USA > Virginia > A history of Virginia : from its discovery and settlement by Europeans to the present time. Vol. II > Part 11
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a Semple's Virginia Baptists, page
b Rev. J. B. Taylor's Lives of Va. Bap. Preachers, 29.
5.
1
165
THEIR RAPID PROGRESS.
1761.]
ing Colony ; dreams often pictured to him immense congregations there hanging upon his words, and in his sleep he was sometimes heard by his family to cry out " O Virginia, Virginia, Virginia !" At this juncture he was visited by Samuel Harriss and three others, urging him to come to Orange County, and preach the Gospel. Faith, whether misguided or otherwise, found in this message a resemblance to the call of Peter from Joppa to Cesarea;ª he obeyed the summons, and although uneducated, his zeal seems to have supplied the want both of learning and prudence.
Whatever view we may take of the above case, and of similar accounts from others, it is certain that the Baptists increased rapidly in numbers and power in the Province. Fervent decla- mation distinguished them; the prominent mo- tives of the Gospel were presented in language made strong by its earnestness ; the joys of heaven and the torments of hell were opened to the eyes of the hearers, and men were urged to immediate re- pentance, faith, and baptism. The practice of im- mersion forcibly addressed the senses, and gave something more substantial upon which to dwell than the simple rite of other churches. The people heard the Baptists gladly ; day after day added fresh accessions, and it was apparent that they could no longer be without weight in the counsels of the Colony.
a Acts, chap. x. See the account irregular. Taylor's Lives of Va. in Semple, page 9. Mr. Read's Bap. Preachers, 24, 25. course was afterwards somewhat
166
EPISCOPAL OPPOSITION.
[CHAP. III.
Their beginnings may have been seen with in- difference by Churchmen, but, as they grew, this apathy was disturbed, and at length was converted into stern opposition. At first it was hoped they might be conquered by the weapons of argument ; the rectors of parishes began to preach against them, and Episcopal disputants sometimes attended their meetings and opened controversy. They argued that the new sect were followers of the Anabaptists of Germany, whose horrible excesses in Munster, and other places, had made their name odious throughout Christendom.ª They urged that the Baptists were novel, both in their doctrines and their origin ; they were rude and unlearned, and so inca- pable of understanding church order; that they operated only on the lower classes of society; that they disturbed the peace of the Establishment which had so long existed ; and that they were wolves in sheep's clothing, coming in humble garb for pur- poses of violence. But the Baptists were ready to render a reason for their course. They utterly dis- claimed connexion with the Anabaptists, whom they resembled in nothing save in the mode of ad- ministering baptism; they declared that their doc- trines were not novel, but were found in the Word of God; they admitted that they were unlearned, but urged that so were the early disciples of Christ, who received from him authority to preach; they gloried in proclaiming the Gospel to the ignorant and the poor; and declared that if they disturbed the calm of the Establishment, it was a deathlike
a For an account of these fanatics, 303; Mosheim's Eccl. Hist., iii. 58, see Robertson's Charles V., ii. 295- 140, McLaine's Trans.
167
PERSECUTION.
1768.]
lethargy, which ought to be broken ; and, finally, they asked, why, if they were really wolves in dis- guise, were they so grievously hunted and trodden down by the true sheep of the fold ?a
Finding that argument availed them little, the friends of Episcopacy drew the sword of persecu- tion. It is believed that at this period no express statute of Virginia authorized the imprisonment of any man for preaching without being ordained, or being licensed according to the Act of Toleration ; but pretexts have never been wanting for religious cruelty. In June, 1768, John Waller, Lewis Craig, and James Childs, all zealous Baptists, were seized by the sheriff in the county of Spottsylvania, and carried before three magistrates, who stood ready in the yard of the meeting-house. The victims were bound over to appear at court two. days after- wards, and when they appeared accordingly, they were told they should be released if they would promise to preach no more in the county for a year and a day. This they positively refused to do, and they were immediately ordered to jail. As they passed through the streets of Fredericksburg, they sang in solemn concert the hymn beginning "Broad is the road that leads to death." The people lis- tened in awe, and sympathy began to move many hearts, in view of persecution.b
a Semple's Virg. Baptists, 20, 21. " May it please your worships, these b Ibid. page 15. The true offence of these men was disclosed by a cer- tain lawyer of the court, who " ve- men are great disturbers of the peace ; they cannot meet a man upon the road, but they must ram a text of hemently accused them." He said, Scripture down his throat."
168
PERSECUTION.
[CHAP. III.
