USA > New Jersey > Memorials of Methodism in New Jersey : from the foundation of the first society in the state in 1770, to the completion of the first twenty years of its history > Part 10
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23
186
MEMORIALS OF METHODISM IN NEW JERSEY.
disregard the reproaches of the unrighteous, and with resignation and patience bear whatever cross God in his good providence may suffer to be laid upon us.
" You mention you have lately had some severe conflicts with the powers of darkness, and who is without such trials among the righteous ? But, happily, you have been preserved from destruction ; you have experienced the all-sufficiency of the grace of God for your comfort and safety. I praise the Lord that he hath been a 'present help to you in time of trouble.' Doubtless in future you will hereby be emboldened, whatever tempta- tions or afflictions you may be exercised with, to 'trust in the Lord Jehovah,' as 'in him there is everlasting strength.' And for your peace and safety, in time to come, you will, I conclude, if possible, be more observ- ant of the apostolic injunction, to ' quench not the Spirit, and to pray without ceasing.' Our security and joy de- pend much on our duty regarding these words of wisdom and friendship of St. Paul.
" May God, in his mercy, grant that both of us may be more circumspect in all our ways ; 'redeem the time' we may yet be favored with ; enjoy much of the Divine presence ; glorify the Almighty on earth and be glorified by him in heaven.
"Heaven ! Pleasing word ! Blessed place ! The habitation of the righteous. Though we meet not again
187
DAWNING OF BRIGHTER DAYS.
here, there, even there, I trust we shall embrace each other never more to part. Delightful idea ! Let it so- lace the soul. Let it give us that happiness we are de- prived of through our separation from each other.
"I do not regret the countenance I have shown the Methodists; nor shall I cease to be friendly towards them, as I am persuaded they are instrumental in advancing the divine glory, and the salvation of man- kind.
"I have not yet received the pamphlet written by Rev. Mr. Knox, though I expect to be favored with it by Mr. Roe in a few days.
" Ever shall I be happy to hear from you, and with punctuality and pleasure answer your letters. Believe me to be,
" Dear Sir, " Your sincere friend,
" And very humble servant, " UZAL OGDEN."
As the above letter was written in reply to one from Mr. Mair, and as it touches some points of personal ex- perience of which he evidently had spoken in his letter, it gives us a glimpse of his interior life ; slight indeed, yet interesting to such as cherish the memorials of the Methodist heroes of the olden time.
188
MEMORIALS OF METHODISM IN NEW JERSEY.
In 1784 Mr. Mair was appointed to Caroline, Md., and before the next Conference he had finished his labors and departed to his rest. He was a man of affliction, but possessed a clear understanding and a very patient and resigned spirit.
189
THE WORK AND LABORERS IN 1781.
CHAPTER IX.
THE WORK AND LABORERS IN 1781.
THE Conference of 1781 was held at Choptank, Dela- ware, the 16th of April, and adjourned to Baltimore the 24th of the same month. Several preachers from Vir- ginia and North Carolina attended, and "all but one," says Asbury, "agreed to return to the old plan, and give up the administration of the ordinances : our troubles now seem over from that quarter; and there appears to to be a considerable change in the preachers from North to South ; all was conducted in peace and love."
At this Conference New Jersey was again divided into two circuits, which were called West and East Jersey. Caleb B. Pedicord and Joseph Cromwell were appointed to the former, and James O. Cromwell and Henry Met- calf to the latter. The preachers appear to have re- mained on their circuits only half the year ; as in No- vember, Joseph Everett was sent by Bishop Asbury to travel in West Jersey with James O. Cromwell. It is 12
190
MEMORIALS OF METHODISM IN NEW JERSEY.
probable that Pedicord went to the East Jersey circuit at that time, and labored there in the place of Cromwell. Everett speaks kindly of his colleague, and says that his own labors were blessed in the conversion of many souls. "In the West Jersey," he says, "I was opposed by the Baptists and beset by Lutherans. They would have put a period to my life, but my Master had more work for me to do."
Among the events of importance to the Church this year was the conversion of THOMAS WARE. He was a native Jerseyman, brought up in the Calvinistic faith, and was a revolutionary patriot. He was one of the nine thousand who were quartered at Perth Amboy in 1776.
