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THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
^'^iv^^^ 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 HISTORY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 REVIVAL OF RELIGION 
 
 IN THE TIME OF 
 
 EDWARDS AND WHITEFIELD. 
 
 Br JOSEPH TRACY. 
 
 " Then shall ye return, and diacem between the righteous and the wicked ; between 
 him that aerveth God, and him that serveth him not." — Malachi ui. 18, 
 
 BOSTON: 
 
 - PUBLISHED BY TAPPAN & DENNET. 
 
 NEW YORK: DAYTON & NEWMAN. PHILADELPHIA: 
 
 HENRY PERKINS. 
 
 1842. 
 
 \c 
 
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1841, by 
 
 JOSEPH TRACY, 
 
 in the Clerk's office of the District Court for the District of Massachusetta. 
 
 Printed fayS. N^ Dickiogon, 
 No, 52 WRBhingtOR St. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 During the year 1840, p ublic, meetings were held in 
 some places, and proposed in others, in coQimemoration 
 of what Edwards called " The Revival of Religion in 
 New England in 1740." This first suggested to the au- 
 thor the design of the present work. No history of that 
 revival had ever been attempted. Its importance in it- 
 self, and in its influence on the subsequent state of the 
 churches, was universally acknowledged. Yet opinions 
 concerning it were various and discoi-dant, even among 
 evangelical ministers ; some thinking it worthy of un- 
 mixed eulogy in public celebrations, others speaking of 
 it with only guarded and qualified commendation, aad 
 others doubting whether it should not be mentioned rath- 
 er with censure than otherwise. For the l ast ten years, 
 too, the advocates of all kinds of "measuies," new and 
 old, have been asserting that the events and results of 
 that revival justified their several theories and practices. 
 There was, therefore, evident need of a work, which 
 should furnish the means of suitably appreciating both 
 the good and the evil of that period of religious history. 
 
 The next question was concerning its possibility. Could 
 materials be found, for the construction of such a work ? 
 A slight investigation was sufficient to furnish an answer. 
 The public libraries contain abundant materials, of which 
 some account must now be given. 
 
 Th e leading a uthoifa is " Th e Christian History ; 
 
iv PREFACE. 
 
 containing accounts of the Revival and Propagation of 
 Religion in Great Britain and America." It_was first sug- 
 gested by Edwards, in the c onclusion of h is " Thoughts 
 on th e Rev iYalj[£JS_eligiQajmL]!feaL-Engknd^"__The 
 number was issued March 5, 174 3, and it was continued, 
 in weekly numbers of eight pages, small octavo, for two 
 years. It was conducted by Thomas Prin ce, J r., son of 
 the Rev. Thomas Prince, one of the pastors of the Old 
 South Church. Lettexs-ta m ministers, giving acc ounts 
 of the progress and state of religion in their several par- 
 ishes, compose the greater part of its contents. So far 
 as is known, this was the first periodical for the diffusion 
 of contenipor ary religious intelligence, ever establishe d- 
 Si milar publi cations-3Eeje soon after commenced in Lon- 
 don and Glasgow. When the publication of the first 
 volume was completed, some copies, remaining in the 
 hands of the publisher, were bound and offered for sale. 
 This volume is not very unco mmon ; and not unfre- 
 quently passes for the whole work. Both volumes are 
 preserved, entire, in the libraries of the Boston Athehasura 
 and the Massachusetts Historical Society. This work 
 was published for the sake of promoting the revival, and 
 therefore gives accounts which were then esteemed fa- 
 vorable, though it relates many things which no one 
 iiow would commend. 
 
 .Whitefield's account of his own life, his Journals and 
 his Letters, deserve to be mentioned n ext. His Journals 
 were originally published in pamphlets, of a moderate 
 size. They appeared as often as he could find time to 
 prepare them for the press, which was often done with- 
 out sufiicient care. He afterwards collected, revised, and 
 published them as one work. In preparing this history, 
 the original, unrevised Journals have been exclusively 
 used ; for, as the faults in the first editions produced im- 
 portant effects, it is necessary to know what they were. 
 The account of his life was prefixed to the first Journal 
 
PREFACE. V 
 
 that he published, and relates only to its previous years. 
 His letters were collected after his death, and, with some 
 of his sermons and other works of less importance, pub- 
 lished in four octavo volumes. 
 
 Ccmtrqversial j)uWications,i)iL_that_day, too numerous 
 to be specified individually, form a third source of in- 
 formation. The most able and best known of these are 
 Edwards' " Though ts on the Revival of Religion in 
 New England in 1740," and Chauncy's " Seasonabl e 
 Thoughts on the State of Religion in New England." 
 Besides these, about one hund red pamphle ts publish ed 
 during the revival, or soo n aft er, hav e been consulted . 
 The greater part of them have been of service, only as 
 aids in understanding others, by the exhibitions which 
 they give of the spirit of the times. Something has been 
 gleaned from the files of newspapers, preserved by the 
 Massachusetts Historical and A meri can Antiquarian So- 
 cieties. 
 
 The records of churches ought to furnish an important 
 class of documents^; but generally, so far as the author 
 has been able tqjeariij they. are. either lost, or were ba dly 
 kept, and furnish no valuable aid. Such has proved to 
 be the fact, in every instance, where the absence o/ print- 
 ed documents rendered their aid peculiarly desirable. A 
 few papers from the files of the church in Sturbridge, 
 furnished by the kindness of its late pastor, the Rev. 
 J. S. Clark, is all that has been obtained from such 
 sources. More will doubtless be found, whenever the 
 attention of the pastors of ancient churches shall be ef- 
 fectually drawn to the investigation. 
 
 Town histories have usually been written by men who 
 could find but little information on this subject, or who 
 were unable to appreciate its importance, or who sup- 
 posed such matter would not be valued by those for whom 
 they wrote. Yet they have contributed something. 
 
vi PREFACE 
 
 Backus's " Ecclesiastical History of the Baptists in N ew- 
 England " is an important authority, thoug h it furnishes 
 little matter peculiar to itse lf^JBackus was one of that 
 class of Separatists which the revival brou ght into being, 
 a nd like m any others of them, became aBaptist. Of 
 course, he gives those views of the nierits of the several 
 parties which the Separatists entertained ; and yet he is 
 honest enough to record some faults of his own party, 
 which are not recorded by their opponents. 
 
 Trum bull's " History jjf Connecticu t^ gives ajralua- 
 ble account of the revival asit- was in tha t colony, with 
 incidental notices of it in other places. Perhaps his per- 
 sonal friendship for those zealous and active revivalists, 
 P omroy and JWheelock, with whom he was intimate, and 
 whom he learned to venerate in his youth, may have 
 biased his judgment on some points. Still, he is an unu- 
 sually candid writer, and his personal acquaintance with 
 the fruits of the revival gives additional importance to 
 his narrative. 
 
 A biog r aphy of Edwards should contain almost a c om- 
 plete acco unt of the revi val ; for in no other way can 
 the influence of his mind on the country and on the 
 world be fully shown. His_biograp hers, howev er, seem 
 n ot to have found the requisi te materia ls. _Yet^he in- 
 d ustry of the Rev. Dr. S. E. Dwigh t has collected matter 
 w^hich throws important light on some parts of it. 
 
 The author has not been able to obtain the Life of 
 Dr. Buel, or the Life of Gilbert Tennent, which was 
 written by his friend President Finley. A Life of Dr. 
 B ellam y is believed to be still a desideratum. The Me- 
 moir of Wheelock despatches the history of his labors in 
 the revival, in a single page of vague generalities. A 
 notice of his life and character in the American (Quarterly 
 Register, by the Rev. Dr. Allen, contains valuable ex- 
 tracts from his diary during some of those labors. A 
 
PREFACE. vii 
 
 well written and impartial history of his life and labors, 
 with copious selections from his writings, for which ma- 
 terials probably exist, would be valuable. There is scarce 
 another man of equal eminence in that age, of the pecu- 
 liarities of whose character and style of promoting reli- 
 gion we have so little satisfactory information ; and yet 
 there is reason to suspect that those peculiarities exerted 
 an important influence. 
 
 The Constitutional History of th e Presb yterian Chu rch, 
 by the Rev. Prof. Hodge^f Prince to n, has been a va lu- 
 able assistant. It is an elegantly written work, of great 
 historical research, and must ever remain a standard work 
 among those to whose communion he belongs. Yet, on 
 some points incidentally noticed, it has appeared necessary 
 to dissent from his conclusions. 
 
 The Me moir of Whitefie ld , by Dr. Gillies, and Phil ip's 
 Life and Times of Whitefiel d. have of course been con- 
 sulted. The latter has furnished some' valuable facts 
 and suggestions, especially respecting the revival in Scot- 
 land.* 
 
 * Philip asks : " By the way, what became of the Mss. and books which 
 Prince left to the Old South Church, as the New England Library ? The 
 collection was great and valuable. Can it be true that the Mss. were de- 
 stroyed by the British, except by accident ? I ask this question, because I 
 find ' No,' in pencil mark, on the margin of my copy of v9mer. Biog." The 
 answer, — to use language once familiar in Great Britain , — must be " More 
 yes thaa no." During the siege of Boston, the Old South meetinghouse 
 was used for a riding school. In the yirinter, a stove was placed in it, and 
 the timber of the pews and galleries, except the gallery on one side, which 
 was reserved for spectators, was used for fuel, and the library, which was 
 kept in a room under the belfry, said to have been Prince's study, fur- 
 nished paper to kindle the fires. Of course, the Mss. and pamphlets, 
 being most convenient for that purpose, suffered most severely. Nearly all 
 the Mss. which escaped the stove, and about 200 volumes from the library, 
 most appropriate to such a destination, are deposited in the library of the 
 Massachusetts Historical Society. The remainder of the library, which 
 contains several thousands of volumes, is kept in the Parsonage. It con- 
 tains many old theological and other works of great value, and is still rich 
 in pamphlets of the times in which it was collected. It was doubtless the 
 
viii PREFACE. 
 
 A slight inspection of these multifarious documents 
 was enough to show, that the_^eriod of " The^reat 
 Awakening" needed_to be carefullyLstudied,;, that some 
 gr eat ide a was then extensively at^work, breaking up 
 established and venerated habits of thought, feeling and 
 action, and producing a revolution in the minds of men, 
 and thus in the very structure of society. The agitations 
 of that day had all the characteristic marks, by which 
 such periods of human history are distinguished. The 
 first work of the historian, therefore, must be, to seize 
 t hat great idea . He must ascertain, what was that truth, 
 before unknown or neglected and inoperative, which, 
 working in the minds of those who received it, and on 
 the minds of its opposers, according to each man's situa- 
 tion, temperament and degree of mental and moral culti- 
 vation, produced the various phenomena of the revival. 
 With a knowledge of that idea, we shall be able to 
 u nderstand the history of those times ; to appreciate the 
 motives from which men acted ; to see how some were 
 led into their errors, and others made their way to the 
 knowledge of the truth ; to ascertain the kind, and esti- 
 mate the amount, oT'good and evil influences which the 
 revival left behind it ; to draw from a knowledge of those 
 times, the proper lessons, both of encouragement and 
 warning. W ithout it, we shall have only a labyrinth of 
 
 best collection of means for illustrating the religious history of Great Brit- 
 ain and America during those times, that ever existed, s 
 
 " By the way," why does Philip call the Congregational Meetinghouses 
 in Boston, " chapels ? " The term may be needed in England, to distinguish 
 other places of worship from those of the Established Church ; but it is 
 never used in that sense here. And why does he use italics, when he says, 
 that a certain negro at Cambridge " had been allowed " to hear Whitefield 
 preach ? Does he suppose that there ever was a time when the few negroes 
 in New England were not " allowed " as free access to the preaching of the 
 gospel, as the white inhabitants enjoyed ? The negro in question had prob- 
 ably been " allowed " to hear Whitefield preach " in the College," on some 
 occasion when the public was not admitted. 
 
PREFACE. ix 
 
 facts ; and though familiar with each, shall not understand 
 their relations to each other, nor be able safely to de- 
 rive one practical lesson from the whole. 
 
 The history of religious opinions and practices shows, 
 that the in ostimpo rtant practical idea which tlip.n rp.op.\vp.i] 
 increased prominence and power, and has hdd its place 
 ever since, was the idea of thep' new hirth ."/as held by 
 the Orthodox Congregationalists of New England, and 
 others who harmonize with them ; the doctrine, that in 
 order to be saved, a man must undergo a change in his 
 principles of moral action, which will be eith er accpmpa- 
 nied or succeeded by exercises ofjvhich he is conscious, 
 a nd can give an account ; so that those who have been 
 th us chang ed, may ordinarily be distinguished from those 
 who have not ; from which it follows, that all who exhibit 
 no evidence of such a change, ought to be considered 
 and treated as unregenerate, and in the road to perdition, 
 and therefore not admitted to the ^communion of the 
 churches. This doctrine of the " new birth," as an as- 
 certainable change, was not generally_pre3alent in any 
 communion wherijhe .revival comiaeJttced ; it was urged 
 as of fundamental importance, by the leading promoters 
 of the revival ; it took strong hold of those whom the 
 revival affected ; it naturally led to such qu estio ns as the 
 revival brought up and caused, to be discussed ; its per - 
 versions naturally grew into, or associated with, such errors 
 as the revival promoted ; it was adaptei^ to provoke such 
 opposition, and in such quarters, as the revival provoked ; 
 and its caricatures would furnish such pictures of the 
 revival, as opposers drew. This was evidently the right 
 key ; for it fitted all the wards of the complicated lock. 
 
 If this work should fall into the hands of any who 
 have not been accustomed to regard this doctrine with 
 respect, perhaps a few words of explanation may enable 
 them to understand better what it is, and to see that it 
 deserves their attention. 
 
X PREFACE. 
 
 In being a Christian, two things are implied ; the re- 
 ception of the Christian system as our creed, and the 
 conformity of our inwar d and outward life to its teachings. 
 Roman Catholic missionaries, and perhaps some others 
 who labor among the heathen, count all as converts who 
 adopt their creed, even though they adopt it in the gross, 
 with no knowledge of the particular doctrines contained 
 in it. In Christian lands, most persons grow up, of 
 course, into this kind of Christianity, and live on, without 
 seriously inquiring whether they live as the gospel re- 
 quires. Many, in the course of their lives, some in one 
 way and some in another, are " awakened " to this in- 
 quiry. J When a wakene d, the very thought that they 
 know not j whether they are in the way to heaven or no t ; 
 that they have lived so many years, in hourly danger of 
 death, without once seriously considering whether they 
 are prepared, or even preparing for it, is alarming^) To 
 noble and ingenuous minds, the thought that they have 
 lived so long without seriously considering how they 
 treat certain duties which many call important, and may 
 therefore be much deeper in guilt than they ever sus- 
 pected, is more alarming still. Th en follows self-exam - 
 ination, — the deliber'ate comparison of their own lives, 
 inward and outward, towards God, their neighbours and 
 their own consciences, with the Christian standard. The 
 , result of self-examination is the d iscovery of gu ilt, or, in 
 the technical language of practical theology, convictio n 
 of sin. The discovery that we are morally worse than 
 we ever supposed, is an ap palling disc overy. To him 
 who makes it, — if he is not hopelessly joined with apos- 
 tate spirits, and ready to say, with their leader, " Evil, 
 be thou my good," it must be a source of anxiety. It 
 must bring up the questions, whether reformation is pos- 
 sible, and if so, how ? And whether punishment is to be 
 apprehended, and if so, whether it may be avoided, and 
 
PREFACE. xi 
 
 how. If reformation is possible, and pardon may be ob- 
 tained, the inquirer, though now a sinner, may become a 
 holy and happy being. If not, he must be unholy and 
 miserable for the remainder of his conscious existence, — 
 which may be, and he has reason to suppose, will be, 
 eternal. Such a prospect, no man, especially no one 
 to whom it is new, can contemplate without feeling. 
 With such views in his mind, and corresponding emotions 
 in his heart, the inguirer seeks the solution of these ques- 
 tions in his Bible, from his pastor, or from others whom 
 he believes to be truly pious ; and above all, calls on the 
 Father of spirits to enlighten him. Men may tell him 
 that his anxiety is needless ; that God is merciful, and 
 there is no danger ; but this cannot satisfy him. He 
 must understand the remedy for himself, and see its adapt- 
 ation to his newly discovered spiritual wants. He has 
 found in himself the spiritual wants which the Bible 
 ascribes to man, and therefore understands those parts of 
 the Bible better than he ever did before ; as the descrip- 
 tion of a plant is better understood, when read with a 
 specimen before the eyes. He needs the same clear and 
 satisfying view of the gospel remedy for sin and guilt, 
 and of its adaptation to his spiritual wants ; and not even 
 the words of Scripture can give him rest, till he has it ; 
 and when it comes, it cannot fail to fill his heart with 
 joy. He sees the way, walks in it gladly, and finds by 
 experience that his spiritual wants are met. 
 
 S uch, in substance, is the Christian experience of a ll 
 real converts ; modified, however, by individual peculiar- 
 ities of character and circumstances. In some, the process 
 occupies several years ; in others, it is so rapid that some 
 of the steps are seen only in their results ; 'in others still, 
 it is repeatedly interrupted and resumed. Varieties are 
 caused by the varieties of intellectual character and style 
 of thought ; of errors which the inquirer is unwilling to 
 b 
 
xii PREFACE. 
 
 abandon ; of sins which he is unwilling to forsake ; of _ 
 temptations from natural temper, from pursuits in life, 
 from social relations, and from the intentional hindrance' 
 or assistance of others. ^Bodily health, from its known 
 influence over the powers of thought and emotion, cannot 
 fail to modify the process; which, in its turn, especially 
 in persons of a nervous temperament, may re-act on the 
 nerves, and through them, on itself. But in all cases the 
 essential parts of the process are substantially the same. 
 In ever y case there will be, not a mere unintelligent 
 fright, succeeded by a joy without reason ; not a mere 
 learning of things by rote, or taking of things for granted 
 on the testimony of others ; ^ut original thought, — for 
 self-examination must be original thought ; — there will 
 be discoveries of . truth by orig i nal thinking, an demotions 
 appropriate to those di scoveriesij all agreeable to the prin- 
 ciples taught in the Scriptures, and leading to such a life 
 as Christianity requires. 
 
 N ow, will any one pretend, that persons who h ave been 
 throughthis proce ss themselves, cannot, by examina tion, 
 form a reasonable judgment^ whether o th ers have been 
 throug h it or not ? What teacher, what school committee 
 man, cannot ascertain whether a boy has seen for himself 
 and understands the nature and reason of the rule for 
 working simple addition, or whether he has only learned 
 it by rote ? Cannot pretenders in any branch of science 
 be detected ? Cannot one who has understood and felt 
 the power of Milton's Pa radise Lost, judge whether an- 
 other has understood and felt the same, or whether he 
 only repeats, pa rrot-like, somg_jDt\Addison's criticis ms ? 
 If discrimination is possible in such cases as these, it 
 must also, on the same principle, be possible for those 
 who are qualified, to judge whether a man has made those 
 discoveries of religious truth, and felt those emotions, 
 which are essential to Christian experience. 
 
PREFACE. xiii 
 
 It is doubtless true, that there can be no infallibility, 
 with fallible judges ; and that the errors of enthusiasts 
 have done much to bring the relation of experiences into 
 disrepute ; and that some religious men have been made 
 ashamed to show any respect for the practice, by the 
 sneers of those who, having no religious experience them- 
 selves, hate and despise all regard for it in others ; and 
 that, for such reasons, the subject has received less atten- 
 tioii than it deserves, and is not so well understood as it 
 might be and ought to be. Still, it is no unimportant 
 means of forming a judgment of Christian character ; 
 and when prejudices, arising from its abuse in days of 
 ignorance, shall have passed away, men will be ashamed 
 to own that they ever doubted its value. 
 
 ThfiJiistQ ry of the " Great Awakeni ng " i« t^" higtnry 
 of this idea, rnaldng, its wa y through some com munities 
 where it ha d fallen in to com parative neglect, and through 
 others where it was nearly or quite unknown ; overturn- 
 ing theories and habits and forms of organization incon- 
 sistent with it, where it could prevail, and repelled by 
 them, where it could not ; working itself gradually clear 
 in the minds of those who received it, and leading to 
 habits of thought and practical arrangements in harmony 
 with itself. If the reader finds a' true and intelligible 
 account of its various workings, the object for which this 
 history ought to be written, will be accomplished. 
 
 Boston, December 1, 1841. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 V 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Introductory. — Previous State of Religious Opinions and 
 Practices. — Decline of Piety. — Preaching of Edwards. — 
 " Surprising Conversions " at Northampton, and in other Places. 1 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Revivals of 1739, 1740 ; at Newark, Harvard, Northampton, 
 New Londonderry, and New Brunswick. ^VRemarks on the 
 Presbyterianism of that Age. . . ... 18 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 N/ Whitefield in Early Life. — His Birth, Education, and Reli- 
 gious Experience. — His Success as a Preacher. — His first 
 Visit to Georgia. ^ His Return to England, Opposition and 
 Success. — Controversy with the Bishop of London. — His 
 Intercourse with Watts and Doddridge. — His Return to 
 America. . . . ' . . . . 35 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Whitefield's Labors. — His Preaching and Success at Phila- 
 delphia, at New York, and in the Middle and Southern Col- 
 onies. ....... 51 
 
XVI CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Parties in the Presbyterian Church. — Different Views of 
 Regeneration, and Controversies growing out of them. — Acts 
 of the Synod in 1728, 1737, 1738, and 1739. — Meeting of the 
 Synod in 1740. — Tennent's Nottingham Sermon. — Meeting 
 of the Synod in 1741. ^ The « Great Schism." . . 60 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Whitepjeld at the Socth. — Scenes at the Orphan House. 
 — Visit to Charleston. — Ecclesiastical' Prosecution. — Con- 
 versions at and around Charleston. — Schools for Negroes. — 
 TheBiyans. . . ... 75 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 Whitefield's First Visit to New England. . . 83 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 Whitefield in New York, and at the Sodth. . 105 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 V The Revival in Boston. — The Period from Whitefield's De- 
 parture to the Arrival of Davenport ; including the Labors of 
 Gilbert Tennent. . . . . . . 114 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 The Revival in New England. — Natick, Wrentham, and 
 Bridgewater. — Exhorters and Raptures in Bridge water. 120 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 The Revival in New England. — Lyme, and other Places in 
 that part of Connecticut— The "Needful Caution in a Critical 
 Day." -^Pastors Itinerating. .... 133 
 
CONTENTS. XVU 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 The Revival in New England. — Plymoutli, Sutton, Taunton, 
 Middleborough, Halifax, Portsmouth, Gloucester, Reading, 
 Newcastle, Westerly, Northampton. . ♦ . 159 
 
 Appendix to Chapter XII. — Extracts from the Private Journal 
 of the Rev. Eleazer Wheelock.— Extracts from the Private 
 Journal of the, Rev. Ebenezer Parkman, of Westborough, 
 Mass. .... 204 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 V Edwards. —The Revival at Enfield. — Outcries, Paintings, and 
 
 Convulsions. ...... 213 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 V Davenport. — His Rise, Progress, Excesses, Recovery, and 
 
 "Retractations." — His Posthumous Influence. — The Eleventh 
 Congregational Church in Boston. — Note, on the Catastrophe 
 of Hugh Bryan . .230 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Whitefield in England. — His Breach with Wesley. — The 
 Revival in Scotland. ..... 255 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 ''-'■ The Revival in New England. — Conventions and Testimo- 
 
 nies. 
 
 286 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 V^ Opposition to the Revival in Connecticct. — Pains and 
 
 Penalties. — The Separatists. . . ■ 302 
 
XVUl CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 The Controversy in Massachusetts. — Whitefield's Second 
 Visit to New England. — His subsequent Labors and Death. 325 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 V The Revival continued at the South. — The Presbyterian 
 Synods. — The Rise of Presbyterianisra in Virginia. — White- 
 field's Labors in the Southern Colonies. — The Healing of the 
 " Great Schism." ...... 372 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 NWs/ The Results. ...... 388 
 
THE 
 
 GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 iNTRODncToRV. — Pi'evious State of Religious Opinions stnd Practices. — 
 Decline of Piety. — Preaching of Edwards. — "Surprising Conver- 
 sions" at Northampton, and in other places. 
 
 / The " Great Awakening of 1740" was not confined to 
 that year. The religious movement of which the events 
 of that year were a conspicuous part, began at Northamp- 
 ton jn 1734, and conti nued^ till_1742, and in many places 
 even longer. The immediate occasion of its bommence- 
 ment was a series of sermons by the elder E dwar ds, on the 
 doctrine of Justification by Faith ; and among the most 
 efficient means of carrying it on, were his sermons, proving 
 that " every mouth shall be stopped " at the day of judg- 
 ment, and that "nothing, at any one moment, keeps wicked 
 men out of hell, but the mere pleasure of God." Edwards 
 himself testified, that no discourses had "been more re- 
 markably blessed, than those in which the doctrine of God's 
 absolute sovereignty with regard to the salvation of sinners, 
 and his just liberty with regard to answering the prayers, or 
 succeeding the pains, of mere natural men, continuing such," 
 were insisted on. These doctrines, when handled as they 
 were by him, are always powerful ; but, to appreciate the 
 force with which they canie upon the hearers then, we must 
 r.nnsider whnt w as \\\p.n tVip rpljg-j o iis state of New England , 
 and of the world. 
 
 jTI n the early days of New Englan d, n one but churc h 
 me mbers could h old any office, or vote at electionsrl This 
 1 
 
2 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 is often mentioned, as evidence of the bigotry and domi- 
 neering spirit of tiie Puritans ; but unjustly. It was so, and 
 always had been soj throughout the Christian world, — ex- 
 cept that, in most cases, rulers were hereditary, and nobody 
 voted at all. Throughout Christian Europe, both Romish 
 and Reformed, the practice was, to baptize all in infancy, 
 and to consider them as members of the church, unless ex- 
 communicated. In childhood, they were to be taught cer- 
 tain forms of faith and worship, after which they were ad- 
 mitted to the Lord's Supper, receiving "confirmation" 
 from the bishop, where there were bishops, and passing 
 through an examination in the creeds and catechisms, where 
 the government was Presbyterian. True, the officiating 
 bishop or presbyter might require of the catechumen an ex- 
 perimental acquaintance with the truths of Christianity, and 
 thus exclude from the Lord's table such as gave no evidence 
 of regeneration. But such was not the practice. Exclusion 
 from the Lord's table, — that is, excommunication, — was 
 attended with the loss of certain civil rights, and, in most 
 countries, followed by the infliction of punishment by the 
 civil government. In England, a man appointed to any civil 
 or military office must " qualify," by receiving the Lord's 
 Supper in the established church ; and many received it to 
 "qualify" themselves for office, who neglected it all the 
 rest of their lives. The clergyman who withheld the Lord's 
 Supper from one requesting it, inflicted a civil injury, and 
 was liable to prosecution ; and, if prosecuted, must show to 
 the court that he had good grounds for his decision, or suf- 
 fer the consequences. W hen John Wesley, the foun der of 
 Met hodism, left Georgia to return to Englan d, a prosecution 
 was p ending against him for debarring a young lad y from the 
 LorJ's ""Supper. Under such laws^ the Lord's "tab1fi"mii?t 
 be_op en to all who have been baptized, who h ave learned 
 the creed and catechism, and have not comm itted any^ crime 
 wh ich a civil court would jud ge " snandalniifi.'*^ 
 
 Su ch an administratio nLoLthe^ rdinance^ Tsln perfect ha r- 
 mony^ with the doctnne of ba ptisni al regeneration,_Jifild._by 
 the papists, and incorporated into the lit urgy of the Churc h 
 o f Engla nd ; for if baptism is regeneration, why should not 
 all baptized persons, not excommunicated, partake of the 
 Lord's Supper .' Where this doctrine was not held, as in 
 Scotland, for example, its place might be supplied by the 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 3 
 
 habit^f hoging that each communicant was a regenerate per- 
 son. But in order to render such hopes possible, it must 
 be held that the difference between the regenerate and others ■ 
 is not apparent to men ; that regeneration, ordinarily at least, 
 produces no apparent change, of which the teachers and ru- 
 lers of the church may expect to find evidence by examina- 
 tion ; and that, therefore, they must regard every one as 
 regenerate, unless some scandalous offence gives evidence to 
 the contrary. Ministers thus situated may preach on the 
 necessity of regeneration, and on the evidence of it which 
 every one ought to find in himself, and may express their 
 fear that some of their people are not yet converted, and 
 urge them to self-examination ; but while they are obliged, 
 in the most solemn offices of religion, to treat every one as 
 a real convert, the force of such preaching is at least greatly 
 diminished. Unconverted communicants will hope that they 
 have passed through that imperceptible change, will come 
 to the Lord's table, and even make their way into the minis- 
 try. The preaching can scarce fail, in the end, to come into 
 harmony with the practice. 
 
 rrhp New K ngland Purit a ns could walk in n either of these 
 wa ys. CThey be iie^ved^that_whenji rnan is "born-again," a 
 change IB wrought in hiiBijDfjwhich it is possible for him and 
 o thers toJH n STevIdenc e ; that the regenerate differ from the 
 unregenerate by the possession of some substantial good 
 qualities, which must show themselves in thought, feeling and 
 conduct ; and they felt bound to treat all as unregenerate, in 
 whom, on examination, no evidence of Christian piety could 
 be found. They therefore admitted_JjQne_tg_jh£ic---com- 
 munion, excep t jucti as might, " in charitable discreti on, " 
 be_ considere d regenera te persons! ',The preface to the Cam- 
 bridge Platform, published in 1^8, Is mostly occupied in 
 vindicating this practice against the objections which it was 
 expected to encounter in other parts of the Christian world; j 
 
 This system of administering the ordinances laid the foun- 
 dation for whatever is really characteristic of the " New 
 England style of preaching," of which so much has been 
 said. Xjhe preacher had before him a considerable number 
 of men, who were in no respect regarded or treated as re- 
 generate persons ; who were regarded, both by the church 
 and by themselves, as unrenewed, impenitent men, destitute 
 of faith, and of every Christian grace, and in the broad road 
 
4 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 to perdition. It was not merely feared or belfeved that the 
 congregation contained many such persons. The church 
 records contained the names of those who were supposed to 
 be in the road to heaven ; and others were, by common con- 
 sent, to be regarded and addressed as persons in the road to 
 hell. Impenitence, unbelief, enmity to God, and whatever 
 other sins are implied in these, might be, and in Christian 
 faithfulness must be, charged home upon hearers, who would 
 know themselves to be the persons intended, and would con- 
 fess that the preacher only did his duty. Hence the New 
 England habit of assailing hearers, either with argument or 
 entreaty, as men who are to be bcQught over from opposition 
 to agreementr~lNor was this all. jAs their unconverted hear- 
 ers were destitute of faith, had no efficient belief in the word 
 of God, it was evidently impossible to subdue them with 
 proof-texts and expositions of Scripture. Like P aul pre ach- 
 ing atAthens, they^ must draw arg uments from the natu re 
 of things, andTFom the consciences of their he arer s. Hen ce 
 that " metaphysical style," which must ha ve come into u se, 
 even if Edwards had never lived'! The rnanner of sermon- 
 izing must naturally^Be^very different from this, where the 
 preacher is required to hope well concerning each of his 
 hearers, as a child of Godj 
 
 Ij^iit the New "Rn^and r hurches had receded from th eir 
 o riginal standard^if ^he Synod of 1662 had" decided, that 
 persons baptized in infancy, " understanding the doctrine of 
 faith, and publicly professing their assent thereunto ; not scan- 
 dalous in life, and solemnly owning the covenant before the 
 church, wherein they give up themselves and their children 
 to the Lord, and subject themselves to the government of 
 Christ in the church, their children are to be baptized ; " 
 though the parent, thus owning the covenant, was avowedly 
 yet unregenerate, and as such excluded from the Lord's 
 Supper. This practice was immediately adopted by many 
 churches, and, after a violent controversy, became general*. 
 This was very naturally followed by a still further innova- 
 tion, f In 1707,, A' the venerable Stoddard," of Northam p- 
 to n, pubTTshed a sermon , in which he maintained " That 
 sanctitication is not a necessary qualification to partaking of 
 the Lord's Supper," and " that the Lord's Supper is a con- 
 verting ordinance.") pio this. Dr. Increase Mather r^pl ipH 
 the jiex ^year ; and in 1709, Mr. Stoddard publish ed his 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 5 
 
 " Appeal to the Learn ed ; being a Vindication of the Right 
 of vTsTble Saints to the Lord's Supper, though they be des- 
 titute of a Saving Work of God's Spirit on their Hearts." 
 The third book of the Appeal contains " Arguments to 
 prove, that sanctifying grace is not necessary in order to a 
 lawful partaking of the Lord's Supper." Mr. Stoddard, 
 in his sermon, enforced his arguments with the assertion, 
 " That no other country does neglect this ordinance as we 
 in New England ; and that in our own nation at home, [Eng- 
 land,] so in Scotland, Holland, Denmark, Sweedland, Ger- 
 many and France, they do generally celebrate the memorials 
 of Christ's death." There had been strong tendencies to- 
 wards such a practice for many years, and probably some 
 instances of its virtual adoption ; * but it now, for the first 
 time, found an open and able advocate.^ 4^It was strenuously 
 opposed ; but the desire to enjoy the credit and advantages 
 of church membership, aided by Mr. Stoddard's influence, 
 carried the day at Northampton, and the practice soon spread 
 extensively in other parts of New England. 
 / One obvious tendency of this practice was, to destroy 
 c hurch discipli ne ; for unconverted members, generally, 
 would not be strict in calling others to account for errors of 
 doctrine or practice.^ Byt_Mr. Stoddard was _a_ Presby- 
 terian in principle, and hoped to introduce substantially that 
 mode of government ; f under which, he probably thought, 
 unconverted members would be less mischievous. 
 
 But this prostration of discipline was not the worst evil 
 to which this practice tended. What must it teach the 
 unconverted church member to think of himself, and of his 
 prospects for eternity ? He was, according to this doctrine, 
 pursuing the very course which God had prescribed for such 
 persons as himself : and believing this, he could not think 
 himself very deep in guilt, or very greatly in danger., Such 
 a man could not feel very strongly hi.s need of conversion. 
 
 * Trumbull states, that some in Connecticut, as early as 1657, main- 
 tained, that " parishes, in England, consenting to and continuing meetings 
 to worship God, were true churches ; and that members of those par- 
 ishes, coming into New England, had a right to all church privileges, 
 though they made no profession of a work of faith and holiness upon their 
 hearts." Hist. Ct. 1 : ,315. 
 
 The Cambridge Platform, Chap. 4 : 5, expressly denies, that " cohabita- 
 tion," that is, dwelling in the same parish, makes men members of the 
 church. 
 
 t Dwight's Life of Edwards, p. 381. 
 1* 
 
6 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 And what must he suppose conversion to be ? Not a 
 change by which a man begins to obey God ; for he had 
 already begun to obey him, as he supposed, and yet was 
 unconverted. Not a change righteously required of him at 
 every moment ; for God had given him something to do 
 before conversion, and he was doing it. He must have 
 thought it some mysterious benefit, which God would, in 
 his own good time, bestow on those for whom it was ap- 
 pointed ; but for the want of which, the obedient sinner, 
 who was faithfully pursuing the course that God had pre- 
 scribed to him, was rather to be pitied than blamed. He 
 might, on the authority of his minister, and from the seem- 
 ing force of argument, believe that he could not be saved 
 without it ; but conscience could not demand it of him, as 
 the righteous condition of the favor of God, and he could 
 not be much afraid that God would remove him from the 
 world without bestowing it. Nor was this all. Being thus 
 deceived with respect to the very nature of conversion, all 
 his desires and prayers and labors for it would be mis- 
 directed. If aroused to effort, he would be striving after, 
 and looking for, and endeavouring to work himself into, 
 some new state of mind, which would do him no good if 
 attained. And here would be a fruitful source of agonizing 
 labor in vain, and of strange but useless changes, unhappily 
 mistaken for conversion. 
 
 Stoddard, and many others who adopted this practice, 
 preached the truth ably and faithfully ; and their preaching 
 did much to counteract the influence of their ecclesiastical 
 practice. True, the doctrines which they preabhed, and the 
 doctrines which were implied in their system of administer- 
 ing the ordinances, were in direct contradiction to each 
 other ; but they contrived to avoid seeing the contradiction, 
 and fancied that they believed both. But in the end, the 
 doctrines on which a church is seen to act, will prevail over 
 those which are only uttered ; and the state of feeling among 
 the members, and ultimately the preaching itself, will con- 
 form to the theory on which the church is governed and 
 the ordinances are administered. And this will be the more 
 certain, because the influences which demand a certain 
 mode of administration, must also demand a doctrine cor- 
 responding with it. So it had been now. There had 
 been a silent and gradual increase of Arminianism. Scarce 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 7 
 
 any would acknowledge themselves Arminians ; but in many 
 places, ihe preaching more and more favored the belief, that 
 the unconverted might, without supernatural aid, commence 
 and carry on a series of works preparatory to conversion, 
 and that those who were doing it, were doing very well, 
 and were in little danger. 
 
 It is easy tg_see, that this syst em favored the e ntrance of 
 u nconverted me n into the ministry. If one was fit to be 
 a member of the church ; if he was actually a member in 
 good standing ; if he was living as God requires such men 
 to live, and pressing forward, in the use of the appointed 
 means, after whatever spiritual good he had not yet at- 
 tained ; if conversion is such a still and unobservable matter, 
 that neither the candidate nor any one else can judge wheth- 
 er he has yet passed that point or not ; and if his mental 
 qualifications are found sufficient ; why should he be ex- 
 cluded from the ministry ? It could not be. The form 
 of examining candidates as to their piety was still retained, 
 but the spirit of it was dying away ; and though it was 
 esteemed improper to fasten the charge upon individuals by 
 name, nobody doubted that there were many unconverted 
 ministers. Stoddard, in his " Appeal to the Learned," ar- 
 gued from the fact, which he took for granted, that uncon- 
 verted ministers have certain official duties, vvhich they may 
 lawfully perform. — But all these points will be made plainer 
 by the history which is to follow. 
 
 Many think that those who expect to be saved by their 
 works, will of course be very careful to do works by which 
 they may expect to be saved ; but, except where a corrupt 
 clergy has invented a system of superstitious observances, 
 to answer instead of works really good, it happens other- 
 wise. Pre paration for heaven being esteemed a matt er 
 withiii_their own control, men choose the ir o wn tim e for 
 attending ito it ; and, as the business and pT^sures of this 
 life demand present attention, religion is put off to a more 
 "convenient season." And then, man's condition is not 
 believed to be so bad, nor his escape from it so important, 
 as is pretended by those who teach that he is wholly ruined, 
 and entirely dependent on God for his recovery. The 
 concerns of the soul are therefore neglected, or receive but 
 wavering and intermittent attention ; and the result is an 
 increasing laxity of morals, without any diminution of the 
 hope of heaven. 
 
8 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 S uch ha d.J)egnjhg_dawjiwar.(L-prpgress_jn New England. 
 R eviva ls had become les£ jrequ«it_and_jowerful. There 
 were many in the^urches, and some even in the ministry, 
 who were yet lingering among the supposed preliminaries to 
 conversion. The difierence between the church and the 
 world was vanishing away. Chu^ch^ discipjine wasje^i.ted, 
 and the growing la xness of inorals was invading the church- 
 es. ; And yet never, perhaps, had the expectation of reach- 
 ing heaven at last been more general, or more confident. 
 Occasional revivals had interrupted this downward progress, 
 and the preaching of sound doctrine had retarded it, in many 
 places, especially at Northampton ; but even there it had 
 gone on, and the hold of truth on the consciences of men 
 was sadly diminished. The young were abandoning them- 
 selves to frivolity, and to amusements of dangerous tenden- 
 cy, and party spirit was producing its natural fruit of evil 
 among the old. 
 
 Through the influence ofLMwards^jhere^jwaS-JL-gtadual 
 amendment. More decency of demeanor and teachable- 
 ness of spirit became apparent among the youth, and par- 
 ents showed a more suitable care for the moral and spiritual 
 good of their children. Some unseemly and unsafe habits 
 were abandoned, some instances of conversion occurred, 
 and several associations for religious improvement were 
 formed. i 
 
 And now the pr ogress of Arminianis m had become so 
 manifest as to cause alarm. Its growth had been imper- 
 ceptible and unacknowledged ; and even at this time the charge 
 was generally repelled as a slander. Its_adzQcalfiS„ siiid- 
 th ey w e re only explaining some o f the doctrines of Cal- 
 
 yiniam mnrp ratipnflllyjrlian^ JiaH JntMTTPr^ ^igPn'gT^nP, SO as 
 
 to avoid certain difiBculties with which the truth had been 
 encumbered. This was natural ; for there was then a hor- 
 ror of Arminianism, such as it is difficult now to under- 
 stand. Men had not then forgotten the tremendous evils 
 that had grown out of the doctrine of salvation by works. 
 They remembered, that under its influence men had ceased 
 to trust in Christ for salvation, and had learned to trust in the 
 merits of peiiances and ofierings prescribed by the priests. 
 The history of popery had taught them, that the doctrine of 
 salvation by works makes the great mass of the people 
 slaves of the priesthood ; for, as they must learn from the 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 9 
 
 priests what works will save them, they are made to believe 
 that they must do what the priests prescribe, or perish ever- 
 lastingly. The same history had taught, that when a priest- 
 hood attains such power, bad men will press into it, and it 
 will soon become corrupt and anti-christian. Hence one 
 argument almost constantly used against Arminianism in 
 those days was, i ts tendency to prepare the way for po pery^ 
 Hence John Wesl ey, for preaching Arminianism. was even 
 acJuseToTbeinj a Jesuit in disguise. And the men of 
 that age ^coulff not regard popery as it is now regarded. 
 Popery then never asked for toleration, or talked of the 
 equal religious rights of different sects. It demanded and 
 sought to enforce universal submission to the triple crown. 
 Great Britain had just expelled a secretly popish monarch, 
 and his heir, the " Pretender," was seeking, in alliance with 
 France and other popish powers, to regain the throne by 
 force of arms. Victims of popish intolerance, driven from 
 France by the persecutions which followed the revocation 
 of the edict of Nantes, were still living in every protestant 
 country. The frontier settlements of New England were 
 not yet safe from the tomahawks of savages, instigated and 
 accompanied by French Jesuits from Canada ; nor had 
 France yet abandoned the hope of adding these prostestant 
 colonies to her empire, and to the domain of the Romish 
 church. The atrocities which every man remembered, and 
 the dangers which hung over every man's head, taught all to 
 regard _ popery as a false, tyrannical and murderous system, 
 destroying the bodies of its enemies and the souls of its 
 friends. The safety of every thing valuable, either in this 
 world or the world to come, was felt to depend on the unim- 
 paired maintenance of the doctrines of the Reformation. 
 The question, therefore, whether some were departing from 
 that faith, was one of deep interest. Men were unwilling to 
 believe, that their newly-invented explanations were an aban- 
 donment of the faith they attempted to explain. Not only 
 were the pious alarmed, but, Edwards info»ms us, " Many, 
 who looked on themselves as in a Christless condition, 
 seemed to be awakened by it, with fear that God was about 
 to withdraw from the land, and that we should be given up 
 to heterodoxy and corrupt principles ; and that then their op- 
 portunity for obtaining salvation would be past ; and many, 
 who were brought a little to doubt about the truth of the 
 
10 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 doctrines they had hitherto been taught, seemed to have a 
 kind of a trembling fear with the doubts, lest they should be 
 led into by-paths, to their eternal undoing ; and they seemed 
 with much concern and engagedness to inquire, what was 
 indeed the way in which they must come to be accepted of 
 God." • 
 
 This state of mind Edwards determined to meet, by 
 preaching fully on those points on which the controversy 
 turned. Influential friends endeavoured to dissuade him 
 from the attempt ; much fault was found with his introducing 
 such matters of controversy into the pulpit, and the whole 
 proceeding was ridiculed, both at Northampton and else- 
 where. But it was no proof of arrogance in him, to be con- 
 scious that he und.erstood the crisis, and the subject, and 
 was able to say things that his people needed to hear. He 
 co mmenced his series of discourses on " Justificati on by 
 Faith alone," that article with which, as Luther declared, a 
 church stands or falls. The effect of these discourses was, 
 first, to make men feel that now they understood the subject, 
 and had hold of the truth ; and next, to sweep away entirely 
 all those hopes of heaven which they had built upon their own 
 doings, -^ upon their morality, their owning the covenant, 
 partaking the Lord's Supper, or using any other means of 
 grace. Th ey were made to see, that God has not app mnted 
 any thing for men to do betore coming to (Jhrist byfai th ; 
 tha t all their previous works are unacceptable in his sig ht , 
 and lay him under no obligation, either on account of their 
 worthiness or his promise, to grant them any spiritual favor. 
 These discourses were followed by others, in which he 
 taught " God's absolute sovereignty in regard to the salva- 
 tion of sinners, and his just liberty with regard to answering 
 the prayers or succeeding the pains of mere natural men, 
 continuing such." That idea, of " God's just liberty," is 
 an idea of tremendous power. It includes all that is meant 
 by the doctrine of election, and expresses it most philo- 
 sophically, unincumbered with forms of speech derived from 
 human ideas of time. God is at hberty with respect to 
 b estowing salvation. His liberty is perfect. Nothing that 
 the "natural man" has done, or can do, while " continuing 
 such," in any way impairs that liberty, or binds God to a 
 favorable decision. And this his liberty is "just." It is 
 right that it should be so. Sinners have merited and now 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. H 
 
 deserve instant damnation ; and God's liberty to inflict it 
 upon them now, or defer it for the present, or save them 
 from it wholly, according to his own pleasure, is a most 
 "just liberty." When the sinner sees and feels this doc- 
 trine to, be true, he knows that no course remains for him, 
 but to call upon God for mercy ; and he knows that when 
 he calls upon God, there is nothing in his prayers that at all 
 impairs God's "just liberty" with respect to hearing him, 
 and that he has nothing to depend upon, as a ground of hope 
 that he shall be heard, but the mercy of God in Christ. He 
 can make no appeal to the justice of God, for that only con- 
 demns him ; nor to any other attribute but mercy, which, in 
 its very nature, is free, and not constrained. And he can 
 find no satisfactory evidence that God is disposed to be 
 merciful to sinners, but in the fact that he has given his Son 
 to die for them. Here is his only ground of hope. Here 
 he must present and urge his prayer, knowing that he de- 
 serves to be rejected, and knowing that nothing of his own, 
 not even his prayer, diminishes God's "just liberty," to 
 receive or reject him according to his good pleasure. And 
 this is the point to which he needs to be brought. This is 
 the dependence which he needs to feel, and feeling which 
 will drive him to God in prayer. 
 
 But will not the cutting off of his hopes drive him to de- 
 spair, and make him reckless .'' It would, but for the doc- 
 trine of "Justification by Faith," which encourages him 
 who has no good works, to trust in "Him that justifieth the 
 ungodly." It teaches the sinner that, in being destitute of 
 all claim to acceptance 'vvith God, and dependent on his 
 mere mercy, he is only like all others who have been saved 
 through Christ, and therefore need not despair. It teaches 
 him that there is in God an overflowing goodness, which 
 reaches even to the salvation of those who have no claim 
 to be "saved ; and it encourages him to trust in that goodness. 
 It teaches him to resign himself to the disposal of God, 
 sensible of God's "just liberty," and not knowing first what 
 God will do with him ; but encouraged by the goodness of 
 God as shown in the death of his Son, to hope for accept- 
 ance and salvation. And this is faith ; and faith " works by 
 love," and transforms the whole character. 
 
 There was, then, in 1734 , at Northampton and generally 
 in New England, a special need of such sermons as Edwards 
 
12 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 preached ; a special fitness in those sermons, to produce the 
 effects which followed them. 
 
 It was in the latter part of December, 1734, as Edwards 
 informs us,* that "the Spirit of God began extraordinarily 
 to set in and wonderfully to work among us ; and there 
 were very suddenly, one after another, five or six persons, 
 who were, to all appearance, savingly converted, and some 
 of them wrought upon in a very remarkable manner." 
 
 ^qg_of thpfjp r;f>nvf!rtR- wa5-a--ytuing-Woman_who had been 
 notorious as a leader in sc enes of gayety and rustic d issipa- 
 tion. "Edwards was surprised at the account which she gave 
 or~her religious exercises, of which he had heard no report 
 till- she came to converse with him, apparently humble and 
 penitent. He at first feared that the appearance of the work 
 of conversion in a person of such a character would give it 
 a bad name, and exoite prejudices which would hinder its 
 progress; "but the event was the reverse, to a wonderful 
 degree. — The news of it seemed to be like a flash of 
 lightning upon the hearts of the young people, all over the 
 town, and upon many others. — Many went to t alk with he r 
 concerning what she had met witTi; and what appeared in 
 her seemed to be to the satisfaction of all that did so." The 
 consciences of men were constrained to acknowledge the 
 goodness of the power which had wrought such a change, in 
 such a person. " Presently upon this, a great and earnest 
 concern about the great things of religion and the eternal 
 world, became universal in all parts of the town, and among 
 persons of all degrees and all ages ; the noise among the dry 
 bones waxed louder and louder ; all other talk but about 
 spiritual and eternal things, was soon thrown by. — The 
 min ds of people were wonderfully taken o ff from the worl d ; 
 it was treated among us as a thing of very Uttle consequence. 
 They seemed to follow their worldly business more as a 
 part of their duty, than from any disposition they had to 
 it. — It was then a dreadful thing amongst us to lie out of 
 Christ, in danger every day of dropping into hell ; and what 
 persons' minds were intent upon was, to escape for their 
 lives, and to fly from the wrath to come. All would eager- 
 ly lay hold of opportunities for their souls, and were wont 
 very often to meet together in private houses for religious 
 
 * Narrative of Surprising Conversions. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 13 
 
 purposes ; and such meetings, when appointed, were wont 
 greatly to be thronged. — And the work of conversion was 
 carried on in a most astonishing manner, and increased more 
 and more. Souls did, as it were, come by flocks to Jesus 
 Christ. From day to day, for many months together, might 
 be seen evident instances of sinners brought out of darkness 
 into marvellous light. — Our public assemblies were then 
 beautiful ; the congregation was alive in God's service, every 
 one earnestly intent on the public worship, every hearer 
 eager to drink in the words of the minister as they came 
 from his mouth. The assembly in general were, from time 
 to time, in tears while the word was preached ; some weep- 
 ing with sorrow and distress, others with joy and love, others 
 with pity and concern for the souls of their neighbours. 
 — Those amongst us that had formerly been converted, 
 were greatly enlivened and renewed with fresh and extraor- 
 dinary incomes of the Spirit of God ; though some much 
 more than others, according to the measure of the gift of 
 Christ. Many that had before labored under difficulties 
 about their own state, had now their doubts removed by 
 more satisfying experience, and more clear discoveries of 
 God's love." 
 
 The report of the state of things at Northampton .spread 
 into other towns, where many " seemed not to know what to 
 make of it," many ridiculed it, "and some compared what we 
 called conversion, to certain distempers." Great numbers, 
 however, who came to Northampton and saw for themselves, 
 were differently affected, and not a few of them, from various 
 places, were awakened and apparently brought to repentance. 
 Tn_MarcktJ, 735, the revival began to be general in Sou th 
 Hadley, and about the same time in Suffield . It next ap- 
 peared in Sunderland, Djgerfield, and Hatfield ; and after- 
 wards at West Springfield, L ong- M eadow, and Enfield ; and 
 then in H adley Old T owii, and in N orthfi eld. In Con- 
 necticut, the work commenced in the First Parish in Wind- 
 sor, about the same time as at Northampton. It was re- 
 markable at East Windsor, and " wonderful" at Coventry. 
 Similar scenes were witnessed at Lebanon, Durham, Slrat- 
 focdj, Ri^ton, Ne w Hav eo', Guilford, Mansfield, Tolland, 
 Hebron, Bq^n, Preston, Groton, and Woodbury. And 
 about the same time there was an awakening iiTN ew Jerse y, 
 principally in connexion with the labors of William and Gil- 
 2 
 
14 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Pert Ten nent, of which a more particular account will be 
 given in another place. 
 
 Edwards hoped that more than three hundred were con- 
 verted in Northampton in half a year. They were of all 
 ages, from the child_of four years o ld to the man of seventy. 
 He received about a hundred to the communion of the 
 church before one sacramental season. Eighty of them were 
 received at one time, " whose appearance, when they pre- 
 sented themselves together to make an open, explicit pro- 
 fession of Christianity, was very affecting to the con- 
 gregation." And no wonder; for all understood that in 
 their case the transaction had a very solemn meaning. It 
 was the effect and avowal of their conversion. Near sixty 
 more were received before the next sacrament. Notwith- 
 standing the plan on which persons were here admitted to 
 the church, the pastor thought he had " very sufficient evi- 
 dence of the conversion " of those who were now added to 
 its numbers. 
 
 The account which Edwards gives of the character of 
 these conversions is highly interesting and instructive, but 
 cannot be transferred to this history. One characteristic, 
 however, is too important to be passed without remark. It 
 would seem that i n every case, the h appy change came_uaon 
 th e sinner's mind, instead of being wrought by him. In no 
 case, it seems, did the sinner first form to himself an idea of 
 some volition to be put forth by himself, and then, by direct 
 effort, put it forth, and thus become a convert. He says ; 
 
 "In those in whom awakenings seem to have a saving 
 issue, commonly the first thing that appears after their legal 
 troubles is, a conviction of the justice of God in their con- 
 demnation, a sense of their own exceeding sinfulness, and 
 the vileness of all their performances. In giving an account 
 of this J they expressed themselves very variously ; some, 
 that they saw t hat God was a sovereig n, and might receive 
 others and reject them ; some, that they were convinced 
 that God might justly bestow mercy on every person in the 
 town, and on every person in the world, and damn them- 
 selves to all eternity ; some, that they see that God may 
 justly have no regard to all the pains they have taken, and 
 all the prayers they have made ; some, that they see, that if 
 they should seek, and take the utmost pains, all their lives, 
 God might justly cast them into hell at last, because all their 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 15 
 
 labors, prayers and tears cannot make atonement for the 
 least sin, nor merit any blessing at the hand of God ; some 
 have declared themselves to be in the hands of God, that he 
 can and may dispose of them just as he pleases ; some, that 
 God may glorify himself in their damnation, and they won- 
 der that God has suffered them to live so long, and has not 
 cast them into hell long ago. 
 
 "Commonly, persons' minds, immediately before thi? dis- 
 covery of God's justice, are exceeding restless, and in a 
 kind pf struggle and tumult, and sometimes in mere anguish ; 
 but generally, as soon as they have this conviction, it imme- 
 diately brings their minds to a calm, and a before unex- 
 pected quietness and composure ; and most frequently, 
 though not always, then the pressing weight upon their spir- 
 its is taken away, and a general hope arises that some time 
 or other^God will be gracious, even before any distinct and 
 particular discoveries of mercy ; and often they then come to 
 a conclusion within themselves, that they will lie at God's feet, 
 and wait his time ; and they rest in that, not being sensible 
 that the Spirit of God has now brought them to a frame 
 whereby they are prepared for mercy ; for it is remarkable 
 that persons, when they first have this sense of God's jus- 
 tice, rarely, in the time of it, think any thing of its being that 
 humiliation that they have often heard insisted on, and that 
 others experience." 
 
 In some cases, their "sense of the excellency of God's 
 justice " in their condemnation, and their approbation of it, 
 was such that they "almost called it a willingness to be 
 damned." But Edwards thought that this language must have 
 been used without any clear idea of its import, and must 
 have meant only that "salvation appeared too good for 
 them," and that the glory of God's justice ought not to be 
 sacrificed for their sakes. He proceeds : 
 
 " That calm of spirit that some persons have found after 
 their legal distresses, continues some time before any special 
 and delightful manifestation is made to the soul, of the grace 
 of God, as revealed in the Gospel ; but very often some com- 
 fortable and sweet view of a merciful God, of a sufficient 
 Redeemer, or of some great and joyful things of the Gospel, 
 immediately follows, or in a very little time ; and in some, 
 the first sight of their just desert of hell, and God's sover- 
 eignty with respect to their salvation, and a discovery of all- 
 
16 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 sufficient grace, are so near, that they seem to go as it were 
 together. 
 
 "It has more frequently been so amongst us, that when 
 persons have first had the gospel ground of relief for lost sin- 
 ners discovered to them, and have been entertaining their 
 minds with the sweet prospect, they have thought nothing at 
 that time of their being converted. To see that there is 
 such an_aIlrSiifficieacxJn_Gpd, and such plentiful provision 
 made in Christ, after they have been borne down and sunk 
 with a sense of their guilt and fears of wrath, exceedingly 
 refreshes them. The view is joyful to them, as it is in its 
 own nature glorious, and gives them quite new and more de- 
 lightful ideas of God and Christ, and greatly encourages 
 them to seek conversion, and begets in them a strong reso- 
 lution to give up themselves, and devote their whole lives to 
 God and his Son, and patiently to wait till God shall see fit 
 to make all effectual ; and very often they entertain a strong 
 persuasion, that he will in his own time do it for them. 
 
 " There is wrought in them a holyi repose of soul in God 
 through Christ, and a secret disposition to fear and love him, 
 and to hope for blessings from him in this way. And yet 
 they have no imagination that they are now converted ; it 
 does not so much as come into their minds ; and very often 
 the reason is, that they do not see that they do accept of this 
 sufficiency of salvation that they behold in Christ, having 
 entertained a wrong notion of acceptance, not being sensible 
 that the obedient and joyful entertainment which their hearts 
 give to this discovery of grace, is a real acceptance of it. 
 They know not that the sweet complacence they feel in the 
 mercy and complete salvation of God, as it includes pardon 
 and sanctification", and is held forth to them only through 
 Christ, is a true receiving of this mercy, or a plain evidence 
 of their receiving it. They expected, I know not what kind 
 of act of the soul, and perhaps they had no distinct idea of it 
 themselves." 
 
 Edwards informs us, that many were prejudiced against 
 this revival, by f alse repor ts concerning impressions on 
 men's imaginations.^ He did not suppose that any of the 
 converts " imagined that they saw any thing with thair bodily 
 eyes," but only that their ideas of the torments of hell, the 
 glories of heaven, or the dying love of Christ, or the like, 
 excited "lively pictures in their minds." In a few in- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 17 
 
 Stances, he was unable to account for the phenomena on 
 natural principles ; but he was not convinced that there was 
 any thing supernatural in them, and he fully believed and 
 taught his people, that such things deserved no confidence, 
 as evidences of conversion. 
 
 These misrepresentations were to be expected. As we 
 have seen, there were many in the churches, and some doubt- 
 less in the ministry, who had no personal acquaintance with 
 such religion as then prevailed at Northampton. Thjs was 
 a way to heaven that.4hey had not learned, and in which 
 they were not walking. If this was true doctrine and true 
 religion, their own hopes were delusive, and their souls in 
 danger of perdition. They must of necessity think ill, 
 either of the work at Northampton, or of the religion which 
 they professed, and perhaps taught. It was inevitable, there- 
 fore, human nature being what it is, that evidence should be 
 sought and found against the work at Northampton ; that all 
 real faults should be gathered up and reported ; that a bad 
 interpretation should be put upon 'every thing that the hearer 
 or beholder could not understand ; and that every evil report 
 should be exaggerated, till the sum total met the wishes of 
 those who were anxious to condemn the work, lest the work 
 should condemn them. We shall find the same principle in 
 vigorous operation, and on a larger scale, and with more 
 perijnanent results, in following years. 
 
 About_the_ciose of May, .17 35, the work be^an sensib ly 
 to decline. It is usually, and truly, assigned as one reason 
 for such declensions, that the physical power to endure ex- 
 citement is exhausted, and the nerves irresistibly seek re- 
 pose. In the case before us, too, it is probable that nearly 
 every person old enough to understand preaching had been 
 excited, had been made to consider his ways, and had de- 
 cided upon his course, at least for the present. Many had 
 found peace in believing, and the rest had chosen a return to 
 stupidity, and had their choice. New subjects were no 
 longer to be found, by the report of whose awakening ex- 
 citement could be sustained. And several events, the most 
 imjDortant of which was the controversy that grew out of the 
 settlement of the Rev. Mr. TSreck at Springfield, diverted 
 the minds of men to other subjects. Still, for months after 
 the decline began, there were occasional instances pf con- 
 version, and of revival of feeling among the pious ; and as 
 . 2* 
 
18 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 late as the close of 1736, the work still continued in some 
 places in Connecticut. 
 
 This awakening excited a lively interest among the friends 
 of vhal piety at a distance. Dr. Colman, o LBflStgn, wrote 
 to Mr. Edwards for an account of it. Having obtained an 
 answer, he published it, and forwarded it to Dr. Watts and 
 Dr. Guise in London. They told the good news in con- 
 versation, and at pubhc religious assemblies. A rec[uest for 
 a m^re^coinplete account_drew forth ajetter from MF. T ld- 
 w ards^ to Dr. Co lman, dat ed Novem ber_6tjjj^j736j-ffihich 
 wggPublishedj£_Xondgnj^un^ of 
 
 S urprising Coiiv e rsions, " with an introductj on by D iaJ^atts 
 and Guise. It was circulated extensively, and with good 
 effect, both in England and Scotland, where it gave many 
 ministers and churches new views of what might be expected 
 and should be sought, even in these latter days. In 1738, 
 it was republished in Boston, with several of the sermons 
 which had been most useful in promoting the work, and 
 commended to the public by four of the oldest ministers, of 
 the town. It has since been published in his collected 
 " Works," and should be attentively studied by every one, 
 whose duty it is to understand the workings of the human 
 mind under the convicting and converting influences of the 
 Spirit of God. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Revitals of 1739, 1740 ; at Newark, Harvard, Northampton, New Lon- 
 donderry, and New Brunswick. — Remarks on the Presbyterianism of 
 that age. 
 
 The excitement of 1734 had passed away, but its effects 
 remained. The churches which it had visited, were strong- 
 er, both in numbers and in piety. The morals of those 
 towns were decidedly improved. More definite and correct 
 views extensively prevailed, of the difference between a real 
 and a nominal Christian, and of the great change by which 
 that difference is produced. ' Extensively, the pious in other 
 places had learned to regard awakenings hke that at North- 
 ampton, as events to be desired, prayed for, and expected ; 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 19 
 
 and this expectation had been kept alive by their occasional 
 occurrence, in single parishes, in different parts of the coun- 
 try. In 1739, such instances began to multiply, and to grow 
 conspicuous. The specimens which follow, will show their 
 character. 
 
 NEWARK, N. J. 
 
 Nejgyark was originally a colony from New England, and 
 must have retained rnuch _of the primitive New England 
 fee hng conce rning the distjnction betvyeen the church and the 
 world.* In practice, however, that distinction appears to 
 have been lamentably obscured. In the words of the Rev. 
 Jonathan Dickenson, then pastor of the church in Elizabeth- 
 
 • Newark was settled in 1667 or 1668, by about thirty families from 
 Branford, Ct. with their minister, the Rev. Mr. Pierson. Professor 
 Hodge, of Princeton, in his excellent " Constitutional History of the Pres- 
 byterian Church," remarks, that a part of the New England Puritans were 
 Congregationalists, and a part Presbyterians; and quotes a tradition, pre- 
 served in a manuscript " History of Newark," by Dr. McWhorter, to 
 preve that the first settlers of Newark were Presbyterians. It may not be 
 to the purpose, here, to refer to the notorious fact, that all who held the 
 validity of ordination by presbyters, in opposition to diocesan episcopacy, 
 were formerly called Presbyterians, and that the name itself was derived 
 from that peculiarity ; but it is important to remember that no part of the 
 New England Puritans were Presbyterians in the modern sense of that 
 word. None of them held that single churches should be governed by 
 presbyteries composed of several churches and their pastors. Both parties 
 held, perhaps with equal tenacity, the entire ecclesiastical independence of 
 every " congregation of faithful men," duly associated as a church. The 
 difference was this. The Presbyterians of New England held that each 
 church should be governed by its own presbytery ; that is, by its pastor 
 and teaching and ruling elders ; while the Congregationalists held that 
 every adult male communicant should take part directly in the govern- 
 ment of the church. [See President Styles's sermon of " Christian Union," 
 and the authorities there quoted.] In this sense, the first settlers of New- 
 ark may have been Presbyterians; though there is strong reason to doubt 
 it. The Rev. Philemon Robbins, in his " Narrative of the Proceedings of the 
 New Haven Association," preserved in the Old South Church Library, has 
 quoted from the town records of Branford, a preamble and resolutions 
 adopted January 20th, 1667, in view of the emigration to Newark, from 
 which it appears that Branford was settled " by men of Congregational 
 principles " according to the Cambridge platform, and that those who did 
 not emigrate, resolved to adhere to that system. If the emigrating party 
 removed, as Stated by Professor Hodge, because they were " dissatisfied 
 with the union between the colonies of New Haven and Connecticat," 
 they must have been Congregationalists "of the straitest sect; " for the 
 opposition to that union was raised mainly in defence of pure Congrega- 
 tionalism. Davenport, of New Haven, wag at its head ; and the defence of 
 the colony against the claims of Connecticut was for a time intrusted to the 
 "discretionary management of the magistrates of New Haven and Bran- 
 ford. [See Bacon's " Historical Discourses."] 
 
20 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 town, — "Religion was in a very low state, professors 
 generally dead and lifeless, and the body of our people care- 
 less, carnal and, secure. There was but little of the power 
 of godliness appearing among us, till some time in August, 
 1739, (the summer before Mr. Whitefield came first into 
 these pans,) when there was a remarkable revival at New- 
 ark, especially among the rising generation. — This concern 
 increased for a considerable time among the young people, 
 though not wholly confined to them ; and in November, 
 December and January following, it became more remark- 
 able, as well as more general. — This revival of religion 
 was chiefly observable among the younger people, till the 
 following March, when the whole town in general was 
 brought under an uncommon concern about their eternal in- 
 terests, and the congregation appeared universally afl^ected 
 under some sermons that were then preached to them ; and 
 there is good reason to conclude, that there was a consider- 
 able number who experienced a saving change about that 
 time. The summer following, this awakening concern sen- 
 sibly abated, though it did not wholly die away ; and nothing 
 remarkable occurred till February, 1*|41, when they were 
 again visited with the special and manifest effusions of the 
 Spirit of God."* 
 
 HARVARD, MASS. 
 
 The Rev. John Seccomb wrote, February 20, 1744, after 
 there had been time to test the genuineness of the revival : 
 
 " The first visible alteration among my people for the 
 better, was some time in the month of September, in the 
 year 1739, when several began to grow piore thoughtful and 
 serious, and somewhat reformed ; more constant and diligent 
 in attending the public worship, more attentive in hearing the 
 word preached, more careful to sanctify the Sabbath, &c. 
 
 " Not long after this, came four young men to me under con- 
 siderable awakenings and concern about their spiritual state. 
 In December following, these same persons were taken into 
 church fellowship, who had been of too loose a life and con- 
 versation in times past ; which put many upon further thought- 
 fulness. From this time, the concern began to increase, and 
 there was scarce a sacrament passed, (which is with us once 
 in eight weeks,) without some additions to the church, from 
 
 * Christian History, Vol. I. p. 252. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 21 
 
 that to the present time ; though twelve is the greatest num- 
 ber that have been received at once." 
 
 The whole number that had been admitted from Septem- 
 ber, 1739, to the date of the letter, was "near a hundred." 
 From the details given by Mr. Seccomb, the revival appears 
 to have been much like that at Northampton in 1734, but on 
 a smaller scale. Through its whole continuance, it " was 
 not carried on violently, nor by strangers.". One sermon, 
 preached in June, 1741, by an aged minister, was the only 
 foreign aid that appeared to produce any effect. Some 
 were awakened by hearing sermons from their pastor, which 
 he had preached to them before without affecting them.* 
 
 NORTHAMPTON, MASS. 
 
 Edwards shall speak for himself. His account was written 
 December 21, 1743 : 
 
 "Ever since the great work of God that was wrought 
 here about nine years ago, there has been a great, abiding 
 alteration in this town in many respects. There has been 
 vastly more religion kept up in the town, among all sorts of 
 persons, in religious exercises, and in common conversation, 
 than used to be before. There has remained a more gener- 
 al seriousness and decency in attending the public worship. — 
 I su ppose the town has been in no measure so fr ef; frnm 
 vice, — ^^^r any long time together, for this sixty years, as it 
 has this nine years past. There has also been an evident 
 alteration with respect to a charitable spirit tb the poor. — 
 And though, after that great work of nine- years ago, there 
 has been a very lamentable decay of religious affections, and 
 the engagedness of people's spirit in religion ; yet many 
 societies for prayer and social religion were all along kept 
 up, and there were some few instances of awakening and 
 deep concern about the things of another world, even in the 
 most dead time. In the year 1740, in the spring, before 
 Mr. Whitefield came to this town, there was a visible alter- 
 ation. There was more seriousness and religious conversa- 
 tion, especially among young people. Those things that 
 were of ill tendency among them were more forborne ; and 
 it was a more frequent thing for persons to visit their minis- 
 ter upon soul accounts. In some particular persons, there 
 
 * Christian History, Vol. II. p. 13. 
 
22 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 appeared a great alteration about that time. And thus it 
 continued tilt Mr. Whitefield came to town, which was 
 about the middle of October following."* 
 
 What followed at Northampton, belongs to a subsequent 
 part of the history. 
 
 FRESBYTERIANISM IN 1740. 
 
 The awakening at New Londonderry, Pa., introduces us 
 to another class of people, the Scotch and Scotch-Irish 
 Presbyterians, and obliges us to consider the religious bear- 
 ings of their ecclesiastical polity. 
 
 It does not appear that Mr. Stoddard's doctrine concern- 
 ing the Lord's Supper ever prevailed among Presbyterians, 
 either here or in Europe. Their doctrine always has been, 
 that saving faith is necessary, in order to an acceptable and 
 profitable partaking of that ordinance. The preparatory lec- 
 ture before each communion season seems to have been in- 
 tended mainly, to. call the minds of the people to the requi- 
 site qualifications, that they might not come forward unpre- 
 pared, and eat and drink "unworthily." But in Scotland, 
 the Presbyterian was the church estabhshed by law, and all, 
 except the "ignorant" and the " scandalous," had a legal 
 right to its ordinances. All the children born within the 
 parish limits were to be baptized in infancy, to receive a 
 Christian education under the care of the pastor and elders, 
 and to be admitted to the Lord's table, when educated. To 
 test the sufficiency of their knowledge, they must be ex- 
 amined by the session ; that is, by the pastor and elders. 
 The session, too, may excommunicate or suspend its offend- 
 ing members from the communion of the church ; but all its 
 acts are subject to revision and reversal by higher courts. 
 
 It was the design of the founders of American Presby- 
 terianisin, — at least, of such of them as were from Scot- 
 land or Ireland, — to adopt the Scottish system, as far as the 
 different circumstances of the country would permit ; or, to 
 use the language of the Synod in 1721, " as far as the na- 
 ture and constitution of this country would allow." It was 
 not in their power to treat all born or residing within certain 
 geographical limits, as members of the Presbyterian congrega- 
 tion located there. They could claim only such as volun- 
 
 * Christian History, Vol. I. p. 367. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 23 
 
 tarily joined them. The original members of many of the 
 congregations were doubtless received on the testimony of 
 letters from their former pastors or sessions in Scotland 
 or Ireland ; * and they, with pastors from the same countries, 
 would form churches like those they left ; churches containing 
 some converted and some unconverted members ; churches 
 in which the necessity of regeneration was an article of faith ; 
 while evidence of regeneration was not required in order to 
 membership. In 1735, " Mr. Gilbert Tennent brought some 
 overtures into the synod, with respect to trials of candidates 
 both for the ministry and for the Lord's Supper, that there 
 be due care taken to examine into the evidences of the grace 
 of God in them, as well as of their other necessary qualifica- 
 tions." On the first of these points, the response of the 
 synod was explicit. All the presbyteries were ordered "that 
 they dihgently examine all candidates for the ministry, in their 
 experience of a work of sanctifying grace in their hearts ; and 
 that they admit none to that sacred trust, that are not, in the 
 eye of charity, serious Christians." The other point, by 
 inadvertence or design, was evaded. " And the synod does 
 also exhort all the ministers within our bounds, to use due 
 care in examining those whom they admit to the Lord's Sup- 
 per." f But what " care " was " due " on such occasions, 
 and whether the candidates were to be examined as to " the 
 evidences of the grace of God in them," was left unde- 
 cided. I It is probable that several ministers at that time 
 practised according to the rule which Mr. Tennent wished 
 the synod to establish ; but others, and probably a large ma- 
 
 * Such letters from Scotland or Ireland are even now a source of per- 
 plexity to Presbyterian pastors in America. Those who bring them, ex- 
 pect to be received as communicants; while perhaps neither they nor their 
 former pastors suppose they give any evidence that they have been bom 
 again. Within a very few years, a young man who presented such a 
 letter to a Presbyterian pastor in New York, was plainly, faithfully and 
 affectionately told what was here required as a qualification for admission 
 to the Lord's table, and his case was deferred. \ For this, he soon after ex- 
 pressed the warmest gratitude ; as it had been the means of his conversion. 
 
 t Professor Hodge's Const. Hist. Vol. I. p. 240. He quotes "Minutes, 
 p. 31." Dr Miller, in his "Life of Rogers," says it wasin 1734. 
 
 } And there it remains, even unto this day ; every session practising 
 according to its own views of duty. It is supposed, however, that a large 
 majority of church sessions, among every class of American Presbyterians, 
 now hold Mr. Tennent's views on this subject, and with greater or less 
 strictness, practise accordingly. So flir as the author has been able to learn, 
 Mr. Tennent's overture was both the first and the last attempt to establish 
 any uniform rule on this subject. 
 
J4 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 jority, followed the European custom, of admitting all who 
 iknew the creed and catechisms, and were not " scanda- 
 iJous." * Thus, though they took a different road, from Mr. 
 Stoddard, they arrived at the same practical result. Both 
 ^agreed in admitting to the full communion of the church, 
 . persons who gave no evidence of regeneration. The doc- 
 . trine of the new birth ceased to be regarded in the adminis- 
 tration, of the ordinances. The church bore no testimony to 
 that doctrine at the Lord's table; and as a natural conse- 
 quence, it practically slipped from the minds both of preach- 
 ers andJbearers. 
 
 NEW LONDONDERRY, PA. 
 
 Keeping these remarks in mind, the reader will understand 
 the account of the awakening at New Londonderry, given by 
 the Rev. Samuel Blair, — justly one of the most venerated 
 names in the history of American Presbyterianism. It is 
 dated August 6th, 1744. 
 
