USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > History of the Second Church, or Old North, in Boston : to which is added a History of the New Brick Church > Part 4
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since sprung out of them, constitute in general the ortho- dox churches of the present day ; while those which persisted in the views of Stoddard became, with few exceptions, first Arminian, and then Unitarian." *
Another controversy, closely allied to that just noticed, was agitated at about the same period; in which Mr. Mather was no less interested. It related to the choice of ministers; the question being, whether the church should choose independently of the congregation, and have prece- dence in the matter, or vote only in connection with the lat- ter. Mr. Mather, with his strong attachment to the old order, advocated the claim of the church ; } it being, as he
* Professor Pond; whose biographical sketch of Increase Mather is written with ability, though evidently with a strong sectarian bias. His views of the character of Mather appear to me to be in general just, and to be sustained by competent authorities, though to these Mr. Pond has very rarely referred. He has failed, probably through inadvertence, to make due acknowledgment of his obligations to Cotton Mather's "Remarkables," considering that he has not only relied upon that old book for facts, but has constantly incorporated sentences and paragraphs from it into his work, with no change, or but a trifling one, in the language. He has added, however, valuable historical and other matter, showing research and general infor- mation.
+ It is not to be questioned, that, amongst the earliest churches in New England, the church had control in ecclesiastical matters. A very few ex- ceptions, which have been found in the records of two or three churches after 1672, only prove the rule. The principle was perhaps sometimes ques- tioned; but the primitive usage was next to universal. Indeed, it must have been so from the very constitution of the state; since before 1662 the civil disabilities affixed to non-church-membership were not altogether done away ; and if none but church-members had a right to vote in civil matters, much less in ecclesiastical.
The first notice in the church at Plymouth of church and town joining in giving a call to a minister is on occasion of Mr. Little's settlement, 1699. "None, it seems, in that day pleaded for the society's right of supplying the pulpit, without the church's leading in the affair. And in more ancient
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thought, abundantly sustained both by usage, and by a regard to the best interests of religion itself ; since pro- fessed and approved Christians would be most likely to be guided in their choice by religious considerations, and to consult for the true spiritual welfare of the flock. Our records show that in August, 1697, " a letter of admonition was voted by the Second Church to the church in Charles- town, for betraying the liberties of the churches, in their late putting into the hands of the whole inhabitants the choice of a minister." No better proof than this could be given of the extent to which our pastor carried his zeal upon this subject.
But the day was now at hand when his opinions upon these important questions were to meet with more stre- nuous opposition from high places, and his temper and patience to be put to the severest test. A number of highly influential and respectable men associated for the purpose of founding a new church in Boston, on the very prin- ciples which Mr. Mather so warmly opposed, -the choice of minister without the distinct action of the church, and admission to full communion without a relation of expe-
days, by some hints in the church-records, it may be gathered that the church managed the whole affair both of inviting and calling, there being no mention of the congregation." See valuable Appendix at the close of " A Sermon at the Ordination of Rev. Chandler Robbins, over the First Church in Plymouth, Jan. 30, 1760," by his father, Rev. Philemon Robbins, Pastor of the First Church in Branford, Conn.
In 1672, an instance of the same kind occurred in the First Church in Salem; also at Dedham, in 1685. We discover a gradually progressive liberality of sentiment upon this, as upon other matters, in the churches generally for many years; but I have seen no sufficient proof, that the established order of the original churches was not as Increase Mather regarded it.
