USA > Maine > Waldo County > Belfast > History of the city of Belfast in the state of Maine v.I, 1770-1875 > Part 26
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The parish remained without any settled minister until July, 1847, when an unanimous call was given to the Rev. Marcus A.
1 Parish records.
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HISTORY OF BELFAST.
H. Niles, of Lowell, Mass., who was installed on the eleventh day of August. The services of the day were conducted as follows : Prayer by the Rev. A. D. Wheeler, of Topsham ; Sermon by the Rev. Dr. Gannett, of Boston ; Installing Prayer by the Rev. Jonathan Cole, of Hallowell ; Charge by the Rev. Mr. Wheeler; Right Hand of Fellowship by the Rev. Sylvester Judd, of Augusta ; Address to the People by the Rev. Henry A. Miles, of Lowell, Mass .; Prayer, by the Rev. Mr. Judd. ` At the conclu- sion of the exercises, the members of the society and invited guests partook of a dinner at the American House. The Hon. James White presided; and remarks were made by Rev. Dr. Gannett, Mr. Miles, Mr. Judd, the Rev. Stephen Thurston of Searsport, Hon. John Wilson, Ex-Governor Anderson, and others.1
REV. MARCUS A. H. NILES.
For a week previous to his installation, Mr. Niles had been slightly indisposed ; and, although personally present, he was unable to participate in the public exercises of the occasion. Still, all regarded his illness as but temporary, and with himself looked forward hopefully to his recovery. This hope was delu- sive, for he died quite suddenly on the 17th of August. He was a native of Deer Isle, but early in life removed to New- buryport. Having graduated at Amherst College in 1830, he pursued his professional studies at Cambridge, and was first set- tled as pastor of a church in Marblehead. From there he removed to Lowell, Mass., and thence to Belfast. During his brief resi- dence in our community, he won general respect and popularity by his social disposition and kindly manners, and by the evidences which his sermons displayed of an elevated and cultivated mind. His funeral services were observed at the Unitarian church, Aug. 22, when a discourse was preached by Rev. Sylvester Judd, of Augusta. The age of Mr. Niles was forty-one years. His re- mains were taken to Newburyport for interment.
After the death of Mr. Niles, the parish remained for several months without a pastor. During the following winter, the Rev. Cazneau Palfrey occupied the pulpit, and in March, 1848, accepted an invitation to remain here permanently. Installation services took place April 19. The Sermon was by the Rev. Joseph P. Thompson, of Salem, Mass .; Installing Prayer and Charge by 1 State Signal, Aug. 19, 1847.
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the Rev. Francis Parkman, D.D., of Boston ; Right Hand of Fel- lowship by the Rev. Jonathan Cole, of Hallowell; Address to the People by the Rev. Rufus P. Cutler, of Portland. With the commencement of Mr. Palfrey's pastorate, the lofty, old-fashioned pulpit gave place to a desk, which continues in use.
The first annual meeting of the Maine Conference of Unitarian Churches held here was Aug. 16, 1849. Similar sessions took place Aug. 5, 1852, and July 16, 1869.
In 1856, James P. White and others were incorporated as the " Unitarian Parsonage Proprietary," and the same year caused the erection of a dwelling-house on Church Street, which has since been occupied as a parsonage. The cost of the building was $2,700 ; of the land, $400.
The grounds around the church were graded and fenced in September, 1860. In 1868, it was determined to remodel the church ; and, the sum of two thousand dollars having been voted for the purpose, work was commenced in January. During its progress, religious services were held on the morning of each Sabbath in the Universalist Church. The whole interior of the edifice was repaired and renovated. The old-fashioned, nearly square pews gave place to new ones of more modern style, and of smaller size, thereby increasing the number by twenty. The pillars which supported the side galleries were removed; new doors, windows, blinds, and a furnace added, and gas introduced. At the completion of the repairs, June 13, Rev. Dr. Palfrey, in his discourse gave a history of the parish and of the present edifice. Mr. William Frederick is the last survivor of the workmen who constructed the house.
In 1871, the failing health of Dr. Palfrey induced him to request a termination of his ministerial connection with the parish ; and, at a meeting held April 3d, the following resolution with others was passed : -
Resolved, That our sincere gratitude is due to the Rev. Dr. Palfrey for his long and faithful ministry among us, and that his blameless life and example, his deep and earnest piety, and his able ministry in the pulpit, will ever be cherished in our memory. We earnestly hope and pray that a cessation from his labors may restore him to that degree of health and strength which he needs.
18
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HISTORY OF BELFAST.