When he heard of the brilliant victory at Trenton he felt assured that the liberties of his country were safe, but he soon felt the necessity of a higher liberty-a freedom from the bondage of sin and death. But his mind was confused by the religious opinions he had been taught in his childhood, and unable to solve satisfactorily the great questions concerning God and destiny that struggled within him, he became dejected in spirit and wandered for some time in the mazes of doubt, knowing not where he should find rest to his soul.
At length he fell into a project of going to sea. The brig was about to sail, and "impatient," he says, "for
191
THE WORK AND LABORERS IN 1781.
the hour to arrive when I was to enter upon an enter- prise on which I was fully bent, I wandered to a neighboring grove, not merely to indulge in reverie, but to think more minutely on the subject of our adventure than I had before done. While I was laboring to find arguments to justify the course I was about to pursue, a stranger passed me, though I was so merged in the thicket that he did not see me. As he was going by, he began to sing the following lines :-
' Still out of the deepest abyss Of trouble, I mournfully cry, And pine to recover my peace, To see my Redeemer and die.
I cannot, I cannot forbear These passionate longings for home. Oh ! when shall my spirit be there ? Oh ! when will the messenger come ?'
As he walked his horse slowly I heard every word dis- tinctly, and was deeply touched, not only with the melody of his voice which was among the best I ever heard, but with the words, and especially the couplet,-
' I cannot, I cannot forbear These passionate longings for home.'
" After he ceased I went out and followed him a great
192
MEMORIALS OF METHODISM IN NEW JERSEY.
distance, hoping he would begin again. He, however, stopped at the house of a Methodist and dismounted. I then concluded he must be a Methodist preacher, and would probably preach that evening. I felt a wish to hear; but thought I could not in consequence of a pre- vious engagement.
" As yet I knew very little of the Methodists. My mother, who was strongly prejudiced against them, charged me to refrain from going after them ; and I had heard many things said against them, especially that they were disaffected against their country. There was one Methodist in town, however, to whom I was under some obligation. This good man had noticed me; and suspecting that I was under some religious impressions, he came and told me that Mr. Pedicord, a most excellent preacher, had come into the place, and would preach that night, and he very much wished me to hear him. I told him I presumed I had seen the preacher, and men- tioned the lines I had heard him sing in the road. On inquiring of him if he knew such a hymn, he replied that he did very well, and immediately commenced and sung it to the same tune; and, as he was an excellent singer, I was deeply affected, even to tears. I told him I would be glad to hear Mr. Pedicord, and probably should hear a part of the sermon, and possibly the whole, if it were not too long. I accordingly went, and was there when
193
THE WORK AND LABORERS IN 1781.
the preacher commenced his service. I thought he sung and prayed delightfully. His text was taken from the 24th chapter of Luke: 'Then opened he their under- standing, that they might understand the Scriptures. And he said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day, that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.' Soon was I convinced that all men were redeemed and might be saved-and saved now from the guilt, practice, and love of sin. With this I was greatly affected, and could hardly refrain from ex- claiming aloud, 'This is the best intelligence I ever heard.' When the meeting closed, I hastened to my lodgings, retired to my room, fell upon my knees before God, and spent much of the night in penitential tears. I did not once think of my engagement with my sea- bound companions until the next day, when I went and told the young man who had induced me to enlist into the project that I had abandoned all thoughts of going to sea. They, however, proceeded in their perilous un- dertaking, were betrayed, their officers thrown into prison, and the brig and cargo confiscated. When I heard of this I praised the Lord for my deliverance from this danger and infamy, which I considered worse than death.
194
MEMORIALS OF METHODISM IN NEW JERSEY.
"I now gave up the study of navigation, and aban- doned all company but that of the pious. The New Testament I read over and over, and was charmed with the character of God our Saviour, as revealed in it ; and I esteemed reproach, for his sake, more desirable than all earthly treasure."
Having experienced the blessing of pardon, Mr. Ware became at once a zealous laborer in the cause he had es- poused. He traveled sixty miles to see an unconverted sister and to tell her what the Lord had done for him. In his first interview with her she became convinced of the necessity of religion, and never afterward rested un- til she obtained it.