While they were in jail, they preached to the people through the gratings of the windows and doors. The effect of such scenes may be imagined. The mob might deride, but there were sensitive spirits upon whom the very semblance of oppression would have its effect, and the new denomination gained daily in numbers. Craig was kept in jail four weeks, and his companions for forty-three days, and when they were discharged, no concessions were made on either side.
A well-supported tradition has told us that when these three Baptists were brought to trial in Fre- dericksburg, the Prosecuting Attorney had drawn up an indictment against them "for preaching the Gospel contrary to law." Patrick Henry had heard of the case, and rode fifty miles to hear more. He kept his seat while the indictment was read, and while the prosecutor opened the cause, then rising, he solemnly addressed the court : "May it please your worships, what did I hear read ? Did I hear it distinctly, or was it a mistake of my own ? Did I hear an expression that these men, whom your worships are about to try for misdemeanour, are charged with-preaching the Gospel of the Son of God?" The tone, the manner, the subject, sent an indescribable thrill to every heart. Then con- tinuing, the orator carried home his appeal with such power that the Prosecuting Attorney turned pale with agitation, and the court was hardly re- strained from directing the sheriff at once to dis- charge the prisoners.ª Yet even Patrick Henry
a Oregon Spectator, Sept. 3, 1846, from the Baptist Register.
169
PERSECUTION.
1772.]
was not strong enough to arrest the tyranny caused by an Established Church.
Similar persecutions were again and again ex- hibited. In 1770, William Webber and Joseph Anthony were seized and imprisoned in Chester- field County. They invited hearers to the outer walls of the jail, and in the language of the reve- rend gentleman who has described them, "they did much execution by preaching through the grates."a In Middlesex and Caroline Counties, many Baptist ministers were arrested and confined. They were lodged in jails swarming with vermin, and were treated like criminals ; yet their spirits were buoyant, and persecution did nothing but in- crease the zeal and number of the sect. Insult was often offered to their ministers during service, and frequently mounted men would ride into the water while they were administering immersion, and at- tempt to turn the ceremony into a farce. There were few in the Established Church who did not oppose them. In 1772, a letter appeared in the Virginia Gazette, addressed to the Anabaptists im- prisoned in Caroline.c The writer justifies their imprisonment, on the basis, not of any statute, but of the English common-law. He charges them with teaching heresy and hateful doctrines, and with disturbing the peace of religion. He admits that the English Act of Toleration applies to the Colony, but denies that the Baptists are entitled to its benefit.
a Semple, 17.
b Ibid. 19.
c See this address, Virginia Ga- zette, Feb. 20, 1772.
-
170
PATRIOTISM OF THE BAPTISTS. [CHAP. III.
Religious tyranny produced its accustomed ef- fect : the Baptists increased on every side. If one preacher was imprisoned, ten arose to take his place; if one congregation was dispersed, a larger assembled on the next opportunity. Twenty years before the Revolution, few of this sect could have been found in the Colony, and yet, in 1774, the Separates alone, had thirty churches south of James River, and twenty-four on its north;ª and the Regulars, though not so numerous, had grown with rapidity. The influence of the denomination was strong among the common people, and was begin- ning to be felt in high places. In two points they were distinguished. First, in their love of freedom. No class of the people of America were more de- voted advocates of the principles of the Revolution; none were more willing to give their money and goods to their country ; none more prompt to march to the field of battle, and none more heroic in actual combat, than the Baptists of Virginia. Secondly, in their hatred of the Church establishment. They hated not its ministers, but its principles. They had seen its operation and had felt its practical in- fluence. Common sense pointed out its deformi- ties, and clamoured against its injustice. To a man they were united in the resolve never to relax their efforts until it was utterly destroyed.b
While one body of Dissenters thus advanced to undermine the temple of the Established Church, another arose, and laying a hand guided by learn- ing, and nerved by devotion, upon the pillars of the
a Semple, 25.
b Hawks, 121-152.
1
1719.]
SCOTCH-IRISH IN THE VALLEY.