REV. CAZNEAU PALFREY, D.D.,
son of William Palfrey, of Boston, was born in that city, Aug. 11, 1805. He graduated at Harvard College in 1826, and at the Divinity School three years later. In 1827, he was a tutor in the College. He was settled at Washington, D.C .; and from April, 1844, to October, 1847, without installation, at Barnstable, Mass. The degree of Doctor of Divinity was conferred upon him by Bowdoin College in 1855. In the fall of 1874, Dr. Palfrey re- moved to Cambridge, Mass., where he continues to reside.1
The successor of Dr. Palfrey was the Rev. David N. Utter, a graduate at the Cambridge Divinity School, in 1871. His ordi- nation took place Oct. 31, 1871. The Sermon was by the Rev. Charles G. Ames, of California ; the Charge by the Rev. David N. Sheldon, D.D., of Waterville ; Address to the People by the Rev. William H. Savery, of Ellsworth; Right Hand of Fellowship by the Rev. Arthur M. Knapp, of Bangor. Two original hymns, written for the occasion by Miss Rebecca S. Palfrey, were sung. Mr. Utter's ministry here terminated by mutual consent in April, 1874; and his farewell sermon was preached on the 26th of that month. He is now the pastor of a church at Olympia,
1 For nearly forty years Dr. Palfrey has been a frequent contributor to denomina- tional literature. The following is a partial list of articles and papers from his pen. Tracts of American Unitarian Association : No. 53, Change of Heart. No. 225, Retri- bution. Contributions to the Christian Examiner : Memoir of Rev. Hersey B. Goodwin (January, 1837). Retribution (March, 1846). Review of Peabody's Sermons (March, 1847). Review of Wayland's Sermons (May, 1849). Contributions to Monthly Miscel. lany : American Slavery as it is (January, 1840). The Kingdom of Heaven (March, 1840). Christian Union (November, 1840). The Spiritual Nature (December, 1840). Review of Sharpe's New Testament (December, 1840). Perfection and Perfectionism (May, 1841). Review of Livermore's Commentary (October, 1841). Christ's Present Connection with his Church (October, 1842). Contributions to Religious Magazine : Christ preaching to Spirits in Prison (August, 1846). Christ's Triumphal Entry into Jeru- Balem (February, 1847). The Problem of Evil resolved by the Believer (September, 1860). The Sons of Rechab (June, 1865). The Bible, and how we should use it (October 1865). The Personality of God (July, 1866). God, the Maker of Individ- uals (September, 1866). Church and State (October, 1866). The Book of Job (June, 1867). The Sabbath of the Soul (April, 1868). The Doctrine of Reconciliation (July 1868). The Religion of Work and Business (September, 1869). The Religion of Re- creation and Amusement (November, 1869). Intercessory Prayer (February, 1873). Thoughts on Miracle (April, 1873). Thoughts on Christian Consciousness (July, 1873). Self-Sacrifice (November, 1873). Contributions to the Unitarian Review : The Divine Immanence (September, 1875). All Saints and All Souls (November, 1875). Contri- butions to Old and New: Optimism (February, 1871). Mathew Arnold and Israel (December, 1873). Contributions to Sprague's Annals of the American Pulpit : Memoir of Rev. William Frothingham. Memoir of Rev. Hersey B. Goodwin.
Lagneau Palfrey
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ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY.
Washington Territory, under the auspices of the American Uni- tarian Association.
Mr. Utter was succeeded by the Rev. James Thompson Bixby, a graduate at Harvard in 1864. He commenced his labors here in December, 1874, at a salary of eighteen hundred dollars per year.
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HISTORY OF BELFAST.
CHAPTER XVIII.
ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY: SECOND CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY.
Separation of the First Church from the First Parish. - New Society formed. - Officers. -Title of " Congregational " applicable to all Denominations. - Reasons for the Dismemberment. - Doctrinal Points of Difference. - Names of Members of the New Society. - Sacramental Furniture surrendered to the First Parish. - Sympathy with the Church from Abroad. - Favorable Report of a Council. - Erection of the Con- ference House. - Rev. Charles Soule ordained. - Sketch of his Life and Ministry. - Succeeded by Rev. Nathaniel Wales. - His Death. - Biographical Sketch. - Monu- ment to his Memory. - Settlement of Rev. Ferris Fitch. - Increase of the Society. - The North Church built. - Exercises at its Dedication. - Bell. - Dismissal of Rev. Mr. Fitch. - Donation of Communion Service received. - Installation of Rev. Silas McKeen. - His Ministry. - Vestry completed. - Rev. John Lord. - Ordination of Rev. Elbridge G. Cutler. - Religious Revival. - Death of Mr. Cutler. - Installation of Rev. Edward F. Cutter. - Semi-Centennial Discourse. - Waldo Conference. - Rev. Wooster Parker succeeds Dr. Cutter. - Renovation of the Church Edifice. - New Bell. - Pulpit temporarily supplied by Rev. Rufus K. Harlow and Rev. R. Henry Davis. - Installation of Rev. John A. Ross. - Erection of a Parsonage.
