USA > Pennsylvania > The Register of Pennsylvania : devoted to the preservation of facts and documents and every other kind of useful information respecting the state of Pennsylvania, Vol. III > Part 94
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Thus situated, far from their native country, having many difficulties to contend with, and by reason of the peculiar institutions of that Church to which they were attached; but little prospect of being able to worship God in the way they had been accustomed, or to receive the ordinances of His House from a ministry which they approved, there was much to discourage immediate ex- ertion. These remarks are not intended, as might per- haps be anticipated, to introduce an apology for their want of zeal, but to set their laudable and pious exer- tion in its true light. Not content to meet together in some place where their small company might be accom- modated and hold religious services, waiting for a favor- able opportunity when their strength would be increa- sed, and a clergyman should come among them; they. resolutely commenced, and before the year 1696 com- pleted a church, which they called Christ Church, on the very site now occupied by the building of the same name. This instance of religious enterprise was very creditable to the first Episcopalians of Philadelphia, and we regret that it is not in our power to record their names. By their means, the foundation of a large and respectable society of Christians was laid at a very ear- ly period, and by their example, the scattered members of the Episcopal Church in the neighboring counties and provinces were excited to a simultaneous effort .- It is peculiarly gratifying to find such a zeal for religion associated with the spirit of enterprise which led these settlers from their native country, and in this respect their conduct is worthy of imitation by all, who in the search of wealth, leave behind them the privileges of the Sanctuary.
We have no information of any circumstances which took place in this infant Church, from the time that VOL. III. 43
Christ Church was built, until the year 1700, when the Rev. Evan Evans was sent to Philadelphia by Bishop Compton, then Bishop of London. It does not appear that Mr. Evans was assisted by the Society for propaga- ting the Gospel in foreign parts, or that the Church in Philadelphia ever received any pecuniary aid from that useful institution. The only help which they derived from the mother country, either in building their Church or supporting their Minister, was a stipend of £50, given by King William, who also made an allow- ance of £30 for a schoolmaster, to be settled in Phila; delphia. The Rev. Mr. Evans continued labouring with great success in Philadelphia and the places adjacent. That zeal for religion which had manifested itself in the city, spread among the neighboring towns, and he found the harvest more abundant than he was able alone to reap. The account of this gentleman's labors happi- ly has been preserved, and as it affords the only infor- mation which we have upon the subject at that early day, it is thought advisable to publish his letter entire.
The following letter was written by Mr. Evans, in London, as appears from its date in the year 1707, whither he had gone to transact some private concerns:
The state of the Church in Pennsylvania, most humbly of- fered to the venerable Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts.
As it was my zeal for God's glory, and the earnest de- sire I had of propagating the Gospel in foreign parts, that were the great motives that engaged me in this mission; so God has been graciously pleased to bless my honest endeavours and labours, this way, with a suitable success in the Church of Philadelphia, in Penn- sylvania. As if this had been the Philadelphia mention- ed in the Revelations, God has, out of the abundance of his goodness hitherto verified that promise made to it. Rev. 3. viii. "Behold! I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it"-For, from a very weak and infant state, it is now exceedingly increased and strengthened by those numbers that have been gained over to it; and from hence the marvellous light of the Gospel has been spread and diffused not only unto the adjacent Churches, but also to som'e of the neighboring provinces; and that Church, which at first seemed to be but a private Conventicle, is now become truly the Catholic Church of those parts.
But though God has thus prospered the affairs of l'is Church in Pennsylvania, yet I am far from arrogating any thing to myself on the account of my performance, for I glory not in any thing but in the Lord: nor can it well be possible that so good a cause should miscarry, when it is promoted and countenanced by a set of such extraordinary men, as the venerable corporation for propagating the Gospel in foreign parts. And here I must humbly crave leave to make the most sincere and grateful acknowledgments to the venerable society, both in behalf of myself and my congregation, for the expense it has been at in paying his majesty's grant of £50 per annum to the Church of Philadelphia and £30 to the school.