 "That it may the more clearly appear that the Lord has 
 indeed carried on a work of true real religion among us of 
 - late years, I conceive it will be useful to give a brief general 
 view of the state of religion in these parts before this remark- 
 able season. I doubt not, then, but there were some sin- 
 cerely religious people up and down ; and there were, I be- 
 lieve, a considerable ;number in the several congregations 
 pretty exact, according to their education, in the observance 
 of the external fojms of religion, not only as to attendance 
 .upon public ordinances on the Sabbaths, but also, as to the 
 practice of family worship, and perhaps, secret prayer too. 
 But with these things the most part seemed to appearance to 
 rest contented ; and to satisfy their consciendes just with a 
 d«ad formality in religion. If they performed these duties 
 pretty punctually in their, seasons, and as they thought with a 
 good meaning out of conscience, and not just to obtain a 
 name for religion among men ; then they were ready to con- 
 clude that they were truly and sincerely religious. A very 
 lamentable ignorance of the main essentials of true practical 
 religion and the doctrines nextly relating thereunto, very 
 generally prevailed. The nature and necessity of the new 
 
 * It does not appear that the Tennents ever belonged to a Presbyterian 
 church in Ireland. The Rev. William Tennent, sen., passed from the es- 
 tablished (Episcopal) church in Ireland, to the Presbyterian church in Amer- 
 ica. His sons were educated here. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. . 25 
 
 birth was but little known or thought of. The necessity of 
 a conviction of sin and misery, by the Holy Spirit opening 
 and applying the Law to the conscience, in order to a saving 
 closure with Christ, was hardly known at all to the most. It 
 was thought that if there was any need of a heart-distressing 
 sight of the soul's danger, and fear of divine wrath, it was 
 only needful for the grosser sort of sinners ; and for any 
 others to be deeply exercised this way, (as there might 
 sometimes be before some rare instances observable,) this 
 was generally looked upon to be a great evil and temptation 
 that had befallen those persons. The common names for 
 such soul-concern were melancholy, trouble of mind, or de- 
 spair. These terms were in common, so far as I have been 
 acquainted, indifferently used as synonymous ; and trouble 
 of mind was looked upon as a great evil, which all persons 
 that made any sober profession and practice of religion ought 
 carefully to avoid. There was scarcely any suspicion at all, 
 in general, of any danger of depending upon self-righteous- 
 ness, and not upon the righteousness of Christ alone for 
 salvation. Papists and Quakers would be readily acknowl- 
 edged guilty of this crime ; but hardly any professed Presby- 
 terian. The necessity of being first in Christ by a vital 
 union, and in a justified state, before our religious services 
 can be well pleasing and acceptable to God, was very little 
 understood or thought of. But the common notion seemed 
 to be, that if people were aiming to be in the way of duty 
 as well as they could, as they iinagiHe^, there was no reason 
 to be much afraid. 
 
 " According to these principles, and this ignorance of 
 some of the most soul-concerning truths of the Gospel, peo- 
 ple were very generally, through the land, careless at heart, 
 and stupidly indifferent about the great concerns of eternity. 
 There was very little appearance of any hearty engagedness 
 in religion ; and indeed the wise, for the most part, were in 
 a great degree asleep with the foolish. It was sad to see 
 with what a careless behaviour the public ordinances were at- 
 tended, and how people were given to unsuitable wordly dis- 
 course on the Lord's holy day. In public companies, es- 
 pecially at weddings, a vain and frothy lightness was ap- 
 parent in the deportment of many professors ; and in some 
 places very extravagant follies,, as horse-running, fiddling and 
 dancing, pretty much obtained on those occasions. 
 3 
 
26 . THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 " Thus religion lay as it were dying, and ready to expire 
 its last breath of life in this part of the visible church : and 
 it was in the spring, An. 1740, when the God of salvation 
 was pleased to visit us with the blessed effusions of his Holy 
 Spirit in an eminent manner. The first very open and public 
 appearance of this gracious visitation in these parts, was in 
 the congregation which God has committed to my charge. 
 This cdngregation has not been erected above fourteen or 
 fifteen years from this time. The place is a new settle- 
 ment, generally settled with people from Ireland (as all our 
 congregations in Pennsylvania, except two or three, chiefly 
 are made up of people from that kingdom.) I am the first 
 ■ minister they have ever had settled in the place ; having been 
 regularly liberated from my former charge in East Jersey, 
 above an hundred miles northeastward from hence, (the 
 Rev. Presbytery of New Brunswick, (of which I had the 
 comfort of being a member,) judging it to be my duty, for 
 sundry reasons, to remove from thence.) At the earnest in- 
 vitation of the people here, I came to them in the beginning 
 of November, 1739 ; accepted of a call from them that winter, 
 and was formally installed and settled among them as their 
 minister in April following. There were some hopefully 
 pious people here at my first coming, which was a great 
 encouragement and comfort to me. 
 
 " I had some view and sense of the deplorable condition 
 of the land in general ; and accordingly the scope of my 
 preaching through that first winter after I came here, was 
 mainly calculated for persons in a natural unregenerate state. 
 I endeavoured, as the Lord enabled me, to open up and 
 prove from his word, the truths which I judged most neces- 
 sary for such as were in that state to know and believe in 
 order to their conviction and conversion. I endeavoured to 
 deal searchingly and solemnly with them ; and through the 
 concurring blessing of God, I had knowledge of four or five 
 brought under deep convictions that winter. 
 
 " In the beginning of March I took a journey into East 
 Jersey, and was abroad for two or three Sabbaths. A 
 neighbouring minister, who seemed to be earnest for the 
 awakening and conversion of secure sinners, and whom I 
 had obtained to preach a Sabbath to my people in my ab- 
 sence, preached to them, I think, on the first Sabbath after I 
 left home. His subject was, the dangerous and awful case 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 27 
 
 of such as continue unregenerate and unfruitful under the 
 means of grace. The text was Luke xiii. 7. ' Then said 
 he to the dresser of his vineyard ; behold these three years 
 I come seeking fruit on this fig-tree, and find none ; cut it 
 down, why cumbereth it the ground ? ' Under that sermon 
 there was a visible appearance of much soul-concern among 
 the hearers ; so that some burst out with an audible noise into 
 bitter crying (a thing not known in these parts before.) After 
 I had come home, there came a young man to my house 
 under deep trouble about the state of his soul, whom I had 
 looked upon as a pretty light, merry sort of a youth. He 
 told me that he was not any thing concerned about himself in 
 the time of hearing the above-mentioned sermon, nor after- 
 wards, till the next day that he went to his labor, which was 
 grubbing in order to clear some new ground. The first 
 grub he set about was a pretty large one with a high top, and 
 when he had cut the roots, as it fell down, these words came 
 instantly to his remembrance, and as a spear to his heart, ' Cut 
 it' down, why cumbereth it the ground?' ' So 'thought he, 
 ' must I be cut down by the justice of God for the burning 
 of hell, unless I get into another state than I am now in.' 
 He thus came into very great and abiding distress, which, 
 to all appearance, has had a happy issue ; his conversation 
 being tb this day as becomes the Gospel of Christ. 
 
 " The news of this very public appearance of deep soul- 
 concern among my people met me an hundred miles from 
 home : I was very joyful to hear of it, in hopes that God 
 was about to carry on an extensive work of converting grace 
 amongst them. And the first sermon I preached after my 
 return to them, was from Matthew vi. 33. ' ' Seek ye first 
 the kingdom of God, and his righteousness.' After opening 
 up and explaining the parts of the text, when, in the im- 
 provement, I came to press the injunction in the text upon 
 the unconverted and ungodly, and offered this as one reason 
 among others, why they should now henceforth first of all 
 seek the kingdom and righteousness of God, viz., that they 
 had neglected too long to do so already, this consideration 
 seemed to come and cut like a sword upon several in the 
 congregation ; so that while I was speaking upon it, they 
 could no longer contain, but burst out in the most bitter mourn- 
 ing. I desired them, as much as possible to restrain them- 
 selves from making any noise that would hinder themselves or 
 
28 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Others from hearing what was spoken ; and often afterwards 
 I had occasion to repeat the same counsel. I still advised 
 people to endeavour to moderate and bound their passions, 
 but not so as to resist or stifle their convictions. The num- 
 ber of the awakened increased very fast. Frequently under 
 sermons there were some newly convicted, and brought into 
 deep distress of soul about their perishing estate. Our Sab- 
 bath assemblies soon became vastly large ; many people from 
 almost all parts around i^nclining very much to come where 
 there was such appearance of the divine power and pres- 
 ence. I think there was scarcely a sermon or lecture 
 preached here through that whole summer, but there were 
 manifest evidences of impressions on the hearers ; and many 
 times the impressions were very great and general. Several 
 would be overcome and fainting ; others deeply sobbing, 
 hardly able to contain ; others crying in a most dolorous 
 manner ; many others more silently weeping ; and a solemn 
 concern appearing in the countenances of many others. 
 And sometimes the soul-exercises of some (though com- 
 paratively but very few) would so far affect their bodies as 
 to occasion some strange unusual bodily motions. I had op- 
 portunities of speaking particularly with a great many of 
 those who afforded such outward tokens of inward soul- 
 concern in the time of public worship and hearing of the 
 word. Indeed, many came to me of themselves in their 
 distress, for private instruction and counsel ; and I found, 
 so far as I can remember, that with by far the greater part, 
 their apparent concern in public was not just a transient 
 qualm of conscience, or merely a floating commotion of the 
 affections ; but a rational, fixed conviction of their dangerous 
 perishing estate. They could generally offer as a convictive 
 evidence of their being in an unconverted, miserable estate, 
 that they were utter strangers to those dispositions, exer- 
 cises and experiences of soul in religion, which they heard 
 laid down from God's word, as the inseparable characters 
 of the truly regenerate people of God ; even such as before 
 had something of the form of religion ; and I think the 
 greater number were of this sort ; and several had been 
 pretty exact and punctual in the performance of outward 
 duties ; they saw they had been contenting themselves with 
 the form without the life and power of godliness, and that 
 they had been taking peace to their consciences from, and 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 29 
 
 depending upon, their own righteousness, and not the righ- 
 teousness of Jesus Christ. 
 
 "In a word, they saw that true, practical religion was 
 quite another thing than they had conceived it to be, or had 
 any true experience of. There were likewise many up and 
 down the land brought under deep distressing convictions 
 that summer, who had lived very loose lives, regardless of 
 the very externals of religion. In this congregation, I be- 
 lieve there were very few that were not stirred up to some 
 solemn thoughtfulness and concern more than usual about 
 their souls. The general carriage and behaviour of people 
 was soon very visibly altered. Those awakened were much 
 given to reading in the Holy Scriptures and other good books. 
 Excellent books that had lain by much neglected, were then 
 much perused, and lent from one to another ; and it was a 
 peculiar satisfaction to people to find how exactly the doc- 
 trines they heard daily preached, harmonized with the doc- 
 trines contained and taught by great and godly men in other 
 parts and former times. The subjects of discourse almost 
 always, when any of them were together, were the matters 
 of religion and great concerns of their souls. All unsuitable, 
 worldly, vain discourse on the Lord's day seemed to be laid 
 aside among them. Indeed, for any thing that appeared, 
 there seemed to be almost a universal reformation in this re- 
 spect, in our pubHc assemblies on the Lord's day. 
 
 " There was an earnest desire in people after opportunities 
 for public worship and hearing the word. I appointed in 
 the spring to preach every Friday through the summer when 
 I was at home, and those meetings were well attended ; and 
 at several of them the power of the Lord was remarkably 
 with usi — 
 
 " In some time, many of the convinced and distressed 
 afforded very hopeful, satisfying evidence that the Lord had 
 brought them to true closure with Jesus Christ, and that their 
 distresses and fears had been in a great measure removed in a 
 right gospel way, by beheving in the Son of God. Sev- 
 eral of them had very remarkable and sweet deliverances 
 this way. It was very agreeable to hear their accounts, 
 how that when they were in the deepest perplexity and dark- 
 ness, distress and difficulty, seeking God as poor, condemned, 
 hell-deserving sinners, the scene of recovering grace through 
 a Redeemer has been opened to their understandings with a 
 3* 
 
30 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 surprising beauty and glory, so that they Were enabled to be- 
 lieve in Christ with joy unspeakable and full of glory. It 
 appeared that most generally the Holy Spirit improved for 
 this purpose, and made use of some one particular passage 
 or other of the Holy Scripture that came to their remem- 
 brance in their distress ; some gospel-oiFer or promise, or 
 some declaration of God, directly referring to the recovery 
 and salvation of undone sinners by the new covenant. But 
 with some it was otherwise. They had not any one particu- 
 lar place of Scripture more than another in their view at the 
 time. Those. who met with such a remarkable relief, — as 
 their account of it was rational and scriptural, so they ap- 
 peared to have at the time, the attendants and fruits of a true 
 faith ; particularly, humility, love, and an affectionate regard 
 to the will and honor of God. Much of their exercise was 
 in self-abasing and self-loathing, and admiring the astonishing 
 condescension and grace of God towards such vile and des- 
 picable creatures, that had been so full of enmity and dis- 
 affection to him. They freely and sweetly, with all their 
 hearts, chose the way of his commandments. Their en- 
 flamed desire was, to live to him for ever according to his 
 will, and to the glory of his name. 
 
 " There were others, that had not had such remarkable re- 
 lief and comfort, who yet I could not but think were savingly 
 renewed; and brought truly to accept of and rest upon Jesus 
 Christ, though not with such a degree of liveliness and liberty, 
 strength and joy; and some of those continued for a considera- 
 ble time after, for the most part, under a very distressing sus- 
 picion and jealousy of their case. I was all along very cau- 
 tious of expressing to people my judgment of the goodness 
 of their states, excepting where I had pretty clear evidences 
 from them of their being savingly changed, and yet they 
 continued in deep distress, casting off all their evidences. 
 Sometimes, in such cases, I have thought it needful to use 
 greater freedom that way than ordinary ; but otherwise, I 
 judged that it could be of little use, and might easily be 
 hurtful. 
 
 " Besides those above spoke of, whose experience of a 
 work of grace was in a good degree clear and satisfying, 
 there were softie others (though but very few in this congre- 
 gation that I knew of) who, having very little knowledge or 
 capacity, had a very obscure and improper way of represent- 
 
THE GKEAT AWAKENING. 31 
 
 ing their case in relating how they had been exercised. They 
 would chiefly speak of such things as were only the effects 
 of their soul-exercise upon their bodies from time to time, 
 and some things that were purely imaginary ; which obliged 
 me to be at much pains in my inquiries, before I could get 
 any just ideas of their case. I would ask them, what were 
 the thoughts, the views, and apprehensions of their minds, 
 and exercise of their affections, (at such times when they 
 felt, perhaps, a quivering come over them, as they had been 
 saying, or a faintness, or thought they saw their hearts full of 
 some nauseous filthiness ; or when they felt a heavy weight 
 or load at their hearts, or felt the weight again taken off and 
 a pleasant warmness rising from their hearts, as they would 
 probably express themselves,) which might be the occasions 
 or causes of these things they spoke of. And then, when 
 with some difficulty I could get them to understand me, 
 some of them would give a pretty rational account of solemn 
 and spiritual exercises ; and after a thorough, careful exam- 
 ination this way, I could not but conceive good hopes of 
 some such persons. 
 
 " But there were moreover several others, who seemed to 
 think concerning themselves that they were under some 
 good work, of whom, yet, I could have no reasonable 
 ground to think that they were under any hopeful work of the 
 Spirit of God. As near as I could judge of their case 
 from all my acquaintance and conversation with them, it was 
 much to this purpose : They believed there was a good 
 work going on ; that people were convinced, and brought 
 into a converted state ; and they desired to be converted 
 too : They saw others weeping and fainting, and heard 
 people mourning and lamenting, and they thought if they 
 could be like these, it would be very hopeful with them ; 
 hence, they endeavoured just to get themselves affected by 
 sermons, and if they could come to weeping, or get their 
 passions so raised as to incline them to vent themselves by 
 cries, now they hoped they were got under convictions, and 
 were in a very hopeful way ; and afterwards, they would 
 speak of their being in trouble, and aim at complaining of 
 themselves, but seemed as if they knew not well how to do 
 it, nor what to say against themselves ; and then they would 
 be looking and expecting to get some texts of Scripture ap- 
 plied to them for their comfort ; and when any Scriptur-e 
 
32 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 text which they thought was suitable for that purpose came 
 to their minds, they were in hopes it was brought to them by 
 the Spirit of God, that they might take comfort from it. 
 And thus, much in such a way as this, some appeared to be 
 pleasing themselves just with an imaginary conversion of 
 their own maliing. I endeavoured to correct and guard 
 against all such mistakes, so far as I discovered them in the 
 course of my ministry, and to open up the nature of a true 
 conviction by the Spirit of God, and of a saving conversion. 
 " Thus I have given a very brief account of the state and 
 progress of rehgion here through that first summer after the 
 remarkable revival of it among us. Towards the end of 
 that summer, there seemed to be a stop put to the further 
 progress of the work as to the conviction and awakening of 
 sinners ; and ever since there have been very few instances 
 of persons convinced. It remains then, that I speak some- 
 thing of the abiding effects and after-fruits of those awaken- 
 ings and other religious exercises which people were under 
 during the abovementioned period. Such as were only 
 under some slight impressions and superficial awakenings, 
 seem in general to have lost them all again, without any abid- 
 ing hopeful alteration upon them. They seem to have fallen 
 back again into their former carelessness and stupidity. And 
 some that were under pretty great awakenings, and consid- 
 erably deep convictions of their miserable state, seem also to 
 have got peace again to their consciences without getting it 
 by a true faith in the Lord Jesus ; affording no satisfying 
 evidence of their being savingly renewed. But, through the 
 infinite rich grace of God (and blessed be his glorious 
 name ! ) there is a considerable number who afford all the 
 evidence that can be reasonably expected and required for 
 our satisfaction in the case, of their having been the subjects 
 of a thorough saving change ; (except in some singular in- 
 stances of behaviour, alas for them, which proceed from, and 
 show, the sad remains of original corruption even in the re- 
 generate children of God while in this imperfect state.) 
 Their walk is habitually tender and conscientious, their car- 
 riage towards their neighbours just and kind, and they appear 
 to have an agreeable peculiar love one for another, and for 
 all in whom appears the image of God. Their discourses 
 of religion, their engagedness and dispositions of soul in the 
 practice of the immediate duties and ordinances of religion, 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 33 
 
 all appear quite otherwise than formerly. Indeed, the liveli- 
 ness of their affections in the ways of religion is much abated 
 in general, and they are in some measure humbly sensible 
 of this, and grieved for it, and are carefully endeavouring 
 still to live unto God ; much grieved with their imperfec- 
 tions and the plagues they find in their own hearts ; and fre- 
 quently they meet with some delightful enlivenings of soul ; 
 and particularly our sacramental solemnities for communicat- 
 ing in the Lord's Supper have generally been very blessed 
 seasons of enlivening and enlargement to the people of God. 
 There is a very evident and great increase of Christian 
 knowledge with many of them. We enjoy in this congrega- 
 tion the ha"ppiness of a great degree of harmony and con- 
 cord ; scarcely any have appeared with open opposition and 
 bitterness against the work of God among us and elsewhere 
 up and down the land, though there are a pretty many such 
 in several other places through the country. Some, indeed, 
 in this congregation, but very few, have separated from us 
 and Joined with the ministers who have unhappily opposed 
 this blessed work." * 
 
 NEW BRUNSWICK, N. J. 
 
 The account given by the Rev. Gilbert Tennent, dated 
 August 24th, 1744, confirms and illustrates what has been 
 said of the state of Presbyterian congregations, and of the 
 means and character of the awakening among them. He 
 says : — 
 
 " The labors of the Reverend Mr. Frelinghousa, f a 
 Dutch Calvinist minister, were much blessed to the people 
 of New Brunswick and places adjacent, especially about the 
 time of his coming among them, which was about twenty- 
 four years ago. 
 
 " When I came there, which was about seven years 
 after, I had the pleasure of seeing much of the fruits of his 
 ministry ; divers of his hearers, with whom T had opportun- 
 ity of conversing, appeared to be converted persons, by their 
 soundness in principle, Christian experience, and pious prac- 
 tice ; and these persons declared that the ministrations of the 
 aforesaid gentleman were the means thereof. This, to- 
 
 * Christian History, Vol. II. p. 242. 
 
 t So the Dutch pronounce Frelinghuysen. 
 
34 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 gether with a kind letter which he sent me respecting the 
 necessity of dividing the word aright, and giving to every 
 man his portion in due season, through the divine blessing, 
 excited me to greater earnestness in ministerial labors. I 
 began to be very much distressed about my want of success ; 
 for I knew not for half a year or more after I came to New 
 Brunswick, that any one was converted by my labors, al- 
 though several persons were at times affected transiently. 
 
 "It pleased God to afflict me about that time with sick- 
 ness, by which I had affecting views of eternity. I was 
 then exceedingly grieved that I had done so little for God, 
 and was very desirous to live one half year more, if it was 
 his will, that I might stand upon the stage of the world, as it 
 were, and plead more faithfully for his cause, and take more 
 earnest pains for the conversion of souls. The secure state 
 of the world appeared to me in a very affecting light ; and 
 one thing among others pressed me sore ; viz. that I had 
 spent much time in conversing about trifles, which might 
 have been spent in examining people's states towards God, 
 and persuading them to turn unto him. I therefore prayed 
 to God that he would be pleased to give me one half year 
 more, and I was determined to endeavour to promote his 
 kingdom with all my might at all adventures. The petition 
 God was pleased to grant manifold, and to enable me to 
 keep my resolution in some measure. 
 
 "After I was raised up to health, I examined many 
 about the grounds of their hope of salvation, which I found 
 in most to be nothing but as the sand. With such I was 
 enabled to deal faithfully and earnestly, in warning them of 
 their danger, and urging them to seek converting grace. By 
 this method, many were awakened out of their security ; and 
 of those, divers were to all appearance effectually converted, 
 and some that I spoke plainly to were prejudiced. And 
 here I would have it observed, that as soon as an effectual 
 door was opened, I found many adversaries, and my charac- 
 ter was covered with unjust reproaches, which through di- 
 vine goodness did not discourage me in my work. I did 
 then preach much upon original sin, repentance, the nature 
 and necessity of conversion, in a close examinatory and dis- 
 tinguishing way ; laboring in the mean time to sound the 
 trumpet of God's judgments, and alarm the secure by the 
 terrors of the Lord, as well as to affect them with other 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 35 
 
 topics of persuasion ; which method was sealed by the Holy- 
 Spirit in the conviction and conversion of a considerable 
 number of persons, at various times, and in different places, 
 in that part of the country ; as appeared by their acquaint- 
 ance with experimental religion, and good conversation." 
 
 Suc h was t he characterj3Lfthe_^'Great^ wakening " jn its 
 commencement^before any foreign influence was^XSu^tto 
 mmglejwilh It. Snd in many places where there was no 
 visible movement, such as these specimens exhibit, there 
 was a reviving of religion in secret ; there was, in the pious, 
 and especially among pastors, a sense of spiritual want ; 
 there was self-examination ; there was self-abasement and 
 mourning for discovered want of fervor and constancy in 
 God's service ; there was prayer for pardon, and for grace 
 to be faithful, and for the divine blessing upon faithful labors ; 
 there was a better performance of pulpit and parochial, duties, 
 and a more teachable spirit, both in church members and oth- 
 ers ; and in many places, there began to be instances of 
 manifest conversion. Such was the state and such were the 
 prospects of New England, when George Whitefield was in- 
 vited to visit Boston. As he was a member and a minister 
 of the church of England, we must inquire what influence 
 the institutions of that church exerted upon him, and through 
 him upon the American churches. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Whitefield in Eakly Life. - His birth, education, and religious ex- 
 perience. His success as a preacher. — His first visit to Georgia. His 
 return to England, opposition, and success. — Controversy with the 
 Bishop of London. His intercourse with Watts and Doddridge. His 
 return to America. 
 
 In the " o ffice for b aptism " prescribed by the Church 
 of England, iEe priest^ after the application of water to the 
 infant, is required to say: — " Seeing now that this child is 
 regenerate, and grafted into the body of Christ's church, let 
 us give thanks; — " and in giving thanks, after repeating 
 the Lord's Prayer, he must say : — " We yield thee hearty 
 
36 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 thanks, most merciful Father, that it hajh pleased thee to re- 
 generate this infant with thy Holy Spirit, to receive him for 
 thine own child by adoption, and to incorporate him into thy 
 holy church." When this child dies, if he has neither been 
 excommunicated nor committed suicide, the priest must say 
 at his funeral: — "Forasmuch as it hath pleased Almighty 
 God, of his great mercy, to take unto himself the soul of 
 our dear brother here departed, therefore we commit his 
 body to the ground ; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to 
 dust ; in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal 
 life, through Jesus Christ our Lord." Whatever interpre- 
 tation theologians may put upon this language, its practical 
 influence, on a large scale, cannot be doubtful.* Unless 
 counteracted by other instructions, it must teach the member 
 of the English church to believe, that he was made a child 
 of God and an heir of heaven by baptism ; that, if not ex- 
 communicated, he is in the road to heaven ; and that for the 
 future, he has only to avoid excommunication and suicide,' 
 to secure his admission into heaven when he dies. And 
 such has evidently been its influence. Thejnjthinkingjnem- 
 bet^of the Church of England,. who are_n_urnerousj^jf^not 
 an immense _ majority, actually suppose th at all who die i n the 
 comi nunion of their church, are saved of course, and nev er 
 susp ect that any regeneratio n~can be needed , exce pt^th at 
 w hich they received in bapti sm. The form of burial is 
 doubtless soothing to the hearts 'of surviving friends, and it 
 might seem cruel to withhold from them this consolation, 
 when they so poignantly feel the need of it ; but it is cruel 
 kindness to console them by a delusion which may not im- 
 probably destroy their own souls, and which will sink deeper 
 
 • Theologians have strangely overlooked the true, original meaning of 
 this formula, though it seems sufficiently obvious. Before the child can be 
 baptized, it must promise to " renounce the devil and all his works, and 
 constantly believe God's holy word, and obediently keep his command- 
 inents ; " and must profess its faith in the principal doctrines of Chris- 
 tianity. The declaration that the child is regenerate, is based upon the 
 supposition that this promise and profession has actually been made un- 
 derstandingly and in good faith. But in fact,, this has been done only by 
 the child's sponsors, who act in its name, on account of its acknowledged 
 inability to do these things for itself; and it needs ratifying by the child 
 when old enough to ratify it. The regeneration stands in the same rela- 
 tion to reality, as do the promise and profession on which it is predicated. 
 Both are ante-dated, on the presumption that they will become realities in 
 due time. If this were generally understood, the doctrine of baptismal 
 regeneration would be comparatively harmless. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 37 
 
 into their hearts and be more tenderly cherished, on account 
 of the affecting circumstances under which it is administered. 
 To deal at once tenderly and faithfully with the bereaved, 
 doubtlesss requires some degree of manly control over one's 
 own sympathies ; but the good of souls requires it. And 
 we should beware of encroaching upon the prerogatives of 
 our final Judge. We as presumptuously invade his province 
 when we acquit, as when we condemn. 
 
 In the^Church of Engl3Hji,^.J:eligioJJS, teacher s are no t se- 
 lected by the people, for themselves, but are imposed upon 
 them By tTie^EHg, who is the " head of the church," or 
 by some one acting under his authority. Centuries ago, 
 many pious and many superstitious noblemen gave funds for 
 the support of clergymeri in certain parishes, reserving to 
 themselves and to their heirs the right of nominating, or pre- 
 senting, the clergymen to be supported by them. This pro- 
 vision for support is called a " hving." In other parishes, 
 where the "living" is derived from some other source, the 
 right of presentation belongs to the king, the bishop of the 
 diocese, one of the universities, or is attached to some other 
 public office or institution. The nobleman who has a "liv- 
 ing " at his disposal, gives it to one of his younger sons, 
 who has been " educated for the church," as others have 
 been for the army or the navy ; or to a son of some relative ; 
 or perhaps to some unprincipled sycophant, who has been 
 his companion and assistant in vice. " Livings " at the dis- 
 posal of the king, — that is, of the prime minister, — are 
 sometimes given to those who have performed convenient 
 drudgery in party political warfare. Those attached to the 
 universities are sometimes the prize of laborious and suc- 
 cessful study. It would be unjust to forget, that the right of 
 presentation often happens to be in the hands of a pious man ; 
 and that, by this and other means, many " livings " are be- 
 stowed on clergymen of real piety. Many, too, like Scott 
 the commentator, are converted after they enter the ministry. 
 Still, as every one who knows any thing of human nature 
 must anticipate, a large proportion of the clergy of that 
 church are utterly unfit for their places; men who "take 
 orders" merely for the sake of a "living" ; perhaps de- 
 cently moral in tlieir lives, and perhaps indecently dissipated ; 
 believing, concerning preparation for heaven, just what their 
 form of baptism and burial service naturally teach, and 
 4 
 
38 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 counting all professions of more serious religion, mere fanati- 
 cism or hypocrisy. The more decent, serious, and literary 
 part of this division of the established clergy would naturally 
 maintain from the pulpit and in print, that baptism is regen- 
 eration, the only regeneration possible in this world ; and 
 that baptism administered in their own " apostolic " church 
 is " valid," and confers upon the baptized, some claim to , 
 the kingdom of heaven. Seldom, if ever, has this gloomy 
 description been more generally applicable to the English 
 church and its clergy, than at the time when Whitefield first 
 appeared. 
 
 George Whitefield was born at Gl oucester, En gland, on 
 the 16th day of December, (old style,) in 1714. His 
 father, Thomas Whitefield, who had been a wine merchant, 
 but was now an inn-keeper, died about two years after his 
 birth. From the age of twelve to fifteen, he distinguished 
 himself among the boys at the public school by his progress 
 in Latin, and by his speeches and dramatic performances at 
 public examinations. His mother still kept the inn ; and as 
 a decrease of business enforced more economical arrange- 
 ments, George was obliged to leave his Latin and his decla- 
 mations, and assist in the drudgery of the house. He put 
 on his blue apron, — " washed mops, cleaned rooms, and, 
 in one word, became a professed and common drawer for 
 nigh a year and an half." 
 
 From his Childhood, he tells us, he " was always fond of 
 being a clergyman, and used frequently to imitate the minis- 
 ters reading prayers," and other exercises ; and though he 
 accuses himself of some vices not uncommon in boys of his 
 age, his conscience seems to have been often awakened, and 
 he "had early some convictions of sin." So strong was 
 the bent of his mind in that directipn, that while employed 
 as a drawer, he found time to compose two or three sermons, 
 and frequently spent the whole night in reading the Bible. 
 
 Changes in family arrangements, and the hope that he 
 might get a servitor's place at Oxford, at length induced his 
 mother to send him to school again. Here he was near be- 
 ing ruined by bad company ; but his conscience was alarmed 
 and he broke away from its influence. His narrow escape 
 made him feel the need of religion more deeply than ever, 
 and was followed by an external reformation, which was no- 
 ticed by his friends. He overheard one of them speaking 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 39 
 
 well of him, and his conscience smote him for not being so 
 good inwardly, as he appeared outwardly. "God deeply 
 convicted me of hypocrisy." Henceforth he became more 
 strict and abundant in fasting, prayer, and other religious ob- 
 servances. 
 
 At the age of eighteen he went to Oxford, and was ad- 
 mitted servitor immediately. The expertness at waiting on 
 tables and the like, which he had acquired at the inn, was 
 now of use to him. Many of the rich students chose him 
 for their servitor, so that his income was nearly or quite 
 equal to his wants. 
 
 The English un iversi ties, at that time, were little else than 
 learned dens of infidelity a nd dissipat ion. WJiitefield was 
 froirnEeTTrsrsancited, and expected of course, to join in 
 the revels of those around him ; but he steadily refused, 
 and they soon concluded to let him alone, " as a singular, 
 odd fellow." His sufferings for want of a safe and well- 
 informed religious instructor, were intense and protracted, 
 and he run, or was led, into many errors, from some of 
 which he escaped but slowly. Some may think that the 
 guidance of the Holy Spirit would supply the want of hu- 
 man teachers ; and in an important sense it was so. But the 
 Holy Spirit leads men into truth, not in a way which renders 
 mental effort on their part unnecessary, but in a way which 
 roiises them to think, and brings their thoughts to a safe re- 
 sult. And besides ; at this time, if we may trust White- 
 field's own judgment, he was still unregenerate ; he had not 
 given himself up to the guidance of the Spirit of God ;. he 
 was not led by the Spirit, but rather driven by the Spirit, 
 which continually urged him onward by convictions of duty, 
 while he was continually turning into every by-path which 
 a carnal mind could mistake for the way of life ; in short, — 
 according to an important distinction laid down by Edwards 
 in his " Treatise on the Affectipns," — the Holy Spirit then 
 acted on his mind, and not in it. Thus, while he was irre- 
 sistibly impelled to seek the truth, and not suffered, to rest 
 without finding it, he was, iu a very important sense, left to 
 find it as he could, by his own unguided efforts, and to learn, 
 by his own bitter experience, the folly and wickedness of 
 many foolish and wicked devices, from which good instruc- 
 tion might have saved him. He had the Bible ; but all the 
 religious instruction he had received, all the books he had 
 
40 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 read, all the habits of thought, feeling, and action which had 
 prevailed around him from his infancy, taught him to misun- 
 derstand it. Through all these influences he must break or 
 dig his way to the truth ; to truths which the " common 
 sense " of all around him, the common sense in which he 
 had been brought up, condemned as nonsense. What can 
 we expect the history of his religious experience to be, but 
 an account of errors and extravagances by which he was in- 
 jured, and of his merciful deliverance from them at last .'' 
 
 An act of charity to a poor, vicious woman, who had at- 
 tempted suicide, brought him to the notice of the " Metho- 
 dists," as a small number of students, under the special 
 religious guidance of John Wesley, had lately been nick- 
 named. Wesley was then a fellow of Lincoln College, and 
 had been for some years in "holy orders " ; but, in his own 
 judgment at a later period, he was still destitute of the saving 
 knowledge of Christ, and had only been led " into the desert, 
 to be tempted, and humbled, and shown what was in his 
 heart." Still, he and his little company were decidedly in 
 earnest. They avowed, that the great object of their lives 
 was, to save their souls, and to live wholly to the glory of 
 God ; and no company of monks ever whipped their own 
 naked shoulders for the good of their souls and the glory of 
 God with a more blind sincerity, than that under the mis- 
 guidance of which these men were seeking salvation. One 
 of their more harmless rules required them frequently to 
 " interrogate themselves whether they have been simple and 
 recollected ; whether they have prayed with fervor, Monday, 
 Wednesday, Friday, and on Saturday noon ; if they have 
 used a collect at nine, twelve, and three o'clock ; duly 
 meditated, on Sunday, from three to four, on Thomas a 
 Kempis ; or mused on Wednesday and Friday, from twelve 
 to one, on the passion." He gladly put himself under their 
 direction, and they led him straight forward into deep dark- 
 ness. "I now began," he says," like them, to live by 
 rule, and to pick up every fragment of my time, that not a 
 moment of it might be lost. Like them, having no weekly 
 sacrament (although the rubric required it) at our own col- 
 lege, I received it every Sunday at Christ Church. I joined 
 with them in keeping the stations, by fasting Wednesdays and 
 Fridays, and left no means unused which I thought would 
 lead me nearer to Christ. By degrees I began to leave off 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 4I 
 
 eating fruits and such like, and gave the money I usually- 
 spent in that way to the poor. Afterward I always chose 
 the worst sort of food, though my place furnished me with 
 variety. My apparel was mean. I thought it unbecoming 
 a penitent to have his hair powdered. I wore woollen 
 gloves, a patched gown, and dirty shoes ; and though I was 
 then convinced that the kingdom of God did not consist in 
 meats and drinks, yet I resolutely persisted in these volunta- 
 ry acts of self-denial, because I found thern great promoters 
 of spiritual life. It was now suggested to me that Jesus 
 Christ was among the wild beasts when he was tempted, and 
 that I ought to follow his example ; and being willing, as I 
 thought, to imitate Jesus Christ, after supper I went into 
 Christ Church walk, near our college, and continued in silent 
 prayer nearly two hours ; sometimes lying flat on my face, 
 sometimes kneehng upon my knees. The night being 
 stormy, gave me awful thoughts of the day of judgment. 
 The next night I repeated the same exercise at the same 
 place. After this, the holy season of Lent came on, which 
 our friends kept very strictly, eating no flesh during the six 
 weeks, except on Saturdays and Sundays. I abstained fre- 
 quently on Saturdays also, and ate nothing on the other days, 
 except Sunday, but sage tea without sugar, and coarse 
 bread. I constantly walked out in the cold mornings, till 
 one part of my hands was quite black. This, with my con- 
 tinued abstinence and inward conflicts, at length so emacia- 
 ted my body, that at passion week, finding I could scarce 
 creep up stairs, I was obliged to inform my kind tutor of my 
 condition, who immediately sent for a physician to me." 
 He now gave himself exclusively to religious reading ; and 
 one of his authors having informed him, that " he that is em- 
 ployed in mortifying his will, is as well employed as though 
 he was converting the Indians," Satan so imposed upon his 
 understanding, that Jie resolved to shut himself up in his 
 study, till he could do good with a single eye. When his 
 author advised to endeavour after a silent recollection and 
 waiting upon God, Satan told him that he must leave off all 
 forms, and not use his voice in prayer at all. The natural 
 consequence was, that his mind began to lose the power of 
 action. " Whenever I endeavoured to compose my theme, 
 I had 00 power to write a word, nor so much as to tell my 
 
 Christian friends of my inability to do it. All power of 
 4 * 
 
42 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 meditating, or even of thinking, was taken from me. My 
 memory quite failed me ; and I could fancy myself to be 
 like nothing so much as a man locked up in iron armour." 
 His tutor kindly inquired if any calamity had befallen hini, 
 that he had twice failed to produce his weekly iheme. This 
 kindness overcame him. "I burst into tears, and assured 
 him that it was not out of contempt of authority, but that I 
 could not act otherwise. Then at length he said, he believed 
 I could not ; and when he left me, told a friend that he took 
 me to be really mad. This friend, hearing what had hap- 
 pened from my tutor, came to me, urging the command in 
 Scripture, 'to be subject to the higher powers.' I an- 
 swered, yes, but I had a new revelation. Lord, what is 
 man ! " As further proof of the injury done to his mind, 
 his brain, his nerves, by this discipline, he was haunted by 
 the fear of seeing the devil. He thought the devil would ap- 
 pear to him every stair he went up, as servitor, at ten o'clock 
 at night, to the gentlemen's rooms ; and he was so troubled 
 by the devil when he lay down, that for some months he 
 scarce slept above three hours in a night. In this horrible 
 condition, Charles Wesley was afraid to prescribe for him ; 
 and John advised him to " resume all " his " externals, 
 though not to depend on them in the least." He did resume 
 them ; and happily, his bodily constitution broke down under 
 them, and he was sick seven weeks. This sickness effec- 
 tually interrupted his course of " externals," and his thoughts, 
 released from the bondage in which they had willingly been 
 held, communed with his own heart and with the word of 
 God. He spent much of his time in reading the Greek 
 Testament, and in prayer. He gained more clear, rational, 
 and affecting views of his own sinfulness, and saw how hope- 
 less was the effort to remove the sense of guilt by a series 
 of observances. He remained in this condition, till, as he 
 informs us, " One day, perceiving an uncommon drought and 
 a noisome clamminess in my mouth, and using things to allay 
 my thirst, but in vain, it was suggested to me, that when 
 'Jesus Christ cried out 'I thirst,' his sufferings were near 
 over. Upon this, I threw myself upon the bed, and cried 
 out, / thirst, I thirst. Soon after, I perceived my load to 
 go off; va spirit of mourning was taken from me, and I knew 
 what it was truly to rejoice in the Lord. At first after this, 
 I could not avoid singing psalms, wherever I was ; but my 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 43 
 
 joy became gradually more settled, and, blessed be God, has 
 abode and increased in my soul, saving a few casual inter- 
 missions, ever since."* Some years afterwards, in reply to 
 objections, he said : — " My crying / thirst, I thirst, was not 
 to put myself upon a level with Jesus Christ. But when I 
 said those words, / thirst, I thirst, my soul was in an agony ; 
 I thirsted for God's salvation, and a sense of divine love. 
 I thirsted for a clear discovery of my pardon through Jesus 
 Christ, and the seal of the Spirit. I was at the same time 
 enabled to look up to and act faith upon the glorious Lord 
 Jesus as dying for sinners, and felt the blessed effects of it." 
 It is not difficult, by combining these statements, to under- 
 stand the progress of his thoughts. He had been driven 
 from every ground of hope, but the mercy of God ; but he 
 had not dared boldly and without reserve to trust that mercy ; 
 and yet he had a prevailing hope that it would deliver 
 him from his present anguish, and save his soul. His thirst, 
 a usual symptom of fever, reminded him of the thirst of 
 Christ upon the cross, which was near the end of his suiFer- 
 ings. He appears not to have inferred that it must be so with 
 him also ; but the thought arose in his mind, " Why may it 
 not be so with me ? Why may I not now receive deliver- 
 ance and comfort .'' Why may I not now dare to trust and 
 rejoice in the pardoning mercy of God .' " There was no 
 reason why he might not, — why he ought not. He saw 
 nothing to forbid him. He prayed in hope, borrowing lan- 
 guage from the fact which had suggested the train of thought, 
 — "I thirst, — I thirst," — for faith in pardoning love. 
 " Lord, I believe ! Help thou mine unbelief." His prayer 
 was heard. He dared to trust in the mercy of God, as re- 
 vealed in the death of Jesus Christ for sinners. He did right 
 in trusting that mercy. Conscience bore witness that he did 
 right. " The burden that had so heavily oppressed him," 
 the "load " of guilt and terror and anxiety that weighed down 
 his spirit while he sinfully and ungratefully hesitated to trust 
 God's mercy, was gone. He saw the trustworthiness of 
 God's mercy in Christ, and his heart rejoiced. 
 
 Though the English universities were established mainly 
 for the purpose of educating men for the ministry, White- 
 field was not likely to gain a good knowledge of theology 
 
 * Whitefield's " Life and Journal." Athenseum Library. 
 
44 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 there. He took another and a characteristic course. Some 
 time after his conversion, when he was at Gloucester, he 
 says: — "I began to read the Holy Scriptures upon my 
 knees ; laying aside all other books, and praying oyer, if 
 possible, every line and word. This proved meat indeed 
 and drink indeed to my soul. I daily received fresh hfe, 
 light, and power from above. I got more true knowledge 
 from reading the book of God in one month, than I could 
 ever have acquired from all the writings of men." 
 
 It does not appear that Whitefield was much inclined to 
 compare himself with others, or to think that he was or 
 should be a greater man than they ; but he certainly looked 
 forward to his own career in the ministry, as a great and 
 important work ; and when his friends urged him to receive 
 ordination, he remonstrated, and insisted on more time for 
 preparation. He intended to have a hundred sermons care- 
 fully written before beginning to preach. He had but one, 
 and lent that to a neighbouring clergyman, to convince him that 
 he was not yet fit to be ordained. The clergyman kept it a 
 fortnight, preached half of it at a time to his own people, 
 and sent it back, with a guinea for the use of it. The bish- 
 ops had resolved to ordain none under twenty-three years of 
 age, and Whitefield was but twenty-one ; but Bishop Ben- 
 son, who became acquainted with his talents, activity, and 
 usefulness, told him that, notwithstanding that rule, he would 
 ordain him whenever he should apply. His excuses being 
 exhausted, he was ordained on the Sabbath, June 20, 1736. 
 One week from that day, he preached his first sermon, in 
 his native parish. Curiosity brought together a large audi- 
 ence ; and though " some mocked," yet " most for the 
 present seemed struck." Some one told Bishop Benson, 
 that Whitefield drove fifteen of his hearers mad by this, his 
 first sermon. The bishop wished the madness might not be 
 forgotten before the next Sabbath. 
 
 This is not the place for a history of Whitefield's labors 
 in England. It is enough for the present purpose to say, 
 that he preached to others the doctrines on which his own 
 soul relied for salvation ; that he preached them with the 
 full persuasion that others must receive them or perish for- 
 ever ; that he preached under the influence of an affecting 
 view of the worth of the soul, and an intense desire that his 
 hearers might be saved. In preaching that men, of all ages 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 45 
 
 and conditions, must be "born again," or never "see the 
 kingdom of heaven," though there were some in the land 
 who beheved it, he found himself practically alone, going 
 forth as the herald of a doctrine which the public agreed to 
 consider as new ; but which, he felt, God had made known 
 to him that he might proclaim it to others, and thus revive 
 the power of Christianity in the land. And as God had 
 raised him up and enlightened his mind for the work, he 
 doubted not that God would be with him in the performance, 
 , and make his strength equal to his day. He went, there- 
 fore, fearlessly, as well as earnestly and affectionately, about 
 his work. Moved in his inmost soul by the sight of his 
 fellow-men, ready to perish and yet ignorant of their danger, 
 he could not fetter himself with the rules by which ordinary 
 men were taught to construct dull sermons ; he must pour 
 forth the desires of his heart and the convictions of his mind. 
 And he did pour them forth, in a style natural and clear, 
 animated and pathetic, which sonpetimes the intensity of pa- 
 thos rendered truly sublime. He poured them forth in a 
 voice of wonderful flexibility, compass and power, and ac- 
 companied whh the most graceful, impressive and appropri- 
 ate action. In look, attitude, gesture, irltonation, — in all 
 that constitutes the manner of an orator, the world probably 
 never saw his superior, perhaps, never his equal. In later 
 years, when his eloquence had excited general attention, men 
 of powerful and cultivated minds, unmoved by the truths he 
 uttered, — statesmen, orators, scholars, professional actors, 
 — Franklin, Hume, Chesterfield, Garrick,* Foote, — lis- 
 tened, as if spell-bound, to his eloquence. But it was his 
 ardent love for souls that were perishing, his sense of the 
 unutterable importance of the truth, which God had raised 
 him up to proclaim to a world that had forgotten it, and his 
 firm assurance that God was with him to give that truth 
 success, that was the fountain of his power. When he pro- 
 claimed that truth, and besought men to hear it and think 
 of it, that their souls might live, they could not refuse. 
 They were interested ; they were affected ; they were 
 alarmed. They were persuaded, that they must " strive to 
 enter in at the strait gate," or they should not avoid the road 
 that leadeth to destruction ; that, if they continued to neglect 
 
 * Garrick said, that Whitefield could make his hearers weep or tremble 
 at pleasure, by his varied utterance of" Mesopotamia." 
 
46 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 salvation, they should not escape final ruin. When his de- 
 termination became known to go to Georgia, whither the 
 Wesleys had invited him, rather than accept either of several 
 ■ eligible " livings " that had been offered him, his heroic de- 
 votedness to the good of the needy excited a new interest in 
 his favor. Wherever he went to take leave of the congre- 
 gations to which he had preached, at Bristol, at Bath, and 
 especially at London, multitudes crowded to hear him. When, 
 in his parting sermon at Bristol, he told them, "it might be 
 they would see him no more," the whole assembly was drown- 
 ed in tears. Many with tears followed him to his lodgings 
 after the sermon ; and the next day he was employed from 
 seven in the morning till midnight, in conversing with those 
 who sought his advice concerning their salvation. " The 
 whole city," he wrote, " seems to be alarmed. Churches 
 are as full on week days as they used to be on Sundays, and 
 on Sundays so full that many, very many, are obliged to go 
 away because they cannot get in." " The word was sharp- 
 er than a two-edged sword ; the doctrine of the new birth 
 made its way like lightning into the hearers' consciences.'''' 
 When he came to London to embark, those who had heard 
 him before, obliged him to preach almost incessantly. The 
 stewards of religious societies laid hold of him, and compel- 
 led him to preach charity sermons in their behalf. Eight 
 pounds were contributed at a time, where the usual contribu- 
 tions had been ten shillings. His " mighty deeds " in the 
 pulpit were blazoned in the newspapers. He preached nine 
 times a week, and the people hstened " as for eternity." 
 Thousands went away from the largest churches, unable to 
 gain admittance. Two or three of his sermons were pub- 
 lished. And now a few of the clergy began to turn against 
 him. Some called him a " spiritual pickpocket," and oth- 
 ers thought he used a charm to get the people's money. 
 Some were offended because he was on good terms with the 
 dissenters, and some forbade him the use of their pulpits, 
 unless he would retract a wish, expressed in the preface to 
 his sermon on regeneration, that his brethren would preach 
 more frequently on the new birth. The opposition, howev- 
 er, had not become extensive, when, having collected about 
 a thousand pounds for charity schools, and more than three 
 hundred for the poor in Georgia, he embarked, December 
 28, 1737, to cross the Atlantic. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 47 
 
 The vessel touched and remained some time at Gibraltar. 
 Here Whitefield's preaching was attended with its usual suc- 
 cess. " Many," he says, "that were quite stark blind, re- 
 ceived their sight ; many that had fallen back, have repented 
 and turned to the Lord again ; many that were ashamed to 
 own Christ openly, have waxen bold ; and many saints had 
 their hearts filled with joy unspeakable and full of glory." 
 When this account was published in England, it called forth 
 some remarks, which show what was then the state of many 
 minds. As for sight being restored to the blind, the critic 
 soberly concluded, "It seems likely to be a falsity," and 
 that Whitefield had told the story, " to have the world think 
 that God worked this miracle on his account." He was 
 sadly puzzled with what Whitefield said, of enjoying the di- 
 vine presence at one time and not at another, and thought 
 that it must imply a denial of God's omnipresence. In 
 conclusion, he recommended, " that we should go to our bap- 
 tism for the date of our regeneration." 
 
 After a long' voyage, in which his influence was highly 
 salutary to his companions, Whitpfiplr^ ar rived at Savann ah, 
 i n the month of May, 173 8. He was cordially received, 
 but found affafrs in a bad condition, and prospects discour- 
 aging. The Wesleys and their associates had labored there 
 with all their might to do good, but injudiciously, and with bad 
 results. The temper of the colonists was not what it should 
 be. Some, however, were converted, and Whitefield was 
 "really happy" among them. Charles Wesley had sug- 
 gested to him the design of an orphan house, which he and 
 General Oglethorpe had contemplated. Whitefield entered 
 into the design with all his heart, and it was thought neces- 
 sary for him to visit England to procure funds for its estab- 
 lishment, and to be ordained as a priest. In August, he 
 went to Charleston, S. C. to embark. The Rev. Alexan- 
 der Garden, rector of St. Philip's Church, was " commis- 
 sary," or deputy, of the Bishop of London for South Caro- 
 lina ; for the episcopal churches in these colonies were then 
 attached to the diocese of that bishop. Mr. Garden receiv- 
 ed him very courteously, and Whitefield preached on Sab- 
 bath morning and evening in St. Philip's church. Mr. Gar- 
 den thanked him for his sermons, informed him of the ill 
 treatment which John Wesley had met with in Georgia, and 
 promised that if the same arbitrary measures should be used 
 
48 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 against him, he would defend him with his life and fortune. 
 On the 6th of September he embarked, and after a danger- 
 ous voyage arrived at London on the 8th of December. 
 
 The objects of the voyage were accomplished. He was 
 ordained by Bishop Benson, January 14th, 1739, and he 
 collected more than £ 1000 for the orphan house. But it 
 had also a more important influence. It brought the great 
 principles of the congest in which he spent the remainder of 
 his life distinctly into action, and it fixed his mode of main- 
 taining the conflict. The clergy had begun to perceive that 
 either his doctrine or theirs, concerning the new birth and 
 the way of a sinner's justification before God, must fall. 
 True, they objected against his irregularities ; but those ir- 
 regularities, for the most part, grew out of this conflict of 
 principles. The bishops received him coldly. In two days, 
 the use of five churches was denied him. The opposition 
 of the clergy increased the people's inclination to hear ; and 
 their crowding to hear increased the opposition of the clergy. 
 Pamphlets were published against his sermon on regenera- 
 tion, and sermons were preached against him, his doctrines, 
 and his proceedings. But he was busy in attending prayer 
 meetings and preaching in the few churches that were still 
 open, and awakenings and conversions multiplied. At Bris- 
 tol he had the use of the churches at first, but in a short 
 time all were closed against him. Even at London, seeing 
 the crowds around the doors and windows, unable to hear, 
 he had thought of preaching to them in the open air ; but 
 both he and his friends hesitated before taking so bold a step. 
 While at Bristol, he made the attempt. The colliers in the 
 vicinity were numerous, rude, and ignorant. When provok- 
 ed, they were the terror of the city ; and at all times it was 
 thought dangerous to go among them. Whitefield went one 
 day to Hannam Mount, and preached to about a hundred of 
 them. "I thought," he said, "it might be doing the ser- 
 vice of my Creator, who had a mountain for his pulpit and 
 the heavens for his sounding-board, and who, when his Gos- 
 pel was refused by the Jews, sent his servants into the high- 
 ways and hedges." The news spread rapidly among the 
 colliers, and his audience soon increased to twenty thousand. 
 The Gospel was indeed " good netos" to them, for they had 
 never heard preaching before. " Having no righteousness 
 of their own to renounce, they were glad to hear of a Jesus, 
 
THE &REAT AWAKENING. 49 
 
 who was a friend to publicans, and who came not to call the 
 righteous, but sinners, to repentance. The first discovery 
 of their being affected was, to see the white gutters made by 
 their tears, which plentifully fell down their black cheeks, as 
 they came out of their coal-pits. Hundreds and hundreds of 
 them were soon brought under deep convictions, which, as the 
 event proved, happily ended in sound and thorough conversion. 
 The change was visible to all ; though numbers chose to im- 
 pute it to any thing rather than the finger of God." Besides 
 the colliers, multitudes of all ranks came from Bristol to 
 hear him. " The open firmament above me, the prospect 
 of the adjacent fields, with the sight of thousands and thou- 
 sands, some in coaches, some on horseback, and some in the 
 trees, and at times all affected and drenched in tears togeth- 
 er, to which was sometimes added the solemnity of approach- 
 ing evening, was almost too much for, and quite overcame 
 me." At the invitation of some of his hearers, he preached 
 in a large bowling-green in the city. Much of his time was 
 spent in giving private instruction to anxious inquirers. Hav- 
 ing introduced Wesley to his hearers at Bristol, he travelled 
 through Wales and the intervening parts of England to Lon- 
 don. Here also the churches were shut against him, and he 
 resorted to the fields. Moorfields, Kerinington Common and 
 Blackheath witnessed his repeated triumphs over audiences 
 of ten, fifteen, twenty, and thirty thousands. Frequent ex- 
 cursions into the surrounding' country were attended with 
 similar results. 
 
 At length, the dignitaries of the church were obliged to 
 take the field. On the 1st of August, the Bishop of Lon- 
 deh published " A Pastoral Letter to the people of his Dio- 
 cese, by way of caution against Lukewarmness on one hand, 
 attd Enthusiasm on the other." Whitefield answered it on 
 the 13th. In speaking of lukewarmness, the Bishop said, 
 that he " who has hitherto contented himself with a bare 
 bodily attendance upon the public worship of God, and fol- 
 lowing his daily employment on other days, and with abstain- 
 ing from the niore gross and notorious acts of sin, and from 
 doing any hurt or injury to his neighbour, and has rested 
 finally upon these, as the whole that Christianity requires of 
 him," is "yet in a very imperfect state, or, in other words, 
 in the number of the lukewarm ;" and he speaks of others, 
 as having " made greater proficiency in the Christian life " 
 5 
 
50 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 /jthan such persons have done. Whitefield replied, that such 
 a person "is in no 'state' of Christianity at all," but "a 
 reprobate, — at present out of a state of salvation." In 
 Fspeaking of enthusiasm, the Bishop said, that the ordinary 
 I gifts of the Holy Spirit "are no otherwise discernible, than by 
 \ their fruits and effects, as these appear in the lives of Chris- 
 [tians." Whitefield admitted that they were no otherwise dis- 
 cernible to others ; but he contended that a person may feel 
 some of them, as love, joy, peace, when there is no oppor- 
 tunity of discovering them to others. This was a vital 
 point ; for it involved the question whether a real Christian 
 has an inward experience, by hearing an account of which 
 others may form an opinion of his piety. The Bishop had 
 expressed his hope, that when the clergy preached Justifi- 
 cation by Faith, they explain it so " as to leave no doubt 
 whether good works are a necessary condition of being jus- 
 tified in the sight of God." Whitefield showed from the 
 Bible, and from the articles of the church, that good works 
 are not the condition, but only the necessary consequence, 
 of justification. The practical difference between them was 
 palpable and important. The Bishop's doctrine sent the 
 anxious sinner to doing good works, as a condition of justi- 
 fication. Whitefield's doctrine sent him directly to God for 
 pardon, and for grace to do works truly good. The Bishop 
 
 r declared against the doctrine of instantaneous regeneration ; 
 and, quoting Whitefield's remark on the conversion of his 
 friend Seward, he exclaimed : — " How it could be, that a 
 professed Christian, who ' constantly attended the means of 
 grace,' and ' was frequent in private duties,' did, all that 
 while, ' know nothing of Jesus Christ,' is beyond my com- 
 prehension ; and I am much at a loss to understand what 
 was that ' saving, experimental knowledge of Jesus Christ,' 
 for want of which he could only be reckoned among heath- 
 _^ns and infidels." — The ideas of Whitefield and his oppo- 
 nents were now fairly drawn out and embattled against each 
 other, and it was to be decided, whether a truly spiritual re- 
 Jigion should be allowed to subsist in the church of England. 
 On these vital points of doctrinal and practical religion, 
 Whitefield found sympathy among the Dissenters. He had 
 some pleasing interviews with Watts, Doddridge, and other 
 leading Congregationalists ; but, as he preferred to labor in 
 the church to which he belonged, and as they were afraid 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 51 
 
 that his enthusiasm and irregularities would work mischief in 
 the end, there was no public cooperation between them. 
 Watts cautioned him against giving heed to " impressions," 
 supposed, but not proved, to be from the Holy Spirit ; 
 warned him of the danger of delusion and imprudence, and 
 gave him credit for sincerity and zeal, but doubted his " ex- 
 traordinary call to some parts of his conduct." Doddridge 
 called him a very honest man, but weak, and " a little in- 
 toxicated with popularity." His alliance with the Wesleys 
 and other Methodists, who were abusing the Dissenting 
 churches as "companies of banded formalists," probably in- 
 creased their willingness to let him do good in his own way, 
 without becoming responsible for him. 
 
 It must not be supposed that Whitefield, in these contro- 
 versies and labors, was executing any great plan, which he 
 had laid, for accomphshing great things. He was only 
 doing his present duty, as the circumstances of each day de- 
 manded. He had come to England, to receive priest's 
 orders, and to collect money for his orphan house. An em- 
 bargo, caused by the commencement of a war with Spain, un- 
 expectedly detained him, and he was neither willing nor per- 
 mitted to be idle. He preached to a few hearers in a private 
 room, or to thirty thousand on Kennington Common ; at- 
 tended a little prayer meeting, gave advice to an anxious sin- 
 ner, heard good advice from Watts and Doddridge, or en- 
 gaged in controversy with the Bishop of London, just as 
 one occasion after apother called him to do. And now, the 
 embargo being raised, and the care of the colliers and some 
 other aSairs being transferred to Wesley, whom he had in- 
 duced to commence field-preaching, this pastor of a little 
 parish in Georgia embarked, August 14, 1739, for Phila- 
 delphia, on his return to the people of his charge. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Whitefield's Labors. His Preaching and success at Philadelphia, at 
 New York, and in the Middle and Southern Colonies. ^ 
 
 W hitefield arrived at Philadelphia early in Novemb er. 
 173_9. Gillies says, he " was immediately invited to preach 
 
52 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 in the churches, to which people of all denominations flocked 
 as in England." His reputation had preceded him, and 
 multitudes, such as no house could contain, crowded to hear 
 him. He therefore frequently preached in the evening, from 
 the gallery of the Court house in Market Street. Every 
 word was distinctly heard on board a shallop at the wharf, 
 four hundred feet distant, and all the intermediate space was 
 full of hearers. Great numbers were awakened, not only in 
 the- various denominations of professed Christians, but among 
 those who had wholly neglected religion. At the invitation 
 of Mr. Noble, his only acquaintance in that city, he visited 
 New York. The Episcopal commissary denied him the use 
 of his church. Mr. Pemberton, pastor of the Presbyterian 
 Church, was the only minister who admitted him to his pul- 
 pit. Mr. Pemberton was a native of Boston, and too much 
 of a Puritan to be frightened at Whitefield's doctrine of the 
 new birth. As the house of worship could not hold all that 
 desired to hear, Whitefield preached several times in the 
 fields ; but he produced no very remarkable effect in New 
 York, till his visit in 1764, though even now some appear to 
 have been added to the church. 
 
 While at New York, November 16, he wrote : " God 
 willing, in about seven months I hope to see New England in 
 my return to Europe. An effectual door is there opened, and 
 no wonder that there are many adversaries. Shortly I ex- 
 pect to suffer for my dear Master." And after his return to 
 Philadelphia, he wrote, November 28, to the Rev. Mr. P — ; 
 "I have been much concerned since I saw you, lest I be- 
 haved not with that humility towards you, which is due from 
 a' babe to a father in Christ ; but you know. Reverend Sir, 
 how difficult it is to meet with success, and not be puffed up 
 with it ; and therefore if any such thing was discernible in 
 my conduct, oh, pity me, and pray to the Lord to heal my 
 pride. All I can say is, that I desire to learn of Jesus 
 Christ to be meek and lowly in heart ; but my corruptions 
 are so strong, and my employ so dangerous, that I am some- 
 times afraid." * 
 
 On this journey to and from New York, Gillies informs 
 us, " he preached at Elizabethtown, Maidenhead, Abington, 
 Neshaminy, Burhngton, and New Brunswick, in New Jersey, 
 to some thousands gathered from various parts, among whom 
 
 • Letters, Vol. I. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 53 
 
 there had been a considerable awakening by the instrumen- 
 tality of a Mr. Frelinghuysen, a Dutch minister, and Messrs. 
 Tennents, Blair, and Rowland. He had also the pleasure 
 of meeting the venerable Mr. Tennent, as well as his sons, 
 with Mr. Dickinson. It was no less pleasing than strange 
 to him, to see such gatherings in a foreign land ; ministers 
 and people shedding tears ; sinners struck with awe ; and 
 serious persons, who had been much run down and despised, 
 filled with joy." 
 
 One of the most important incidents of this journey was, 
 the meeting of Whitefield with Gilbert Tennent. Two 
 powerful preachers could not well resemble each other less ; 
 and the great strength of each lay in traits in which the other 
 was deficient. In onp point, Whitefield felt and recorded 
 his new friend's superiority. He heard Tennent preach. 
 " Never before heard I such a searching sermon. He went 
 to the bottom indeed, and did not daub with untempered 
 mortar. He convinced me, more and more, that we can 
 preach the Gospel of Christ no further than we have expe- 
 rienced the power of it in our hearts. I found what a babe 
 and novice I was in the things of God." These men, hav- 
 ing once met, could not but be friends and allies for life ; 
 and their alliance could not fail to be felt by thousands. 
 
 Both at Philadelphia and New York, printers * applied to 
 Whitefield for sermons to publish ; and two were printed. 
 He afterwards had reason to rejoice in their influence. 
 
 The readiness which Whitefield found to aid him in sus- 
 taining his orphan house, determined him to travel by land 
 to Savannah, while his supplies and family were sent on in a 
 
 * The leading printer of religious works at Philadelphia at this time, 
 appears to have been " B. Franklin." In 174] he printed Gilbert Ten- 
 nent's sermon on " Justification ; " at the end of which he advertised, as 
 lately printed and for sale by himself, Ralph Erskine's " Gospel Sonnets," 
 Finley's sermon on " Christ Triumphing and Satan Raging," Whitefield'a 
 "Journal in New England," "A Protestation to the Synod of Philadel- 
 phia," which excluded the Tennents and others, and produced the" Great 
 Schism ; " and as in press, Gilbert Tennent's " Remarks " on that Protes- 
 tation ; Watts's " Psalms," and AUiene's " Alarm to the Unconverted." 
 He also printed Blair's "Vindication " of himself and others against the 
 charges in the "Protestation" which excluded them from the Synod. His 
 pamphlets were printed with a neatness and accuracy not usual among his 
 contemporaries. Franklin was too shrewd a calculator to lose the chance 
 of making money by printing such works as were about to be in demand ; 
 and his list of publications shows his judgment of the turn which the pub- 
 lic mind was taking. 
 
 5* 
 
54 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 sloop purchased for him for that purpose. He left Phila- 
 delphia with his friend Seward, and nearly twenty gentle- 
 men on horseback, for Chester. Before his arrival, two 
 hundred more had come to meet him. A court was about 
 to open at Chester ; but the judges sent him word that they 
 would wait till after the sermon which he was expected to 
 preach. Nearly a thousand people had come from Phila- 
 delphia to hear it. The audience was immense, and he ad- 
 dressed them from a platform erected for the occasion. At 
 Whiteclay Creek, * he became acquainted with William 
 Tennent, well known for his extraordinary trance, in which, 
 to speak philosophically, he continued to live and think, but 
 as sensation was suspended, the external world had no influ- 
 ence upon his thoughts, and his mind, aided, perhaps^only 
 by such divine influence as every good man experiences in 
 health, formed to itself ideas of heaven, and its inhabitants, 
 and its enjoyments, which seemed to be present realities, in 
 the midst of which he was ; ideas, it is not unreasonable to 
 suppose, more vividly correct than any man could form, 
 while under the influence of the bodily senses, and distract- 
 ed by earthly sights and sounds ; and showing, by actual 
 experiment, into what state that mind would naturally pass, 
 if released from the body. 
 
 At Charleston, Whitefield could not obtain admittance to 
 St. Philip's Church. The commissary was absent, and his 
 curate would not open the doors without his leave. But 
 Josiah Smith, f the pastor of the Congregational church, 
 opened his pulpit, and his people received a blessing. f So 
 it was too at the French church. On the 11th of January, 
 1740, he arrived at Savannah. 
 
 In March, he again visited Charleston. The Commissary 
 was now his decided opponent. He addressed Whitefield a 
 letter, March ITth, attacking bis doctrine of justification, 
 and challenging him to defend what he had said concerning 
 the Bishop of London and his clergy. Whitefield had said 
 in his sermon, " Observe, my dear brethren, the words of 
 'the article ; [the 12th article of the Church of England ;] 
 ' good works are the fruit of faith,' and ' follow after justifi- 
 cation.' How can they then precede, or be any way the 
 
 *■ Not Whiteley Creek, as slated by Gillies and copied by Philip. . 
 t Not Joseph Smith, as he is called in the late London edition of Whitg- 
 field's Sermons. 
 t Philip's " JLife and Timea of Whitefield." 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 55 
 
 cause of it ? No, our persons must be justified, before our ; 
 performances can be accepted." Commissary Garden urged*^ 
 in reply : " If good worlcs do necessarily spring out of a 
 true and lively faith, and a trbe and lively faith necessarily 
 precedes justification, the consequence is plain, that good 
 works must not only foUovir after, but precede justification 
 also." Whitefield replied the next day : " I perceive that 
 you are angry overmuch. Was I never so much inclined to 
 dispute, I virould stay till the cool of the day. Your letter 
 more and more confirms me, that my charge against the 
 clergy is just and reasonable. It virould be endless to enter 
 into such a private debate, as you. Reverend Sir, seem de- 
 sirous of. You have read my sermon ; be pleased to read 
 it again ; and if there be any thing contrary to sound doc- 
 trine, or the articles of the Church of England, be pleased 
 to let the public know it from the press ; and then let the 
 world judge whether you or my brethreil the clergy have 
 been rashly slandered." This was all very true, and just 
 what Garden deserved ; but it was not very conciliatory, 
 nor very decorous, when addressed by a young priest of the 
 church of England to his ecclesiastical superior. Garden 
 wrote and published six letters against Whitefield. About 
 the close of the year, the Rev. Andrew Croswell wrote an 
 answer to these letters, in his usual biting style. It was 
 published at Boston, with an equally biting appendix, which 
 Croswell ascribes to one of the Boston pastors ; probably 
 meaning the Rev. Joshua Gee. * Garden had maintained 
 that good works, though not the meritorious cause, are yet 
 the condition and means, of our justification. Croswell 
 shows that if this be true, then it must be that a certain 
 amount of good works is necessary for the justification of each 
 individual ; and as the exact amount is nowhere recorded, 
 and may not be the same in all cases, no man can ever know 
 whether he is justified or not. And then, on this plan, " a 
 man might attain one half, two thirds, three quarters, or ninety- 
 nine hundredths of justification ; " and, he asks, " What would 
 becpme of a poor sinner, that should be taken out of the 
 world at that unhappy juncture, wherein his justification was 
 so near being effected, that there wanted but one good wish, 
 one Lord have mercy upon me more, to complete it .' Shall 
 
 • Both the letters and answer are preserved in the Old South Church 
 Library. 
 
56 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 the man be miserable for ever for this defect ? Or shall he 
 be looked upon as justified, though he had not quite worked 
 out his justification ? Or, lastly, shall he be doomed to 
 purgatory for a while, to satisfy for what was wanting, and 
 thereby to be made meet for the inheritance of the saints in 
 light ? Lastly, I would ask, what will become of those 
 good works which are the overplus, after a man is justified ? 
 And whether it be not from this doctrine, that, the Popish 
 priests teach, that some men may have more good deeds than 
 they need themselves, and a little to spare for those that 
 want ? " Divines of this day will smile at Mr. Garden's 
 argument, which rests on the assumption that a man is not 
 justified as soon as he has faith, but only after he has had 
 faith long enough to do a certain, or rather, perhaps, an un- 
 certain amount of good works. 
 
 While the Commissary was writing these letters and 
 preaching accordingly, Whitefield returned to Savannah, and 
 on the 25th of March, laid the first brick of his orphan 
 house, calling the institution Bethesda, the House of Mercy. 
 
 It was on the next day, March 26th, that Josiah Smith 
 preached his celebrated Sermon on " The Character, 
 Preaching, &c., of the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield" ; of 
 which Phihp says, "I do not know of any thing written 
 since, which defines and defends the character of Whitefield 
 better." Mr. Smith sent a copy to his friends, Dr. Col- 
 man and Mr. Cooper, at Boston, who published it, with a 
 commendatory preface, dated June 7, 1 740. The preface 
 concludes by bespeaking the prayers of the faithful in Christ 
 Jesus, not only for Whitefield's preservation and general 
 success, but " very particularly, that his purposed coming 
 to us may be with as full a blessing of the Gospel of Christ 
 as other places have experienced, and much more abundant, 
 bythe willof God."* 
 
 Whitefield must now go forth to solicit funds for his or- 
 phan house. Philip says, that Philadelphia was the first 
 place where he pleaded their cause, after commencing the 
 work. This is correct ; but he had previously taken up a 
 collection in Smith's meetinghouse in Charleston, and re- 
 
 * The publication of this sermon probably led to a controversy on Justi- 
 fication, in the South Carolina Gazette, fragments of which are preserved 
 in the Library of the American Antiquarian Society at Worcester. The 
 writers seem to have been Mr. Smith and Commissary Garden. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENIng. 57 
 
 ceived valuable donations, both in New York and Phila- 
 delphia. Now he set forth on a journey of solicitation. 
 The newspapers noticed his movements, and furnish almost 
 a complete history of his present excursion. The reflecting 
 reader will like to see how his labors, character and influ- 
 ence were presented to the public at the time. 
 
 The New England Weekly Journal of April 29th, 1740, 
 copies from a Philadelphia paper of April 17th : 
 
 " The middle of last month, the Rev. Mr. Whitefield 
 was at Charleston, and preached five times, and collected at 
 one time upwards of £ 70 sterling for the benefit of the 
 orphan house in Georgia ; and on Sunday last, after ten 
 days' passage from Georgia, he landed at Newcastle, where 
 he preached morning and evening. On Monday morning he 
 preached to about three thousand at Wilmington, and in the 
 evening arrived in this city. On Tuesday evening he preach- 
 ed to about eight thousand on Society Hill, and preached 
 at the same place yesterday morning and evening." Then 
 follow his appointments daily, to April 29th, 'during which 
 time he was to preach at Whitemarsb, Gennantown, Phila- 
 delphia, Salem, N. J., Neshamony, Skippack, Frederick 
 Township, Amwell, New Brunswick, Ehzabethtown, and 
 New York. May 6, the Journal copied a Philadelphia 
 notice of April 24, that he had preached the Sabbath previ- 
 ous to fifteen thousand hearers, and on Monday at Green- 
 wich and Gloucester ; and that he would return to Georgia 
 before visiting New England, 
 
 The Journal of May 20 contains a letter from White- 
 field to a friend in England, dated New Brunswick, April 
 27. Of his visit to Charleston, he says ; "A glorious 
 work was begun in the hearts of the inhabitants, and many 
 were brought to cry out, What shall we do to be saved .'' A 
 fortnight ago, after a short passage of ten days, I landed in 
 Pennsylvania, and have had the pleasure of seeing and hear- 
 ing that my poor endeavours for promoting Christ's kingdom, 
 when here last, were not altogether in vain in the Lord. I 
 cannot tell you how many have come to me laboring under 
 the deepest convictions, and seemingly truly desirous of 
 finding rest in Jesus Christ. Several have actually received 
 him into their hearts by faith, and have not only righteousness 
 and peace, but joy in the Holy Ghost. In short, the word 
 has run and been much glorified, and many negroes also are 
 
58 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 in a fair way of being brought home to God. Young ones 
 I intend to buy, and do not despair of seeing a room full of 
 that despised generation, in a short time, singing and making 
 melody with grace in their hearts unto the Lord. 
 
 " An effectual door is opened for preaching the everlast- 
 ing Gospel, and I daily receive fresh and most importunate 
 invitations to preach in all the counties round about. God 
 is pleased to give a great blessing to my printed sermons. 
 They are in the hands of thousands in these parts, and are a 
 means of enlightening and building up many in the most holy 
 faith. The clergy,* I find, are most offended at me. The 
 Commissary of Philadelphia, having gotten a httle stronger 
 party than when I was here last, has thrown off the mask, 
 denied me the pulpit, and last Sunday preached up an his- 
 torical faith and justification by works. But the people only 
 flock the more. The power of God is more visible than 
 ever in our assemblies, and more and more are convinced 
 that I preach the doctrine of Jesus Christ. Some of the 
 bigoted, self-righteous Quakers now also begin to spit out a 
 little of the venom of the serpent. They cannot bear the 
 doctrine of original sin, and of an imputed righteousness as 
 the cause of our acceptance with God. I have not yet met 
 with much opposition from the Dissenters ; but when I come 
 to tell many of them, ministers as well as people, that they 
 hold the truth in unrighteousness, that they talk and preach 
 of justifying faith, but never felt it in their hearts, as I am 
 persuaded numbers of them have not, then they no doubt 
 will shoot out their arrows, even bitter words." 
 
 A fortnight after this, the patrons of the Journal read : — 
 " New Castle, May 15. This evening Mr. Whitefield went 
 on board his sloop here, in order to sail for Georgia. On 
 Sunday he preached twice in Philadelphia, and in the eve- 
 ning, when he preached his farewell sermon, it is supposed 
 he had twenty thousand hearers. On Monday he preached 
 at Darby and Chester ; on Tuesday, at Wilmington and 
 Whiteclay Creek ; on Wednesday, twice at Nottingham ; on 
 Thursday, at Fog's Manor f and Newcastle. The congre- 
 gations were much increased since his being here last. The 
 
 * That ia, of the English Church. 
 
 ■f Fagg'e Manor is now the established orthography. In publications of 
 the day, it is also called Frogg's Manor, and Fork's Manor. Gillies has it, 
 Frogo Maner. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 59 
 
 presence of God was much seen in the assemblies, espe- 
 cially at Nottingham and Fog's Manor, where the people 
 were under such deep soul distress, that their cries almost 
 drowned his voice. He has collected, in this and the neigh- 
 bouring provinces, about £450 sterling for his orphans in 
 Georgia." 
 
 He arrived at Savannah, June 5th, and, immediately after, 
 hi| labors with his orphans were the means of awakening 
 many, and of the conversion of some. 
 
 Next comes a notice of a different character, in the Post- 
 boy of June 23d. It is an extract from a letter dated 
 Philadelphia, June 5th. 
 