AS was stated in the last chapter, that portion of the parish denominated " the Church " did not concur in settling Mr. Frothingham, and took no part in his installation. Their vote upon this matter, passed May 20, 1820, was the origin of "The Congregational 1 Society connected with the First Church in
1 The name Congregational, so far as it is a descriptive title, may be given with propriety to all denominations, like the Universalists and Baptists, for example, who maintain the independence of local churches ; but in fact it is not given to them, nor do they claim it. The title is also, to some extent, historical. It belongs to the original churches of New England, and to their successors and descendants. When the separa- tion took place that ensued upon the Unitarian controversy, an attempt was made to deprive the Unitarian portion of the body of their name and rights, as Congregational- ists, on the ground of their departure from the original faith. They maintained their claim to both on the ground of their adherence to the original form of church govern- ment, which they affirmed to be the distinctive feature of the body; and the claim has heen uniformly allowed in all cases in which it has been brought into controversy before the courts. In Congregational bodies that existed before the separation and in the administration of funds belonging to such bodies, the Unitarians still retain their place and share; as, for instance, in the Convention of Congregational Ministers in Massachusetts. In associations formed since that time, by the orthodox portion of the
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ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY.
Belfast," popularly known as the " Orthodox," or "North Church." This vote is as follows : Voted, "That this Church now break off from the first Congregational Society, by forming ourselves into a new Congregational Society." A new parish was immediately organized, Tolford Durham being chosen moderator, Henry David- son clerk, and Deacon Durham, Henry Godard, and Caleb Smith standing committee. The records commence May 20, 1820, with the following preamble : -
When the dismemberment of a Society becomes indispensable, it is proper for the party seceding to state their grievances, and to show that they had no alternative left them.
The history of the First Congregational Church in Belfast plainly shews that there has existed in it an uncommon degree of harmony on the doctrines of the gospel commonly called Calvinistic Doctrines, which appear to us to be plainly taught in the word of God, and to be the foundation of that holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. Having heretofore been favored with pastors sound in these de strines, but destitute of any for a number of years last past, we were anxiously desiring the resettlement of gospel privileges amongst us, when in November, 1817, the Rev. William Frothingham was employed to preach in this place for the term of six months. The scattered situation of the members of the church, and the badness of the weather and roads the most
body, for purposes of their own, and to which they have given the name of Congrega- tional, the Unitarians have, of course, no claim to a place.
In some parishes in which a division took place, whilst the Unitarians were the majority, and retained the meeting-house and the parish property, all the communicants were among the seceders, and an entirely new church was gathered. Unitarians had been systematically excluded from the ordinances by sectarian covenants. In such cases it was decided hy the Supreme Courts of Massachusetts, in two leading cases, - the Dedham and Sandwich cases, -that the Church in the First Parish was, in the eye of the law, the First Church, entitled to the name, records, plate, and funds of the church. This was Massachusetts, and consequently Maine, law at the time of the separation in the First Parish in Belfast. It gives to the Unitarian Church a legal title to the name of the First Church in Belfast. A church is to a certain extent, and for certain purposes, a corporation, and so far it is, like all corporations, a creature of law, and the law must determine its name and rights, and the conditions of its existence; bnt to a greater extent, and for more important purposes, it is a spiritual body, and in such cases as those under consideration the continuation of identity is in the seceding church. I would not therefore insist on any claim that the law might give us against it. I am glad that the records of the First Church are where they are, and where I think in equity, if not in law, they ought to he. In regard to the parish, the case is different. There the line of affiliation is with ns, and I would never give up the right to call ourselves, whenever we choose, the First Congregational Parish in Belfast. Communication of the Rev. Cazneau Palfrey, D.D.
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HISTORY OF BELFAST.
of the time, prevented in great measure our acquaintance with him as a man, and with his sentiments as a minister of the gospel. During this term of six months, the Church held a meeting, which he attended. The doctrine of one God in Father, Son, and Holy Ghost he assented to, and at the close of the meeting the Church had reason to hope that his principles were sound. But nothing satisfactory appeared in public, and he appeared cautious lest it should be known by his public discourses on which side of the controversy between Calvinists and Unitarians he was situated.
