepresent- ed, in most of the publications respecting the Church. . That it is not the Covenant of 1629, appears from an explicit statement in a copy of the Covenants of 1636 and 1680, as issued by the First Church, in 1680, and still preserved in a little book, prefixed to the Records of the Tabernacle Church. There is other proof also, abundant and unanswerable.
The present Covenant of the Tabernacle Church is very nearly the same as, with the " Articles " of discipline and government, was adopted in 1786. It is very similar to that given by Cotton Mather, (" Ratio Disciplinæ," etc. 1726,) as an example of the form of Covenant in the N. E. Churches.
" Apprehending ourselves called of God into a gospel church state, yet deeply sensible how unworthy we are of so high a privilege, we cannot but admire that rich and free
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grace which triumphs over so great unworthiness. But with humble reliance on the aids of that grace, which is promised to all, who, with a true sense of their guilt and ruin, return to God for pardon and help, we thankfully lay hold on his covenant. Avouching, this day, the LORD JEHOVAH, FA- THER, SON, and HOLY GHOST, to be our God, our Father, our Saviour, and our Leader, we humbly give up ourselves to him, and receive him as our portion forever. We give up ourselves and our all to the blessed Jesus, whom, in his un- derived and original nature, we acknowledge as Almighty God, and, in the covenant of Grace, engage to adhere to him, as Head over all things to his church and people, rely- ing upon him as our Prophet, Priest, and King, to bring us to eternal blessedness. We acknowledge our everlasting and indispensable obligations to glorify our God, in all the duties of a holy, sober and religious life. Depending, there- fore, on his powerful grace, we engage to walk together, particularly in a church state, in the faith and order of the gospel, as far as we shall have the same revealed to us by the Word and Spirit of God ; conscientiously attending the worship of God in all its parts, in secret, in the family, and in public ; upon the sacraments of the New Testament- baptism and the Lord's supper; upon the discipline of his kingdom ; and upon all his holy institutions. Declaring our firm belief of the Christian religion, as revealed in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, and of such a view of it, substantially, as the Westminster Catechism ex- hibits, we heartily resolve to conform ourselves to it, as long as we shall live in the world. Affectionately giving up our- selves to one another in the Lord, we solemnly covenant faithfully to watch over each other, to seek the promotion of each other's spiritual good, to submit ourselves to the disci- pline and government of Christ in his Church, and watch- fully to avoid all sinful stumbling blocks and contentions, as become a people, whom the Lord hath bound up together in the same bundle of life. At the same time, we also dedi- cate our offspring with us to the Lord, purposing with his
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help faithfully to perform our duty to them in the methods of a religious education, that the Lord may be their God .- All this we do, relying on the blood of the everlasting cove- nant for the pardon of our many transgressions, and praying that the glorious Lord, who is the great Shepherd, would prepare and strengthen us in every good work to do his will, working in us that which is well pleasing in his sight ; to whom be glory, forever and ever. Amen."
After surrendering the name and style of the First Church, in 1762, the Church took the name of "the Church of which the Rev. Mr. Dudley Leavitt was late Pastor." In May, 1763, it was " voted, that, this Church be called the Third Church of Christ in Salem, from this time forward." When the name of the house of worship, recently taken down, was recog- nized as the name of the Church, is not known.
From Dr. Whitaker's settlement in 1769, to 1784, the gov- ernment of the Church was Presbyterian; and hence the Church itself was sometimes so called. By a singular coin- cidence, the Branch Church, more recently called Howard Street,-formed by a secession from the Tabernacle, in 1803, -- was Presbyterian, from 1815 to 1828. (See Appendix B.)
Pastors of the Tabernacle Church.
1. Rev. John Fisk, 1735. Relation dissolved 1744. There appears to be no good authority to say, as has been published, that he was "installed in 1736." The statement, like some others in the ecclesiastical documents and annals of Salem, may have been first made, in the exercise of a kind of license, which is hardly excusable in what assumes to be true history. Mr. Fisk could not have needed any " installation." (See Appendix A.)
2. Rev. Dudley Leavitt, ordained Oct. 23, 1745. Died, Lord's day evening, Feb. 7, 1762.
3. Rev. John Huntington, ordained Sept. 28, 1763. Died, May 30, 1766.
4. Rev. Nathaniel Whitaker, D. D., installed, July 28, 1769. Relation dissolved, Feb. 26, 1784.
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5. Rev. Joshua Spaulding, ordained, Oct. 26, 1785. Dis- missed, April 23, 1802.