Mount Holly was the place of his spiritual birth, "and on that account," he says, "it has ever been to me the most lovely spot I ever saw, not even excepting Greenwich, the place of my nativity. I was here in former years as a soldier, on my way to the army, and this was my retreat when, in a state of melancholy bor- dering on despair, I sought concealment. Here, now, while the joyous villagers sought me in vain on the play- ful green, I passed the solemn twilight in audience with my God. Here, too, I had spent the live-long day in fasting and melting thoughts on Calvary, agitated with petrifying fears and gloomy horrors ; sometimes imagin- ing sounds of ominous import, as though the mountain
195
THE WORK AND LABORERS IN 1781.
tops had become the rendezvous of fiends or beasts of prey. But when the disquietude of my mind was allayed by the peaceful enjoyment of the grace of life, I no longer sought concealment; and it was strange to see with what amazement many listened while I told them what the Lord had done for me. Some wept bitterly, confessed their ignorance of such a state and pronounced me happy ; while others thought me mad, and on the Methodists, not on me, laid all the blame of what they conceived to be my derangement."
He was soon elevated to the leadership of a class and exercised his gift of exhortation. Many of his brethren entertained the opinion that he ought to preach, and ex- pressed to him their views respecting the matter. "But I believed them not," he says. " The affectionate solic- itude I felt for the salvation of sinners, which had prompted me to some bold acts that I had performed from a sense of duty, I did not construe as a call to the ministry, but as a collateral evidence of my adoption into the family of God. That a knowledge of the learned languages was essential to qualify a man to preach the gospel, as many seemed to think, I did not be- lieve, for some of the best preachers I ever heard had it not ; but they had other qualifications-a good natural understanding and discriminating powers, which fall not to the common lot of men, however pious and learned
196
MEMORIALS OF METHODISM IN NEW JERSEY.
they may be. When my feelings were moved on the subject of religion and the salvation of souls, I could talk somewhat readily; and I sometimes had the elo- quence of tears. My capacity and knowledge were, in my own estimation, too limited ever to think of being a preacher. I was a leader and an exhorter; and more than these I never expected to be.
"Such were my views and feelings when Bishop As- bury came to New Mills, about seven miles from Mount Holly, and sent for me to come and see him. I had not been introduced to him, nor did he previously know me. On entering his room, he fixed his discriminating eye upon me, and seemed to be examining me from head to foot as I approached him. He reached me his hand, and said, 'This, I suppose, is brother Ware, or shall I say Pedicord the younger ?' I replied, ' My name is Ware, sir, and I claim some affinity to the Wesleyan family, and Mr. Pedicord as my spiritual father.' 'You then revere the father of the Methodists ?' said he. 'I do,' I replied, 'greatly ; the first time I heard his name men- tioned, it was said of himn, by way of reproach, that he had brought shame upon the Christian world by preach- ing up free will. Free will, said I, and what would you have him preach ?- bound will ? He might as well go with St. Patrick and preach to the fish, as preach to men without a will. From that time, I resolved to hear the
197
THE WORK AND LABORERS IN 1781.
Methodists, against whom I had been so much preju- diced.'
"'Sit down,' said Mr. Asbury, 'I have somewhat to say unto thee. Have all men since the fall been pos- sessed of free will ?' I replied that I considered they had, since the promise made to Adam, that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head. 'Can man, then, turn himself and live ?' said he. 'So thought Ezekiel,' I replied, 'when he said, Turn yourselves and live,' remarking, as I understood it, that he can receive the testimony which God has given of his Son; and thus, through grace, receive power to become a child of God. 'Are all men accountable to God ?' he still fur- ther inquired. I replied, 'The almighty Jesus says, " Behold I come quickly, and my reward is with me, to give to every man according as his works shall be."' ' On what do you found the doctrine of universal ac- countability ?' he added. 'On the doctrine of universal grace-" The grace of God which bringeth salvation hath appeared unto all men,"' &c., was my reply.
" He then looked at me very sternly, and said, ' What is this I hear of you ? It is said you have disturbed the peaceful inhabitants of Holly, by rudely entering into a house where a large number of young people were as- sembled for innocent amusement, and when welcomed by the company and politely invited to be seated, you re-
198
MEMORIALS OF METHODISM IN NEW JERSEY.