The day on which the Parish voted the Rev. Mr. Frothingham a call, the Church held a meeting on the same business, when they made a statement of what he might expect from them, should he be settled. The meeting was adjourned to May 5, and again to May 7, when, Mr. Frothingham being present, the clerk informed the Church that he (Mr. F.) had agreed to our proposition con- cerning Christ, which he did not deny. Also, a few days pre- viously, when asked his sentiments of the Trinity by Deacon Durham and Deacon Godard, he had answered after this manner, " God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost are one and the same God," &c., whereupon the Church voted him a call without hesitation.
Mr. Frothingham now left this place to visit his family and consult his friends, and he had scarcely gone, when it was con- fidently asserted that he had rejected our proposition, and it was reiterated for six months (he being absent on account of his wife's. sickness). During this term, he made no communication to any of the members of the church. And some of his more intimate friends having stated that his principles and ours did not agree, and we not having any thing in writing to show the incorrectness. of this statement, or hope of relief from our very unpleasant situation, induced our clerk to write him, but his answer was couched in general terms not satisfactory ; and to a second letter, insisting on something definite on the subject of the Trinity, he deigned not to reply, but immediately sent an affirmative answer to the call of the Church and Parish.
His wife lingered till the spring of 1819, when she died. He immediately returned to this place, when a parish meeting was called, at which a committee was chosen "for the purpose of calling a council and making other necessary arrangements for the installation of the Rev. William Frothingham." No concurrence of the Church was at this time sought for. A council was ap-
.
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ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY.
pointed by the above committee and Mr. Frothingham, and letters missive were sent in the name of the CHURCH and Parish. The nomination to this council made by the Rev. Mr. Frothingham removed all doubts as to his real sentiments, and we were reduced to the alternative of either taking him at the hands of a council which we had no voice in appointing, or in which at best we could have but a small minority, or else to assert our rights to appoint the installing council ourselves. We chose the latter, believing our duty called us so to do. These proceedings did not satisfy Mr. Frothingham, and he and the Parish resolved to proceed without the Church.
On the twenty-first day of July, 1819, which was the day of installation, the Church met, and a paper containing a proposition to alter our church covenant made by the Rev. Mr. Frothingham, so that, in lieu of our phraseology of the Triune Jehovah, it might read, " The Lord Jehovah in his several offices of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost," &c., being under consideration, the Church appeared to be disposed to make every concession they could, and to pass by the neglect, to say nothing more, with which they had been treated, provided they could but get a faithful minister of Jesus Christ. It was observed by a member of the church that Mr. Frothingham since making the above proposition had declined incorporating it with the standing covenant of the church, and he having by request come into the meeting confirmed it. Under these circumstances, the Church could not unite in his settlement.
Influenced by an anxious desire to unite with the Parish in the support of Mr. Frothingham, the Church has since proposed to him to call a mutual council for the purpose of removing, if pos- sible, all difficulties, which proposition he has rejected.
Such is the history of the proceedings of the Church relative to the Call and Settlement of the Rev. Mr. Frothingham, and of their subsequent proceedings.
Believing that no good to the cause of God and religion can result from the further continuance of the connection between the First Congregational Church and the First Congregational Society in this town, -
The undersigned hereby agree to form a Christian Society by the name and style of " The Congregational Society associated with the First Church in Belfast," for the purpose of maintaining the social worship of Almighty God, and the doctrine of the
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HISTORY OF BELFAST.
Divinity of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and hereby agree to submit ourselves to such bye-laws and regulations as may be voted by a majority of the members of such Society. To hold the first meeting of said Society on Saturday, the twentieth day of May, instant, at the house of Deacon Godard, to elect all neces- sary and proper officers for the same, to determine the method of calling future meetings, and of admitting future members, and the mode of carrying on the worship of the Supreme Being.
(Signed)
MEMBERS ADMITTED AFTER THE FORMATION OF THE SOCIETY.
ROBERT KELSEY,
SAM HOUSTON, -
ROBE L. SARGENT,
JOHN DURHAM,
ROBERT HOUSTON,
JOHN BROWN,
ALEXR C. TODD,
HENRY GODARD,
JOHN F. EWERS,
SAM! BUTMAN,
ROBERT PATTERSON, 2d,
JAMES POOR,
CALEB SMITH, WM WEST,
JOHN MC KINLEY,
JOHN SARGENT,
FRANCIS STEPHENSON,
HENRY DAVIDSON,
CHARLES TILDEN,
JOSEPH HOUSTON,
TOLFORD DURHAM,
JAMES LANGWORTHY,
ALEX" CLARK,
Members of said Church.