Nor must I omit among the number of our benefac- tors the noble and generous Col. Nicholson, who has by his large contributions, and other remarkable instan- ces of his zeal for the glory of God and good of souls,
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shown of what advantage to religion the influence and example of one good man is. But because a more min- ute and particular account of the Church's affairs in I'ennsylvania, and some of the adjacent provinces, may in some respects be useful as well as satisfactory to the venerable society, I will here lay before it all that oc- curs to my memory at this distance, and will show by what steps and method the Church in Philadelphia and the adjacent parts, came to be formed and established as it now is.
To proceed therefore, I was sent over missionary in the year 1700, by the Right Honourable and Right Rev. the Lord Bishop of London, to Philadelphia, in the province of Pennsylvania, where I preached the Gospel, and administered the ordinances of Christ withi equal comfort to myself, as well as advantage to others, and God was in a little time pleased to prosper my labours to that degree, as that I had in less than three years af- ter my arrival, a very numerous congregation, consisting for the most part of persons brought over from the Qua- kers, & other sectaries, to the Church of England. And the true religion (by the frequent resort of persons from re- mote parts to Philadelphia) did so spread, and the num- ber of converts did so increase, that I was obliged to di- vide myself among them as often and as equally as I could, till they were formed into proper districts, and had ministers sent over to them by the vencrable so- ciety.
For this reason I went frequently to Chichester, *which is twenty-five miles ;- Chester or Upland, twenty; Mai- denhead, forty(where I baptized19children at one time); Concord, twenty; Evesham in West Jersey, fifteen; Montgomery, twenty; and Radnor, fifteen miles distant from Philadelphia .- All which, though equally fatigu- ing and expensive, I frequently went to and preached, being by all means determined to lose none of those I had gained, but rather add to them, till the society oth- erwise provided for them.
But Montgomery And Radnor, next to my own belov- ed Philadelphia, had the most considerable share in my labours, where I preached in Welsh once a fortnight for four years, till the arrival of Mr. Nichols, minister of Chester, in 1704. About which time also the Rev. Mr. John Thomas, my late assistant, came for England. By this gentleman's departure, the service of the Church of Philadelphia entirely devolved upon myself in all its parts, so that I was obliged to an uncommon applica- tion and labour in the supply of my cure in all its branches.
While Mr. Thomas continued in Philadelphia, we had an evening lecture twice every month, one prepar- atory to the Holy Sacrament the last Sunday of the month; the other to a society of young men that met to- gether every Lord's Day after evening prayer, to rcad the Seriptures and sing Psalms, and (I being always present at these meetings, unless hindered by the pub- lic services of the Church, or by visiting persons in vio- lent sickness or calamitous circumstances, read some se- lect prayers out of the public Liturgy of the Church, al- ways beginning with this collect "Prevent us, O Lord! in all our doings," &c. and concluding with the Bene- diction) carried them with me to the Church when Mr. Thomas read and I preached upon subjects suitable to the occasion; particularly I insisted upon those texts, "Rejoice, O young man," &c. "Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse," &c. And we discovered a visible benefit from these evening lectures ;- for those Quakers that dared not appear in the day at the public service of the Church, for fear of disobliging their parents or mas- ters, would stand under the Church windows at night, till many of them plucked up so much courage as to come to the Church itself, and at last by the blessing of God upon the word preached, submitted to the holy ordinance of Baptism, and continue steadfast in the com- munion of the Church of England. And here, after
what I have said concerning the benefit of those sem'- monthly evening lectures, and the number of converts, and the extent of my district, and the great work that in all respects lies on my hands, it might be expected that I should say something concerning the necessity and use- fulness of an assistant to me in the discharge of my du- ty. But when I consider the danger that may arise from having two ministers in one Church, especially where there is not a Bishop to whom both parties may speedily resort, and be concluded by; and how apt some young missionaries are to run into factions, and to vie with those to whom they should on all accounts pay a just regard and deference, of which there has been a late unhappy instance in those parts, I cannot bring myself to entertain a thought of this kind till a Bishop, or at . least a Suffragan be established or settled in those parts. For the peace and unity of any Church is too