USA > Massachusetts > Bristol County > Norton > History of the town of Norton, Bristol County, Massachusetts, from 1669 to 1859 > Part 13
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"In ye name and by ap-
pointment of sd. 1st chh. in Norton."
Mr. Avery now felt called upon to do something to sustain himself against the disaffected party. His pro- position, once and again made to his opposers, for a mutual council, was perfectly proper and just; and every principle of honor and fair dealing seems to de- mand that it should have been complied with : yet the malecontents saw fit to reject it, and call an ex-parte council ; thus leaving the impression, that they were not actuated by the purest motives in their warfare against their venerable pastor. Had they been as zealous " for ye honr of God & Interest of Religion " as they seem to intimate, we cannot but think they would have been ready to grant the very reasonable desire of their spiritual adviser.
11
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DISMISSION AND DEATH
Being denied the boon craved, Mr. Avery took the only course he consistently could; and forthwith sum- moned a council of ministers and messengers at his house, on the same day fixed for the meeting of the church's council. His letter-missive we have fortu- nately found, and insert it here. Read it atten- tively : -
" To the chh. of Christ, &c.
"Joseph Avery, Pastor of the first chh. of Christ in Norton, sendeth Greeting.
" Revd., Hond., and Belov'd, -
" It hath pleased ye holy and sovereign Lord to suffer a considerable number of ys chh. to take up (as I apprehend) an unreasonable prejudice against myself, yr pastor. the cir- cumstances of this chh. are at present very unhappy, dis- tressing, and threatening, such as calleth for the compassion of sister chhs .; wc. I hope God in his great mercy will grant us, and bless for ye promoting of peace and truth among us.
"Some time since, a number of ys chh. presented me with a paper containing sundry objections against me, as they were pleased to stile them ; and then subjoined a verbal request yt I would ask a Dismission. A few days after, I sent ym ys answer, - yt, having taken yr objections and propositions into ye most serious and carefull consideration, they appeared to me to be both unreasonable & unjust, by no means sufficient to induce me to think I was called of God to surcease my ministerial labors among them; and, if y. y. thought other- ways, I was ready to joine with ym in calling a council. Some time after ys, they brought me another paper, signify- ing y. y. were not yet ripe for council, desiring me to appoint a chh .- meeting to hear yr objections, and wt y. y. had to say upon ym. accordingly, I did appoint a chh .- meeting ; at wc. meeting I gave my answer in writing, and subjoined, that, if my answer was not satisfactory, I was ready to join with ym in calling an Ecclesiastical council (equal numbers chosen by ym and myself) to hear, determine, and advise in ye great and important affair. They refused to accept my answer as satisfactory ; they also refused to join with me in calling a council, and have ymselves sent for a seperate council of 5 chhs. to meet at ye house of Coll. George Leonard, in Norton, on tuesday, ye 24th of ys Instant January, at 10 ante M. I humbly & Earnestly begg your compassion, and yt you would send with your Elder one Messenger, to set in council with
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OF REV. MR. AVERY.
several other chhs. att my house in Norton, on tuesday, ye 24th of ys Instant January, at 10 in ye morning, to hear our melancholy case, to give such advise as ye great & good God shall direct. wishing grace, mercy, & peace to you from God yr Father & our Lord Jesus Christ, begging an In- terest in your prayers always,
"I subscribe your unworthy bro. in ye faith & fellowship of the Gospel,
"JOSEPH AVERY,
" Pastor of ye first chh. in Norton.
" NORTON, January 4th, 1748-9."
Appended to this letter is this note : -
" To Coronel George Leonard, Deacon Benjamin Hodges, Lieut. Benjamin Cobb, Gentleman.
" This is a coppy of the letters I have sent to ye 2nd chh. in Scituate, ye Revd. Mr. Ellis, Pastor; to ye two chhs. in Rehoboth ; ye 3d chh. in Bridgewater; ye chh. in Midway ; ye chh. in Warren.
" JOSEPH AVERY."
The council of the church met at the time and place specified. They probably wished for a little explana- tion in reference to one or two of the objections; and what is written below was furnished : -
" Whereas in the 7th article of our objections against the Reverend Mr. Joseph Avery, as a person not suitable or any ways qualifed for a Gospel minister, &c., - first, he hath not understanding enough, as we think, to Regulate church-meet- ings, but they are generally, when had, managed in great confusion and disorder; so that we think it not for the Glory of God to have such a minister that Regulates those meetings in such a way and manner, and, when he pleaseth, to adjourn sd. meetings without the vote or consent of the church, not- withstanding they stand up and oppose it. . . .