171
temple, shook them to their very foundations. Early in the eighteenth century, a single Presbyterian congregation was all that could be found in Vir- ginia. It had been planted by Francis Makennie, on the eastern shore, and maintained a feeble exis- tence, notwithstanding the ungenial air surrounding it.ª But, west of the Blue Ridge, the influence of the followers of Calvin and Knox became greater every year. Pennsylvania had received a large number of settlers from the north of Ireland. These were not the Irish, but were, in general, purely Scotch, who had filled up the inviting province of Ulster, after it had been emptied of its half-barba- rous native inhabitants.' The Scotch-Irish were a strong and active race, hardy in body, vigorous in mind. They were deeply imbued with religious feeling, and were almost without exception attached to the doctrines which are taught in the Westmin- ster Confession of Faith. From Pennsylvania they passed into the beautiful valley of Virginia, and settled in many places running nearly from the head waters of the Potomac to the southern branch of the James, as it cuts the mountains near the Natural Bridge. The northern part of this region, now composing the counties of Frederick, Shenan- doah, and Rockingham, was indeed chiefly occu- pied by German settlers, but the Scotch were spread through the fertile lands of Rockbridge and West Augusta.
As early as 1719, a Presbyterian congregation
a Davidson's Pres. Ch. in Ky. 18. Ulster, under James I .; Davidson's
b This was after the conquest of Pres. Ch. in Kentucky, 14.
172
REV. JOHN CRAIG.
[CHAP, III.
had been gathered near the site of the present town of Martinsburg. It is said that here the Gospel was first publicly preached west of the Blue Ridge.ª The people earnestly asked for a preacher, and the Synod of Philadelphia having sent to them the Rev. Daniel Magill, he organized the congregations of Falling Water and Tuscarora, and the next year reported them to the Synod. After this, other churches were opened, and ministers were tempted from the northern settlement to preach in the Valley. The Stone Church of Augusta is among the oldest in Virginia. It is built of materials so firm that it has resisted the hand of time, and promises to en- dure for centuries to come. After the defeat of Braddock it became a fortress of defence against the Indians; a deep trench surrounded it, and redoubts guarded its approaches ; its pastor exhorted to courage, and its people came to worship armed with rifles, and posting sentinels to give the alarm." The church at Tinkling Spring is not far from that of Augusta, and is little inferior to it in anti- quity.d These churches were united, and were under the pastoral care of Rev. John Craig, from 1739 to 1764. He was from the north of Ireland, and was a just specimen of his class. Diligent in study, persevering in labour, firm even to obstinacy, a rigid Calvinist in doctrine, and withal a pious and devoted minister, he received his churches
a Kercheval, 83; Davidson, 17- 22, note on last page.
b Davidson, 22.
c Davidson, 25.
d These time-honoured churches have both been visited by the au- thor, under circumstances of pecu- liar interest.
1730.]
JOHN ORGAN. 173
feeble in numbers and influence, and left them strong, united, and possessed of much temporal wealth. Thus the Presbyterians of the Valley grew. In 1738 Governor Gooch gave them his express written permit to preach and worship, pro- vided they complied with the terms of the English Act of Toleration.ª They were not pressed down by immediate contact with the Establishment. A season of unwonted interest for religion was enjoyed by them, and, before the Revolution, it is believed they had at least twelve ministers, and a much larger number of churches scattered through the region between the Alleghanies and the Blue Ridge.c
Meanwhile, in eastern Virginia, a series of sin- gular events had conducted Presbyterianism from obscurity to power. - There was little intercourse between the Valley and the east; they were under the same political rule, but the manners and habits of the people were as different as their origin. In the year 1730, in the northern neck between the Potomac and RappahannockRivers there lived one John Organ, a pious schoolmaster from Scotland. He found nothing congenial to his taste in the stagnant services of the Establishment, and gra- dually withdrawing from the church, he collected around him a few neighbours, to whom he read books of devotion. Their numbers gradually in- creased so much, that they sought a regular preacher. The Synod of Philadelphia, to whom they applied,
a See Gooch's Letters to Synod of b Letters of Saml. Davies to Dr. Philada., Nov. 4, 1738, in Davidson, Bellamy, in Campbell, Appen. 304. c See Davidson, 36, 37.
18.
174
MORRIS'S READING. HOUSE.
[CHAP. III.
sent to them a minister named Anderson, who or- ganized a church that was alive early in the pre- sent century.ª In the county of Hanover, about the same time, lived Samuel Morris, a planter possessed of wealth and influence. It is remark- able that his mind was directed to religion not by the accustomed agency of preaching, but by read- ing the works of men who had made the Scriptures their particular study. An old copy of " Luther on the Epistle to the Galatians" fell into his hands. He read, pondered, felt. This short epistle fur- nished to the great Reformer all the weapons he needed, to cut Popery to the heart. Justification by faith alone, and a holy life to prove that faith, are its prominent doctrines. Morris believed, and hastened to impart to others the means of his own happiness.b
His friends were assembled, and he began to read to them the much-prized volume ; they heard again and again with interest and pleasure. Gra- dually their numbers swelled; other books were introduced; the thoughts of old John Bunyan became familiar, and in 1743, a copy of Whitefield's sermons fell into their possession. Mr. Morris caused to be erected a "reading-house" for the accommodation of the hearers, and this was filled to overflowing on .every Sabbath. He never at- tempted to preach, or to exhort, or to introduce prayer, or any regular worship; he did nothing
a Miller's Life of Dr. Rodgers, 29, Pres. Church, part ii. 43; Hawks, 102; Evan. and Lit. Magazine, ii. 30.
b Miller's Rodgers, 32 ; Hodge's 115.