valuable a blessing to be easily or slightly parted with; and if divi- sions of this kind should happen, which may easily enough fall out, in a Church where all its ministers are yet upon a level, and not the least shew or shadow of authority to restrain or keep them within bounds, how inconsiderable would all those other advantages be, that may be reaped from an assistant, though he preach and acquit himself like an angel in all the other parts of his function. As for the number of adult persons and children I baptized during my mission, I take them by a modest computation to amount to seven hundred and fifty, or rather eight hundred in Philadelphia and in all the forenamed places. The Welsh at Radnor and Me- rioneth, in the province of Pennsylvania, had addressed my Lord of London, having a hundred hands to their petition, for a minister to be settled amongst them that understands the British language, there being many an- cient people among those inhabitants that do not under- stand the English; and could a sober and discreet man be procured to undertake that mission, he might be ca- pable, by the blessing of God, to bring in a plentiful harvest of Welsh Quakers, that were originally bred in the Church of England, but were unhappily perverted before any minister in holy orders, that could preach to them in their own language, was sent into Pennsylva- nia, but I believe they are not irrecoverable had they an itinerant missionary who would use application and dil- gence to introduce them to the communion of the Church.
There is another Welsh settlement called Montgom- ery, in the county of Philadelphia, twenty miles distant from the city, where there are considerable numbers of Welsh people. formerly in their native country of the communion of the Church of England; but about the year 1698, two years before my arrival in that country, most of them joined with the Quakers, but by God's blessing some of them were induced to return, and I have bapti- zed their children and preached often to them, espe- cially while my late assistant, Mr. Thomas continued with me.
I visited them since, and prevailed upon them to meet every Lord's Day, about forty in number, where one that can understand the language well. and is a sober, discreet man, reads the prayers of the Church, the pro- per psalms and lessons, omitting the absolution, &c. what properly belongs to the priest's office, and then reads some portion in a book of devotion to the people. I met with several good books translated into the Welsh language among my country people, particularly the Whole Duty of Man, in Welsh, and the Practice of Pie- ty. As for the Christian Monitor, Dorrington's Family Guide to the Lord's Supper, the Advice of a Minister to his Parishioners-all in Welsh, what I received, were faithfully disposed, but were so few, that a greater num- ber is still much wanting.
There is a Welsh settlement between Appoquinimy and New Castle, to which the Rev. Mr. George Ross has preached frequently in the English tongue since his arrival; but that gentleman not understanding their na- tive language, is not so capable to answer the end as
*Now Marcus Hook.
1829.]
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the Rev. Mr. Jenkins would be, who is going missiona- ary to Appoquinimy, who has a competent knowledge in the Welsh tongue; and if the most honorable society would be pleased to give it him in charge to visit those people as often as may be, it would be a means by God's help, to keep those in the communion of the Church that are already joined with it, and to induce others that have been seduced.
There is a large and fine structure built for divine ser- vice at Newcastle, forty miles from Philadelphia, fin- ished within and without, where I preached in the be- ginning of December last, and found a considerable con- gregation, considering the generality of the people were gained over from other persuasions. Their minister, the Rev. Mr. George Ross, is esteemed a person that is ingenious and well learned, as well as sober and pru- dent, and I doubt not, but by the blessing of God, upon his good endeavors, the Church of New Castle will con- tinue to increase.
In Chester, twenty miles from Philadelphia, upon Delaware river, they have a good Church, built with brick and finished, where Mr. Henry Nichols is minis- ter. I preached in the middle of December last in that Church, to a congregation consisting of about one hun- dred and fifty; but when I preached the summer be- fore, I found a more numerous congregation. Our win- ters being severe in those parts, detain many from Church whose plantations lie at a distance, and for that reason Mr. Nichols preaches sometimes at Concord in the week days.
Trinity Church, in Oxford township, lies in the coun- ty of Philadelphia, nine miles from the city, where. for the first four years after my arrival in Philadelphia, { frequently preached and administered both the Sacra- ments, and had, when I preached last in it about one hundred and forty people; most of the people brought over to the Church of England from Quakers, Anabap- tists, and other persuasions.