" Secondly, that we don't look on him as a man sound in his principles ; for, when he was Preaching concerning the Binding and Loosing of sins (or sinner), in his prayer after sermon he used these Expressions, - that none might set light by ministers, since or seeing that they had power to Loose and bind souls, even to the forgiveness of sins.
" Thirdly, at another time, in his preaching that santifica- tion was Rought by the agency of the holy Gost, when he
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DISMISSION AND DEATH
came to the application, he sd., What cause have we, then, to pray to the holy Gost to send us his holy spirit ?
" Fourthly, that he hath not acted agreeable to scripture Rule, as we think, in taking members in the church ; that he hath very much neglected to Examine them (which makes us think that he does not Know what to say to them at such times ; or, at Least, that he neglects his duty therein). To- gether with what further may be offered, we think we shall make out that objection very fully.
" GEORGE LEONARD,
"In Behalf of ye Rest."
While this council was in session at Mr. Leonard's, the other, called by the pastor and his friends (for he had some friends yet left), was convened at his house ; and he (Mr. Avery ) sent this note to Mr. Leonard : - "To the Honble. George Leonard, Esq., one of ye comittee of this chh., as it is called.
"These are to signify yt ye venerable council called by myself and adhering brethren purpose to proceed to a pub- lick hearing of our unhappy case to-morrow, at 10 in ye morning; and to request you to attend the said council at my house, unless the council shall meet at your store (?), and then at your own house ; and yt you notify ye other gentle- man of sd. committee that y. y. attend with you.
"JOSEPH AVERY, Pastor. "JANUARY 25th, 1748-9."
In reply, Mr. Leonard sends this note : -
" Revd. sir, - yours of last night I just now received; & in answer, say, that as to the case in which our committee are concerned, they not being present, I cannot answer for them : but, in my private capacity, with relation to the venerable council by you invited, their meeting at my house, I say to yourself, and inviting you to do it also to them, that they shall be welcome to my house to hear the case as we shall open it to the council called by us ; it being the needfull at this time. I rest, Revd. sir, your
" Humble servant, " G. L.
" NORTON, 26 Jan., 1748."
Whether the two councils met together, and a full hearing of the whole matter was entered into or not, is among the secrets not yet revealed.
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OF REV. MR. AVERY.
Probably, however, they did not thus meet; as it appears from Mr. Prentice's record, which we give below, that the result of the council was made known to, and accepted by, the church the next day after the date of Mr. Leonard's note. Most likely, Mr. Avery saw that the current was setting against him, and con- cluded to let it take its course. How matters eventu- ated we shall soon see.
"The 1st chh. of Ct. in Norton, in a Regular chh .- meeting by adjournment at ye house of ye Honble. George Leonard, Esq., unanimously Votd. to accept of ye Result of ye Venble. council by ym called, & this Day published ; And Dea. Benja. Hodges & Lieut. Benja. Cobb wr Votd. by sd. chh. to wait on ye Rev. Mr. Avery, yr Pastr, with ye council's Result, to know of him, in writing, whether he will ask a Dismission from his Pastoral office in this place. sd. chh. also Votd. to adjourn the chh .- meeting two hours; then to meet at this place in order to proceed further.
" Attst : "S. PRENTICE, Modr.
" NORTON, Jany. 27, 1748."
Deacon Hodges and Lieut. Cobb immediately post off down to Mr. Avery's with the result of the ex-parte council. We know nothing of its character, except what we gather from Mr. Prentice's record and subse- quent events. The substance of it, no doubt, was, that Mr. Avery is advised to ask a dismission from his pastoral relations with the church and society, to whose spiritual welfare he had devoted the best years of his life and the noblest energies of his mind.
We are not permitted to look in and witness the presentation of the "result" to the gray-headed ser- vant of God, and therefore we can give no account of the meeting; but imagination can easily complete the picture.
Sad and desponding, though not altogether taken by surprise at the turn of events, the pastor, in a note ad- dressed to the church, asks for a little delay before he: gives his final answer. Let us read it : --
"To the first chh. of Christ in Norton, convened at ye. house of Coll. George Leonard, Esq. these are to signify, L
11ª
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have received by your Messengers ye Result of your council, and shall take ye great and Important affair into ye most serious consideration ; and ye chh. may Expect my answer ye next week, att ye time and place y. y. shall appoint.