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riences. Having built a house of worship in Brattle Square, and called Mr. Benjamin Colman, then in England, to be their minister, - a child of the Second Church, baptized and admitted by Increase Mather, and early distinguished for shining abilities and high virtues, - they published a " manifesto or declaration," just before the dedication of their church, setting forth the purposes and principles of their undertaking. This public statement was rendered necessary by the very general opposition that prevailed among the churches to the enterprise. It called forth severe animadversion and letters of admonition from such ministers as Higginson and Noyes, of Salem, and Increase Mather ; and led to a long controversy, conducted on both sides with an asperity unworthy of Christians, and for which sufficient justification cannot be found in the fashion of the times, or the ardent zeal of the disputants for the interests which they esteemed sacred. But, whatever impropriety of speech and infirmity of temper may have been exhibited, both parties are alike blameworthy. So far as I am capable of judging, there is little to choose between them. There were other causes of animosity than mere differences of opinion upon the ecclesiastical questions at issue. This will be evident to any one who has patience and inclination to search carefully the histo- rical documents that throw light upon this matter. It is not my intention, however, to go into an exposition of the various motives and conflicting interests that were in- volved in this controversy, and gave to it its tone of per- sonality and bitterness. It is painful to be compelled to allude to them at all. I would not do so, but for the sake
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of even-handed justice. I cannot allow the imputation of violence and disgraceful rage in the conduct of this dispute to rest upon Increase Mather alone, or pre-eminently ; whilst sufficient evidence lies before me, that others, no less amenable to censure than himself, have been permitted to escape under cover of the opprobrium cast upon him. If vehemence and asperity are to be palliated in any man in consideration of a consuming zeal for what he conceives to be of vital moment to the cause of religion, few persons could present a stronger claim to such indulgence than Mr. Mather. And if, moreover, mere opposition of opinion or belief, or feelings of personal antipathy, give the historian no right to shade more darkly the character he is painting, the friendly pen that honors those whose views and mea- sures were at variance with Increase Mather's should for- bear to draw the contrast between his temper and motives and theirs so broad as to make his infirmities a foil to their merits or a screen to their faults.
Mr. Mather was offered the Presidency of Harvard Col- lege in 1681; but refused the office, because his church would not consent to part with him. He had always manifested a deep interest in the affairs of that institution, and was already one of the most distinguished of its alumni. For these reasons, as well as on account of his eminent qualifications, he was again solicited by the over- seers, in 1685, to take the superintendence, and act as Pre- sident pro tempore. From this period, he remained at the head of the college for sixteen years; though presiding over it only on condition that he should retain his connec- tion with his church and reside in Boston. He served the
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college well. The records show it; the increase of students during his administration shows it; the united testimony of two historians of Harvard College makes it certain ;* the more so, if from one of them it seems extorted by the pres- sure of obvious facts, and the decisive praise of contempo- rary documents. It is true, indeed, that the general tone of the account of his Presidency to which I refer is calculated to leave a most unfavorable impression; and that the allusions to Mather, the epithets applied, and the motives ascribed to him, are such as would condemn him to the aversion and contempt of every pure and honest mind, if the intelligent reader did not understand how much weight to subtract from these imputations, when offset against the unequivocal and substantial eulogy condensed into a single sentence, so out of tune with what precedes and fol- lows, that one is almost tempted to suspect there is irony in it: - " That Dr. Mather was well qualified for the office of President, and had conducted himself in it faithfully and laboriously, is attested by the history of the college, the lan- guage of the legislature, and the acknowledgment of his cotemporaries." This is a satisfactory verdict as it is. But if it were brightened in the coloring - as truth would war- rant it to be-half as much as the censure surrounding it is deepened beyond the demands of justice, it would give to us such a representation of this eventful Presidency as plain facts substantiate ; concurrent, co-eval testimony, both private and public, justifies; and the impartial verdict of · posterity will sanction. He loved his Alma Mater, as we
* Pierce and Quincy.
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love it, with all his heart. He was devoted to its interests. He gained friends and raised funds for it at home and abroad. He worked for it as laboriously as any man could have done in a similar situation. He gave to it all the time and strength that justice to other obligations would allow, or fidelity to the conditions under which he held his official relation to it could demand. He was especially sedulous in his efforts for the moral and religious improve- ment of the students. He not only publicly admonished them of their duties to God, but by private interviews sought to lead them to a Christian life. His discourses to them were characterized by a prophet's earnestness and a parent's love. His farewell address, which has been pre- served, is a beautiful tribute to the sincerity of his piety, his conscientiousness as a preacher, and the depth and ten- derness of his interest in the spiritual welfare of the young.