1743.]
FINES. 175
but read ;ª yet the word of God, explained by con- secrated minds, kindled in the hearers a flame of which they had known nothing theretofore. The interest thus excited became so general that the friends of the church felt alarm. Morris and his principal adherents were summoned before the Court of Magistrates to answer for the crime of absenting themselves from the regular services. They were asked to what denomination they be- longed. Here was a difficulty : they were any thing but Churchmen; they were not Quakers ; they were not Baptists; they knew nothing of Presbyterians. Suddenly a bright thought flashed upon them.' Knowing that Luther was a great reformer, and remembering their obligations to him, they declared that they were Lutherans. The magistrates were puzzled ; they could find no laws against such a sect, and the men were accordingly dismissed without punishment. But persecution was not thus easily satisfied ; finding that their meetings were continued, informers again brought them before the court; fines were inflicted and greater rigour threatened. Mr. Morris himself paid more than twenty fines under the systematic opposition to which he was exposed.b
Still their march was onward. In 1743, a member of one of the Augusta congregations crossed the Blue Ridge to barter his grain for iron and salt. Meeting with some of Morris's hearers,
a Hodge, ii. 43, 44; Miller's b Miller's Rodgers, 36, 37, in note ; Morris' account in Campbell, Appen.
Rodgers, 34.
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176
REV. WILLIAM ROBINSON.
[CHAP. III.
he conversed with them, and was astonished to find that their views of religion coincided with his own. He advised them to send to the Valley, and invite a minister whom he had left there, to come and preach to them.ª This was the Rev. William Robinson, an evangelist ordained by the Presbytery of New Brunswick, and a man to whom the Pres- byterians of Virginia owe a heavy debt of love. Embarrassments caused by youthful indiscretion had driven him from England, but soon after coming to America, he professed himself a Chris- tian, and devoting his life to the ministry, he car- ried into his sacred duties the ardour which had distinguished him in the pursuit of vicious plea- sure.b He obeyed the call of Mr. Morris, and coming to Hanover, preached his first sermon on the 6th of July. The people attended in crowds, and recognising from his lips the same doctrines which they had long heard from the books read by Morris, they received him with open arms. Deep seriousness prevailed at their meetings, and gra- dually an interest was awakened such as men feel when they begin to compare sin with holiness, and time with eternity." The lives of many were changed, regular congregations were formed, proper modes of worship were introduced ; the people took the name of Presbyterians, and. formed a connexion with the Presbytery of New Brunswick, whose
a Davidson's Pres. Ch. in Ken- tucky, 31, 32 .- Dr. Davidson's ac. 37-39.
count here conflicts slightly with that in Evan. and Lit. Mag. ii. 115.
b See note in Miller's Rodgers,
c Morris's account in Appen. to Campbell ; Miller, 40, 41.
1745.]
REV. MESSRS. BLAIR AND ROAN. .177
ministers were then a part of the Synod of New York.ª
Mr. Robinson was soon followed by other clergy- men of the same creed. John Blair was his imme- diate successor, and under his labours the churches were increased. In 1744, Rev. Mr. Roan was sent by the Presbytery of Newcastle. He was a zealous man, but somewhat indiscreet. He spake openly against the vices of the Episcopal clergy, and by his boldness so provoked his enemies, that an indictment was made out against him by a grand jury, on a false charge of blasphemy made by some man after the accused left the Colony.b (1745.) It was at this time that the attention of the Governor was called to the progress of dissent in Virginia, and Gooch delivered to the Grand Jurors of the General Court the memorable charge, which has gone farther to convict him of intolerance than any other act of his life. The deep interest ex- hibited by the people; the distress occasioned by conviction for sin, and the exciting appeals founded by the preachers on the doctrines they proclaimed, altogether constituted a "New Light" which the Governor could in no sense understand, and hence his desire to quench it by applying the law.c
a Miller, 41-45; Hodge, ii. 279, here acknowledge the error into 284, 285 .- Compare with account in Evan. and Lit. Mag., ii. 349-351. b Samuel Davies' Letters to Dr. Bellamy, Campbell, Appendix ; Da- vidson's Ch. in Ky., 33, and in note ; Hodge, ii. 45.
c It is proper that the author shall VOL. II.
which he was betrayed in the first volume of this work, pages 429, 430, by relying upon the authorities there cited, without giving due weight to other evidence. He is convinced that the " New Light Presbyterians" spoken of in those pages, were the
12
178 .