I should now put an end to my memorial, were it not that the want of a Bishop amongst us cannot be passed over in silence; 'tis a dismal thing, to consider how much the want of one has retarded the progress of the true religion in America. The Spaniards were, in the beginning of their settlements in these Indies, sensible of these disadvantages, and therefore they wisely reme- died any inconveniences that might happen on this score, by erecting several Bishoprics in their dominions in that part of the world; and why we should not copy after them, especially in so useful and necessary a point, I do not understand, since what is good for them in this respect cannot be bad for us. Fas est etiam ab hoste do- ceri. It can be no shame for us to imitate their pru- dence and conduct, and on this occasion; and though we had no such instance or example to direct or influence in an affair of this kind, yet the evident necessity of the thing itself loudly calls for supply and relief. I will on- ly mention a few things, which point at this defect, and then the venerable society will judge whether the Eng- lish Americans have not reason to press for and demand the constant residence of a mitred head among them. I take it for granted, that the ends of the mission can nev- er be rightly answered without establishing the disci- pline as well as the doctrine of the Church of England in those parts; for the one is a fortress and bulwark of defence to the other, and once the outworks of religion come to be slighted and dismantled, it is easy to fore- see, without the spirit of prophecy, what the conse- quence will be. As to a ready and constant supply of ministers or missionaries, which is of the last conse- quence to the well being of the American Churches, this can never be hoped for, without a resident Bishop among them, to whom upon the death, or notorious and scandalous immorality of any clergyman, application may in a little time be made. And the wants of each cure may be supplied by his ordaining such persons as shall be found capable of labouring in God's vineyard; such I presume a resident Bishop would seldom or nev-
er want there. For to establish a Bishopric, would be in effect the establishing a College in those parts, or at least it would draw many of our young students thither, from Great Britain and Ireland, in hopes both of ordina- tion and preferment, whereas by sending to Great Bri- tain a vast deal of time is lost; nor can the true state of ecclesiastical things or persons be ever so well known as by a Bishop who lived upon the spot, and who conse- quently can Dest see into all the secret causes and springs of things.
Secondly,-A Bishop is absolutely necessary to pre- side over the American clergy, and to oblige them to do their duty, and to live in peace and unity one with anoth- er. The missionaries of America are like other men, and they may sometimes fall out and differ among them- selves, and give great offence through their unnecessary heats and anunosities to the people. The contention be- tween Paul and Barnabas was so sharp, and grew so high, that they fell out and parted upon it; and can we think that the American missionaries are better armed, or less exposed to accidents of this kind than those two great and holy men were. And if this should be the case of the American missionary, as it has sometimes been, how fatal must the consequence of such an unhappy strife and contention be, where there is no superior to control them, or to take a cognizance of any affair of this kind into his hands; religion in this case must bleed and fall a victim to the factions and unruly humors of a few turbulent and indiscreet persons; nor indeed, humanly . speaking, is it possible it should be otherwise. When there was no king in Israel, the children of Israel did that which was right in their own eyes, and can it be ex- pected that it will be otherwise with the clergy of Amer- ica, where there is no Bishop to put a stop to their ca- reer, or to keep them within those bounds of decency, respect, and mutual forbearance, which they so much owe to one another. Wheresoever Presbytery is estab- lished, there they have the face and appearance of an ecclesiastical jurisdiction and authority after their way to resort to, upon all occasions. But our clergy in A- merica are left destitute of any advantages of this kind, and are exposed to the mercy of their own very often unreasonable passions and appetites, which are by ma- ny degrces the worst masters they can truckle under.