His only offence in the Presidency - if offence it be - was, that he set his face strongly against what he thought would do the college vital injury; against changes which he regarded as dangerous, and individuals whose theo -. logical and, it may be, political opinions he viewed with distrust. This, I believe, is the head and front of his offending. He loved the college as " the school of the pro- phets," and wished and prayed that it might preserve its claim to this title and character so dear to him. He fore- saw a growing tendency to departure from " Christ and the church," which filled him with anxious forebodings. He perceived the working of causes which, if not checked, would inevitably wrest the college from the old Calvinistic rule, to which he was conscientiously and rigidly attached,
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and place it under influences which he supposed unfavora- ble to evangelical faith and piety.
And for this he is not to be blamed, but rather honored, if his opinions were conscientious and his convictions sin- cere. At the head of his religious party; nurtured in the ancient faith of the Puritans, and one of its oldest and firmest living defenders; having deeper insight into what was going on than any other man; in the very position to speak and act; full of zeal, and richly furnished by study and reflection ; his whole soul stirred within him, - who can censure him for taking the stand he did, and striving to maintain it with all his might? And if, in one or two instances, he overstepped the bounds of courtesy and mode- ration ; if sometimes his feelings were too excited, and his speech too severe, - may not we, who sometimes need to be excused for the infirmity of our nature, judge him less harshly when some inherited " rash humor" for a time makes him forget himself? - (See APPENDIX C.)
But I must hasten to glance at another field of his large and various usefulness. The name of Increase Mather is as intimately connected with the political as with the ecclesiastical history of his country. His services to New England in this respect were amongst the most important that were rendered by the most able and patrio- tic men of the age in which he lived. His private papers show how earnestly, in secret, he prayed for the true welfare of his native land; while the records of the General Court testify, and the annals of the period bear witness, how generously and faithfully he labored for its good, whenever opportunity was offered for his exertions, or necessity re-
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quired his intervention. No better proof could be desired either of the esteem in which he was held by his fellow- citizens, of the power of his influence and abilities, or of the devotedness and wisdom of his patriotic efforts, than is furnished by the history of his endeavors to retain the old charter, and his agency to England to procure a new.
Between King Charles II. and the New England colo- nies, particularly the Massachusetts, there had been, from the beginning of his reign, no cordial agreement. He was exorbitant in his claims ; and they were backward in yield- ing to them. He was constantly encroaching upon their chartered rights ; and they were as pertinacious in main- taining them. He aimed to restrict their lawful liberties ; and they were determined not to let them go. Things could not long continue in this state, without leading to open collision and a decisive issue. Accordingly, in Oct. 1683, Edmund Randolph, one of the bitterest enemies of the colony, was sent over from the king with a message, that Massachusetts should resign its charter, or a Quo warranto against it should be prosecuted. The people were now in a perilous dilemma. Should they voluntarily surrender their charter, or brave the king, and let him wrest it away from them? This was the question, -a grave question truly. It was referred to Increase Mather, who demonstrated " that they would act neither the part of good Christians nor of true Englishmen, if by any act of theirs they should be accessory to the plot then managing to pro- duce a general shipwreck of liberties." This opinion, being circulated, excited against him the rage of the royal parti- sans. When the freemen of Boston met to instruct their
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deputies to the General Court, he was desired to be present in the town-house, and give his advice. A copy of his short and pithy speech on that occasion was found among his papers after his decease. It is as characteristic of the age and of the man as it is creditable to him as a stanch patriot and an earnest defender of his country's liberties .* Its effect was decisive. The vote of the meeting was una- nimous against submission.
" The example of Boston decided the question through- out the country; and this is one of the early instances in which the lead was taken by this town in those spirited measures of opposition to arbitrary oppression, for which the descendants of the Puritans have been always distin- guished."