" Your Pastor in ye Lord,
" JOSEPH AVERY. " NORTON, Jan. 27, 1748-9.
" P.S. - My Earnest request and desire is, that ye Revd. Mr. Ruggles would please to preach in my pulpit ye next sabbath."
We now go back to the church-meeting at Mr. Leonard's, whose members are anxiously awaiting the return of their committee. They are in no mood to deny the reasonable desire of their grief-stricken pas- tor; for we find, -
" Upon the Receipt of the Rev. Mr. Avery's Answer to ye Desire of the first chh. of christ in Norton this day signified to him, the chh. Vod. to adjourn this Meeting to Monday Next, 9 'clock forenoon ; then to Meet at ye meeting-house in this place to Receive their Pastor's answer to their Re- quest of this day, and to act thereon.
" Attst : " S. PRENTICE, Modr.
" NORTON, Jany. 27, 1748."
It was now Friday. In tears, and with constant prayer to God for guidance and direction in this im- portant matter, he spends the short period allotted him for deliberation ; and on the Monday following, Jan. 30, 1748-9, O.S., or Feb. 10, 1749, N.S., it is morally certain that Rev. Joseph Avery acceded to the decision of the council; sent in his resignation ; and, from that day, ceased to be the pastor of the church with which he had labored from his ordination, - thirty-four years, three months, and two days.
From the report of a committee appointed by the precinct in relation to his salary, the fact is clearly established, that his ministerial labors ended Jan. 30, 1748-9, O.S. In concluding their report, the com- mittee say, -
" Therefore [we] are of the opinion that it will be Best for this precint to pay Mr. Joseph Avery's salary from the first
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OF REV. MR. AVERY.
of March, 1747-8, untill the 30th of January, 1748-9; being about eleven months to the time when he was dismist from his ministerial office amongst us.
" Dated in NORTON, March 1st, 1748-9.
" GEORGE LEONARD. WILLIAM WARE."
The reader will have observed that the objections brought against Mr. Avery are of the most trivial nature, and not in the least affecting his moral charac- ter; nor do they give a sufficient warrant for the rending asunder so abruptly the ties of pastor and people. We think his opposers must have been slow of understanding, if it took them almost forty years to find out that their minister was not qualified for the pastoral office. We believe, if any one will read the pages of this chapter attentively, and with an unbiased mind, he will be convinced that the paramount objec- tion to Mr. Avery was not brought to the surface. The real objections to the pastor were, without doubt, 1st, his anti-Calvinistic notions; and, 2d, his strong and manly opposition to the great revival of 1740, in which the celebrated Whitefield was the leader. Rev. Eleazer Wheelock, of Lebanon, Conn., among others, preached here Oct. 3, 1741. In his journal, he says he was " kindly received by Mr. Avery. Preached to a full assembly : much affection and sobbing through the assembly." Although, at first, Mr. Avery might have been favorably disposed towards the movement of Whitefield, he and others soon became convinced it would result in no permanent good to the country ; and therefore they signed an earnest protest against it, which concludes in these words : 1 -
1 We copy this closing portion of the protest from the Great Awaken ing, p. 363, but have been unable to find the document entire. Rev. Joseph Tracy, the author of the book referred to, cannot say where he found the document, but thinks it was either in the Athenaeum, or the Old South Church Library, at Boston. I cannot find it in either place; but a volume of tracts relating to Whitefield, belonging to the Old South Church Library, was missing from the library when I examined it in the autumn of 1858. The author of the Great Awakening says the protest is remarkable for no thing but the extract he gave. We would have given our readers the bene fit of the whole document, if we could have found it.
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" When Mr. Whitefield first came among us, he used his ut- most craft and cunning to strike the passions and engage the affections of the people; and when he had wrought them into a fond opinion of his excellences, and they began to look upon him as one endowed with an uncommon measure of the Spirit, he continued to insinuate that unconverted ministers could do little or no good to souls ; that dead men might as well be- get living children. Having thus prepared the way, he leaves the country with this most vile insinuation, - ' That many, nay most, that preach, I fear, do not experimentally know Christ; and the universities are become dark, - darkness in the abstract.' Well, what is the language of all this ? He that runs may read. Dead men may as well beget living children, as an unconverted minister do good to souls. The most of your ministers are unconverted : you must, then, if you have any regard to your souls, separate from them, and seek better help. But what will you do ? You can't have any help from the colleges : there is nothing but darkness, - darkness that may be felt. You must, then, content yourselves with some illiterate exhorters, until you can have a supply from the Shepherd's Tent, the Orphan House, or elsewhere. It appear- eth to us, that the Devil, with all his cunning, could not take a more direct step to overthrow these churches, hurt religion and the souls of men.