 " Field preaching prevails with the vulgar here so much, 
 that industry, honest labor, and care for their families, with 
 many, seems to be held as sinful, and as a mark of neglect 
 for the salvation of their souls. Mr. Whitefield and his 
 adherent ministers have infatuated [the multitude] with the 
 doctrines of Regeneration, Free Grace, Conversion, &c., 
 after their peculiar way of thinking, as essential articles of 
 salvation, though inconsistent with true religion, natural or 
 revealed, subversive of all order and decency, and repug- 
 nant to common sense. ^ We have daily instances of the 
 melancholy fruits of these sermons. Many, naturally timor- 
 ous and of weak minds, are terrified into despair, with their 
 threatening and denouncing eternal vengeance. Some are 
 transported with passions which influence them to believe 
 that they have had the beatific vision, and immediate inter- 
 course with him who is invisible. I have informed you of 
 this, because Mr. Whitefield intends for Boston, in the fall 
 or autumn, where I understand he is impatiently waited for. 
 I wish his ministry there may not be attended with the same 
 bad effects as here, by diverting and disturbing the laboring 
 people, who are generally too much inclined to novelties, 
 especially in point of religion. He is the more to be guard- 
 ed against, because, I can assure you, he is qualified to sway 
 and keep the affections of the multitude." 
 
 The author of this letter may have been one of White- 
 field's Presbyterian opponents ; but more probably he was 
 an Episcopahan ; or most probably, from his evident theo- 
 logical ignorance, some purse-proud, lordly layman. 
 
 In the same paper, and also in the Journal of the next 
 day, was another notice, which its relations to, some impor- 
 tant events invest with unusual interest : — 
 
60 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 "Philadelphia, June 12. During the session of the 
 Presbyterian Synod, which began on the 28th of last month, 
 and continued to the third instant, there were no less than 
 fourteen sermons preached on Society Hill to large audien- 
 ces, by the Rev. Messrs. Tennents, Mr. Davenport, Mr. 
 Rowland, and Mr. Blair ; besides what were delivered at the 
 Presbyterian and Baptist meetings, and expoundings and ex- 
 hortations in private houses. The alteration in the face of 
 religion here is altogether surprising. Never did the people 
 show so great a willingness to attend sermons, nor the preach- 
 isrs greater zeal and diligence in performing the duties of 
 their function. Religion is become the subject of most con- 
 versations. No books are in request but those of piety and 
 devotion ; and instead of idle songs and ballads, the people 
 are everywhere entertaining themselves with psalms and 
 hymns and spiritual songs. All which, under God, is owing 
 to the successful labors of the Rev. Mr. Whitefield. 
 
 " On Sunday last,' the Rev. Mr. Gilbert Tennent preach- 
 ed four times ; at seven in the morning at Society Hill, at 
 ten in the Presbyterian meetinghouse, at three in the after- 
 noon at the Baptist meetinghouse, and at seven in the even- 
 ing on Society Hill again ; at which last sermon it is thought 
 there were near eight thousand people." 
 
 To understand the bearings of this account, we must con- 
 sider somewhat minutely the state of the Presbyterian church 
 at that time. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 FABtiES lit THE Presbyterian Chdrch. —Different views of Regeneration, 
 and controversies growing out of them. — Acts of the Synod in 1728, 
 1737, 1738, and 1739. —Meeting of the Synod in 1740. — Tennent's Not- 
 tingham Sermon. — Meeting of the Synod in 1741. — The "Great 
 Schism." 
 
 The Presbyterian Church in America, from its very 
 commencement, contained two classes of men, whose views, 
 on some important points, were in direct conflict with each 
 other. The strict Presbyterians, from Scotland and Ireland, 
 with few exceptions, held the sentiments described on a 
 preceding page. They insisted that all baptized persons, 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 61 
 
 not convicted of heresy or immorality, should be communi- 
 cants ; and that such persons, regularly educated for that pur- 
 pose, and possessing sufficient learning, should be regarded 
 as qualified for the ministry. Regeneration, they held to be 
 necessary in order to acceptance with God, both in partaking 
 of the Lord's Supper and in performing the duties of ,the 
 ministry ; but a qualification not ascertainable by examination, 
 and not requisite in order to a regular standing in the church, 
 or in the sacred office. In short, they insisted that all should 
 be regarded and treated as regenerate, who did not give evi- 
 dence to the contrary by manifest heresy or immorality. The 
 other party was composed of men from New England, Eng- 
 land, and Wales, with a few from Scotland and Ireland. 
 They held that regeneration is a change of which evidence 
 may ordinarily be found by examination ; that those in whom 
 no evidence of regeneration can be found, should be re- 
 garded and treated as unregenerate ; and that all such per- 
 sons should be excluded from the Lord's Table, and from 
 the ministry. Most of their controversies grew out of this 
 fundamental difference, and all were more or less directly 
 related to it. 
 
 In the Synod of 1728, the Rev. John Thompson,' of 
 Lewes-town, m Delaware, brought in an overture, which 
 led, the next year, to what is called " The Adopting A«t," 
 by which the Westminster Confession of Faith, Cate- 
 chisms, &c. were adopted as the confession of faith of the 
 church, and all ministers and candidates for the ministry 
 were obliged publicly to assent to them. Mr.' Thompson 
 was the ecclesiastical leader of the " Old Side," or Scotch 
 and Irish party. His overture was opposed by many of the 
 "New Side," or New England party. The Rev. Jonathan 
 Dickinson wrote against it, admitting the utility of creeds 
 "for the instruction of the ignorant," and "for a public 
 declaration of our religious sentiments," but opposing the 
 imposition of any human creed as a test of orthodoxy. 
 The act was adopted with a qualification, providing that if 
 any minister or candidate should scruple to assent to any 
 part of the standards, the Synod should judge whether that 
 part was essential, so that its denial implied heresy ; and if 
 not, the qualified assent should be admitted.* 
 
 * Both Mr. Thompson's Overture and Mr. Dickinson's Remarks upon 
 it are preserved in the Old South Church Library. 
 
 6 
 
62 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 In 1735, Mr. Tennent's overture, requiring candidates for 
 the ministry to be " examined diligently as to their experience 
 of a work of sanctifying grace on their hearts," mentioned 
 in a preceding chapter, was adopted unanimously ; but. Dr. 
 Miller informs us, it "became a source of great uneasiness 
 within a few years afterwards." * 
 
 In 1738, the Synod enacted, that young men be required 
 to produce a diploma from some European or New England 
 college, or be examined respecting their literature by a com- 
 mission of the Synod, and obtain a testimony of their ap- 
 probation, before they can be taken on trial by any presby- 
 tery. This brought matters rapidly towards a crisis. The 
 elder Tennent, who was an excellent classical scholar, had 
 erected a " log college " at his residence on the Neshamony, 
 where he educated his four sons and several others for the 
 ministry. This was the " New Side " Seminary, and has 
 since grown into the College and Theological Seminary at 
 Princeton. But several " Old Side " leaders had their acade- 
 mies too, and were naturally anxious to fill them with stu- 
 dents. When this act was passed, "Mr. Gilbert Tennent 
 cried out, that this was to prevent his father's school from 
 training gracious men for the ministry." f He foresaw that 
 " Old Side" men would rule the Synod's commission, and 
 would be able to reject all candidates not educated in their 
 own schools, and all suspected of favoring " New Side " 
 views of religion. On the other hand, it was contended that 
 the act was necessary, in order to prevent the introduction 
 of uneducated men into the ministry. 
 
 This act was also opposed, as an infringement on the 
 rights of presbyteries, to whom, it was contended, the great 
 Head of the church has committed the entire power of 
 licensing and ordination. And this brought up another con- 
 troversy, which related to the legislative power of church 
 courts. The " Old Side " claimed the right to enact rules, 
 not contrary to the laws of Christ, which would be binding 
 on the conscience, and must be obeyed on pain of ecclesias- 
 tical censure. The " New Side " contended that church 
 courts have no legislative power whatever ; that they are 
 authorized only to administer the laws that Christ has made ; 
 
 * Life of Rogers. 
 
 t Letter of the Synod to President Clap, of Yale College, quoted by 
 Professor Hodge, from " Minutes," Vol. IH., p. 17. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 63 
 
 and that any additional rules tliat they may enact, are mere 
 recommendations, which every one is bound to observe so 
 far as he can with a clear conscience, and not further. For 
 this, they were charged with designing " to overthrow all 
 authority, and cast out all order and government out of the 
 church." "These are the men," said Mr. Thompson, 
 "who profess so much zeal for Christ's kingdom, and yet 
 are, by one bold strolie, attempting to strike the crown from 
 his head, by divesting his officers and courts of all governing 
 authority." If this bold sentence means any thing, it must 
 mean that Christ reigns over his saints on earth, only in and 
 through church officers and courts, so that our allegiance is 
 due to them directly, and to him only indirectly, and through 
 them. Still, Thompson disclaimed all legislative power in 
 the church ; though he and his party were, in the judgment 
 of their opponents, continually exercising it. 
 
 This act was trampled under foot very soon after its 
 adoption. The presbytery of New Brunswick took Mr. 
 John Rowland, one of Tennent's pupils, on trial in August, 
 without applying to the Synod's commission for testimonials, 
 licensed him in September, and in September of the next 
 year ordained him, and In defiance of the censures of the 
 Synod, kept him as a member of their body, till he was 
 regularly transferred to another presbytery. 
 
 By another act, passed in 1737 and modified in 1738, and 
 again in 1739, ministers and licentiates were prohibited from 
 preaching in any parishes but their own, when there appeared 
 to be danger that their preaching would cause divisions 
 among the people. This was regarded by the " New Side" 
 as a device for keeping "gracious" ministers from disturb- 
 ing the stupidly contented flocks of unconverted pastors. 
 This act, like the other, was pronounced legislative, and was 
 disregarded, wherever there was thought to be a prospect of 
 saving souls by disregarding it. 
 
 There was also a theological controversy, the main question 
 of which seems to have been, whether a regard for the glory 
 of God, or for our own happiness, ought to be our ultimate 
 principle of action. It was brought before the Synod in 
 1738 by Gilbert Tennent. The Synod decided, that as our 
 own happiness can be effectually promoted only by seeking 
 the glory of God, the two motives ought not to be placed 
 in opposition to each other ; and forbade both Tennent and 
 
64 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 his opponent, the Rev. David Cowell, to discuss the mat- 
 ter publicly. When the minutes were read the next year, 
 Tenijent attempted to revive the discussion ; but the Synod 
 refused to attend to it. 
 
 All these controversies were raging, when the Synod 
 met in 1740. During this meeting, two papers were 
 read, which, as must have been foreseen, gave great of- 
 fence. The first was presented by Blair, of New Lon- 
 donderry. He proposed to read it privately, at an informal 
 meeting. , The Synod determined to hear it immediately; 
 and in public. The reason for this decision is not stated. 
 Perhaps it was thought that Blair would not dare to read in 
 public, such a paper as his was supposed to be ; or that if 
 he should do it, some advantage might be taken of it, against 
 the "New Side." But Blair was not to be thus defeated. 
 He read his paper. Gilbert Tennent then offered and read 
 another, prepared without concert with Blair, but of kin- 
 dred character. Of their contents, Blair says: — "The 
 papers contained an account of many things which we found 
 great fault with in several members of thfe Synod. And 
 I can truly say, for my own part, that what I aimed at was, 
 the faithful discharge of duty, and a conscientious testimony 
 against those evils, for the good of the brethren guilty of 
 them, and the good of the church ; and to show the reason- 
 ableness of encouraging, rather than hindering of ministers, 
 to preach Christ's gospel as they had opportunity through 
 the land ; because I saw there was evidently too much re- 
 missness among ministers up and down, and with some, 
 much worse, than bare remissness too."* By preaching 
 " as they had opportunity," he means, preaching in the 
 parishes of "Old Side" ministers,^ without their consent. 
 Tennent's pa])er charged a part of the Synod, without nam- 
 ing the men, with "unsoundness in some of the principal 
 doctrines of Christianity that relate to experience and prac- 
 tice ; as particularly in the following points : First, that there 
 is no distinction between the glory of God and our happi- 
 ness ; that self-love is the foundation of all obedience. These 
 doctines do, in my opinion, entirely overset, if true, all 
 supernatural religion ; f render regeneration a vain and need- 
 
 * Vindication of the Excluded Brethren. Old South Church Libary. 
 
 t For, if this be true, regeneration can be nothing but n-ivino- a better 
 direction to self-love, by teaching the sinner a surer way to "gratify it 
 loavinff him under the dominion of the same ultimate principle of action 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 65 
 
 less thing, and involve a crimson blasphemy against the 
 blessed God, by putting ourselves upon a level with him. 
 Secondly, that there is a certainty of salvation annexed to 
 the labors of natural men. This doctrine, in my opinion, 
 supposes the greatest falsehood, viz., that there is a free will 
 in man naturally to acceptable good. — As these opinions 
 are contrary to the express testimony of Holy Scripture, 
 our Confession of faith and Christian experience, they give 
 me reason to suspect, at least, that those who hold them are 
 rotten-hearted hypocrites, and utter strangers to the saving 
 knowledge of God and of their own hearts." 
 
 Though Blair's proposal to read his paper in private had 
 been overruled by a vote of the Synod, yet, as soon as the 
 papers were read, and often afterwards, he and Tennent 
 were severely blamed for bringing such charges in public. 
 They were told, too, that if they knew any ministers who 
 were guilty as set forth in these papers, they ought to 
 have commenced processes against them before their own 
 presbyteries. This Blair offered to -do, if the Synod 
 thought it his duty ; but neither the Synod, nor his presby- 
 tery when the matter came up there, would ever pass such 
 a vote. The Synod passed a resolution, solemnly admonish- 
 ing all the ministers within their bounds, "seriously to con- 
 sider the weight of their charge, and as they will answer it 
 at the great day of Christ, to take care to approve them- 
 selves to God in the instances complained of ; " and recom- 
 mending to the presbyteries " to take care of their several 
 ministers in these particulars." 
 
 At this session, the act restraining the preaching of minis- 
 ters out of their own parishes was repealed, and a minute 
 was adopted, acknowledging the existence of a work of God 
 in the land, and giving thanks for it ; which shows that party 
 lines were not yet so strongly drawn as they were the next ' 
 year. 
 
 Such were the battles, from which Tennent and his fel- 
 lows went to Society Hill, to preach revival sermons. Some 
 of the "Old Side " asked the privilege of preaching there, 
 but were refused. They then requested the privilege for 
 Mr. Dickinson, but this also was refused. Tennent justified 
 ^ 
 
 as before ; bo that he is not a " new man," but only the " old man," grown 
 more expert in self-seeking. Such a change may be accounted for on 
 natural principles, and therefore is not " supernatural." 
 6* 
 
06 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 the refusal, by saying that the platform on Society Hill had 
 been built expressly for Mr. Whitefield, and they did not 
 feel at liberty to depart from his directions concerning the 
 use of it ; though they would readily have admitted their 
 "Old Side" brethren to their own pulpits. 
 
 Some may ask, how was it possible that there should be a 
 revival, while such controversies were raging ? A consid- 
 eration of the subjects of controversy will show, that it was 
 very possible. The controversies related to the doctrines by 
 which, and the liberty of action in the use of which, the re- 
 vival was sustained. When Blair and the Tennents preached, 
 they only used the liberty and proclaimed the doctrines for 
 which they contended in the Synod. The controversy, 
 therefore, did not divert their attention from their great work 
 of saving souls. Yet it certainly did much to embitter their 
 spirits, and to tarnish the revival with a large admixture of 
 human imperfection. 
 
 It was probably soon after this meeting of the Synod, that 
 Tennent preached his famous Nottingham sermon,, on " The 
 Danger of an Unconverted Ministry." To understand the 
 propriety of his choice of a subject, and the boldness of his 
 attack, the reader must remember, that a large majority in 
 the Presbyterian church, and many, if not most, in New 
 England, held that the ministrations of unconverted men, if 
 neither beretical in doctrine nor scandalous for immorality, 
 were valid, and their labors useful. For years afterwards, 
 this doctrine was publicly and furiously maintained. 
 
 The text was Mark vi. 34. " And Jesus, when he came 
 out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion to- 
 wards them ; because they were as sheep not having a shep- 
 herd." "But what," he exclaimed, after a few words of 
 introduction, "was the cause of this great and compassionate 
 commotion in the breast pf Christ } It was because he saw 
 much people as sheep not having a shepherd. Why, had 
 the people then no teachers .' O, yes ! They had troops 
 of Pharisee teachers, that came out, no doubt, after they had 
 been at the feet of Gamaliel the usual time, and according to 
 the acts, canons and traditions of the Jewish Church. But 
 notwithstanding the great crowds of these orthodox, letter- 
 learned and regular Pharisees, our Lord laments the un- 
 happy case of that great number of people, who, in the days 
 of his flesh, had no better guides ; because that those were 
 
THE GREAT AWAIiENING. 67 
 
 as good as none, in many respects, in our Saviour's judg- 
 ment." He tiien described the character of " the old Phar- 
 isee teachers," the "most notorious branches" of which he 
 made to be "pride, policy, malice, ignorance, covetousness, 
 and bigotry to human inventions in religious matters." " Al- 
 though some of the old Pharisee shepherds had a very fair 
 and strict outside, yet they were ignorant of the new birth. 
 Witness Rabbi Nicodemus, who talked like a fool about it. 
 — The old Pharisees, for all their long prayers and other 
 pious pretences, had their eyes, with Judas, fixed «upon the 
 bag. Why, they came into the priest's office for a piece of 
 bread; they took it up as a trade, and therefore endeavoured 
 to make the best market of it they could." His reasons 
 " why such people who have no better than old Pharisee 
 teachers, are to be pitied," are in the same style. "Natural 
 men have no call of God to the ministerial work, under the 
 gospel dispensation. — Remarkable is that saying of our Sa- 
 viour, 'Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.' 
 See, our Lord will not make men ministers, till they follow 
 him. Men that do not follow Christ, may fish faithfully for 
 a good name, and for worldly pelf; but not for the conversion 
 of sinners to God. Is it reasonable to suppose, that they will 
 be earnestly concerned for others' salvation, when they slight 
 their own ? — The apostle Paul thanks God for counting him 
 faithful, and putting him into the ministry ; which plainly sup- 
 poses that God Almighty does not send Pharisees and nat- 
 ural men into the ministry ; for how can these men be faith- 
 ful, that have no faith ? It is true, men may put them into 
 the ministry, through unfaithfulness or mistake ; or credit and 
 money may draw them ; and the devil may drive them into 
 it, knowing, by long experience, of what special service they 
 may be to his kingdom in that office ; but God sends not such 
 hypocritical varlets." To the objection, that "Judas was 
 sent by Christ," he replied :^- " I fear that the abuse of this 
 instance has brought many Judases into the ministry, whose 
 chief desire, like their great-grandfather, is to finger the pence 
 and carry the bag. But let such hireling, murderous hypo- 
 crites take care that they do not feel the force of a halter in 
 this world, and aggravated damnation in the next." 
 
 The "improvement" of this sermon was as might be ex- 
 pected. "If it be so, that the case of those who have no 
 other or no better than Pharisee teachers, is to be pitied, 
 
68 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 thpn what a scrole and scene of mourning, lamentation, and 
 woe is opened, because of the swarms of locusts, the crowds 
 of Pharisees, that have as covetously as cruelly crept into the 
 ministry in this adulterous generation ! who as nearly resem- 
 ble the character given of the old Pharisees, in the doctrinal 
 part of this discourse, as one crow's egg does another ! It 
 is true, some of the modern Pharisees have learned to prate 
 a little more orthodoxly about the new birth, than their pre- 
 decessor Nicodemus, who are, in the mean time, as great 
 strangers to the feeling experience of it,- as he. They are 
 blind, who see not this to be the case of the body of the 
 clergy of this generation." 
 
 " From what has been said, we may learn that such who 
 are contented under a dead ministry, have not in them the 
 temper of that Saviour they profess. It is an awful sign that 
 they are as blind as moles and as dead as stones, without any 
 spiritual taste, and relish. And, alas ! is not this the case 
 with multitudes .-' If they can get one that has the name of a 
 minister, with a band and a black coat or gown to carry on 
 Sabbath days among them, although never so coldly and un- 
 successfully ; if he is free from gross crimes in practice, and 
 takes good care to keep at a due distance from their con- 
 sciences, and is never troubled about his unsuccessfulness ; 
 O ! think the poor fools, that is a fine man indeed ; our min- 
 ister is a prudent, charitable man ; he is not always harping 
 upon terror, and sounding damnation in our ears, like some 
 rash-headed preachers, who, by their uncharitable methods, 
 are ready to put poor people out of their wits, or run them 
 into despair." 
 
 But what follows, though less violent in style, was really 
 harder to bear, than all that had gone before it. "If the 
 ministry of natural men be as it has been represented, then it 
 is both lawful and expedient to go from them to hear godly 
 persons. Yea, it is so far from .being sinful to do this, that 
 one who hves under a pious minister of lesser gifts, after 
 having honestly endeavoured to get benefit by his ministry, 
 and yet gets little or none, but doth find real benefit and more 
 benefit elsewhere ; I say, he may lawfully go, and that fre- 
 quently, where he gets most good to his precious soul, after 
 regular application to the pastor where he lives, for his con- 
 sent, and proposing the reasons thereof; when this is done 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 69 
 
 in the spirit of love and meekness, without contempt of any, 
 and also without rash anger or vain curiosity." 
 
 The remainder of the sermon, which is nearly half of it, is 
 occupied in the proof of this proposition ; and by proving it, 
 unanswerably, Tennent wounded his opponents more deeply 
 than by all his reproachful epithets. Ministers whose char- 
 acters command no respect, and who are too ignorant, too 
 stupid, too full of worldly cares, or too lazy to preach attrac- 
 tive sermons, very naturally feel their need of a divine right 
 to a certain number of hearers ; for on what other ground 
 shall they get audiences and support .'' By proving that God 
 does not require men to starve their own souls by hearing 
 such preachers, Tennent offended that whole class unpar- 
 donably. And his declaration, that "the body of the cler- 
 gy " of that generation were " as great strangers to the feeling 
 experience " of the new birth as Nicodemus, was unfortunate. 
 We may reasonably hope that it was not true, even of his 
 own communion, the Presbyterian ch,urch ; and it certainly 
 was impohtic thus to fix the number of those whom he con- 
 demned, and give his enemies an opportunity to convict him 
 of hostility to the clergy in general ; an advantage which they 
 were not slow to seize, nor indolent in using. 
 
 As to the style of the sermon, it would be gratifying to 
 say, that Tennent understood his audience, and knew what 
 language was necessary to niake them think and feel as they 
 ought, better than we do ; but justice forbids us to leave the 
 matter thus. There is no sin against which a man like Ten- 
 nent more needs to be on his guard, than what some call 
 "holy indignation ;" and in his circumstances, how could he 
 avoid.it.'' - Personal abuse he often, and so far as history in- 
 forms us, always, bore with Christian meekness ; but the 
 abuse of his father, his brothers, his fellow-laborers in the 
 cause of truth, and, above all, of the truth itself, and of the 
 way of salvation, was a severer trial. That such "Pharisee 
 teachers" as he describes were in the ministry, polluting the 
 Presbyterian church, and leading souls to perdition, he saw 
 and knew. They claimed a right to be there, and their 
 claims were acknowledged and defended. They bitterly 
 opposed the revival of religion, and ridiculed the doctrines 
 and defamed the men by whom it was carried on. The 
 Synod, by its solemn acts, threw its influence in their favor, 
 • and issued decrees which sustained them in their opposition 
 
70 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 to the truth. Faithful ministers, their doctrines, and their 
 works, were industriously held up to derision and contempt, 
 as well as odium. Should Tennent suffer all this to be done 
 without rebuke ? He felt that he understood these men, and 
 could make others understand them ; and then their power to 
 do mischief would be at an end. 
 
 There is certainly force in these considerations. It was 
 doubtless Tennent's duty to write and preach and print on 
 that subject ; and if his sermon had been absolutely faultless, 
 there is no reason to believe that it would have given any less 
 offence. As it was, its truths hurt men's feelings more than 
 its faults. Yet he was angry, and that we may not justify ; 
 but let him who would have kept his temper better, cast the 
 first stone at him. He overrated the number of apostates ; 
 but not so much as Elijah the Tishbite, to whom he bore no 
 slight resemblance, had done in Israel. And though he spoke 
 with an anger that debased his style, and wrought evil, yet he 
 spoke truth, mainly from good motives. He spoke it in a 
 style which he knew would command attention, and cause it 
 to be understood and remembered. The event answered his 
 expectations. The sermon was widely circulated, and was 
 a topic of discussion for years. Neither friends nor enemies 
 would let it rest. It turned the tide' of popular feehng effect- 
 ually against unconverted ministers ', and to no other human 
 agency, probably, so much as to this sermon, is it owing, 
 that Presbyterian ministers at the present day are generally 
 pious men. 
 
 The doings of the Synod the next year throw still further 
 light on these matters, and are introduced here, though out 
 of the order of time, for the sake of presenting this whole 
 subject in one view. 
 
 The Synod met in 1741, exasperated by another year of 
 clashing opinions 'and practice concerning the revival of re- 
 ligion. On the first day of June, a "protestation," signed 
 by twelve ministers and eight elders, was presented, with the 
 avowed intention of bringing matters to a crisis. Its authors 
 protested, "that all our protesting brethren," that is, those 
 who had signed certain former protests, "have at present no 
 right to sit and vote as members of this Synod, having for- 
 feited their right of being accounted members of it, for many 
 reasons ;" and that if they should sit and vote, the doings of 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 71 
 
 the Synod should be "of no force or obligation." The 
 reasons assigned are, 
 
 " I. Their heterodox and anarchical principles, expressed " in an 
 " Apology," which had been published by the New Brunswick Pres- 
 bytery. These principles are enumerated. Blair, in his " Vindica- 
 tion," already quoted, denies that they held them. 
 
 " II. Their protesting against the Synod's act in relation to the ex- 
 amination of candidates, together with their proceeding to license and 
 ordain men to the ministry of the gospel, in opposition to, and in con- 
 tempt of said act of Synod. 
 
 "HI. Their making irregular irruptions upon the congregations to 
 which they have no immediate relation, without order, concurrence, 
 or allowance of the Presbyteries or ministers to which congregations 
 belong ; thereby sowing the seeds of division among the people, and 
 doing what they can to alienate and fill their minds with unjust preju- 
 dices against their lawfully called pastors. 
 
 "IV. Their principles and practice of rash judging and condemning 
 all who do not fall in with their measures, both ministers and people, 
 as carnal, graceless, and enemies to God's work, and what not; as 
 appears in Mr. Gilbert Tennent's sermon against unconverted minis- 
 ters, and in his and Mr. Blair's papers of May last, which were read in 
 open Synod: Which rash judging hath been the constant practice of 
 our protesting brethren and their irregular probationers, for above 
 these twelve months past, in their disorderly itinerations and preach- 
 ing through our congregations; by which (alas for it!) most of our 
 congregations, through weakness and credulity, are so shattered and 
 divided and shaken in their principles, that few or none of us can say 
 we enjoy that comfort, or have that success among our people, which 
 otherwise we might, and which we enjoyed heretofore. 
 
 "V. Their industriously persuading people to believe, that the call 
 of God, whereby he calls men to the ministry, does not consist in their 
 being- regularly ordained and set apart to that work, according to the 
 institu^on and rules of the word ; but in some invisible motions and 
 workings of the Spirit, which none can be conscious or sensible of but 
 the person himself, and with respect to which he is liable to be de- 
 ceived or play the hypocrite. That the gospel preached in truth by 
 unconverted ministers, can be of no saving benefit to souls ; and their 
 pointing out such ministers whom they condemn as graceless by their 
 rash judging spirit, thus effectually carry the point with the poor cred- 
 ulous people, who, in imitation of their example, under their patrociny, 
 judge their ministers to be graceless, and forsake their ministers as 
 hurtful rather than profitable.* 
 
 " VI. Their preaching the terrors of the law in such manner and 
 dialect as has no precedent in the word of God, but rather appears to 
 be borrowed from a worse dialect; and so industriously working on 
 the passions and affections of weak minds, as to cause them to cry out 
 
 • The bad grammar of this sentence must be credited to th6se very ac- 
 complished scholars, the " Old Side " leaders, who have been praised for 
 preventing the extinction of learning in the Presbyterian church. 
 
72 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 in a hideous inatiner, and fall down in convulsion-like fits, to the mar- 
 ring of the profiting both of themselves and others, who are so taken 
 up in seeing and hearing these odd symptoms, that they cannot attend 
 to or hear what the preacher says ; and then, after all, boasting of 
 these things as the work of God, which we are persuaded do proceed 
 from an inferior or worse cause. 
 
 " VII. Their, or some of them, preaching and maintaining, that all 
 true converts are as certain of their gracious state, as a person can be 
 of what he knows by his outward senses ; and are able to give a nar- 
 rative of the time and manner of their conversion, or else they con- 
 clude them to be in a natural or graceless state ; and that a gracious 
 person can judge of another's gracious state otherwise than by his pro- 
 fession and life. That people are under no sacred tie or relation to 
 their own pastors lawfully called, but may leave them when they 
 please, and ought to go where they think they get most good." 
 
 The Presbytery of New Brunswick, the members of which 
 were among the excluded, immediately met, and were joined 
 by several others as corresponding members. Before separ- 
 ating, they adopted the following minute: "Forasmuch as 
 the ministers who have protested against our being of their 
 communion, do at least insinuate false reflections against us, 
 endeavouring to make people suspect that vi^e are receding 
 from Presbyterian principles ; for the satisfaction of such 
 Christian people as may be stumbled by such false aspersions, 
 we think it fit unanimously to declare, that we adhere as' 
 closely and fully to the Westminster Confession of Faith and 
 Catechisms and Directory, as the Synod of Philadelphia iri 
 any of their public acts." So much for their Presbyterian- 
 ism in profession. As to their practice, the most serious 
 accusation was, their " irregular irruptions " into the parishes 
 of other ministers. To this, Mr. Blair replied : " The 
 Synod had, for a year or two before, laid, as we apprehend, 
 an unreasonable restraint upon ministers preaching out of the 
 bounds of their own presbyteries ; and we, in those papers, 
 [the papers read before the Synod in 1740,] signified that 
 the necessity of our preaching abroad was great and urgent, 
 from the soul exercises and strong desires of the people, God 
 succeeding his word in an uncommon degree, and from the 
 manifest unfaithfulness of sundry ministers, and their great 
 opposition against the revival of religion. It was a grief of 
 heart to us, that we were under any such necessity on the 
 last mentioned account. Our design, I hope, was to attempt 
 to .propagate the kingdom of aur Lord Jesus, and save the 
 souls of men ; though we were obliged indeed frequently to 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. fS 
 
 take occasion to vindicate the work of God's Spirit from such 
 ministers' and others' objections and cavils, and to show the 
 necessity of ministers' dealing searchingly and solemnly with 
 their people. But they could never charge either of us, that 
 I kpow of, with any irruptions, as they call them, into their 
 'proper congregations, that they could judicially censure ; 
 though I must observe, by the way, that had they been as 
 friendly to a work and revival of religion as they ought to 
 have been, they and we both would have mutually rejoiced 
 to have had one another to preach in our several congrega- 
 tions. It is a vain shift for any of them, in order to clear 
 themselves from the charge of having made an opposition to 
 the late revival of religion, to say that they have only opposed 
 things that were evil and irregular, which ought to be opposed. 
 We have not been wanting ourselves to be very careful this 
 way, as many hundreds can witness. But there is a vast 
 difference between opposing what is evil, delusive and ir- 
 regular, for the more successful carrying on of a work of 
 div-ine grace, and the improving of such things by way of re- 
 proach upon it and prejudice against it. This is a real oppo- 
 sition to it ; and this they are chargeable with. Yea, more. 
 They lash against all high degrees of soul-distress and terror 
 in convinced persons, as proceeding from temptations of the 
 devil ; and do lash and reproach, in unlimited terms, as the 
 mere effects of irrational frights or delusive joys, all cryings 
 out, or bodily faintings ; when such things may be, and in 
 numbers have been, the effects of rational, spiritual, strong 
 exercises of the soul, from the laws of the union between the 
 soul and body, and can only, at most, be ascribed to human 
 infirmity, which is such in this present state, that no man can 
 see God and live. Yea, several of them have openly and 
 plainly enough denied that any good work more than usual 
 has been going on, but quite the contrary." 
 
 Tennent- also published a reply to the statement of the 
 Synod.* It was written earlier than Blair's, and is less 
 systematic and complete, but takes substantially the same 
 grounds. One fact which he mentions, deserves special tio- 
 tice, as it appears to be the earliest instance of one mode of 
 opposing the revival, which was afterwards somewhat exten- 
 sively used. "Our protesting brethren," he says, "have 
 
 * Am. Antiq. Soc. and Boston Atheneeum. 
 7 
 
74 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 quite omitted any mention of the late extraordinary canon 
 framed by the Presbytery of Donnegal, which ipso facto ex- 
 communicates, or deprives of church privileges, all of their 
 people that go to hear any of the itinerary preachers." To 
 the assertion in the fourth charge of the protest, that the 
 "rash judging" and itinerancy of the revivalists had dimin- 
 ished the comfort and success of the protesters among their 
 people, he replied : " As to comfort, we believe them ; but 
 respecting success, we thought it had been much the same 
 as formerly ; for truly, this is the first time that we ever 
 heard of the success of most of them." He contends, that 
 when "a number of the ministry are either unsound in doc- 
 trine, or unfaithful, or contentedly unsuccessful in their work," 
 the ordinary rules of ministerial intercourse are suspended by 
 the nature of the case, and it is right to preach the gospel 
 among their people without their consent. The charge of 
 preaching that true converts always know the exact time of 
 their conversion, he expressly denies. In reference to the 
 papers read in the Synod by him and Blair, he states that he 
 offered to commence process against individual members, if 
 the Synod thought it his duty. 
 
 By examining the several charges of the excluding "pro- 
 testation," the reader will see the ground of the controversy. 
 The fundamental question was, whether regeneration is a 
 change, attended and followed by an experience, by which 
 the convert and others can judge of its reality ; and of course, 
 whether those who have no such experience are to be counted 
 as unregenerate, and therefore excluded from the communion 
 of the church, and deemed unfit for the ministry. The Ten- 
 nents and their friends maintained the affirmative, and treated 
 all men, in the church or out of it, ministers and people, ac- 
 cordingly. The seventh and last of these charges is evidently 
 a description of this doctrine, drawn by an enemy. It con- 
 demns the doctrine, that one who has felt the sanctifying in- 
 fluence of divine truth, can judge whether another has felt the 
 same, by his account of his own views and feelings, or in any 
 other way than " by his profession and his life " ; that is, — 
 for so' those men used those words, — by his creed and his 
 morals. Judging men who were orthodox and not scandal- 
 ous in their morals to be unconverted, is the "rash judg- 
 ing " censured in their fourth reason for protesting ; and 
 "preaching the terrors of the law" so as to alarm such men, 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 75 
 
 is what they caricature and condemn in the sixth. The 
 fifth is intended to condemn the doctrine of Tennent's Not- 
 tingham sermon, that an unconverted ministry is dangerous, 
 and ought to be forsaken for a better ; and to assert that all 
 who have been regularly ordained and not censured, have a 
 divine right, in virtue of their office, to be regarded and 
 treated as true ministers of Jesus Christ, whether converted 
 or not. The " irregular irruptions," mentioned in the second 
 reason, consisted of preaching the gospel, at the request 
 of those who wished to hear it, in the parishes of opposers 
 of the revival ; of ministers supposed to be unconverted, 
 and who defended the supposed rights of unconverted minis- 
 ters. To crush the revival, many of its most ardent and 
 active friends were protested out of the Synod, and the 
 Presbyterian church was rent in twain. But the revival 
 went on, and its good influences still bless the land. 
 
 Such was the school in which Tennent was trained for 
 his labors in New England ; and such was the first acquaint- 
 ance of Whitefield with American "Dissenters." It was 
 natural that he should anticipate the necessity of telling theih 
 that they preached justifying faith without having felt its 
 power, and should expect opposition in consequence of it. 
 These things must be kept in mind, if we would understand 
 the motives, conduct and influence of these men in New. 
 England. — But meanwhile, where is Whitefield ? 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Whitefield at the Sooth. — Scenes at the Orphan House. — Visit to 
 Charleston. — Ecclesiastical prosecution. — Conversions at and around 
 Charleston. — Schools for Negroes. — The Bryans. 
 
 Whitefield arrived at Savannah, from Pennsylvania, on 
 the fifth of June, 1740 ; and his labors, immediately on his 
 return, were the means of a considerable awakening among 
 the few on whom they were bestowed. Of his first reception 
 he says: "Oh what a sweet meeting I had with my dear 
 friends ! What God has prepared for me, I know not ; but 
 surely I cannot well expect a greater happiness, till I em- 
 
76 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 brace the saints in glory. When I parted, my heart was 
 ready to break with sorrow ; but now it almost burst with 
 joy. Oh how did each, in turn, hang upon my neck, kiss, 
 and weep over me with tears of joy ! And my own soul 
 was so full of a sense of God's love, when I embraced one 
 friend in particular, that I thought I should have expired in 
 the place. I felt my soul so full of a sense of the divine 
 goodness, that I wanted words to express myself. Why 
 me, Lord, — why me ? 
 
 " When we came to public worship, young and old were 
 all dissolved in tears. After service, several of my parish- 
 ioners, all my family, and the little children, returned home, 
 crying along the street, and some could not avoid praying 
 very loud. 
 
 " Being very weak in body, I laid myself upon a bed ; 
 but, finding so many in weeping condition, I rose and betook 
 myself to prayer again. But had I not lifted up my voice 
 very high, the groans and cries of the children would have 
 prevented my being heard. This continued for near an 
 hour; till, at last, finding their concern rather increase than 
 abate, I desired all to retire. Then some or other might be 
 heard praying earnestly in every corner of the house. 
 
 " It happened at this very time to thunder and lighten, 
 which added very much to the solemnity of the night. Next 
 day the concern still continued, especially among the girls. 
 I mention the orphans in particular, that their benefactors 
 may rejoice in what God is doing for their souls." 
 
 As the result of this awakening, he mentions only four or 
 five instances of conversion ; but it was peculiarly precious 
 to him, because it occurred at the orphan house. 
 
 On the seventh of June he wrote to a friend : — "I have 
 brought with me a Latin master, and on Monday laid the 
 foundation, in the name of the Lord Jesus, for an university 
 in Georgia." Another extract from his correspondence, 
 ^addressed to Mr. W. D. June 28, should be read in con- 
 nexion with what he wrote from New York, in November, 
 of the danger of being "puffed up" by success. It shows 
 both his need of admonition, and the excellent spirit in which 
 he received it. He wrote : " I thank you for your kind 
 letters and friendly cautions ; and I trust I shall always reck- 
 on those my choicest friends, who, in simplicity and meek- 
 ness, tell me the corruptions of my heart. It is that faith- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 77 
 
 fulness, which hath endeared J. S. to me. I think I never 
 was obliged to any one so much before. For that reason, 
 also, I find my heart knit to you. Oh my dear brother, still 
 continue faithful to my soul ; do not hale me in your heart ; 
 in any wise reprove me. Exhort all my brethren to ,forgive 
 my past (I fear) too imperious carriage ; and let ihem pray 
 that I may know myself to be, what I really am, less than 
 the least of them all." — We have no right to call this an 
 affectation of humility. He did not mean to say, nor ex- 
 pect to be understood to say, that he was " less than the 
 least " of his friends in eloquence or influence ; for he knew 
 that in these he was immeasurably their superior ; but, filled, 
 as he then was, with contrition and self-loathing for the sin 
 and folly to which his friend had called his attention, he felt 
 that he was their inferior in piety ; in that, compared with 
 which all else is worthless. 
 
 At the close of thfs month, Whitefield again visited 
 Charleston, where he arrived on the third of July, and 
 immediately commenced preaching, as on former visits. On 
 the Sabbath, July 6th, he attended the Episcopal Church, 
 where, he says : " I heard the Commissary preach as vir- 
 ulent and unorthodox, inconsistent a discourse, as ever I 
 heard in my life. His heart seemed full of choler and re- 
 sentment. Out of the abundance thereof, he poured forth 
 so many bitter words against the Methodists, (as he called 
 them,) in general, and me in particular, that several, who in- 
 tended to receive the sacrament at his hands, withdrew. 
 Never, I believe, was such a preparation sermon preached 
 before. — After sermon, he sent his clerk, to desire me not 
 to come to the sacrament till he had spoke with me. I im- 
 mediately retired to my lodgings, rejoicing that I was ac- 
 counted worthy to suffer this further degree of contempt for 
 my dear Lord's sake." The next day, the Commissary issued 
 an ecclesiastical writ against Whitefield, which, as it may be 
 a curiosity to American readers, it may be well to give entire. 
 
 " Alexander Garden, lawfully constituted Commissary of the Right 
 Reverend Father in Christ, Edmund, by divine permission Lord 
 Bishop of London, supported by the royal authority underwritten. — 
 
 " Alexander Garden, 
 
 " To all and singular clerks and literate persons whomsoever, in 
 and throughout the whole province of South Carolina, wheresoever 
 appointed, Greeting. 
 
 7 * 
 
78 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 " To you, conjunctly and severally, we commit, and strictly enjoin- 
 ing, command,' that you do cite, or cause to be cited, peremptorily, 
 George Whitefield, clerk, and presbyter of the Church of England, 
 that he lawfully appear before us, in the parish church of St. Philip, 
 Charleston, and in the judicial place of the same, on Tuesday, the 
 IStli day of this instant July, 'twixt the hours of nine and ten in the 
 forenoon, then and there in justice to answer to certain articles, heads, 
 or interrogatories which will be objected and ministered unto him con- 
 cerning the mere health of his soul, and the reformation and cor- 
 rection of his manners and excesses, and chiefly for omitting to use 
 the form of prayers prescribed in the Communion Book ; and further 
 to do and receive what shall be just in that behalf, on pain of law and 
 contempt. And what you shall do in the premises, you shall duly 
 certify us, together with these presents. 
 " Given under our hands and seals of our office, at Charleston, this 
 
 seventh day of July, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven 
 
 hundred and forty." 
 
 The expression of concern for the health of Whitefield's 
 soul, appearing in this writ, is sufficiently ludicrous ; but it 
 was a necessary formality, and Garden could not avoid it. 
 According to the theory of English law, ecclesiastical courts 
 have no right to cite any person before them for any purpose 
 but that of promoting their spiritual welfare, — the health 
 of their souls ; and therefore, whatever be the object of the 
 writ, whether to punish heresy or immorality, or to collect 
 the tithe of pigs or poultry, this motive must be set forth, 
 representing that the soul of the person cited would be en- 
 dangered, by the omission or commission for which he is 
 summoned to answer ; and the particular offence must then 
 be stated. The sin which, according to the Commissary's 
 writ, endangered the health of Whitefield's soul, was "omit- 
 ting to use the form of prayers prescribed in the Communion 
 Book." The undisputed, matter of fact was, that he always 
 used that form, when he could obtain an Episcopal Church 
 to preach in ; but when shut out from such pulpits, and 
 preaching to Baptists, Presbyterians and Congregationalists 
 in their own houses of worship, where none of the congrega- 
 tion had prayer books, or knew how to use them, and where 
 the introduction of unaccustomed forms would have diverted 
 the minds of the worshippers, perhaps produced hidicrous 
 blunders and levity, and in every way injured the religious 
 effect of the whole service, he omitted that form, and 
 prayed extempore. 
 
 On the day when this writ was issued, Whitefield preach- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 79 
 
 ed for Mr. Chanler, " a gracious Baptist minister, about 
 fourteen miles from Charleston ; " and twice on the next day 
 " to a large audience in Mr. Osgood's meetinghouse, a 
 young Independent minister," at Dorchester ; the next day 
 at Dorchester again, and at Charleston in the evening ; the 
 next day preached and read prayers in Christ's Church, and 
 twice at Charleston on the next day, with great success. 
 And now, on the 11th of July, a citation was served upon 
 him, to appear on the 15th, as required in the writ. On the 
 12th, he preached and read prayers twice on John's Island. 
 On the 13th, which was the Sabbath, he heard the Com- 
 missary again. He says of the sermon ; " Had some infernal 
 spirit been sent to draw my picture, I think it scarcely 
 possible that he could paint me in more horrid colors. 
 I think, if ever, then was the time that all manner of evil 
 was spoke against me falsely for Christ's sake. The Com- 
 missary seemed to ransack church history for instances of 
 enthusiasm and abused grace. He drew a parallel between 
 me and all the Oliverians, Ranters, Quakers, French Proph- 
 ets, till he came down to a family of Dutartes, who lived 
 not many years ago in South Carolina, and were guilty of 
 the most notorious incests and murders." It was easier to 
 censure the Commissary for attempting to excite odium 
 against Whitefield by comparing him to the Dutartes, than 
 to answer the argument that might be drawn from the history 
 of their errors and crimes ; for Whitefield himself, at this 
 tinje, was not wholly purified from that reliance upon impul- 
 ses, supposed to come from the Spirit of God, which led 
 them to their ruin,* 
 
 * There is, prefixed to " Plain Address to Quakers, Moravians, Separa- 
 tists^" &c. by Robert Ross, pastor of the church in Stratfield, Ct., pub- 
 lished in 1762, and preserved in an old " Vol. II." of" Miscellanies " in the 
 Library of the A. B. C. F. M. an account of the Dutartes, extracted from 
 a printed sermon of Mr. Garden ; probably this very sermon. The family, 
 it seems, consisted of father, mother, four sons, and four daughters. They 
 received their religious impressions from Christian George, who is said to 
 have been a Moravian. After two or three years, they withdrew from all 
 religious association with others, believing that they alone had the true 
 knowledge, of God, and were taught by him by signs and impulses. Peter 
 Roipbert, who had married the eldest da-ughter, a widow, was their proph- 
 et, like unto Moses, as they thought, whom they were to obey in all 
 things. He predicted the impending destruction of all men, except that 
 holy family. He afterwards declared, that God commanded him to put 
 away his wife ahd take her younger sister, and predicted, that after the 
 dsstrUjQtion of the wicked, God would raise his wife's former husband, so 
 
80 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 The next day Whitefield again preached twice ; and on 
 Tuesday appeared before the Commissary, according to the 
 citation. This is said to have been the first court of the 
 kind ever attempted in any of the colonies. The parties 
 showed their want of famiharity with such business, and, after 
 a series of blunders on both sides, such as an adept in ca- 
 non law could not but laugh at, the court adjourned to nine 
 o'clock the next morning, to give Whitefield time to inform 
 himself of the extent of the jurisdiction of the Bishop and 
 his Commissary. How intently he studied the subject, may 
 be conjectured from the fact, that he preached twice during 
 the remainder of the day. The next day, a Mr. Graham 
 appeared as a prosecuting attorney, and Mr. Rutledge as 
 counsel for the respondent. Whitefield made some mistakes ; 
 but hints from his quick-sighted advocate and his own adroit- 
 ness saved him from their consequences ; though once he 
 was obliged to give the court a lecture on the meanness of 
 catching at a word as soon as it was out of his mouth, with- 
 out allowing him time to correct it. He now filed his re- 
 cusatio judicis, that is, his objection against being judged by 
 the Commissary, who, he alleged, was prejudiced against 
 him. This gave rise to new questions ; the court adjourned, 
 and Whitefield went to James' Island, read prayers and 
 preached. The next day he appeared in court ; found that 
 
 that the whole holy family should be preserved entire. The father hesitated ; 
 but Peter gave him a sign, that, on going to another plantation, the first ani- 
 mal that he should see should be such an one as he mentioned. The sign 
 came to pass, and the change was made without further ceremony. They 
 refused to perform militia and highway duty, pretending a divme com- 
 mand, and threw off all obedience to the civil magistrates. Justice Sim- 
 mons issued a writ for Judith Dutarte, to answer concerning the child 
 which she was expected to bear. By direction of Roinbert, the family 
 armed, fired upon and defeated the constable and his attendants. Another 
 attempt was made, attended by the Justice and ten or twelve men. The 
 Dutartes fired upon the company, and killed Justice Simmons ; but after a 
 battle, their doors were forced, one, Mrs. Lesard, was found dead, six were 
 carried prisoners to Charleston, and on the 30th of September, 1724, five 
 were sentenced to be hanged for murder. On trial, they freely acknowl- 
 edged all the facts, declared that they acted by divine command, and were 
 about to die cs martyrs, but should be raised on the third day ; and, in the 
 steadfast profession of this faith, Dutarte senipr, Rombert and Boineau 
 were executed. Daniel and John Dutarte, aged eighteen and twenty years, 
 remained sullen till the third day was passed, when, on the failure of the 
 prophecy, they confessed their error, and were pardoned. One of them 
 afterwards, by pretended divine direction, killed a man with whom he had 
 no quarrel, and was executed for it; but, in the opinion of Mr. Garden, 
 who, as chaplain, attended on them all when under sentence, died peiK 
 itent. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 81 
 
 his exceptions were repelled, and that the arbitrators would 
 not be appointed ; appealed to the High Cpurt of Chancery 
 at London, declaring all further proceedings in this court to 
 be null and void ; and then read letters which refreshed his 
 spirit,- by informing him "how mightily the word of God 
 grew and prevailed " at Philadelphia, and that Mr. Bolton, 
 in Georgia, had near fifty negroes learning to read. 
 
 The next day, July 18th, , he preached twice, and on the 
 19th again appeared before the Commissary, and bound him- 
 self, in a penalty of ten pounds, to prosecute his appeal at 
 London within twelve months. The appeal was never tried, 
 The dignitaries at London seem to have regarded the pros- 
 ecution as a bad business, and contrived to let it die of 
 neglect. 
 
 " The court being ended," says Whitefield, in his jour- 
 nal, "the Commissary desired to speak with me. I asked 
 him to my lodgings. He chose to walk in a green near the 
 church. His spirit was somewhat calmer than usual ; but 
 after an hour's conversation, we were as far from agreeing as 
 before." "AH his discourse was so inconsistent and con- 
 trary to the gos4)el of our Lord, that I was obliged to tell 
 him that I believed him to be an unconverted man, ^n enemy 
 to God, and of a like spirit with the persecutor Saul. At 
 this he smiled ; and, after, we had walked a long while, we 
 parted, and God gave me great satisfaction that; 1 had deliv- 
 ered my soul in my private conversation with the Commisary." 
 
 The next day, July 20th, was the Sabbath. The Com- 
 missary preached in his usual style, and Whitefield preached 
 his farewell sermon to the people at Charleston. By his ad- 
 vice, two or three dissenting ministers had set up a weekly 
 lecture. Whitefield "advised the people, as the gospel was 
 not preached in church, to go and hear it in the meeting- 
 house." On leaving the place, he sums up the result of his 
 labors in his journal, after this manner : 
 
 " What makes the change more remarkable in Charleston 
 people is, that they seemed to me, at my first coming, to be 
 a people wholly devoted to pleasure. One well acquainted 
 with their manners and circumstances, told me, more had 
 been spent on polite entertainments, than the poor's rate came 
 to ; but now the jewellers and dancing-masters begin to cry 
 out that their craft is in danger. A vast akeration is dis- 
 cernible in the ladies' dresses. And some, while I have 
 
82 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 been speaking, have been so convinced 'of the sin of wearing 
 jewels, that 1 have seen them with blushes put their hands to 
 their ears, and cover them with their fans. But I hope the 
 reformation has went* further than externals. Many moral, 
 good sort of men, who before were settled on their lees, have 
 been gloriously awakened to seek after Jesus Christ ; and 
 many a Lydia's heart hath been opened to receive the things 
 that were spoken. Indeed, the word came like a hammer 
 and a fire. And a door, I believe, will be opened for teach- 
 ing the poor negroes. Several of th^m have done their usual 
 work in less time, that they might come to hear me. Many 
 of their owners, who have been awakened, resolve to teach 
 them Christianity. Had I time, and proper schoolmasters, I 
 might immediately erect a negro school in South Carolina, as 
 ' well as in Pennsylvania. Many would willingly contribute 
 both money and land." 
 
 Whitefield left Charleston on the 21st of July,t visiting 
 and preaching on his way homeward. On the 23d, he ar- 
 rived at Hugh Bryan's, at Good Hope ; the next day Jie 
 went in Mr. Bryan's boat to Beaufort ; the next evening ar- 
 rived at Savannah, and thinking the passage to be the lesson 
 for the day, read and expounded what Paul says of "Alex- 
 ander the coppersmith," which evidently reminded him of 
 Alexander the Commissary. On the Sabbath, several friends 
 from South Carolina were present, who had come to see the 
 orphan house. He felt exhausted, and unable to preacli ; 
 but was persuaded to make the attempt. " I soon found 
 power communicated to me from above. I felt a sweet melt- 
 ing in my soul, and, ere I had prayed long, Mr. Bull dropped 
 down as though shot with a gun. He soon got up, and sat 
 attentively to hear the sermon. The power soon began to 
 spread abroad ; the greatest part of the congregation was 
 under concern." The next day he was sent for about noon 
 to see Mr. Jonathan Bryan, whom he found "under great 
 concern and strong convictions of sin." After staying among 
 scenes like these about two weeks, Bull and Bryan went 
 home, rejoicing in the hope of reconciliation to God. 
 
 * So it reads in his original journal. 
 
 t His journal says, on " Monday, July 22 ; " but Monday was the 21st, 
 and not the 23d day of the month. This erroneous reckoning continues 
 till August 3d, which is dated correctly. Similar errors for several days in 
 succession, sometimes backwards and sometimes forwards, ore frequent in 
 this journal. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 83 
 
 On the 18th of August, Whitefield left Savannah, and, on 
 arriving at Charleston, found himself able to preach only once 
 a day ; but, as he thought, vi^ith greater power and success 
 than ever before. The Commissary was quiet. Mr. Rowe 
 preached in his stead, and told the people that for their sins 
 God had sent them strong delusions, that they might believe 
 a lie. Whitefield's conscience would not suffer him to attend 
 at the Episcopal church, because the gospel was not preached 
 there. Mr. Bull and J. Bryan came to Charleston to see 
 him, and to be "more established" in the right way. " Mr. 
 Hugh Bryan they left at home, drinking deeply of the cup of 
 God's consolations. His wife came with them to Charleston : 
 a gracious woman. By my advice they returned home, with 
 a resolution to begin a negro school for their slaves. A 
 young stage-player, convinced when I was last at New York, 
 and who providentially came to Georgia when Mr. Bryan 
 was there, is to be their first teacher." We shall hear of 
 these Bryans again. 
 
 Having preached a farewell sermon to four thousand hear- 
 ers, Whitefield sailed for New England. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 WHITEFIELD'S FIRST VISIT TO NEW ENGLAND. 
 
 The religious state of New Englan d was most favora ble 
 to Whitefield's success. Local revivals were already in pro- 
 gress, and were multiplying ; and there had been throughout 
 the land for several years, and especially since the "surpris- 
 ing conversions " at Northampton, an increasing sense of stu- 
 pidity, which is a very different thing from increasing stupidity. 
 He had been invited to come, by several of the most eminent 
 ministers and laymen ; his arrival had been for some time 
 impatiently expected, and there was a general impression on 
 men's minds, that his coming would be followed by a great 
 revival of religion. There is even reason to suspect,' that 
 the manifestation of a revival, which was already secretly at 
 work in men's hearts, was kept back for several months, by 
 the general feeling, that it would take place when Whitefield 
 
:84 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 came, and not before. In short, New England was ready 
 and waiting to be moved by him. The account of his labors 
 shall be given on his own authority.* 
 
 He arrived at Newport, September 14. It was the 
 Sabbath. "I think if the most pleasant entrance I ever yet 
 saw. Almost all the morning the wind was contrary ; but I 
 found a very strong inclination to pray that we might arrive 
 time enough to be present at public worship. Once I called 
 the people, but something prevented their coming. At last, 
 finding my impression increase upon me, I desired their at- 
 tendance immediately. They pame, with a strong assurance 
 we should be heard. We prayed the Lord^ that he might 
 turn the wind, 'that we might give him thanks in the great 
 'Congregation, and also that he would send such to us as he 
 would have us to converse with, and who might show us a 
 lodging. Though the wind was ahead when we began, yet 
 when we had done praying and came up Out of the cabin, it 
 was quite fair. With a gentle gale we sailed most pleasantly 
 into the harbour, got into -public worship before they had 
 finished the Ps^ms, and sat, as I thought, undiscovered. 
 After service was over, a gentleman asked me if my name 
 was not Whitefield. I told him, yes. He then desired me 
 to go to his house, and he would take care to provide lodg- 
 ings and necessaries for me and my friends. I went, silently 
 admiring God's goodness in answering my prayers so mi- 
 nutely. Several gentlemen of the town soon came to pay 
 their respects to me, among whom was one Mr. Clapp, an 
 aged dissenting minister, but the most venerable man I ever 
 saw in my life. He looked like a good old Puritan, and 
 gave me an idea of what stamp those men were who first 
 •settled New England. His countenance was very heavenly, 
 He rejoiced much in spirit at the sight of me, and prayed 
 most affectionately for a blessing on my coming to New 
 England." In the evening, in company with Mr. Clapp and 
 
 * A large part of it is in his own words, as indicated by marks of quota- 
 tion ; anain such parts as are abridged, his phraseology nas been retained 
 as far as practicable. The account is taken &om his original Journal, pub- 
 lished soon after his visit, and preserved in the library of the Athenaeum. 
 Some may think that the writer should have followed his revised Journal ; 
 but that would have shown what Whitefield approved some years after- 
 wards, and not what he was, at the time of bis first visit. And justice to 
 his opponents requires that passages in his original Journal, which were 
 among the causes of their opposition, should appear. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 86 
 
 Others, he visited Mr. Honeyman, the minister of the Church 
 of England,,, and requested the use of his pulpit. Honeyman 
 hesitated, and asked him what extraordinary call he had to 
 preach on week days, which was disorderly. Whitefield 
 told him, none, but the apostolic injunction, " As we have 
 opportunity, let us do good to all men." After consultation, 
 Honeyman told Whitefield, that if his preaching would pro- 
 mote the glory of God and the good of souls, he was wel- 
 come to use his church as often as he would, during his stay 
 in town. Whitefield then agreed to use it at ten in the morn- 
 ing and three in the afternoon. After a short visit to the 
 governor, whose plainness pleased him, he went to the house 
 of Mr. Bowers, the man who first addressed him when corn- 
 ing out of church. The house was soon filled with company. 
 He expounded and prayed about an hour, and then retired 
 to his lodgings. Such was his first day in New England. 
 
 The next day he breakfasted with Mr. Clapp, read prayers 
 and preached according to his appointment, to some three 
 thousand hearers, great numbers of whom were affected. 
 After evening service he received the following letter, dated 
 that day at Newport. 
 
 " Reverend Sir and hdoved Brother, 
 
 " Although mine eyes never saw your face before this day, yet 
 my heart and soul have been united to you in love by the bond of the 
 Spirit I have longed and expected to see you for many months past 
 Blessed be God, mine eyes have seen the joyful day. I trust, through 
 grace, I have some things to communicate to you, iJiat will make your 
 heart glad. I shall omit writing any thing, and only hereby present 
 my hearty love, and let you know that I am waiting now at the post of 
 your door for admission. Though I am unworthy, my Lord is worthy, 
 in whose name I trust I come. I am, your unworthy brother, 
 
 Jonathan Barber." 
 
 " On reading it, I could not but think this was one of those 
 young , ministers whom- God had lately made use of in such a 
 remarkable manner at the east end of Long Island. I sent 
 :fpr him, and found he was the man. My heart rejoiced. We 
 walked out, and> took sweet counsel together ; and amongst 
 other 1 things, he told me that he came to Rhode Island 
 under a full conviction that he should see me there, and had 
 been .waiting; for me eight days ; for, he said, these wosds 
 were mightily impressed upon his heart : ' Is not Aaron the 
 Levite thy brother .' I know that h& can speak well, and also 
 8 
 
86 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 he Cometh forth to meet the.e, and when he seeth thee he will 
 be glad in his heart ; and I will be with thy mouth, and with 
 his mouth, and will teach you wljat ye shall do.' What ren- 
 dered this the more remarkable was, I had no intention of 
 sailing into Rhode Island till about three days before I left 
 CaroUna ; and also, I had a great desire to put in, if I could, 
 at the east end of Long Island, to see this very person, whom 
 the great God now brought unto me. Lord, accept our 
 thanks, sanctify our meeting, and teach us both what we shall 
 do, for thine own name's sake." In the evening, he exhort- 
 ed a great multitude at Mr. Clapp's, who dismissed him with 
 his blessing. The next day, he felt " a little low in the 
 morning, but was enabled to read prayers, and preach with 
 much flame, clearness, and power," and to larger audiences 
 than on the previous day. The legislature adjourned, that 
 its members might hear him. He received several invita- 
 tions to visit other places, and the Newport people made him 
 promise, by divine permission, to visit them on his return 
 from Boston. His hearers were attentive, and many wept. 
 In the afternoon, he conversed and prayed with several who 
 were affected by his labors. In the evening, he says, "I 
 went, as I thought, privately, to a friend's house ; but the 
 people were so eager after the word, that in a short time I 
 believe more than a thousand were before the door, besides 
 those that were within, and filled every room in the house. 
 I therefore stood upon the threshold and spoke for near an 
 hour on these words : ' Blessed are they that hunger and 
 thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.' Blessed 
 be God, it was a very solemn meeting. Being night, I could 
 not see how the hearers were affected, but the Lord assisted 
 
 .me in speakitig." He then called to take leave of Mr. Hon- 
 eyman, " and had some close talk with him about the new 
 
 J)irth." 
 
 "" He thought Rhode Island a place where much good might 
 he done. The people were sadly divided among themselves. 
 The Established church (Episcopal) he found in good order 
 as to externals, but many of the head members were exceed- 
 
 jing great bigots. Nor was it much better in the other com- 
 munions. " All, I fear, place the kingdom of God too much 
 in meats and drinks, and have an ill name abroad for running 
 of goods." He said to them one day in his sermon, "What 
 will become of you, who cheat the king of his taxes ? " This 
 
THE GKEAT AWAKENING. 87 
 
 made,them all look at each other^ like men conscious of their 
 own and each other's guilt. 
 
 On Wednesday he left Newport. About noon, he preached 
 at Bristol, at the request of the court, which was in session 
 there. At eight o'clock on Thursday evening, he was met, 
 about four miles from Boston, by the governor's son, several 
 other gentlemen, and one or two ministers, who were at a 
 gentleman's house, waiting for him. A large funeral, and 
 some uncertainty as to his arrival, prevented a more numer- 
 ous attendance. He was conducted into Boston, to the 
 house of Mr. Staniford, brother-in-law to Dr. Colman, who 
 had invited him to be his guest. His heart was low, and his 
 body weak ; but at the request of several ministers, and other 
 gentlemen who called upon him, he led their united devotions 
 in thanksgiving for his safe arrival, and prayer for a blessing 
 on his labors. 
 
 He slept well that night, and the next morning "perceived 
 fresh emanations of divine light break in upon and refresh " 
 Jiis "soul." Several ministers and others visited him ; among 
 whom was Josiah Willard, Esq., secretary of the province, 
 a man fearing God, with whom he had corresponded for 
 some time. The governor, Belcher, received him with the 
 utmost respect, and requested frequent visits. He attended 
 public worship at the Church of England, and waited on the 
 Commissary home, who received him very courteously. As 
 it was a day on which that clergy met, he saw five of them 
 together. One of them began with him, "for calling that 
 Tennent and his brethren faithful ministers of Christ." He 
 answered, that he believed they were. They questioned the 
 validity of Presbyterian ordination, and quoted, from his 
 journal, his own words against him. He replied, that per- 
 haps his sentiments were altered. " And is Mr. Wesley 
 altered in his sentiments tbo, said one ; for he was very 
 strenuous for the church and against all other forms of gov- 
 ernment, when he was at Boston. I answered, he was then 
 a great bigot ; but God had since enlarged his heart, and I 
 believed he was like minded with me, as to this particular." 
 They then went into a doctrinal discussion, which continued 
 till Whitefield, finding how inconsistent they were, took his 
 leave, resolving that they should not have the opportunity of 
 denying him their pulpits. However, they treated him with 
 more civility than any clergymen of his own church had done 
 for a long while. 
 
88 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 In the afternoon, he preached to about four thousand 
 people in Dr^Co lman's mee t inghouse, (B rattle Street,) and, 
 as he was told, with great success] Tn the evening,' he ex- 
 horted and prayed with such as came to his lodgings. The 
 next day, he preached in Dr . ^e wall's meetingho use, (the Old 
 Sduth,) to about six thousand * hearers ; afterwards, on the 
 Common, to about eight thousand, and at night to a thronged 
 company at his own lodgings. 
 
 On Sabbath morning he heard Dr. Coiman ; in the after- 
 noon preached "to a very thronged auditory, and with great 
 and visible eifect, at Mr. Foxcroft's meetinghouse." Fo x- 
 cr oft was senior pastorof th e First Church, now In Cha un^ 
 cy'Flace. ~The Rev. Charles Chaun cy was his colleagaeJ 
 THe house was in Cornhill Square,' not far from the Old 
 State House, and was usually called the " Old Brick." 
 Immediately after the sermon he preached on the Common, 
 to about fifteen thousand ; and again at his lodging, as usual, 
 to a greater company than before. " Some afterwards came 
 up into my room. I felt much of the divine presence in 
 my own soul, and though hoarse, was enabled to speak with 
 much power, and could have spoke, I believe, till mid- 
 night." 
 
 Monday morning, he preached at Mr. Webb's meeting- 
 house, the "New North," at the corner of Clark and Hano- 
 ver Streets. He says, there were "about six thousand 
 hearers in the house, besides great numbers standing about 
 the doors ;" but the house certainly could not contain more 
 hearers than the Old South. " The presence of the Lord 
 
 * 'Whitefield was esteemed, in his day, a good judge of numbers. His 
 estimates of his hearers were generally received by his contemporaries. It 
 does not appear that even his enemies ever accused him of exaggeration 
 in this respect. Yet these statements are incredible. The Old South 
 meetinghouse is still standing, and, with its present arrangement of seats, 
 will accommodate a larger audience than when Whitefiela preached in it. 
 According to Dickinson's Boston Almanac for 1837, a work of uncommon 
 accuracy, it has seats, including the upper gallery, for twelve hundred and 
 sixteen persona. 'With the closest " packing" of pews, aisles, porches, and 
 stair-cases, and including all who could hear his powerful voice through 
 the windows, his hearers must have been less than three thousand. Prince, 
 a very safe man in such matters, estimated Wbitefield's first audience at 
 Brattle Street, at two or three thousand. 'Whitefield estimated the hearers 
 of his farewell sermon on Boston Common, at thirty thousand. One of 
 the newspapers of the day estimates it at twenty-three thousand, which, as 
 twenty-three is not around number, was probably the result of an attempt 
 at computation. His estimates, therefore, though usually adopted by his- 
 torians without questioning, and though given, for want of others, in this 
 work, must be taken with considerable abatement. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 89 
 
 was amongst them. Look where I would around me, visible 
 impressions were made upon the auditory. Most wept for 
 a considerable time." Webb was one of the most efficient 
 promoters of the revival, and no church shared more largely 
 in its blessings than this. Whitefield afterwards saw still 
 greater things in this house. In the afternoon, he went to 
 preach at Mr. Checkley's, in Summer Street; "but God 
 was pleased to humble us by a very awful providence. For 
 when the meetinghouse was filled with people, though there 
 was no real danger, on a sudden the people were all in an 
 uproar, and so unaccountably surprised, that some threw 
 themselves out of the windows, others threw themselves out 
 of the galleries, and others trampled upon one another, so that 
 some were actually killed, and others dangerously wounded.* 
 I happened to come in the midst of the uproar, and saw two 
 or three lying on the ground in a pitiable condition. God 
 was pleased to give me presence of mind, so that I gave 
 notice, I would immediately preach in the Common. The 
 weather was wet, but above eight thousand followed into the 
 fields." 
 
 The next morning, he visited- Mr. Walter, at Roxbury. 
 Mr. Walter had been the colleague and was the successor 
 of Eliot, "the apostle of the Indians." Those two men 
 had been pastors of that church one hundred and six years. 
 Whitefield was much pleased with him, and Walter wa^ glad 
 to hear, that Whitefield called man " half a devil, and half a 
 beast." He preached that forenoon at Mr. Gee's meeting- 
 house, f "but not to a very crowded auditory," because 
 the people were in doubt where he would preach. He 
 "preached in the afternoon at Dr. Sewall's, to a thronged 
 auditory," and exhorted and prayed as usual at his lodgings ; 
 at neither place without effect. J 
 
 The next day, he visited Cambridge, " the chief College 
 for training up the sons of the prophets in all New England." 
 
 * Philip quotes, probably from the revised journal, " five were actually 
 killed, and many dangerously wounded." 
 
 t The " Old North," in the North Square, formerly under the pastoral 
 care of Cotton Mather. The house was taken down and burned for fuel 
 by the British army, during the siege of Boston in 1776. The church was 
 united with that at the " New Brick " in 1779, and called the " Second 
 Church." 
 
 t Philip says, erroneously, that he preached twice at Gee's, " to im- 
 mense audiences." 
 
 8* 
 
90 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 As his record of this visit produced important effects, it 
 must be given entire. "It has one President, four tutors, 
 upwards of one hundred students. It is scarce as big as one 
 of our least colleges at Oxford ; and, as far as I could gath- 
 er from some who well knew the state of it, not far superior 
 to our universities in piety and true godliness. Tutors ne- 
 glect to pray with and examine the hearts of their pupils. 
 Discipline is at a low ebb. Bad books are become fashion- 
 able among them. Tillotson and Clark arfe read, instead of 
 Sheppard, Stoddard, and such like evangelical writers ; and 
 therefore I chose to preach from those words, — ' We are 
 not as many, who corrupt the word of God ; ' and, in the 
 conclusion of my sermon, I made a close application to 
 tutors and students. A great number of neighbouring minis- 
 ters attended, as indeed they do at all other times, and God 
 gave me great freedom and boldness of speech. The Presi- 
 dent of the College and minister of the parish treated me 
 very civilly. In the afternoon I preached again in the Col- 
 lege yard, with particular application to the students. I be- 
 lieve there were seven thousand hearers. The Holy Spirit 
 melted many hearts. The word was attended with a mani- 
 fest power ; and a minister soon after wrote to me, that he 
 believed one of his daughters was savingly wrought upon at 
 the time." 
 
 On Thursday, he preached the weekly lecture at the 
 First Church ; but, he says, " was so oppressed with such a 
 sense of my base ingratitude to my dearest Saviour, that Sa- 
 tan would fain have tempted me to hold my tongue, and not 
 invite poor sinners to Jesus Christ, because I was so great; 
 a sinner myself. But God enabled me to withstand the 
 temptation ; and since Jesus Christ had shown such mercy 
 to me, and did not withdraw his Holy Spirit from me, the 
 chief of sinners, I was enabled the more feelingly to talk of 
 his love." This explanation of the workings of his own 
 mind is as full of sound philosophy, as it is of deep and 
 fervent piety. By such views of his own vileness, he was 
 enabled to gain those views of the love of God, which were 
 one principal element of his power over his hearers. That 
 day, he and most of the Boston pastors dined with the Gov- 
 ernor. " Before dinner, the Governor sent for me up into 
 his chamber. He wept, wished me good success in the 
 name of the Lord, and recommended himself, ministers and 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 91 
 
 people, to my prayers. Immediately after dinner, at the 
 Governor's motion, I prayed explicitly for them all ; went 
 in bis coach to the end of the town, but had such a sense of 
 my vileness upon my soul, that I wondered people did not 
 stone me." He preached at Charlestown. " A gracious 
 melting was discernible through the whole congregation, and 
 I perceived much freedom and sweetness in my own soul, 
 though the damp I felt in the morning was not quite gone 
 off." 
 
 The next day he preached at Roxbury, from a little as- 
 cent, to many thousands of people, with much of the divine 
 presence. Several came to him afterwards, telling how they 
 were struck at the time under the word. He had a still 
 larger audience in the afternoon, when he preached from a 
 scaffold erected without the Rev. Mr. Byles' meetinghouse, 
 in HoUis Street. 
 
 Saturday was a great day with him. He preached in the 
 morning at Mr. Welsteed's meetinghouse, and in the after^- 
 noon, to about fifteen thousand people on the Common. 
 "But oh how did the word run! It rejoiced; me to_ see 
 such numbers greatly affected, so that some of them, I be- 
 lieve, could scarcely abstain > from crying out, that that place 
 was no other than a Bethel, and the gate of heaven." He 
 went to his lodgings ^ " The power and presence of the 
 liord accompanied and followed me. Many now wept ex- 
 ceedingly, and. cried out under the word, like persons that 
 were hungering and thirsting after righteousness:. And after 
 I left them, God gave me to wrestle with him in my cham^- 
 Ber in behalf of some dear friends then present, and others 
 that, were absent from us. The Spirit of the Lord was 
 upon them all. It made intercessions with groanings: that 
 cannot be uttered." 
 
 On the Sabbath, in the morning, he preached at the Old' 
 South, " to a very crowded auditory, with almost as much, 
 power and visible appearance of God among us as yesterday 
 in the afternoon," and collected £555 currency for his 
 orphan house. These herculean labors produced bodily 
 effectSj. which' ordinary men would have thought really frightr 
 ful. He " was taken very ill after dinner ; vomited vio"- 
 lendy, but was enabled to preach at Dr. Colman's. in the 
 afternoon," where he collected £470. "In both places, all 
 things were carried on with great decency and order. Peor 
 
92 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 pie went slowly out, as though they had not a mind to escape 
 giving ; and Dr. Colman said it was the pleasantest time he 
 had ever enjoyed in that meetinghouse through the whole 
 course of his life." After sermon he felt refreshed ; supped 
 early ; had an affectionate visit from the Governor ; preached 
 to a great number of Negroes, at their request, and with great 
 effect ; and on his return to his lodgings, exhorted the crowd 
 who were waiting his arrival. " My animal spirits were 
 almost exhausted ; and my legs, through expense of sweat 
 and vomiting, almost ready to sink under me ; but the Lord 
 visited my soul, and I went to bed greatly refreshed with di- 
 vine consolations." Such bodily effects frequently accom- 
 panied his labors. 
 
 On this day, September 28, his celebrated admonitory let- 
 ter to Wesley was dated, perhaps by mistake. He had re- 
 ceived letters from England since his arrival, some of which 
 gave sad accounts of Wesley's Arminianism and Perfection- 
 ism. He had written to some one, September 23 : " To 
 affirm such a thing as perfection, and to deny final persever- 
 ance, — what an absurdity is this ! To be incapable of sin- 
 ning, and capable of being finally damned, is a contradiction 
 in terms." To Wesley he wrote : 
 
 " Dear Brother Wesley. What do you mean, by disputing in all 
 your letters .' May God give you to know yourself, and then you will 
 not plead for absolute perfection, or call the doctrine of election " a 
 doctrine of- devils." My dear brother, take heed ; see that you are in 
 Christ, a new creature-. Beware of a false peace ; strive to enter in at 
 the strait gate, and give all diligence to make your calling and elec- 
 tion sure. Remember you are but a babe in Christ, if so much. Be 
 humble, talk little, think and pray much. Let God teach you, and he 
 will lead you into all truth. I love you heartily. I pray you may be 
 kept from error, both in principle and practice. Salute all the breth- 
 ren. If you must dispute, stay till you are master of your subject; 
 otherwise you will hurt the cause you would defend. Study to adorn 
 the gospel of our Lord in all things ; and forget not to pray for your 
 affectionate friend, George Whitefield." 
 