6. Rev. Samuel Worcester, D. D., installed, April 20, 1803. Died, June 7, 1821.
7. Rev. Elias Cornelius, installed, July 21, 1819. Dis- missed, Sept. 29, 1826.
8. Rev. John P. Cleaveland, D. D., ordained, Feb. 14, 1827. Dismissed, April 23, 1834.
9. Rev. Samuel M. Worcester, D. D., installed, Dec. 3, 1834.
In 1846, when the old Tabernacle was approaching its 70th year, the inquiry began to be made, will it not be an injury to the Church and Society, if their house of worship shall much longer be left, without being re-modelled in the interior, or essentially re-built ? Some were opposed to any large outlay, except for a new house ; and for this the time seemed not to have come. With slight repairs and a small measure of garnishing, the old house remained until the an- nual meeting of the Proprietors, April 30, 1853. May 2d, " A Committee was appointed to consider and report on the expediency of making substantial repairs on the old house, or of re-modelling the same, or of erecting a new house ; and to ascertain as far as practicable the views and wishes of the proprietors in the premises." June 6th, Hon. Mr. Huntington, from the Committee, reported that it "was ex- pedient to build a new house, provided there should be found to exist a general concurrence in such a measure on the part of the proprietors, and provided also means could be obtained to such an extent, as to render it reasonably cer- tain, that the enterprise would not involve the Society in any burdensome debt."
No one of the Committee proposed a less sum, than $15,000, as the cost of a new house. It was thought, that $13,000 ought to be pledged, but as yet $7,000 only had been subscribed. While the final action of the proprietors was deferred, and further progress very doubtful, the pastor preached a discourse,-Sabbath, A. M., June 12th,-from the
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words spoken by the prophets Haggai, (i : 7, 8,) and Zecha- riah, (iv : 6) : " Thus saith the Lord of hosts ; consider your ways. Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house ; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the Lord."-" Not by might, nor by power," etc.
In a few days, the subscription for a new house reached the desired amount; and at meetings, July 5th, and 9th, measures were adopted accordingly. Messrs. Huntington, Kinsman, Russell, T. S. Jewett, and P. Hale were appointed a Committee, with full powers to act in the premises.
Contracts for the new house were made, to be fulfilled in 1854. The enterprise went forward with great harmony. If the actual state of the old house could have been seen, as it was revealed in the process of demolition, it is probable that there would not have been a dissenting voice.
The square and high pews were so well adapted to Sab- bath-schools, that they were much the more patiently en- dured. And so many were the associations of the " venera- ble " with the whole structure,-that not a few were at times ready for expressions, as if it were a kind of sacrilege to " break " it " down at once with axes and hammers." And with sensations to be remembered, rather than described, the advertisement was read, offering the Tabernacle for sale !
The site was wanted for the new house. And the specta- cle of the old building, as a currier's shop, or a carpet factory, like what may be seen not far distant, could not possibly have been tolerated. The tragic and the comic, however, often strangely meet. A jeu d'esprit ended with,
Nota bene. I will add, we dont intend to sell
The sexton, nor the minister, the organ, nor the bell.
In the Salem Observer and the Register, were very cred- itable effusions, like the following in the Gazette, from a young lady who has since united with the Church.
Ah ! hallowed memories entwine Around this sacred fane,
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Which, though removed from outward gaze, Will in the HEART remain ; For oft, in fancy's fairy clime This temple loved we'll rear, And view again these aged walls, Sacred to praise and prayer.
Long years have pass'd since first it stood A " temple of our God,"- And many who now sleep in dust, These sacred aisles have trod ; But some among them may, perchance, From yon bright home above, Watch o'er this dedicated spot With fond and tender love.
For oft, the "shepherd of our flock," Hath led, with watchful care, Beside the waters, calm and still, Through pastures green and fair ; And many have, beneath this dome, Approached the mercy-seat, And fallen humble supplicants, At the Redeemer's feet.
Yes! sacred memories entwine These aisles and pews, among,- And scenes, at which, with gladsome joy, Bright angel choirs have sung ; A little band of " faithful ones " Were consecrated here, To heathen lands, o'er lonely seas, A Saviour's love to bear.