" Joseph Avery, of Norton; John Greenwood and David Turner, of Rehoboth; Ebenezer White, of Norton; Solomon Townsend, of Barrington ; and John Burt, of Bristol."
We are decidedly of the opinion, that, if Mr. Avery had supported the Whitefield movement, he would never have been dismissed. Rev. Mr. Clarke, in his " Histo- rical Sermon," speaking of Mr. Avery, says, -
" He was not a popular preacher, but a good character ; pacific in his temper, and an agreeable companion. In the course of his ministry, he was met with a violent opposition from many who were called new lights. They, in their en- thusiastic zeal, condemned him as incapable of preaching the gospel. By their influence, they increased the opposition to such a degree that the society voted him a dismission."
The followers of Whitefield were very zealous reli- gionists, and were called " new lights." There were many of Mr. Avery's church who became "new
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OF REV. MR. AVERY.
lights;" and not being able to carry their minister with them, or to turn him in the least from his convic- tions of duty, they seceded from his church, and esta- blished a dissenting church and society, of which we shall give an account hereafter. The fact that an op- position church had been organized and a minister set- tled, and the fear that the old church would be broken up or very much weakened, no doubt brought the opposition to decisive action, and perhaps had much influence in determining the " result " of the council. The opposition were also, no doubt, encouraged to the course they took by Rev. Mr. Prentice, of Easton, - a zealous " new light," who was finally disfellowshipped by the neighboring ministers, and dismissed from his pastoral office. The reader will take notice that he was very officious, as moderator of the church, while they were seeking to dismiss their minister; and probably did more than any other person to " crush out" Mr. Avery.
In all my investigations, I have not found any thing that casts a reflection upon the name or character of the first minister of our town. His only fault, if fault it can be called, was his unwillingness to submit to the dictation of others. We are perfectly satisfied that he was sacrificed because he dared to think and act in oppo- sition to public opinion. But this only serves to enhance our estimation of the man. And certainly his deter- mination to be true to the convictions of his conscience, let what would befall him, must have found favor at the bar of God, the great and impartial Judge of the world ; and no doubt, as he entered the spirit-world, he heard the welcome plaudit, " Well done, good and faithful servant : enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." Of Mr. Avery, subsequent to his dismission, there is little to record, because little is known. He con- tinued to reside in town, but, it is supposed, never preached after he was deposed from the ministry. There have been some doubts expressed about the place of his death. Hon. Cromwell Leonard says he was told by his father that Mr. Avery did not die in town,
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and was not buried here ; but we are satisfied that he did die and was buried in Norton. In his " Historical Sermon," in allusion to Mr. Avery's dismission, Rev. Pitt Clarke says, " He lived nearly twenty-two years after this, and exemplified the religion he taught to a good old age. He died April 23, 1770." He was con- sequently eighty-three years old at his death. The date of his death is also recorded on the church-books, in the handwriting of Rev. Mr. Clarke. We think Mr. Clarke must have known the place of his death, or he could not well have given us the date of it; and, if Mr. Avery had not died in town, we are confident Mr. Clarke would have so stated. Again : Mrs. Sarah Morey, recently deceased, who was a daughter of Rev. Joseph Palmer, the successor of Mr. Avery, most posi- tively affirmed to me, before her death, that Mr. Avery did die in town ; that he died in the house where he had always lived in Norton; and that she distinctly remembered seeing the funeral procession pass by her father's house, and go to the graveyard in front of the house with the corpse. She was then some six or seven years of age. We know that Mr. Avery was here within five or six years of his death ; because, on the 8th of September, 1763, the parish " voted to Mr. Joseph Ave- ry, for the taking care of the meating-house and Sweap- ing it, 0-8-0-0:" and on the 7th of March, 1764, Mr. Avery deeded his farm to Dr. Gidcon Tiffany, no doubt with the understanding that Dr. Tiffany should take care of him in his old age. Tiffany remained in town till the death of Mr. Avery; and then sold his farm, and went to Keene, N.H. But all doubts are resolved by the following reference to Mr. Avery, copied from the " Massachusetts Gazette and News-Letter " of Aug. 30, 1773. The writer, over the signature of "G. H.," after alluding to the fact that Mr. Avery's name was not starred (*) in the last Triennial Catalogue, says, -
" The said gentleman was formerly minister at Norton, and died there three or four years ago. He was esteemed, when living, by the clergy in that part of the country, as a very
,
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OF REV. MR. AVERY.
honest, good man ; and if he did not meet with candor and fair treatment in his old age from some, who of all men had the greatest reason to love and honor him, I doubt not he has met with ample compensation in the approbation of his Lord."