 Philip says, "whatever truth there may be in this tirade, it 
 is more than defeated by its unhallowed form. Such an appeal 
 could only exasperate." Scarce any writer has mentioned 
 it, but in a similar style of condemnation ; and it was cer- 
 tainly an improper letter to be addressed by a very young 
 man, to a minister of the gospel, so much his superior in age 
 and acquirements, of established reputation for piety, and 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 93 
 
 who had so long been the spiritual guide of' its author. 
 Whitefield would not have written it, had he not been, — to 
 use his own language on another occasion, — " puffed up," 
 by his reception and success at Boston. But Wesley cer^ 
 tainly deserved that a good part of it should be administered, 
 in a proper style and by a suitable person ; and it is no won- 
 der that Whitefield, when such multitudes were acknowledg- 
 ing his power, when such a brilliant constellation of divines 
 were almost worshipping him, and above all, when the accom- 
 plished Belcher was courting bis instructions and reproofs, 
 should admonish him as he would any other misguided soul- 
 Early on Monday morning, September 29, he left Boston, 
 on an excursion to the eastward. At Marblehead, he 
 " preached to some thousands in a broad place in the middle 
 of the town, but not with much visible effect." At Salem, he 
 " preached to about seven thousand people. . Here the Lord 
 manifested forth his glory. One man was, I believe, struck 
 down by the power of the word. In every part of the con- 
 gregation, persons might be seen under great concern." He 
 went on to Ipswich, where he was " kindly entertained at 
 the house of Mr. K ^f^ ^" rs, one of the ministers of. the 
 place." In 1743, John Rogers, aged 77, and Nathanael 
 Rogers, were pastors of the First Church in Ipswich ; both 
 ardent promoters of the revival-; as was also Daniel Rogers j 
 of the same family. Whitefield learned with deep interest, 
 that his host was a descendant of John Rogers, the celebra-" 
 ted martyr. The next day, he preached there to some 
 thousands. " The Lord gave me freedom, and there was a 
 great melting in the congregation." At Newbury, in the 
 afternoon, " the Lord accompanied the word with pow- 
 er. The meetinghouse was very large, many ministers 
 were present, and the people were greatly affected. Blessed 
 be God, his divine power attends us more and more." 
 Wednesday morning, he preached at Hampton, to some 
 thousands in the open air. The high wind made it dijQicult 
 to be heard, and he had not his usual freedom. A few, how- 
 ever, were affected. At Portsmouth, he preached " to a 
 polite auditory, but so very unconcerned, that I began to 
 question whether I had been speaking to rational or brute 
 creatures. Seeing no immediate effects of the word preach^ 
 ed, I was a little dejected ;.but God, to comfort my heart, 
 sent one young man, crying out in great' anguish i of: spirit^ 
 
94, THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 " What shall I do to be saved?" He went on to York, in 
 Maine, " to see one Mr. Moody, a worthy, plain and pow- 
 erful minister of Jesus Christ, though now much impaired by 
 old age." The next morning, he was much comforted to 
 hear, from Mr. Moody, that he should preach to an hundred 
 new creatures that morning ; " and indeed I believe I did ; 
 for when I came to preach, I could speak little or no terror, 
 but most consolation." He, preached morning and evening. 
 " The hearers looked plain and simple, and the tears trickled 
 apace down most of their cheeks." He returned to Ports- 
 mouth that night, and the next morning preached to a far 
 greater congregation, and with much better effect, than be- 
 fore. " Instead of preaching to dead stocks, I now had 
 reason to believe I was preaching to living men. People 
 began to melt, soon after I began to pray ; and the power 
 increased more and more, during the whole sermon." A 
 collection of £97, 7s. 6d. was taken up for the orphan 
 house, and Mr. Shurtleff, the pastor, in remitting it, wrote 
 that numbers were under deep religious impressions. He 
 preached to several thousands, and collected £41, 10s. at 
 Hampton, and to large congregations the next day at New- 
 bury, where he collected £80, 9s., and at Ipswich. The 
 
 ' Sabbath was spent at^alem. He preached at eight in the 
 morning at the meetinghouse, read prayers and assisted at 
 the sacrament at the Episcopal church, and preached again 
 
 • at the meetinghouse ; but saw no such power as on his for-, 
 mer visit. At Marblehead, Monday forenoon, he says : " I 
 was upon the mount myself, and the Lord attended his word 
 with mighty power." Two ministers had collected £70, 
 2s. 6d, for, his orphan house. In the afternoon he preach- 
 ed at Maiden, but with less power than in the morning, and 
 arrived that night at Boston. His health was much improv- 
 ed, and he went to rest, full of peace, and desiring to be 
 thankful to the Lord, for causing him thus to renew his 
 strength. 
 
 Tuesday, October 7, he preached morning and evening at 
 Brattle Street; "both times with much power." There 
 had been a report, that he had died suddenly, or was poison- 
 ed, and the people rejoiced to see. him again alive. At the 
 New North, (Mr. Webb's,) on Wednesday, there was more 
 of the presence of God through the whole ministration, than 
 ever he had known at one time through the whole course of 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 95 
 
 his life. He went there with the Governor, in his coach, 
 and preached morning and evening. " Jesus Christ mani- 
 fested forth his glory ; many hearts melted within them ; and 
 I think I was never so drawn out to pray for and invite 
 little children to Jesus Christ, as I was this morning. A lit- 
 tle before, I had heard of a child, who was taken sick just 
 after it had heard me preach, and said, he would go to Mr. 
 Whitefield's God, and died in a short time. This encour- 
 aged me to speak to the little ones. But O how were the 
 old people affected, when I said, — Little children, if your 
 parents will not come to Christ, do you come and go to 
 heaven without them. There seemed to be but few dry eyes, 
 look where I would. — I have not seen a greater commotion 
 since my preaching at Boston. Glory be to God, who has 
 not forgotten to be gracious. At the same time was collect- 
 ed £440." 
 
 On Thursday, he preached the public lecture at the Old 
 South. He had chosen another text, but it was much im- 
 pressed on his heart, that he should preach from our Lord's 
 conference with Nicodemus. A great number of ministers 
 were present ; and when he came to the words, "Art thou 
 a master in Israel, and knowest not these things," he says, 
 -^" The Lord enabled me to open my mouth boldly against 
 unconverted ministers ; to caution tutors to take care of their 
 pupils ; and also to advise ministers particularly to examine 
 into the experiences of candidates for ordination. For I am 
 verily persuaded the generality of preachers talk of an un- 
 known arid unfelt Christ ; and the reasons why congregations 
 have been so dead is, because they have had dead men 
 preaching to them. O that the Lord may quicken and re- 
 vive them, for his own name's sake. For how can dead 
 men beget living children ? It is true, indeed, God may 
 convert men by the devil, if he pleases, and so he may by 
 unconverted ministers ; but I beheve he seldom makes use of 
 either of them for this purpose. No, the Lord will choose 
 vessels made meet by the operations of the blessed Spirit for 
 his sacred use ; and as for my own part, I would not lay 
 hands on an unconverted man for ten thousand worlds. Un- 
 speakable freedom God gave me while treating on this head. 
 In the afternoon, I preached on the Common to about fifteen 
 thousand people, and collected upwards of £200 for the or- 
 phan house. Just as I had finished my sermon, a ticket 
 
;96 THJErCrRBAT AWABEUMG. 
 
 was, putrup to, Hiey wherein I was desired to pray for a per- 
 son, just.entered upon tbet ministry, but under apprehensions 
 that he. was unconverted. God enaWed me to pray: for him 
 with lEpy whole, heart, ; and I hope that ticket will teach many 
 .others not to run before they can give an account of their 
 
 . conversion. If they do, they offer God strange fire." The 
 same day and evening, he attended the funeral of one of the 
 provincial council, preached at the Almshouse, exhorted a 
 great number who; follo.wed him there, and conversed with 
 many; who waited at his. lodgings for spiritual advice. Ever 
 since his return from the east, he had been thronged, morning 
 aud.eveniiig, with anxious inquirers. 
 .The next day, he went with Mr. Cooper to Charlestown, 
 
 .preached,. with much demonstration of the Spirit, collected 
 J61&6 for, the orphan , house ; preached again at Reading, 
 to many thousands, collected £51, 5s. and observed a con- 
 
 isidetable,, melting! in the congregation. The next day, he 
 
 .preached from the meetinghouse door at Cambridge ; to a 
 great body of people, who stood very attentively, though it 
 xained„and were at the latter part of the sermon much affect- 
 ed. Here he collected JE 100. 
 
 The morning, of the Sabbath, .Qctober 12, was spent in 
 conversing with .those who came for spiritual advice. He 
 then preached with great, power and affection at the Old 
 South, which was so exceedingly thronged, that he was ob- 
 liged tq get in at one of the windows. He dined with the Gov- 
 ernor, who came to him after dinner, weeping, and desired 
 his.prayers: He heard Dr. Sewall ih the afternoon. He 
 was sick. during and after the exercises ; but went with the 
 G.overnojr, in ,his coach, and preached: his farewell sermon on 
 the Common, to near thirty thousand people. Great numbers 
 melted .into tears .when he spoke of leaving them. The Gov- 
 ernor them went with him to his lodgings. He stood in the 
 passage. and spoke to a great company, both within and with- 
 out the doors ; but, they were so deeply affected, and cried out 
 SQ loud, that he wasiobliged to leave off praying. The Gov- 
 ernor was, highly pleased to see the power of God. The 
 remainder of the evening was mostly spent in conversation 
 with inquirers. 
 
 ,In closing his account of this day's work, he exclaims : 
 ". Blessed be God for what he has done at Boston ! I hope 
 a,glorious work is now begun, and thati.thCiLord will stir up 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 97 
 
 some faithful laborers to carry it on. Boston is a large pop- 
 ulous place, very wealthy ; has the form kept up very well, 
 but has lost much of the power of religion. I have not heard 
 of any remarkable stir in it for these many years. Ministers 
 and people are obliged to confess, that the love of many is 
 waxed cold. Both, for the generality, seem too much con- 
 formed to the world. There is much of the pride of life to 
 be seen in their assemblies. Jewels, patches and gay ap- 
 parel are commonly worn by the female sex. Little boys 
 and girls I observed commonly dressed up in the pride of 
 life ; and the little infants that were brought to baptism, were 
 wrapped in such fine things, and so much pains taken to dress 
 them, that one would think they were brought thither to be 
 initiated into, rather than renounce, the pomps and vanities 
 of this wicked world. One thing Boston is remarkable for, 
 -r- the external observation of the Sabbath. Men in civil 
 offices have a regard for religion. The Governor encourages 
 them, and the ministers and magistrates seem to be more 
 united, than in any other place where I have been. Both 
 were exceeding civil to me during my stay. I never saw so 
 little scoffing ; never had so little opposition. But one might 
 easily foresee, much would hereafter arise, when I come to be 
 more particular in my application to particular persons ; for, 
 I fear, many rest in a head-knowledge, are close Pharisees, 
 and having only a name to live. Boston people are dear to 
 my soul. They were greatly affected by the word, followed 
 night and day, and were very liberal to my dear orphans. I 
 promised, God willing, to visit them again, and' intend to ful- 
 fil my promise when it shall please God to bring me again 
 from ray native country. In the meanwhile, dear Boston, 
 adieu. The Lord be with thy ministers and people, and 
 grant that the remnant that is left according to the election of 
 grace, may take root downwards, and bear fruit upwards, 
 and fill the land." 
 
 The next day, he ileft Boston for Northampton, to visit 
 Edwards and the scene of the revival of 1735. The Gov- 
 ernor took him in his coach to the ferry, kissed him, and 
 with tears bade him farewell. He arrived at Concord about 
 noon, preached- twice to some thousands in the open air, 
 '■'anfl a comfortable preaching it was. The hearers were 
 sweetly melted down." Bliss, the minister, — of whose 
 subsequent labors more perfect accounts ought to have been 
 9 
 
98 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 preserved, — wept abundantly. On Thursday he preached at 
 Sudbury, to some thousands, with power, and observed a 
 considerable commotion in the assembly. He next preach- 
 ed at Marlborough. His heart was dead at first, and he had 
 but httle freedom ; but before he finished, the word came 
 with such demonstration of the Spirit, that great numbers 
 were very much melted down. Here he found Governor 
 Belcher, who went with him through the rain that night to 
 Worcester. Here, on Wednesday, he " preached in the 
 open air to some thousands. The word fell with weight in- 
 deed. It carried all before it. " The Governor exhorted 
 him to go on stirring up ministers, for reformation must begin 
 at the house of God ; told him not to spare rulers, more than 
 ministers, — no, not the chief of them ; requested Whitefield 
 to pray for him, that he might hunger and thirst after right- 
 eousness, and took leave of him with tears. " I have ob- 
 served," he remarks, with the most amusing simplicity, 
 " that I have had greater power than ordinary, whenever the 
 Governor has been at public worship. A sign this, I hope, 
 ' that the Most High intends effectually to bring him home, 
 and place him at his' own right hand." It was indeed " a 
 sign " that Whitefield felt flattered by the attentions of great 
 men, and put forth his powers with more courage and joy, 
 when they smiled upon him, and especially when they wept 
 before him. In the afternoon, he preached at Leicester, but 
 with less power ; and spent the night at Brookfield. Thurs- 
 day morning, he " rose m great dejection, at the considera- 
 tion of indwelling sin ; retired, and wept before the Lord ; 
 preached, not with extraordinary freedom at first, but at last 
 the word ran, and melted many down." At Coldspring, he 
 preached to three or four hundred people, but perceived little 
 moving among them, except for a few minutes. 
 
 On Friday, he arrived at Hadley, "a place where a great 
 work of God was begun somTTew years ago. But lately 
 the people of God have complained of deadness, and losing 
 their first love. However, as soon as I mentioned what 
 God had done for their souls formerly, it was like putting fire 
 to tinder. The remembrance of it quickened them, and 
 caused many of them to weep sorely." * 
 
 The same day, he crossed the river to Northampton, 
 
 * Gillies applies this to Northampton, and Philip copies the error. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 99 
 
 where he spent several delightful days. " Mr. Edwards is a 
 solid, excellent Christian ; but at present weak in body. I 
 think I may say I have not seen his fellow in all New Eng- 
 land. When I came into his pulpit, I found my heart drawn 
 out to talk of scarce any thing but the consolations and priv- 
 ileges of saints, and the plentiful effusions of the Holy Ghost 
 in the hearts of believers. And when I came to remind 
 them of their former experiences, and how zealous and lively 
 they were at that time, both minister and people wept much, 
 and the Holy Ghost enabled me to speak with a great deal 
 of power." That evening, he exhorted several that came 
 to Mr. Edwards' house. 
 
 The next morning, at Mr. Edwards' request, he spoke to 
 his little children, who were much affected ; rode with him 
 to Hatfield, ■ where he preached, but found himself much 
 straitened ; returned, and preached at Northampton with his 
 usual power. 
 
 On the Sabbath, he " felt wonderful satisfaction in being 
 at the house of Mr. Edwards. He is a son himself, and 
 hath also a daughter of Abraham for his wife. A sweeter 
 couple I have not yet seen. Their children were dressed, 
 not in silks and satins, but plain, as becomes the children of 
 those who in all things ou^ht to be examples of Christian sim- 
 plicity. Shq is a woman adorned with a meek and quiet 
 spirit, and talked so feelingly and solidly of the things of 
 God, and seemed to be such a helpmeet to her husband, that 
 she caused me to renew those prayers which for some months 
 I have put up to God, that he would send me a daughter of 
 Abraham to be my wife. I find, upon many accounts, it is 
 my duty to marry. Lord, I desire to have no choice of my 
 own. Thou knowest my circumstances." He had not yet 
 learned, if he ever did, that God is not pleased to make such 
 "sweet couples" out of persons who have no choice of 
 their own. 
 
 Whitefield " preached this morning, and perceived the 
 melting begin sooner and rise higher than before. Dear 
 Mr. Edwards wept almost during the whole time of the ex- 
 ercise. The people were equally, if not more affected ; 
 and my own soul was much lifted up towards God. In the 
 afternoon the power increased yet more and more. Our 
 Lord seemed to keep the good wine to the last. I have not 
 seen such a gracious melting since my arrival. My soul was 
 
100 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 muoh knit to these dear people of God ; and though I hsd 
 not time to converse with them about their experiences, yet 
 one might see they were for the most part a gracious, tender 
 people, and, though their former fire might be greatly abated', 
 yet it immediately appeared when stirred up." 
 
 On Sabbath evening, Whitefield left Northampton. Ed- 
 wards accompanied him as far as the residence of his father, 
 the Rev. Timothy Edwards, in East Windsor, Ct. And here 
 some things must be related, which do not appear in the 
 Journal. Edwards himself was compelled to give a state- 
 ment of them, by misrepresentations which were put in cir- 
 culation by President Clapp, in 1744. * 
 
 It^ppears th at Edwards purposely took an opportunity to 
 converse^ with Whitefield, alone,, ab out impu lses, and told 
 Him some reasons he had for thinking that he gave too great 
 heed to such things. Whitefield did not seem to be offend- 
 ed ; but yet did not appear inclined to converse much on 
 that subject, or to be convinced by any thing that Edwards 
 said to him. He also conversed with Barber, (who appears 
 to have accompanied Whitefield in all this journey, though 
 never mentioned in the Journal after leaving Newport,) about 
 some of his impulses, "dealing Very plainly with him, 
 whereby he seemed to be displeased, and replied with earn- 
 estness and zeal." He adds: "It is also true, that I 
 thought Mr. Whitefield liked me not so ■\yell for my opposing 
 these things ; and though he treated me with great kindness, 
 yet he never made so much of an intimate of me, as of some 
 others." He also conversed with Whitefield, in the pres- 
 ence of others, about judging other persons to be unconvert- 
 ed. He also believed, — though it does not appear that they 
 conversed upon it, — that Whitefield " did aim at people's 
 forsaking unconverted ministers, and to endeavor that tber6 
 should be a supply of converted ministers, as far as in him 
 lay." Whitefield also told him of his design of bringing 
 over a number of yoiing men from England, to be ordained 
 by the Tennents, in New Jersey. 
 
 From these materials^ mingled, probably, with indistinct 
 recollections of information froni other sources, President 
 Clapp, some years afterwards, constructed a frightful story 
 of Whitefield s errors arid evil intentions, and, especially, of 
 
 * See Edwards' Letters to Clapp. O. S. Gh. Lib. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 101 
 
 his design to turn the greater part of the ministers in New 
 England out of their pulpits, and fill their places with con- 
 verted men from England. 
 
 He .pjieLached—Qa. Mo nday at Westfield and Springfi eld, 
 anti on Tuesday at Suffield, to large audiences, and with his 
 usual power. A httle below Springfield, when crossing a 
 bridge, he was thrown from his horse, and "stunned for a 
 while ; " but was soon able to remount and proceed. At or 
 near Suffield, he met with a minister, " who said it was not 
 absolutely necessary for a gospel minister to be convei;ted ;" 
 meaning, doubtless, that though conversion was necessary 
 for his salvation, it was not indispensable to his ministerial 
 character and usefulness. This interview gave Whitefield a 
 subject. " I insisted much in my discourse upon the doc- 
 trine of the new birth, and also the necessity of a minister's 
 being converted before he could preach Christ aright. The 
 word came with great power, and a great impression was 
 made upon the people in all parts of the assembly. Many 
 ministers were present. I did not spare them. Most of 
 them thanked me for my plain dealing. But one was offend- 
 ed ; and so would more of his stamp, if I was to continue 
 longer in New England. For unconverted ministers are the 
 bane of the Christian church ; and though I honor the mem- 
 ory of that great and good man, Mr. Stoddard, yet I think 
 he is much to be blamed for endeavouring to prove that un- 
 converted men might be admitted into the ministry. How 
 he has handled the controverey, I know not. I think no sol- 
 id arguments can be brought to defend such a cause. — A 
 sermon lately published by Mr. Gilbert Tennent, entitled, 
 The,Danger_qf^M Unconv erted Ministry , I think unanswer- 
 able." Stoddard, inTus " Appeal to the Learned," assumes, 
 that an unconverted minister is bound to continue in the per- 
 formance of ministerial duties, and infers that unconverted 
 men may therefore be admitted to the church. This opinion 
 prevailed extensively ; though all held it desirable that a min- 
 ister should be a converted man. By bis attacks on this 
 opinion, and especially by thus endorsing Tennent's Notting- 
 ham sermon, Whitefield gave great offence. 
 
 He preached ithat afternoon at E ast W indsor, spent the 
 night with Mr. Edwards, senior, and preached "to many thou- 
 sands, and with much freedom and power," at Hartford in 
 the morning and at Weathersfield in the afternoon. Here he 
 9* 
 
102 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 met Messrs. Wheelock and Pomroy, " two young, faithful 
 and zealous ministers of Jesus Christ." From this place, 
 he had intended to go eastward as far as Plymouth, and re- 
 turn by another route to Providence ; and notice had been 
 given in the newspapers, of about twenty sermons, that he 
 would preach at the times and places specified. He was 
 afterwards blamed for making these appointments without first 
 consulting the pastors of the several churches, thus giving 
 countenance, it was said, to the practice of itinerants intrud- 
 ing into other men's parishes without their consent. The 
 proceeding was certainly somewhat irregular, but Whitefield 
 was not much to be blamed for it. The details were settled 
 and the publication made by men in whose judgment and 
 knowledge of the customs of the countiy he had a right to 
 confide ; and the appointments were believed, in all cases, 
 and doubtless known in some, to be agreeable to the parties 
 concerned. At Weathersfield, he found himself obliged to 
 hasten to' New York, and immediately published a note, re- 
 Calling these appointments. * The next day, after preaching 
 to thousands at Middletown and Wallingford, he arrived at 
 New Haven. 
 
 It was now F|iday,_Qctober_24. He preached that after- 
 noon, twice on Saturday, and twice on the Sabbath ; besides 
 expounding at his lodgings and conversing with individuals. 
 The power of his preaching increased to the last- Here he 
 saw the Rev. Jedediah Mills, of Ripton, " a dear man of 
 God," who " talked like one that was no novice in divine 
 things." They dined together with Mr. Clapp, Rector of 
 the College. In one of his sermons, he " spoke very close- 
 ly to the students, and showed the dreadful ill consequences 
 of an unconverted ministry." Mills, and some other minis- 
 ters, "rejoiced in spirit." He called upon the Governor, 
 whom he had observed to be greatly affected under the word. 
 " When I came in, he said ' I am glad to see you, and 
 heartily glad to hear you.' But his heart was so full that he 
 could not speak much." He wept plentifully, and said, he 
 was thankful to God for such refreshings in the way to our 
 rest. Having collected near J£40 for his orphan house, he 
 left New Haven that evening. Probably, this visit prepared 
 the way for the "great and general awakening" in the col- 
 lege four months afterwards. 
 
 * Boston News Letter, Oct. 16 and Oct. 22, 1740. Mass. Hist. Soc. Lib. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 103 
 
 He preached with good success at Milford on Monday^ 
 morning, and with less at Stratford in the afternoon. He 
 was still more " restrained " at Fai rfield and Norwalk on 
 Tuesday, when the weather was cold, snow had fallen, and 
 his hearers were few. Yet he observed that some were af- 
 fected, and believed the Lord never let him preach in vain. 
 y His ride to Stanford , on Tuesda y evening, was dark an d 
 7\ rainy. That night h'ewas vTsite3~with a great inward trial, 
 so that he was pained to the heart. He was somewhat de- 
 jected before he went out of his lodgings the next morning, 
 and somewhat distressed for a text after he got into the pul- 
 pit. " But at length the Lord directed me to one, but I 
 looked for no power or success, being very low by my last 
 night's trial. Notwithstanding, before I had preached half 
 an hour, the blessed Spirit began to move on the hearers' 
 hearts in a very awful manner. Young, and especially many 
 old people, were surprisingly affected, so that I thought they 
 would have cried out. At dinner, the Spirit of the Lord 
 came upon me again, and enabled me to speak with such 
 rigor against sending unconverted persons into the ministry, 
 that two ministers, with tears in their eyes, publicly confessed, 
 they had laid hands on young men, without so much as asking 
 them whether they were born again of God or not. After 
 dinner, finding my heart much enlarged, I prayed, and with 
 such power, that most in the room were put under concern. 
 And one old minister was so deeply convicted, that, calling 
 Mr. Noble and me out, with great difficulty, (because of his 
 weeping,) he desired our prayers ; for, said he, ' I have been 
 a Scholar, and have preached the doctrines of grace for a 
 long time, but I believe I have never felt the power of them 
 in my own soul.' O that all unconverted ministers were 
 brought to make the same confession. I was much affected 
 by his ingenuity, [ingenuousness,] and, after having by prayer 
 earnestly recommended him to God, I took horse, rejoicing 
 exceedingly in spirit, to see hoW our Lord was getting him- 
 self the victory, in a place where Mr. Davenport, a native of 
 Stanford and a dear minister of the blessed Jesus, had been 
 slighted and despised. ' A prophet is not without honor, 
 save in his oWn country and his father's house.'" Had 
 Whitefield been a better judge of character, he would have 
 been more guarded in his praises of Davenport ; and he 
 would n6t have Set down as unconverted, every man whom 
 
104 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 his heart-searching sermons led to suspect the soundness of 
 his own hope. He proceeded the same day to Rye, in the 
 province of New York. His reflections on leaving New 
 England must be given entire. 
 
 "But here I think it proper to set up my Ebenezer, and, 
 before I enter into the province of New York, to give God 
 thanks for sending me into New England. I have now had 
 an opportunity of seeing the greatest and most populous 
 parts of it ; and, take it altogether, it certainly on many ac- 
 counts exceeds all other provinces in America, and, for the es- 
 tablishment of r.eligion, perhaps all other parts of the world. 
 Never, surely, was so large a spot of ground settled in such 
 a manner, in so short a space as one hundred years. The 
 towns through Connecticut, and eastward towards York, in 
 the province of Massachusetts Bay, near the river side, are 
 large and well ■ peopled, and exceeding pleasant to travel 
 through. Every five or ten miles you have a meetinghouse, 
 and I beheve there is no such thing as a pluralist or non- 
 resident minister in both provinces. Many, perhaps most 
 that preach, I fear, do not experimentally know Christ ; yet 
 I cannot see much worldly advantage to tempt them to take 
 upon them the sacred function. Few country ministers, as 
 I have been informed, have sufficient allowed them to main- 
 tain a family. God has remarkably, in sundry times and 
 in divers manners, poured out his Spirit in several parts of 
 both provinces ; and it often refreshes my soul, to hear of the 
 faith of the good forefathers who first settled in these parts. 
 Notwithstanding they had their foibles, surely they were a 
 set of righteous men. They certainly followed our Lord's 
 rule, — sought first the kingdom of God and his righteousness ; 
 and, behold, all other things God added unto them. Their 
 seed are now blessed, in temporal things especially ; and, not- 
 withstanding the rising generation seem to be settled upon 
 their lees, yet I believe the Lord hath left more than seven 
 thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal. The minis- 
 ters and people of Connecticut seem to be more simple and 
 serious than those that live near Boston, especially in those 
 parts where I went. But I think the ministers preaching 
 almost universally by notes, is a certain mark they have in a 
 great measure lost the old spirit of preaching. For though 
 all are not to be condemned that use notes, yet it is a sad 
 symptom of the decay of vital religion, when reading ser- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING-. ];0& 
 
 mons becomes fashionable where extempore preaching did 
 once almost universally prevail. When the spirit of prayer 
 began to be lost, then forms of prayer were invented ; and I 
 believe the same observation will hold good as to preaching. 
 As for the universities,. I believe it may be said, their light 
 is now become darkness — darkness that may be felt ; and is 
 complained of by the most godly ministers. I pray God 
 these fountains may be purified^ and feend forth pure streams 
 to water the city of our God. The Qhurch of EnglandT | 
 is at a very low ebb ; and, as far as I can find, had people ! 
 kept their primitive purity, it would scarce have got footing | 
 in New England. I have many evidences to prove, that I 
 most of the churches have been first set up by immoral men, j 
 and such as would not submit to the discipline of their con- 1 
 gregations, or were corrupt in the faith* But? I will say no [ 
 more about the poor Church of England. Most of her sons, | 
 whether ministers or people, I fear, hate to be refermecLj 
 As for the civil government of New Englanid^, it seems to be 
 well regulated,, and I think at opening all their courts, either 
 the judge or minister begins with a prayer. Family worship, 
 I believe, is gefterally kept up. The- negroes, I think, are 
 better used, both in respect to soul and body,, than in any 
 other province I have yet seen. In short, I like New Eng- 
 land exceedingly Well, and, when a spirit of reformation 
 revives, it certainly will prevail more than in other places ; 
 because they are more simple in their worship, less corrupt 
 in their principles^ and consequently more easily brought over 
 to the form of souitd words, into which so many of their 
 pious ancestors wej'e delivered. Send forth,, O Lord, thy 
 light and thy truth, and for thine infinite mercy's sake, 
 show that thou hast a peculiar delight in these habitable parts 
 of the earth. Amen, Lord Jesus, amen." 
 
 CHAPTER Vm. 
 
 WHFTEFIELD IN NEW YORK, AND AT THE SOUTH. 
 
 Having dined with the minister of the Church of Engkird, J 
 preached and read prayers at Rye, spent the evening at East J 
 
106 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Chester, preached there the next morning to about three 
 hundred people, among whom he observed "a sweet melt- 
 ing," and preached to about five hundred from the steps of a 
 public house at Kingsbridge, but without much visible effect, 
 Whitefield arrived at New York, on the 30th of October. 
 He told his friend Mr. Noble, on the way, that he expected 
 but little movings at New York ; but Noble bade him expect 
 great things from God, and told him of several who seemed 
 to have been savingly wrought upon by his ministry when 
 there before. " After supper the Lord filled my heart,, and 
 gave me to wrestle with him for New York inhabitants, and 
 my own dear friends. To add to my comfort, the Lord 
 brought my dear brother Davenport from Long Island, by 
 whose hands the blessed Jesus has of late done great things," 
 having given him, in his own j)arish, near twenty souls in 
 about two months. " October 31, met with a bitter pamph- 
 let wrote against me by some of the Presbyterian persuasion, 
 and found freedom given me to answer it. I long since 
 expected close opposition from that quarter. I believe it 
 will be increasing daily." He also met with two volumes of 
 sermons, published in London as delivered by him, though 
 he had never preached from most of the texts. This " bitter 
 pamphlet" is entitled " The Querists ; or an extract of sun- 
 dry passages taken out of Mr. Whitefield's printed Sermons, 
 Journals, and Letters, together with some scruples proposed 
 in proper Queries raised on each remark ; by some members 
 of the Presbyterian persuasion." The authors call them- 
 selves members of congregations belonging to the Presbytery 
 of New Castle, and the Queries were submitted to that Pres- 
 bytery at their meeting at Whiteclay Creek, September 9, 
 1740 ; with a request that the Presbytery would either an- 
 swer them or assent to their being printed. The Presbytery 
 thought it best to " leave it to the people to print their 
 remarks, and Mr. Whitefield himself to answer them." 
 They were printed at Philadelphia, and reprinted at Boston 
 before the end of the year.* The bitterness of the pamph- 
 let consists in its convicting him of several erroneous expres- 
 
 • The copy in the O. S. Ch. Library is of the Boston edition. There 
 was evidently, from the commencement of the awakening, a constant cor- 
 respondence, and even a close alliance, between the " Old Side" Presbyte- 
 rians and Whitefield's opposers in New England. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 107 
 
 sions ; for its language, throughout, is courteous. Whitefield 
 thanked them for the opportunity they had furnished, of pub- 
 licly correcting some errors in his printed sermons ; confess- 
 ed nearly all they had charged upon him ; mentioned others 
 that they had not noticed ; and appealed to their own hearts, 
 whether it was right, after all they had heard of his preach- 
 ing in America, to censure him for a- few unguarded expres- 
 sions, dropped from his pen just as he came out of the 
 University of Oxford. He assured them, that he did not find 
 the least resentment stirring in his soul against them. In say- 
 ing this, he did not deceive himself very much, for he certain- 
 ly bore their criticisms more meekly than most men would 
 have done ; but a man who absolutely felt no resentment, 
 would never have thought of saying that he felt none. In 
 the morning of this day, he preached at Mr. Pemberton's 
 meetinghouse. He never saw the word of God fall with 
 such weight in New York before. Look where he would, 
 many seemed deeply wounded. " At night, the word was 
 attended with great power." The next day, he finished his 
 answer to the pamphlet. " The Lord enabled me to do it 
 in the spirit of meekness." He "preached twice, to very 
 crowded auditories, and neither'* time without power. In the 
 evening exercise, some fainted, and the Lord seemed to 
 show us more and more, that a time for favoring New York 
 was at hand. O, wherefore did I doubt ! Lord increase 
 my faith !" 
 
 " Sunday, November 2. Preached this morning with 
 freedom and some power, but was much dejected before the 
 evening sermon. For near half an hour before I left Mr. 
 Noble's house, I could only lie before the Lord and say I 
 was a poor sinner, and wonder that Christ would be gracious 
 to such a wretch. As I went to meeting, I grew weaker 
 and weaker, and when I came into the pulpit, I could have 
 chose to be silent rather than to speak." This was not only 
 a prelude, but a preparation, for the burst that was to follow. 
 It made him feel the worth of religion, and man's need of it. 
 It 'brought his mind into close and agonizing contemplation 
 of whatever is most powerful in divine truth. It drove him 
 to prayer, to reliance on a wisdom and strength more than hu- 
 man. It at once summoned, guided, and strengthened all his 
 powers. " After I had begun, the Spirit of the Lord gave 
 me freedom, till at length it came down like a mighty rushing 
 
JDB THE GREAT, AWAKENING. 
 
 wind, and earned all before it." Whitefield, according to 
 his own exiplanation, felt the presence of the Spirit, only in 
 the ideas and emotions which the Spirit gave. " Immedi- 
 ately ithe whole ^congregation was alarmed. Shrieking, cry- 
 ing, weeping:and wailing were to be heard in every corner, 
 men's fbearts failing them for fear, and many falling into the 
 arras of their friends. My soul was carried out, till I could 
 scarce speak. any more. A sense of God's goodness over- 
 wltelmed ime. After I came home, I threw myself upon the 
 •bed, iand,iin awful silence, admired the infinite freeness, sov- 
 -er-eigaty and condescension. of the love of God." Then, af- 
 ter witnessing I the marriage of Mr. Barber, whom he met in 
 Jftbode Island, and who was going with him to Georgia, 
 ■'^Divine manifestations flowed in so fast"' — such views of 
 ..God opened to his mind, — " that my frail tabernacle was 
 scarce able 'to sustain them. My dear friends sat round me 
 on the bed sides. I prayed for each of them alternately with 
 BtroBgi cries, and pierced, by iheieye of faith, even within the 
 seil. I continued in this ; condition (for about :half an hour, 
 astonished at my own viieness and the excellency of Christ, 
 and then rose full of peace and love and joy. O, how am' 
 i obliged to my enemies! God has remarkably revealed 
 (biraself to my -soul, ever since I have seen the pamphlet 
 published by the .'Ptresbyterians against me." 
 
 After ipreachhigi twice on Monday, to mcreasirag congre- 
 gations, and observing, at both times, a "great and gracious 
 aaelting among the people, but no crying out," he went 
 to.Staten Island. There, on. Tuesday, he preached from 
 a wagom, to three or four hundred people. "The Lord 
 came among them." Here he met Gilbert Tennent and 
 Mr. Gross, who toldihim of the progress of the good work 
 in iNew Jersey and Maryland. After the sermon he rode 
 to Newark, where he preached, as he thought, with lit- 
 tteieffect. •" However, at night, the Lord manifested forth 
 his glory. For coming down to family prayer, where I lodg- 
 ed, and perceiving many young men around ijae, my soul, as 
 •it were, melted down with concern for them. After singing, 
 I gave a word of exhortation ; with what power, none can 
 fuUy.express, but those that saw it. O, how did the word 
 fall like a hammer and lilce a fire ! " 
 
 On Wednesday, be went to iBaskinridge, Mr. ' Cross' pac- 
 isb, where he found that Mr. Davenport, acoordiog to ap- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 109 
 
 pointment, had been preaching to about three thousand peo- 
 ple. " As I went along, I told the people my soul wept for 
 them, and I was persuaded within myself that the Lord would 
 in that day make his power to be known amongst them. In 
 prayer, I perceived my soul drawn out, and a stirring of af- 
 fections among the people. I had not discoursed, long, but 
 the Holy Ghost displayed his power ; in every part of the 
 congregation, somebody or other began to cry out, and al- 
 most all melted into tears. This abated for a few moments ; " 
 but an incident, which Whitefield seized with his characteris- 
 tic skill, or rather, with an instinct of feeling, more unerring 
 than skill, quite overpowered them. A little boy, seven or 
 eight years old, began to weep " as though his little heart 
 would break. Mr. Cross, having compassion on him, took 
 him up into the wagon, which so affected me, that I broke 
 from my discourse, and told the people the little boy should 
 preach to them ; and that God, since old professors would 
 not cry after Christ, had displayed his sovereignty, jand out 
 of an infant's mouth was perfecting praise. God so blessed 
 this, that an universal concern fell on the congregation again. 
 Fresh persons dropped down here and there, and the cry in- 
 creased more and more." In the evening, Tennent preach- 
 ed in Mr. Cross' barn, about two miles off, "excellently 
 well, upon the necessity and benefit of spiritual desertions." 
 What a subject, for a sermon in a barn in the night ! It 
 was powerfully felt. "I then began to pray, and felt the 
 Spirit of God working in me mightily. A great commotion 
 was soon observed among the hearers. I then gave a word 
 of exhortation. The Lord's presence attended it in a sur- 
 prising manner. One, in about six minutes, cried out, 
 ' He is come, he is come, ' and could, scarce sustain 
 the discovery that Jesus Christ made to his soul." The 
 idea of the pardoning love of God in Christ, as ready and 
 sufficient to satisfy all the wants of his soul, bursting at once 
 upon his mind, that had been in agony to find some ground 
 of hope, produced a joyful revulsion of feeling which he 
 could scarcely bear. What wonder, if a clear, distinct im- 
 age of Christ, on his cross, or crowned with thorns, or smil- 
 ing from his throne, was then before his mind ! Or rather, 
 how could it be otherwise .-' 
 
 The next morning, he exhorted, sung and prayed with the 
 people at the barn, and, after some delightful conversation, 
 10 
 
110 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 rode to New Brunswick, Gilbert Tennent's home. Here 
 he found letters from Georgia. One of them informed him 
 that a minister was coming over to supply his place, which 
 rejoiced him much, as he had resolved to give up the " liv- 
 ing." "A parish and an orphan house together are too 
 much for me. Besides, God seems to show me it is my 
 duty to evangelize, and not to fix in any particular place.'" 
 Here William Tennent met them, and it was decided that 
 Gilbert should go to Boston. When it was first proposed, 
 Gilbert was unwilling to go, " urging his inability for so great 
 a work ;" for, whatever may be the propriety of the term 
 iiow, Boston was then, unquestionably, the " literary empori- 
 um" of the whole country, and its ministers, as a body, were 
 eminently holy men ; and Gilbert, though never daunted 
 at the sight of opposers, felt unfit for the station which he 
 must occupy amongst them. But after full consultation and 
 prayer, it was thought to be his duty to go, and he said, 
 " The will of the Lord be done." Passing by Trenton, in 
 company with Davenport, and having twice narrowly escap- 
 ed drowning, Whitefield arrived on Saturday evening at Phil- 
 adelphia. 
 
 The next day, he preached twice in the house which his 
 friends were building for him. The roof was not yet up, but 
 a temporary floor was laid and pulpit raised, and "several 
 thousands" attended. " Both in the morning alid evening, 
 God's glory filled the house ; for there was great power in 
 the congregation." He stayed here more than a week, 
 preaching daily, and talking with those who had been afiect- 
 ed by his discourses- 
 
 " It would be almost endles^," he remarked at its close, 
 " to recount all the particular instances of God's grace, which 
 I have seen this week past. Many that were before only 
 convicted, now plainly proved that they were converted, and 
 had a clear evidence of it within themselves. My chief busi- 
 ness was now to build up and to exhort them to continue in 
 the grace of God. JNotwithstanding, many were convicted 
 almost every day, and came unto me under the greatest dis- 
 tress and anguish of soul. Several societies are now in the 
 town, not only of men and women, but of little boys and lit- 
 tle girls. Being so engaged, I could not visit them as I 
 would ; but I hope the Lord will raise me up some fellow 
 laborers, and that elders will be ordained in every place. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. ] 1 1 
 
 Then shall we see a glorious church settled and established 
 in Philadelphia." The church was afterwards established, 
 and Gilbert Tennent became its pastor. 
 
 Whitefield left Philadelphia, November 17, and, passing 
 over into New Jersey, preached at Gloucester. His heart 
 "was low," and he could not preach with his usual vigor. 
 " However, there was an aifecting melting, and several, who 
 had been in bondage before, at that time received joy in 
 the Holy Ghost." He rode on to Greenwich, where he 
 "preached to a few, with scarce any power." The next 
 day, in a congregation of two thousand at Pilesgrove, he 
 " saw only a few affected ;" but at night he^ prayed and ex- 
 horted with great power in the family where he lodged. On 
 the 19th, at Cohansie, where Gilbert Tennent had prepared 
 the way for him, he "preached to some thousands, both 
 morning and afternoon. The word gradually struck the 
 hearers, till the wjiole congregation was greatly moved in- 
 deed, and two cried out in the bitterness of their souls after a 
 crucified Saviour, and were scarce able to stand." His 
 " soul was replenished as with new wine, and life and power 
 flew all arqund." At Salem, on the 20th, he preached ,in 
 the morning in the court-house, and in the aftei;nopn in the 
 open air before the prison, to about two thousand. " Both 
 times, God was with us." The next morning he preached 
 in the court-house at New Castle, where he " observed some 
 few affected, and some few scoiEng." Here he was joined 
 by Charles Tennent. As they went on they met Mr. An- 
 derson, who had opposed him last spring at Fagg's Manor, 
 and who proposed to have a " conference" with him. " I 
 told him," says Whitefield, "since he had begun by sending 
 the Queries in public, I was resolved to decline all private 
 conversation. This, as I afterwards found, highly offended 
 him." Perhaps he had some reason to be offended ; for, so 
 far as any public act was concerned, Blair and Charles Ten- 
 nent had as much to do with sending out the Queries, as 
 Anderson. At Whiteclay Creek, where " many thousands 
 were waiting to hear the word," two or three more of An- 
 derson's associates were preseiit ; and Whitefield sang, with 
 " unspeakable comfort," the twenty-third psalm : — 
 
 " in presence of my spiteful foes, 
 He does my table spread." 
 
112 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Here " the melting soon began, and the power increased 
 more and more, till the greatest part of the congregation was 
 exceedingly moved. Several cried out in different parts, 
 and others were to be seen wringing their hands and weeping 
 bitterly. The stir was ten times greater than when I was 
 here last." At Fagg's Manor he preached to " many thou- 
 sands," among whom there was a " wondrous powerful 
 moving," but not so great as on his former visit. At Not- 
 tingham he had a large congregation, notwithstanding the 
 rain. Here his doctrine distilled " hke the dew." At Bo- 
 hemia, in Maryland, " preached in the afternoon to about 
 two thousand, and have not seen a more solid melting, I 
 think, since my arrival. Some scoffers stood on the outside, 
 but the Holy Spirit enabled me to lay the terrors of the Lord 
 before them, and they grew more serious." The next day, 
 Tuesday, November 25th, he arrived at Reedy Island, * 
 where he waited for a wind till December 1 , and then sailed 
 for Charleston. During this detention, he preached almost 
 daily, and with good effect. He "was greatly delighted to 
 see the captains of ships, and their respective crews, come 
 constantly to hear the word on shore, and join in religious 
 exercises on board." 
 
 On sailing from Reedy Island, he wrote in his journal : 
 " But before I go on, stop, O my soul, and look back a 
 little on the great things the Lord hath done for thee during 
 this excursion. I think it is now the 75th day since I arriv- 
 ed at Rhode Island. My body was then weak, but the Lord 
 has much renewed its strength. I have been enabled to 
 preach, I think, one hundred and seventy-five times in public, 
 besides exhorting very frequently in private. I have travelled 
 upwards of eight hundred miles, and gotten upwards of £ 700 
 sterling in goods, provisions and money for my poor orphans. 
 Never did God vouchsafe me such great assistances. Never 
 did I perform my journeys with so little fatigue, or see such 
 a continuance of the divine presence in the congregations to 
 whom I have preached. All things concur to convince me, 
 that America is to be my chief scene of action." 
 
 Whitefield, 'having touched and preached at Charleston" by 
 the way, reached Savannah on the 20th of December ; and 
 after rejoicing over a few instances of conversion, and having 
 
 *Not Rhode Island, as Gillies has it. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 113 
 
 arranged the, affairs of the orphan house, he preached his fare- 
 well sermon on the evening of the 29th, and left the place the 
 next day, to embark for England. January 1, 1741, he was 
 at Jonathan Bryan's, where he preached in the . evening. 
 " The Lord made it a Bethel." Hugh Bryan was present. 
 He had lately lost his wife. Whitefield copied his letter, 
 giving an account of her death, into his journal, with evident 
 gratification. It shows that both Bryan and his wife, though 
 very pious persons, perhaps, were rather weak-minded, and 
 not very well informed, and that Whitefield immensely over- 
 rated them. 
 
 On arriving at Charleston, Whitefield found that some, of 
 whom he had hoped well, had fallen away ; but the greatest 
 part continued steadfast, while his enemies were even more 
 enraged than formerly. His connexion with the Bryans had 
 furnished them with an opportunity to show it. Hugh had 
 written a letter, in which, among other matters, " it was hint- 
 ed that the clergy break their canons." At Jonathan's re- 
 quest, Whitefield had corrected it for the press. It was 
 published this week. .Hugh was apprehended, and on his 
 examination, being asked, confessed that Whitefield had 
 corrected it, and made some alterations in it. 
 
 In consequence of this confession, Whitefield received on 
 Saturday a summons to, appearand answer for haying " com- 
 posed a false, malicious,.scandalous and infamous libel against 
 the clergy" of South, Carolina. He gave securities to ap- 
 pear by his attorney at the next quarter-sessions, under pen- 
 alty of £ 100 proclamation money. " Blessed be God," he 
 .exclaimed in his journal, " for this further honor. My soul 
 rejoices in it. I think this may be called persecution. I 
 think it is for righteousness' sake." The next morning he 
 preached on Herod's sending the wise men to find out Christ, 
 professing a desire to worship him, but intending to kill him ; 
 persecution, under pretence of religion. The afternoon ser- 
 mon was on the murder, of Naboth ; the abuse of power by 
 men in authority. " My hearers," he says, "as well as 
 myself, made the application. It was pretty close." No 
 doubt it was. 
 
 From this time till Friday, when he embarked for England, 
 
 he preached twice, a day, and expounded, in the, evening,, to 
 
 increasing congregations,, and with increasing power. " I 
 
 never received such generous tokens of love,! think, from 
 
 10* 
 
114 ^ THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 any people before, as from some in Charleston. They so 
 loaded me with sea-stores, that I sent much of them to Sa- 
 vannah." Contrary winds detained him till January 24, 
 when he passed the bar. After a pleasant voyage, he arrived 
 at Falmouth on Wednesday, March 1 1 , rode post to .Lon- 
 don, and on the next Sabbath preached on Kennington 
 Common. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 The Revival ik Boston. The period from Whitefield's Departure to 
 the Arrival of Davenport; including the Labors of Gilbert Tennent. 
 
 The history of this period shall be given nearly in the 
 words of the Rev. Thomas Prince, junior pastor of the 
 Old South Church. He says : — ~ 
 
 " Upon Mr. Whitefield's leaving us, great numbers in this 
 town were so hap.plji_concernedjiboutjtheir_souls, as we had 
 never seen any thing like it before, except at the time of the 
 general e arthqu ake. And their desires were excited to hear 
 ministers more than ever ; so that our assemblies, both on 
 lect ures and S abbaths, were surprisingly increased." Of 
 the time of the earthquake, he remarks in a note: " Though 
 people were then generally frightened, >and many awakened 
 to such a sense of their duty as to offer themselves to our 
 communion, yet^vgr y few c am e to me then un der deep 
 convictions of their unconverted and lost condition, in com- 
 parison of what came now. Nor did those who came to 
 me then, come so much with the inquiry, What shall we do 
 to be saved, as to signify they had such a sense of their 
 duty to come to the Lord's Table, that they durst not stay 
 away any longer." To proceed : — 
 
 " Upon the Rev. Mr. Gilbert Ten nent's co ming and 
 preaching here, the people appeared to be yet much more 
 awakened about their souls than before. He came, I think, 
 on Saturday, De^fimlifiOStlij this year ; preached at the 
 New North on both the parts of the following day ; as also 
 on Monday in the afternoon, when I first heard him, and 
 there was a great assembly. 
 

THE GREAT AWAKENING. 115 
 
 a 
 
 He did not indeed at first come up to'my expectation ; 
 but afterwards exceeded it. In private converse with him, 
 I found him to be a man of considerable parts and learning ; 
 free, gentle, condescending ; and, from his own various ex- 
 perience, reading the most noted writers on experimental 
 divinity, as well as the Scriptures, and conversing with many 
 vfho had been awakened by his ministry in New Jersey, 
 where he then lived, he seemed to have as deep an acquain- 
 tance with the experimental part of religion as any I have 
 conversed with ; and his preaching was as searching and 
 rousing as ever I heard. ' 
 
 " He seemed to have no regard to ple ase th e eyes jof^his 
 hearers with agreeable ^estu"fe7iior tTieI iE_ears -with-delivery, 
 nor their fancywith ][an^agej_buj;_to_aim_directJ^^ 
 hearts and consciences, to lay open their ruinous delusions, 
 show tbeni their numerous, secret^.Jy^gpj3riti£.aL^h[fts in reli- 
 gion, and drive them but of every deceitful refuge wherein 
 they made themselves easy, with the form of godliness with- 
 out the power. And many who were pleased in a good con- 
 ceit of themselves before, now found, to their great distress, 
 they were only self-deceived hypocrites. And though, while 
 the discovery was making, some at first .raged, as they have 
 owned to me and others, yet in the progress of the discovery 
 many were farced to submit ; and then the power of God so 
 broke and humbled them, that they wanted a further and even 
 a thorough discovery ; they went to hear him, that the secret 
 corruptions and delusions of their hearts might be more dis- 
 covered ; arrd the more searching the sermon, the more ac- 
 ceptable it was to their anxious minds. 
 
 " From the terrible„and deep^cony-ictioj iSL-he had pass ed 
 throu^ m his own_souIj he seemed„tQiiaE£.SHch_aJJve]y:X'ew 
 ofthe diyjne^.jnajesty, the spirituality, purity, extensive- 
 ness and strictness of his law ; with his glorious holiness, 
 and displeasure at sin, his justice, truth and power in pun- 
 ishing the damned ; that the very terrors of God seemed to 
 rise in his mind afresh, when he displayed and brandished 
 thera in the eyes of unreconciled sinners. And though 
 some could not bear the representation, and avoided his 
 preaching; yet the arrows of conviction, by his ministry, 
 seemed so deeply to pierce the hearts of others, and even 
 some of the most stubborn sinners, as to make them fall down 
 at the feet of Christ, and yield a lowly submission to him. 
 
116 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 u 
 
 I do not remember any crying out, or , foiling down, or 
 fainting, either under Mr. Whitefield's or Mr. Tennenfs 
 ministry, all the while they were here,; though many, both 
 women and men, both those who had been vicious, and 
 those who had been moral,-yea, some religious and learned, 
 as well as unlearned, were ia, great concern of soul. 
 
 " As to Mr. Tennent's preaching : It was frequently both 
 terrible and searching. Jt was often for maUer justly terri- 
 ble, as he, according to the inspired oracles, exhibited the 
 dreadful holiness, justice,.iaw, threatenings, truth, power, maj- 
 esty of God ; and his anger with Tebellious, impeniten{,,un- 
 ,;be]jeving.and Chrislless sdmners ; the awful danger they were 
 every moment in of being struck down to . hell, and , being 
 idamned for ever ; with the; amazing miseries of that place of 
 torment. But his exhibitions, 'both for matter and manner, 
 fell inconceivably below the reality : And though this terri- 
 ble preaching may strongly work on the animal passions and 
 frighten the hearers, rouse the soul, and prepare the way for 
 terrible convictions ; yet those mere animal terrors and these 
 convictions are quite different things. 
 
 " Such were the convictions wrought in many hundreds in 
 this town by Mr. Tennent's searching ministry : and such 
 was the case of those many scores of several other con- 
 gregations as well as mine, who came to me and others for 
 direction under them.* And indeed by all their converse I 
 found, it was not so much the terror as the searching nature 
 ■of his ministry, that was the principal means of their convic- 
 tion. . It was^not jnerelyj jior_so much, his laying open the 
 teru3xs_of, thejaffi:-and_wrath. ojf_.God, or, damnation of heU ; 
 (for this they could .pretty well bear, as long as they hoped 
 these- belonged not to them, or they could easily avoid 
 them ;)..as his jaying open their many vain and secret s hifts 
 and_refuges,. CQ.unteiifei,tjesemblances_jQf..gracej jielusive and 
 daiBuingJippes, their utter. impotence, and imp^oduig danger 
 .of . destruction ; whereby, they found all their hopes and refu- 
 jges of Jiesito fail them, and themselv-es exposed to eternal 
 ruin, unable to ,iielp .themselves, and in a lost condition. 
 .This searching preaching was both the suitable . and princi- 
 pal means' of their conviction. 
 
 * "The same, kind of searching, preachins.^y I our own ministerg and oth- 
 ers, I also obserTed was the most successful means of bringing people into 
 powerful convictions, or clear arid awakening- views of their sinful and lost 
 condition, and their absolute need of Christ to find and save them." 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 1 17 
 
 "On Monday March 2, 1741, Mr. Tennent preached 
 his farewell sermon to the people of Boston, from Acts xi. 
 23, to an auditory extremely crowded, very attentive and 
 much affected, in Dr. Colman's house of worship. It was 
 an affectionate parting, and as great numbers of all condi- 
 tions and ages appeared awakened by him, there seemed to 
 be a general sadness at his going away. 
 
 "Though it was natural for them to resort abundantly to 
 him by whom it pleased the sovereign God chiefly to awaken 
 them, for advice in their soul concerns ; yet while he was 
 here, many repaired to their ministers also, and many more 
 and oftener when he was gone. Mr. Tennent's ministry, 
 with the various cases of those resorting to us, excited us to 
 treat more largely of the workings of the Spirit of grace, as 
 a spirit of conviction and conversion, consolation and edifi- 
 cation in the souls of men, agreeable to the Holy Scriptures, 
 and the common experiences of true believers. 
 
 " And now was such a time as we never knew. The 
 Rev. Mr. Cooper was wont to say^^that^ more came to him 
 in ene week in flee-p..GQncern about their _sou]s,_ihanJD.._the 
 whole _twenty-four_years of Jiis preceding ministry. I can 
 also say the same as to the numbers who repaired to me. 
 By Mr. Cooper's letter to his friend in Scotland, it appears, 
 he has had about six hundred different persons in three 
 months' time ; and Mr. Webb informs me, he has had in the 
 same space above a thousand. 
 
 "Agreeable to the numerous bills of the awakened put up 
 in public, sometimes rising to the number of sixty at once, 
 there repaired to us both boys and girls, young men and wo- 
 men, Indians and Negroes, heads of families, aged persons ; 
 those who had been in full communion and going on in a 
 course of religion many years. And their cases represented 
 were ; a blind mind, a vile and hard heart, and some under a 
 deep sense thereof; some under great temptations ; some in 
 great concern for their souls ; some in great distress of mind 
 for fear of being unconverted ; others for fear they had been 
 all along building on a righteousness of their own, and were 
 still in the gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity. Some 
 under flighty, others under strong convictions of their sins 
 and sinfulness, guilt and condemnation, the wrath and curse 
 of God upon them, their impotence and misery ; some for a 
 long time, even for several months under these convictions : 
 
118 THE GREAT AWAKENING- 
 
 some fearing least the Holy Spirit should withdraw ; others 
 having 'quenched his operations, were in great distress lest 
 he should leave them for ever : persons far advanced in years, 
 afraid of being left behind, while others were hastening to 
 the great Redeemer. 
 
 " Not were the same persons satisfied with coming once or 
 twice, as formerly, but again and again, I know not how of- 
 ten ; complaining of their evil and cursed hearts ; of their 
 past and present unbelief, pride, hypocrisy, perfidiousness, 
 contempt of Christ and God, and alienation from them, their 
 love ;and captivity to sin, and utter impotence to help them- 
 selves, or even to believe on Christ, &c., renouncing every 
 degree of worthiness in and utterly condemning themselves ; 
 greatly afraid of deceiving their own souls ; and earnestly 
 desirous of being searched, discovered, and shown the true 
 way of .salvation. 
 
 " Thfi-i^jeople-seemed to love to hear us. more than ev er. 
 Tihe weekly Tuesday evening lectures at the church in Brat- 
 tle street were much crowded and not sufficient. April 17, 
 1741, another lecture was therefore opened every Friday 
 evening at the South Church ; and soon after, another lec- 
 ture every Tuesday and Eriday evening was opened at the 
 New North ; three of the most capacious houses of public 
 worship in town, the least of which I suppose will hold three 
 thousand people ; besides the ancient lecture every Thurs- 
 day noon at the Old Church, and other- Jectures in other 
 churches. 
 
 ■" Nor were the people satisfied with all these lectures : 
 -But as p rivate societi es for religious exercises, both of 
 younger and elder persons, both of males and females by 
 themselves, in several parts of the town, now increased to 
 a much greater number than ever, viz., to near the number of 
 thirty, meeting on Lord's day, Monday, Wednesday and 
 Thursday evenings ; so the people were constantly employ- 
 ing the ministers to pray and preach at those societies, as also 
 at many private houses where no formed society met : and 
 such numbers flocked to hear us as greatly crowded them, 
 as well as more than usually filled our houses of public wor- 
 ship both on Lord's days and lectures, especially evening 
 lectures, for about a twelvemonth after. 
 
 " Some of our ministers, to oblige the people, have some- 
 times preached in public and private at one house or anoth- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. Hg 
 
 er, even every evening, except after Saturday, for a week 
 together ; and the more we prayed and preached, the more 
 enlarged were our hearts, and the more delightful the em- 
 ployment. And O, how many, how^ serioiis_aiML_atteiitjve 
 were our hearers ! How many awakened and hopefully con- 
 verted by their ministers ! And how many of such added 
 soon to our churches, as we hope will be saved eternally ! 
 . Scarce a sermon seemed to be preached without some good 
 impressions. 
 
 "As the church to which I belong — within_six_mflnths 
 from .the-end of Jan uary.v„ 1741, were threescore joined to 
 our communicants, the greater part of whom gave a more 
 exact account of the work of the Spirit of God on their 
 souls in effectual calling, as described in the Westminster 
 Assembly's Shorter Catechism, than I was wont to meet 
 with before ; besides many others I could not but have 
 charity for, who refrained from coming to the table of Christ, 
 for want of a satisfying view of the work of renovation in 
 them. Mr. Tennent being so exceeding strict in cautioning 
 people from running into churches, taking the sacred cove- 
 nant, and receiving the Lord's Supper, the seal thereof, until 
 they had saving grace ; that divers, brought to very hopeful 
 dispositions, yea, some, I doubt not, to embrace the Saviour 
 in all his offices, were through fear and darkness kept from 
 coming into full communion. Or otherwise, many more I 
 believe, would have entered ; who, had they the like experi- 
 ences a year before, I doubt not would have readily offered 
 themselves, and we should have as readily received them, 
 and would now, as some of the most hopeful Christians. So 
 far did Mr. Tennent's awakening ministry shake their hopes 
 and hinder them, that those whom I apprehended to be thrif- 
 ty, and thought myself obliged to encourage, I found the im- 
 pressions of his preaching had discouraged. 
 
 "By Dr. Colman's letter of June 8, 1741, it appears 
 'that in 1741, in April, there were nine or ten, and in May 
 were nineteen added to his church ; among whom (says 
 the Doctor) were many of the rich and polite of our sons 
 and daughters.' 
 
 " And ■ the Rev. Mr. Webb, senior pastor of the New 
 North, just now informs me with respect to his church and 
 people, in the following words : — ' Admissions to full com- 
 munion of those hopefully wrought upou in the late day of 
 
120 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 grace, about one hundred and" sixty : of which one hundred 
 and two from January, 1741, to 1742. Of the above men- 
 tioned, by far the greater part have since given hopeful signs 
 of saving conversion. And many more give good eviden- 
 ces of grace ; but for the reasons in your account [above] , 
 cannot be prevailed upon to come to the table of the Lord. 
 
 " In this year 1741, the very face of the town seemed to 
 be strangely altered. Some, who had not been' here since 
 the fall before, have told me their great surprise at the 
 change in the general look and carriage of people, as soon as 
 they landed. Even the negroes and boys jn the streets sur- 
 prisingly left their usual rudeness. I knew many of these had 
 been greatly affected, and now were formed into religious so- 
 cieties. And one of our worthy gentlemen expressing his 
 wonder at the remarkable change, informed me, that whereas 
 he used with others, on Saturday evenings to visit the taverns, 
 in order to clear them of town inhabitants, they were wont 
 to find many there, and meet with trouble to get them away ; 
 but now, having gone at those seasons again, he found them 
 empty of all but lodgers. 
 
 " And thus successfully did this divine work, as above 
 described, go on in town, without any lisp, as I remem- 
 ber, of a separation, either in this town or province, for 
 above a year and a half after Mr. Whitefield left us." ''Then 
 Davenport arrived, and the aspect of things was suddenly 
 and sadly changed. But what then occurred, must be relat- 
 ed in another connexion. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 The Revival in New England. Natick, Wrentham, and Bridgewater. 
 Ezhorteis and Raptures in Bridgewater. 
 
 NATICK. 
 
 The revival in this town seems to have been worthy of a 
 
 more particular account than we have of it. Here convic- 
 
 . lions began before Whitefield's arrival in New England ; 
 
 though they were for some time concealed from all but those 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 121 
 
 who felt them. The pastor, the Rev. Oliver Peabody, wrote, 
 July 4, 1743. * 
 
 " There have been very observable strivings of the ever 
 blessed Spirit on the hearts of many, especially young peo- 
 ple, in convincing and enlightening, and I hope converting 
 them, in my neighbouring towns ; as in Medfield, Dedham, 
 Needham, Medway, and Sherbourn, &c. where the ministers 
 have been lively and faithful. And among my little people, 
 (I would mention it to the glory of the rich grace, and of the 
 blessed Spirit of God,) there have been very apparent striv- 
 ings and operations of the Holy Ghost among Indians and 
 English, young and old, male and female. There have been 
 added to our church, of such as I hope shall be saved, 
 about fifty persons of diiferent nations, since the beginning of 
 last March was two years, whose lives in general witness to 
 the sincerity of their profession. Here, we have never had 
 any crying out in an extraordinary manner, but the Holy 
 Spirit has been pleased to work in a more calm way ; but I 
 hope effectually. But I must mention it, although with sor- 
 row, that for some months past, (although some are under 
 powerful operations,) yet there has not appeared so much of 
 the genuine operations of the Spirit as heretofore ; people's 
 minds have seemed and do seem too much taken up with dis- 
 puting about persons and things ; some are for one minister 
 and some for another ; and some, I think I may say, cannot 
 bear sound doctrine ; which with us has arisen, as I appre- 
 hend, from some ignorant and erroneous persons; who have 
 spread and propagated corrupt doctrines. As a specimen 
 of this, they say I preach dangerous doctrines, because I have 
 preached that a person may be converted and not certainly 
 know it." 
 
 WRENTHAM. 
 
 Of the revival in Wrentham, the Rev. Henry Messenger, 
 pastor of the First Church, and Rev. Elias Haven, pastor of 
 the Second, have given a more particular account, dated 
 August 12, 1743. t 
 
 " The people of this town, so far as we can learn, or have 
 had opportunity to observe, have generally been externally 
 sober and honest ; have kept up a great deal of external 
 
 • Chr. Hist. Vol. I. page 183. t Ibid. 238. 
 
 11 
 
122 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 religibn, especially in their families, and the house of God ; 
 so that the generations that have risen up from time to time, 
 have generally been instructed, from their very early youth, 
 in the first principles of our holy religion. But, alas ! for a 
 long time past, the power of godliness has been evident but 
 in comparatively few instances, till the blessed revival of 
 religion the Almighty God has lately favored us with. And 
 just before the descent of these late remarkable showers of 
 divine influence, religion was plainly in a languishing condi- 
 tion. Even some externals of it began to be more and more 
 neglected ; insomuch that in the year 1739, there were but 
 two in the whole town admitted to the Lord's table : and 
 vices of various sorts were much more prevalent than before. 
 
 " The first open and public manifestation of the Lord's 
 return to us by the power of his grace, was on the twenty- 
 sixth of February, 1741. It was the day appointed by the 
 government to be kept with solemn fasting and prayer 
 throughout this province, to implore the blessings of Heav- 
 en on our nation in the war with Spain, &c. and the day in 
 course for the public lecture preparatory to the administration 
 of the Lord's Supper in the Second Church in this town ; 
 where on this double occasion the minister preached from 
 Zechariah, 12 : 10. There appeared, especially in the after- 
 noon, a very uncommon attentiveness upon the word, a won- 
 derful tenderness upon the assembly. The tokens of a very 
 serious concern were visible on many faces. And though 
 there is sufficient reason to believe that many persons, before 
 ■this, were under considerable convictions, and abode so after 
 the day above said, yet they kept their concern very much to 
 themselves until some time in March following, when they 
 could no longer conceal their distresses ; they began to 
 lament their own cases to one another, and to come frequently 
 to their minister under soul-trouble. It was very agreeably 
 surprising almost daily to hear of new instances of young per- 
 sons (for the work of God's Spirit seemed to be chiefly on 
 young people) in great concern, what they should do to be 
 saved. The same thoughtfulness seemed to run from house 
 to house, and from soul to soul ; and their complaints against 
 themselves were very much the same. 
 
 " It was but a little while after this, before the same Spir- 
 it's operations of the same kind were equally remarkable in 
 the First Parish and congregation in the town. Particularly 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 123 
 
 on the annual fast, April 23, 1741, was a very open and 
 public display of divine grace there, very much as mentioned 
 above, in the other congregation, when the minister preached 
 from Jeremiah 26 : 13 ; and many were brought under 
 strong convictions, and thenceforward many flocked to their 
 minister, especially young people, under soul distress. 
 
 " The powerful awakenings and convictions on persons' 
 minds spread from neighbourhood to neighbourhood, so that by 
 midsummer there were instances in all parts of the town under 
 great concern to know what they should do to be saved. 
 Yea, it appeared to us, so far as we could observe in our 
 respective parishes, that very few houses, if any in the town, 
 were passed by and left without some observable spiritual 
 concern on some or other of the family. Our people, in gen- 
 eral, became much more attentive in time of public worship. 
 Their countenances being generally solemn, listening, and 
 tender, showed their extraordinary appetite for the word ; and 
 it became a very common thing with us to have a great part 
 of the assembly in tears at hearing the word, and especially 
 when they heard the glad tidings of the gospel, and they 
 were invited to rest their weary souls in Christ the Saviour. 
 While we endeavoured with great plainness to show unto sin- 
 ners their guilt and danger, and to open the awful contents of 
 the law to them, these truths would often have their proper 
 effect, in alarming guilty consciences, and filling the minds of 
 many with great concern for their own souls ; and then the 
 gospel news of a Saviour, and the freeness of divine grace, 
 would marvellously melt a great part of our congregations 
 into tears, and persuade them, by divine help, to seek the 
 great salvation. Nor have we seen reason as yet to think 
 any other, than that many of these earnest seekers were sure 
 finders of the pearl of great price. 
 
 " Our people grew very desirous of lectures^ that they 
 might have more frequent opportunities for spiritual instruc- 
 tion, and to join in social worship ; where we found God 
 often bestowed his blessing. 
 
 " Many of our people, living three or four miles or more 
 from our places of public worship, are necessitated to tarry at 
 or near about' the meetinghouses, through the intermission, 
 between forenoon and' afternoon exercises ; and there used 
 to be little else but vain and worldly talk among most. But 
 upon the late remarkable divine influence on people's minds. 
 
124 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 there was a wonderful change in this regard among, we think, 
 the greatest part of our people. It became a common thing 
 for them to retire in small companies to different places, for 
 religious conferences or reading, and sometimes these exer- 
 cises were mixed. And more lately there are several socie- 
 ties that spend part of the intermission in praying, reading, 
 and singing together. So that on many accounts the inter- 
 mission, as well as time of public exercises of God's wor- 
 ship, is very remariiably holy to the Lord, esteemed honora- 
 ble, and a great delight unto the more serious among us. 
 And even the time of travel to and from our places of public 
 worship has often been sweetly redeemed for pious discourse 
 between two or three, as they walk in company together. 
 
 "We are satisfied that the general concern upon people's 
 minds, which prevailed among us above two years ago, and 
 has not ceased, did not arise from a disposition to conform to 
 the prevailing custom of people around us ; for this was the 
 first town which was so remarkably visited and blessed by 
 sovereign grace, within many miles. And it evidently ap- 
 peared that many would be under the same concern at the 
 same time, and would ,be agreeably surprised when they 
 unexpectedly found one another uttering the same complaints 
 relating to the state of their own souls. 
 
 "It is also very evident that this general awakening was not 
 from the influence of travelling ministers (though we are satis- 
 fied God has made use of some of them for the revival of reli- 
 gion in many places ) ; for there was but one sermon preach- 
 ed in the town in such a way, and that to a small auditory. 
 
 "And here it is very observable, that there was a spirit of 
 conviction on the hearts of many, in the winter, before it was 
 externally very evident ; when, by the extremity of the win- 
 ter and depth of the snow, many of our people could not for 
 many Sabbaths together attend on the ordinary and stated 
 exercises of religion ; so clearly was it the work of God. 
 Nevertheless, we are glad .to own, that the news of many con- 
 versions in Northampton and other towns in that part of the 
 country some years before, and of some remarkable success 
 of the gospel in some parts of England and America, were 
 means of stirring up thoughtfulness in many, and encouraged 
 godly persons to pray with the more confidence for the out- 
 podring of the Holy Ghost also on us. 
 
 " Many came to offer themselves to join in church-fellow- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 125 
 
 ship, whom we looked upon ourselves obliged to examine 
 particularly of their experiences, which gave them reason to 
 hope that they could in sincerity enter into solemn covenant 
 with God and his people. Our times for the administration 
 of the Lord's Supper in each church are two months apart; 
 and into the Second Church in the town (which before con- 
 sisted of sixty-three communicants, and the parish of about 
 seventy families), just before the sacrament. May 3, 1741, 
 were admitted twenty-four more ; and between the said 
 third of May and the first of July following, were admitted 
 thirty-seven more ; and considerable numbers afterwards from 
 time to time. 
 
 " Into the First Church in the town (which before con- 
 sisted of ninety-two communicants, and the parish of about 
 one hundred and twenty families) were admitted, just be- 
 fore the sacrament, June 7, 1741, twenty more ; and then 
 before August 1, thirty-eight more ; and then before Oc- 
 tober, eighteen more ; and before the administration of the 
 Lord's supper there have constantly been a considerable 
 number admitted ever since ; never less than five, except 
 twice, and usually more at a time. In short, one hundred 
 and thirty-six communicants are added to the First Church, 
 and eighty-nine to the Second, since April, 1741. 
 
 " Thus greatly are the numbers of our communicants in- 
 creased ; and we had opportunity to discourse with each of 
 those admitted into the respective churches under our particu- 
 lar watch, of the state of their souls, and with many of them 
 several times ; as well as with a considerable number who 
 were professors before, and came to us in this remarkable 
 day, fuller of concern about their souls than usual ; and many 
 that have been brought under some convictions, who yet 
 stand off from the Lord's table. 
 
 " There was, about a year ago, some decay among us. 
 But, blessed be God, among all those that we looked upon, 
 in a judgment of charity, to be born from above, there has 
 not one turned an open apostate, nor evidently and impeni- 
 tently scandalous in their behaviour ; nor have the generality 
 of those who have been in any considerable measure awaken- 
 ed, returned, in this time of decay, to their former heedless 
 and airy way of living ; neither did the state of religion 
 among us, nor the face of the town, appear to be at all the 
 same as three years ago ; and we have reason to think, that 
 11* 
 
126 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 all this time conversions were more frequent than for some 
 years before 1740. 
 
 " And the Lord, the overflowing fountain of grace, hath 
 been pleased to visit us with another plentiful shower of 
 grace, and so strengthen that which he had wrought for us. 
 It is now above half a year since a second revival of religion 
 began to be very observable in the town ; first, in the First 
 Parish in the town, and very soon after in the Second. As 
 to the substance of the work, it appears to us to be the same 
 as was remarkably among us above two years ago, of which 
 there has never since been a cessation. But there are a few 
 things observable, which are circumstances attending the 
 work of God's grace now among us, in which there is some 
 difference. There have not been so great numbers brought 
 under convictions and the spirit of bondage now as before ; 
 according to our observation. Some, who have of late been 
 under strong convictions, have been more suddenly pricked 
 to the heart, and brought into greater distress, than before. 
 Some, who, we have reason to hope, were sincere converts 
 unto God before the time which we are now speaking of, 
 have now been brought into exceeding great distress, at 
 renewed and clearer discoveries of their own hearts, and a 
 more bitter remembrance of their sins. 
 
 " Not a few of real Christians have been more remarkably 
 quickened now than before, in their Christian walk. 
 
 " There have been not a very few among us within seven 
 or eight months past, that have cried out with great agonies 
 and distress, or with high joys on spiritual accounts, and that 
 in time of religious exercises. But these two things we 
 would observe relating to what we have seen of this nature, 
 viz : First, that we are persuaded that very few, if any, 
 among us, have cried out in such a manner while they could 
 refrain ; and we have ever cautioned persons against making 
 any outcries in time of religious worship; if they could avoid 
 it without doing too much violence to their nature, or turning 
 their thoughts from divine things ; though we have not 
 thought it ordinarily proper to leave off speaking, or to have 
 the persons so affected removed out of the house. And 
 secondly, that we by no means account persons crying out in 
 time of worship, falling down, or the degree of their joys or 
 sorrows, that might occasion these effects on their bodies, to 
 be any sign of their conversion, when separately considered ; 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 127 
 
 and have carefully warned our people against such a way of 
 thinking ; though at the same time we cannot but think that 
 most who have so manifested their sense of things, were 
 under the operations of the Holy Ghost at the same time, 
 which occasioned these outcries ; and that their inward ex- 
 periences were substantially the same as theirs who have 
 been savingly converted to God, as we hope, and have given 
 no such tokens of their distress or joys. 
 
 " Some among us have not been so well satisfied, nor so 
 much delighted, with this late revival, as they seemed to be 
 two years ago ; and some, that seemed something awakened 
 then, have appeared to look something strange upon what we 
 take to be the same work, now it hath been attended with 
 some uncommon circumstances. And we are concerned lest 
 some have been prejudiced against the powerful manner in 
 which God hath been pleased to carry on his own work, and 
 so have lain the less open to convictions and benefit by gos- 
 pel ordinances. 
 
 " We have not known trances, visions, revelations, or the 
 like. We have had great freedom from the appearances of 
 a censorious spirit in the subjects of this blessed work ; 
 though some tender and compassionate expressions have been 
 misconstrued. We have not had a single instance, who 
 hath pretended to authoritative exhorting, nor any that have 
 pleaded for it ; but Christian conference hath been much en- 
 couraged and practised among elder and younger people." 
 
 BRIDGEWATER. 
 