And very dear to ME thou art, How can I say farewell ;- For while I gaze upon thee now, As by some magic spell Comes up the hour when first these aisles In childish awe I trod,
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And listened to the voice of prayer, And to the word of God.
But go ! thy work is NOBLY done,- Thy mission here is o'er,-
And registered in God's own book, Thou 'It be forevermore ; Yet, as thine altar and thy walls Recede into the past, Deep in our HEARTS thou 'It be, enshrined, While memory shall last.
The 6th of Feb. 1854, was the 42d anniversary of the ordi- nation of the first American missionaries to the heathen of other continents. (See Life of Dr. Worcester, Il. pp. 128-135, and Amer. Miss. Memorial.) The occasion was commemo- rated in the evening, and a discourse preached by the Pas- tor, from 1 Tim. ii : 5, 6. This was the last evening meet- ing in the old Tabernacle !
Sabbath, A. M., March 5th, the discourse was designed to exhibit the historic foundation and the prospective security of the Church of God, in the perfections, providence, and promises of the Divine Redeemer. The text was Heb. iii : 4. The conclusion was : the Church is upheld by the power, that upholds the universe. God is in the midst of her. She shall never be moved .- Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities ; thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down ; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken. (Isa. xxxiii : 20.)
The Scriptures read, A. M. were Gen. i : 1-5. John i : 1-5. Heb. i: 1-8. Hymns sung, B. I. 2. Sel. 29. Scriptures, P. M., Heb. viii : 1-5, 10-13. Rev. i : 4-6. xxii : 16, 17. Hymns, Sel 26. B. II. 13.
The Communion was also celebrated, in the forenoon, and the 406th Select Hymn was sung. Previous to this very af- fecting service, three young persons were received to the church, by a profession of their faith in the Lord Jesus.
OLD TABERNACLE, SALEM, MASS.
THE FAREWELL TO THE OLD TABERNACLE ;- OR THE DISCOURSE DELIVERED, SABBATH AFTER- NOON, MARCH 5, 1854.
Now that which decayeth and waxeth old, is ready to vanish away .- Heb. viii : 13.
A few days only before our Divine Redeemer accomplished his decease at Jerusalem, one of his disciples called his particular attention to the buildings of the temple. " Master, see what man- ner of stones, and what buildings !" The magni- tude of the stones in the foundation, and the gen- eral aspect of strength and beauty, throughout the " many mansions" of the grand and imposing structure, celebrated so far away among the hea- then, as the temple of Jehovah,-evidently inspired the Galilean fishermen with no common emotions of admiration, if not of national pride and hope. Not so with their Master, who knew both the past and the future of all things. In full view before him, he saw the destruction of the city and the temple, which were then so hallowed and so dear to the remnant of the chosen seed of Abraham. " Seest thou these great buildings ? there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down !"
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This terrible overthrow was foretold to be by hands of violence and blood, and not by the cor- roding and dilapidating influences of the elements. Yet the natural effects of time were doubtless al- ready visible. Still more visible, it may be sup- posed from the condition of the Hebrews, were the signs of decay, when, thirty years later, the apostle was preparing for them in particular, his mighty demonstration of the infinite preëminence of Jesus Christ, above all angels as well as all men; and the immeasurable superiority of his personal revelation in the glorious Gospel, over all which had before been spoken and witnessed by patriarchs or prophets.
About ten years, probably, after Paul wrote the words of our text this morning,-" Every house is builded by some man ; but he that built all things is God,"-the temple of the Hebrews was in ruins. And if at the time of writing his Epistle, he could not, with any marked significance, have said of the temple itself, that it was "decaying and wax- ing old," he certainly could have thus spoken of the reverential and gorgeous ritual of the law which came by Moses. Its purpose was well nigh fulfilled, and, in the sovereign pleasure of the Founder of both the Old and the New Covenant, it was "ready to vanish away." And according to the argument of Paul, the evidences of the ap- proaching dissolution of the Hebrew polity, were the same as could be seen in an old and venerable edifice, which, however much it had been loved
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and honored, must reasonably give place to a new structure, which would now be better adapted to its own original design.