There is, then, no longer any question relative to the place of his death. The writer of the above article seemed to entertain the same opinion that we had formed ; viz., that Mr. Avery was very unjustly treated and abused in his old age. The testimony of Rev. Pitt Clarke (whose authority was those who had personally known Mr. Avery) and that of the writer just quoted both concur in the idea, that he was an exemplary Chris- tian and an honest man. His communications and letters show him to have been a man of respectable lite- rary attainments for the time in which he lived ; and there is abundant proof that he was a man of energy and decision of character, - willing, if need be, to stand alone in what he believed to be a righteous cause ; in fine, that he was possessed of that manly independence, without which every person is a slave. He never had any children. His wife died Oct. 4, 1763, and was buried in the common graveyard. Mr. Avery, without a shadow of doubt in our mind, was buried beside her ; for there are indications of a grave in close proximity to hers. But no stone marks the spot where his body, long ere this, has moulded to dust.1 Citizens of Norton,
1 Mrs. Sarah Morey, already alluded to, told me that the reason why no gravestone was erected at Mr. Avery's grave was because the property went principally to Mrs. Avery's heirs, and they cared more for the money than they did for the memory of the aged and broken-down minister. I have since searched the probate-records at Taunton; and find, that on the 18th of July, 1763, a few weeks previous to her death, Mrs. Avery, with her hus- band's consent, made her will, and gave the property which she had re- ceived from her father to Sarah Tiffany, wife of Gideon Tiffany, and to the three children of Sarah Stone, deceased, the wife of Nathaniel Stone. Mr. Avery was to have the use of the property as long as he lived. Gideon Tif- fany was appointed executor of the will. The estate was appraised Nov. 10, 1763, at £77. 1s. 7d. May 4, 1770, - less than two weeks after the death of Mr. Avery, - Dr. Tiffany, the executor of Mrs. Avery's will, made a return of the inventory of the property. He also brought in a bill of charges against the estate; which, with the legacy bequeathed his wife, Sarah Tif- fany, amounted to more than the estate was worth. In his account, the ex- ecutor pays for an allowance of £1. 10s. for a pair of gravestones for Mrs. Avery, which he says were " spoken for, and to be brought and put up." Her gravestone says she " died in Sept. or Oct., 1763; " which indicates that
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ought this so to be ? Will you not cause a suitable mon- ument to be erected over his remains, as a token of re- spect to the memory and virtues of the first minister of your town ? Certainly we of the present day ought to do him justice, by removing, so far as we can, the dis- grace and obloquy that clustered around his last days on earth. We trust that a word to those who would vindicate the character and reputation of an earnest, faithful, though much misrepresented man, will be suf- ficient. If the town, in its corporate capacity, shall decline to aid in perpetuating his memory by erecting a monument at his grave, we hope the church and par- ish of which he was the first pastor will discharge their duty in this matter.
CHAPTER X.
ATTEMPTS TO SETTLE A MINISTER.
" Many are called." - CHRIST.
THE church is now without a minister, and means must be taken to provide one to supply the pulpit : but the church-records and papers are still in the hands of their late pastor, Rev. Mr. Avery ; and it is deemed important that the church obtain possession of them. Accordingly, at a church-meeting held March 28, 1749, -
" 2ly, The sd. church voted that Deacon John Briggs, the first, and Deacon Benjamin Hodges, shall be a committee to waight on Mr. Joseph Avery, and desire him, in the name of
she had been dead so long before it was erected, that the exact date of her death was forgotten. These facts, together with the fact that Mr. Avery, soon after the death of his wife, deeded his farm, worth over £400, to Dr. Tiffany, go strongly to corroborate the statement of Mrs. Morey; and I have no doubt that she was correct. For further notice of Dr. Tiffany, see chap- ter relative to physicians.
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this church, to deliver them the Church-covenant and the Church-Records ; and thay to Keep them till the further order of this Church."
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