 The Rev. John Porter, pastor of the church in North 
 Precinct of Bridgewater, was one of " Whitefield's converts." 
 His account of the revival in that town is dated October 12, 
 1743. After stating that "experimental religion and the 
 power of godliness seemed to have taken their flight from 
 Bridgewater," and that the greater part of the people who 
 thought at all of religion, " rested in various duties, short of 
 a saving closure with Christ," he proceeds :* " And so in 
 general they remained, very secure and unconcerned about 
 the great and momentous affair of securing the salvation of 
 the soul, till sometime in the beginning of the year 1741, 
 after the Reverend and dear Mr. Whitefield and Reverend 
 
 * Chr. Hist., Vol. I. p. 397. 
 
128 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Mr. Tennent had been at Boston, and through the province, 
 preaching the everlasting gospel with such unweariedness and 
 success. Whose names, especially the former, I shall al- 
 ways mention with respect and honor, whatever others may 
 think or say of him, from the benefit one of the meanest and 
 most unworthy of Christ's ministers hopes he received by 
 his holy and fervent ministrations while at Boston. Be sure 
 I knew nothing rightly of my sin and danger, of my need of 
 a Saviour, of the way of salvation by him, neither was es- 
 tablished in the doctrines of grace, (though a preacher, and 
 one who endeavoured to instruct others in the way,) till I 
 heard that man of God. And if the Lord had permitted me 
 to have took the oversight of a flock, as I had a call to do, 
 and had given my answer, the blind would have led the blind, 
 and so, it is like, both would have fallen into the ditch. But 
 he did not. Bless the Lord, O, my soul, and all that is 
 within me, bless his holy name, for what he did for me, 
 through the instrumentality of that man. And I was quick- 
 ened and strengthened very much by Mr. Tennent's excel- 
 lent sermons, and was desirous all should hear them, as I 
 had done, and urged many to it. 
 
 " Few of the people in Bridgewater heard Mr. White- 
 field, but the most did Mr. Tennent ; for as this man of 
 God, who had skill and will to win souls, was upon his re- 
 turn home, and passing through a neighbouring town in March, 
 1741, some of the Rev. ministers in Bridgewater, with my- 
 self, went to see him, in order to invite him to visit Bridge- 
 water. Accordingly he came, and preached three sermons 
 in the Rev. Mr. Perkins' meetinghouse in the western pre- 
 cinct ; two in the day and one in the evening. And though 
 the warning was short, the people in general not knowing it 
 till that morning,, and the season very difficult, by reason of 
 the snow ; yet there was a large and crowded assembly. 
 They camefrom all parts of the town, and many, I believe, 
 went away blessing God for the opportunity ; though some 
 mocked. It appears that some close hypocrites were detect- 
 ed, some secure awakened, and many of our young people 
 convinced of the sin of spending away days and nights in 
 singing and dancing, and other youthful sins, which they 
 were much addicted to before, and greatly delighted in. 
 
 " After this, religion was more talked of in our town ; 
 particularly the great doctrines of our holy religion, were 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 139 
 
 often the subject of conversation ; not for strife and conten- 
 tion, but information and edification. 
 
 " The people now, through the town, were very inquisi- 
 tive to know how things were ; having heard of the revival 
 of religion in some places. They appeared of a very teacha- 
 ble disposition ; they were swift to hear the word ; an un- 
 common thirst after it appeared in them. Our lectures, 
 which were almost every week in one part of the town or 
 anothei-, were more generally attended than before, and with 
 much greater seriousness and solemnity ; which encouraged 
 us, the ministers in the town, to set up evening lectures, to 
 be attended in all parts of the town ; which, excepting one, 
 are upheld to this time ; besides all our lectures in private 
 houses, which have not been a few, and occasional lectures 
 from strangers, who come to visit us. 
 
 " Though but few, I believe, were as yet savingly con- 
 verted and brought home to Christ, yet the concern on the 
 minds of most continued and increased through the succeed- 
 ing summer. The most were uncommonly thoughtful about 
 the salvation of their precious souls. But, as I remember, 
 in the beginning of the fall, 1741, convictions seemed at a 
 stay, if not declining and wearing off from some. 
 
 " But upon this, two young men of Bridgewater, who had 
 been for a time in Connecticut, (one had passed through his 
 academical learning and was keeping school there ; the other 
 was then a member of Yale College,) and had seen the great 
 things God was doing for his people there, and in a judg- 
 ment of charity had felt and experienced much of the power 
 of divine grace on their own souls, relumed to Bridgewater 
 to visit their friends. And O ! the concern they appeared 
 to have, (and we have no reason to think but it was real,) 
 for their town's-folk, especially fellow youth, is not easily to 
 be expressed ; which they manifested in all suitable and 
 proper ways. 
 
 " They told our young people that on such a day, if they 
 were willing, they would meet with them and sing and pray, 
 and give them a relation of the great things God was doing 
 in Connecticut, and what he had done for them since they 
 saw them last ; to which they readily consented. When the 
 day came, young and old went ; and I believe I should have 
 gone, had I not been providentially absent. Accordingly, 
 they did pray and sing with them, and gave them a friendly 
 
130 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Christian exhortation. And the Lord was with them, I doubt 
 not. Some were awakened, — and those under concern,. 
 had their concern increased by means thereof. And seeing 
 such effects following, they went on in this way for a while ; 
 if not at the advice, yet at the connivance, of some of the 
 ministers in the town. And whether their practice or our 
 connivance was justifiable, as things were then circumstan- 
 ced, I shall not take upon me now to say. But this I think I 
 am obliged to say ; that if I believe the work going on so re- 
 markably to be divine, as I most firmly do, they were great- 
 ly serviceable in promoting it in ray dear charge. Here I 
 would observe, that these were the only exhorters we have 
 had. I think we have had no appearances of them since. 
 
 " After this, that grand and important question was in the 
 mouths of most of my people, especially young people, 
 What must we do to be saved ? Salvation seemed now to 
 be the main concern of their souls, and the main business of 
 their lives. Their secular affairs were at this time, in ap- 
 pearance, made a by-business. Meetings on account of re- 
 ligion were sought after, longed for, frequently attended, ex- 
 ceedingly thronged. And at almost every meeting about 
 this time, which were very frequent, it evidently appeared 
 God was with us in the convincing and converting and com- 
 forting influences of his Spirit. Some were awakened, many 
 crying out under a sense of their sin and danger ; some hqpe- 
 fuily converted, and some transported and over-borne with a 
 sense of the love of God. I make not the least doubt, but 
 there was joy in heaven among the angels, as well as among 
 the saints on earth, in seeing and hearing of the glorious dis- 
 plays of the infinite power and sovereign free grace of God 
 at our religious meetings. But this blessed shower did not 
 long continue. It was not long before God, for our sin in 
 not improving, and our ingratitude under, these showers of di- 
 vine and heavenly grace, did depart from us as to the con- 
 vincing and converting influences of his Spirit ; and many of 
 those that were under good impressions, and had not receiv- 
 ed comfort in Christ, which many had, gradually lost them, 
 and began to be somewhat careless and secure again. Now 
 and then, it fs true, I had the joy of seeing and hearing one 
 convinced and converted, and it has been to this time ; but 
 it is rare, like gleanings after the vintage. 
 
 " But in the judgment of charity, through the infinite com- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 131 
 
 passions of God, the number is not small that have been sav- 
 ingly wrought upon among us in this great day of grace, and 
 that are become real lively Christians. We hani^e had added 
 to the church between seventy and eighty ; beside a consid- 
 erable number that have owned the covenant and been bap- 
 tized, that have not seen their way clear to come to the or- 
 dinance of the Holy Supper ; the most of which are able to 
 give to every one that asks them, with meekness and fear, 
 all the satisfaction that can rationally be desired, or expect- 
 ed, that they are real Christians. They can give a clear, 
 distinct account of a preparatory law-work, in all the parts of 
 it ; of their discovery of Christ, in his ability and willingness 
 to save them in particular, and every way suited to their per- 
 ishing circumstances, to make them completely and eternally 
 happy ; of their closing in with him as offered in the gospel ; 
 of the change of heart ; and so consequently 'of principles, 
 desires, inclinations and affections that perceptibly followed 
 thereupon. And their lives and conversations, as far as I 
 can observe myself, and learn from the unprejudiced, are 
 corresponding and agreeing with their experiences. 
 
 "And now these, God is, through his abundant goodness, 
 frequently visiting and refreshing by the gracious influences 
 of his Holy Spirit. For although God has almost departed 
 from us, as to the convincing and converting influences of 
 his Spirit, yet he has not, as to the quickening, sanctifying 
 and comforting influences thereof. Blessed be his name for 
 it. God is verily with us in our religious meetings. It is 
 frequent on lecture days and on Lord's days, while we are 
 supplicating the divine Majesty, singing the high praises of . 
 God, hearing his word, celebrating the Holy Supper, that we 
 see some of the above mentioned influences. Sometimes 
 many of them have their frail tabernacles overborne with a 
 sense of the great and distinguishing love of God the Father, 
 in contriving, Son in purchasing, and Spirit in making appli- 
 cation of redemption to their souls. Sometimes they have 
 such a sense of the perfections of God, his holiness, justice, 
 mercy, faithfulness, &c., as .greatly weakens and overcomes 
 the body. They have often such sweet tastes of redeeming 
 love, and such blessed discoveries of the glories of God, 
 beauties of Christ, holiness and happiness of heaven, as af- 
 fects the body so greatly, that spectators have been ready to 
 conclude that it would have dissolved the natural tie and 
 
132 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 union between the soul and body, and that their souls would 
 have actually dismissed and left their bodies, and been con- 
 veyed by kind guardian angels in a chariot of love to the God 
 and region of love. And to see the effects these discover- 
 ies have on them ; how humble, holy, heavenly, loving, and 
 weaned from the world they are for a considerable time after, 
 is abundantly refreshing and satisfying, and confirms further 
 that their discoveries are true and genuine. Thus they are 
 frequently visited and taught by the Holy Spirit ; so that they 
 are growing Christians, in grace and knowledge. In grace, 
 every true visit evidently transforms them more and more 
 into the divine image and likeness. In knowledge, it is 
 wonderful to see how their knowledge is increased, as to 
 God, Christ, the doctrines of grace ; and as to themselves, 
 their own hearts, the pride, envy, hypocrisy, deceit, and in- 
 gratitude of them. They see and know so much of their own 
 vileness, that every one looks on himself as the most unworthy, 
 and greatest miracle of mercy, and most beholden and in- 
 debted to the free grace of God. They are laboring after 
 progressive holiness, to be perfect as their Heavenly Father 
 is perfect. God grant their path may continue to be as the 
 shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day. 
 
 " Now of this number, many of them were, before this 
 day of God's searching our Jerusalem with candles, as exact 
 and strict in the performance of the externals of religion, as 
 far as could be observed by man, as any among us, and had 
 gained the charity of their neighbours ; but now see they built 
 upon the sandy foundation of their own righteousness, and 
 so had perished eternally, notwithstanding their blazing pro- 
 fessions and the good opinion of others, had not God in mer- 
 cy opened their eyes to see the way of salvation by Christ, 
 and enabled them to embrace it. 
 
 "As to Antinomianisrn and enthusiastical phrensies, there 
 are little or no appearances among us. Indefed, there is that 
 among us that an Arminian would account Antinomianisrn, 
 and one that never felt the power of divine grace on his own 
 heart, would account enthusiasm. But this does not make it 
 so. As far as I am capable of judging, their principles and 
 practices are scriptural. God grant I may never have the 
 melancholy occasion to think or say otherwise. As to tran- 
 ces, visions, &c., we have none, and I think have had none 
 fi^om the beginning." 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 133 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 The Revival in New Ergcand. Lyme, and other places in that part 
 of Connecticut. — The " Needful Caution in a Critical Day." — Pastors 
 itinerating. 
 
 The west parish in Lyme, Ct., which lies at the mouth of 
 the Connecticut river, on the east side, opposite Saybrook, 
 was the home of the Rev. Jonathan Parso ns, who was one 
 ofthe most efficient promo ters of the revi val. His account 
 of the. revivaL in -his.own parish, and ofjiis^ labors in then cin- 
 ity, dated April 14, 1744, *js one of the most valua ble doc- 
 uments of the time ; especialTjTwhen read in connexion with 
 his sermon, delivered Feb ruary 4,, 1 742, and entitled " a 
 Needful Caution in a Critical D ay." It should be remem- 
 bered, too, that Windham and New London counties, where 
 there were greater disorders than in any other part of New 
 England, were near his residence, and the scene of some of 
 his labors. 
 
 In less than six months after taking his first degree at Yale 
 College, Mr. Parsons was invited by this church " to preach 
 as a probationer for settlement." He arrived, Februar y 29 , 
 1730, and, in May following, the people invited him to be- 
 come their pastor. Late in the summer, they renewed their 
 call. He, however, was doubting about the validity of Pre s- 
 b;^terisd_ordhiation. At length, having become convinced, 
 " that the Scriptures make no difference between bishop and 
 presbyter ; that Christ alone is king of his church, and has 
 given laws to it, and authority to execute them ; and that no 
 man has a right, by fines or civil force, to bind any man to 
 worship God in this or that particular way," he consented to 
 be o rdained on the 17 th »f Marnh^ ^7^^ He then, in 
 presence of the council and the brethren, expressly renoun- 
 ced the Saybrook platform of church government, and took 
 for his rule " the general platform of the Gospel ;" on which 
 the church unanimously voted him to be their pastor, and the 
 CQuncil proceeded to ordain him.^ The population of bis 
 
 *Chrg. Hist. 2: 118. 
 12 
 
134 THE GREAT AWAKENING, 
 
 parish was then " seven hundred and sixty eight souls, or 
 thereabouts. " 
 
 " The summer following my ordination, there was a great 
 effusion of the Holy Spirit upon thejgople. There appear- 
 ed to be an uncommon attention to the preaching of the 
 word, and a disposition to hearken to advice ; and a remark- 
 able concern about salvation. It was a general inquiry 
 among jhe middle a ged and youth. What must I d o to be 
 saved ? Great numbers came to my study, some almost 
 every day for several months together, under manifest con- 
 cern about their souls. I seldom went into a house among 
 my neighbours, but they had some free discourse about reli- 
 gion, or were Searching after the meaning of some texts of 
 Scripture. I urged them very much to works, and gave it as 
 my opinion (perhaps too hastily) that such awakened souls 
 oughf to attend upon the Lord's Supper, and in less than 
 ten months fifty-two persons were added to the church. 
 There were several whole families baptized. Many of the 
 young people were greatly reformed. They turned their meet- 
 ings for vain mirth into meetings for prayer, conference, and 
 reading books of piety. There was a number of them kept 
 a religious society about two years ; and they not only be- 
 haved soberly, but took pains to dissuade others from levity 
 and frothy conversation. But, although there was such a 
 fair prospect of a considerable harvest of souls, I have no 
 special reasons to make me think that many were savingly 
 converted to God in that season of concern. Many, indeed, 
 made an o£en profession of religion, but there were vwy few 
 did it undera notion that saying_£race_is_necessary in order 
 to alawful attendance upon the Lord's Supper. Nor have 
 we, in our admissions to communion, ever acted upon that 
 principle, but the contrary. Hence it came to pass that we 
 ibund no use for relations, as they are called, but laid them 
 by from the beginning of my ministry ; though they had been 
 of constant use in my predecessor's day." 
 
 I n abou t three years from his ordination, he "saw cai^ se to 
 reno unce Arminian princip les, and to turn quite about in some 
 of the'most important doctrines of the Christian religion." 
 He now felt obliged to te_ll his people that he could not reckon 
 conversions by the nurnber of those that had joined the church ; 
 that he feared fe^ had really been converted during his minis- 
 try ; that external profession and Bevotion, doctrinal knowl- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 135 
 
 edge and negative blamelessness, were not^ sufficient evi_dence 
 of regeneration ; and that ail, being spiritually dead by nature, 
 must have a principle of spiritual life implanted, must have 
 sensible communion with Christ, and live a life of faith, or 
 they could not enter heaven. This his people called "cen- 
 soriousness." They seem to have done little but quarrel 
 withTiis doctrines for some time, till, as he says, " I was aw- 
 fully deserted of God, and got into a very dull, legal frame 
 myself; and then some were better pleased." 
 
 This_continufid_tilLtheLSummeL„Qf_JL140, when revivals, 
 independently of each other, were beginning to appear in va- 
 rious parts of New England. Then, he informs us, " It 
 pleased God to strengthen and enlarge my desires after the 
 increase of Christ's kingdom, and to stir me up to more ar- 
 dent endeavours after the eternal welfare of immortal souls. — 
 The ne:ws o£ Mr. Whitefield's rising up with great zeal for 
 holiness and souls, had a great influence upon my mind." 
 He received an account of Whitefield's labors at Boston, 
 from Dr. Colman,' and went himself to hear him at New 
 Haven, and some other places. "This" he says, "gave 
 me a different turn of thought about him and his preaching, 
 and satisfied me more fully that there were many misrepre- 
 sentations of him and his views ; and I beheve, served as a 
 means to take off the prejudices that some among us had 
 conceived against the effects of his ministry." It seems, 
 therefore, that there were prejudices against him even then, 
 in that region of Arminianism and ecclesiastical authority ; 
 probably nourished by the correspondence, which is known 
 to have been carried on, with the " Old Side " men of thd 
 Presbyterian Church. In March, 1741, he visited Hart- 
 ford, to learn on the spot what he ought to believe concern- 
 ing the " surprising operations " there, concerning which the 
 country was full of reports. He returned, believing it to be 
 a work of God.* On his return, he received letters from 
 Dr. Colman, giving an account of the labors of Tennent, and 
 their happy influence. All along, as he gathered information, 
 he imparted it to one and another as he had opportunity ; 
 and by this and other means, his people " were more gener- 
 ally roused up to bethink themselves, and converse about re- 
 
 * It does not appear that any account of these " surprising operations " 
 was ever published. Church records extant at Hartford make no mention 
 of them. 
 
136 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 ligion." At last, M arch 2 9, he preached frornjsaiah_60 : 
 8. " Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves 
 to their windows ?" His object was, to rectify mistakes, 
 and give a correct history of the work of Go(i that was be- 
 gun in the land. This sermon, especially its application, 
 had a greater visible effect upon his audience, than he had 
 ever before witnessed. "Indeed, there were no outcries; 
 but a deep and general concern upon the minds of the as- 
 sembly discovered itself at that time in plentiful weeping, 
 sighs and sobs. Many told me, that they never had such an 
 awakened sense of the danger of putting off the grand con- 
 cern of their souls to a future season before, as God gave 
 them under that sermon. They were surprised at their own 
 past carelessness, and astonished that God had borne with 
 them so long." Early in April, Tennent arrived, on his 
 way home from Boston. He preached in the evening, seem- 
 ed very dull, spoke with no freedom, and made only a feeMe 
 impression ; yet one of the communicants was convinced of 
 sin, and in a few days apparently converted. The next 
 morning he preached again, " to a very attentive and deeply 
 affected auditory." Parsons afterwards found the effects of 
 this sermon to have been much more extensive than he sus- 
 pected at the time. Tennent went over to Saybrook, and 
 many from Lyme followed, to hear him again. " There he 
 preached a rational, searching sermon, suited to unconverted 
 sinners and drowsy saints." But little effect was manifest 
 during the delivery ; but some were very much enraged with 
 the preacheT- afterwards. One man especially could not be&r 
 the sermon, it was so "censorious." He talked against it 
 incessantly, and could not drive it from his mind, till finally 
 " he was made to see that he was the very man to whose 
 case it was suited, above any sermon that ever he had heard." 
 " After this, I observed that our assemblies were greater 
 and more attentive at times of public worship than before. 
 Sabbaths alone would not suffice for hearing sermons, but 
 greater numbers still urged for frequent lectures. I was well 
 pleased to observe such a flocking to. the windows, and a 
 hearing ear become general ; and therefore I readily consent- 
 ed, upon the request of the people, to preach as often as I 
 could, besides the stated exercises of the Sabbath; Once 
 every week I carried on a public lecture, besides several 
 private ones in various parts of the parish. And I could DOt 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 137 
 
 but observe about this time, that an evening lecture I had set 
 up the winter before in a private house, for the sake of a 
 young man that was a cripple, though at first exceeding thin 
 (but seven persons, as I remember, besides the family) was 
 now greatly increased, and in about a month grew up to sev- 
 eral hundreds, so that I was obliged to turn it into a public 
 evening lecture. 
 
 "Now it pleased God to encourage ray heart, give me un- 
 usual freedom, and such a firm state of bodily health, that I 
 could go through three times the service 1 had been able to 
 endure at other times ; so that I was able to study and write 
 three sermons a week, and preach several others of my old 
 notes (for I seldom in all the time preached without writing). 
 Sometime in this month Mr. Griswold invited mej opreach 
 a lecture for him, and I consented. While I was preaching 
 from Psalms 119: .59, 60, I observed many of the assembly 
 in tears, and heard many crying out in very great bitterness of 
 soul, as it seemed then by the sound of voices. When sermon 
 was over, I could better take notice of the cause ; and the 
 language was to this purpose, viz., Alas! I'm undone; 
 I 'm undone ! O, my sins ! How t hey prey upon my vi- 
 tals ! What will become of me .' How shall I escape the 
 damnation of hell, who have spent away a golden opportu- 
 nity under gospel light, in vanity ? And much more of the 
 like import. It is true, outcries were new and surprising at 
 that time ; but, knowing th e terrors of the L ord, I was sat- 
 isfied that they were but what might be reasonably account- 
 ed for, if sinners were under a true sense of their sins, and 
 the wrath of a sin-hating God. And therefore I did not use 
 any_endeavoj2^ rs to restrai n the m atlhat time ; but the greater 
 number cried out of themselves and their vileness, the more 
 I rejoiced in hope of the good issue. As I was satisfied that 
 it was the truth they had been hearing, so, by their com- 
 plaints, it appeared to be the force of truth that made them 
 cry out, and threw many of them into hysteric fits. And, 
 if I mistake not, every one that were so violently seized that 
 night, have since given good evidence of their conversion ; 
 but that, their reverend pastor can give the best account of. 
 
 " The visible success of my ministry in that and some 
 other lectures abroad, (though I rejoiced in the happy pros- 
 pect of the advancement of the kingdom of our divine Lord,) 
 was far from being a means to damp my hopes or slacken my 
 12* 
 
138 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 endeavours at home. My heart burned with love to and 
 pity for the people of my peculiar charge. I had constant 
 supplies of argument flowing into my mind, and zeal to urge 
 a speedy answer. 
 
 " Byjhe latter end of April, our young peo ple were g en- 
 erally sick of that vain mirth and~tEbse foolish amusements 
 tGatTJacTheen their delight, and were forrnedin to several re- 
 ligious societies for prayer and read ing booVs of piety nnder 
 tfiy" direction. Many of them were frequently in my study 
 fora^vice ; the bent of their souls was evidently towards the 
 things of another world ; whenever they fell into companies, 
 the great salvation was the subject of their conversation. 
 They were so generally displeased with themselves for past 
 carelessness, and spending time in revels and frolics, that 
 several, at the desire of others, came to me, and desired me 
 'to preach them a lecture upon the 1 4th of May (the day of 
 "ouTerection in this Colony) , which they had, lor manY"years, 
 accustomed theniselves'to spehdTn f easting, musicTaanc ing:, 
 gaD3Tng,andZth¥lilie.~T complied with the request, and 
 preached to a great assembly, from Matthew 24 : 37, 38, 
 39. Upon which I observed, that Jesus Christ would cer- 
 tainly come to ju^gejhe world ; and that, when he did come, 
 he would find it overwhelmed in cacEsl secur ity ; and from 
 these considerations I applied myself to those that had been 
 secure and unwajchful, both among Christians and unconvert- 
 ed sinners, in a manner which I thought proper to awaken 
 and convince. Under this sermon, many had~thejr ccmnte- 
 nancfis chajiged ; their thoughts seemed to trouble them, so 
 that the joints of their loins were loosed, and their knees 
 smote one against another. Great numbers crigd ojjt^ aloud 
 in the anguish of their souls. Several st£ut rnen fell as though 
 a cannon had been discharged, and a ball had made its way 
 through their hearts. Some young women were thrown into 
 hysteric fits. The sight and noise of lamentations seemed 
 a little resemblance of what we may imagine wiH be when the 
 great Judge pronounces the tremendous sentence of ' Go, 
 ye cursed, into everlasting fire.' There were so many in 
 distress, that I could not get a particular knowledge of the 
 special reasons at that time, only as I heard them crying, 
 ' Woe is me ! What must I do .' ' And such sort of short 
 sentences with bitter accents. 
 
 " Now those that could not restrain themselves, were gen^ 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 139 
 
 erally ca rried o ut of the m eetinatiQuse, and a second sermon 
 was preached by Mr. Jevvett to others that were able to at' 
 tend ; after which the assembly was dismissed, and my house 
 soon filled with wounded souls ; and I took pains to satisfy 
 myself and others, by inquiring into the reasons of the trem- 
 bling, crying, fainting, and other signs of fear that were so 
 manifest in the assembly ; and they declared in their own 
 words, all to this purpose, viz., that a deep sense of past 
 sensualities and careless neglects of the concerns of their 
 souls ; their slighting freq^uent and solemn warnings, and with- 
 standing the calls of the gospel, together with a dfeep sense of 
 their liableness, every moment, to be arrested and cast into 
 the prison of hell, where those sinners lay that refused td 
 hearken to the warnings given by Noah the preacher of right- 
 eousness, was truly the spring of all these various signs of 
 distress. Some run back upon the sins of riper years (for 
 there were several persons upwards of forty, and some of 
 more than fifty years old, that discovered great concern by 
 their pale countenances and tears, and trembling too) . Some 
 cried out of the hardness of their hearts, others of their un- 
 belief. Some were crying, ' God be merciful to me, a sin- 
 ner,' and others entreated Christians to pray for them. Thus 
 they continued at my house for several hours ; and after I 
 had taken what pains with them I thought necessary for that 
 evening, and prayed with them, they were advised to repair 
 to their own places of abode ; and accordingly, all that were 
 'able, went home. 
 
 " Now I thought the people in great danger, and especial- 
 ly those that were most deeply wounded. I knew, in all 
 probability, that hell was in an uproar ; the prince of dark- 
 ness saw his kingdotnTsTiaEing, anH he was in great danger of 
 losing many of his obedient subjects ; many threatened re- 
 bellion, and were in danger of being accused of treason 
 against his crown ; and therefore, if possible,, he would allure 
 them back to former fidelity, persuade them to settle down 
 upon the foundation of their own works, or drive them to ut- 
 ter despair of mercy. And therefore I dare not sit in my 
 study the next day, (though that loudly called for me to be 
 there,) but spent my time abroad among distressed souls, 
 and others that fell in my way that were more lightly touch- 
 ed. Nor were private Christians contented in their fields or 
 shops at home, when the fields were so white for the har- 
 
140 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 vest ; but some of them also, in their places, were helpers, in 
 the work that seemed necessary to be done. The following 
 evening a religious meeting was attended in a private house. 
 I went to it, though T. could not pretend to preach a sermon. 
 I offered a few words of the ^ miseries of the unconverted, 
 the price that was now put into their hands, and the great 
 danger of not improving it ; but was obliged in a few min- 
 utes to desist, because the house was filled with outcries and 
 bitter lamentation. The complaint was much the same with 
 what it had been the day before. 
 
 "I c ontinued to preach and exhort publicly, and from 
 house to house, about six times a week through this month at 
 home, besides attending upon distressed souls upon certain 
 appointed days in my study. And though I spake to them 
 with unusual moderation, in my study, (as well as in sermons 
 about this time,) that I might have greater advantage to in- 
 struct their minds, yet I was commonly obliged to make sev- 
 eral stops of considerable length, and intreat them, if possi- 
 ble, to restrain the flood of affection, that so they might at- 
 tend to further truths which were to be offered, and others 
 might not be disaffected. Some would after a while recov- 
 er themselves, and others, I am satisfied, could not. I have 
 thought since, whether I did not do wrong in endeavouring to 
 restrain them. The pains they took with themselves to keep 
 from' outbreakings, was a greater hindrance to their 'hearing 
 than their outcries were." 
 
 " I do not remember that I preached a sermon through 
 the month, without some manifest tokens of the presence of 
 God in our assemblies. Ma ny were aw akened, and convic- 
 tions were deep. Peop le flocked to my study daily, and in 
 great numbers, deeply wounded, and the errand was, to lay 
 open the state of their souls, and receive direction. Some- 
 times I had thirty in a day, and sometimes many more, all 
 upon the grand affair of their souls . 
 
 " Ma ny, with the greates t freedom, confessed that tho ugh 
 ^ they had a name to live, they were d ead iji t respasse s and 
 /\ sins ; and this not o nly in~private, but to num bers at once. 
 They did not thin k it matte r of offense, if t heir neigh bours 
 beljevedlEem wh en th ey said it. They sp ake sen sibly of it, 
 as we mighT expect a condemned malefactor would do if he 
 was going to the place of execution. They would solemnly 
 declare that they never knew what real union to Christ was ; 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 141 
 
 that they were strangers to sensible communion with the Fa- 
 ther and his Son Jesus, and to the temper of the gospel, and 
 had rested easy with merely external communion, or the form 
 of godliness. Their distressed countenances, and free and 
 frequent confessions that they were yet in the bonds of ini- 
 quity, together with their warnings to others, never to rest 
 until they knew Christ was formed in them, proved awaken- 
 ing to many professors, and put them upon the search and 
 inquiry into the reasons of their hope ; and some were sha- 
 ken off from their old foundation, supposing they had built 
 upon the sand, whilst others had the more peace in beheving. 
 
 " The like effects, sometimes more and sometimes less 
 observable, continued through the summer. There were 
 also many instances (and the number was daily increasing) 
 of persons filled with great joy and comfort. It was com- 
 mon to hear of and to see them overcome, and fainting under 
 high discoveries of God reconciled in Christ. Some also I 
 have seen overcome with concern for others ; and sometimes 
 their concern terminated on particular persons, that they fear- 
 ed were in a state of sin. 
 
 " The conversation of the people in general, was reli- 
 gious. If at any time neighbours met, the great affairs of sal- 
 vation were the subject of discourse. In the streets, in the 
 fields, and in private houses, the discourse was instructive ; 
 some inquiring the way to life, others in their proper sphere 
 endeavouring to help the distressed by their humble advice 
 and counsel. Some, that knew the terrors of the Lord, 
 would persuade the careless, and modestly recommend the 
 grace of God to their acceptance, from their own experi- 
 ence of its sweetness. And as there were frequent inqui- 
 ries about the things of infinite concern, so there was a great 
 increase of knowledge in religious matters. According to 
 the best observation I could make, I believe the people ad- 
 vanced more in their acquaintance with the Scriptures, and a 
 true doctrinal understanding of _the operations of the Holy 
 Spirit in conviction, regeneration and sanctification, in six 
 months' time, than they had done in the whole of my minis- 
 try before, which was nine years. Nor was this all, but many 
 evidently looked upon sin with abhorrence. They appear- 
 ed to be renewed in the spirit of their minds. Bitterness, 
 and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil-speaking seem- 
 ed to be put away from them, with all malice. Their fruit 
 
142 TH£ GREAT AWAKENINGk 
 
 was unto holiness. Love to God and man, with their genuine 
 fruits, were increasing. Rough and haughty minds became 
 peaceful, gentle, and easy to be entreated. Lowliness, long- 
 suffering, forbearance, a courteous deportment, beneficence, 
 and tender-heartedness, meekness and moderation, to all ap- 
 pearance, seemed to increase abundantly. And to all these, 
 we observed a delight in Christian fellowship, in breaking of 
 bread, and in prayer. I think it cannot be expected that 
 men, in their general course, should give clearer evidences of a 
 Christian temper formed in them, than many did in that sea- 
 son. Their faith worked by love, and discovered itself in 
 acts of piety towards God, charity and righteousness towards 
 men, and sobriety towards themselves. 
 
 " We had some' special seasons of divine influence in 
 that time, both upon converted and unconverted, which. 1 
 must not now relate ; it would make the account too long ; 
 but I cannot pass over our pentecost, on the 11th day of the 
 following October. I preached from Psalm 2 : 12, upon 
 the nature and necessity of faith in Christ ; and then admin- 
 istered the sacrament of the^JLord^s_Supper, to near three 
 hundred souls, as I judge. It was a day never to be forgot- 
 ten ; but, I think, ought to be remembered with holy won- 
 der and gratitude by all that were present. The house of 
 the Lord was full of the glory of the Lord, • It pierces me 
 to the heart, that any have ever attempted to throw darkness 
 over the rich grace of God that was so clearly discovered ; 
 or to misrepresent the gracious effects of those discoveries 
 that were made to many. Though we had enjoyed much of 
 the gracious presence of God in our assemblies before, yet, 
 I think I never saw so much at any time as on that day. 
 Especially when the Lord's Supper was administered, God 
 poured out his Spirit in a wonderful measure. I ^pake a few 
 things to the communicants, as I remember, concerning the 
 mediatorial excellencies and love of Jesus Christ, when I 
 came down to the communion table and began to break the 
 bread ; and then invited them all to come to him as well as 
 to his table, and assured them, in his name, that they should 
 be welcome to the rich treasures of his grace, which were 
 open and free to all that would come. I had no sooner of- 
 fered some things of this nature in a few short hints, but sev- 
 eral of the church cried out in most bitter accents, of their 
 piercing the Lord Jesus Christ by their unbelief, and showed 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 143 
 
 the signs of distress in their countenances ; whilst many 
 scores were dissolving in tears. A considerable number 
 trembled in the anguish of their souls, as though they had 
 heard the thunderings and seen the lightnings from the thick 
 cloud ; whilst many more began to put on immortality, al- 
 most, in the look of their faces. I could not but think that 
 the Lord Jesus was come to his table, and feasting their souls 
 with his love, discovering his mediatorial glories to them ; 
 letting them taste of his preciousness, opening to them the 
 mysterious wonders of his grace, and the like. But will you 
 ask why I entertained such thoughts as these ? I am willing 
 you should know the reason. Their looks were all love, ad- 
 oration, wonder, delight, admiration, humility. In short, it 
 looked to me a resemblance of Heaven ; where the shining 
 hosts of angels and glorified saints are for ever before the 
 throne of God, in the lowest prostration, crying ' Holy, holy, 
 holy Lord God ; thou art worthy to receive glory, and honor, 
 and power, and blessing, and thanksgiving.' But some of 
 those in distress, about the end of the distribution of the 
 bread, appeared to be in a calm, and before the cup was 
 poured, they seemed to have a delightful sense of something 
 upon their minds. Their looks were changed from anguish 
 to pleasure and admiration, love and humility, and the like. 
 
 " I was too much taken up with these things, and some dis- 
 coveries which I trust were made to me, with the effects 
 of them, to make any critical remarks upon any indecen- 
 cies ; though some few, not so well pleased with the ap- 
 pearances, have said, that there was one or two instances of 
 these extraordinaries that were not decent the whole of the 
 time of administration. One thing complained of as an in- 
 decency was, that two men embraced each other in their 
 arms before the blessing was given. The fact, I suppose, 
 is true ; but others say it was after the blessing was given. 
 Nor do I think it so verj' indecent, as some would represent 
 it. Another thing complained of is, persons going about the 
 meetinghouse in the sacrament time. This, I suppose, was 
 true, that one single person, who was a subject of these influ- 
 ences, did go out of one pew into another upon some occa- 
 sion just before the blessing was given, and some two or 
 three others that, it seems, did not .so well affect the prospect, 
 went round the body of seats on one side of the house, and 
 then out of doors. Blessed be God, that there was nothing 
 
1.44 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 fiirfber than I haye related, which has been excepted against, 
 as I remember. The general reverence and decency of be- 
 haviour in the suhjectsof this great grace was indeed admirable. 
 
 "Mg,ny old Christians told me, they had never seen so 
 much of the glory of the Lord and the riches of his grace, 
 nor felt, so much of the power of the gospel before ; they 
 had never seen so clearly the infinite ocean of divine love ; 
 never been so sensible of the love of God to them, nor had 
 such strong love so clearly in exercise to him. Sev- 
 eral of them had. the full assurance of faith, who had been 
 seeking after it for many years, but were denied till that time. 
 New converts were greatly refreshed and quickened. I 
 cannot; doubt whether they had the presence of the Comfor- 
 ter. Christ then appeared more lovely than the princes of 
 this world. They sat under his shadow with great delight, 
 and his fruit was sweet to their taste. They were feasted 
 in, his banqueting-house, and his banner over them was love. 
 They could not support themselves, many of them, under the 
 weight of it, they were so deeply affected with it. Had not 
 Christ put underneath his everlasting arms for their support, 
 I know, not but many would have expired under the weight 
 Qf divine benefits. And besides all this, I tbink we have a 
 good evidence of the saving conversion of several of the 
 communicants at the same time. The several discoveries 
 they gave an account of, together with the effects of these 
 discoveries, produced in a law-worband a true closure with 
 Jesus Christ, gave me considerable hope of it ; and a long 
 time since, to observe their pious life and holy conversation, 
 confirms my first; hope that it was a reality, and no deception. 
 
 " Since that time, we have had many refreshing seasons, 
 both in public worship and more private assemblies ; and 
 many hopeful conversions. Nor are public and private 
 meetings the only places of these influences and effects ; the 
 closet, the field, the shop, and the kitchen, are all witnesses 
 to them. It was no uncommon thing for Christians to be 
 overcome in their private retirements, as they have told me of 
 the happy seasons. In meditation at some times, and con- 
 versation at others, divine truth has been set in a clear light, 
 and they have been made to know the truth of the gospel of 
 the blessed God. But the work has not appeared^ in a gen- 
 eral way, so powerful since, as it did the first eight or nine 
 months. Indeed, God gives witness to the truth of these 
 
THE GREAT ^WAKENING. 145 
 
 things, at times, more or less, unto this day ; and will, I 
 trust, until the end." 
 
 Many, who can understand how sinners should be over- 
 come by a sense of danger, will be staggered at these ac- 
 counts of intense, overpowering emotion in Christians, in 
 view of purely spiritual objects, — of God, and the glorious 
 truths that relate to him. But the fact that they did thus 
 feel, and were thus overcome by their feelings, is undeniable. 
 And the testimony is abundant, that such beholdings of the 
 glory of the Lord did exert a transforming influence upon 
 them, making them more humble, more kind, more patient, 
 more ready for every good work, more entirely amiable in 
 the eyes of all who love true goodness. It would scarce be 
 possible to produce, such effects on one of the congregations 
 of the present day. The pulpit has labored so long, and so 
 powerfully, to give all our religious thoughts a practical di- 
 rection, to engage us in plans for accomphshing appreciable 
 good here on earth, and we have been so thoroughly taught 
 to expend our sensibilities in action for the good of others, 
 that we should need a long and laborious training, to make us 
 capable of such engrossing contemplation of objects purely 
 spiritual. Whether we are, on the whole, the worse or the 
 better Christians for the change, is a question not to be an- 
 swered hastily. There can be no doubt that we are better 
 than they for certain uses ; and perhaps we should be better 
 still, if we had occasional seasons of contemplation and feel- 
 ing, more like theirs. 
 
 The converts were chiefly from among ths ynnth :. but 
 thr ee'Wtour were upw a rds of fifty, two near sev enty, and one 
 nin ety-three yearso Tage. At the date of this account, the 
 pastor says ; "I have reason to hope, about one hundred 
 and eighty souls belonging to this congregation, have met 
 with a saving change, since the beginning of the late glorious 
 effusion of the Holy Spirit among us ; besides the frequent 
 and more than common quickenings and refreshings of others, 
 that were hopefully in Christ years before." In nine months, 
 ending February 4, 1742, one hundred and fifty members 
 were added to the church. -^ 
 
 CC ^Still, Parsons did not pretend that all was pure in Lyme.»^ 
 ' 'There have been many things amiss. I thought so from 
 the beginning, and I think so still." Besides the opposition 
 of enemies, " some I thought a little intemperate in their 
 13 
 
146 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 zeal at times, and for some things that it was hardly worth 
 while to contend about. I have seen reason' to alter my own 
 conduct in several things ; particularly, to treat those that 
 opposed the work with greater candor and mildness, and to 
 address myself to all conditions of men with more tender- 
 ness, than I did several times." 
 
 There were a few, who, for a time, inclined to favor Da- 
 venport's lay exhorters, his separate meetings, and his doc- 
 trine of impressions concerning future events ; but these 
 things never became prevalent. Two or three, who were 
 not of the new converts, expressed their joy " several times " 
 at religious meetings by laughing ; and others, " under high 
 spiritual discoveries," spoke out aloud during public worship, 
 supposing that it would be as inoffensive as the crying out of 
 the convicted ; but such instances were few, and scarce any 
 approved them. It had been reported, that " trances, vis- 
 ions, extraordinary missions and immediate revelations " 
 were common among the new converts ; but though he was 
 extensively acquainted with them, and had conversed with 
 thousands of them, he had "not met with a score who pre- 
 tend to any such thing," and he doubted whether half that 
 number could be found in Connecticut. And yet his ac- 
 quaintance included the region where they were said to be 
 most abundant. 
 
 The preservation of the converts and others at Lyme from 
 the faults with which they were charged, was probably owing, 
 in no small degree, to the "JNe edful Cau tion in a Critical 
 Day." This sermon was pre ached February 4, 1742, 
 about ten months from the commencement oi the revival. 
 The text was Titus 2:8. " That he that is of the contrary 
 part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you." 
 Its object was, to gua rd his people against err ors in doctrine 
 and practice, into which they were m danger of falling, and 
 especially to urge the duty of abstaining from things which, 
 though innocent in themselves, might lead to evil, or occa- 
 sion needless reproach. After forcibly showing " the con- 
 trariety there is in men to the designs of divine grace," he 
 urges that this " should be a strong persuasive with the chil- 
 dren of God to improve in holiness, so that their opponents 
 might have no evil thing to say of them." He grants that 
 "the evil things which the happy subjects of the special 
 grace of God are guilty of, are many times the unhappy oc- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 147 
 
 casion of the rising contrariety and opposition in others." 
 The occasion, but not the cause ; for " my imperfections can 
 no more be the cause of another man's sins, than my graces, 
 if I have any, can be the cause of his goodness." But the 
 strength of the sermon was in the " application." 
 
 " 1. Let me caution and admonish ail Christless sinners, 
 whether professed opposers of the work of divine grace or 
 not, that they^do not stumble and cay H^t^ the work o f God's 
 rich jiidlregjgrace^ manifest at t his day, from those errors 
 and irregularities visibl e in the happy subjects of it. You 
 may see by what has been offered, that I am not about to 
 justify or excuse the sinful defects and foolish disorders of 
 Christians. It is a matter of shame and deep abasement, 
 (and that which hath called us together this day,) that those 
 who were born heirs of death and immortal anguish, but are 
 now graciously washed from their uncleanness in the blood of 
 the blessed Jesus, and through his name have the free remis- 
 sion of all their sins, should be so unwatchful, so carnal in 
 their behaviour, and such miserable patterns of humility and 
 resignation to God, as many are. But then, dear souls, it is 
 absurd in you to cavil against the gracious operations of the 
 Holy Spirit, because the persons that declare the work of 
 divine grace are guilty of some errors and defects. The 
 saving, sanctifying influences of the blessed Spirit do not 
 make men infallible. There is abundance of remaining blind- 
 ness and corruption in the most holy men ; yea, perhaps 
 more sin and corruption than grace and holiness in the most 
 refined Christians. It is surely a great argument of your 
 being blinded through lust or prejudice, that you dwell so 
 much upon the follies of your neighbours, and would thereby 
 hinder the success of the gospel. It is very much to be 
 feared, at least, that you are strangers to the sanctifying influ- 
 ences of the Holy Spirit, when you can so easily pass over 
 the table of rich dainties which God spreads for his own 
 children, which while they feast upon, their souls are drawn 
 out in rivers of pleasure and love ; and, like the crow, light 
 upon and greedily pick every bit of filthy carrion you can 
 meet with. By this, I do not invite you to approve of dis- 
 orders ; but would humbly beseech and solemnly warn you 
 not to be found fighting against God. Whilst you stand 
 amazed at the rings of the wheels, as things too high and 
 dreadful for you ; whilst you know not what to make of the 
 
148 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 effusions of the Holy Spirit, but are blundering at every 
 thing amiss, when God is working a work of his astonishing 
 grace before your eyes, which you will not believe ; beware 
 lest that come upon you which is spoken of by the prophet, 
 — 'Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish.' Dear 
 immortal souls, I beseech and persuade you, by the mercies 
 of God, and the astonishing love of the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 that you would not sacrifice the operations of the blessed 
 Spirit to your own prejudice, arising from our imperfections. 
 
 " 2. Let me warn and caution the children of God, now 
 met together, t o humble themselves before th e Lord ; that 
 they carefully watch against every thing in principle and prac- 
 tice that has a tendency to bring any blemishes upon the 
 work of divine grace, or to open the mouths of gainsayers, 
 and be a stumbling-block in the way of their giving credit to 
 the truth of it. Dear Christians, let me be able to bear re- 
 cord, that, to your power, yea, and beyond your power, you 
 are willing to shut the mouths of the contrary part, and make 
 them ^shamed, having no evil thing to say of you. It is the 
 reasonable expectation of God, that you give none occasion 
 of offence to them that are without. It is the reasonable 
 expectation of angels, who rejoice at the progress of the 
 Redeemer's kingdom and the conversion of sinners, that you 
 shun, to the uttermost, every folly that tends to embitter the 
 spirits of men. Know you not that the present circumstan- 
 ces of the church of Christ, and the threatening aspect over 
 it, do eminently call upon me, and all others that long for the 
 prosperity of Jerusalem, to use great plainness of speech 
 and holy vigilance .'' Especially in some of our towns, where 
 God has shed abroad his love in the hearts of many ; and 
 so even with us, the glory of the Lord is evidently depart- 
 ing, and human passion and unallowed measures seem to be 
 taking its place." Then he exhorts them, "as a means to 
 recover the poor church from its wounds, and to prevent its 
 being stabbed to death," to avoid several errors which he 
 specifies. " 1. Give no countenance to any mens' setting 
 themselves up as the public teacliers of the church." Broth- 
 erly exhortation, with becoming modesty, he approves, and 
 urges as a duty ; but not that laymen should set themselves 
 up as teachers, and appoint meetings over which they are to 
 preside, and in which they are to teach, like ministers. This, 
 he contends, is unscriptural ; and no fancied ability or desire 
 
THE GllKAT AWAKENrNG. 149 
 
 lo do good, or hope or supposed experience of usefulness, 
 can justify them in attempting to do good by breaking the 
 command of God. "2. Give no countenance to despisers 
 of human learning in public teachers of the church." This 
 some were prone to do, expecting such immediate revela- 
 tions to teachers, as would supersede its necessity.* " 3. 
 Give no countenance to that absurd notion, of depending 
 upon the immediate impulses of the Holy Spirit for every 
 word you say, or every action you do. As absurd as such 
 an opinion is, I had almost yielded to it myself, under a mis- 
 taken thought of depending upon the Lord thereby. Blessed 
 be God, who preserved me from it. I now look upon this 
 [as] extravagant presumption, instead of having dependence 
 upon the Lord. 1 might as well, on the other extreme, 
 command the stones to become bread for the relief of my 
 hunger, as on this, to cast myself down from the pinnacle of 
 the temple, and to abuse the gracious promise of God, under 
 the imagination of being borne up on the wings of angels. — 
 
 4. Give no countenance to spiritual pride and self-confidence. 
 
 5. Give no countenance to a spirit and practice of rash 
 judging. It is a granted truth, that every man and woman, 
 as they come into this world, are concluded under sin, and 
 lie open to the ])ains of eternal damnation. Until, therefore, 
 they give me Scripture evidence of their deliverance from 
 the guilt of sin and the curse of the law, I should be guilty 
 of rash judging to conclude that they were in a state of favor 
 with God ; for no evidence of such a change is sufficient, 
 but Scripture evidence. And here suffer me to tell you, 
 that greater occasion is doubtless given to ' the contrary 
 part ' to say some evil thing of you, and of the gracious in- 
 fluences of the Holy Spirit, by rashly concluding persons 
 are converted, without good evidence of it, than by saying 
 you have no good grounds to think those persons converted, 
 who tender only a public profession .of religion and a moral 
 character as the evidence of it. I would in no wise, by this, 
 encourage any rash conclusion against such men ; for cer- 
 tainly the saving influences of God's Holy Spirit lead to a 
 good life and a profession of Christ before men. But mere- 
 
 * The chief foundation of this error, Parsons does not notice. It was 
 
 the-'praclice of training unconverted men for the ministry, as if human 
 
 learning was a sufficient qualification. Tliis error naturally producd its 
 
 opposite, entire contempt for human learning as a ministerial qualification. 
 
 13* 
 
150 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 ly those are not the Scripture marks of conversion ; nor do 
 they amount to that evidence of another's conversion that I 
 must wait for, before I may conclude him so without being 
 guilty of rashness. And, indeed, rashly to conclude that 
 persons are converted is of much more dangerous conse- 
 quence, than rashness on the other side, — though both are to 
 be avoided and abhorred ;" for, he argues, the false hopes of 
 self-deceivers are strengthened by such rash decisions in 
 their favor ; and then, when such fall away, opposers are 
 encouraged to reproach Christianity and despise the work of 
 God's Spirit. He had found no source of reproaches more 
 abundant than this. " 6. Be warned against justifying, ex- 
 cusing, or endeavouring to extenuate your known errors or 
 irregularities, when any person puts you in mind of them. 
 I am persuaded there is too great a readiness in some of 
 God's dear children to justify, or at least to excuse, their 
 own imperfections, and to suspect some ill design in those 
 that deal plainly with them for the same. Yea, and it is too 
 common with them, to spend that time in vain jangling, and 
 endeavouring to excuse the very things they should condemn 
 in themselves, which might be much better spent in their 
 closets, begging for renewed pardons, and for grace to guard 
 against every evil thing by which the contrary part is waiting 
 to get some advantage." 
 
 Such were the teachings of on e of th e me n most ce nsured 
 for blind enthusiasm an d headlong z eal. This sermon shows 
 tha t riearly^TTthe faults charged upon th e promoters and sub- 
 jects of jF revival r eally existed, and threatened to prevail ; 
 thouglTTEi vigilance^ the early and prompt Interference, of 
 the pastors confined them within much narrower limits than is 
 usually supposed. It shows, too, that P arso ns himself, in 
 the warmth of his first successful labors, strayed to the very 
 brink of t he preci pice, and led his people" towards the dan- 
 ger IfoHTwhich he soon had grace to recall them. But this 
 Eicture is not complete without a view of the other parish in 
 iyme, and of Parsons itinerating. 
 
 LYME, EAST PARISH. 
 
 The Rev. George Griswold's account of the revival in 
 the East Parish of Lyme is dated April 3, 1744. This 
 parish was considerably smaller than the other, containing 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 151 
 
 about sixty or seventy families. Mr. Griswold's descriptioa 
 of the previous decline of religion, t)f the influence of re- 
 ports concerning Whitefield and others, of the increasing 
 thoughtfulness in the winter of 1741, till the arrival of Ten- 
 nent, agree substantially with that given by Mr. Parsons. 
 After Tennent's sermons, April I, 1741, " The concern 
 spread and increased, and was visible in the face of the con- 
 gregation on the Lord's day, and at other times of public 
 worship ; and some were distressed that they were so stupid 
 as not to be concerned." Evening meetings were set up. 
 At one of them, April 14, Mr. Parsons preached, as men- 
 tioned in his own account. " The word fell with great 
 power on sundry, who were deeply wounded under a sense 
 of sin and divine wrath. Some had fits ; some fainted ; and 
 it was observable that God made use of the concern in some 
 to create a concern in others ; and some, that did not appear 
 much concerned when the public exercises ended, yet, seeing 
 others distressed, fell into a deep distress under a conviction 
 of sin and the sense of divine wrath due to them. Some 
 hours were spent in praying with and counselling the distress- 
 ed. ' After this, cryings out at the preaching of the word 
 were frequent. These things, being the first that had been 
 so remarkable in any town or parish near us, were much 
 talked of; and many1)ersons came to see and hear," some 
 of whom believed it to be the work of the Holy Spirit, and 
 some knew not what to think. Mr. Griswold " was per- 
 suaded that, as tq the substance of it, it was the work of 
 God, though accompanied with some unusual circumstances ;" 
 because he found the same conviction of sin and other mental 
 exercises that usually accompany a work of the Spirit of 
 God. " Soon after this, there was a great concern at a pri- 
 vate house, among about ten persons, where there had been 
 no preaching, praying, or any thing of that nature." Mr. 
 Griswold, passing that way, was called in to pray with and 
 counsel them ; " and some that came in to see them were 
 struck under conviction, and the most of these persons were 
 soon after hopefully converted. Now outcries, faintings, and 
 fits were often in meetings ; though the greater part that I 
 hope experienced a saving change, did not make any out- 
 cries ; nor did they faint or have fits under the divine influ- 
 ences of the Holy Spirit." By the end of June, the pastor 
 hoped that about forty persons had " experienced a saving 
 
152 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 change." Some members of the church were among the 
 converts. " It hath been frequent for persons to be in great 
 distress for others, so as to be overcome thereby. Many 
 have had such discoveries of the love of God and Christ, as 
 to be overcome, and to lose their bodily strength thereby ; 
 which, I think, was observed to begin towards the latter end 
 jof July, 1741 ; after which, sometimes in public, but more 
 especially in private meetings, this hath been frequent, not on- 
 ly in persons hopefully converted since this remarkable reli- 
 gious concern, but in those that are supposed to have been 
 formerly converted." 
 
 From August, 1741, convictions mostly ceased till winter, 
 when the work revived again, but less powerfully, and there 
 were occasional conversions till the spring of 1743. As the 
 fruits of the revival, one hundred v/hite persons and thirteen 
 Indians became members of the church. All but two or 
 three of these, who merely owned the covenant and came to 
 the Lord's table, gave satisfactory evidence of conversion ; 
 as did a few others, who had not yet united with the church. 
 The Indians were of the Niantic tribe, for whose conversion 
 efforts had been made for several years, but without effect, 
 till Mr. Davenport came among them in August, 1741. 
 Twenty or more of them were "hopefully converted." 
 Through all this revival, Mr. GriswolU had "taken care to 
 caution persons against laying any weight on crying out, faint- 
 ing, and fits, as signs or marks of conversion." There had 
 been no separations or divisions. 
 
 PARSONS ITINERATING. 
 
 Parsons' account of the revival in his own parish contains 
 the following episode, which deserves to be placed under a 
 distinct head : — 
 
 " About this time, the Rev. Messrs. Lord of Norwich, 
 Owen of Groton, and other ministers in the eastern parts of 
 this government, sent letters, inviting me to visit them, to see 
 the work of the Lord, and help them also ; (for it was com- 
 mon in that day for brethren to send for each other to 
 preach.) After some struggles with myself, I consented to 
 go ; and accordingly set out on the 8th of June, intending to 
 preach some few sermons before I returned. The same day 
 I preachedjor Mr. Lovett of New Salem, at his desire, and 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 153 
 
 there I observed a solemn attention ; concern in the counte- 
 nances of some, and delight in others. I have had some ac- 
 quaintance with the people in that place since that time, and 
 believe that there is a considerable number of persons savingly 
 converted in the late season of grace. From thence I went, 
 the same day at evening, over tp the North Pfirish of New 
 L o ndon , and June_the^ Qth-j tfeached two sermons for M r. 
 j£wett ; under which, but especially the first, there was a 
 great and general concern visible in the faces of the people : 
 weeping, sighing and the like among the aged and the youth, 
 while many of the children of about ten, twelve and fourteen 
 years old, cried aloud, and spake some such sentences as 
 these, viz : ' What must I do .'' I never honored this great 
 king ! * Lord Jesus help me ! ' &c. From thence I hastened 
 over to Norwich, because Mr. Lord expected me to preach 
 a lecture for him that evening. And when I came there, 
 there was a great assembly gathered, to which I preached 
 from Psalm 119: 59, 60. They gave very solemn atten- 
 tion ; and there was a concern apparent, by tears and sighs, 
 in almost every corner of the house. The next day I 
 preached another sermon for Mr. Lord, the visible effects of 
 which were not so great as the first. I observed a great 
 flocking of the people, not only to hear the word, but to their 
 pastor for advice. From thence I went forward to Stoning- 
 ton, and, on the 11th of June, preached two sermons for Mr. 
 Eells. There seemed to be tokens for good ; an attentive 
 audience, and much weeping in the assembly ; but I do not 
 remember any outbreakings in the extraordinary manner that 
 I had sometimes heard. Yet Mr. Eells informed me after- 
 wards in a letter, that there were many instances of particular 
 persons, unto whom the ministry of that day was blessed. I 
 thought when I was with him, that he had the blessing of 
 some excellent Christians in his parish. It was formerly a 
 place noted for profaneness and other vices, but he said (and 
 so I thought) that there was a great reformation among them. 
 From Stonington I returned back by the way of Groton ; and 
 on the 12th of June preached one sermon for Mr. Owen, to 
 a great assembly of people. It pleased God to give me 
 greater freedom of thought and expression than I had found 
 in all my journey before. I preached from Isaiah 61:1, and 
 the people, to all appearance, were all ear and attention. 
 
 * I was preaching upon the kingly office of Christ. 
 
154 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 There were no outcries, but the countenances of many dis- 
 covered sweet refreshment ; and others discovered great dis- 
 tress. And I had some satisfaction afterwards, by accounts 
 from divers persons, that the spring of comforts and concern 
 was from the Spirit of God. I could not tarry, indeed, to 
 speak with many after sermon, because I had encouraged Mr. 
 Croswell to preach at evening for him. But I had the com- 
 pany of a considerable number up to Mr. Croswell'? parish, 
 which is five miles distant from Mr Owen's. Upon the way 
 they told what things were done, and how Jesus had been 
 made known to them, and thejr hearts burned within them, 
 while they spoke of him. Jesus seemed to be their delight, 
 and humility their glory. At Mr. Cros well's I found great 
 concern upon the minds of people. It was apparent, in ser- 
 mon-time, by their weeping, and their looks. Some cried 
 out, and, from after conversation, I was satisfied that many 
 were very sensible of their sinful and undone condition, and 
 some others were really converted. I remember two women 
 came to me, who had made themselves' easy, for some time, 
 with the Arminian way of conversion ; and had been bol- 
 stered up in it by a certain gentleman, whom they admired. 
 They told me that they were now convinced that such a 
 scheme of doctrines, embraced, fatally settled persons down 
 short of Christ ; and, by their embracing of them, they had 
 gone calmly on in the way that leads down to death ; but now 
 they had an awakened sense of their sin, and of the infinite 
 hazard they were in of perishing ; yea, that they must per- 
 ish, unless God was self-moved to pity and save them. From 
 thence I returned to Norwich on Saturday, and kept Sab- 
 bath at Mr. Lord's. On June 14th, being Lord's day, I 
 preached again to a great, very attentive and deeply affected 
 assembly. The concern of some, and the delight of others, 
 was manifest in their countenances ; and, by conversing with 
 many afterwards, I was satisfied they were under the influ- 
 ences of God's Holy Spirit. And so from time to time, 
 upon opportunities with that people, I believe that Mr. Lord 
 has the blessing of many souls turned to righteousness among 
 them ; a considerable number of old Christians, and many 
 newly born, that are feeding upon the sincere milk of the 
 word, and growing up in Christ. June the 1 5th, I rode out 
 to Mr. Throop's, a new society in Norwich, and preached 
 one sermon for him, to a full assembly. There seemed to be 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 155 
 
 great listening to the word ; great concern appeared in the 
 countenances of many ; a great number were in tears, and 
 several cried out ; some fainted away, and one or two raged. 
 After the sermon was over, 1 took pains to find out the spring 
 of that distress which appeared in many instances, and I 
 think, they gave grounds to judge it was from conviction of 
 sin ; except those instances that were distressed with their 
 outrageous passions. 
 
 "Now I had accomplished the whole of my design in this 
 journey, both in visiting and conversing with my fathers and 
 brethren in the ministry, and in seeing the displays of rich 
 and sovereign grace ; and much exceeded my first design in 
 preaching. The next laid out in my own mind was to re- 
 turn home as fast as I could ; but the Rev. Mr. Adams of 
 New London sent me a letter, desiring that I would return 
 that way, and give his people some exhortations. Having 
 been there before in the time of the concern among the peo- 
 ple, I was unwilling to deny his request, because I had found 
 that there were peculiar difficulties rising up, and I feared my 
 refusing might rather increase them than otherwise. There 
 was a number of new converts with a flaming zeal, and jeal- 
 ous lest the laborers should not bear a proportion to the har- 
 vest ; and some others, from what spring I do not say, 
 (though some have imputed it to the imprudence of these 
 new converts,) who opposed themselves to the work going on 
 among them. Thus the kingdom seemed to be divided 
 against itself; — and I was the rather inclined to gratify the ven- 
 erable Mr. Adams on that account, not knowing but that I 
 might be instrumental of some good in that respect. Accord- 
 ingly I went, and on June 16th preached two sermons in that 
 place, besides using some private endeavours Jo make things 
 more easy, if it should please God to make use of me for 
 that end ; but the success was not according to my. wishes. 
 I found mutual rising jealousies, and, as I thought, ground- 
 less surmisings in some instances, prevailing among them. 
 These difficulties increased afterwards ; and, for want of char- 
 ity and mutual condescension and forbearance, they have 
 produced an open separation. I doubt not but that there are 
 excellent Christians on both sides ; and there has been a very 
 great display of divine grace among them ; but they are 
 doubtless to be blamed for the manner of separating. What 
 grounds they may have, I do not know, but am afraid they 
 have gone off upon a wrong principle." 
 
156 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 NEW LONDON. 
 
 Griswold, of East Lyme, also labored beyond the boiyids 
 of his own parish. Here is his account of some of the're- 
 sults : — 
 
 " Upon the report of the remarkable concern among us 
 April, 1741, the Rev. Mr. David Jevi^ett of the North Par- 
 ish in New London, in beginning of May, came here and 
 preached two sermons to the good acceptance of my people. 
 And as a return for his good will, toward the latter end of 
 May, I went and preached two sermons in his parish. Be- 
 fore I went, there was a seriousness on the minds of many 
 there ; though nothing of the visible appearance of a remark- 
 able, concern, like what had been among us. I observed that 
 almost all his people came to meeting, though on a week 
 day. And I observed a great seriousness and attention to 
 the word preached, and many tears shed at the hearing of the 
 word ; though I did not hear of any saving eflect of it on 
 the hearts of any persons, neither was there any outcry or 
 fainting ; though, as afterward I was told, there were some 
 that received those impressions and concern at the hearing 
 those sermons, that stuck by them till they hopefully experi- 
 enced a saving change. 
 
 " The summer and fall following, there was a concern 
 among the people ; and, as I have been told, about ten or 
 twelve hopefully converted. 
 
 " " About the latter end of July, Mr. Davenport came 
 there, and Mr. Jewett, as I was told, refused to give him an 
 account of his experiences of the work of God's Spirit on his 
 heart ; whereupon Mr. Davenport publicly delivered as his 
 opinion, or at least his great fears; that Mr. Jewett was un- 
 converted. Upon this, there arose j'an uneasiness among 
 those of his people that had^ perhaps, too great an esteem of 
 Mr. Davenport ; and, about the beginning of the next winter, 
 a number of his people seemed to be got almost at the point 
 of separation from him. Being invited by some of my 
 brethren in the ministry to visit them and preach to their peo- 
 ple, about the latter end of November, I set out on a small 
 journey to preach ; and almost every day preached twice a 
 day. At this time people were exceeding greedy to hear 
 the word, and flocked in great crowds where the word was 
 preached. For near a fortnight I did not see much effect of 
 my preaching that was remarkable for this day. Indeed, 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 157 
 
 some cried out under the sense of sin and divine wrath, and 
 some were overcome with joy and the sense of the love of 
 God f but the most of them had had these impressions on 
 them before in hearing the word ; unless one or two persons, 
 as I heard afterward, that God was pleased to make use of 
 my ministry as a means of their saving change. 
 
 " As I returned homeward on Saturday, the thirteenth day 
 after ray going from home, I called to visit the Rev. Mr. 
 Jewett ; and in discourse with him, I found that he was de- 
 sirous I should tarry and preach to his people, and he would 
 go and preach for me. I consented ; and we concluded he 
 should preach not only to my people on the Lord's day, but 
 also a lecture about the middle of the day on Monday ; and 
 that I should preach for him not only on the Lord's day, but 
 on the Lord's day evening and Monday evening ; and on 
 Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at some other parishes, 
 where I thought and partly linew I was desired to preach ; 
 and on Friday, as I returned homev/ard, that I should preach 
 for Mr. Jewett again in the afternoon and in the evening. I 
 felt something of reluctancy to tarry another week from 
 home, and in such painful service as riding from place to 
 place and preaching twice a day, that is, once in the day and 
 once in the evening ; but 1 thought there was the hand of God 
 in it, and it was not a thing of my own choosing, and com- 
 posed myself to be as quiet as I could. But it seems God 
 had some work for me, the most unworthy of his servants, to 
 do, that I did not know of. 
 
 " On the Lord's day, which was about the 9th or 10th day 
 of December, 1741, (it is to be noted that in the parish the 
 people live so scattered and remote that ihey have but one 
 sermon in the winter in a day,) there seemed to be consider- 
 able of concern, and the movings of the Spirit of God 
 among the people ; and about the close of the sermon, there 
 was one negro that had hopefully a saving discovery of Jesus 
 Christ, and received consolation. I preached a lecture in the 
 evening of the same day ; and there seemed a very great 
 pouring out of the Spirit ; many were in great distress, cry- 
 ing out under a sense of sin and the wrath of God ; and sun- 
 dry that were hopefully converted before, seemed to be filled 
 with the Spirit, and with earnest desire for the conversion of 
 others, and a spirit of prayer for it. After sermon was 
 ended, about two or three hours were spent with the dis- 
 
 r4 
 
158 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 tressed, in counselling of them, and praying with and for 
 them. This evening about three or four persons received 
 consolation, and were hopefully brought to receive Jesus 
 Christ. 
 
 " On Monday, T preached again at the meetinghouse ; and 
 there seemed to be a great pouring out of the Spirit of God ; 
 and many in distress, and one hopefully had a discovery of 
 Jesus Christ, and received consolation. On Monday even- 
 ing I preached again in the meetinghouse ; and the distress 
 of the people was so great, among them that tarried in the 
 meetinghouse the space between the public exercises, that I 
 was obliged to speak to the people, to compose and still 
 them, or I could not have had opportunity to pray with or 
 preach to them. Though there were outcries in the time of 
 public exercise, yet not so much as to interrupt the pub- 
 lic worship. Within the space of about two or three min- 
 utes after the blessing was given, there seemed to be a won- 
 derful outpouring of the Spirit ; many souls in great distress ; 
 and those that were converted before, much concerned for 
 the good of souls ; and about, three or four hours were spent 
 in counseUing the distressed and praying with them. 
 
 "It is to be noted that the Rev. Mr. David Jewett this 
 evening returned home, and, if I mistake not, came into the 
 meetinghouse in sermon time ; and within a few minutes after 
 sermon was ended and the blessing given, the Spirit of God 
 came down on him in a wonderful manner. He seemed to 
 be full of spirit and hfe from the Lord ; and this evening 
 he spent some hours in praying with, counselling and exhort- 
 ing of his people. And now they that before seemed to be 
 at the point of separation from him, had their hearts wonder- 
 fully united to him ; and ever since, he has appeared very 
 lively and fervent in the spirit of the Lord and in his cause. 
 This evening about seven or eight had hopefully a true dis- 
 covery of Jesus Christ, were converted, and received conso- 
 lation. 
 
 " The number of them that hopefully experienced a saving 
 change in Mr. Jewett's parish this week, either at the public 
 meetings or in the space between, was supposed to be about 
 twenty persons." 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 159 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 The Revival in New England. Plymouth, Sutton, Taunton, Middle- 
 borough, Halifax, Portsmouth, Gloucester, Reading, Newcastle, Wester- 
 ly, Northampton. 
 
 PLYMOUTH. 
 
 " TH^landing_ofjhej'ilgrims !" Every son and daughter 
 of a Puritan, every enlighteneH friend of Christianity and of 
 the blessings that follow in its train, will ask with interest for 
 the history of the revival here. It shall be given in the 
 words of the Rev. Nathanael Leonard, pastor of the First 
 Church, who wrote November 23, 1744.* 
 
 " It plea sed God to cast my lot (who am the least of all 
 saints) in the First Church and town in the coun try, above 
 twenty years ago. Religion was then under a great decay ; 
 most people seemed to be taken up principally about the 
 world and the lusts of this life ; though there appeared some 
 serious Christians among us that had the things of God at 
 heart, who greatly bewailed the growth of impiety, profane- 
 ness, Sabbath breaking, gaming, tavern-haunting, intemper- 
 ance, and other evils, which threatened to bear down all that 
 is good and sacred before them. We were sensible ofan^wful 
 degeneracy, and kept days^ ofJastiSg^nf prayer, yearjafter 
 year, thjt jSj^ woinjjjoui pul hjsS^ ; especi ally 
 
 on the rising generation. At these times we invited the minis- 
 ters of the county to join with us, who readily gave their 
 assistance. The authority of this town endeavoured to put a 
 stop to the growing intemperance, by clearing the taverns at 
 nine o'clock in the evening, and punishing loose and disor- 
 derly persons that frequented them. But all the methods 
 used one way and the other, proved of little effect. Iniquity 
 prevailed, and we were in danger of losing the very form 
 of godliness. 
 
 " The Rev. Mr. Whitefield coming into the land, and the 
 news we presently had of his preaching and conversation at 
 
 * Christian History, Vol. H. page 313. 
 
160 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Boston and elsewhere, roused us a little, and we sent to him 
 to come and preach to us. We expected him in October, 
 1740, but were disappointed. 
 
 " In March following, the Rev. Mr. Tennent came hither 
 and preached eight sermons to general acceptance, which, 
 by the blessing of God, greatly awakened this people, and 
 many have dated such religious impressions from that time, 
 as we have reason to believe issued in a real conversion to 
 God. After him, several ministers of the county and oth- 
 ers visited us, and preached with -us; and we often spent 
 whole days in prayer, singing and preaching, and had fre- 
 quently three exercises in them. I often preached three 
 times on the Lord's day myself, and sometimes three or four 
 times in the week besides ; although before this, through bod- 
 ily indispositioji and heaviness of spirit, 1 was not able to 
 carry on the usual stated exercises, and my people had for 
 some years provided me an assistant. 
 
 " The subjects chiefly insisted on were these following, 
 viz : The sin and apostasy of mankind in Adam ; the blind- 
 ness of the natural man in the things of God ; the enmity of 
 the carnal mind ; the evil of sin ; the desert of it, and the 
 utter inability of the fallen creature to relieve itself ; the 
 sovereignty of God ; his righteousness, holiness, truth, power, 
 eternity ; also his grace and mercy in Christ Jesus ; the way 
 of redemption by Christ ; justification, through his imputed 
 righteousness, received by faith ; this faith the gift of God, 
 and a living principle, that workelh by love ; legal and evan- 
 gelical repentance ; the nature and necessity of regeneration ; 
 and that without holiness no man can see God. All persons 
 were put upon examining themselves, warned against trusting 
 in their own righteousness, and resting in the form of godli- 
 ness, without the power, &c. These things, together with 
 pathetical invitations to sinners, to come and embrace the Lord 
 .Jesus Christ as offered in th« Gospel, made a wonderful im- 
 pression on the minds of all sorts of people at the first. And 
 men, women and children were much awakened, and the out 
 ward face of things began exceedingly to alter. 
 
 " In February, 1742, the Rev. Mr. Croswell came 
 hither, and continued in the town about a fortnight, preaching 
 sometimes in this, and sometimes in the other parish. At 
 this time, I think I may say, as the apostle does to the Thes- 
 salonians : ' The Gospel came unto us, not in word only, 
 but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, 'and in much assur- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 161 
 
 ance. And we received the word, not as the word of man, 
 but as it is in truth, the word of God, which wrought effec- 
 tually in them that behaved.' Hundreds of souls were at one 
 time in the meetinghouse, Saturday, February 13th, crying 
 out in the utmost concern, what they should do to be saved ! 
 and many others rejoicing in the Lord, in the sweet sense of 
 his redeeming love and grace in Christ Jesus, as they declar- 
 ed. This day, and at some other times, conversions were 
 so open and public, that we seemed to see souls, dead in tres- 
 passes and sins, revive and stand up monuments of divine 
 grace. I do not mean that we had an intuition of their hearts, 
 and knew infallibly the state of their souls, which is God's 
 prerogative ; but the appearance of conversion from one 
 state to the other, and the alteration in the frame and temper 
 of their minds, which they discovered in words and beha- 
 viour, was admirable. This day appeared to me in the time 
 of it, and hath done so ever since, a day of great grace, for 
 which my soul giveth thanks to God. 
 
 "After this, for some months together, you should scarcely 
 see any body at the taverns, unless they were strangers, 
 travellers, or some come there upon necessary business. 
 The children forsook their plays in the streets, and persons 
 of all denominations, except a few, gave themselves to read- 
 ing the word of God, and other books of devotion, to medi- 
 tation, prayer, conference, and other religious exercises, and 
 refrained from their customary vices. And many that lived 
 at a distance, being acquainted with this town in its former 
 state, coming hither, beheld us now with admiration, saying, 
 Surely- the fear of God is in this place. 
 
 " Furthermore, as this present "life is a state of imperfec- 
 tion, so there were some circumstances that attended this 
 work, which, if they had not been, might have prevented 
 some prejudice and offence against it. 
 
 " A violent opposition presently arose, and prevailed so 
 far, that a number of this congregation went out from us into 
 a distinct society, and nine of the brethren asked a dismis- 
 sion from us, to embody into a church by themselves. We 
 readily granted their request, and they have lately had a min- 
 ister set over them. My prayer for him and them is, 'that 
 God would pour out his Spirit abundantly upon them, greatly 
 enrich them with heavenly blessings, and fill them with all the 
 fulness of God.' 
 
 14* 
 
152 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 " As for the subjects of this work, it hath been here as 
 in other places. Some, that were a while under awakenings, 
 at length got rid of them, and are now returned as the dog 
 to his vomit. Some, that we thought at first savingly chang- 
 ed, have since given reason to fear that they deceived them- 
 selves as well as others. But the far greater part of them 
 that were added to the church, behave with such meekness, 
 humility, sobriety, and other Christian virtues, that I must say 
 of them, as David did of the godly of his day : ' They are 
 the excellent of the earth, in whom is my delight.' But I 
 would not be understood to confine my good opinion to those 
 only that have passed under a remarkable change within 
 three or four years past. No, I am persuaded there are a 
 number of truly godly persons among us, that experienced 
 the new birth before these days, and even before my settle- 
 ment in this town, for whom T have an equal regard. 
 
 " As to the present state of religion, the town is much 
 reformed from what it was before these days. But Christians 
 are not so lively as they have been ; the convincing Spirit 
 seems in a great measure withdrawn ; iniquity begins to grow 
 more bold of late ; and I am afraid a day of sore declension 
 is coming upon this place. O that God would again visit 
 this vine, which his right hand hath planted, and hath hitherto 
 preserved ! O that he would water it every moment ! Noth- 
 ing but a stream of grace, from that fountain where all fulness 
 dwells, can maintain and carry on a work of reformation 
 against the devices of the devil, the snares of the world, and 
 the opposition of men's hearts. 
 
 " I am so confirmed in it that this work is of God, that 
 in my most calm and sedate seasons my prayer is, not only 
 that God would lead me and guide me in his way, but enable 
 me to endure all manner of ill usage in the world, rather than 
 give up this cause, which I am fully persuaded is his, to 
 whom be glory and praise for ever and ever. Amen." 
 