Although no accessions to the church had been made from 1809 to 1821, at the time of the separation there were about fifty members, living at wide distances.1 In 1818, the Evan- gelical Missionary Society of Massachusetts had sent to the select- men, through the Rev. Dr. Ripley,2 a gift of sacramental furniture, presented by the Second Church in Worcester. This was de- manded by the First Parish, and promptly surrendered. Public worship continued to be maintained, meetings being held in the east meeting-house and in the opposite school-house.
Standing alone, as the Church did, and disjoined from its old connections, sympathy from abroad was naturally sought. They voted to call a council of neighboring churches, to review their proceedings and adjudge them. Such a synod convened Nov. 22, 1820, and made the following report, which was published for circulation : -
1 Organization prefaced to list of church-members, published in 1843.
2 Letter to the Selectmen, June 1, 1818.
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ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY.
BELFAST, November 22, 1820.
An Ecclesiastical Council, called by letters missive from the First Church in Belfast, convened this day at the house of Deacon DURHAM, in Belfast, to examine into the facts relative to the standing of said Church.
The Council was composed of the following Pastors and Dele- gates from their respective Churches, to wit : -
Rev. JONATHAN FISHER, Pastor, Bluehill. Brother JOSHUA WOOD, Delegate, S
Rev. H. LOOMIS, Pastor,
Brother D. J. BENT, Delegate, Bangor.
Rev. MIGHILL BLOOD, Pastor, Bucksport.
Rev. J. FISHER was chosen Moderator, and the Rev. H. LooMIS was chosen Scribe. After the Throne of Grace was ad- dressed by the Moderator, the Council proceeded to examine the records and papers of the Church.
It appeared that this Church was gathered Dec. 29, 1796, and placed under the pastoral care of the Rev. EBENEZER PRICE, and that he was dismissed Sept. 22, 1802; that the Church then remained without a Pastor until Sept. 25, 1805, when the Rev. ALFRED JOHNSON took the Pastoral charge of it; that he was dismissed Oct. 3, 1813; and that the Church have since that time remained destitute of a Pastor. They have enjoyed at dif- ferent periods the labors of Missionaries, and of others employed occasionally by the Church and Parish. In the autumn of 1817, the Rev. WM. FROTHINGHAM came to this place as a Missionary ; and having preached several months, the Church, on the 7th of May, 1818, gave him a call to become their Pastor. Eager to enjoy the stated ministration of those ordinances of which they had been so long deprived, and presuming from the conversation of Mr. FROTHINGHAM that he maintained, in substance, those doctrines, contained in their Confession and Covenant, usually termed the doctrines of Grace, and which they deemed of vital importance, and wishing to preserve union among the people of the Parish, who had also given him a Call, they were induced to take this step. Some time after this, however, they were led to entertain serious fears that the religious sentiments of Mr. FROTH- INGHAM differed materially from those of the Church; especially in respect to the Trinity and the real Divinity of our Saviour.
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HISTORY OF BELFAST.
They freely made known to him their fears, both verbally and in writing ; he being a part of the time absent from Belfast. But they could not, from his answers, be convinced that their fears were groundless ; his answers being less explicit than they could wish. Being greatly embarrassed as to the path of duty, and strongly desirous of concurring with the wishes of the Parish, so far as they could do it without sacrificing the interests of truth, and still hoping that their fears respecting the sentiments of Mr. FROTHINGHAM might be substantially removed, they resolved, June 11, 1819, to call an Installing Council. They felt that they might with safety and propriety take this step, and submit the question to those in whose judgment they felt disposed to confide. This Council was to consist of nine Churches, six to be selected by this Church, and three by the Rev. Mr. FROTHINGHAM. The six Churches agreed upon by this Church were mostly in the vicinity of Belfast.
By a communication from the Parish committee consisting of eight persons, it appears that, previous to this, the said Parish com- mittee had already, without the voice of the Church, appointed an Installing Council, and prepared letters missive.1
It is true, indeed, that three of this Parish committee were members of the Church. Still, however, the Church had not, as a Church, any voice in selecting and calling this council ; for the members of the Church belonging to the committee were chosen by the Parish, and were, with their associates, obviously and really the committee of the Parish, and, being moreover a mi- nority, must submit, of course, to the majority, who belonged not to the Church, but to the Parish. And, although in consequence of dissatisfaction manifested by the Church, the Parish committee made to them a proposition, which permitted the Church to have a voice in calling the Council, yet this did not satisfy the Church ; as the Church were permitted, according to this proposition, to choose only one fourth of the members of the Council. The Church, feeling grieved and discouraged, abandoned their purpose of sending for the Council, which on the 11th of June they pro- posed to call.
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