fused, and proceeded to address them in such a way that some became alarmed and withdrew, and the rest soon followed.' To this I answered, 'My zeal in this affair may have carried me too far. But I knew them to be generally my friends and well-wishers, and felt to do as the man out of whom Christ cast a legion of devils was directed, namely, to go and show my friends how great things God had done for me. It is true, when I entered the room, some appeared delighted to see me, and heartily welcomed me; but those who knew me best ap- peared sad. And when invited to take a glass and be seated, I told them I must be excused, for I had not come to spend the evening with them, but to invite them to spend it with me. "You know me," I said, " and how delighted I have often been in your company, and with the amusements in which you have met to indulge. But I cannot now go with you. My conscience will not permit me to do so. But as none of your consciences, I am persuaded, forbid your going with me, I have come to invite you to go with me and hear the excellent Mr. Pedicord preach his farewell sermon. Pardon me, my friends, I am constrained to tell you the Lord has done great things for me through the instrumentality of this good man." The circle was not very large. Not a word of reply was made to what I said. Some were af- fected and soon left after I withdrew. It is true some
199
THE WORK AND LABORERS IN 1781.
of the citizens were offended, and said it was too much that the Methodists should give tone to the town. "Must the youth of Mount Holly," said they, "ask leave of the Methodists if they would spend an evening together in innocent amusement ?" Others said, "The young man must have acted from a Divine impulse or he could not have done it, as he is naturally diffident and unas- suming." But I never knew that any one of the party was offended.'
" Bishop Asbury listened to this simple explanation of the matter attentively, but without relaxing the stern- ness of his look, or making any reply to it. He then branched off to another subject. 'Was it not bold and adventurous,' said he, 'for so young a Methodist to fill, for a whole week, without license or consultation, the appointments of such a preacher as George Mair?' I replied that Mr. Mair was suddenly called from the cir- cuit by sickness in his family, and I saw that he was deeply afflicted, not only on account of the distress his family were suffering, but, especially, because of the dis- appointments it must occasion on a part of the circuit where there was a good work going on; that some of these appointments were new, and there was no one to hold any meeting with the people whatever; that I was therefore induced, soon after he was gone, to resolve on going to some of these places and telling those who
200
MEMORIALS OF METHODISM IN NEW JERSEY.
might come out the cause of the preacher's absence ; and that if I was sometimes constrained to exhort these peo- ple without a formal license, it was with fear and trem- bling, and generally very short, unless when the tears of the people caused me to forget that I was on unau- thorized ground.
" He still said nothing, either by way of reproof or commendation, more than the manner of his introducing the subjects might seem to imply. And being under an impression that his remarks were designed to mortify me for my course in the matter of the ball, and in taking the circuit in the absence of Mr. Mair, I said, 'Mr. Asbury, if the person who informed you against me had told me of my errors, I would have acknowledged them.' Here he stopped me by clasping me in his arms, and saying in an affectionate tone, 'You are altogether mistaken, my son,-it was your friend Pedicord who told me of your pious deeds, and advised that you should be sent to Dover circuit, which had but one preacher on it ;' that I could tell the people if I pleased, that I did not come in the capacity of a preacher but only to assist in keep- ing up the appointments until another could be sent, and that he would give me a testimonial to introduce me. But if they did not cordially receive me, he said, I might re- turn, and he would see me and compensate me for my time and expenses."
201
THE WORK AND LABORERS IN 1781.
Being thus appealed to, he felt that he could not well decline entering upon the work. He therefore promised Asbury that, if he insisted upon it, he would go to the circuit and assist in keeping up the appointments until a preacher could be sent who might perform the regular work of a minister. Accordingly in the early part of September, 1783, he "with a very heavy heart," set his face towards the Peninsula, and, having reached his cir- cuit, was welcomed by the people, and labored with sat- isfaction and success among them. Thus was thrust into the vineyard that devoted and successful laborer, who for more than half a century ceased not to declare the whole counsel of God, and who having fought the good fight, finished his course with joy; while the benedictions of the Church, which had grown to such magnitude and strength during his period of service, attended his spirit in its triumphal passage to heaven.
CALEB B. PEDICORD was one of the serenest and most beautiful lights that has ever adorned the firmament of Methodism. He was a man of great sweetness of spirit and of unquestioned holiness. His devotion to the work of God was intense and absorbing, and neither the en- ticements nor the persecutions of the world had any power to move him from the post of duty. There he firmly stood and bravely fought, until he victoriously laid down his armor for the crown and exaltation of a Chris-
202
MEMORIALS OF METHODISM IN NEW JERSEY.
tian conqueror. In common with the Methodist min- isters of his day he was subjected to hardship and perse- cution. He was once beaten upon his horse, in Mary- land, by a shameless persecutor, and the scars he re- ceived he carried to his grave.