 SUTTON. 
 
 It is not clear, from what period the awakening in Sutton 
 should be dated ; as indications of its approach appeared 
 very early, — some months before Whitefield's arrival in 
 New England, — though it was long in assuming a decided 
 character. It seems to belong to the Northampton class of 
 revivals. The Rev. David Hall's account is dated May 28, 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 163 
 
 1744. His labors among this people coramenced in 1728. 
 Within about two years, there was a very observable refor- 
 mation of morals, and the number of communicants was more 
 than doubled. After this, there appeared to be a gradual 
 abatement of religious concern ; but it revived again in 1735. 
 At this time, he says, " it came into my mind, and I trust it 
 was from God, to visit the people of my charge, and to ap- 
 ply myself particularly to every one that was arrived to years 
 of understanding ; that I might know the state of the flock, 
 and make particular application to the consciences of young 
 and old among us. This appeared to be attended with some 
 very hopeful symptoms of success." A society of young 
 men vpas formed for religious purposes ; and family meetings 
 were established in four different parts of the town. These 
 meetings were continued monthly ; but religious interest seem- 
 ed gradually to decline for several years. At length, Mr. Hall 
 writes, " God was pleased wonderfully to convince me of 
 this in the latter end of April, 1740, and greatly to humble 
 me." This was accompanied by a persuasion that he should 
 see religion reviving, and an ardent desire to save souls for 
 whom Christ died. He now "longed for the sanctuary," 
 and knew, better than ever before, "what it was to preach 
 with the spirit, and with the understanding also." There 
 was this summer an increasing attentiveness to the means of 
 grace, and more solemnity in the worshipping assembUes. In 
 October, Mr. WhiteSeld preached in a neighbouring town on 
 his way to Northampton. A few from Sutton were present, 
 and were brought under conviction ; but in general, hardness 
 of heart prevailed, and in the spring of 1741, Mr. Hall, in 
 discouragement, began to speak of going to preach in some 
 town where there was no minister. 
 
 " But so it was, that the very next Sabbath following, I 
 saw considerable tokens of the goings of God in the congre- 
 gation. Our assembly was generally swallowed up in tears ; 
 and from this time I perceived a more general concern upon 
 the countenances of the people. Sundry persons came to 
 me under soul-concern soon after." Some of these soon 
 gave'evidence of conversion, and were added to the church. 
 During the remainder of the year there were few instances of 
 conversion ; but the number of the convicted increased, till 
 at its close they amounted to at least one hundred. In Jan- 
 uary, 1742, " there appeared hopeful symptoms of a broken 
 
164 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 spirit and a bleeding heart." This was a good sign. When 
 the anxiety that attends conviction gives place directly to joy 
 in view of the way of salvation through Christ, we may hope 
 the conversion will prove real ; but there will be some cases 
 of self-deception and subsequent apostasy. When it sub- 
 sides into self-abhorrence for sin and acquiescence in God's 
 condemning sentence as just and right, every experienced 
 pastor knows that the convert may be expected to " wear 
 well." Soon after this, a considerable number offered them- 
 selves to the communion of the church. " They came as a 
 cloud, and as doves to their windows." Neighbouring minis- 
 ters, Parkraan and Prentice, and Edwards from Northampton, 
 preached there, and with good effect. " During all this, we 
 were not exercised with any public outcries in time of public 
 worship ; although there might frequently be discovered, 
 persons under a most deep and solemn sense of the truths 
 held forth unto them." 
 
 "It is observable * how, at this remarkable day, a spirit of 
 deep concern would seize upon persons. Some were in 
 the house, and some walking in the highway ; some in the 
 woods, and some in the field ; some in conversation, and 
 some in retirement ; some children, and some adults, and 
 some ancient persons, would sometimes on a sudden be brought 
 under the strongest impressions from a sense of the great re- 
 alities of the other world and eternal things. But such 
 things, as far as I can learn, were usually, if not ever, im- 
 pressed upon men while they were in some sort exercising 
 their minds upon the word of God or spiritual objects. And 
 for the most part, it has been under the public preaching of 
 the word, that these lasting impressions have been fastened 
 upon them. 
 
 " Religious societies were now set up in several parts of 
 the town, to be held weekly. And reading, praying, singing 
 praises, and speaking one to another of their particular expe- 
 riences were frequently means of enlargement of heart ; and 
 some were by this means brought under conviction, who were 
 before strangers to the power' of godliness. Nevertheless, 
 the imprudent conduct of a particular zealous person or two, 
 in going beyond the proper bounds of duty and decency in 
 some of these meetings, I do apprehend, was very hurtful to 
 the progress of this blessed work among us. 
 , ^ t 
 
 * Christian History, Vol. II. page 166. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 165 
 
 " We have had a considerable number visibly brought 
 home, that vrere before not only destitute of the form of 
 godliness ; but also sundry who were before but a poor char- 
 acter in point of morals ; and I have reason to think a con- 
 siderable number of such were now brought home to Christ, 
 who were before visible professors. 
 
 " In the summer of 1742, but few persons were brought 
 under conviction ; and from that time to this, conversions have 
 not to appearance been so frequent among us. Nevertheless, 
 in the fall of the year 1742, upon the Rev. Mr. Daniel Rog- 
 ers' coming to us, we had a considerable revival of the work ; 
 at and after which, the spirit 6f conviction seemed for a 
 while very powerful among our children, from eight to twelve 
 or fourteen years of age ; a small number of whom, I would 
 hope, retain abiding impressions, but most of them, I fear, 
 are much the same they were before under concern. Also, 
 about this time, public cryings-out under concern became 
 something frequent among us for some little time ; though in- 
 deed seldom when we had none but our own congregation. 
 But such things, being cautiously guarded against, have never 
 here become common. And in my apprehension, the gos- 
 pel was attended with less success afterwards, by reason of 
 the prejudices which many among us conceived against the 
 work, because of some public ado, that they concluded 
 ought to have been better guarded against than they were. 
 But however, such things, 1 am fully convinced, have been 
 many times altogether unavoidable, from the overpowering 
 views of the great reality of the eternal world ; and accord- 
 ingly, that it is a great fault in such persons as have conceiv- 
 ed such prejudices against the work of the Spirit of God, be- 
 cause some persons under the operation thereof in strong con- 
 victions or compunction, have lost the command of their 
 own passions, and have discovered themselves, when under 
 the most proper concern as to the matter of it, yet through the 
 overbearings thereof, unable to command their own faculties." 
 
 TAUNTON. 
 
 The Rev. Josiah Crocker's account of the revival in 
 Taunton, is dated November 24, 1744.* According to ac- 
 counts which he received, confirmed by the appearances 
 
 * Christian History, Vol. II. page 231. 
 
166 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 which he found there on his arrival, Arminianism, formality 
 and looseness of morals had been aiding each other's growth 
 at a fearful rate for several years ; though he appears to have 
 felt these evils more deeply, and painted them more strongly, 
 than most men would have done. Under the preaching of 
 the Rev. Mr. Guild and others, there had been some refor- 
 mation of morals, at least; and a sermon from Tennent, on 
 his return from Boston, March, 1741, filled many with won- 
 der at his strange doctrine, and permanently awakened a few. 
 Thoughtfulness and religious conversation increased, public 
 worship was better attended, and " there appeared to be 
 some external reformation among many." Early in August, 
 Mr. Crocker was invited to preach there on probation. His 
 first sermon was on the 16th of that month. He found some 
 degree of general seriousness, but little vital piety, and little 
 deep and clear conviction of sin. There seems to have been 
 a gradual increase of feehng, both in him and the people, till 
 October, when the Rev. Daniel Rogers preached in Rayn- 
 ham, and the next day, at Mr. Crocker's request, at Taun- 
 ton. Some were present from Middleborough and other 
 neighbouring towns, who were in great distress. As the peo- 
 ple in Taunton had never before witnessed such" agonies 
 and groanings," Mr. Crocker desired them not to be fright- 
 ened or disturbed by them ; and as Mr. Rogers preached, 
 " a solemn and awful seriousness appeared among the peo- 
 ple." The same day the Rev. Mr. Wheelock, of Leba- 
 non. Ct., preached at Norton, and by invitation of one of the 
 deacons, the next day at Taunton. A considerable number 
 were awakened, and some were constrained, by the sudden 
 and clear perception of their guilt and danger, to cry out. 
 The first who cried out was a person who had been for some 
 time " under some concern," but without any very clear 
 convictions, and who had been much prejudiced against the 
 revival on account of such things, believing that they were 
 caused by an evil spirit, or by some sort of enchantment. 
 However, she resolved to hear Mr. Wheelock, and while on 
 her way, "secretly wished that if these things were right, 
 she might partake in them." The next Sabbath, some pas- 
 sages in the sermon enabled her to see that Christ was a com- 
 plete Saviour ; just such an one as she would have chosen, 
 were she to choose a thousand times. She was happy. Her 
 sins seemed to be subdued and gone ; and after this she was 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 167 
 
 not angry and fretful under crosses, as she used to be before. 
 When Mr. Crocker wrote, her conversation had continued 
 to be as becomes the Gospel. 
 
 This was on Saturday, and Mr. Crocker was absent. 
 When he returned at night and heard the history of the dsy, 
 his thoughts became fixed upon the words, "Behold, I stand 
 at the door and knock," as peculiarly appropriate to the 
 state of his people. He laid aside the sermon which he had 
 prepared, and minuted down some thoughts that evening on 
 this text, and preached from it the next day with good effect ; 
 though he " observed no visible manifestations of their con- 
 viction of their sin, and distress of mind therefor, in the time 
 of public exercise, other than an awful concern and solemni- 
 ty, which was evident in most or all of their countenances." 
 During the intermission, some followed him to his retirement 
 for instruction and advice. In the afternoon, Wheelock 
 preached a "close, searching, experimental, awful and awak- 
 ening " sermon, on hypocrisy and self-deception. After a short 
 intermission, he preached again. This was to be his last 
 sermon in the place. As "he was delivering his discourse 
 very pleasantly and moderately," the depth and strength of 
 feeling increased, till "some began to cry out, both above 
 and below, in awful distress and anguish of sou), upon which 
 he raised his voice, that he might be heard above their out- 
 cries ; but the distress and outcry spreading and increasing, 
 his voice was at length so drowned that he could not be 
 heard. Wherefore, not being able to finish his sermon, with 
 great apparent serenity and calmness of soul, — he called to 
 the distressed, and desired them to gather themselves togeth- 
 er in the body of the seats below. This he did, that he 
 might the more conveniently converse with them, counsel, 
 direct, exhort them, &c." But he ought not to have done 
 it. In the first place, he ought not to have raised his voice, 
 for that only increased the disturbance, and hindered pro- 
 gressive, profitable thought. And he should have known, 
 that people thrown into such an uproar that he could not 
 preach to them, were not capable of receiving benefit from 
 private, personal directions. That religious experience may 
 be genuine, the thinking must be original, the teacher's words 
 only serving as hints, to guide the mind of the inquirer in 
 his search after truth. For this, Wheelock's present bear- 
 ers were disqualified. They could only yield a blind sub- 
 
lee THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 mission of tnind and conduct to the dictates of the preacher, 
 in consequence of which they might think themselves con- 
 verted and be very happy for a while ; but " having no root 
 in themselves," their religion would soon wither and die. 
 He should have sent his hearers home, to engage in solitary, 
 serious thought, in reading the Bible and in prayer. There 
 is reason to fear that from about this time, and in the mode 
 here exemplified, false conversions were fearfully multiplied. 
 The number, however, on this occasion, could not have 
 been great ; for, after Wheelock's departure, Mr. Crocker 
 found but few who had "received comfort." As yet, Mr. 
 Crocker " found little if any open opposition among the peo- 
 ple ; though afterwards, the religious concern among some 
 of the people wearing off, or at least abating, they began to 
 stumble at and oppose more freely and openly these appear- 
 ances." It would be interesting, were it practicable, to give 
 a minute account of the state of Mr. Crocker's own mind at 
 this season. He was evidently a man of very considerable 
 power and acquirements, liable to strong excitement, and 
 probably to great depression of spirits. He exclaims : 
 " What a wonderful reformation was then in this town ! It 
 is impossible fully to describe it. Moreover, I labor under 
 some peculiar disadvantages, so that I cannot give so full and 
 pardcular an account of things of a religious nature, especially 
 in the time of the greatest outpouring of the Holy Spirit, as 
 otherwise I might have done ; being but a stranger among 
 and unacquainted with them, and not committing particular 
 accounts of things to writing in the time of them ; and labor- 
 ing under many perplexities, particularly awful spiritual dark- 
 ness, desertion and temptation for the most of that fall and 
 winter ; my memory being also impaired thereby. Indeed, 
 it was a wonder of the power and grace of God, that I was 
 carried through the service I was called unto." Still, he 
 was carried through that service, so as to perform it, in the 
 main, correctly and with good effect ; though it is by no 
 means sure how much the elevations and depressions of his 
 own spirits may have affected the character and influence of 
 his labors, and aggravated whatever was objectionable. 
 
 In November, he left Taunton for a week or two, and on 
 his return found the attention of some of his people turned 
 from the state of their own hearts, to disputes concerning 
 outcries and the like ; yet most who had been awakened. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 169 
 
 Still continued anxious, or had found peace in believing. He 
 accepted their call to the pastoral office, and continued 
 preaching to them till the latter part of January ; when oppo- 
 sition and difficulties increasing, he went to Ipswich to con- 
 sult a relative, who thought it best to exchange pulpits with 
 him for two or three weeks. Perhaps his friends thought he 
 needed a respite from the anxieties that oppressed him at 
 Taunton. There was no railroad then between the two plac- 
 es ; travelling, in the depth of that winter, was difficult, and 
 he remained at Ipswich till late in March ; witnessing, 
 meanwhile, " much of the glorious work of God's grace " 
 there, and in the vicinity. On his return, the seriousness 
 among the people still continued, but was less general than 
 when he left. His ordination, May 19, 1742, seems to have 
 been followed by some reviving of the work, and there were 
 a few instances of conversion. 
 
 As the fruits of this revival, one hundred and two persons 
 joined the church in full communion, and some united with 
 other churches. A few of the former communicants were 
 awakened and apparently converted. 
 
 Mr. Crocker gives a very clear account of the exercises 
 of these converts ; or, to speak learnedly, of the psycho- 
 logical phenomena of the revival. Their exercises differed 
 circumstantially ; some being awakened suddenly, others 
 more gradually : some having clearer and more awful convic- 
 tions than others, and continuing longer " under a spirit of 
 bondage ;" that is, under a sense of obligation and fear of 
 punishment, but without filial confidence in God ; and some 
 receiving consolation more suddenly and in greater measure 
 than others. But under all these varieties, the mental pro- 
 cess was essentially the same. They " were convinced of 
 their sins, original and actual," having " their sins set in or- 
 der before their eyes in a clear and convincing light, and 
 with particular application." They not only admitted that 
 they were sinners, but saw clearly the sinfulness of particu- 
 lar acts and states of mind, that they were conscious of and 
 remembered ; and from the insight thus obtained into their 
 own characters, learned that their hearts were originally prone 
 to evil ; that the race to which they belonged, is a sinful 
 race. As sinners, they found themselves " under the wrath 
 and curse of almighty God, and continually exposed to the 
 immediate and actual execution thereof upon them in hell." 
 15 
 
170 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 They saw also " their lost and undone estate in and of them- 
 selves, or in and of any creature ;" their " utter inability to 
 deliver themselves from this wretched state," and their need 
 of such help as no created being could afford. But it was 
 hard to submit to the practical inference from this appalling 
 truth. Though convinced of their impotence, they still 
 continued to make efforts, till, "having wearied themselves 
 with seeking rest in and from themselves, their duties, tears, 
 repentings, &c., and being convinced of God's righteousness, 
 though he should cast them off for ever," they "were 
 brought to submit to God's sovereignty," acquiescing in his 
 right to dispose of them as he should see fit ; yet not in de- 
 spair, but thinking, " Whokiiows but God may be gracious ?" 
 " Upon their submission, they felt a calmness in their souls, 
 having done quarrelling and disputing with the justice of 
 God." When thus submissive, and not seeking for relief or 
 hope in any other way, " they had a discovery of Christ, 
 and the new covenant way of life in and through him." 
 They "saw his glory, all-sufficiency, suitableness, and read- 
 iness to save even the chief of sinners, according to the 
 gospel, and " had their hearts sweetly and freely drawn out 
 to receive Christ, and rest upon him and him alone for salva- 
 tion." "These discoveries were generally given them in 
 and with some texts of Scripture ;" not that the mere fact 
 of such a text coming into their minds was a sufficient war- 
 rant for applying its comfoirts to themselves ; but the text 
 was the means of conveying truth to their minds, and while 
 they meditated on a text, or perhaps when it first occurred 
 to them, they saw in it a fulness of meaning and an applica- 
 bility to themselves, which they had never seen before. 
 And why should it not be so .'' They had never before so 
 well understood themselves, and of course never were so 
 well prepared to understand the teachings of Scripture con- 
 cerning the way in which such creatures must be saved. 
 "Or if they had no text of Scripture, as they remember, at 
 first, there immediately came many flowing in upon their 
 minds." They now found peace of conscience, and joy in 
 proportion to their faith ; " had their mouths filled with 
 praises of Christ, glorying in him, and commending him to 
 others ; had their love drawn out to God, and to all man- 
 kind," but especially to Christians; "loving and forgiving 
 their enemies, being filled with a concern for the salvation of 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 171 
 
 precious and immortal souls ; mourning for and hating sin as 
 against God," and as dishonorable to him. Of course they 
 hated and avoided sin ; for on kccount of their sins they had 
 pronounced themselves worthy of everlasting perdition, be- 
 fore they found peace. Such, for substance, though varying 
 circumstantially, according to the strength, clearness and pe- 
 culiar character of each individual mind, were the "experi- 
 ences " of the converts in this revival. The fruits were, 
 perseverance in the various duties of piety and morality. 
 
 Will any thinking man pretend, that a well-informed pas- 
 tor or church member, who has himself been through such 
 a series of exercises, and has been acquainted with others 
 during the same process, cannot judge whether his neighbour, 
 in telling his " experience," is telling what he has actually 
 experienced, or is merely reciting a story that he has learned, 
 or a fiction of his own brain .'' Will not the tale that has 
 been committed to memory betray itself, by the want of in- 
 dividual peculiarities, in keeping with the known character of 
 the relator .' And how many men have genius enough to 
 invent a self-consistent psychological history of their own 
 minds during a period of excitement ? In fact, judgments 
 founded on such relations are nqt usually false ; and in this 
 revival at Taunton, though the occasions of self-deception 
 were somewhat abundant, but few of the supposed converts 
 failed to evince the reality of their conversion by persever- 
 ing holiness of life. 
 
 Mr. Crocker mentions his acquaintance with the revivals 
 in Middleborough, Plymouth, Bridgewater, Raynham, Berke- 
 ly, Norton, Attleborough, Martha's Vineyard, "and other 
 places ;" adding, — " As far as I am capable of judging, the 
 divine influence is the true spring thereof, and the revival 
 seems to be the same for substance in every of these places." 
 
 MIDDLEBOROUGH. 
 
 The revival in Middleborough derives unusual interest 
 from the name of Pe ter Thac her, the pious pastor of that 
 church. He was ordained there November 2, 1709, at the 
 age of twenty-one. The church had then but twenty mem- 
 bers, nine male and eleven female. About the year 1724, 
 his parish was divided, and the Rev.. Benjamin Ruggles or- 
 dained in the west precinct. In 1734, another division 
 transferred a part of his flock to the church in Halifax. Yet, 
 
172 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 in the winter of 1740, his church contained about one hun- 
 dred and seventy members. For some time, however, he 
 had been compelled to lament the unfruitfulness of his minis- 
 try, and the indifference of his people. Only one person 
 had offered to unite with the church for nearly two years. 
 Mr. Thacher could not feel satisfied to live where he had 
 no evidence of usefulness. He began to think that God 
 chose to work in Middleborough by some other instrument. 
 He talked of resigning his pastoral charge ; but could find no 
 suitable text for his farewell sermon. Tennent preached 
 there on his return from Plymouth, in March, 1741. From 
 reports which Mr. Thacher had heard concerning him, he 
 felt "sensible prejudice" against his person and ministry; 
 but a few sentences of his first prayer convinced him that 
 Tennent was a man of God, and his prejudice vanished. Mr. 
 Thacher laid his case freely open to his visitor, and told him 
 of the discouragements of his ministry, expressing his ap- 
 prehension that God was " about to break up his house with 
 us." Tennent said, "No, but to revive his work." He 
 was " glad to see the devil so vexed. It was a good sign." 
 "The assembly," Mr. Thacher says, "was small: — no 
 visible effect ; yet from that day my people were more in- 
 clined to hear." Such was very frequently the result of a 
 visit and a sermon or two from Tennent. Yet " some half 
 a dozen were roused by Mr. Tennent's preaching," and they 
 and others were still further awakened "by the ministry of 
 the pious Mr. Rogers.* Yet, though their convictions were 
 remarkable, they seemed to give no additional strength to 
 the power of religion, because they were among those that had 
 the form of godliness before. But hereby God was preparing 
 me some sweet helpers, though the devil from this circum- 
 stance took occasion to reproach the work ; so that from this 
 time I may date the open strife between the houses of David 
 and of Saul, that still subsists." In other words, the op- 
 position arose from the unwillingness of church members to 
 have their own hopes shaken. 
 
 " In the beginning of October following," he says,t "on a 
 Tuesday I proposed a day of prayer ; and spake to my brother 
 Shaw for his. assistance. This was our errand to the throne 
 
 * Rev. Daniel Rogers, of Ipswich, 
 t Christian History, Vol. II. p. 89. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 173 
 
 of Grace, to ask the outpouring of the Spirit on this dry fleece. 
 That week some of my lately awakened brethren obtained a 
 visit from the Rev. Mr. Crocker. They appointed a lec- 
 ture for him the Friday ; which pleased me to hear of on my 
 return from my journey. He preached next morning ; one 
 cried out ; the little assembly was struck with awe and seri- 
 ousness ; which gave some hopes of a revival. He prom- 
 ises a visit on Monday. Of this, public notice was given the 
 next day, the Sabbath. All that day my hearers seemed 
 very attentive, and some meltings. 
 
 " The next day, being the 23d day of November,* 1741, 
 Mr. Crocker came. We began about one. He preached 
 from Romans 8:1. This he opened largely ; giving the 
 characters of them that were in Christ ; and inferred the mis- 
 ery of those who found not the characters in themselves of 
 their being in Christ; there was nothing but condemnation 
 for them ; showing what that damnation was, &c. After 
 sermon there was an exhortation delivered.! Many now 
 melted down. After the blessing, the people generally 
 stayed, till some cried with terror, which flew like lightning 
 into every breast ; I suppose, none excepted. I have written 
 accounts of seventy-six that day struck, and brought first to 
 inquire what they should do tOs escape condemnation. This 
 inquiry awakened many. There were a number of profes- 
 sors of religion that day, whose lamps went out. They 
 discovered there was no oil of true grace in them. There 
 were four persons that this day, being left alone in the sev- 
 eral houses to which they belong, were I suppose savingly 
 awakened that day, by the consideration that they were left. 
 After a stay with the distressed in public, many followed us 
 home. Those that we had not opportunity to ask openly the 
 state of their souls, and the reason of their outcry, repaired 
 to us. They tell us, they see now what they never did be- 
 fore ; their original guilt and actual sins, and fear of the 
 dreadful wrath of the Lord. This filled them with unutter- 
 able anguish. They seemed to be stepping into hell. This 
 drew trembling fear and cries from them. They complain 
 
 * This date appears to be correct, though irreconcilable with some oth- 
 ers, given both by Mr. Thacher and Mr. Crocker. 
 
 1 This was delivered by Mr. Thacher himself; though he modestly fpr- 
 bore to mention himself, and rather chose to give the names of other in- 
 . struments. — Ed. Ch. Hist. 
 
 15* 
 
174 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 of bard hearts, and blind eyes ! That they should never see 
 before ! Especially unbelief ! O ! how dreadful to give the 
 God of truth the lie ! They now complain they cannot be- 
 lieve, find their hearts full of emnity to God, to Christ, to 
 his holiness, his word, and saints. Scores, this day, told me 
 of their hatred of me, above any one. But to hear the 
 young people crying and wringing their hands, and bewailing 
 their frolicking and dancing, their deriding public reproofs 
 therefor, was affecting. O ! how heavy now did their con- 
 tempt and neglect of Christ appear to them, as the effect of 
 these corrupt principles of pride, unbelief, and enmity, and 
 vicious practices of mirth and jollity ! Their mouths are at 
 once filled with arguments to justify God in their eternal dam- 
 nation, and condemn those principles and practices they had 
 been ruled by and led into ; and this from Scripture. This 
 the peculiar work of the Spirit, to convince of sin and un- 
 belief. 
 
 " Well, the next evening, we had another lecture. Though 
 an excessive rain, yet many came, and the word was power- 
 ful. Thus the Lord began to hear, as soon as it was in our 
 hearts to ask. 
 
 " From this time,, there was an uncommon teachableness 
 among my people. Scarce one word of counsel seemed 
 lost, or a sermon in vain. From this time, they must have 
 four sermons in a week ; two Tuesdays, two Thursdays. 
 The word of the Lord was very precious in those days. In 
 a few days firom that 23d of November, so greatly to be re- 
 membered, there appeared to be above two hundred awakened; 
 and it was some days, and weeks, and months, before they 
 were brought sensibly to close with Christ. Most of them 
 tarried long in the birth ; and, so far as I am capable to 
 judge, gave as distinct and clear an account of their espousing 
 to Jesus Christ ; the means, his word of promise, and time, 
 as they could of any action of human life. This, not all in 
 the same manner under the preparatory work ; but all came 
 to the same espousing, closing act, when they were brought 
 out of darkness into marvellous light ; when the prison doors 
 were opened, their captive souls set free ; when set free from 
 ifce oppressing burdens of guilt they so long bare ; when the 
 Lord, led them into the wilderness and there spake kindly to 
 them, saying live. Now they understood what it was to have 
 the everlasting gates and doors of their souls set open, and 
 
THE GKEAT AWAKENING. 175 
 
 the glorious king entering. How pleasantly affecting to hear 
 them tell of their submission to God's righteousness, re- 
 signing to the hands of justice, and how sweetly and speedily 
 in a moment they found themselves inclosed in the everlasting 
 arms of mercy ! Who would not be encouraged to come 
 to this submission ? To hear them speak of the glories of 
 the Redeemer and his infinite fulness ; how oft would they 
 break out, O ! we are sure, from God's word and our own 
 experience, there is enough for all, every one in the world ! 
 . " This awakes professors, very moral and blameless in 
 life, to inquire into their own standing. The most find they 
 built on the sand, that they lived to themselves, rested in 
 their duties, were mere hypocrites ; and after a while, they 
 joyfully tell me : ' I have found my feet on the rock. I 
 never knew what it was to have my will subdued tad heart 
 changed and Christ there, till now. And now I know I have 
 the witness in myself, and the Spirit in the word witnesses 
 with my spirit. I am sure religion is real, no fable, no de- 
 lusion ! Christ is meat indeed, and drink indeed. I never 
 knew what pleasure was, before Christ gave it me ; and what 
 he hath given, is better than all the world.' Such an account, 
 I suppose, there are more than two hundred can give. 
 
 " The work grew daily ; the numbers were increased ; 
 near one hundred and seventy, the following year, joined to 
 the church." 
 
 So far Mr. Thacher had written, but not revised, for the 
 press. In a letter to a friend, dated September 6th, 1742, 
 be wrote: — "God's work yet prevails among us; and, 
 blessed be God, there are yet many tokens of good in this 
 Zion." In his own spirit, the revival never suffered any 
 abatement, but rather grew brighter, till its light was lost 
 among the glories of the heavenly world. During the first 
 Week in April, 1744, he preached to his own people and at 
 Plymouth eight times ; closing his last discourse, which was 
 on the 8th of the month, by telling his people that he did 
 not know whether he should ever see or speak to them again. 
 Returning home, he told his wife he did not know but his 
 work was done. He was restless that night, and rapidly 
 declined till his death, which was on the Sabbath, April 
 22d. " On Wednesday afternoon," says the Rev. Mr. 
 Prince, "was such an extraordinary confluence from the 
 neighbouring towns, as was never seen in the place before, to 
 
176 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 attend the funeral. When the coffin was carried out, there 
 was great weeping. — When set on the edge of the grave, it 
 lay there some time, and they seemed to be loath to let him 
 down ; nor did I ever see so many weepers before." 
 
 In his " Attestation," dated June 30, 1743, he wrote : — 
 " We have not known visions, nor trances, nor revelations ; 
 but brotherly exhorting, with more modesty and affection than 
 hath been represented. Neither have these divine influences 
 been attended with Anabaptistical errors. Twenty, that 
 were before in those mistakes, have been brought off. 
 Neither have they been attended with the errors of Familism, 
 or Antinomianism. The Arminian errors were by the con- 
 verts universally detected and detested. The doctrines of 
 grace shine in their understandings, defended and earnestly 
 contended for from inward and real experience. Their lives 
 are reformed, as well as principles scripturally renewed. 
 The drunkard is sober ; the churl peaceful ; personal feuds, 
 that had been subsisting more than eleven years, are buried ; 
 and love takes place and power, where envy and malice and 
 hatred had formerly ruled." 
 
 HALIFAX. 
 
 In Halifax, from the Rev. John Cotton's account, dated 
 July 26, 1743,* the revival seems to have exhibited little 
 that was peculiar. The inhabitants, he tells us, had been 
 "a sober sort of people," among whom tavern-haunting, 
 swearing, and such vices, had never prevailed to such a degree 
 as in many other places ; " but the common indifference and 
 lukewarmness in religion had too much the ascendant." In 
 the summer of 1741, they heard many contradictory reports 
 concerning the state of religion in other places, by which 
 they were " set upon a gaze, and knew not what to think," 
 and " were filled with concern, what would be the event of 
 things." Near the close of August, they held a day of fast- 
 ing and prayer for the presence of the Holy Spirit. In No- 
 vember, about forty or fifty of the people heard Mr. Wheel- 
 ock preach at Bridgewater. "Not only myself, but almost 
 all my people present, were fully satisfied with what they 
 heard and saw ; they were convinced that it was God's 
 doing. They brought home such a report as gave a wonder- 
 
 • Chriatian History, Vol. I. page 259. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING 177 
 
 ful turn to the course of things among us. The evil reports 
 were banished and chased away, except a few, as bats before 
 the light of the sun. Some few of the hearers present, who 
 were mostly communicants, returned home under strong con- 
 victions ;" and their conversation was one of the greatest 
 means of spreading the concern through the town. 
 
 At a private meeting at his own house one evening in No- 
 vember, IVIr^otton read Mr. Ed wardsj_'' Narrative of Sur- 
 prising Conversions." After the service was ended, one 
 person cried out in great distress. When she heard a person 
 cry out under Mr. Wheelock's preaching at Bridgewater, she 
 had said to herself, " Ah, you are a hypocrite, and you will 
 be discovered within this twelve-month." But though she 
 disliked the sermon and outcries, she could not feel at ease 
 after her return ; and her anxiety and conviction increased, 
 till now she pronounced herself a hypocrite, and thought 
 everybody else better than she. Mr. Cotton and others " ob- 
 served her narrowly" for some time, and were convinced 
 that she was actually overpowered by her sense of guilt and 
 danger, and unable to conceal her emotions. After some 
 days, she found peace. 
 
 After this, there was no considerable crying out under con- 
 viction in the public assembly during service time ; but some 
 manifested great distress after service, at private meetings, 
 and in their own houses. Those who cried out, however, 
 were but a small part of the whole number of the convicted, 
 and their mental exercises did not differ from those of others, 
 unless in degree. 
 
 But few "received comfort" before the next spring. 
 " Then a considerable number did ; and in about three 
 months time there were forty-four added to the church." 
 The whole number, before the end of that year, was sixty- 
 two, and, by the middle of the next, sixty-nine. 
 
 In the summer of 1742, there were some instances of per- 
 sons being overcome with joy, fainting, crying out,iand the 
 like. In the fall and winter they increased, " though never 
 to such a degree as to break up public worship." Mr. Cot- 
 ton was silent on this head for some time, being at a loss what 
 to say ; but learning that some one from a neighbouring town 
 was teaching the young people, that the more they cried out 
 the better, if done in sincerity, he thought it time to speak. 
 He told them, that if they cried when they could refrain from 
 
178 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 it, they acted sinfully ; though, if they actually could not re- 
 frain, he had nothing to say. After this, such '.' manifesta- 
 tions" seemed to have abated. 
 
 A few of the converts, who had been Armiuians, were 
 driven by abhorrence of their former error into Antinoraian- 
 isra ; but good instructions soon recovered them. They 
 were free from "separations," and from trances and visions, 
 except that, in the early stage of the revival, one or two were 
 "something visionary." Lay exhorters, they allowed not ; 
 and, in short, there were no disorders that became general, or 
 lasted long. But few of the supposed converts fell away. 
 During the decline of the revival, one girl " endeavoured to 
 counterfeit the joys of others ; but she was soon detected by 
 the friends of the reformation." New instances of convic- 
 tion occurred at times till the autumn of 1742 ; and the con- 
 cern of some that had been awakened, continued when the 
 account was written. 
 
 Mr. Cotton's testimony concerning the evil reports of the 
 day, and their authors, is of uncommon value ; as, from and 
 even before the commencement of the revival in Halifax, he 
 made it his business to trace back such reports to their fountain- 
 head. He believed that a considerable number of those who 
 had not been able to " see through the present reformation" 
 were good men, who had not had opportunities for personal 
 observation, or had been too much under the influence of 
 others, or in some other way hindered from learning the 
 truth. But asserts expressly, that " the greatest cry pro- 
 ceeds from those that are ' of Arminian principles, and of 
 irregular lives ;" though some violent opposers were Antino- 
 mians, who "stiffly deny that ever an elect person is a 
 child of the devil." Of the evil reports, he says : — " Some 
 I found to be wholly groundless ; others were gross misrep- 
 resentations ; the bad circumstances of a story were picked 
 up and related, and all the good suppressed ; and sometimes, 
 when only one was guilty, the whole body were charged ; and 
 when any particular person had really said or done amiss, and 
 was soon brought to a sense of it and to repentance for it, I 
 found that the repentance did not fly an hundredth part as 
 fast as the sin. Those that have been most opposite to this 
 reformation, have all along betrayed an utter aversion to ex- 
 amine things to the bottom. When urged, over and over, to 
 go and discourse with the young converts, and that not only 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 179 
 
 with one or two, but with many of them, and examine thor- 
 oughly into their case, they could not be prevailed with to 
 do it, but kept aloof ; so that some, that live in places where 
 this reformation has been most prevalent, know as little of it, 
 as if they had lived scores of miles off." This is just 
 what a good judge of human nature would suppose, from the 
 manifest spirit of the times ; but as those reports were gath- 
 ered up, thrown into newspapers, made into books, published 
 in Europe and America, used as the basis of official action, 
 and have produced extensive effects which still remain, it is 
 well to have' the express testimony of a man of good sense 
 and good character, who took pains at the time to ascertain 
 their exact value. Not that Mr. Cotton is a solitary witness, 
 for perhaps every contemporary account or " attestation" of a 
 revival substantially confirms his testimony ; but few others, 
 if any, seem to have examined the subject so minutely, or 
 stated the result so clearly. 
 
 PORTSMOUTH, N. H. 
 
 The Rev. William Shurtleff 's account of the revival here, 
 is dated June 1, 1743.* He says : — 
 
 " Mr. Whitefield's coming among us, and also Mr. Ten- 
 nent's, was, I am persuaded, blessed of God ; and their 
 preaching made instrumental of putting a great many upon 
 shaking off their heavy slumbers ; and how reproachfully so- 
 ever any may speak of them and their itinerancy, I must 
 needs look upon their travelling this way as a favorable provi- 
 dence, and that for which we owe abundant thanksgivings to 
 the God of all grace. 
 
 " As there had been for some time a growing concern 
 among us, as to things of a religious nature, and a remarkable 
 work of God's grace going on in many parts of the land ; the 
 ministers of this and some other of the neighbouring towns 
 agreed upon observing a monthly fast, in our respective con- 
 gregations, to seek for the like blessing. When the solemni- 
 ty was attended in- this town, which was on Wednesday, No- 
 vember 25, 1741, as soon as the afternoon service was end- 
 ed, one cried out in a transport of joy, and others discovered 
 a great deal of distress. The people did not care to dis- 
 perse, insomuch that there was another sermon in the even- 
 
 * Christian History, Vol. I. page 383. 
 
180 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 ing ; and a great number of thera, and some of the ministers 
 with tbem, stayed till it was late, in the place of public wor- 
 ghip. The next day a sermon was again preached in public, 
 and bad an unusual efiicacy upon the hearers. The day 
 after, we had two or three exercises, and the congregation, a 
 great part of it, continued together till late at night. 
 
 " This Friday was the most remarkable day that was ever 
 known among us. The whole congregation seemed deeply 
 affected ; and there was such a general outcry, in some from 
 a distressing sight of their sins, and in others from a joyful 
 sense of the love of Christ, that could not but put a great 
 many in mind of the appearing of the Son of Man, and of 
 the different exclamations that shall be heard from the inhab- 
 itants of the world, when they shall see Him coming in the 
 clouds of heaven, in power and great glory." 
 
 The meeting was continued in the evening ; and near its 
 close, an event, which in other circumstances would have 
 been trivial, greatly deepened the impression. The chimney 
 of a neighbouring house took fire, and burnt with uncommon 
 brilliancy. This was not seen by the worshippers ; but the 
 uncommon light, flashing at once upon the windows of the 
 meetinghouse, without any known cause, startled some, whose 
 consciences told them that they deserved to be arraigned and 
 condemned immediately. It seemed to them, that the Lord 
 Jesus was actually " revealed from heaven in flaming fire," 
 to "take vengeance on them that know not God, neither 
 obey the gospel." A cry was raised, that Christ was com- 
 ing to judgment. Many, who knew that if he came then, 
 they must be condemned, and that they deserved no respite, 
 at once admitted the belief, and numbers, who before had not 
 been greatly moved, were now filled with consternation and 
 deep distress. The explanation of this mistake, a few min- 
 utes afterwards, instead of dispelling their fears, only showed 
 them new reason to be afraid. If they were so evidently un- 
 prepared for judgment, as to be thrown into consternation by 
 the light of a burning chimney, their condition was certainly 
 full of danger, and demanded their serious and immediate at- 
 tention. Mr. Shurtleff proceeds : — 
 
 " As I was called abroad the day next ensuing what I last 
 mentioned, it was surprising to observe the seriousness that 
 appeared in the face of almost every one I occasionally met 
 with. It seemed as if there was hardly any such thing as en- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 181 
 
 tering into a house in whicii there was not some poor wounded 
 and distressed soul, and where there was not a greater or less 
 degree of concern in all belonging to it, as to their spiritual and 
 eternal state. It was very affecting to be called into one fam- 
 ily after another, as I was going along the street, and entreat- 
 ed not to leave them till prayer had been solemnly offered up 
 to God on their behalf. A divine power was then so plainly 
 to be seen in what had come to pass among us, that there was 
 hardly any that durst openly and expressly deny it. As for 
 those who, through their own prevailing corruptions, or the 
 insinuations and persuasions of others, soon grew into a dislike 
 of it, and have since gone so far as to pronounce the whole 
 of it a scene of enthusiasm, and to look upon all as a delusion, 
 their very countenance and behaviour then plainly spoke the 
 awful apprehensions they were under of its being from God." 
 
 There was now a demand for preaching every day, and 
 several neighbouring ministers lent their assistance. Among 
 others, Mr. Cooper of Boston was invited. He remained 
 nearly three weeks, preaching almost every evening, with re- 
 markable success. So things continued through the winter. 
 Assemblies for worship and instruction were thronged, and 
 the number of communicants was much increased. The 
 people were distinctly taught, from the beginning, to put no 
 confidence in " outcries, and such like public appearances ; — 
 that they ought always to avoid them, when it could be done 
 without great inconvenience to themselves ;" and " that, as 
 persons may be effectually wrought upon by the word, with- 
 out any thing of this nature, so they may be put into an un- 
 common degree of terror, and filled with a great deal of joy, 
 under the- hearing of it, and yet continue strangers to a real, 
 saving change." 
 
 Some members of the church were awakened and con- 
 verted ; but the greater part of the converts were persons 
 who had very little of the form of religion before. " Many 
 of them, upon their first being brought under conviction, 
 manifested a deep sense of their original, as well as actual 
 sins ; complained sadly of the wickedness of their hearts, 
 and' bewailed their sin in rejecting and making light of a Sa- 
 viour." The second' part of this sentence is, as Biblical stu- 
 dents say, exegetical of the first.* The " original sin," of 
 which they repented, was "the wickedness of their hearts," 
 as distinguished from any individual sinful acts that flowed 
 16 
 
182 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 from it. This sinfulness of the heart convinced them that 
 they were the true children of apostate Adam, and justly in- 
 cluded in his condemnation. Mr. ShurtlefF remarks : — 
 
 " As was at first feared and expected, it must be confess- 
 ed that so it has happened, to some that were brought under 
 a serious concern for their souls, that they have fallen off 
 from their good beginnings, and are the same persons that 
 they were before ; and there are others, who, continuing un- 
 der convictions, seem to have proceeded no further. But 
 there is a considerable number who are exhibiting all the ev- 
 idences that can be expected, of a real conversion to God." 
 There are many similar expressions in the writings of that 
 day ; indicating that the revival was held responsible, by its 
 enemies, for the perseverance of all who were " brought 
 under conviction." Only the most ignorant would fall into 
 such a mistake now. As to the general character of the 
 town, the writer says : — 
 
 " That there is an alteration in it for the better, must, I 
 think, needs be owned by every unprejudiced observer. 
 That there is not that profane cursing and swearing, which 
 has formerly been usual, has been acknowledged by some 
 who are far from being well afiected to the present times. 
 That the Sabbath is more strictly observed, is out of all 
 manner of dispute. Family worship, where it was neglect- 
 ed, in a variety of instances is now set up. Some, that were 
 manifestly of a narrow, selfish and worldly spirit, and seemed 
 unwilling to part with any thing of what they possessed to 
 any good and charitable use whatsoever, appear now to have 
 their hearts much enlarged, and are ready to distribute of 
 their substance, as the honor of God and the wants of their 
 fellow Christians have called for it. Many, that have dealt 
 dishonestly, have not only acknowledged the wrongs they 
 have done, but made restitution for them." 
 
 Will those who say that morality is religion, deny the gen- 
 uineness of this revival f Another extract : — 
 
 " During the course of the spring, and so of the summer of 
 1742, and autumn following, though some, that had for a con- 
 siderable time been under darkness and distress, were brought 
 into light and joy, there was but now and then one that 
 was brought under any new concern. But through the win- 
 ter of 1743, instances of this nature were something more 
 frequent, and there seemed to be a general revival of that 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 183 
 
 serious concern as to eternal things, which had appeared for 
 some time to decline. 
 
 " On the sixth of February last, which was the season of 
 celebrating the sacrament of the Supper ; among others that 
 were wrought upon in the time of the sermon, one woman 
 belonging to the communion, who sat in one of the galleries, 
 was so far affected, and had her bodily frame so far weaken- 
 ed, that she could not come down ; and though she made 
 some signs to have the elements brought up to her, it was not 
 perceived, and so she went without them. But she sweetly 
 fed upon the bread of life, and told me afterwards, that it was 
 the most blessed sacrament she ever enjoyed. Towards the 
 close of the sacred solemnity, the aspect of most of the 
 communicants seemed to be much changed from what it was 
 at first ; and as an uncommon joy sat upon the countenance 
 of many of them, so, as soon as it was over, they could not 
 forbear expressing it, in the most sweet and cheerful praises. 
 There were but few of them that went from the house of 
 God till the evening ; and then seemed to leave it with con- 
 siderable reluctancy. We were not without something of a 
 like nature upon several of the successive communions." 
 
 GLOUCESTER. 
 
 Of the revival here, the venerable John White wrote an 
 account in March, 1744.* He had been settled forty-one 
 years. At the time of his settlement, there was but one 
 church there, of eighty-eight members. Its increase had 
 been such, that three other churches had been formed from 
 its members, and it still contained two hundred and sixty 
 commufricants. The additions, before this revival, had come 
 in "one after another, and not in troops or clusters, except 
 at two seasons. At the time of the great earthquake, the 
 people were much frightened, especially the more rude, ig- 
 norant and wicked of them; but about a month after the 
 first shocks, when their terrifying frights were over, it pleased 
 God, by his Spirit, to work kindly in a way of conviction, 
 and I trust of conversion." Afterwards, the account of the 
 " Surprising Conversions" at Northampton led to another 
 awakening. 
 
 " But the first most visible and powerful effusion of the Spir- 
 it was on the last Sabbath in January, 1742, and especially as 
 
 * Christian History, Vol. I. page 41. 
 
184 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 I was preaching in the afternoon and on the evening in two re- 
 ligious societies in the harbour. Many were impressed, both 
 with distress and with joy, above measure. And on Mon- 
 day morning, in the school of Mr. Moses Parsons, a man 
 disposed zealously to serve the best interests of all he has to 
 do with, and being hired by a number of gentlemen, to train 
 up their children in religious exercises and in singing, as well 
 as other useful knowledge, the Spirit of God came so pow- 
 erfully upon the school, that they could not attend the ordina- 
 ry school exercises ; but, with their joyful master, with whom 
 I had left the care of my flock while I went a journey which 
 I was necessitated to take, and a multitude of spectators, they 
 prayed to and praised God, by singing spiritual hymns. And 
 in the evening Mr. Parsons preached a lecture in the meeting- 
 house ; and in the close of the exercise, the Spirit fell upon a 
 great part of the congregation, to the amazement of many. 
 And people had such an appetite to the word preached, that 
 Mr. Parsons called in the help of the other ministers of the 
 town. The good fruits of this visit are very apparent. No less 
 than twenty-one had their experiences read the last Sabbath day. 
 
 " The impression was, at first, principally on the one side 
 of the meetinghouse. And there was poured down a spirit 
 of prayer upon young and old, especially the younger sort ; 
 and children of five, six, seven years, and upward, would pray 
 to admiration. And in our parish, there have since been form- 
 ed no less than nine distinct societies, of young and old, male 
 and female, bond and free, (for one of them is a society of 
 negroes, who in their meetings behave very seriously and 
 decently. They have been greatly impressed. One of them 
 gave a very satisfying account of his experiences, and was 
 taken into church-fellowship. Most of them entered into 
 covenant, and were baptized themselves, and also their issue,) 
 who meet, several of them twice in a wieek, to pray and sing, 
 as well as to read books of piety, and the rest once a week. 
 And the younger say their catechism to the head of -the meet- 
 ing. And several sermons have been preached unto them. 
 
 " There has been an apparent reformation. Diversions, 
 though lawful and innocent, have been almost wholly laid 
 aside, and the singing of Dr. Watts' hymns is the chief re- 
 creation of Christians when they convene. There are no sep- 
 arations among us. Little has been said about New Lights, 
 (which I look upon as a term of reproach, as of old the term 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 185 
 
 Puritan was,) and as little about opposers ; the mentioning of 
 which is irritating, and tends to widen tiie breach, and foment 
 divisions, contentions and separations. As to visions, we 
 had enough of them, until such time as in a lecture sermon I 
 declared my sentiments concerning them ; and, so far as 1 
 can understand, there has never been one since. Our con- 
 gregation has been disturbed and interrupted by outcries, but 
 I labored to suppress them. 
 
 " I would add that, as I believe there have been scores 
 savingly wrought upon, who were strangers before that hap- 
 py day, so much as to the form of godliness, so some pro- 
 fessors who rested in the form, and were but legalists or self- 
 righteous, have seen that they built upon a sandy founda- 
 tion, and were greatly distressed under the conviction ; and, 
 by an earnest application unto Christ for wisdom and right- 
 eousness, have had a further discovery of Jesus Christ, and 
 have been encouraged to venture upon him for the complete 
 salvation of their souls, and have had their hearts filled with 
 joy in believing. So also there have been scores of persons 
 who had truly closed with Christ in time past, but have walk- 
 ed in darkness, by means of the withdrawal of the Spirit, the 
 weakness of their graces, and prevalency of their corruptions, 
 and have been for a long time as in a wilderness. These 
 have been anointed as with fresh oil ; their hearts have been 
 made glad, enlarged, quickened and comforted by renewed 
 and continued supplies of grace, have been enabled with en- 
 larged hearts to run the ways of God's commandments." 
 
 The Rev. Benjamin Bradstreet, pastor of tlie church in 
 Annisquam Parish, Gloucester, wrote, June 30, 1743 * : "In 
 my very small parish, consisting of about eighty families, we 
 have had, in about twelve months past, (when we had before 
 more communicants than families,) about forty added to the 
 church, and all excepting one, by the grace of God, live 
 to bear good fruit. Thanks be to God, we have no divisions 
 nor separations among us ; we are without dreams, visions, 
 and trances, (though there have been some in the neighbour- 
 hood,) nor are we troubled with exhorters. The people 
 seem to express a greater love for tlieir minister, and a great- 
 er desire than ever to hear the word ; and I hope their un- 
 worthy minister has a greater regard than ever for their souls." 
 
 • Christian History, Vol. I. page 187. 
 16* 
 
186 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 READING. 
 
 The Rev. Daniel Putnam, pastor of the Second Church, 
 wrote, June 30, 1743 :* 
 
 " Sometime in the beginning of March, 1742, under a 
 sense of the great decay of religion among us, we kept a day 
 of fasting and prayer, to seek to God for the pouring out of his 
 Spirit upon us ; and God was pleased, out of his abundant 
 grace, to give us speedy answers of prayer. For the space 
 of five or six weeks, more or less of my people, younger 
 and elder, came to my house every day in the week except 
 Sabbaths ; and manifestly under a work of conviction, deep- 
 ly concerned for the state of their souls, and many of them 
 expressing themselves in these words : ' O, Sirs, what shall 
 I do, what shall I do, to get rid of my sins .'" complaining of 
 the load of guilt on their consciences, and of the power of 
 sin in their souls ; of the hardness of their hearts, and of the 
 sense of God's wrath due to them ; and some signifying to 
 me, that they even now felt, what they only before knew as by 
 hearsay, that the heart is so desperately wicked, and by na- 
 ture so unfit for heaven. Some, when they heard mention 
 made of Christ and of the mercy of God, I cannot relate the 
 greatness of the distress it put them into, to consider that 
 their sins were against such mercy, such love ! 
 
 " But I will not enlarge. I know this was the work of 
 the Spirit of God, as a spirit of bondage and fear, thus con- 
 vincing and humbling them. And the most of these, we 
 have grounds to hope, have been since as fully convinced of 
 righteousness and of judgment, of the all-sufficiency of Christ 
 as priest and king, as they were convinced of their sins and 
 misery before ; and we charitably hope, have experienced by 
 faith in him, through the merits of his righteousness and 
 the power of his grace, that rest that he gives to such weary 
 souls, that receive him with their whole heart. And there 
 have been large additions to the church, considering the num- 
 ber of the people. And not only has this been the happy 
 case of some that were without the visible church, but even 
 several of the members have been very deeply concerned 
 about the state of their own souls, and I hope it has been for 
 their everlasting good." 
 
 • Christian History, Vol. I. page 181. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 187 
 
 NEW CASTLE, N. H. 
 
 The pastor, Rev. John Blunt, testified, July 26, 1743 :* 
 " The parish I am settled in is small ; but God has, I hope, 
 by the influences of his gracious Spirit, made his word and 
 ordinances effectual to the convincing and converting a con- 
 siderable number among us. The awakening in months past 
 was almost universal. Fear seemed to fall on every soul ; 
 and the great inquiry was. What shall I do to be saved .'' 
 And although, I have reason to fear, the impressions are in 
 a great measure worn off from some ; yet the lasting good 
 effects on many, I think very considerable, and for which I 
 desire to adore the rich and free grace of God. Fifty have 
 been added to our communion in about the space of two 
 years ; and most of them appear to have their conversation 
 as becometh the gospel. Some of those who were profes- 
 sors before this remarkable day of God's visitation, have 
 been of late much quickened and enlivened ; and others, be- 
 ing convinced of their formality in times past, declare how 
 they have felt the power of God's grace upon their souls." 
 
 WESTERLY, R. I. 
 
 The Rev. Joseph Park's account of the revival, or, as it 
 is called with more propriety, the propagation of the gospel, 
 in Westerly, R. I., is of more than ordinary value. With a 
 rare degree of Jionest simplicity, he exposes to our view the 
 reasons of his ill success for several years ; and he sets be- 
 fore us, in their best dress, Davenport, his irregularities, and 
 his exhorters.f 
 
 Mr. Park was sent, in May, 1733, by the Commissioners 
 of the English Society for propagating the Gospel in New 
 England, as a missionary to the Indians, and such English 
 as would attend, in Westerly. He was then, as he after- 
 wards believed, " a moral, religious person, but awfully in 
 the dark as to the way of salvation by Christ." He "had 
 been somewhat indoctrinated in gospel truths," and had 
 been too much enlightened by conviction of sin to embrace 
 Arminian principles at large ; but still secretly imagined 
 " that there was something in men to begin with, and which 
 gospel grace came to make perfect. '^' He preached and 
 labored with his own heart accordingly ; "but could not get 
 
 - Christian History, Vol. I. p. 199. t Ibid., p. 201. 
 
188 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 to such a pitch as to think himself ripe for grace, or with any 
 confidence lay claim to it," because he found his own works 
 not good enough to build any such claim upon ; and as for 
 his people, he " could by no means prevail upon them to be 
 better, but they rather grew worse." So it was for several 
 years, till it pleased God to come closer to him, and bring 
 all his hopes " into a ruinous heap," and to show him a way 
 of justification by faith, without the deeds of the law. He 
 then saw " that the way to help forward the good of mankind, 
 was not to go to repairing and mending, but to pull down all 
 as fast [he] could, because there was no foundation at all." 
 He now labored to show his people " the total ruin of the 
 first Adam, and the complete restoration in the second." 
 They could bear to be told about their duty, so long as they 
 could pacify their consciences with promises of future per- 
 formance ; but to be told that they were wholly dependent 
 on Christ for salvation, was intolerably offensive. Though 
 " their imaginary power " of preparing themselves for heaven, 
 or bringing themselves into a fitness to receive divine grace, 
 " was of no advantage to them, for they would not try to 
 exert it ; " yet the assertion that they had no such power, 
 "stirred their indignation." Still, "Satan, and a corrupt 
 heart," managed to take off the edge of his preaching, by an 
 error then very common, the error of hoping, without evi- 
 dence and against evidence, that his hearers were regener- 
 ate ; so that, instead of " making a full and particular appli- 
 cation to souls, by declaring what their state was," as shown 
 by their profession and practice, he was ready to say that 
 he hoped better things of them, and things that accompany 
 salvation, though he thus spake. At length, God showed 
 him his mistake on this point, and then he endeavoured to 
 come to the conscience of every man, and bring the truth to 
 bear upon it. " And this fretted them still more." 
 
 At length, Gilbert Tennent preached there, on his way to 
 Boston, and again on his return, with his usual New England 
 result, — no revival, but a disturbance of consciences, which 
 lasted till there was one. Opposition to Mr. Park was now 
 at its height. " Seldom above ten, twenty, or thirty souls 
 appeared at the public assembly ; sometimes not so many ; 
 and, if the weather was so as they could have'any excuse, 
 many times none at all." So things continued, till Mr. 
 Davenport came over from Long Island. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 189 
 
 " He preached at Stonington, adjacent to us. I went 
 myself, and divers from this place, to hear him. I had heard 
 many strange things of him, and strange effects of his preach- 
 ing. I went to meet him some way before he came to the 
 meetinghouse ; and upon their coining in solemn procession, 
 singing an hymn, the dread majesty of God seemed to fill 
 heaven and earth, and a solemnity appeared in the countenan- 
 ces of all. He preached a plain and awakening sermon, from 
 John 5 : 40. I heard nothing extraordinary, but the whole- 
 some truths of the gospel, and expected no extraordinary 
 effect ; when, to my surprise, there was a cry all over the 
 meetinghouse. I went about and inquired of one and another 
 the meaning of their outcry. And when I came to under- 
 stand the inward and secret spring thereof, viz : a deep con- 
 Tiction of sin, I could not but say, ' This is the Lord's do- 
 ings, and it is marvellous in our eyes.' Several of our peo- 
 ple were pricked to the heart ; who heard him give another 
 additional testimony to the truth, and saw the wonderful ef- 
 fects of it. And several attended his ministry longer there, 
 and returned deeply wounded. And though the shining hght 
 seemed to darken me, as to my own experiences, yet the 
 Lord strengthened me to plead for his truth, the witness of 
 which I had in myself. Thexe .continued a shaking among 
 many dry bones ; and such then would generally come to hear 
 me preach. 
 
 " There continued much of the working of God's mighty 
 power at Stonington, and many were hopefully brought out of 
 darkness into God's marvellous light. And several -of them 
 were moved to testify, and exhort others to fly for refuge to 
 lay hold of the hope set before them. Upon first 'hearing of 
 this, I disapproved of it in myself, and had divers objections 
 against it. i 
 
 " But providentially, a number of them came to hold a 
 meeting at a remote part of Westerly ; and one of my 
 friends, who, I trust, had been under the saving operations 
 of God's Spirit, informed me of his thoughts to go and hear 
 them, and invite them to his house and hold a meeting there. 
 I consented, provided he found them to his liking, and pro- 
 iposed myself to come and hear them. Accordingly, on the 
 21st of January, 1742, having had a lecture the night befosre, 
 at a remote part of Westerly, a number of the new-born 
 children of God came to me. Here they prayed and iga>ve 
 
190 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 a word of exhortation. They appeared humble, and the 
 power of God seemed to accompany them. 
 
 " I went with them to the place where they had appointed 
 to meet in the evening. I joined with them, and began with 
 prayer; They gave some declaration of the work of God 
 upon their hearts, in converting them to God, and exhorted 
 the people to come to the Lord Jesus Christ ; and I gave 
 public testimony that this was the true grace of God which 
 they set forth, and encouraged them to bear the testimony of 
 Jesus among the people. Many were greatly enraged at them, 
 and at me for countenancing them ; but I thought the true grace 
 of God must not be opposed, but encouraged, wherever 
 God was bestowing it, and however he was sending it ; so that 
 none of these things moved me. I was with them the next 
 day likewise. The power of God appeared accompanying 
 them ; and I was myself strengthened and lifted up by their 
 means. 
 
 " Upon the 28th day of the month, having been to Ston- 
 ington to visit and assist the Rev. Mr. Fish, upon a lecture, 
 I was accompanied home by a number of converts ; and 
 there being a considerable concourse of people, we went into 
 the meetinghouse. We prayed, and several gave a word of 
 exhortation ; and there was somewhat of the power of God 
 visible among the people ; some crying out under a sense of 
 their sinful and undone condition. 
 
 " Upon the 29th of January, 1742, the Rev. Mr. Eells of 
 Stonington came and preached an awakening sermon from 
 Amos 6:1; after which I declared publicly, that if any had 
 a word of exhortation to say, they were desired to say on. 
 Several Christians gave a word of exhortation. God began 
 then to work more powerfully. Several were pricked to the 
 heart. Two hopefully received light and comfort that day. 
 The way was opened to the Father in Christ Jesus. They 
 had a meeting in the evening at such a distance that I could 
 not attend it. The wonderful power of God was said to be 
 visibly manifested ; several were pricked to the heart, crying 
 out. Woe is me ; and several broken hearts were healed. 
 
 " Upon the 31st, being Lord's day, some brethren from 
 Stonington returned to keep Sabbath with us. We had a 
 meeting also in the evening. There was great opposition ; 
 but God showed himself victorious ; and several were wound- 
 ed in spirit, and one negro hopefully renewed. February 1 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 191 
 
 and 2, we had meetings. The Lord was present to kill and 
 make alive ; and in this time the number hopefully converted 
 was fifteen souls. I continued frequent lectures, besides 
 Sabbath exercises, among English and Indians ; had frequent 
 help from ministers and exhorters, the Lord continuing to 
 work salvation among us. 
 
 " Before this day of God's power, there was not, as far as 
 ever I learned, one house of prayer in the place, in two large 
 towns containing some hundreds of families, nor any that pro- 
 fessed the faith of God's own operation, or the true doc- 
 trines of grace. Now, when the Lord set up his sanctuary 
 in the midst of us, those heads of families who had been the 
 happy subjects of his grace, immediately set up the worship of 
 God in their houses ; reading, praying, and singing the praise 
 of God in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. They were 
 brought surprisingly to know the doctrine of the grace of 
 God ; such as before had counted it foolishness; and their souls 
 were thereby quickened towards God. They became ear- 
 nestly engaged to come into covenant with the Lord and one 
 another in the fellowship of the gospel. Accordingly, upon 
 the 29th of April, 1742, a number of them set apart a day of 
 fasting and prayer, to implore the direction and blessing of 
 God, in settling gospel worship and ordinances among them ; 
 and upon the 5th of May, they were formed into a church- 
 state, by the assistance of a council of ministers and delegates 
 from Stonington, and upon August 13, 1742, through much 
 opposition, became an organized body ; when, by the provi- 
 dence of God, I was ordained to the pastoral office over 
 them. 
 
 " The Lord has added daily to the church, such we hope 
 as shall be saved. The number of professors first entering 
 into the bonds and fellowship of the gospel, was fourteen 
 souls, eight males and six females, all English ; since which 
 time have been joined to our communion twenty-two persons, 
 besides two that have been recommended from other church- 
 es. Of those added, six are Indians, and two negroes. 
 They all, in some good measure, appear hopefully to con- 
 tinue in the grace of God, and with purpose of heart to 
 cleave to the Lord. 
 
 " The Lord, in the beginning of his visitation, was gra- 
 ciously pleased to show some tokens for good towards the 
 Indians, and singled out some of them for monuments of his 
 
192 THE GREAT AWAKENING; 
 
 freehand sovereigp grace.. But the power of God began to be 
 most remarkable among the body of them upon February 6, 
 1743, when, upon the Lord's day, a number of Christian In- 
 dians, from, Stonington came to visit the Indians here. I 
 went in the evening, after the public worship of God, to meet 
 them, and preach a lecture to them. The Lord gave me to 
 plead with him, that his kingdom might be seen coming with 
 power among the Indians. The Lord, I trust, began to an- 
 swer, even in the time of prayer ; after which we sung a hymn. 
 The glory of the Lord was manifested more and more. 
 The enlightened among them had a great sense of spiritual 
 and eternal things ; a spirit of prayer and supplication was 
 jkoured out upon them, and a spirit of conviction upon the 
 enemies of God. I attempted to preach from 2 Corinthians 
 6 :. 2, but was unable toi continue my discourse by reason of 
 the outcry. I therefore gave it up, and, as I had opportu- 
 nity, offered, a word of exhortation, as the Lord enabled me. 
 I spent, the evening until late with them. The Indians con- 
 tinued together all night,, and spent the most of the next day 
 and night together ; and it continued a wonderful time of 
 God's power. And from that time, the Indians were gener- 
 ally stirred up to seek after eternal life. They flocked more 
 to the house and worship of God, than they were wont to do 
 to their frolics. They remain earnestly inquiring after God, 
 and appear many of them hopefully to have found the Lord ; 
 and. there are tokens for good that the Lord is preparing the 
 way, and gathering numbers of them into the kingdom of his 
 dear Son. There is now near a hundred that come very 
 constantly, and attend very seriously, and I hope, to profit. 
 May the Lord carry on his work to perfection." 
 
 This awakening among the Indians appears to have left 
 permanent good effects. Within a little more than a year 
 ipom February, 1743, more than sixty became members of 
 the church, and the number increased in subsequent years. 
 Heathenism appears to have been extinguished among them. 
 
 NORTHAMPTON. 
 
 Here, as has been already stated, the revival had com- 
 menced in the spring of 1740. Whitefield's visit was about 
 the middle of October. E dwards wrote, Novem ber 12, 
 1743:* ■ "" 
 
 " Chriistian History, Vol. I. page 367. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 193 
 
 " He jjrea ched here four serrnQPS-ia-the-meetLoghouse, 
 besides ajirivate^ lecture at mjhpiis.e>-Qne_on Friday., another 
 nn" SahTrda y, and tw o upon the Sabbath. The congregation 
 was extraordinarily melted by every sermon ; almost the 
 whole assembly being in tears for a great part of sermon 
 time. Mr. Whitefield's sermons were suitable to the cir- 
 cumstances of the town ; containing just reproofs of our 
 backslidings, and in a most moving and affecting manner, 
 making use of our great profession and great mercies as ar- 
 guments with us to return to God, from whom we had de- 
 parted. Immediately after this, the minds of the people in 
 general appeared more engaged in religion, showing a greater 
 forwardness to make religion the subject of their conversa- 
 tion, and to meet frequently together for religious purposes, 
 and to embrace all opportunities to hear the word preached. 
 The revival at first appeared chiefly among professors, and 
 those that had entertained the hope that they were in a state 
 of grace, to vfhom Mr. Whitefield chiefly addressed himself; 
 but in a very short time, there appeared an awakening and 
 deep concern among some young persons that looked upon 
 themselves as in a Christless state ; and there were some 
 hopeful appearances of conversion ; and some professors 
 were greatly revived. In about a month or six weeks, there 
 was a great alteration in the town, both as to the revivals of 
 professors, and awakenings of others. By the middle of 
 December, a very considerable work of God appeared 
 among those that were very young ; and the revival of reli- 
 gion continued to increase ; so that in the spring an enga- 
 gedness of spirit about things of religion was become very 
 general amongst young people and children, and religious 
 subjects almost wholly took up their conversation when they 
 were together. 
 
 " In the month of May, 1741, a sermon was preached to 
 a company at a private house. Near the conclusion of the 
 exercise, one or two persons that were professors, were so 
 greatly affected with a sense of the greatness and glory of di- 
 vine things and the infinite importance of the things of eter- 
 nity, that they were not able to conceal it ; the affection of 
 their minds overcoming their strength, and having a very vis- 
 ible effect on their bodies. When the exercise was over, 
 the young people that were present removed into the other 
 room for religious conference ; and particularly that they 
 17 
 
] 94 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 might have opportunity to inquire of those that were thus af- 
 fected, what apprehensions they had, and what things they 
 were that thus deeply impressed their minds ; and there soon 
 appeared a very great effect of their conversation ; the affec- 
 ti.on was quickly propagated through the room. Many of the 
 young people and children that were professors, appeared to 
 . be overcome with a sense of the greatness and glory of divine 
 things, and with admiration, love, joy and praise, and com- 
 passion to others, that looked upon themselves as in a state of 
 nature ; and many others, at the same time, were overcome 
 with distress about their sinful and miserable state and condi- 
 tion ; so that the whole room was full of nothing but out- 
 cries, faintings, and such like. Others soon heard of it, in 
 several parts of the town, and came to them ; and what they 
 saw and heard there, was greatly affecting to them ; so that 
 many of them were overpowered in like manner. And it 
 continued thus for some hours ; the time being spent in pray- 
 er, singing, counselling and conferring. There seemed to 
 be' a consequent happ) effect of that meeting to several par- 
 ticular persons, and in the state of religion in the town in 
 general. After this, were meetings from time to time, at- 
 tended with like appearances. But a little after it, at the 
 conclusion of the public exercise on the Sabbath, I appoint- 
 ed the children that were under sixteen years of age to go 
 from the meetinghouse to a neighbouring house, that I there 
 might further enforce what they had heard in public, and 
 might give in some counsels proper for their age. The 
 children were there very generally and greatly affected with 
 the warnings and counsels that were given them, and many 
 exceedingly overcome, and the room was filled with cries ; 
 and when they were dismissed, they, almost all of them, went 
 home crying aloud through the streets to all parts of the 
 town. The like appearances attended several such meetings 
 of children that were appointed. But their affections appear- 
 ed, by what followed, to be of a very different nature. In 
 many, thpy appeared to be indeed but childish affections, and 
 in a day or two would leave them as they were before. Oth- 
 ers were deeply impressed ; their convictions took fast hold 
 of them, and abode by them ; and there were some that from 
 one meeting to another seemed extraordinarily affected for 
 some time, to but little purpose, their affections presently 
 vanishing, from time to time ; but yet afterwards were seized 
 with abiding convictions, and their affections became durable. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 195 
 
 " About the middle of the summer, I called together the 
 young people that were communicants, from sixteen to twen- 
 ty-six years of age, to my house ; which proved to be a 
 most happy meeting. Many seemed to be very greatly and 
 most agreeably affected with those views which excited hu- 
 mility, self-condemnation, self-abhorrence, love, and joy. 
 Many fainted under these affections. We had several meet- 
 'ings that summer of young people, attended with like appear- 
 ances. It was about that time, that there first began to be 
 cryings out in the meetinghouse ; which several times occa- 
 sioned many of the congregation to stay in the house, after 
 the public exercise was over, to confer with those who seem- 
 ed to be overcome with religious convictions and affections ; 
 which was found to tend much to the propagation of their im- 
 pressions with lasting effect upon many ; conference being at 
 these tiqnes commonly joined with prayer and singing. In 
 the summer and fall, the children in various parts of the town 
 had religious meetings by themselves for prayer, sometimes 
 joined with fasting ; wherein many of them seemed to be 
 greatly and properly affected, and I hope some of them sav- 
 ingly wrought upon. 
 
 " The months of August and September were the most 
 remarkable of any this year, for appearances of conviction 
 and conversion of sinners, and great revivings, quickenings 
 and comforts of professors, and for extraordinary external ef- 
 fects of these things. It was a very frequent thing to see a 
 house full of outcries, faintings, convulsions, and such like, 
 both with distress, and also with admiration and joy. It was 
 not the manner here to hold meetings all night, as in some 
 places, nor was it common to continue them till very late in 
 the night ; but it was pretty often so that there were some 
 that were so affected, and their bodies so overcome, that 
 they could not go home, but were obliged to stay all night at 
 the house where they were. There was no difference that I 
 know of here, with regard to these extraordinary effects, in 
 meetings in the night, and in the day time; the meetings in 
 which these effects appeared in the evening, being common- 
 ly begun, and their extraordinary effects, in the day, and 
 continued in the evening ; and some meetings have been 
 very remarkable for such extraordinary effects, that were both 
 begun and finished in the day time. 
 
 " There was an appearance of a glorious progress of the 
 
196 THE GREAT AWAKENIiNG. 
 
 work of God upon the hearts of sinners in conviction and 
 conversion, this summer and fall ; and great numbers, I think 
 we have reason to hope, were brought savingly home to 
 Christ. But this was remarkable ; the work of God, in 
 his influences of this nature, seemed to be almost wholly up- 
 on a new generation ; those that were not come to years of 
 discretion in that wonderful season nine years ago, or those 
 that were then children. Others, that had enjoyed that for- 
 mer glorious opportunity without any appearance of saving 
 benefit, seemed now to be almost wholly passed over and let 
 alone. But now we had the most wonderful work among 
 children, that was ever in Northampton. The former great 
 outpouring of the Spirit was remarkable for influences upon 
 the minds of children, beyond all that had ever been before ; 
 but this far exceeded that. Indeed, as to influences on the 
 minds of professors, this work was by no means confined to 
 a new generation. Many of all ageS partook of it. But yet, 
 in this respect, it was more general on those that were of the 
 younger sort. Many that had formerly been wrought upon, 
 that in the times of our declension had fallen into decays, and 
 had in a great measure left God, and gone after the world, 
 now passed under a very remarkable new work of the Spirit 
 of God, as if they had been the subjects of a. second conver- 
 sion. They were firsj led into the wilderness, and had a 
 work of conviction, having much greater convictions of the 
 sin of both nature and practice than ever before, (though 
 with some new circumstances, and something new in the kind 
 of conviction,) in some with great distress, beyond what they 
 had felt before their first conversion. Under these convic- 
 tions, they were excited to strive for salvation, and the king- 
 dom of heaven suffered violence from some of them in a far 
 more remarkable manner than before. And after great con- 
 victions and humblings, and agonizings with God, they had 
 Christ discovered to them anew, as an all-sufficient Saviour, 
 and in the glories of his grace, and in a far more clear man- 
 ner than before ; and with greater humility, self-emptiness, 
 and brokenness of heart, and a purer and higher joy, and 
 greater desires, after holiness of life, but with greater self- 
 diffidence and distrust of their treacherous hearts. 
 
 "One -circumstance wherein this work differed from that 
 which had been in the town five or six years before, was, 
 that conversions were frequently wrought more sensibly and 
 
THE GRBAT AWAKENING. 197 
 
 visibly ; the impressions stronger, and more manifest by ex- 
 ternal effects of them ; and the progress of the Spirit of 
 God in conviction, from step to step, more apparent ; and 
 the transition from one state to another more sensible and 
 plain ; so that it might, in many instances, be, as it were, 
 seen by bystanders. The preceding season had been very 
 remarkable on this account, beyond what had been before ; 
 but this more remarkable than that. And in this season, 
 these apparent or visible conversions, (if I may so call 
 them,) were more frequently in the presence of others, at 
 religious meetings, where the appearances of what was 
 wrought on the heart fell under public observation. 
 
 " After September, 1741, there seemed to be some abate- 
 ment of the extraordinary appearances that had been ; but 
 yet they did not wholly cease, but there was something of 
 them from time to time all winter. 
 
 " About the beginning of February, 1742, Mr. Buel 
 came to this town ; 1 being then absent from home, and con- 
 tinued so till about a fortnight after. Mr. Buel preached 
 from day to day almost every day, in the meetinghouse, (I 
 having left to him the free liberty of my pulpit, hearing of 
 his designed visit before I went from home,) and spent al- 
 most the whole time in religious exercises with the people, 
 either in public or private, the people continually thronging 
 him. When he first came, there came with him a number 
 of the zealous people from Suffield, who continued here for 
 some time. There were very extraordinary effects of Mr. 
 Buel's labors ; the people were exceedingly moved, crying 
 out in great numbers in the meetinghouse, and great part of 
 the congregation commonly staying in the house of God for 
 hours after the public service, many of them in uncommon 
 circumstances. Many also were exceedingly moved .in pri- 
 vate meetings, where Mr. Buel was ; and almost the whole 
 town seemed to be in a great and continual commotion, day 
 and night ; and there was indeed a very great revival of reli- 
 gion. But it was principally among professors ; the appear- 
 ances of a work of conversion were in no measure equal to 
 what had been the summer before. When I came home, I 
 found the town in very extraordinary circumstances, such in 
 some respects as I never saw it in before. Mr. Buel con- 
 tinued here a fortnight or three weeks after I returned, there 
 being &till great appearances attending his labors ; many in 
 17* 
 
1^8 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 their religious affections being raised far beyond what they 
 ever had been before. And there were some instances of 
 persons lying in a sort of trance, remaining for perhaps a 
 whole twenty-four hours motionless, and with their senses 
 locked up ; but in the mean time under strong imaginations, 
 as though they went to heaven, and had there a vision of glo- 
 rious and delightful objects. But when the people were 
 raised to this height, Satan took the advantage, and his inter- 
 position in many instances soon became very apparent ; and 
 a great deal of caution and pains were found necessary to 
 keep the people, many of them, from running wild. — 
 
 " In the beginning of the summer, 1742, there seemed to 
 be some abatement of the hveliness of people's affections in 
 religion ; but yet many were often in a great height of them. 
 And in the fall and winter following, there were at times ex- 
 traordinary appearances. But in the general, people's en- 
 gagedness in rehgion and the liveliness of their affections 
 have been on the decline ; and some of the young people 
 especially, have shamefully lost their hveliness and vigor in 
 religion, and much of the seriousness and solemnity of their 
 spirits. But there are many that walk as becometh saints ; 
 and to this day, there are a considerable number in 'the town 
 that seem to be near to God, and maintain much of the life 
 of religion, and enjoy many of the sensible tokens and fruits 
 of his gracious presence. 
 