* " As the question is now stated, whether you will make a full sub- mission and entire resignation of your charter and the privileges of it unto his majesty's pleasure, I verily believe we shall sin against the God of heaven if we vote an affirmative unto it. The Scripture teacheth us otherwise. We know what Jephthah said, 'That which the Lord our God has given us, shall we not possess it?' And though Naboth ran a great hazard by the refusal, yet he said, ' God forbid that I should give away the inheritance of my fathers !' Nor would it be wisdom for us to comply. We know David made a wise choice when he chose to fall into the hands of God, rather than into the hands of men. If we make a full submission and entire resignation to pleasure, we fall into the hands of men immediately. But if we do it not, we still keep ourselves in the hands of God, we trust ourselves with his pro- vidence; and who knows what God may do for us? There are also exam- ples before our eyes, the consideration whereof should be of weight with us. Our brethren hard by us, what have they gained by being so ready to part with their liberties, but an acceleration of their miseries? And we hear from London, that when it came to [the point with them], the loyal citizens would not make a full submission and entire resignation to pleasure, lest their posterity should curse them for it. And shall we, then, do such a thing? I hope there is not one freeman in Boston that can be guilty of it. However, I have discharged my conscience in what I have thus declared unto you."
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The threatened alternative followed. The charter was forfeited, and a Governor appointed with unlimited power to make what laws suited his own pleasure .* His ad- ministration was oppressive in the extreme, and hateful to the people.t
In this grievous condition, the only prospect of remedy, in the opinion of the best men of the country, seemed to be through the mission of a well-qualified person to the king, bearing the addresses of the churches, ¿ and soliciting in person, at the foot of the throne, the royal clemency and protection. The man, of all others, upon whom the public.
* Sir Edmund Andros.
t The weight of taxation was unreasonably augmented. The cere- monial of marriage was altered, and the celebration of that rite confined to ministers of the Church of England, of whom there was only one in the whole Province of Massachusetts. The fasts and thanksgivings appointed by the churches were suppressed by the Governor. He often took occasion to remark, and with the most offensive insolence, in presence of the Council, that the colonists would find themselves mistaken, if they supposed that the privileges of Englishmen followed them to the ends of the earth; and that the only difference between their condition and that of slaves was that they were not bought and sold. It was declared unlawful for the people to assem- ble in public meetings, or for any one to quit the province without a pass- port from the Governor. He selected, and intrigued with, jurymen, to screen his own tools from punishment ; and questioned the validity of existing land- titles, requiring new grants from himself to make them perfect, for which he exacted exorbitant fees. - See Grahame's History.
į A notice of the action of this church in the matter of the address to the king is contained in the following vote : -
" Oct. 30, 1687, after the sermon and service of the afternoon ended, I desired the brethren of the church to stay in the meeting-house, and proposed to them, that their officers might in their name draw up an address of thanks to the king, for his declaration, wherein he does promise us the free exercise of our religion, and that he will maintain us in the enjoyment of our rights and possessions. I told the brethren I would take their silence for consent. All were silent, - nemine contradicente."
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attention was turned was Increase Mather. Being solicited to undertake the important duty, he laid the matter before his church, in the manner thus recorded by himself : -
" Dec. 11, 1687, I desired the brethren to stay, and acquainted them that it was thought needful that some one should be sent with an address of thanks to the king, for his gracious declaration ; and that it had been proposed to me that I should go on the service. I told them that if they said to me, Go, I would cast myself on the providence of God, and go in his name; but if they said to me, Stay, I would not stir.
" Major Richards and - Way declared their willing- ness and free consent that I should go. I said to the bre- thren, if any of them were otherwise minded, I desired they would express themselves. Also, I would take their silence for consent. They were then all silent, and so did unani- mously consent."