One of the greatest obstacles which beset the early ministry of Methodism was the ignorance of the people respecting spiritual things. Many who had the form of godliness had no conception whatever of the deep expe- riences of a spiritual life. A lady in Maryland, who had been a very strict Church woman, and had observed the Sabbath and catechized her children, became convicted of sin, and so deep did her distress become that she be- took herself to her bed, not knowing what was the mat- ter. Pedicord visited her. He understood her case, and with his sweetly pathetic voice he spoke to her of the great Physician who had an infallible remedy for her anguish and sorrow. She looked to Him, believed, and her wounded spirit was made whole. That lady was the mother of the late venerated William Ryder of the Philadelphia Conference .*
To manifest strong religious emotions, or to give ex- pression to the heart's gratitude and joy in exclama- tions of praise, was considered, at that time, by many, an evidence either of fanaticism or of mental aberration.
* Christian Advocate and Journal., May 12, 1837.
1
203
THE WORK AND LABORERS IN 1781.
A lady in the eastern part of New Jersey who was awakened under the ministry of Pedicord in 1782, ob- tained the knowledge of salvation by the remission of sins, and so great was her joy that she shouted aloud her Saviour's praise. The people were startled. They con- cluded she must be insane. Her father, who had previ- ously joined the society, was sent for, and on arriving he discovered the cause of her ecstatic expressions, which was simply the manifestation of God to her soul. Instead of participating in the alarm, or making an ef- fort to suppress her shouting, he said he wished all pre- sent could feel as she felt. That it was not an evanes- cent emotion was proved by a subsequent life of devo- tion, extending over half a century. When she came down to the verge of Jordan, she exclaimed, "I am go- ing home where pain and sickness never come," and passed over to the eternal shores. Thus in thousands of cases has it been demonstrated by holy and useful lives, and peaceful and victorious deaths, that the deep emo- tions and hearty exclamations which have been peculiarly characteristic of Methodists are not always empty cant, but are the result of " an unction from the Holy One."
That the Divine Being exercises a special providence over those that love Him is not only clearly taught in the Scriptures, but is also strikingly illustrated some- times in the lives of his people. An escape quite as
204
MEMORIALS OF METHODISM IN NEW JERSEY.
providential, apparently, as that of John Wesley from the burning rectory, is recorded of Pedicord. The fact is thus given by Asbury : " A remarkable instance oc- curred of the watchful care of God over his people. Mr. Pedicord went to bed, but could not sleep, though he tried again and again. At last he was obliged to rise ; and going down stairs with the man of the house, he found the house on fire." That unwelcome and sin- gular unrest was the means, it may be, of saving his own and others' lives.
Though Mr. Pedicord was appointed to West Jersey, he seems to have labored in the interior and also in the eastern part of the State. He must therefore have been abundant in labors as well as usefulness. The fruit of his ministry that year was visible in New Jersey for at least half a century after he had passed to his reward, and the effects of his labors are probably felt to this day.
We have spoken of his devotion to the cause of his Master. A passage from the Life of Abbott will show with what weight that cause pressed upon his heart. "I removed," says Abbott, "to Lower Penn's Neck with my family, where I found a set of as hardened sinners as were out of hell. I preached again and again, and all to no purpose. Brother Pedicord and brother Metcalf came to my house, and I told them that I was almost
205
THE WORK AND LABORERS IN 1781.
discouraged. When they heard it they were so dis- tressed that they could not eat breakfast, but retired to their room where they remained until about one or two o'clock. When they came down stairs brother P. said, ' Father Abbott, do not be discouraged; these people will yet hunger and thirst after the word of God,' and appeared cheerful. In the evening he preached to the neighbors, and next day they went on their circuits."
While Pedicord was in New Jersey, a desperado and tory of the name of Molliner, who, with his gang of confederates, had committed great ravages in their work of plunder along the Atlantic counties, was arrested and brought to justice at Burlington. His imprisonment lasted but six weeks, during which time he was tried, convicted, and sentenced to die. Though so desperate a sinner, Pedicord and his colleague visited his cell in con- nection with William Budd, a local preacher from New Mills, for the purpose of bearing to him salvation through the Crucified. They told him of Jesus and his cross, and of his power and willingness to save the chief of sinners. He heard their words. He looked to the Lamb of God. He flung his trembling spirit, so deeply stained with guilt, into the fountain that was opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. He rose, as those preachers testified, a regenerated, saved man.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.