 " With respect to the late season of revival of religion 
 amongst us, for three or four years past ; it has been observa- 
 ble, that in the former part of it, in the years 1740 and 1741, 
 the work seemed to be much more pure, having less of a 
 corrupt mixture, than in the former great outpouring of the 
 Spirit in 1735 and 1736. Persons seemed to be sensible of 
 their former errors, and had learnt more of their own hearts, 
 and experience had taught them more of the tendency and 
 consequences of things. They were now better guarded, 
 and their affections were not only greater, but attended with 
 greater solemnity, and greater humility and self-distrust, and 
 greater engagedness after holy living and perseverance ; and 
 there were fewer errors in conduct. But in the latter part 
 of it, in the year 1742, it was otherwise. The work contin- 
 ued more pure till we were infected from abroad ; our people 
 hearing, and some of them seeing, the work in other places, 
 where there was a greater visible commotion than here, and 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 199 
 
 the outward appearances were more extraordinary, were 
 ready to think that the work in those places far excelled what 
 was amongst us ; and their eyes were dazzled with the high 
 profession and great show that some made, who came hither 
 from other places. 
 
 " That those people went so far beyond them in raptures 
 and violent emotions of the affections, and a vehement zeal, 
 and what they called boldness for Christ, our people were 
 ready to think was owing to their far greater attainments in 
 grace, and intimacy with Heaven. They looked little in 
 their own eyes, in comparison of them, and were ready to 
 submit themselves to them, and yield themselves up to their 
 conduct, taking it for granted that every thing was right that 
 they said and did. These things had a strange influence on' 
 the people, and gave many of them a deep and unhappy 
 tincture, that it was a hard and long labor to deliver them 
 from, and which some of them are not fully delivered from 
 to this day. 
 
 "The effects and consequences of things among us plain- 
 ly shows the following things, viz. That the degree of grace 
 is by no means to be judged of by the degree of joy, or the 
 degree of zeal ; and that, indeed, we cannot at all determine 
 by these things, who are gracious and who are not ; and that 
 it is not the degree of religious affections, but the nature of 
 them, that is chiefly to be looked at. Some, that have had 
 very great raptures of joy, and have been extraordinarily 
 filled, as the vulgar phrase is, and have had their bodies 
 overcome, and that very often, have manifested far less of 
 the temper of Christians, in their conduct since, than some 
 others that have been still, and have made no great outward 
 show. But then again, there are many others that have had 
 extraordinary joys and emotions of mind, with frequent great 
 effects on their bodies, that behave themselves, steadfastly, 
 as humble, amiable, eminent Christians. 
 
 " It is evident that there may be great religious affections, 
 that may in show and appearance imitate gracious affections, 
 and have the same effects on their bodies, but are far from 
 having the same effect in the temper of their minds, and 
 course of their lives. And likewise there is nothing more 
 manifest by what appears amongst us, than that the goodness 
 of persons' state is not chiefly to be judged by any exact- 
 ness of steps, and method of experiences, in, what is sup- 
 
200 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 posed to be the first conversion ; but that we must judge 
 more by the spirit that breathes, the effect wrought on the 
 temper of the soul, in the time of the work, and remaining 
 afterwards. Though there have been very few instances 
 among professors amongst us, of what is ordinarily called 
 scandalous sin, known to me ; yet the temper that some of 
 them show, and the behaviour they have been of, together 
 with some things in the kind and circumstances of their ex- 
 periences, make me much afraid lest there be a considerable 
 number that have woefully deceived themselves ; though, on 
 the other hand, there is a great number whose temper and 
 conversation is such as justly confirms the charity of others 
 towards them ; and not a few in whose disposition and walk, 
 there are amiable appearances of eminent grace. And not- 
 withstanding all the corrupt mixtures that have been in the 
 late work here, there are not only many blessed fruits of it 
 in particular persons, that yet remain, but some good effects 
 of it upon the town in general. A party spirit has more 
 ceased. I suppose there has been less appearance these 
 three or four ypars past, of that division of the town into 
 two parties, that has long been our bane, than has been these 
 thirty years ; and the people have apparently had much more 
 caution, and a greater guard on their spirit and their tongues, 
 to avoid contention and unchristian heats, in town meetings 
 and on other occasions. And it is a thing greatly to be re- 
 joiced in, that the people very lately have come to an agree- 
 ment and final issue, with respect to their grand controversy, 
 relating to their common lands ; which has been, above any 
 other particular thing, a source of mutual prejudices, jealous- 
 ies and debates, for fifteen or sixteen years past. The peo- 
 ple are also generally, of late, in some respects considerably 
 altered and meliorated in their notions of religion. Partic- 
 ularly, they seem to be much more sensible of the danger of 
 resting in old experiences, or what they were subjects of at 
 their supposed first conversion ; and to be more fully con- 
 vinced of the necessity of forgetting the things that are be- 
 hind, and pressing forward, and maintaining earnest labor, 
 watchfulness, and prayerfulness, as long as they live." > 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 301 
 
 Appendix to Chapter XII. 
 
 The two documents which follow, were written by zealous 
 promoters of the revival, in the very midst of its excitement. 
 They throw much light on the events recorded in this chapter, 
 and on some events yet to be narrated. The first is from a 
 notice of Dr. Wheelock, furnished by the Rev. William Al- 
 len, D. D. for the American Quarterly Register. The second 
 is from a manuscript, no part of which has ever been "pub- 
 lished. * 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM THE PRIVATE JOURNAL OF THE REV. 
 ELEAZER WHEELOCK. 
 
 October 91, 1741. Had bat little sleep. Arose before day. Rode 
 ■with Mr. Coit and my friends to Voluntown. Courteously received 
 and entertained by Mr. Dorrance. Went to meeting at ten. Heard 
 Mr. Gideon Mills preach well. Preached after him. There is a great 
 work in this town; but more of the footsteps of Satan than in any 
 place I have yet been in : the zeal of some too furious : they tell of 
 many visions, revelations, and many strong impressions upon the im- 
 agination. They have had much of God in many of their meetings, 
 and his great power has been much seen, and many hopefully convert- 
 ed. Satan is using many artful wiles to put a stop to the work of God 
 in this place. Good Lord, let bim be confounded. Let his mischiefs 
 fall upon his own head. At their conference at night, I mentioned 
 some of these devices of Satan, which I apprehend they are in dan- 
 ger of, and heard the accounts of a number of new converts. 
 
 22. Rose this morning refreshed. A pleasant day ; found my soul 
 stretching after God. The Lord has this day in some measure ful- 
 tilled my early desires. Preached twice with enlargement, by Mr. 
 Smith's barn, to great assemblies. Many cried out ; many stood 
 trembling; the whole assembly very solemn, and much affection; 
 four or five converted. One woman, who came from Kingston against 
 a great deal of opposition on purpose to hear me, came out clear and 
 went away rejoicing in God, longing to have her husband and others 
 taste and see with her. 
 
 23. Rose at three ; somewhat indisposed. Dear Lord, I commit my 
 body, my soul, my life, health, and all to thee. Use me as thou wilt, 
 only let me glorify thee, and seek that as my last end. Left Voluntown 
 about seven, accompanied by a great number of wounded and com- 
 forted. Came to M r. Cooper's of Scituate, in the county of Providence. 
 Preached to a considerable assembly. I am always thronged with 
 company, and want time to talk with the tenth part of those who de- 
 
 * It is to be deposited ip the library of the American Antiquarian Socie- 
 ty, at Worcester, where some parts of it have alrendy been placed. It 
 contains a minute history, not only of the author's pastoral labors, but of 
 his domestic life, even to the making of a coat, the hanging of a gate, and 
 the killing of a wolf in the neighbourhood. 
 
202 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 sire to converse with me. Dined, and rode with a great number of 
 Voluntown people to Captain Angel's. Preached there. The old man 
 and woman violently opposed ;> called me antichrist, etc. Came about 
 eight to Mr. Henry's, seven miles from Providence. 
 
 24. Rose early, prayed and sang. Discoursed with some wounded ; 
 afterwards exhorted a company, who came in. Sung a hymn, prayed, 
 and rode with a great company of Voluntown people and others to 
 Providence. About two miles from Providence, met Mr. Knight and 
 another man, who came out to meet us. His first salutation was, God 
 bless you, my dear brother.' Went to his house. ) Rev. Mr. Cotton 
 came, invited me to preach ; felt freedom and sweetness in my soul. 
 
 25. Rode with Mr. Knight into town in his calash. Preached three 
 sermons, 2 Cor. 13: 5; Mark 1:2; Luke 10: ult. O, the dreadful ig- 
 norance and wickedness of these parts ! O, what a burthep dear Mr. 
 Cotton has daily to bear. 
 
 26. Rode with Mr. Cotton back seven miles to Mr. Bonnet's : 
 preached at one o'clock to a numerous and affected assembly. One 
 converted. Returned with a great number to Providence. Preached 
 to a full assembly : many scoffers present ; pne man hired for twenty 
 shillings to come into the meetinghouse and fall down ; which he did, 
 and made great disturbance ; ordered all who had a real concern for 
 the salvation of their souls, to follow me to Mr. Cotton's, in order to 
 have a conference with them. A considerable number came, who 
 seemed considerably moved. 
 
 27. Went with Mr. Cotton and madam over the ferry to Rehoboth, 
 upon Mr. Greenwood's invitation ; preached at one. Rode with Mr. 
 C. etc. to Swansey. 
 
 28. Brother Finney went to deacon Kingsley, for liberty to preach 
 
 in the Baptist meetinghouse, but he refused it ; but deacon sent 
 
 for the key, and I preached at one and again in the evening. O, poor, 
 bigoted, ignorant, prejudiced people ! 
 
 29. Came with Mr. Cotton and many others to Atdeborough : very 
 courteously received by Mr. Wells. Heard Mr. Turner, of Rehoboth'; 
 preached after him ; a great deal of affection and sobbing through the 
 whole assembly; had great enlargement. Exhorted in tiie evening at 
 Mr. Wells'. [Quere, Weld's.'] 
 
 30. Had a great sense of my own badness and unworthiness, of 
 what a cursed heart I have. O, Lord, let me see and know more of it. 
 Rode with Mr. Wells and many others to Norton ; kindly received by 
 Mr. Avery. Preached to a full assembly ; much affection and sobbing 
 through the whole assembly. Rode to Raynham with Mr. Wales 
 and brother Byram. 
 
 JS/ovember I. Preached in the forenoon to a full assembly ; one cried 
 out, many affected. Advised those who belonged to the assembly, 
 not to follow me to Taunton, but stay and hear their own preacher. 
 Went with Brother Byram to Taunton; preached there. One or two 
 cried out. Appointed another meeting in the evening. I believe 
 thirty cried out. Almost all the negroes in town wounded ; three or 
 four converted. A great work in the town. Dear brother Crocker, a 
 true servant of Jesus Christ, preaches here upon probation. I was 
 forced to break off my sermon before it was done, the outcry was so 
 great: continued the meeting till 10 or 11 o'clock. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 203 
 
 2. Rode with Mr. Crocker to the tavern, to see Capt. Leonard's ne- 
 gro, (a slave ;) found him under a very clear and genuine conviction. 
 Dear brother Rogers came to see me here. Rode with a great num- 
 ber to Bridgewater. Preached to a full assembly in Mr. Shaw's meet- 
 inghouse. 
 
 3. Rode with a great number to Mr. Perkins' meetinghouse ; a very 
 full assembly. After sermon, the lecture was appointed at Mr. An- 
 ger's ; but so many wounded that I could not leave them. , Therefore 
 preached again to a full assembly. A great outcry : four or five con- 
 verted. 
 
 4. Rode to Mr. Porter's. A great multitude. Preached upon a 
 stage. One converted in sermon. After dinner, rode with Mr. Bel- 
 cher, and a great multitude, to Easton. Brother Rogers preached. 
 A very great outcry in the assembly. I preached after him. Four or 
 five converted. 
 
 5. Came to Mr. Niles', of Braintree. Preached with great freedom. 
 Present, Messrs. Eells and Hancock ; Mr. Worcester came in the 
 evening. 
 
 6. Set out for Boston. Met by dear Mr. Prince and Mr. Bromfield 
 about eight miles from Boston. Came in to Mr. Bromfield's. Soon 
 after my arrival, came the Hon. Josiah WiUard, Secretary, Rev. Mr. 
 Webb and Mr. Cooper, and Major Sewall, to bid me welcome to Bos- 
 ton. At six o'clock, rode with Mr. Bromfield in his chaise to the north 
 end of the town, and preached for Mr. Webb to a great assembly. 
 After sermon, returned to dear Mr Webb's ; pleased with the conver- 
 sation of dear Mr. Gee. 
 
 8. Went to Dr. Coleman's meeting ; preached with considerable 
 freedom. Dined with the Dr. Went with Mr. Rogers to Mr. Prince's. 
 Preached to a full assembly. After meeting, was followed by a 
 great throng of children, who importunately desired me to give them 
 a word of exhortation in a private house, which I consented to do, 
 though I designed to go and hear Mr. Prince, who, being by, desired 
 that I would have it publicly, which I consented to; 
 
 9. Visited this morning by a great number of persons under soul 
 trouble. Refused to preach, because I designed to go out of town. 
 Just as I was going, came Mr Webb, and told me the people were 
 meeting together to hear another sermon. I consented to preach 
 again. A scholar from Cambridge being present, who came to get 
 me to go to Cambridge, hastened to Cambridge, and, by a little after 
 six, a great part of the scholars had got to Boston. Preached to a 
 very thronged assembly, many more than could get into the house, 
 with very great freedom and enlargement. I believe the children of 
 God were very much refreshed. They told me afterwards, they be- 
 lieved that Mather Byles was never so lashed in his life. This morn- 
 ing, Mr. Cooper came to me, in the name of the Hon. Jacob Wendell, 
 Esq., and earnestly desired a copy of my sermon, preached in the 
 forenoon of the Lord's day, for the press. O, that God would make 
 and keep me humble. 
 
204 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM THE PRIVATE JOURNAL OF THE REV. EBENE- 
 ZER PARKMAW, OF WESTBOROUGH, MASS. 
 
 January 7, 1 742. Cold day ; but I rode over to the private meeting at 
 deacon Forbush's, and preached on John 3; 36; after which I had a 
 brief exercise of prayer and exhortation to the society of young wo- 
 men. It is agreeable to see how readily and gladly many receive the 
 word. 
 
 26. Catechetical exercise to young women. 
 
 28i There being at Leicester very considerable awakenings among 
 some of the people, they set apart this day for fasting and prayier, for 
 obtaining a plentiful effusion of the Holy Spirit upon them ; and they 
 having sent for me to assist on that occasion, I went up. Mr. Ed- 
 wards, of Northampton, was there, and preached a very awakening 
 sermon on Rom. 9 : 22 — " Vessels of wrath." I preached in the af- 
 ternoon on Zechi 12: 10. In the evening, Mr. Hall preached on Isa. 
 54 : 13. N. B. Some stirrings. 
 
 29. Mr. Edwards preached on John 12 : 23, a peculiarly moving and 
 useful sermon. May God bless it to me, to draw my heart effectually 
 to Jesus Christ, by his love, by his bitter and ignominous sufferings on 
 the cross for me ! I prevailed on Mr. Edwards, before we went out 
 of the pulpit, to come by divine leave next week to Westborough. 
 
 31. I cannot help remarking what a wonderful time was now ap- 
 pearing; for there are great movings upon the hearts of the people of 
 the country, in one part thereof and another. O ! that I and mine 
 might be stirred up earnestly and seasonably to put in for a share ! 
 The Lord grant us this mercy, and let us not be left behind! 
 
 February 1. It was a rainy day, but I rode to Grafton and Sutton. 
 Mr. Edwards was come from Leicester. Mr. Edwards preached to a 
 large assembly on Ps. 18 : 25. At evening, in a very rainy, stormy 
 time, I preached to a considerable assembly on Ps. 68 : 8. Religion 
 has of late been very much revived in Sutton, and there is a general 
 concern about their souls. 
 
 2. A rainy morning. Mr. Edwards put on resolution and came with 
 me to Westborough. Mr. Edwards preached to a great congregation 
 on John 12:32, and at eve at my house on Gen. 19: 17. N. B. Mr. 
 James Fay was greatly wrought on by the sermon on John 12:32. 
 So were Samuel Allen and Ezekiel Dodge, who manifested it to me ; 
 and doubtless multitudes besides were so. Deo Opt. Max. Gloria. 
 
 6. Mr. James Fay, who thinks he sees things in a new light, and 
 that he is now converted, was here to see me and discourse with me. 
 
 9. Mr. James Fay came for me to go and see Isaiah Pratt, who lay 
 iaa stj-ange condition at his house, not having spoke nor been sensi- 
 ble since nine o'clock last night. I went to him, and seeing him lie so 
 insensible, and his pulse exceeding slow, I advised them to send for Dr. 
 Gott, to bleed him ; but sittings by him and rousing him, by degrees he 
 came to. Many were present, and were astonished. When he re- 
 gained his senses, he said he had not been asleep, had seen hell, and 
 seen Christ; and said Christ told him his name was in the book of life, 
 &c. When he had taken some slender food, he yet further revived, 
 and spake more freely. We gave thanks and prayed, and I gave 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING-. 205 
 
 some exhortation. N. B. One of the deacons of the church was there, 
 who took me aside to lament to me his dullness and backwardness in 
 the things of the kingdom of God. These things are now (blessed be 
 God) more frequent, which heretofore were very rare. May God in- 
 crease them, and furnish me abundantly for his work, in every part of it! 
 
 10. By agreement with Mr. Gushing, this day was kept in a religious 
 manner at my house, as a time of humiliation and supplication, but as 
 privately as we could. And I sent a letter last week to the neighbour- 
 ing ministers tojoin with us, in that we might unitedly implore divine 
 direction in such an extraordinary day as this is, and that we might 
 obtain the outpouring of God's Spirit upon us and our respective 
 charges ; but none came but Mr. Gushing. 
 
 1 1. Mrs. Pratt with her son were here according to my appointment, 
 to acquaint me further with what iie had seen, or apprehended he saw, 
 in the time of his trance or reverie the other night. He having in- 
 formed me of his seeing (as he thought) the devil, who met him as he 
 seemed to be in the way towards heaven, and told him that there was 
 no room for him there ; of his seeing hell, and hearing the most dread- 
 ful noise of roaring and crying ; his seeing heaven, so wondrously 
 happy a place as nobody could tell but those that were there ; and 
 Christ, who looked more pleasant than ever he had seen any man, 
 and who had a great book before him, and in turning over the leaves 
 of it, told him that his name was there, and showed it him ; and that 
 he had seen a great many more things, which were such great things 
 that he could not speak of them ; — I told him that these things were 
 not to be depended upon, but that the apostle Peter has cautioned us, 
 saying, that we have a more sure word of prophecy, to which we 
 should do well to take heed, &c. I endeavoured further to instruct, di- 
 rect, and comfort him, and lay the charges of God upon him. P. M. 
 I preached at Mr. James Pay's, on Luke 19 : 9, to a great multitude, 
 and it pleased God to give it some success. As soon as the exercise 
 was over. Deacon Fay broke forth with a loud voice, with tears of joy, 
 and blessed God that he saw this day, &c.; desiring that I would in 
 due time have an exercise at his house ; and bore a message from his 
 brother, old Mr. Samuel Fay, that I would have one at his also,— 
 which it was a cheerful thing to hear, considering his temper and con- 
 duct for some years past. The rest of the people seemed so inclined 
 to religious matters, that they did not freely go away. Many tarried 
 to discourse of the affairs of their souls, and hear of the experiences 
 of one another. 
 
 12. At eve, Mr. Stephen Pay was here in great distress concerning 
 his spiritual state, fearing that all he had done in religion was only to 
 still conscience. I directed him to read what was most awakening 
 still, and most searching ; and particularly Mr. AUiene's Alarm and 
 Mead's Almost Ghristian. 
 
 March 9. N. B. Mr. Pattershall informs me of Mr. Groswell's ir- 
 regular zeal at Charlestown. 
 
 11. Fast in this, place, on account of the extraordinary dispensations 
 of God's grace in the land ; that we might on the one hand implore 
 the gift of the Holy Spirit, and divine direction, that we be not carried 
 away by the many snares, temptations, and delusions to which we are 
 greatly exposed. 
 
 18 
 
206 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 15. Very cold day. Yet I rode to Mr. Charles Rice's, and preached 
 to the society of young women on Ps. 119 ; 59. 
 
 20. Rainy. Mr. Buel and three young men with him here. I found 
 him willing to submit to any examinations concerning his doctrines, 
 or opinions, or life ; whereupon I made several inquiries, to which he 
 made ready answers, and told me he had made up with Mr. Noyes at 
 New Haven above a month after commencement, and was examined 
 and licensed by the ministers of that association to preach. I urged 
 him to preach ; but he said he was under such obligations to preach at 
 Concord, that he must proceed thither. 
 
 21. On 2 Cor. 6: 2. — I hope there was some good success of the 
 word to-day, through the blessing of God. O may it prove an accept- 
 ed time and a day of salvation to us all ! 
 
 22. Catechised boys A. M. at tho meetinghouse. P. M. Girls at 
 my own house. 
 
 S3. P. M. Catechetical exercise with the young women. I preach- 
 ed on John 13 : 17. At Ensign Maynard's at evening, to remove his 
 stumbling at my slippers. 
 
 27. N. B. Mr. James Fay and Mr. Francis Whipple here. P. M. 
 A great deal of discourse about the assurance of every new convert. 
 
 29. N. B. The world full of Mr. Buel's preaching at Concord. In 
 the judgment of some, great success ; in the judgment of others, great 
 confusion. 
 
 30. I proceeded to Cambridge. — Visited Mr. Appleton. N. B. Va- 
 rious accounts from Ipswich, of the state of religion there. The peo- 
 ple are greatly enlivened and awakened there. At evening I was 
 at Charlestown. Mr. Buel preached on Gen. 6 : 3. JM. B. Mr. Cros- 
 well lies sick at Charlestown, after zealous preaching there for some 
 time. 
 
 JlprU 1. Mr. Hooper at the public lecture, on 1 John 4: 13. N. B. 
 Great disgust given by Mr. Barnard's sermon last Thursday, and now 
 continued among some by Mr. Hooper ; as appeared to me at evening 
 at Mr. Cooper's. 
 
 9. Mr. Beriah Rice here to join the church. Neighbour Thurston 
 here at evening. N. B. His experience of extraordinary grace, the 
 months past. His discourse very savory and very free. 
 
 10. Mr. Williams here P. M. to join the church. 
 
 13. [He went with his daughter to Cambridge.] 
 
 14. Rainy ; but yet Molly and I rode to Boston, and were at the or- 
 dination of the Rev. Mr. Andrew Eliot, at the New North Church. 
 Dr. Sewall prayed, Mr. Eliot preached 1 Cor. 4:2, Mr. Webb the 
 charge, Mr. Appleton the right hand. N. B. A vast assembly, and a 
 glorious time of God's grace. 
 
 15. [He returned home with Sarah Sparhawk, of whom more here- 
 after.] 
 
 20. Catechetical exercise No. 5, at the meetinghouse. Above 
 thirty young women, I suppose, were present. N. B. Mary Bradish 
 with me afterwards, being in some spiritual difficulties. 
 
 21. Mr. Samuel Williams here about his spiritual state, and desirous 
 to join the church. I took pains in examining him, and hope God is 
 doing a good work in him. 
 
 22. I had sent to Mr. Stone and to Mr. Gushing, fruitlessly, to as- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 207 
 
 sist me. I sent a verba! message to Mr. Burr, and, though it was 
 a rainy day, he came and preached my lecture ; a good, useful ser- 
 mon on Rom. 10 : part of the 14th and 15th verses, and the 17th, against 
 exhorters among the people, &c., with a moving application. 
 
 25. Administered the Lord's Supper. Repeated on 2 Cor. 11 : 27, 
 29. P. M. on Eph. 5 : 14. I was in much fear and trembling, but cast 
 myself on God. I chose to repeat in the forenoon, that I might deliv- 
 er the latter part of that discourse, and likewise that I might deliver 
 my sermon in the aftei'noon more entirely by itself, it not admitting to 
 be divided, but it being the quantity of two sermons. I was much 
 above an hour. Some number of Southborough people at meeting, 
 and some of Hopkinton. 
 
 26. [Went to Rutland, to attend a council and fast.] 
 
 30. Mr. Grow here in spiritual distress, and Mr. Jpsee Brigham'a 
 wife. 
 
 May 1. Stephen Fay here upon soul accounts. 
 
 2. On Eph. 5: 14. Mrs. Bathsheba Pratt here, being greatly dis- 
 tressed for the hardness of her heart, notwithstanding that she had 
 been a member in full communion above twenty years. 
 
 6. Mr. Paterson, an Irishman from Stoddardtown, here. N. B. 
 He had been one of those that had fallen into a stange fit by the pres- 
 sure of his distress at hearing the word preached. P. M. I preached 
 at Capt. Fay's, on Eph. 5: 14, sermon II. — N. B. 1 repeated that ser- 
 mon, because of divers people being at a great loss about the doctrine 
 held forth therein. 
 
 7. Mary Bradish with me on account of her spiritual troubles. 
 Cousin Winchester also. 
 
 11. Mr. Bliss here, on his journey to Grafton and Sutton. I rode 
 Mr. Benjamin How's horse to Shrewsbury, and preached to the society 
 of lads there, on 2 Cor. 6 ; 2. 
 
 13. I rode Mr. Burns's horse to Marlborough, and preached the lec- 
 ture on Eph. 5: 14. 
 
 14. Mr. [or Mrs.] Williams here again, — Sarah Bellows, — Daniel 
 Stone and his wife, — all of them candidates for the communion. 
 
 17. Phineas Forbush with me upon his soul distresses. N. B. 
 News from Grafton, that Mr. Philemon Bobbins preached there yes- 
 terday, and twenty or more persons fell down with distress and an- 
 guish. 
 
 18. Exercise to young women on Ps. 73 : 24. — Mrs. Edwards from 
 Northampton, and Searl, a Freshman of New Haven College, here, 
 and lodged here. 
 
 19. Sweet converse with Mrs. Edwards, a very eminent Christian. 
 At half after eleven I left home and rode to Sutton Falls. Preached 
 there on Eph. 5: 14. After meeting, an elderly woman, one Mrs. 
 White, whose husband is a Baptist, so overcome that she was led into 
 Mr. Hall's. She seemed to be in great distress, but she had much joy 
 and love. 
 
 21. My wife rode with me to Stephen Fay's, where I preached on 
 Mat 3: 10. The assembly somewhat considerable, being there was a 
 town meeting at the same time to choose a representative. Ensign 
 Maynard chosen, but refused. Town then concluded not to send. I 
 had a great cold. 
 
208 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 23.— At eve, called at Ensiffn Maynard's, to visit Mrs.- Wheeler of 
 Concord, (heretofore Rebecca Lee,) who was under a grievous melan- 
 choly and mingled despair and distraction. I 
 
 [25. Rode to Boston.] 
 
 26. — Mr. Appleton preached excellently to the Court, from Ps. 72 : 
 1, 2. P. M. When I went to Dr. Sewall's, there was but a thin ap- 
 pearance of ministers ; upon which I heard Mr. John Caldwell, at the 
 French meetinghouse. The drift was against false prophets, and not 
 without bitterness, mixed with his wit and sense. 1 sat very uneasy, 
 and went out as soon as it was done. Went up to Mr. Chauncy's, the 
 convention being adjourned. Some number of ministers there, con- 
 gratulating him upon his being made Doctor of Divinity by the Uni- 
 versity of Edinburgh. Our conversation was upon assurance ; the 
 ground of it, the manner of obtaining it, and the special operation of 
 the Holy Spirit therein. A very useful conversation; Mr. Barnard 
 and others having talked very judiciously and piously upon it Sought 
 Mrs. Edwards fruitlessly. 
 
 27. Mr. Loring preached to the ministers from 2 Cor. 2 : 16, last 
 clause. The contribution, I understand, amounted to £230. — P.M. 
 I went to Dr. Chauncy's, where was a very considerable number of 
 ministers in conversation upon the present state of things with respect 
 to religion. 
 
 28. [Returned home.] 
 
 29. Mrs. Edwards, and young Searl with her, in her journey to 
 Northampton. 
 
 30. On Song, 2 : 16. N. B. Mrs. Edwards' conversation very won- 
 derful, — her sense of divine things. 
 
 31. I rode with Mrs. Edwards to Shrewsbury, but could not pro- 
 ceed to Worcester, as I had purposed. 
 
 ■Tune 8. Mr. Wheeler at evening, opposing my late doctrine from 
 Eph. 5 : 14, — that the natural man can do nothing but what is sinful. 
 
 15. Much interrupted in the morning with Mr. Joseph Wheeler, who 
 takes exceptions against the doctrines I deliver one Sabbath after an- 
 other. I rode to Mr. Loring's of Sudbury, where the association met. 
 There were Mr. J. Prentice, Mr. Cushing, Mr. N. Stone, and Mr. 
 Buckminster. Mr. Buckminster offered himself to be examined. 
 He was so, and he delivered a sermon on Luke 10: 41, 42. At eve, 
 I asked advice respecting the doctrine 1 had lately delivered from Eph. 
 5: 14, and Rom. 8: 8, and on that question, — "Are there not some 
 promises made to humble, fervent strivers, that they shall obtain the 
 grace of God.'" — N. B. Council at Concord, called by Ezekiel Miles 
 and others, dissatisfied with Mr. Bliss. 
 
 16. Very useful and profitable conversations upon several heads of 
 divinity, especially referring to the great article of conversion. Com- 
 paring several of Mr. Stoddard's writings. I also read a large paper 
 of the experiences of a young woman, a member of the church in 
 Westborough, which I had from her own Mss. 
 
 20. I preached at Shrewsbury, A. M. and P. M. on Eph. 5: 14. 
 
 22. My sixth exposition of the catechism, to thirty-eight young wo- 
 men. N. B. Elizabeth Chamberlain and Mr. Joseph Green, upon soul 
 affairs. 
 
 24. I rode over to the north of Shrewsbury, and preached to a young 
 society there on 1 Thess. 1 : 10. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 209 
 
 28. I rode over to Hopkinton, at the request of Isaac How, who lay 
 in a low languishment. His state of mind I feared to be very dreadful, 
 because of his insensibility of the amazing wrath of God, and being 
 so comfortable in the apprehensions of death, notwithstanding his im- 
 penitence. Many had expected me to preach; but I received no hint 
 of his desiring any thing of that ; besides, that there was no intima- 
 tions from Rev. Mr. Barrett especially, of any thing of it. 
 
 29. Mrs. Snell was with me about her owning the covenant ; as was 
 also Mr. Jonathan Brigham and his wife. 
 
 30. [Received a request from the Rev. Mr. Barrett and Isaac How, 
 to preach to How to-morrow.] 
 
 July 1. I rode over to Hopkinton, and Isaac How being yet alive 
 and an assembly gathered, at the house of Mr. Josiah Rice, I preached 
 there on 1 Tim. 1: 15; followed with a moving and awakening ad- 
 drees to the poor dying man, who seemed to take it in some ' suitable 
 manner, to outward appearance ; but I fear he has not really an ap- 
 prehension of his astonishing danger, but is in a false peace. The 
 assembly were very attentive, and some number affected. 
 
 6. Rode to Charlestown ; made a visit to Mr. Davenport, who kept 
 at Major Tenner's. 
 
 8. i rode to Boston. Mr. Hooper's public lecture on 1 John, 5:3. 
 P. M. I was at Ur. Chauncy's, where was Mr. Barnard of Marble- 
 head and his lady. Afterwards came Mr. Hooper, and Mr. Malcolm, 
 Episcopal minister of Marblehead. The conversation turned upon 
 Mr Davenport, who is the subject everywhere. But few among the 
 wise and worthy, but judge he is touched in his brain. Mr. Malcolm 
 and I walked down to the North End, and up Snow Hill, to hear him. 
 There had been a thunderstorm, and there were little showers in 
 time of exercise. The sermon was from Rev. 22 : 17 ; a very fervent 
 exhortation, and to unconverted ministers in special. Said he was 
 then in the experience of the Divine Spirit's influences. Said he was 
 then ready to drop down dead for the salvation of but one soul, &c. 
 After sermon, a considerable number of ministers went to Mr. Webb's, 
 who gave us an account of the disorders in that neighbourhood last 
 night, by people's being so late at Mr. Procter's ; (where Mr. Daven- 
 port lodges, and which is right over against Mr. Webb's ;) and he also 
 informed us of his discourse with Mr. Davenport this morning, con- 
 cerning his conduct and actions, (in running out into the street among 
 the crowd, and crying out to them in an indecent voice, gesture &c.,) 
 but to no purpose, he supposing himself to be under the immediate 
 impressions and directions of the Divine Spirit. In a word, Mr. Webb 
 rtjncludes him to be crazed. 
 
 9. [Returned home. — From about this time, the "thrdat distemper" 
 prevailed, and was often fatal.] 
 
 25. Mr. Jacob Amsden's wife came to meeting, who has never been 
 at the public worship till now, ever since I was first in this town. 
 
 August 10. [He was called to Cambridge and Boston by his moth- 
 er's sickness.] 
 
 19. The great disturbance last night, by means of Mr. Davenport's 
 condemning the ministers of Boston as unconverted ; and Dr. Col- 
 man, Dr. Sewall, and Dr. Chauncy, by name. 
 
 20. Mr. Davenport condemned by name nine more of the ministera. 
 
 18* 
 
210 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 * 
 
 Grand Jury, I hear, have sat, and have found a bill against him as a dis- 
 turber of the peace. 
 
 24. The association met at my house. 
 
 '25. N. B. The account Mr. Weld gave of the remarkable work of 
 God among them [at Attleborough]. 
 
 30. Mr. Nathaniel Smith of Hopkinton here, for advice respecting 
 his son Nathaniel, who was so oppressed and overcome with the af- 
 fairs of his soul and another world, that he would not attend to the 
 necessary supports of life. 
 
 September 10. N. B. Mr. Davenport at Capt. Fay's, going upwards. 
 
 12. On 1 Thess. 5: 19. The congregation much moved. At noon, 
 Molly Gurfield of Shrewsbury greatly distressed, being awakened by 
 the forenoon sermon, earnestly desired prayers P. M. for her. 
 
 13. N. B. Mr. Daniel Rogers of Ipswich, Dr. Gott, and Mr. Dodge 
 came and dined with us. Mr. Rogers had preached three times at 
 Marlborough. 
 
 18. Mr. Parsons of Lyme made me a kind visit, and [ persuaded him 
 to stay Etnd keep Sabbath here. 
 
 19. I preached at Marlborough. I rode up home at eve. Found 
 Mr. Parsons preaching with great fervency to young people, on the 
 gathering manna in the morning. It made great impression. But the 
 most remarkable signs were immediately after the blessing was pro- 
 nounced. Mr. Stephen Fay's wife cried out, and cousin Winchester 
 presently upon it, both of whom strove what they could to contain 
 themselves, but burst forth with great agony of soul. Sarah Shat- 
 tuck and Betsey Fay discovered also their inward distress. But Sa- 
 rah Sparhawk was unbounded, and like one deprived of her reason. 
 A great tumult ensued. Mr. Parsons advised me to compose them, 
 and either pray or sing a psalm. I requested him to direct to a psalm. 
 After singing, I spoke strongly to the people, advising and beseeching 
 them to retire to private meditation and prayer; and it had success. 
 Sarah Sparhawk was brought away home by some young men. A 
 number of the distressed and others came to my house, but went 
 home about nine o'clock. Sarah Sparhawk was however often crying 
 out, and striving much in her fits for an hour or two ; — then went to 
 bed and slept well. 
 
 20. Mr. Parsons took leave. Sarah Shattuck and Betty Chamber- 
 lain here to take advice upon their spiritual concerns, and Sarah Bel- 
 lows was very helpful in family business, instead of Sarah Sparhawk, 
 who was still feeble and pensive, and could do little. 
 
 21. P. M. I preached to a number that gathered together and re- 
 quested it, but no public notice had been given. I repeated, as I was 
 desired, my last sermon on 1 Thess. 5 : 19. N. B. Sarah Sparhawk 
 cried out again, and was in much distress. 
 
 30. My wife rode with me to Hopkinton. Mr. Moody of York was 
 to preach A. M., but at 11 o'clock Mr. Barrett with a message and the 
 Bible to me, that I must preach. Mr. Barrett prayed before sermon. 
 I preached on Eph. 5: 14. P. M. Mr. Stone prayed, and Mr. Moody 
 preached on Prov. 1 : 23. At evening Mr. Barrett was requested to 
 suffer Mr. Bliss to preach an evening lecture ; but he would not allow 
 of its being publicly in the meetinghouse. He gave way to its being 
 at a private house. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 211 
 
 October 4. Stephen Fay here, in various religious disquietments. 
 His brother James here at evening ; and while some young women, 
 Sarah Shattuck, Mary Graves, and Sarah Bellows, were receiving in- 
 structions from me in singing, Mr. Fay was in much spiritual commo- 
 tion ; but while we were singing the 63d psalm, he was in a peculiar 
 manner rapt in spiritual delight, and panted with the overbearing joy 
 and admiration of the divine greatness and condescension to us, and 
 his patience towards us ; and his expressions of these things were 
 very becoming and noticeable. 
 
 13. [Went to Boston and Cambridge.] 
 
 15. At Deacon Sparhawk's, to discourse with them concerning Sa- 
 rah, and apprized them of my unwillingness to keep her. I returned 
 home. 
 
 20. Mr. Hall preached a moving sermon on John 5 : 40. No crying 
 out in the meetinghouse ; but, as 1 was going home from the meeting- 
 house, Mrs. Ruth Fay, in anguish of spirit, burst out and went into my 
 house. I took her into my study, and gave her what instructions I 
 could. In the mean time Sarah Sparhawk was crying and screaming 
 upon her bed in another part of the house. Many people were in the 
 house below. Mr. Edwards of Northampton was come, and both he 
 and Mr. Hall assisted me in ministering to these distressed souls, and 
 others that needed. It was an evening of great engagement. 
 
 21. Mr. Hall and Mr. Edwards went, the one to Button and the oth- 
 er to Boston. 
 
 23. N. B. I have understood there are various commotions on reli- 
 gious accounts among brethren on the south side of the town. 
 
 56. Mr. Secomb went with me to the Association at Marlborough. 
 A considerable number of ministers and candidates. The conversa- 
 tion turned mostly of all upon the times. Mr. Marsh of Wachusett 
 very full of his stories, to discredit those who were zealous in promot- 
 ing convictions, &c. 
 
 27. N. B. Mr. Loring's angry rebuke directed to me at dinner, for 
 opposing Mr. Marsh. 
 
 28. We have the utmost reason to celebrate the divine patience 
 and long suifering, inasmuch as he has not only waited three years 
 upon this church, and upon me their unworthy pastor, seeking fruit 
 upon us ; nor only three times three ; but this day it is no less space 
 than twice three times three years. O may we be humbled for our 
 manifold defects and unprofitableness ! O might I, in peculiar, who 
 have the greatest need ! And may God, of his infinite mercy, grant us 
 grace, "and to me in special, that, henceforth, we ipay bring some fruit 
 to his glory ! Jejun. Priv. 
 
 31. On Hab. 6: 7, 8; in which I endeavoured to improve the divine 
 admonitions and instructions to our quickening and awakening. See 
 the 28th day. 
 
 J^ovember 16. N. B. Mr. Stephen Fay here, and tarried and dined 
 with me ; was with me all the afternoon, and some part of the even- 
 ing. He revealed several wonderful experiences which he had, both 
 last spring and lately. He told me he had a weighty, pressing con- 
 cern for two souls. I found he meant his own and mine. I asked 
 him what he had discovered in me, that gave him reason to suspect 
 me. He tolU me, my preaching and conversation ; for that if I had a 
 
212 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 true sight of eternal things, he thought I should be more zealous and 
 fervent ; for, for his part, he felt as if he could cry out, &c. I con- 
 fessed my dullness ; yet made some appeal to my sermons, especially 
 of late delivered. I spoke of the different tempers of men; the di- 
 versities of gifts, but the same spirit; the different frames which both 
 speakers and hearers are in at different times ; professed, however, 
 my need of divine grace and the supply of the Spirit, to revive and 
 quicken and furnish and assist me, and of his prayers, (and asked 
 them,) that I might obtain the presence and Spirit of God with me ; 
 and whatever God should afford, should give in to me, I would en- 
 deavour to give out to them. . We parted in great peace and love. 
 May the Lord sanctify the admonition to me, and hereby stir up in me 
 a spirit of care and jealousy over my own soul ; and enliven me with 
 respect to the souls committed to my care ! O might it please God to 
 impress me deeply with the worth of immortal souls, and my tremen- 
 dous account in the day of Christ, of those of this flock, and of all my 
 charge 1 
 
 18. Mr. Gushing here P. M. He came on the business of Sarah 
 Sparhawk's living here, that he might write to her grandfather about 
 her. But she grows so untoward, that we drew up determinations to 
 put her away, unless she will reform. 
 
 22. P. M. came Mr. Samuel Streeter, of Hopkinton, and gave me 
 some account of himself and his spiritual state for some years past, 
 but especially of his darkness and trouble till the fast at Hopkinton 
 last December 2i), and ^to God the sole glory) the help he received by 
 my sermon on Ps. 63 : 8. 
 
 26. Mr. Prentice of Grafton came to see me. I inquired whether 
 he had sought reconcilement with Mr. Loring of Sudbury, as he had 
 engaged at Rutland. He could not say he had. He brought me his 
 church's desire and his own, to assist them in a fast next Thursday 
 come sennight. But I insisted upon his reconcilement with Mr. Lor- 
 ing. N. B. Mr. Hall had told him and his wife, that at his late visit 
 to me, 1 received him but coldly. 
 
 December 4. [Returned home from Boston, late, and in bad weather. 
 Took cold, which brought on rheumatism and fever, from which he 
 was slowly recovering Dec. 20.] 
 
 9. A fast at Grafton. — Sarah Sparhawk very intolerable in insist- 
 ing to go to Grafton, though there was nobody at home but she to 
 take care of the business of the house, my wife waiting on me. 
 
 18. I had sent a letter to Mr. Joseph Sparhawk, but no return. 
 The ways heavy yet, but sent Ebenezer with Sarah to said Mr. Spar- 
 hawk at Sutton. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 213 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Edwards. — The Revival at Enfield.— Outcries, Faintings, and Convulsions. 
 
 TTj;gnnnt hs saiH thgt, during all these tra nsactions, Jona- 
 than F.Hwar() s was the p residingjniiidjfNew~ England . _.His 
 rRjiiiitaljonandjnfliignffe had indeed bgen_J£Crg asing rapidly, 
 both in Anienca~and in Europe ; and perhaps there was no 
 other man in New England whom the friends of piety es- 
 teemed so highly, or from whom they expected so much. 
 But Npto JRngfpnH npvpr, at any perinH of her history, hgd a 
 presiding^ rnind. Even among the Orthodox Congregational 
 clergy, there has never been a man who could procure the 
 adoption of his own views, without the aid of others who 
 agreed with him substantially, and who did not borrow their 
 views from him. Edwards, indeed, had done more than any 
 other mao to awalcen the ministry and the churches in the 
 first instance, and to produce the movement which had now 
 become general. But it was a movement of minds^ that 
 thought for themselves. No one man, therefore, could guide 
 it. Many would be sure to throw in the influence of their 
 peculiarities, — their wisdom, their folly, and their passions, 
 — to modify the result. Whitefield had shot across the land 
 like a meteor, flashing light, and creating astonishment and 
 admiration. Tenneht, from the revival school ii) New Jer- 
 sey, which, though harmonious and in correspondence with 
 that at Northampton, was not derived from it, had taken his 
 own way, and perhaps having contracted something of a tone 
 of defiance from the warfare in which he had been engaged, 
 he, unlike Edwards, sometimes irritated the wicked without 
 overawing them. T he fervid Parso ns , who was a safe m an 
 onl y because he learned so readily by experience, and r e- 
 treat ed so quickly from the borders of erro r, had enkindled 
 a spirit like his own around the mouth of the Connecticut. 
 Wh eelock and Pomr oy had spread wide an impulse, genieral- 
 ly in the right direction, but not sufficiently discriminating. 
 And finally, the learned, orthodox and pious clergy of Bos- 
 ton were still regarded as the chief depositaries of influence ; 
 and though they gladly borrowed thoughts from all, and most 
 
214 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 readily from their esteemed friend at Northampton, could 
 give themselves up to the guidance of none. The character 
 of the revival, then, was derived from many independent 
 sources, each imparting characteristic traits, which prevailed 
 according to the power from which it sprung. The influ- 
 ence of Edwardj^jnadejio forced marche s, but was steadily 
 advancing to the occupation of the whole country ; and it 
 continued to advance, while he lived and a^er his death. 
 
 Sti ll, he was perhaps the most efficient preach er in New 
 England, even if judged by the immediate effect of his ser- 
 mons. Many think of him as an intellectual giant, indeed, 
 but as a'giant wholly composed of intellect, and suppose that 
 his power consisted entirely in the cold conclusiveness of his 
 unimpassioned logic. A greater mistake is scarce possible. 
 Besides his logic, there was his strong and realizing faith. 
 God, heaven, hell, the sinfulness of sin, the beauty of holiness, 
 the glory of Christ and the claims of his gospel, were as sub- 
 stantial realities to his mind and heart, as the valley of the 
 Connecticut or the mountains of Berkshire. He spoke of 
 them accordingly, and m aAp. ihp.m sp.p.n^ jf ,^] to his hearers. 
 He was perhaps as remarkable for his power and habit of 
 deep and strong and tender feeling, as for his powers of ar- 
 gumentation. Take a specimen, from his own personal nar- 
 rative. 
 
 " Sometimes, only mentioning' a single word, caused my heart to 
 burn within me ; or only seeing the name of Christ, or the name of 
 some attribute of God. — The sweetest joys and delight^ I have ex- 
 perienced, have not been those that have arisen from a hope of my 
 own good estate ; but in a direct view of the glorious things of the 
 gospel. When I enjoy this sweetness, it seems to carry me above the 
 thoughts of my own estate. It seems, at such times, a loss that I can- 
 not bear, to take off my eye from the glorious pleasant object I behold 
 without me, to turn my eye in upon myself, and my own good estate." 
 
 " Once, as I rode out into the woods for my health, in 1737, having 
 alighted from my horse in a retired place, as my manner commonly 
 has been, to walk for divine contemplation and prayer, I had a view, 
 that for me was extraordinary, of the glory of the Son of God, as me- 
 diator between God and man, and his wonderful, great, full, pure and 
 sweet grace and love, and meek and gentle condescension. This 
 grace, that appeared so calm and sweet, appeared also great above 
 the heavens. The person of Christ appeared ineffably excellent, with 
 an excellency great enough to swallow up all thought and concep- 
 tion ; — which continued, as near as I can judge, about an hour ; which 
 kept rae the greater part of the time in a flood of tears, weeping 
 aloud. I felt an ardency of soul to be, what I know not how other- 
 wise to express, emptied and annihilated ; to lie in the dust, and to 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 215 
 
 be full of Christ alone ; to love him with a holy and pure love ; to 
 trust in him ; to live upon him ; to serve and follow him ; and to be 
 perfectly sanctified and made pure, with a divine and heavenly purity. 
 I have several other times had views very much of the same nature, 
 and which have had the same efiects." 
 
 Such a man must have felt strongly when he_ preached. 
 He must have been powerfully moved with compassion for 
 the souls of his hearers, and with desires for their salvation. 
 And besides this, he must have preached with an ardent zeal 
 for the glory of God ; with an intense anxiety that the divine 
 object of his affections should not be wronged, by the with- 
 holding of that love and trust and reverence which are his due. 
 
 The traits already mentioned imply a powerful imagina- 
 tion ; and in this respect he has seldom had a superior. 
 Heaven and holiness were too heavenly and holy, in his ap- 
 prehension, to be set forth by earthly imagery ; yet he has 
 left us some bright specimens of the beautiful. 
 
 " Holiness, as I then wrote down some of my contemplations on it, 
 appeared to me to be o£ a sweet, pleasant, charmiflg, serene, calm 
 nature ; which brought an inexpressible purity, brightness, peaceful- 
 ness and ravishment to the soul. In other words, it made the soul 
 like a field or garden of God, with all manner of pleasant fiowers ; en- 
 joying a sweet calm, and the gentle, vivifying beams of the sun. The 
 soul of a true Christian, as I then wrote my meditations, appeared like 
 such a little white flower as we see in the spring of the year; low and 
 humble on the ground, opening its bosom to receive the pleasant 
 beams of the sun's glory; rejoicing, as it were, in a calm rapture ; 
 diff"using around a sweet fragrancy ; standing peacefully and lovingly 
 in the midst of other flowers round about, all in like manner opening 
 . their bosoms to drink in the light of the sun." 
 
 What delicate inaggary is here ! What exquisite personi- 
 fication of the flowers of the garden, endowing them with 
 life, and consciousness, and moral beauty ! How naturally 
 these lovely musings "move harmonious numbers," so that 
 his very words flow sweetly as he utters them ! 
 
 But the most wonderful displays of his imagination were 
 put forth in describing the imminent danger of the wicked, 
 and the awful scenes that await the enemies of God. There 
 is nothing of the kind in the great masters of English poetry, 
 or of any other uninspired poetry, that equals, in imaginative 
 power, many passages in his sermons. Read his sermon on 
 the Punishment of the Wicked, or that on the Eternity of 
 Hell Torments. Or rather, read that entitled " Sinners in 
 the hands of an angry God ;" of the preaching and effects of 
 which we have an account. 
 
216 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 It was preached at ^E nfield, July 8, 1741 . " While the 
 people in the neighbouring towns were in great distress for 
 their souls," says the historian,* " the inhabitants of that 
 town were very secure, loose, and vain. A lecture had been 
 appointed at Enfield ; and the neighbouring people, the night 
 before, were so affected at the thoughtlessness of the inhabi- 
 tants, and in such fears that God would, in his righteous 
 judgment, pass them by, while the divine showers were fall- 
 ing all around them, as to be prostrate before him a consid- 
 erable part of it, supplicating mercy for their souls. When 
 the appointed time for the lecture came, a number of the 
 neighbouring ministers attended, and some from a distance. 
 When they went into the meetinghouse, the appearance of 
 the assembly was thoughtless and vain. The people hardly 
 conducted themselves with common decency." Edwards 
 preached. His plain, unpjretending jiianner, both in language 
 and delivery, and his established reputation for holiness and 
 knowledge of the truth, forbade the suspicion that any trick 
 of oratory would be used to mislead his hearers. He began 
 in the clear, careful, demonstra tive style of a teacher, solici- 
 tous for the result of his effort, and anxious that every step 
 of his argument should be clearly and fully understood. His 
 text was, Deut. 32 : 35. " Their foot shall slide tn due 
 time." As he advanced in unfolding the meaning of the text, 
 the most careful logic brought him and his hearers to conclu- 
 sions, which the most tremendous imagery could but inade- 
 quately express. His most terrific descriptions of the doom 
 and danger of the impenitent, only enabled them to appre- 
 hend more clearly the truths which he had compelled them to 
 believe. They seemed to be, not the product of the ima- 
 gination, but, — what they really were, — a part of the argu- 
 ment. The effect was as might have been expected. Trum- 
 bull informs us, that, "befpxe. the sermon .was ended, th e as- 
 sembly appeared deeply_.impressed and_hQJEfiiLdown with an 
 awful conviction of their sin and danger. There was such a 
 breathing of dijtrg5.s_ and weeping, that the preacher was 
 obhged to speak to the people and desire silence, that he 
 might be heard. This was the beginning of the same great 
 and prevailing concern in that place, with which the colony 
 in general was visited." 
 
 * Trumbull's History of Connecticut, Vol. XI. p. 145. Trumbull learned 
 the particulars from Wheelock, of Lebanon, who was present. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 217 
 
 Edwards was often called to^preach beyond the limits of 
 his own parish ; and " whithersoever he turned himself," he 
 seems to have prospered. In the winter of 1742, he spent 
 some weeks, by invitation, at Leicester, of which we only 
 know that his labors were attended with distinguished suc- 
 cess. * There is no reason to doubt that scenes much like 
 those at Enfield occurred in many places under his preach- 
 ing. Those who understand the force of his sermon at En- 
 field will not wonder, that men who were awakened and con- 
 vinced by it, were unable to conceal their anguish, and "cried 
 out " in bitterness of spirit. Edwards was right in doubt- 
 ing whether those who blamed such outcries, would behave 
 much better, if they had equally clear views of their own 
 guilt and danger. We must remember, too, that the senti- 
 ments and usages of society, a century ago, did not require 
 that universal repression of feeling, which is now expected in 
 all well-educated people. The Puritans of the first genera- 
 tion were by no means scandalized, v^hen their people felt so 
 strongly that they could not conceal their emotions. Of 
 Thomas Shepard, the holy minister of Cambridge, it was 
 said, " that he scarce ever preached a sermon, but some or 
 other of his congregation were struck with great distress, and 
 cried out in agony, what shall I do to be saved }" This 
 was so much expected, that those who had been detained 
 from worship used to ask, " Who hath been wrought upon to 
 day .'' " In the time of Edwards, audible expressions of feel- 
 ing by the hearers in public worship had begun to be consid- 
 ered indecorous ; for hearers were not expected to be over- 
 come by strong emotions ; but the demand of public senti- 
 ment for silence was much less imperative then than now. 
 
 It was a time, too, of agitable nerves. There had been ' 
 two centuries of tremendous nervous excitement. There 
 had been the Reformation, the peasant's war, and the religious 
 wars in Germany ; the Reformation, the rise of Puritanism, 
 the republic^ and the times of the Covenanters in Great Bri- 
 tain ; the rise of Protestantism, the religious wars, and the 
 persecutions of the Huguenots in France, ending with the 
 appearance of the "French prophets" in the Cevennes, 
 Some of whom were still holding forth among their followers 
 
 * The appendix to Chapter XII. shows that he spent a part of the time 
 in other towns. 
 
 19 
 
218 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 in London. New England sprung out of some of the strong- 
 est, deepest, and most permanent of these excitements ; and, 
 to say nothing of her religious history, her contest with bois- 
 terous seas, and gloomy, unexplored forests, and savage foes, 
 the arrow from an unseen hand by day and the warwhoop that 
 startled her sleepers by night, had kept her spirit ready for 
 excitement. Though not to be frightened, she was easily 
 roused, even to an unnatural intensity of feeling and action. 
 
 The pres ence and agency of the spiritua l world were much 
 more real to men's minds than they are now^ The disc us- 
 sions wTuc[r"grew out of the Salem trageHy, had shown the 
 fallacy of those principles of evid e n c e, onwhich persons had , 
 U B_to that^time, been condemned and ex ecuted for witch- 
 craft in every nation of Christendom ; * but the British stat- 
 ute for punishing witchcraft with death was still in force, and 
 the belief in its reality was still general. Spirits, good and 
 bad, were then expected, by multitudes, occasionally to pro- 
 duce sensible effects on the visible world, and especially on 
 sentient bodies. And as the influence of the mind and the 
 nerves on each other and on the whole human system had 
 not been investigated as it has since, many phenomena were 
 naturally referred to supernatural agency, which now would 
 be referred at once to well known laws. 
 
 With these facts in view, the reader of Edwards' Enfield 
 sermon cannot be surprised at its visible and audible effects. 
 Nor can it be thought surprising that some, constitutionally 
 accessible to such influences, faintedj fell down,' or were 
 thrown into convulsions on similar occasions. Nor is it 
 stranger than dreaming, while their bodies were thus over- 
 come, the activity of their minds should continue ; that the 
 train of thought which had subdued them, should keep pos- 
 session of them ; that their imaginations should give to the 
 objects of their thoughts, the appearance of bodily form ; in 
 short, that there should be trances and visions. Nor is it at 
 all incredible that these trances and visions should help them 
 forward in the knowledge of the truth. If the trains of 
 thought that overcame them were advancing in the right di- 
 rection, that intense nervous excitement might increase their 
 power, and enable them to see truths which, in the calm of 
 
 * Had the fallacy of those principles been exposed in any other part of 
 the world ? Or has New England the honor of first showing, that the ordi- 
 narily admitted evidence of witchcraft was insufficient ? 
 
THE QREAT AWAKENING. 219 
 
 ordinary health and unimpassioned meditation, would have 
 been beyond their reach. And then, in every time of revi- 
 val, there are some who remain wilfully unmoved and uncon- 
 vinced. Where this required strong and protracted effort, 
 the mental and nervous excitement which that effort cost, in- 
 creased the liability to fainting and convulsions. And when 
 they came on, and the man found himself mastered by an in- 
 visible power, which he could neither resist nor understand, 
 but which, in some mysterious way, accompanied the argu- 
 ments that he was wilfully and wickedly resisting ; when the 
 power of divine truth over him had become manifest to all, 
 and his perverse pride of character, as an unmoved despiser 
 of religious terrors, was prostrate, so that his motive for con- 
 cealment was gone ; it was natural that he should yield to the 
 arguments which had before loudly demanded his assent. 
 
 Still it _wi]lJi£-^d, that pien who wf-rp th us impelled to 
 cry ont^_wlTfij3[ntp.ri, fell, and had convulsions, were under an 
 awful delusi on ; that the gospel addresses men kindly, and 
 bids~them hope ; that, if they had been taught and had under- 
 stood and bsJieved its messages of mercy, they would have 
 been filled with joy and peace ; that, therefore, the terrific 
 view of their condition, which filled their minds and overcame 
 their hearts, was an erroneous view, such as men under the 
 gospel ought not to entertain ; and that their teachers should 
 have striven to fill their minds with the comforts which 
 the gospel offers. This is all true; and Edwards and his 
 friends knew it, and acted accordingly. These alarmed, 
 convicted sinners were under an awful delusion, and that 
 delusion was what kept them from peace, and from re- 
 joicing in God their Saviour ; but their delusion shortly be- 
 fore, while they were sinning thoughtlessly and carelessly, 
 was still more awful. They had left the path of duty and of 
 safety; and in proud self-reliance had wandered forth upon 
 the dark mountains, despising what they esteemed idle tales 
 of danger. At length, the lightnings of the gathering storm 
 show them where they are, — on the brink of a fatal preci- 
 pice. 'They start back and gaze around with horror. Be- 
 fore them and below them, are bones, and putrid corpses, 
 and mangled bodies writhing death. Above them are the 
 fires and thunders of the tempest. Behind them and around 
 them are the howling winds, and the rising, rushing floods, 
 and the falling trees, and the roar of lions, seeking whom 
 
220 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 they may devour. There is a safe path, and the voice of the 
 guide is heard behind them, saying " This is the way ; walls 
 ye in it ;" but they have learned to regard it as the voice of a 
 fool, or a madman, or of one that would lead them into per- 
 petual gloom ; and they neither understand nor heed it. 
 They see nothing, hear nothing, think of nothing, but what 
 threatens instant ruin. They are under an awful delusion, 
 which fills them with terror, and, unless soon dispelled, will 
 plunge them into destruction. But blame not the flash of 
 light which showed them where they stood. Without it, the 
 next step would have been into perdition. Now, they may 
 perish in their consternation ; but it may also be, that they will 
 hear the voice that calls them to safety, and their souls will live. 
 
 It is very true, that "preaching hell cannot frighten men 
 into religion ;" but it may frighten them into serious thought, 
 and secure to religious truth that attention, without which it 
 cannot save the soul. After all that can be said of the pow- 
 er of love and of kindness, and the winning accents of mer- 
 cy, and the like, it remains an awful truth, that men will not 
 give any efficient attention to these things, till they have been 
 first brought to see their need of them. Till then, all that 
 they hear about the mercy of God, only gives them courage 
 to neglect him. 
 
 But these views, though true and conclusive, do not go to 
 the bottom of the subject. T hese sinners were not mer ely 
 a larmed, but convi cted. They not only were told of their 
 danger, but were made to see their guilt ; and it was the 
 sight of their guilt, that fastened upon them the conviction of 
 their danger. Examine the accounts given by Edwards, by 
 Prince, by Crocker, and by others, of the exercises of the 
 convicted. These men i|inderstood what they were writing 
 qf, and carefully observed the distinction between the mere 
 akrm of a frightened man, and the rational conviction of one 
 who feels remorse for sins which he knows he has committed. 
 They examined the awakened diligently on this very point, 
 and made no account of any awakening which was not clearly 
 of the latter kind. To condemn the whole, therefore, as 
 the effect of irrational fright, is to show a culpable disregard 
 of well-attested facts. Where they found this clear and ra- 
 tional conviction, Edwards and his fellow-laborers were right 
 in pronouncing the work genuine, notwithstanding any irregu- 
 larities or strange effects upon the body, that'might attend it. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 221 
 
 Still, such "outward manifestations" are exceedingly to 
 be deprecated. They imply a state of the nerves, in which 
 the mind does not operate safely. It acts with increased 
 vigor, and may do more and better than at other times ; but 
 its liability to error is increased. Strong hopes or fears may 
 give an apparent conclusiveness to false reasonings. Vivid 
 impressions on the fancy may be mistaken for clear percep- 
 tions of truth. And among the more ignorant, the bodily 
 agitations themselves may come to be counted valuable ; and 
 then men will trust in them, and seek after them, and learn 
 to produce them voluntarily ; and thus religion may be de- 
 graded into a mere system of nervous excitement. These 
 " manifestations," therefore, though they do not prove the 
 work in which they commence, to, be spurious, are a fearful 
 sign that it will soon become so ; and as they prevail, false 
 conversions will be sure to multiply. 
 
 Occasional instances of this kind will occur, wherever 
 religion appeals with sufficient force to the heart. Persons 
 sometimes involuntarily "cry out," fall down, faint, or go 
 into convulsions, on occasions of unexpected joy or grief, as 
 the arrival or death of a friend ; and whenever a religious 
 consideration moves a person susceptible of such influences 
 with equal force, and especially with equal suddenness, the 
 same effect naturally follows. Where they are understood 
 and treated as the result of human or individual weakness, 
 they amount to little more than an inconvenience to the per- 
 sons afflicted, and to a few immediately around them. But 
 where they are valued and cuhivated, another principle 
 comes in, — that of sympathy, or involuntary imitation, and 
 they grow into what may be called, with the strictest propri- 
 ety, an epidemic disease. The process has never been fully 
 explained, but is illustrated by many analogous facts. A 
 man may walk without difficulty on a plank six inches wide, 
 laid on the ground. But let him attempt to walk on that 
 same plank, one hundred feet from the earth, and his head 
 swims. The thought of falling " from such pernicious 
 height " makes a strong impression on his mind, takes away 
 his sense of safety, deprives him of the control of his own 
 muscles, and, in the end, makes him fall. So the expecta- 
 tion or the dread of being thrown into convulsions, or any 
 other feeling which fixes the thoughts strongly upon it, even 
 19* 
 
222 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 if it be a feeling of strong unwillingness, may be the means of 
 bringing them on. 
 
 ' There have, been many; instances, mo re or less extens ive, 
 of such epidemics. On this pr inciple, Mesmer, the autho r 
 ofanimaTmagnetism, produced ma ny of the phenomena jEat 
 appearefT in grf-at cnmpa pifis nf p qtiRnts. The poor-house 
 at Haerlem was pervaded, for a time, by convulsions, fre- 
 quently recurring, and propagated from one to another by 
 sight. But though their occasions have been various, they 
 have more frequently attended religious excitements, than 
 any other single concomitant. One of the most remarkable 
 examples attended the great " Kentucky rev ival," which 
 commenced in 1800. Of this wehave accounts from able 
 and learned' men, physicians, divines, and others, who were 
 eyewitnesses and careful observers ; * but the most gra phic 
 and instructiv e seems to be that of the shrewd, thoug h ec- 
 centriic. Lorenzo Dow. He preanh fid in thp nnnrt-hpnsp at 
 Kno xville, Tennessee, in 1 805, when about one hundred 
 and fifty of his hearers were exercised with " the jerks " ; 
 that is, with violent spasmodic contractions of the muscles, 
 which sometimes turned the head quickly from right to left 
 and back again ; and sometimes threw the person on the 
 ground, where he flounced like a live fish. He says, " I 
 have seen all denominations of religion, exercised with the 
 jerks, gentleman and lady, black and white, young and old, 
 without exception. I have passed a meetinghouse, where 
 I observed the undergrowth had been cut for a camp meet- 
 ing, and from fifty to a hundred saplings were left, breast 
 high, on purpose for the people who were jerked, to hold on 
 by. I observed, where they had held on, they had kicked 
 up the earth, as a horse stamping flies. A Presbyteriaa 
 minister told me, while he was preaching, the day before, 
 some had the jerks. I believe it does not afiect those nat- 
 uralists, who wish and try to get it to philosophize upon it ; 
 and rarely those who are the most pious ; but the lukewarm, 
 lazy professor is subject to it. The wicked fear it, and are 
 subject to it ; but the persecutors are more subject to it than 
 any, and they have sometimes cursed and swore and damned 
 k, while jerking." The remark concerning naturalists is 
 
 * The acepunt given by the Rev. Di. Alexander iqay bg found in the 
 Connecticut Evan. Mag. Vol. II. p. 354. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 223 
 
 what might be expected. Franklin and his fellow commis- 
 sioners, appointed by the kingj^Tl^ance^jo^investjgate the 
 claims of arilmir mag;netrs m, could not g et the_^^jerks " 
 which Mesmer ijnHicted jjpon his pa tients, "to philosophize 
 u£on," wrtTTall the assistance the magnetizer could render. 
 The deep, established peace of mind of " the most pious," 
 too, was generally a protection. Dr. Robertson, an eye- 
 witness, says, in his Inaugural Essay before the Medical Fac- 
 ulty at Philadelphia: — "It attacks both sexes, and every 
 constitution ; but evidently more readily, those who are en- 
 thusiasts in religion;" that is, Dow's "lukewarm, lazy pro- 
 fessors," when heated ; for enthusiasts are usually of that 
 class. Dr. Alexander says, that the phenomena " were com- 
 mon to all ages and sexes, and to all sorts of characters." 
 Dow says, that " persecutors " had it, without relaxing their 
 open hatred of religion. Others testify that they have been 
 thrown into " the jerks " by hearing a description of the 
 jerking of others, and without any religious impression, either 
 attending or following tlie attack.* 
 
 It is evident, therefore, th at in this instance , although 
 these spasm odic contrac tio ns of t he muscles, in the begin- 
 nin g; had their ri se_froin_strong. religious excitement, they 
 soon becajne^^ genui ne epidem ic ; a distinct matter from the 
 revTvaT; as really distinct as the cold and cough, which a 
 person may take by attending worship, is from his devotion 
 while worshipping. It thenceforth subsisted independently 
 of the cause that produced it ; spread itself by its own laws, 
 and was connected with the revival only by subsisting at the 
 same time and -in the same place, and affecting, in many in- 
 stances, but not in all, the same subjects. 
 
 T owards the flpgi^ "f thp. Cirpat — Awakpning nf 174*^, 
 
 these j^j nanifestations " began to assume th e pharaptor of an 
 epidemic; though by no means so clearly as in the "Ken- 
 tucky revival." The various steps of the process are not 
 so clearly marked, as the reader would desire. No one 
 seems to have made them the subject of calm physiological 
 observation. Men looked upon them and wrote about them, 
 merely in their bearing on the genuineness of the revival ; 
 
 * This subject is ably illustrated in an " Essay upon the Influence of the 
 Imagination on the Nervous System, contributing to a False Hope in Reli- 
 gion, by Rev. Grant Powers. It was publishea at Andover, bjr Flagg & 
 Gould, in 1838, and has furnished several of the facts here mentioned. 
 
224 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 some alleging them as proof of its spuriousness, and others 
 adducing them as marks of its divine origin ; while sound 
 divines, generally, considered them as the results of human 
 weakness under the powerful operations of the Holy Spirit, 
 and thus as the measure of the amount of divine power exert- 
 ed on the several subjects. 
 
 Insulated cases, but not unfrequent, occurred from the 
 commencement of this awakening. They appeared under 
 the preaching of Blair, in Pennsylvania, in 17 39. Blair, as 
 appears by his own account, in a former part of this volume, 
 was peculiarly suspicious of the soundness of the spiritual 
 work in such as were thus affected, and examined them with 
 unusual closeness ; though, when he found the spiritual part 
 as it should be, he was too good a philosopher to condemn 
 the work on account of the state of the body. The Scotch 
 Presbyterians, among whom Blair preached, might have seen 
 such things before their emigration ; for there had been not a 
 few- instances of the kind in their father land, many years 
 before. Whitefield had seen them in England. Among the 
 Methodists, they first appeared under the preaching of the 
 Wesleys. John received and valued them as proofs of the 
 divine presence, and they increased under his labors. Charles 
 discouraged them, and in one instance, at least, recorded his 
 suspicion of hypocrisy. Whitefield was incredulous ; and 
 when at last some, who had been John Wesley's hearers, 
 fell down under Whitefield's preaching, Wesley thanked God 
 for it, thinking that Whitefield would then be convinced. 
 The argument seems to have failed ; for when Whitefield 
 saw the same " manifestations " under his preaching in Penn- 
 sylvania and New Jersey, in 1740, he ascribed them to dia- 
 bolic influence. " Satan now begins to throw many into 
 fits."* Our accounts from this region are very defective. 
 Gilbert Tennent, who had the best opportunities for observa- 
 tion, kept no journal. Blair's account of the revival among 
 his people, already quoted, and a few incidental remarks of 
 Whitefield and others, are our only sources of information. 
 Mr. Dickinson, in his account of the awakening at Elizabeth- 
 town, June, 1740, writes : " There was no crying out, or 
 falling down, as has elsewhere happened." William Tennent 
 states, that under the ministry of his brother John, who was 
 
 * Letter from Reedy Island, May 19. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 226 
 
 ordained at Freehold, N. J. November 19, 1730, and died 
 April 23, 1732, "it was no uncommon thing to see persons, 
 in the time of hearing, sobbing as if their hearts would break, 
 but without any public outcry : and some have been carried 
 out of the assembly, (being overcome,) as if they had been 
 dead." Gillies * mentions faintings, so that a number were 
 carried out in a state of insensibility, under the preaching of 
 Rowland, in a Baptist church, probably at Philadelphia ; but 
 he gives no date. Gilbert Tennent was present ; and at his 
 suggestion, Rowland changed the style of his discourse, and 
 the faintings ceased. In Finley's Nottingham sermon, 
 " Christ triumphing and ^atan raging," — " wherein is prov- 
 ed that the kingdom of God is come unto us at this day," 
 which was printed at Philadelphia, Boston, and London in 
 1741, f we are told that opposers of the revival, "without 
 observing the deep concern that souls seem to be under, — 
 only ask about the fits and convulsions that their sorrow- 
 throws them into." In New England, some instances of 
 fainting and falling attended the " Surprising Conversions " at 
 and around Northampton in 1735 ; but, so far as appears, 
 without convulsions. 
 
 We may conclude, therefore, with little hazard of error, 
 that the nervous diathesis, as physicians say, of the age was 
 favorable to such phenomena ; that sporadic cases were more 
 frequent then than now ; that when one happened under 
 some alarming or exciting sermon, other individuals, already 
 predisposed, and strongly moved by the preacliing, would be 
 more readily affected in the same way ; and that, on this side 
 of the Atlantic, thej^ first became prevalent, so as to be a 
 common, though not constant attendant on revivals, in New 
 Jersey and Pennsylvania. How were they made prevalent 
 in New England .'' 
 
 Here, as everywhere, the ne rvous diathes is favored their 
 production ; and the wonder with which they were viewed, 
 increased the predisposition. They occurred in considera- 
 ble numbers, under the preaching of Parsons, at Lyme, and 
 of others, in other places. Ministers who saw such effects 
 produced by preaching the truth with prayer and singleness 
 
 * Life of Whitefield, p. 39 ; note. 
 
 t A copy of the Boston edition of 1742, is in the O. S. Cli. Lib. It is a 
 tremendous discourse, scarcely less scorching than Tennent's Nottingham 
 sermon. 
 
226 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 of heart ; who, by careful examination, found that they were 
 accompanied with rational conviction, and followed by sound 
 conversion, dared not treat them otherwise than gently. 
 They never ascribed these bodily agitations to divine influ- 
 ence directly, as was slanderously reported ; but to those 
 convictions, hopes, and fears, which divine influence had 
 imparted, and which produced the same effects as equally 
 violent feelings concerning wordly things might have done. 
 This distinction they carefully and clearly made and abun- 
 dantly urged ; and their adversaries committed sin in wilfully 
 overlooking it. But after all, the lenity with which these 
 " manifestations " were treated, though natural, was too great, 
 and the ignorant took occasion to consider them as parts of 
 the revival, — of that process by which their souls were to 
 be saved. A more decided discouragement of them would 
 have saved a vast amount of evil. " As to visions," says 
 good old father White, of Gloucester, " we had enough of 
 them, until such time as in a lecture-sermon, I declared my 
 sentiments concerning them ; and, so far as I can understand, 
 there has never been one since." It would have been well, 
 if others had taken the same course. 
 
 Edwards published copiously on the subject ; and it will 
 not be an easy task to point out an error in all his reasonings. 
 Yet it must be admitted, that, in the practical application of 
 his own principles, h g was ton indulgen t to these bodily agi- 
 tations. S everal reasons concurred to make him so. Under 
 many of his most effective sermons, — those which actually 
 accomplished most in the promotion of holy living, — num- 
 bers of his hearers were deprived of self-command, and 
 forced to " cry out," and to weep aloud, as at Enfield. A 
 little more would have produced fainting in some, and con- 
 vulsions in others. He, himself, i n some of his best fra mes, 
 had been nearly overco me, so as to spend he knew not how 
 tnuch time in loud weeping ; and he knew that such seasons 
 promoted his own piety. But there was another, — a do- 
 mestic rea son, the exhibition of which will give to m any a 
 n ew idea of the character of Edvy ards. 
 
 In 1723, when he, was about twenty years of age, he wrote 
 on a blank leaf of some book : 
 
 " They say there is a young lady in , who is beloved of that 
 
 Great Being who made and rules the world ; and that there are cer- 
 tain seasons, in which this Great Being, in some way or other, invisi- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 227 
 
 ble, comes to her and fills her mind with exceeding sweet delight, and 
 that she hardly cares for any thing, except to meditate on him ; — that 
 she expects after a while to be received up where he is ; to be raised 
 up out of the world, and caught up into heaven ; being assured that 
 he loves her too well to let her remain at a distance from him always. 
 There she is to dwell with him, and to be ravished with his love and 
 delight for ever. Therefore, if you present all the world before her, 
 with the richest of its treasures, she disregards it and cares not for it, 
 and is unmindful of any pain or affliction. She has a strange sweet- 
 ness in her mind, and singular purity in her aflfections ; is most just 
 and conscientious in all her conduct; and you could not persuade her 
 to do any thing wrong or sinful, if you would give her all the world, 
 lest she should offend this Great Being. She is of a wonderful sweet- 
 ness, calmness, and universal benevolence of mind ; especially after 
 this Great Being has manifested himself to hei; mind. She will some- 
 times go about from place to place, singing sweetly, and seems to be 
 always full of joy and pleasure, and no one knows for what. She loves 
 to be alone, walking in the fields and groves, and seems to have some 
 one invisible always conversing with her." 
 