Every method was taken by the Government to prevent Mr. Mather's leaving the country. He was arrested by Randolph for defamation, in a suit for five hundred pounds damage; but, notwithstanding the intrigues of his adver- sary, was acquitted by the jury ; the plaintiff being charged with the costs of court. He waited on the Governor, to acquaint him with his purposed voyage; and gave pub- lic notice, in a sermon at the " Great Lecture," on the text, " If thy presence go not with us, carry us not up from hence." A further attempt at arrest was made, but frus- trated by a mere accident. Mr. Mather then withdrew quietly from his house, in disguise, to the mansion of Col. Phillips in Charlestown. On his way, an under-sheriff,
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placed to watch his movements, recognized him, but dared not lay hands upon him. From Charlestown he was con- veyed by some young men of his flock to Winnisimmet, and, in a small boat, carried down the harbor. The ship " President," in which he was expected to sail, was carefully searched before leaving the wharf, of course without success. He was taken on board in the bay, and in due time safely landed in England.
It would carry me beyond the purpose of this discourse to give a full history of Mr. Mather's agency to England ; though to do so would be to set before you in strong light his distinguished practical talents. His task was an arduous and perplexing one ; but, by sagacity and patience, by untiring energy, by an ever-watchful fidelity to his country's interests, combined with a remarkable power of influence, by which he was enabled to enlist in his cause, as far as any man could have done it, the co-operation of eminent men and the royal favor abroad, and at the same time public sentiment at home, he performed it at length, after four years of labor, in such a manner as to merit the thanks of his countrymen, and to command the praise of every impartial historian .* " He returned to New England,"
* " The speaker, in the name of the House of Representatives, returned him thanks for his faithful, painful, indefatigable endeavours to serve his country ; and added that they were willing to reward them, but that, by reason of an expensive war, they were unable to do any thing proportionable to his merits. To which Mr. Mather answered, that he sought not theirs, but them, in all that he had endeavored; and, for his recompense, he was willing to expect it in another world." - Cotton Mather.
" A day of solemn thanksgiving to Almighty God was appointed for his safe arrival, together with that of the Governor, Sir William Phipps, and for their services to the country." - Hutchinson, vol. i. p. 416.
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says Mr. Quincy, "with a well-earned consciousness that he had fulfilled, during his residence abroad, his entire duty to the colony." - Hist. Harv. Col., vol. i. p. 78. " Whatever opinions we may be compelled to entertain concerning his measures and motives on other occasions, his conduct in this great crisis of his country entitles him to unqualified approbation. It is scarcely possible for a public agent to be placed in circumstances more trying or critical ; nor could any one have exhibited more sagacity and devoted- ness to the true interests of his constituents. By his wis- dom and firmness in acceding to the new charter, and thus assuming a responsibility of the weightiest kind, in opposi- tion to his colleagues in the agency, he saved his country, apparently, from a rebellion or a revolution, or from having a constitution imposed by the will of the transatlantic sove- reign, possibly at the point of the bayonet." - Hist. Harv. Col., vol. i. p. 123 .*
* It gives me great pleasure to be able to adduce the peculiarly valua- ble testimony of President Quincy in this connection. It is, however, a matter of wonder what solution that justly eminent man found for the pro- blem which must suggest itself to every attentive reader of his history of the college, and can hardly have failed to occur to himself, - how it happened that a man, such as he represents Increase Mather, "restless, obtrusive, exci- table, a partisan by profession, whose life had been one series of theological and political controversy, always harnessed and ready and restless for the onset ; now courting the statesmen, now mingling with the multitude ; excit- ing the clergy in the synod, and the congregation in the pulpit, and the people in the halls of popular assembly ; a man of an ill-governed and over- bearing spirit, violent, ambitious ; " a man who is represented as the dupe of his own vanity, even in his prayers, and willing to make college, church, or creed subservient to his personal aggrandisement, - how it happened that a man of such a temper, such motives, and such a character, should have stood the severe test of the four years' agency in England so honorably as to expose no weak point, even to that most piercing discernment which has
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