To the whole Mosaic economy, therefore, in its existing form and substance, might be applied a practical axiom, or proverbial truth, which none would be inclined to dispute. As God had spoken of "a new covenant," which he intended to make, the apostle argued, that, as a matter of course, the time would be, if it was not already, when, what- ever " the new " was to supersede must relatively be " old." And as every one would admit, " that which decayeth and waxeth old, is ready to vanish away."
We may take the words of the text, as a gen- eral truth in respect to all perishable things. The dwellings in which parents and their children's children have lived, with the trees also which have borne fruit, season after season, all decay, wax old, and are ready to disappear ;- like the aged and gray-headed men, and the garments which they may have long cherished for their former, far more than their present value. The simple fact of growing old is a sign and a proof, that they will soon be gone. Such is the law of decay, univer- sally.
Why then should we not all, in our time and place, yield obedience to this law ? Would you, if you could, always wear the old garment, be- cause it is older and older ? Would you cherish the old tree, if it be rotten at the trunk, and bears
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less and less fruit, or none ; and when you have no room for another, unless the axe shall first do its office ? And would you keep the old paternal mansion itself, with all its inconveniences and discomforts, because your sires dwelt there before you ?- If such had been the course of all who have preceded us on the earth, what improvements would ever have been made, like those which we now so rejoice to see in the wonderful arts of civilized and christianized society ? What depth of the Dark Ages would have been deep enough for a nineteenth century ? No century like ours could ever have been known among men.
In the particular case to which Paul applied the truth of our text, he would exhort his brethren not to mourn but rejoice. The new covenant was far better for them than the old. And as it was the will of Him, who is never himself changed by the changes of earth and time, they should be well content to leave the old ; and with grateful hope accommodate themselves to the opening scenes and the illuminated promises of their Maker's new dispensation of covenant love.
He thus distinctly reminds them of the law of re-production, by which the law of decay becomes so joyous, instead of being always and unmiti- gably grievous. And who needs to be informed, that, in the beneficent constitution of our terrestrial state of things, the law of re-production is not only co-extensive with the law of decay, but ad- mits also of such manifold and marvellous devel-
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opment and improvement in its appropriate sub- jects, that the new may be incomparably superior to the old ?
Throughout all nature, you may see the union and communion of these laws of decay and re -. production. And it will not be doubted, that the law of re-production has far more than supplied the losses which are incident to the law of decay. Thus will it continue to be, it is our privilege to assure ourselves, so long as the spring shall follow after winter, and harvest after seed-time ; and so long also as the mournful hearse shall leave be- hind it the groups of infancy and childhood, that can smile and gambol at the very gates of the cemetery, or even on the fresh graves of the dear departed !
Yielding obedience, therefore, to the universal law of decay, we, my beloved friends, have assem- bled, to take our leave of this sanctuary of holy convocation,-this house of our God, which here has been standing so firmly, these last seventy- seven years. It is too large for us to keep as a precious relic, or we would part with it only with our life.
We do as others have done, and well done be- fore us. That beautiful tabernacle in the wilder- ness of Sinai,-planned by Him who spread out the heavens as a tent to dwell in,-waxed old, and could no longer give "rest to the ark of the Lord." Another took its place, long before the son of David built the Lord an house, which all
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the earth could not rival in the riches and renown of its consummate perfection of architecture. By the silent voice of the law of decay, the old had been declared to have ended its mission ; and with the salutations of " all hail," the law of reproduc- tion heralded the new.
It is, then, let me now remind you, an occasion of gratitude and gratulation, that we leave this venerable old sanctuary, not only in obedience to the law of decay, but also the law of re-produc- tion. *
We have not been obliged to provide a new sanctuary, because " devouring fire" had burned this to the ground. Such might have been our necessity, as was theirs who laid the foundations and raised these very walls and pillars. On the night of Oct. 6, 1774,-an unsparing conflagration left nothing of the former house,-save the pulpit- cushion, and these two identical time-worn vol- umes of the Holy Word. These, at the peril of life, were rescued from the sacred desk.
That first house of this people had been erected, less than forty years. It was dear to many. The clarion voice of Whitefield had there been heard. And there Leavitt and Huntington, to say nothing of Fisk and Whitaker, had ably and undisguisedly preached the Law and the Gospel, when the trumpet elsewhere too often gave a feeble or an " uncertain sound.":
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