SAMUEL DAVIES.
[CHAP. III.
William Gooch was not naturally either a bigot or a persecutor ; when, during this year, the Synod of New York sent to him Rev. Messrs. William Tennent and Samuel Finley, to represent the in- terests of their church in Virginia, he received them kindly, and permitted them to preach. He could not refuse his homage to genius, learning, and piety united. Had his council been as liberal as himself, it is not probable that Dissenters would have felt oppression in " the Ancient Colony."a
Just at the time when the infant churches which Morris and Robinson had planted, most needed a minister at once zealous and learned, their wants were supplied. It is not extravagant to say that Samuel Davies was in many respects the greatest preacher that America has ever known. He was born in Newcastle, Delaware, Nov. 3, 1724. His mother devoted him in infancy to the sacred cause in which he was to be so distinguished, and gave him a name that indicated her design.b From the age of fifteen he was a professed Christian, and sought the duties of the ministry with hallowed
hearers of Morris, and the followers of Robinson, Blair, and Roan ; and that, if some of them were impru- dent and enthusiastic, they were yet as a body sound in doctrine, and consistent in practice. This correc- tion will apply, with proper modifi- cations, to the other sects named, as well as to the Presbyterians. That the reader may examine the several Hodge, ii. 45; Davidson, 18, 33. parts of the discussion by which this error was made to appear, he
will refer to the Watchman and Ob- server, Richmond, Nov. 19, 1846, letter of the author to Ed. W. and O., Dec. 10, 1846, and Ed.'s reply in same ; letter of Rev. Dr. A. Alexander to Ed. W. and O., March 18, 1847, and Bib. Repertory and Pr. Review, for April, 1847, pp. 233, 234.
a See Miller's Rodgers, 47-49 ;
b Compare Miller, 18, in note, with Encyc. Rel. Know. art. Davies.
179
HIS ELOQUENCE.
1747.]
ardour. He was licensed by the Presbytery of Newcastle in 1745, and ordained two years after. He came to Virginia in 1747, and finding that the laws then in force, rendered certain steps necessary before a Dissenter could preach with safety, he complied with all the terms of the Act of Tolera- tion. He took the usual oath of fidelity to the government, and subscribed to the thirty-nine articles of the Church of England, with four ex- ceptions, expressly made. These were the articles concerning the "traditions of the church," "the authority of the homilies," "the consecration of bishops and ministers," and "the power of the church to decree rights and ceremonies, and to decide controversies of faith."> He then obtained licenses for four churches,-three in Hanover, and one in Henrico, and early in the spring of 1748, he entered with his whole heart upon his career as an evangelist.
His bodily health was delicate, but the strength of his soul carried him over every obstacle. Though yet young, he had acquired a store of systematized knowledge, which fitted him to combat error in whatever shape it might come. His personal ap- pearance was mild and benevolent, yet august and imposing.b But it was in the pulpit that his true power was seen and felt. His heart glowed under the fervent majesty of truth, and his lips seemed to be touched as with a live coal from the altar of God. Having studied the volume of revealed re- ligion in all its length and breadth, his zeal never a Hawks, 108.
b Encyc. Rel. art. Davies.
180
JOHN RODGERS.
[CHAP. III.
approached fanaticism, yet he wielded the "sword of the spirit" with an effect that has seldom been equalled. Under his words the objects of faith drew near to the listener ; heaven opened, and celestial melody was wafted from its portals ; the world of despair was unlocked, and shown to the impenitent. He applied the divine law with such pungency that he pierced the conscience as with a thousand barbed arrows, yet no spiritual physician was ever more ready than he to soothe the wounded soul with atoning blood, and to lead the stricken penitent to the bleeding victim of Calvary. Few who ever heard him preach could entirely resist his influence ; it is well known that he was the means of kindling the hidden fire of eloquence in other bosoms. Patrick Henry has declared that by hearing him he was himself first taught what an orator should be,a and James Waddel, the " blind preacher," is said to have caught from Davies the inspiration which afterwards made him almost his equal in sacred pathos.b
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