I will only in the third place mention the disadvanta- ges the laity lie under for want of a Bishop, and put an end to this tedious memorial. The ministers' subsistence and livelihood being in all places in America more or less depending upon the bounty of the people by con- tributions and acts of assembly, it is a difficult matter for them, without the countenance and authority of a Bish- op, to put a stop to the profaneness and immorality of their several parishioners, for to touch the more topping and considerable men of them either in public or pri- vate, is to draw the fury of the whole congregation up- on the missionary, and to deprive himself of the salary or maintenance which he has from them. It were to be wished that the clergy's salaries and maintenances in America were settled and adjusted by act of Parlia- ment in Great Britain, and then they would be the more bold and resolute in doing their duty: but as bad as things are in this respect, yet a Bishop would to a great degree remedy all inconveniences of this kind; for if the missionary either could not or durst not do his du- ty, then the Bishop would; and the laity would in a lit- tle time be brought to pay a greater regard to their spir- itual guides, and then they would by degrees submit to Church discipline, and censures, without which, though a Church may be planted and gathered, yet it can nev- er be of any long growth or continuance. But now nothing of this kind is heard of or attempted there, and men commit adultery, polygamy, incest, and a thousand other crimes, of which the minister can hardly admon- ish them in private, without manifest hazard and disad- vantage to himseif, because there is no ecclesiastical ju- risdiction established in those parts, and though there were, there are no laws in being, which make the in-
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habitants of those countries liable and obnoxious to it. No statute of the 23 H. VIII .; no writ de excommunica- to capiendo, to oblige spiritual delinquents to submit to the censures of the Church for the good of their own souls. Add to this, that the want of a Bishop to con- firm in those parts, is a great trouble to the American clergy, for they are bound by the rubrick not to admin- ister the sacrament of the Lord's Supper but to such as are confirmed, which prohibition notwithstanding they are forced to break through in this case of necessity.
Many other reasons may be assigned for the erecting a Bishopric in the English America. But Iam afraid I have trespassed already too much on the venerable society'spa- tience; nor should I have presumed to have mentioned any thing of this kind, but that the necessities of the Church in foreign parts are so pressing, that it was not possible for me to avoid giving this short hint (which I do with the most profound humility and submission) without incurring the sin of concealing that which I know to be necessary to the good of the Church, and so agreeable to the desires of all the poor clergymen and protestants of America, as easily appears by the several addresses which have been made on this ac- count: but as for the way or method of erecting aBishop- ric in those parts, the venerable society is the best judge of that, to whose most pious prudent care and conduct I humbly submit and leave it, and do most earnestly be- seech God to bless and preserve this venerable society in all its religious and charitable undertakings.
I have been concerned in this mission above seven years, and do want, by God's grace, to spend more of my time and pains in the propagation of the Gospel in those parts.
London, 18th Sept. 1707.
When the Rev. Mr. Evans wrote this letter, he was in England, where he was detained a short time attend- ing to his own private business. During his absence from Philadelphia, Christ Church was supplied by the Rev. Mr. Rudman, a worthy Swedish clergymen, who had officiated among his countrymen in these parts for several years. At what time Mr. Evans returned, we are not informed. In all probability during the year 1707, or the beginning of 1708; when he continued to officiate in his former cure, and was as before very dili- gent in the discharge of its arduous duties. He preach- ed occasionally at Hopewell, in West Jersey, a Church at that time in a flourishing condition, but which since then has languished for want of attention. Mr. E. also frequently visited Apoquinomy, 65 miles distant from Philadelphia, and a new settlement called Parkeomen, situated on the river Schuylkill. In the latter place, many persons became attached to the Episcopal Church, were baptized, and admitted to her communion.
About the year 1715, Mr. Evans returned to Eng- land, and it would appear without any expectation of again visiting this country. Such, however, was his zeal for the propagation of the Gospel, and so ardent'y was he devoted to the service of his Master, that in the following year, he petitioned the society in England for permission again to go to America in its service. The Church in Philadelphia was either supplied at this time, or expecting a supply from some other quarter, and Mr. E. was appointed to the cure of Oxford and Rad- nor, two Welsh settlements at that time vacant. He came over in the year 1716, and took charge of his two parishes: where, however, it appears he remained but a short time; for in 1717, in the month of April, he was again the minister of Christ Church in Philadelphia.
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