 This young lady was Sar ah Pierrepo nt, and about four 
 years after this was written, she became his wife. She was 
 not only a person of eminent piety, of rare intellect, and ac- 
 complished education, but uncommonly beautiful. After all 
 that moralists can say, insensibility to beauty is an imperfec- 
 tion, as really as"- the want or dormancy of any other faculty 
 of the soul. A great and important part of education con- 
 sists in developing the taste, — the power of appreciating 
 beauty. In Edwards, as we have already seen, it was highly 
 developed ; and he could not but feel exquisitely the loveli- 
 ness of one, on whose moral beauty he had so Jong indulged 
 such rapturous musings. It would be a great mistake, to 
 think this an illusion, which a few years of reality would dis- 
 pel. The .celebrated Hopkins, who came to study theology 
 at Northampton when she was the mother of seven children, 
 pronounced her beautiful. Still more would she appear so 
 to her husband. Beauty loses its power, only when expe- 
 rience proves it to be a cheat, and shows that the soul is not, 
 as was expected, fit to dwell in the lovely form which it ani- 
 mates. Edwards had made no such discovery. His wife 
 had always been to him, all that his young imagination had 
 promised. He, therefore, would be the last man to perceive 
 that the more unimportant part, the outward sign of her love- 
 liness, had begun to fade. He was, while he lived, — as 
 the Bible required him to be, — "ravished always with her 
 love." If any thing had been wanting to complete his rav- 
 
228 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 ishment, her devoted attac"hment to him must have supplied 
 the deficiency. 
 
 Mrs. Edwards continued to enjoy, after her marriage, and 
 at least till the time of this awakening, those occasional visits 
 of the " Great Being, who made and rules the world," with 
 which she had been favored in her childhood ; especially 
 near the close of 1738, in the summer of 1740, and again in 
 January, 1742, — of which last, at her husband's request, 
 she wrote a particular account. * At these seasons, her 
 views of spiritual objects appear to have been most delightful, 
 and absolutely overpowering. Of their " very great effects 
 on the body," Edwards mentions, "nature often sinking 
 under the weight of divine discoveriesj the strength of the 
 body being taken away, so as to deprive of all ability to stand 
 Or speak ; sometimes the hands clenched, and the flesh cold, 
 but the senses still remaining ; animal nature often in a great 
 emotion and agitation, and the soul very often, of late, so 
 overcome with great admiration and a kind of omnipotent 
 joy, as to cause the person, (wholly unavoidably,) to leap 
 with all the might, with joy and mighty exultation of soul ; 
 the soul at the same time being so drawn towards God and 
 Christ in heaven, that it seemed to the person as though soul 
 and body would, as it were of themselves, of necessity 
 mount up, leave the earth, and ascend thither." Edwards 
 testifies expressly and minutely, that these visitations were 
 followed by manifest improvement in practical holiness. 
 
 The influence of these things on his opinions is not a matter 
 of mere conjecture. A g reat part of her account of her ex- 
 ercises in January. 1742, he transcribed, partially cha nging 
 th e~pErase ology, concealing the name and even the sex of 
 the person, and adding some particulars from his own knowl- 
 edge, into his "Thoughts on the Revival of Religion in 
 New England ; " where he used it to prove that the influence 
 which produced such bodily effects was good, and of salutary 
 tendency. Thus we have his own word for it, that what he 
 saw in her, helped to give him, or at least to confirm him in, 
 the views which he entertained concerning these " extraordi- 
 naries." What he saw in her, in connexion with her holiest 
 and most improving exercises, he could not but view with 
 some partiality, when he saw it occur as a result of his own 
 
 * It may bie found in Dwight's Life of Edwards, p. 170. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENI1NG-. 229 
 
 most faithful labors, or heard of it as occurring under the 
 labors of some of the best men in the land. He did not re- 
 gard these outcries, faintings, and the like, " as certain evi- 
 dences of a work of the Spirit of God on the hearts" of 
 men, nor esteem them "to be the work of God, as though 
 the Spirit of God took hold of and agitated the bodies of 
 men ; " nor did he know any who held such views. But he 
 avowed his belief that they were " probable tokens of God's 
 presence, and arguments of the success of preaching. And 
 therefore," he said, " when I see them excited by preaching 
 the important truths of God's word, urged and enforced by 
 proper arguments and motives, or consequent on other means 
 that are good, I do not scruple to speak of them, and to re- 
 joice in them, and to bless God for them, as such. I confess 
 that when I see a great crying out in a congregation, in the 
 manner that I have seen it, when those things are held forth 
 to them that are worthy of their being greatly affected by, I 
 rejoice in it, much more than in an appearance of solemn at- 
 tention and a show of affection by weeping; and that, be- 
 cause when there have been those outcries, I have found from 
 time to time a much greater and more excellent effect. To 
 rejoice that the work of God is carried on calmly, without 
 tnuch ado, is in effect to rejoice that it is carried on with less 
 power, or that there is not so much of the influence of God's 
 Spirit. For though the disgree of the influence of the Spirit 
 of God on particular persons is by no means to be judged of 
 by the degree of external appearances, because of the differ- 
 ent constitutions, tempers and circumstances of men ; yet, if 
 there be a very powerful influence of the Spirit of God on 
 a mixed multitude, it will cause, some way or other, a great 
 visible commotion." Some thought, that "when any in a 
 congregation are strongly seized, so that they cannot forbear 
 outward manifestations of it, they should be removed, that 
 others' minds may not be diverted." He thought otherwise. 
 " The unavoidable manifestations of strong religious affec- 
 tions tend to a happy influence on the minds of bystanders, 
 arid are found by experience to have an excellent and durable 
 effect ; afid so to contrive and order things that others may 
 have opportunity and advantage to observe them, has been 
 found to be blessed, as a great means to promote the work of 
 God.^' * 
 
 * The ancient Romans decided a similar question more judiciously. Tliey 
 
 20 
 
230 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Such opinions, coming from such a man, could not fail to 
 produce a vast increase of " these bodily effects." They 
 made preachers more willing to see them, and people more 
 wiUing to suffer them. They promoted a state of mind, in 
 which unintelligent excitement produced a fearful harvest of 
 mistake, extravagance, and false conversions. It was proba- 
 bly well that another influence hastened the evil to a crisis ; 
 but of that in another chapter. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Datenpoet. — His Rise, Progress, Excesses, Recovery, and " Retracta- 
 tions." — His posthumous influence. — The Eleventh Congregational 
 Church in Boston. — Note, on the Catastrophe of Hugh Bryan. 
 
 Repeated mention has been made, in the course of this 
 history, of the Rev. James Davenport, of Southold, Long 
 Island. He was a favorite of Whitefield, who met him in 
 New Jersey, and had stood high in the opinion of the Ten- 
 nents. The Rev. Andrew Croswell, in a pamphlet in his 
 defence, produced numerous testimonies in his favor ; for ex- 
 ample : — " Mr. Whitefield declared in conversation, that he 
 never knew one keep so close a walk with God as Mr. Da- 
 venport. Mr. Tennent, in my hearing, affirmed Mr. Daven- 
 port to be one of the most heavenly men he ever was acquaint- 
 ed with. Mr. Pomroy, who is acquainted with both, thinks 
 he doth not come one whit behind Mr. Whitefield, but rather 
 goes beyond him, for heavenly communion and fellowship 
 with the Father and with the Son Jesus Christ. Mr. Par- 
 sons of Lyme told me the other day, [this was July 16, 
 1742,] that not one minister whom he had seen, was to be 
 
 had observed that the excitement of the Comitia, or public meetings of the 
 citizens for the election of oflicers and other purposes, sometimes produced 
 " seizures" of this kind, and that when one fell and was convulsed, the 
 sight threw others into similar convulsions. These "seizures" were called 
 the " Morbus Comitialis," or, as we should say, if they appeared at such 
 of our meetings as most resemble the Comitia, " the Convention distem- 
 per." Their occurrence was not thought favorable to the safe transaction 
 of public business ; and it was made a standing rule, that whenever one 
 was seized, the Comitia should immediately adjourn. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 231 
 
 compared to Mr. Davenport for living near to God, and 
 having his conversation always in heaven. * Mr. Owen, 
 also, of Groton, said that the idea he had of the apostles 
 themselves scarcely exceeded what he saw in Mr. Daven- 
 port. In brief, there is not one minister in all Connecticut 
 that is zealously affected in the good cause of God at this 
 day, but instead of slighting him, is apt to think more highly 
 of him than we ought to think of men, and, to receive him 
 almost as if he was an angel from heaven." This is the 
 statement of an honest partisan, — so far as a partisan can be 
 honest ; not false, but too highly colored. Davenport had 
 certainly produced wonderful effects, and collected a large trib- 
 ute of veneration. He rode, — to use language of a more 
 modern date, — "on the very top wave of the spirit of 
 the age." More than any other man, he embodied in 
 himself and promoted in others, all the unsafe extravagances 
 into which the revival was running ; and those whose zeal out- 
 ran their knowledge, saw in him, what they proudly hoped 
 soon to become. In admiring the " spirit of the age," as 
 it appeared in him, men admired their own spirit, full grown. 
 Such a man could not fail to have a popularity, violent in his 
 favor and vindictive against all opposers. As he went fore- 
 most in the wrong direction which the revival had begun to 
 take, he was regarded by multitudes as its model man, by 
 comparison with whom all others were to be judged. As 
 appears from the concurrent testimony of all parties, his influ- 
 ence, mainly, brought the revival to a crisis. He led it so 
 deeply into such errors, that it ought to stop, and provoked 
 the opposition which brought it to an end. A knowledge of 
 his character and proceedings is therefore of the first impor- 
 tance to one who would understand the history of his times ; 
 and it is to be regretted that we have not as full and minute 
 accounts of his whole life, as we have of some parts of it. 
 It is also to be regretted, that nearly all we have, except in- 
 definite praise, comes to us through his decided opponents. 
 Still it seems possible, by omitting all facts concerning which 
 prejudice might mislead the witnesses, to make out a woU 
 authenticated history of his proceedings, sufficiently com- 
 plete to show their true character. 
 
 For an account of the commencement of his career, we 
 
 * Parsons, however, did not approve of all his measures, as appears by his 
 own statements. 
 
232 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 are indebted to the Rev. William Hart, pastor of the First 
 Church in Saybrook. Mr. Hart appears to have been a 
 man of good character, moderately Calvinistic, and had been 
 condemned by Davenport as unconverted. He learned many 
 of the particulars from Davenport himself, and others in 
 Southold, which he visited, perhaps for that very purpose. 
 The account was addressed to Dr. Chauncy, and appears in 
 his work on the " State of Religion in New England." 
 
 It seems, that when the reports concerning Whitefield's 
 labors and success first reached Long Island, both Davenport 
 and Barber, of Oyster Ponds, " received him as an angel of 
 God," and were confident that a glorious revival of religion 
 was about to pervade the land. They betook themselves to 
 special prayer, that God would hasten the work, teach thera 
 what he was^ about to do, and make them eminent instruments 
 in promoting it. From their subsequent career, it appears 
 neither unreasonable nor uncharitable to suppose that their 
 prayers were inspired, in part by a sincere zeal for God and 
 for the salvation of souls, and in part by pleasing visions of 
 their own future greatness, as " eminent instruments of its 
 promotion ;" though of this last element of their feelings, tbey 
 probably were not aware. After some time, the words in 
 Habakkuk 2 : 3,. — " For the vision is yet for an appointed 
 time, but at the end it shall speak and shall not He : though 
 it tarry, wait for it ; because it will surely come, it will not 
 tarry," were strongly impressed on Barber's mind ; which he 
 took as ti divine intimation that their expectations should be 
 fulfilled. He informed Davenport of the impression, on 
 whom it had a similar effect. Soon after, — it must have 
 been about the beginning of March, 1740, — Barber sat up 
 all, or nearly all, of Saturday night, meditating on these things; 
 and at family worship the next morning, as he was reading Ps. 
 102, the 13th verse was impressed upon his mind. The 
 words are, " Thou shalt arise and have mercy upon Zion ; 
 for the time to favor her, yea, the set time, is come." This 
 he took as an intimation from heaven that the great revival 
 which he had been expecting, should immediately commence, 
 and as an order to begin his labors without delay. He faint- 
 ed ; but recovered so as to attend public worship at the usu- 
 al hour. He spent about a week in visiting and exhorting 
 his people, telling of the wonderful discoveries that God had 
 made to him, and how he had fainted at the vision. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 233 
 
 He then left Oyster Ponds, to go forth and proclaim the 
 gospel abroad. Intending to obey a scriptural direction, he 
 took po money, nor change of apparel, nor yet shoes, but was 
 shod with boots. He declared that he had laid aside all pre- 
 meditation, being taught on every occasion by the Holy 
 Ghost, what he should say, and where he should go. He 
 came first to Davenport, at Southold, whose mind had been 
 impressed with the words of Psalm 115 : 12-14 : " The 
 Lord hath been mindful of us : he will bless us : he will 
 bless the house of Israel : he will bless the house of Aaron : 
 he will bless them that fear the Lord, both small and great. 
 The Lord shall increase you more and more, you and your 
 children." Davenport assembled his people, and Barber 
 addressed them in his usual style. After visiting all parts of 
 Southold, Barber went about twenty miles, to Oldmans. 
 Having delivered his message here, he ceased to receive the 
 usual directions as to his course, and could do nothing 
 " while the cloud abode upon the tabernacle." He refused 
 to preach when requested. Some of his own people visited 
 him, to urge his return ; but in vain. Here he remained in 
 idleness for several months, till he grew fat and ragged. At 
 length, after 'a few excursions in the vicinity, he returned to 
 Oyster Ponds, and soon proceeded to Rhode Island, to meet 
 Whitefield. The account of their meeting has already been 
 given, in Whitefield's own words. Whitefield took him to 
 Georgia, and made him superintendent of spiritual affairs in 
 his orphan house. 
 
 After Barber's visit to Southold, Davenport commenced 
 his extraordinary labors, but at first, only among his own peo- 
 ple. He assembled them at his lodgings, and addressed 
 them for almost twenty-four hours together. The effort 
 overcame his strength, and he was confined for several days 
 to his chamber. It is not improbable that the febrile state of 
 body which afterwards certainly affected the soundness of 
 his mind, had already commenced. His church seems to 
 have been, like many others, in a bad condition, containing 
 many unconverted members. At least, he thought so, and 
 began to make distinctions accordingly in his public treatment 
 of them, calling those whom he esteemed regenerate, 
 " brother," and the others, "neighbour." He soon forbade 
 the "neighbours" to come to the Lord's table. This pro- 
 duced no little excitement ; but, as he believed, the divine 
 20* 
 
234 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 blessing attended his preaching and measures, and about 
 twenty of his people were converted. He came very near 
 attempting to work a miracle. A woman in an adjoining 
 parish had been long insane, and for some time dumb. 
 Davenport fasted and prayed for her recovery, and gave out 
 that she would recover on a certain day that he named. On 
 that day, she died. He claimed the event as an answer to 
 his prayer, as she was relieved from her infirmity by being 
 taken to heaven. This was in the summer of 1740 ; not far 
 from the time when Whitefield saw him in New Jersey, and 
 was so_much pleased with his piety. 
 
 Of the commencement of his itinerations, the date is want- 
 ing ; but we have his own account of the principal facts, as 
 he related them to the Boston pastors in 1742. One of his 
 brethren proposed to him to go forth and preach beyond the 
 bounds of his own parish ; but he made no reply at the time ; 
 not knowing the will of the Lord concerning it. He, how- 
 ever, made it a subject of prayer ; and after some time, on 
 opening his Bible, though he had no thought of turning to 
 that passage, his eye fell on the account of the attack which 
 Jonathan and his armor-bearer made on the Philistines. As 
 he read, he saw every line, every word, in a new light. 
 The Lord caused it to make a strong impression on his mind. 
 As Jonathan and his armor-bearer went to the camp of 
 the Philistines, so the Lord called him and the man just 
 mentioned to go to Easthampton, where they should con- 
 vert as many as Jonathan and his armor-bearer slew ; but as 
 Jonathan had a sign, — that he should not attack the garrison 
 unless the Philistines called him, "come up hither," — so 
 he must wait till he was invited to Easthampton. At length, 
 some of the people in Easthampton said they should like to 
 have him come and preach to them. He went, with his 
 friend before mentioned, up to their knees in show, as Jona- 
 than and his armor-bearer climbed up the hill to the Philis- 
 tinesj.on their hands and knees. The result was according to 
 their expectation, for twenty were converted. This same 
 man generally accompanied him in his future itinerations, and 
 was called by Davenport and by others throughout the coun- 
 try, his armor-bearer. 
 
 The reader must not set aside this account as a carica- 
 ture. True, Dr. Chauncy was the reporter ; but Davenporl 
 told the story in the presence of at l§ast a, dozen witnesses^. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 235 
 
 ministers of Boston and Charlestown, many of wiiom were 
 staunch friends and active promoters of the revival ; so thai 
 Chauncy could not have dared materially to alter the facts, 
 even if he had been wicked enough to desire it. And the 
 facts are of such a character, that no choice of language can 
 essentially change their appearance. 
 
 In June, 1740, during the session of the Presbyterian Sy- 
 nod, we find him at Philadelphia, preaching at Society Hill, 
 with the Tennents and others. 
 
 Tn the autumn, he joined Whitefield, who wrote in his 
 Journal, October 30, on arriving at New York : — " To add 
 to my comfort, the Lord broughc my dear brother Davenport 
 from Long Island, by whose hands the blessed Jesus has of 
 late done great things." Having parted, they met again, No- 
 vember 5, at Baskinridge, New Jersey, where Davenport had 
 been preaching to Mr. Cross' parishioners. From this place, 
 they travelled together towards Philadelphia. Here we lose 
 sight of him till the next spring or summer. 
 
 It was on or near the 14th of July, 1741,* that Daven- 
 port came from Long Island to Stonington, Connecticut. 
 Here, it was said, near one huadred persons were struck 
 under conviction by his first sermon, and about that number 
 converted in eight days, including about twenty Indians ; and 
 that many were left under "hopeful convictions." From 
 Stonington, he visited Westerley, Rhode Island. Of his 
 labors there, a favorable account, by Park, the missionary, 
 has been given in a preceding chapter. The history of 
 subsequent years shows that a considerable part of these sup- 
 posed conversions among the Indians were genuine. In 
 many of the towns in that region, he condemned the minis- 
 ters as unconverted, and exhorted their people to leave them. 
 Among those whom he condemned, was the venerable Eli- 
 phalet Adams, of Windham, Connecticut, whose faithful 
 labors had been a principal means of preserving the flame of 
 piety in that region from extinction, and under whom there 
 had been a happy revival in 1721, the period of deepest 
 darkness in New England. Here his influence in producing 
 alienations aqd divisions is said to have been peculiarly un- 
 happy, though no particulars are given ; and the report of the 
 injustice done to a man so extensively known and revered, and 
 
 * Boston Postboy, Aug. 10, 1741. Mass. Hist. Soc. Lib. 
 
236 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 of the injury done to his people, produced a deep sensation 
 throughout the country. At Lyme he was received with a 
 qualified approbation by Parsons and Griswold, but produced 
 no very remarkable effects. 
 
 On the 25th of August, he called on Mr. Hart, of Say- 
 brook, and asked if he was willing that he should preach in his 
 pulpit. Mr. Hart, before answering, asked him if it was his 
 practice, as reported, publicly to condemn ministers as un- 
 converted. He replied that it was. Mr. Hart asked, on 
 what evidence he condemned them. Instead of answering 
 that question, he stated the object for which he did it, — 
 which was, for the purification of the churches, and the dis- 
 covery of the unconverted, that they might be avoided. In 
 answer to other questions, he avowed that he encouraged the 
 establishment of separate meetings of the converted, and the 
 labors of itinerant exhorters. After a vain attempt to procure 
 some concession from him, Mr. Hart refused him the use of 
 his pulpit. He then said to his attendants, — " Come, let us 
 go forth without the camp, after the Lord Jesus, bearing his 
 reproach. O, 'tis pleasant to suffer reproach for the blessed 
 Jesus ! Sweet Jesus !" The next day, four ministers, the 
 Rev. Messrs. Worthington, Nott, Beckwith and Hart, called 
 upon Jiira, to converse with him on his mode of proceeding ; 
 but it was found impossible to converse with him. He com- 
 menced a vehement discourse to them, and would not be in- 
 terrupted ; lecturing them as unconverted men, blind guides, 
 wolves in sheep's clothing, and the like ; then offered a 
 prayer, • partly for their conversion and partly against them ; 
 and then left them, to attend a meeting which he had appoint- 
 ed, refusing to decide whether he would grant them an inter- 
 view at any future time. He had given out, before his ar- 
 rival, that he had a great work to do at Say brook ; but the 
 event seems to have fallen short of his expectation. 
 
 He continued his course to New Haven, calling on minis- 
 ters by the way, demanding of each an account of his reli- 
 gious experience, and condemning all who refused to give it, 
 or whose accounts were unsatisfactory, or who in any way 
 opposed his movements, as unconverted. He seems to have 
 considered himself specially commissioned for this work ; for 
 he declared at Stonington, that God bad promised to call a 
 number of unconverted ministers, by impressing on his mind 
 the words, " He will bless the house of Aaron." 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 237 
 
 He arrived at New Haven in September. Here a general 
 revival had commenced the preceding winter, and its influ- 
 ence still remained. His descent from the famous John Da- 
 venport, the first pastor of that church, his consanguinity 
 with several respectable families, and especially his reputation 
 for uncommon sanctity and usefulness, procured him a favor- 
 able reception. Mr. Noyes, the pastor of the church, ad- 
 mitted him to his pulpit, and there appears to have been no ' 
 visible opposition, till he pronounced Mr. Noyes an uncon- 
 verted man. On this, Mr. Noyes called a meeting of several 
 friends, September 21, among whom were the principal o£B- 
 cers of Yale College, to whom Davenport gave some very 
 frivolous reasons for believing that Mr. Noyes was unconverted. 
 The resuh was, that he was thenceforth excluded from the 
 pulpit. How long, he continued there, is uncertain ; but after 
 his departure, and before the end of the year, his followers 
 organized a separate church, which, after several years of 
 controversy, numerous councils, and some confessions, came 
 to be acknowledged as a regular church, and still subsists and 
 flourishes.* While here, there were a few instances of tran- 
 ces and visions among his adherents. He probably spent 
 the winter at Southold. 
 
 Among those who suffered temporary injury from the in- 
 fluence of his labors at New Haven, the celebrated mission- 
 ary, David Brainerd, ought probably to be mentioned. 
 Brainerd dated his conversion from July 12, 1739. He be- 
 came a member of Yale College in September of that year. 
 During the revival of 1741, he "was much quickened," 
 and used to meet frequently with a few religious friends, for 
 unreserved and confidential religious intercourse. In the 
 winter of 1742, a woman told President Clapp, that a 
 Freshman told her, that be heard Brainerd say of some- 
 body, "He has no more grace than this chair,;" and he guess- 
 ed that Brainerd was speaking of some of the Faculty. The 
 words had been uttered in the Hall, where Brainerd and two 
 or three others of his religious circle were conversing, and 
 the listener was in an adjoining room. Clapp sent for the 
 Freahman, ascertained who were conversing with Brainerd, 
 called them, and extorted from them the fact, that the words 
 were used in reply to a question, " What do you think of 
 
 * Bacon's Historical Discourses. 
 
238 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 tutor Whittelsey ?" Mr. Whittelsey was a man whose piety 
 there was no good reason to question. Brainerd deserved to 
 be privately reprimanded, and made to confess his fault be- 
 fore those who heard him commit it. But he was required 
 to make a public confession. Disgusted with the harshness 
 of the sentence, and with the meanness of thus ferreting out 
 a private conversation, he refused, was expelled from Col- 
 lege, and, though powerful influence was used in his favor, 
 never permitted to rejoin his class. He had also once at- 
 tended a meeting of the Separatists, when forbidden by the 
 Rector ; and it was reported, but not proved, that he had said 
 he wondered the Rector did not expect to drop down dead, 
 for fining the scholars who followed Mr. Tennent to Milford. 
 There can be no doubt, that he was guilty of improprieties 
 of which we have no account ; for he afterwards burned his 
 diary for thirteen months, including the time of his expulsion, 
 " inserting a notice at the beginning of the succeeding manu- 
 scripts, that a specimen of his manner of living during that 
 entire period would be found in the first thirty pages next 
 following, except that he was now more refined from some 
 imprudences and indecent heats than before." * He died, 
 October 9, 1747. Edwards thought him less careful of life 
 and health, than duty required ; and the inquiry deserves at- 
 tention, how far the false views of duty into which this revi- 
 val led him, and which led him into " imprudences and inde- 
 cent heats," continued to influence him, and hurried him to 
 his grave. The question derives additional interest, from the 
 failures of health of foreign missionaries, in about the same 
 
 , length of time from the great revivals of 1831- 1834. 
 
 I On the 29th f of May, 1742, two persons, Captain Black- 
 latch and Samuel Adams, of Ripton parish, in Stratford, 
 Connecticut, came to Hartford, where the General Assembly 
 was in session, and filed their complaint with the Secretary, 
 stating that James Davenport had arrived there about ten 
 days before, and Benjamin Pomroy soon after, and that, with 
 certain illiterate persons, [exhorters,] they were collecting as- 
 semblies of people, mostly children and youth, and, under 
 pretence of religious exercises, were inflaming them with a 
 
 • Edwards' Life of Brainerd. 
 
 t Boston News Letter, No. 1997. Massachusetts Historical Society Li- 
 brary. This date is nearly obUterated ; but appears to be the 29th, which 
 corresponds well with the other parts of the account. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 239 
 
 bad spirit, and with doctrines subversive of all law and order ; 
 by which the peace of the town was greatly disturbed. A 
 warrant was therefore issued, and Davenport and Pomroy 
 were brought before the Assembly on the first of June. The 
 investigation of the case occupied a considerable part of two 
 days. It appeared from the testimony, that he preached, 
 prayed and exhorted with even more than his usual vehe- 
 mence of language and gesture, denounced ministers as un- 
 converted without reserve, and urged the duty of all to sus- 
 tain "the work," in defiance even of the commands of par- 
 ents or the laws of the colony. The Assembly, at this very 
 session, had enacted a law "For regulating abuses, and cor- 
 recting disorders, in ecclesiastical affairs." This law was in- 
 tended to repress, by civil penalties, the practices of itiner- 
 ants and exhorters. It was a high-handed infringement of 
 the rights of conscience, and in a few years fell, and buried 
 the party which enacted it in its ruins. This was the law 
 which he exhorted his hearers to set at defiance ; and sel- 
 dom, it must be acknowledged, has a more plausible occasion 
 been found in New England, for preaching disregard of law. 
 He also professed to have been taught by the Spirit, that 
 the end of the world was near. He knew not the exact 
 time, but it was very near. 
 
 At the close of the first day of his examination, when the 
 Assembly adjourned in the evening, as the sheriff was con- 
 ducting him to his lodgings, he stopped on the front door 
 steps of the meetinghouse, where the session seems to have 
 been held, and began to exhort the great crowd that had col- 
 lected. The sheriff" took hold of his sleeve, to lead him 
 away. He exclaimed, " Lord, thou knowest somebody's got 
 hold of my sleeve. Strike^ them, Lord, strike them !" 
 Pomroy cried out, " Take heed how you do that heaven- 
 daring action !" Their partisans rushed in to resist the sher- 
 iff. Others refused to aid him, when called upon. For a 
 while, the crowd and the tumult increased, and it seemed 
 that the sheriff would be overpowered ; but taking advantage 
 of a little relaxation of the pressure, he effected his retreat 
 with his prisoners ; the disappointed multitude saying as they 
 went, " We will have five to one on our side to-morrow.", 
 A mob collected around the gentleman's house where the 
 prisoners were lodged, and it was two hours before the mag- 
 istrates could disperse it. Sounds of excited devotion were 
 
240 THE GKEAT AWAKENING. 
 
 heard in all parts of the town, nearly all the night ; and in 
 the morning, a militia force of forty armed men was ordered 
 out, . to ' protect i the Assembly from insult and interruption. 
 This guard was kept on duty till this business was conclud- 
 ed'y andi seems, to have prevented any further public dis- 
 turbance. . 
 
 On the third day of June, which was also the third day of 
 these proceedings, the Assembly decided, that "the beha- 
 viour, conduct, and doctrines advanced by the said James Da- 
 venport, do, and have a natural tendency to, disturb and dc 
 stroy the peace and order of this government. Yet it further 
 appears to this Assembly, that the said Divenport is under 
 tho influence of I enthusiastical impressions and impulses, and 
 thereby disturbed in the rational faculties of his mind, and 
 therefore to. be pitied . and compassionated, and not to be 
 tteated as otherwise he might be." They therefore ordered 
 him to be sent home to Southold. On hearing their decis- 
 iony he said, ''Though I must go, I hope Christ will not, 
 butiwiU,tarr3r and carry on his work in- this government, in 
 spite' of .all- the power and malice of earth and helll", About 
 fouifio'clock, p. Mi the sheriff, with two files of men armed 
 with; muskets, conducted him to the bank of the Connecticut, 
 and put him on board a vessel, the owner of which agreed to 
 carry him to his home. 
 
 Pomroy, who seemed " almost orderly and regular " in 
 comparison^ was discharged.* 
 
 * All these, things, of course, operated against the reputation of White- 
 field, who was considered the most prominent leader in the present excite- 
 ment, who had' so highly and so publicly eulogized Davenport and Barber, 
 and who was known himself to give religious heed to impulses, and to 
 te^ts of Scripture impressed upon his mind. Another story, which went 
 through Ne,w England about the same time, must have increased the un- 
 fa.vorable impression.' The reader will recollect Hugh Bryan, of South 
 Carolina, whom Whitefield praised so highly in his Journal, and by cor- 
 recting wh6se letter he brought upon himself a prosecution for a libel 
 Hugh at length imagined himself a prophet, and, among other tnad freaks, 
 sent, twenty , closely written sheets of his journal, containing predictions 
 and the like, to the Speaker of the House of Commons of the colonial 
 legislature. It was also rumored, that he was encamped in the wilderness, 
 and was. gathering multitudeia of all sorts of people about him, especially 
 negroes ; and that he had even procured firearms to be sent from Charles- 
 ton, for some secret and dangerous purpose. Warrants were issued for his 
 apprehension; but before they could be served, he discovered his delusion, 
 and addressed a letter to Speaker Bpll and theother members of the 
 House of Commons, confessing his errors, and asking pardon. His letter 
 is dated March 1, 1742. He begins : — "It is with shame, intermixed with 
 joyj that I write yoU' this. I find thit 1 have presumed, inttiy zeal for 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 241 
 
 Davenport stayed but a short time at Southold. He deter- 
 mined to visit Boston. He arrived at Charlestovifn on Fri- 
 day evening, June 25. On the Sabbath, he attended public 
 worship in the forenoon, and partook of the Lord's Supper. 
 In the afternoon he stayed at his lodgings, from an appre- 
 hension that the minister was unconverted. This " greatly 
 alarmed " the ministers in the vicinity ; and well it might ; 
 for it was an indication that whatever thfey had heard against 
 him was true. 
 
 On Monday afternoon, he came to Boston. The associa- 
 tion of ministers was then in session. ' What was done, ap- 
 pears from their " Declaration with regard to the Rev. Mr. 
 
 God's glory, beyond his will, and that he has suffered me to fall into a de- 
 lusion of Satan, — particularly in adhering to the impressions on my mind ; 
 thought not, to my knowledge, in my reflections and other occurrences 
 of my journal. This delusion I did not discover till three days past, when, 
 after many days' converse with an invisible spirit, whose precepts seemed to 
 be wise, and tending to the advancement of religion in general, and of my 
 own spiritual welfare in particular, 1 found my teacher to be a liar, and the 
 father of lies ; which brought me to a sense of my error, and has much 
 abased my soul with bitter reflections on the dishonor I have done to God, 
 as well as the disquiet which I may have occasioned to my country. Satan, 
 till then, appeared to me as an angel of light, in his spiritual conversation ; 
 but since I have discovered his wiles, he has appeared a devil indeed, show- 
 ing his rage." It seems, he still believed he had been conversing with an 
 invisible spirit. After some details of confession, not worth transcribing, 
 he concludes, and adds : " P. S. May we all keep close to the law and to 
 the testimony of our God, and hearken to no other revelation for divine 
 truth, and watch and pray, that we enter not into temptation, is a further 
 prayer of your most unworthy servant, H. Bryan." This was published, 
 by order of the Commons House of Assembly, passed March 3, 1742. As 
 published in the Boston Postboy of May 3, it was accompanied with a 
 statement on the authority of his brother, — perhaps Jonathan, of the means 
 by which he was undeceived. The invisible spirit bade him go, by a di- 
 rect course, and without looking on the ground, to a certain tree, and take 
 thence a rod, with which he must smite the waters of the river, and they 
 should be divided, so that he should go over on dry ground. He started to 
 obey ; and after several falls from not looking at the ground, found the tree 
 and procured the rod. With this he began to smite the river, and press 
 forward towards the farther bank, till he was up to his chin in the water, 
 and his brother, who had followed him as fast as he could, but just saved 
 him from drowning. His brother then urged him to go home ; but the 
 spirit had assured him that, if he went home that night, he should he a dead 
 man before morning. However, the sharp weather and his wet jacket at 
 length prevailed. He went home ; and, finding himself alive in the morn- 
 ing, concluded that the spirit, which had lied to him twice, must be the 
 " mther of lies." The account is found in the second edition of "A letter 
 from a gentleman in New England- to his friend in Glasgow," on "the 
 state of Religion in New England since the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield's 
 arrival there." O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 
 21 
 
242 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 James Davenport and his conduct," which was published on 
 the first of July. 
 
 "We, the associated pastors of Boston and Charlestown, in the 
 Province of Massachusetts Bay, in New England, being assembled 
 June 28, in our stated course of meeting, and being then informed 
 that the Rev. Mr. James Davenport, pastor of the church of Christ in 
 Southold, L. I., was come to town, sent two of our brethren to inform 
 the said Mr. Davenport that we were then assembied, and should be 
 glad to see him. 
 
 "Whereupon he presently came to us; and after a respectful greet- 
 ing, we desired him to inform us of the reasons of his leaving his 
 flock so often, and for such length of times as we had heard of; as 
 also concerning his assuming behaviour in the places whither he had 
 gone ; more especially in judging the spiritual state of pastors and 
 people, and too positively and suddenly declaring concerning one and 
 another, that they were in a converted or unconverted estate ; thereby 
 stumbling the minds of many, and alienating the hearts of others irom 
 their ministers and brethren, even to such a degree that some had 
 withdrawn from the ministry and communion to which they belonged. 
 
 "Whereupon Mr. Davenport, in a free and ready manner, gave us 
 such an account of the manner of God's working upon him from his 
 early days, and his effectual calling in riper years, as that he appeared 
 to us to be a man truly pious ; and we hope that God has used him as 
 an instrument of good unto many souls. 
 
 " Nevertheless, also, it appears to us, that he is a gentleman acted 
 much by sudden impulses, upon such applications of the Holy Scrip- 
 tures to himself, and his particular friends, desires and purposes, as 
 we can by no means approve of or justify, but must needs think very 
 dangerous and hurtful to the interests of religion. 
 
 " And in particular, by the account he gave us of his judging some 
 reverend ministers of the gospel on Long Island and in New Eng- 
 land to be in an unconverted state, it did by no means appear to us 
 that he had reason and righteousness on his side in so doing. Nor 
 do we see into his Scripture warrant for thinking himself called of God 
 to demand from his brethren from place to place, an account of their 
 regenerate state, when or in what manner the Holy Spirit of God 
 wrought upon or renewed them. 
 
 "We judge also, that the Rev. Mr. Davenport has not acted pru- 
 dently, but to the disservice of religion, by going with his friends 
 singing through the streets and high vcays, to and from the houses of 
 worship on Lord's days and other days ; and by encouraging private 
 brethren to pray and exhort in larger or smaller assemblies of people 
 gathered for that purpose ; a practice which we fear may be found 
 big with errors, irregularities and mischiefs. 
 
 "We judge it therefore to be our present duty, not to invite Mr. 
 Davenport mto our places of public worship, as otherwise we might 
 readily have done, so that we may not appear to give countenance to 
 the forementioned errors and disorders ; against which we bear this 
 testimony, both in faithfulness, love and care to the churches of 
 Christ, and also to our said brother, whose usefulness in the church is 
 likely to be still more obstructed by his being deeply tinctured with a 
 spirit of enthusiasm. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 243 
 
 "And though we are not satisfied that the Rev. Mr. Davenport lias 
 a call to preach in the fields fi-om day to day, as he has done of late, 
 yet we think it our duty to bear a testimony against all those disord- 
 ers, and that profaneness, which have been promoted by any who 
 have lately gone forth to hear him. 
 
 " Upon the whole, we humbly beseech the great Lord and Head of 
 the church, to lead us, and all his ministers and churches, into all the 
 paths of truth, righteousness, peace and spiritual edification, for his 
 name's sake. And we take this opportunity to repeat our testimony 
 to the great and glorious work of God, which of his free grace he has 
 begun and is carrying on in many parts of this and the neighbouring 
 provinces ; beseeching him to preserve, defend, maintain and propa- 
 gate it, in spite of all the devices of Satan against it, of one kind or 
 other; that, however it may syifier by the imprudence of its friends, or 
 by the virulent opposition of its enemies, yet it may stand as on 
 the rock, and the gates of hell may never prevail against it." 
 
 This was signed by Benjamin Colman, Joseph Sewall, 
 Thomas Prince, John Webb, William Cooper, Thomas 
 Foxcroft, Samuel Checkley, William Wellsteed, Joshtia 
 Gee, Mather Byles, Ellis Gray and Andrevi' Eliot, of Bos- 
 ton, and by Hull Abbot and Thomas Prentice of Charles- 
 town. Dr. Chauncy appears to have been present at the 
 conversations with Davenport ; but his name is not annexed 
 to the Declaration ; probably, because he would not sign any 
 paper containing testimony in favor of the revival. 
 
 It appears from the newspapers of the day, that on being 
 excluded from the pulpits, Davenport repaired to the Com- 
 mon, where he preached repeatedly, but to decreasing audi- 
 ences. Here, and at Copp's Hill and its vicinity,* the dis- 
 orders occurred, to which the-last paragraph but one of the 
 Declaration refers. ^ 
 
 " Upon publishing this Declaration on Friday," says Mr. 
 Prince,! " many were offended : and, some days after, Mr. 
 Davenport thought himself obliged to begin in his public ex- 
 ercises to declare against us also ; naming some as uncon- 
 verted, representing the rest as Jehoshaphat in Ahab's army, 
 and exhorting the people to separate from us : which so di- 
 verted the minds of many from being concerned about their 
 own conversion, to think and dispute about the case of pth- 
 ers, as not only seemed to put an awful stop to their awak- 
 enings, but on all sides to roil our passions and provoke the 
 Holy Spirit, in a gradual and dreadful measure, to withdraw 
 his influence. 
 
 * See Mr. Parkman's account, append.x to Chapter XII. 
 t Christian History, Vol. II. p. 408. 
 
244 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 " Now a disputatious spirit most grievously prevailed amongst 
 us ; and, what almost ever attends it, much censoriousness 
 and reflection ; which had a further tendency to inflame and 
 alienate, and whereof many of every party were sadly guilty. 
 It was indeed a lamentable time." 
 . These evils could not fail to be aggravated by a " Reply " 
 to the Declaration, from the pen of the Rev. Andrew Cros- 
 well, of Groton,' Ct. whose reply to Commissary Garden 
 has already been mentioned. It was dated at Groton, July 
 16, and printed at Boston, doubtless without delay. On 
 reading the Declaration, Croswell says: " I was so aston- 
 ished that I could scarce believe ray own eyes ; nor could 
 once reading sufficiently convince me that all their names 
 were really subscribed to it." He first notices what is said 
 of Davenport's absences from his own parish, which he at- 
 tempts to justify by the examples of Whitefield and Ten- 
 nent. But the cases were not parallel. Whitefield first left 
 his parish on their business, — to take up collections for their 
 benefit ; and when he determined to continue his itinerations, 
 he resigned his charge. The accusation had been brought 
 against Tennent, during his absence at Portsmouth.* On his 
 return, he published a reply, stating what arrangements had 
 been made before he left home, for the supply of his pulpit 
 during his absence. f With respect to Davenport, the case 
 was different. At an ecclesiastical council, held at Southold, 
 October 7, 1742, — about three months after his visit to Bos- 
 ton, — one of the complaints brought against him by his peo- 
 ple was, " His leaving his congregation, at several.times, for 
 a great while together, at his will and pleasure, without leave 
 or consent of the church or society." And the council said 
 in their result : " We think that his congr'egation have just 
 cause to complain of his leaving them, at several limes, for 
 so long a space as he has done, without their consent ; 
 whereby he has not only left them destitute of gospel ordi- 
 nances, but has been too unmindful of the obligation he lies 
 under by his pastoral relation, to them who are his peculiar 
 charge." In fact, his only excuse was, some impression 
 upon his mind, which he took to be a command from the 
 Holy Ghost ; or, as he expressed it in conversatidn with th-e 
 Boston pastors, " The Lord sent me." 
 
 •Postboy, Dec. 28, 1740. 
 
 t N. E. Weekly Journal, Jan 27, 1741, Mass. Hist. Soo. Lib. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 245 
 
 Passing over some pages, we come to a truly instructive 
 passage. 
 
 "The Reverend gentlemen do indeed say in the next clause, 'that 
 they hope God hath used him as an instrument of doing good unto 
 many souls.' And why are they not willing that God should use him 
 as an instrument of doing good unto more souls ? Can any thing be 
 more inconsistent, than to acknowledge him to be a man whom the 
 Lord delights to honor, and yet to dishonor him themselves at the 
 same time ? To own him to be one God hath much employed in 
 gathering in his elect, and yet in the same breath give him such a set- 
 ting out as tends to make people run away from him, and keep out 
 of reach of his ministry ? 
 
 "The honored Association having been constrained to own him to 
 be a truly pious man and a very useful minister, they go to butting 
 and bounding him in the following manner. 'He is a gentleman,' they 
 say, ' much acted by sudden impulses, upon application of the Holy 
 Scriptures to himself,' &c. To which I reply : What if he holds ten 
 thousand times ten thousand impulses, which others cannot so well 
 see through ; yet if it appears plain that the great God, who sends by 
 whom he will send, improves him in saving many souls from hell, each 
 of whom is worth more than the whole world, for God's sake let no 
 one dare to do any thing which hath a tendency to render his ministry 
 contemptible, lest they kick against the pricks, and be found fighters 
 against God. But rather let all who love the prosperity of Zion, wish 
 him God speed, and besiege the throne of grace night and day, that 
 the blessings of more souls ready to perish may come upon him. 
 However, regarding impressions is no new thing peculiar to Mr. Da- j 
 venport. Those that have walked most humbly with God, and had 
 their affections the most entirely set on things above, have generally 
 laid the greatest stress upon them. I remember that Mr. Whitefield / 
 looks upon the impression that was occasioned on Mr. Barber's mind 
 by tlie application of a passage of the Holy Scriptures to himself and 
 Mr. Whitefield, to be really from God. Nor have Mr. Davenport's 
 impressions done him any harm as yet : and to expect danger from 
 that quarter, is fearing where no fear is ; especially if we cpnsider thp. 
 uncommon sanctity of the man, and his trembling at the appearance 
 of evil." 
 
 So it is apt to be. If a preacher appears zealous, pre- 
 tends uncommon holiness, and succeeds in producing •« con- 
 siderable number of apparent conversions, no one must say a 
 word to guard people against the influence of his errors, 
 however gross and dangerous they may be ; no one may op- 
 pose any of his measures, be they ever so unscriptural, or 
 even withhold his cooperation, on pain of being counted an 
 enemy of revivals, and hindering the work of God: He may 
 denounce and slander whom he pleases, wounding the hearts 
 and ruining the influence of better men than himself; but no 
 21* 
 
246 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 one may say a word of him, but by way of commendation, 
 lest it should diminish his influence. 
 
 It has been said, by a writer from whose opinions it is not 
 often safe to dissent, * that this Declaration concerning Da- 
 venport was .injudicious, and that if he had been neglected, 
 his influence would have been less. Perhaps it would. It 
 is doubtless a general rule, that extravagances die soonest if 
 neglected ; yet there are exceptions. There are fanatical 
 doctrines, both in religion and politics, to which a considera- 
 ble part of every community are constitutionally predisposed, 
 and which, if zealously urged by a skilful agitator, will be 
 sure to take hold of many minds. They would do no harm, 
 if nobody would attend to them, just as the smallpox or the 
 plague would do no harm if none would take the infection. 
 In either case, the neglect with which the danger may be 
 treated by the healthy and the wise, will not save others from 
 becoming its victims ; and in the treatment of moral epidem- 
 ics, it requires great practical wisdom to know when and 
 how their progress may be checked by protests and explana- 
 tions. The state of men's minds at Boston, when Daven- 
 port arrived, may have been such as called for the Declara- 
 tion which the ministers put forth ; such that, had they been 
 silent, affairs would have taken a still worse course than they 
 did. Nor is it certain that silence and neutrality were in 
 their power. Conscientious agitators, like Davenport, have 
 strange ways of making all men take sides. Sometimes they 
 assert, that a certain pastor is on their side ; and he must 
 contradict the assertion, or his whole flock will be carried 
 over by this unauthorized use of his influence. Sometimes 
 all who will not actively cooperate, are denounced as enemies, 
 and are obliged either^to come over publicly and avow them- 
 selves friends, or be regarded and treated as enemies. When 
 such tactics are used, the force of the agitating party is com- 
 monly brought to bear on one man at a time ; and it may be 
 good policy for -those who do not wish to be conquered, to 
 take their stand early and unitedly in defence of the truth 
 and of their rights against the aggressors. But for this De- 
 claration, Davenport might, perhaps, have demanded admis- 
 sion to some pulpit, the occupant of which could not safely 
 refuse him on his own responsibility, and without the pled^d 
 support of his brethren. His admission into one might have 
 
 \ , * Bacon's Hist. Discourses. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 247 
 
 increased the difficulty of excluding him from another. Thus 
 they might all have been conquered in detail, and he might 
 have used the influence of the Boston pastors to commend 
 him and his vagairies, first to their own people, and then to 
 all other churches throughout the land. 
 
 But the case was not left to the action of the ministers 
 alone. The Grand Jury took it up, and in their present- 
 ment, Thursday, August 19, set forth, that " one .lames 
 Davenport, of Southold, — under pretence of praying, 
 preaching and exhorting, at divers places in the towns of 
 Boston and Dorchester, and at divers times in July last and 
 August current, — did, — in the hearing of great numbers of 
 the subjects of our Lord, the King,' maliciously publish, and 
 with a loud voice utter and declare many slanderous and 
 reviling speeches against the godly and faithful ministers of 
 this province, but more particularly against the ministers of 
 the gospel in the town of Boston aforesaid, — viz : that the 
 greatest part of the said ministers were carnal and unconvert- 
 ed men ; that they knew nothing of Jesus Christ, and that 
 they were leading their people, blindfold, down to hell, and 
 that they were destroying and murdering souls by thousands ; 
 the said James Davenport, at the same time, advising their 
 hearers to withdraw from the said ministers, and not to 
 hear them preach ; by means whereof, great numbers of peo- 
 ple have withdrawn from the public worship of God and the 
 assemblies by law required." 
 
 Among the witnesses before the Grand Jury, H. V. tes- 
 tified, that Davenport said, in July, on Copp's Hill : " Good 
 Lord, (or O Lord,) I will not mince the matter any longer 
 with thee ; for thou knowest that I know, that most of the 
 ministers of the town of Boston and of the country are un- 
 converted, and are leading their people blindfold to hell." 
 N. T. heard him say : " Good Lord, thou knowest the most 
 of them are unconverted. Pull them down ; turn them out, 
 and put others in their places." A juror heard him say, 
 that " they, (the ministers,) knew nothing of Jesus Christ ;" 
 but no testimony to that ieffect was offered. There were 
 twenty-three jurors, only six of whom were from Boston. 
 Twenty-one sustained the indictment ; one was an ignorant 
 exhorter, and the other was a Quaker, who said it was all 
 true, but his conscience forbade him to vote on such a mat- 
 ter. On Saturday, Davenport was arrested, and refusing to 
 
248 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 give bail, though two gentlemen offered to be his sureties, 
 was committed for trial. The sheriff offered him perfect 
 liberty till the day of trial, if he would promise so to con- 
 duct, that he should receive no damage ; but he refused to 
 promise, and was kept in comfortable quarters. On Tues- 
 day, August 24, the Rev. Messrs. Colman, Sewall, Check- 
 ley, Welsteed, Byles and Gray addressed a note to the 
 court, then in session, entreating that no severity might be 
 used on their account, and that the matter might be conduct- 
 ed with all the gentleness and tenderness which their honors 
 might judge consistent with justice and the public peace. 
 The verdict was, "that the said James Davenport uttered 
 the words laid in the presentment, except those words, ' that 
 they, (viz. the ministers,) knew nothing of Jesus Christ ;' 
 and that, at the time when he uttered these words, he was non 
 compos mentis, and therefore that the said James Davenport 
 is not guilty." 
 
 It does not appear how long Davenport continued at or 
 near Boston, or how extensively he itinerated in the vicinity. 
 August 6, he visited Ipswich, where he remained some days. 
 August 9, he was at the house of the Rev. Nathaniel Rog- 
 ers, pastor of the First Church. Rev. Theophilus Picker- 
 ing, pastor of the Second Church, had heard that some of 
 his people had invited Davenport to preach in his parish, and 
 wrote him a letter, expressing his disapprobation.* The 
 warrant for his apprehension was issued at Boston on the 
 21st, and he was probably arrested the same day. The 
 council at Southold, which censured bis irregular absences 
 from his charge, was held on the 7th of October, at which, 
 we may presume, he was present. He probably spent the 
 winter with his people. 
 
 Meanwhile, the spirit which he had been a chief means in 
 exciting, was raging in the eastern part of Connecticut. By 
 invitation of a company of his partisans, he arrived at New 
 London, March 2, 1743, to organize them into a church. 
 Immediately on his arrival, in obedience to messages which 
 he said he had received from God in dreams and otherwise, 
 he began to purify the company from evils which prevailed 
 among thera. To cure them of their idolatrous love of 
 worldly things, he ordered wigs, cloaks and breeches, hoods, 
 gowns, rings, jewels and necklaces to be brought together 
 
 • O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 249 
 
 into his room, and laid in a heap, that they might, by liis sol- 
 emn decree, be committed to the flames. To this heap he 
 added the pair of plush breeches which he wore into the place, 
 and which he seems to have put off on being confined to his 
 bed, by the increased violence of a complicated disease. 
 He next gave out a catalogue of religious books, which must 
 be brought together and burned, as unsafe in the hands of the 
 people. March 6, in the afternoon, all things being ready, 
 his followers carried a quantity of books to the wharf and 
 burned them, singing around the pile, " Hallelujah," and 
 " Glory to God," and declaring that, as the smoke of those 
 books ascended up in their presence, so the smoke of the 
 torment of such of their authors as died in the same belief, 
 was now ascending in hell. Among the authors were Beve- 
 ridge, Flavel, Drs. Increase Mather, Colman, and Sewall, 
 and that fervid revivalist, Jonathan Parsons of Lyme. The 
 next day, more books were burned, but one of the party 
 persuaded the others to save the clothes.* 
 
 This is the last recorded outbreak of Davenport's fanati- 
 cism. From this time, he disappears from the pubhcations 
 of the day, till the summer of 1744, when he published his 
 " Retractations " of his errors. This paper was forwatded 
 by the Rev. Solomon Williams, of Lebanon, Ct. to the 
 Rev. Mr. Prince, of Boston, for publication. Mr. Williams 
 says, in his letter enclosing it, "He is full and free in it, 
 and seems to be deeply sensible of his miscarriages and mis- 
 conduct in those particulars, and very desirous to do all he 
 possibly can to retrieve the dishonor which he has done to 
 religion, and the injustice to many ministers of the gospel." 
 As originally published, the document reads thus : — 
 
 " THE REV. MR. DAVENPORT'S RETRACTATIONS. 
 
 " Although I do not question at all, but there is great reason to bless 
 God for a glorious and wonderful work of his power and grace in the 
 edification of his children, and the conviction and conversion of numbers 
 in New England, in the neighbouring governments and several other 
 ■ parts, within a few years past ; and believe that the Lord hath favored 
 me, though most unworthy, with several others of his servants, in 
 granting special assistance and success ; the glory of all which be 
 given to Jehovah, to whom alone it belongs : 
 
 * This was probably John Lee. of Lyme, who, according to Trumbull, 
 told them that his "idols " were his wife and children, whom he could not 
 burn, as the word of God forbade it, and that idolatry could be suppressed 
 only by a change of heart. 
 
250 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 " Yet, after frequent meditation and desires that I might be enabled 
 to apprehend things justly, and, I hope I may say, mature considera- 
 tion, I am now fully convinced and persuaded that several appendages 
 to this glorious work are no essential parts thereof, but of a different 
 and contrary nature and tendency ; which appendages I have been in 
 the time of the work very industrious in, and instrumental of promot- 
 ing, by a misguided zeal: being further much inSuenced in the affair 
 by the false Spirit ; which, unobserved by me, did (as I have been 
 brought to see since) prompt me to unjust apprehensions and miscon- 
 duct in several articles ; which have been great blemishes to the work 
 of God, very grievous to some of God's children, no less ensnaring 
 and corrupting to others of them, a sad means of many persons' ques- 
 tioning the work of God, concluding and appearing against it, and of 
 the hardening of multitudes in their sins, and an awful occasion of the 
 enemies blaspheming the right ways of the Lord ; and withal very 
 offensive to that God, before whom I would lie in the dust, prostrate 
 in deep humility and repentance on this account, imploring pardon for 
 the Mediator's sake, and thankfully accepting the tokens thereof. 
 
 " The articles which I especially refer to, and would in the most pub- 
 lic manner retract, and warn others against, are these which follow, viz. 
 
 " I. The method I used, for a considerable time, with respect to some, 
 yea many ministers in several parts, in openly exposing such as I fear- 
 ed or thought unconverted, in public prayer or otherwise ; herein mak- 
 ing my private judgment, (in which also I much suspect I was mistaken 
 in several instances, and 1 believe also that my judgment concerning 
 several was formed rashly and upon very slender grounds,) I say, 
 making my private judgment, the ground of public actions or conduct; 
 offending, as I apprehend (although in the time of it, ignorantly) 
 against the ninth commandment, and such other passages of Scripture 
 as are similar; yea, [ may say, offending against the laws both of 
 justice and charity ; which laws were further broken, 
 
 " II. By my advising and urging to such separations from those min- 
 isters whom I treated as above, as I believe may be justly called rash, 
 unwarrantable, and of sad and awful tendency and consequence. 
 And here I would ask the forgiveness of those ministers, whom I 
 have injured in both these articles. 
 
 " III. I confess I have been much led astray by following impulses 
 or impressions as a rule of conduct, whether they came with or without 
 a text of Scripture ; and my neglecting, also, duly to observe the an- 
 alogy of Scripture. I am persuaded this was a great means of cor- 
 rupting my experiences and carrying me off from the word of God, 
 and a great handle, which the false Spirit has made use of with respect 
 to a number, and me especially. 
 
 "IV. I believe, further, that I have done much hurt to religion, by 
 encouraging private persons to a ministerial and authoritative kind or 
 method of exhorting ; which is particularly observable in many, such . 
 being much puffed up and falling into the snare of the devU, whilst 
 many others are thus directly prejudiced against the work. 
 
 " I have reason to be deeply humbled that I have not been duly 
 careful to endeavour to remove or prevent prejudice, (where I now 
 believe I might then have done it consistently with duty,) which ap- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 251 
 
 peared remarkable in the method I practised, of singing with others in 
 the streets, in societies frequently. 
 
 " I would also penitently confess and bewail my great stiffness in 
 retaining these aforesaid errors a great while, and unwillingness to 
 examine into them with any jealousy of their being errors, notwith- 
 standing the friendly counsels and cautions of real friends, especially 
 in the ministry. 
 
 " Here may properly be added a paragraph or two, taken out of a 
 letter from me to Mr. Barber at Georgia ; a true copy of which I gave 
 consent, should be published lately at Philadelphia: ' — I would add, 
 
 to what brother T hath written on the awful affair of books and 
 
 clothes at New London, which affords grounds of deep and lasting 
 humiliation ; I was, to my shame be it spoken, the ringleader in that 
 horrid action ; I was, my dear brother, under the powerful influence 
 of the false Spirit,' almost one whole day together, and part of several 
 days. The Lord showed me afterwards, that the spirit I was then 
 acted by, was in its operations void of true inward peace, laying the 
 greatest stress on externals, neglecting the heart, full of impatience, 
 pride and arrogance ; although I thought, in the time of it, that it was 
 the Spirit of God in a high degree ; awful, indeed ! my body, especially 
 my leg, much disordered at the same time,* which Satan and my evil 
 heart might make some handle of.' 
 
 " And now may the holy, wise and good God be pleased to guard 
 and secure me against such errors for the future, and stop the progress 
 of those, whether ministers or people, who have been corrupted by my 
 words or example in any of the above mentioned particulars ; and, if 
 it be his holy will, bless this public recantation to this purpose. And, 
 O! may he grant, withal, that such, as by reason of the aforesaid 
 errors and misconduct, have entertained unhappy prejudices against 
 Christianity in general, or the late glorious work of God in particular, 
 may, by this account, learn to distinguish the appendage from the sub- 
 stance or essence, that which is vile and odious, from that which is pre- 
 cious, glorious and divine, and thus be entirely and happily freed from 
 all those prejudices referred to, and this, in infinite mercy through 
 Jesus Christ: and to these requests, may all God's children, whether 
 ministers or others, say Amen. 
 
 "JAMES DAVENPORT. 
 
 "July 28, 1744. 
 
 " P. S. Inasmuch as a number, who have fallen in with and promot- 
 ed the aforesaid errors and misconduct, and are not altered in their 
 minds, may be prejudiced against this Recantation, by a supposition or 
 belief, that I came into it by reason of desertion or dullness and dead- 
 ness in religion, it seems needful, therefore, to signify, what I hope I 
 may say without boasting, and what 1 am able, through pure rich 
 grace, to speak with truth and freedom, that for some months in the 
 time of my coming to the abovesaid conclusions and retractations, and 
 since 1 have come through grace to them, I have been favored, a great 
 part of the time, with a sweet calm and serenity of soul, and rest in 
 God, and sometimes with special and remarkable refreshments of soul, 
 
 " * I had the long fever on me and the catikry humor, raging at once,' ' 
 
252 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 and these more free from corrupt mixtures than formerly. Glory to 
 God alone. , J. D." 
 
 August 30, he addressed a note to Mr. Williams, contain- 
 ing the following corrections : — 
 
 " Upon the Rev. Dr. Colman's observing, that the use of a word in 
 the first edition of these Retractations is liable to be understood in a 
 sense different from what I intended in the use of it, I desire, if they 
 be printed again, that instead of what is now in the third page be- 
 tween these words, 'I am now fully convinced and persuaded, that'; 
 and those words, 'much influenced in the affair by the false Spirit': 
 the following words may be inserted, viz : ' Several things, which in 
 the time of the work I was very industrious and instrumental in pro- 
 moting, by a misguided zeal, were no parts of it, but of a different and 
 contrary nature and tendency; and that I was' — And in page 7, in- 
 stead of those words, 'the appendage from the substance or essence': 
 let these be put, viz : ' what is no part of the work, from the work itself " 
 
 It will appear in a subsequent chapter, that Dr. Colraan 
 had good reasons for his scrupulousness in respect to phrase- 
 ology. 
 
 Davenport's recovery from his errors is commonly ascrib- 
 ed to the Christian'labors of the Rev. Messrs. Williams and 
 Wheelock. Their arguments were doubtless useful, and he 
 calls them "the greatest means" of convincing him of his 
 errors. But other causes conspired. 
 
 He had twice been judicially pronounced insane ; once by 
 the Colonial Assembly at Hartford, and once by the jury that 
 acquitted him at Boston. During a great part, if not the 
 wrhole, of his itinerations, he was lame with some kind of in- 
 flammatory ulcerations, so that he needed the assistance of 
 his "armor-bearer" in walking; and there are other evi- 
 dences of a febrile state of body. This fever predisposed 
 him to unnatural and unhealthy mental excitement; and on 
 the other hand, his splendid dreams, sleeping and waking, of 
 himself as a great reformer and a special favorite of God, his 
 want of sleep while he spent whole nights in prayer, his ex- 
 cessive pulpit labors and the mental efforts they required, the 
 sight of the multitudes that gathered around him, and of the 
 effect which he produced upon them, their outcries, faint- 
 ings and convulsions, all bearing witness to his power, — all 
 these things acted through his mind upon his nerves, or upon 
 his nerves directly, and kept up the fever. Such excitement 
 inconceivably increases the power of the mind, and espe- 
 cially the power of moving others ; but, in the same propor- 
 tion, renders it uncertain what the man will do with that 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. . 253 
 
 power. At New London, when the books were burnt, the 
 disease seems to have reached its crisis, and the riiental dis- 
 turbance amounted to a clearly defined insanity. He was at 
 least partially aware of this, when he wrote his " Retrac- 
 tations ;" for he states that his body, especially his leg, was 
 much disordered, which Satan and his evil heart might make 
 some handle of. Here he speaks of the disease as past ; as 
 what was. As health returned, he recovered the power of 
 calm reflection, and became inclined to be convinced of his 
 errors, and to return to sobriety of measures. At length, he 
 applied to Williams and Wheelock for arguments against his 
 former course. Williams commences his letter, " You de- 
 sire my thoughts." " In answer to your question," was the 
 beginning of Wheelock's. Their letters contain merely a 
 plain, well-written statement of the common arguments, 
 which he must often have met in the course of his career ; 
 but now, when he was convalescent, and seeking health in 
 the right direction, they had new power with him. They 
 convinced him, — as he, whether he was aware of it or not, 
 hoped they would. His history should teach the excitable, 
 whether leaders or followers, a salutary lesson. He soon 
 after removed to New Jersey, where he appears to have 
 labored faithfully and usefully ; but he was frequently in 
 trouble, often obliged to change residence, and Hved but a 
 few years. The influence of his errors did not cease with 
 his recantation, or even with his life. Among the Separat- 
 ists, of whom he was the leader, and the sects in which they 
 finally became merged, his most mischievous disorders, and 
 even the tone and manner of public speaking which Trum- 
 bull ascribes to him, have been preserved, even to this day. 
 " With his unnatural and violent agitations of the body," 
 says Trumbull, "he had a strange singmg tone, which migh- 
 tily tended to raise the feelings of weak and undiscerning 
 people, and consequently to heighten the confusion among the 
 passionate of his hearers. This odd, disagreeable tuning of 
 the voice in exercises of devotion, was caught by the zealous 
 exhorters, and became a characteristic of the Separate teach- 
 ers. The whole sect was distinguished by this sanctimonious 
 tone."* The use of this tone in devotional exercises, the 
 excited and disorderly worship, the occasional appearance of 
 
 * History Conn., Vol. H. pages 160, 161. 
 22 
 
254 THE GREAT, AWAKENING, 
 
 "the power" under which people cry out and fall down, the 
 regard for unaccountable "impressions," the pretense of 
 preaching from the immediate suggestion of the Holy Spirit, 
 the habit of condemning all ministers who do not favor such 
 things as cold formalists, destitute of piety and incapable of 
 usefulness, and of laboring to destroy their influence and 
 break up their churches, have greatly diminished within the 
 last thirty years, but are not yet extinct. 
 
 Of the result of Davenport's labors in Boston, little is re- 
 corded. Prince says : "A small number from some of our 
 churches and congregations, (some had been communicants 
 -formerly,' and' some added lately,) withdrew, and met in a 
 distinct society ;" and having just mentioned events that 
 occurred in December, he says : " Sometime after, a man 
 of the Separate society became a Saturday Baptist ; who, 
 being dipped in the country, and having hands laid on him, 
 thought himself a minister, drew five women after him, and 
 proceeded to dip them ; yet they have all since deserted 
 him. But six males of the said society, with one in Brook- 
 line, — went on to associate as a church, — and have not yet 
 returned to the several churches whence they went out." 
 But he had heard of none of the Separatists who had fallen 
 in any " censurable evil," besides their separation, except 
 one from the Old South Church and a few from the New 
 North. This church appears to have been short lived ; but 
 its history is unknown. In February, 1748, some mem- 
 bers of the Congregational Churches in Boston " embodied 
 themselves " as the Eleventh Congregational Church. Oc- 
 tober 5, of the same year, Croswell, the defender of Daven- 
 port, was installed as their pastor. The Old South Church 
 refused to unite Jn the installing council, regarding the for- 
 mation of the church as a bad precedent, tending to "crum- 
 ble the churches in pieces." The French Protestant 
 Church being disbanded about this time, the new church 
 obtained possession of their meetinghouse in School street, 
 where Croswell continued to be their pastor till he died, 
 April 12, 1785, aged 76, and having been blind for several 
 years. The house then passed into other hands, and the 
 building on its site is now occupied by a society of Univer- 
 salists. The records of this church are lost.* 
 
 * History of Boston, p. 231. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 255 
 
 The influence of Davenport's errors was most severely- 
 felt in the eastern part of Connecticut. The events that oc- 
 curred there, demand a distinct consideration ; but we must 
 first glance at Whitefield's labors in Great Britain. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Whitefield in England. — Hia breach with Wesley. — The Revival in 
 
 Scotland. 
 
 Whitefield arrived at Falmouth, on his return from 
 America, March 11, 1741. "On the following Sabbath," 
 says Philip, " he was again on Kennington Common, but with 
 "not above a hundred to hear him." It was not quite so 
 bad as that. Whitefield says, that on Sunday his congre- 
 gation was about as large as usual, but on week days he had 
 riot more than two or three hundred. But this was not all. 
 " One," he says, " that got some hundreds of pounds by 
 my sermons, refused to print' for me any more. And others 
 wrote to me that God would destroy me in a fortnight, and 
 that my fall was as great as Peter's. Instead of having thou- 
 sands to attend me, scarce one of my spiritual children came 
 to see me from morning to night. Once, on Kennington 
 Common, I had not above a hundred to hear me." 
 
 Among the causes of this loss of popularity, he mentions 
 " two well-meant, though ill-judged letters against England's 
 two great favorites, 'The Whole Duty of Man,' and Arch- 
 bishop Tillotson, who, I said, knew no more about rehgion 
 than Mahomet." He condemned them for their Arminian- 
 ism ; and for these letters, "the world was angry" at him. 
 A more powerful cause was his controversy with Wesley. 
 Before Whitefield left England, Wesley had threatened to 
 " drive John Calvin out of Bristol ;" and some one had 
 charged him with not preaching the gospel, because he did 
 not preach the doctrine of election. Whitefield besought 
 him not to preach against that doctrine, — as he, though he 
 believed it, never preached in favor of it, — lest they should 
 become divided among themselves. Wesley solemnly ap- 
 pealed to God for direction, by drawing lots. His lot was 
 
256 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 " preach and print." He preached ; but Whitefield begged 
 him not to print, and he did not, till after Whitefield's depar- 
 ture. Whitefield reluctantly wrote a reply, from " Bethes- 
 da, in Georgia, Dec. 24, 1740," hoping that the perusal of 
 it would have such an effect on Wesley's mind, as would 
 render its publication unnecessary ; but, contrary to his in- 
 tention, it was soon published in Sngland by some of his 
 officious friends. Wesley was formed for a leader, and could 
 ill bear opposition, even from the man who had raised the 
 present excitement and put him at the head of it. The let- 
 ter, too, contained some arguments, which it was easier to be 
 offended at, than to answer. But the arguments were not the 
 most galling part of its contents. In his preface, Wesley- 
 had informed his followers, in terms sufficiently intelligible to 
 them, that he published his sermon by special divine direc- 
 tion. Those who believed this, of course could not ques- 
 tion the correctness of the doctrine ; for certainly God would 
 not direct Wesley to publish error. In order to obtain an 
 impartial consideration of his own arguments, Whitefield 
 must do away this impression. He therefore told how 
 Wesley received his divine direction to "preach and print ;" 
 and reminded him of his neglect to inquire of God, in the 
 first place, wliether the doctrine was true. In a note, he 
 added another instance of Wesley's sortilege. " The morn- 
 ing I sailed from Deal for Gibraltar, Mr. Wesley arrived 
 from Georgia. Instead of coming on board, to converse 
 with me, though the ship was not far off the shore, he drew 
 a lot, and immediately set forwards to London. Behind him 
 he leaves a letter for me, in which were words to this effect : 
 ' When I saw God, by the same wind which was carrying 
 you out, brought me in, I asked counsel of God. His an- 
 swer you have enclosed.' " This was a piece of paper, in 
 which were written, these words : " Let him return to Lon- 
 don." Whitefield states that he was surprised at a message 
 so contrary to what appeared his plain duty, betook himself 
 to prayer, and the account of the prophet that was slain by a 
 lion, for turning back, contrary to divine direction, at the 
 word of another prophet, was powerfully impressed upon his 
 soul. He continued his voyage, and Wesley afterwards 
 acknowledged that God gave him a wrong lot then, though 
 he had never given him a wrong one before. Whitefield 
 concluded that Go'd gave him a wrong lot, justly, because he 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 257 
 
 tempted God in drawing one. When this letter was pub- 
 lished and distributed amofig their followers, Wesley com- 
 mented upon it in one of their meetings, and saying, " I will 
 just do what I believe Mr. Whitefield would, were he here 
 himself," he tore it in pieces. All present followed his ex- 
 ample. But Wesley could not forgive the author. White- 
 field confessed his error in publishing a private transaction, 
 begged pardon, and entreated his old friend to be reconciled ; 
 but Wesley reminded him, that for betraying secrets, every 
 friend would depart. The insolent language in which he 
 professes his kindness, shows his resentment. " The general 
 tenor, both of my public and private exhortations, when I 
 touch thereon at all, as even my enemies know, if they would 
 testify, is, — ' Spare the young man, even Absalom, for my 
 sake.' " He seems not to have been aware how accurately 
 these words describe his treatment of Whitefield. Mean- 
 while, the war went on between Wesley and the leading Cal- 
 vinistic Methodists. It vifas managed in a bad spirit on both 
 sides ; but the high standing and superior tactics of Wesley 
 carried the day, and almost the whole body submitted to his 
 dictation. The Moravians, too, made inroads upon While- 
 field's societies, and turned his printer against him. 
 
 Such was the state of things, when Whitefield returned to 
 London. "At the same time," he writes, "I was much 
 embarrassed in my outward circumstances. A thousand 
 pounds I owed for the orphan house. Two hundred and fifty 
 pounds bills drawn on Mr. Seward, were returned upon me.* 
 I was also threatened to be arrested for two hundred pounds 
 more. A family of a hundred to be maintained, four thou- 
 sand miles off, in the dearest part of the king's dominions. 
 
 " Ten thousand times would I rather have died, than part 
 with my old friends. It would have melted any heart, to 
 have heard Mr. Charles Wesley and me weeping, after pray- 
 er, that if possible the breach might be prevented. Once, 
 and no more, I preached in the Foundry, a place which Mr. 
 John Wesley had procured in my absence. All my work 
 was to begin again." 
 
 He began to preach in Moorfield on week days, under one 
 of the trees ; where he saw numbers of his spiritual children 
 
 * Seward was dead, and had not, as was expected, led him any thing 
 by his will. 
 
 22* 
 
268 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 running by him witiiout looking at him, and some of them 
 putting their fingers in their ears, that they might not hear 
 one word he said. " A like scene opened at Bristol, where 
 I was denied preaching in the house I had founded." It was 
 the Kingswood schoolhouse, built for the children of the 
 colliers. Whitefield had first dared to preach to them, and 
 persuaded them to hear the gospel ; had originated the school, 
 procured the building lot, laid the corner-stone, and put up 
 the walls with money he had raised for that purpose, and 
 then transferred the whole to Wesley ; and now he was not 
 suffered to preach in it. 
 
 We must not, as we are tempted to do, exclaim against 
 the cold-hearted selfishness of Wesley. The man who spent 
 his life in labors for the good of others, who acquired and 
 gave away in charity, many thousand pounds, and lived and 
 died poor, must not be called selfish. But Wesley had ex- 
 tensive and well-defined plans foi' doing good ; and he had 
 a heart which could deliberately sacrifice every interest and 
 every feeling, either of himself or his friends, that stood in 
 the way of their accomplishment. Whitefield could not have 
 done it. He could and did sacrifice himself for the good of 
 others ; but he could not sacrifice his friends. Emotions of 
 love towards every human being whom he saw or thought of, 
 governed the life of Whitefield. Cool, calculating benevo- 
 lence on a large scale, was the characteristic of Wesley. 
 
 But Whitefield could not long be kept down. His friends 
 built a new house an(J opened a new school at Kingswood. 
 Some "free grace dissenters," as Gillies calls them, procur- 
 ed the loan of a building lot in London, on which they erect- 
 ed a large temporary shed, which he called the Tabernacle. 
 Here his congregations immediately increased, and he ad- 
 dressed them with his usual power and success. At the 
 desire of his ihearers, he sent for some of his Calvinistic 
 friends from other places, to come and assist him in gather- 
 ing the spiritual harvest. Invitations soon poured in from the 
 country, and even from places where he had never been. 
 At a common near Braintree, he had more than ten thousand 
 hearers, and at many other places, congregations were large, 
 and much affected. " Sweet," he says, "was the conver- 
 sation which I had with several ministers of Christ ; but our 
 own clei^y [of the established-Church] grew more and more 
 shy, now they knew I was a Calvinist." In about four 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 259 
 
 months from his arrival in London, he not. only had tri- 
 umphed in England, but was triumphing in Edinburgh. 
 Events in that region have a closer connexion with the 
 " Great Awakening " in America, and must be narrated at 
 greater length. 
 
 When Presbyterianism was established in Scotland by act 
 of ParUaraent, it was intended as a religion for the whole 
 people. The Directory for Worship takes for granted that 
 all children will be baptized, taught the catechism, and at a 
 suitable age, having shown their doctrinal knowledge in an 
 examination, and not being heretical in their opinions or 
 scandalous in their lives, will be admitted to the communion. 
 The doctrine of the church is, that none but the regenerate 
 can partake of the Lord's Supper acceptably, and some pas- 
 tors have, at their examinations, required evidence of an 
 experimental knowledge of saving truth ; but the formularies 
 of the church allow the sessions to hope that every candidate 
 who is neither heretical nor scandalous, is regenerate, and to 
 admit all who, after suitable admonition to examine them- 
 selves, choose to come ; and such seems to have been the 
 prevailing practice. As might be expected, the gospel was 
 faithfully preached by many of the clergy, and there were 
 conversions and revivals ; while many unrenewed men, of 
 decent morals, were admitted, first to the communnion, and 
 then, having been educated at the Universities, to the minis- 
 try. The law of patronage existed there, as well as in Eng- 
 land ; and when a parish became vacant, the patron, if un- 
 converted, would be very likely to nominate an unconverted 
 minister. In many cases, the presentee would be received 
 without gainsaying. In others, the parish would "reclaim," 
 or protest against his induction into office. What should be 
 done in such a case, is a question which has never been put 
 at rest, and which is now shaking the Church of Scotland to 
 its centre ; the General Assembly having decided that such 
 candidates shall not be ordained, and the civil government 
 -having decided that they have a right to ordination, and that 
 the Presbyteries must and shall ordain them. 
 
 Christ is certainly the sole head of his own church. It is 
 the duty of his church, through its appropriate organs, to 
 maintain and promulgate those moral truths which are bind- 
 ing on all men ; and it is the duty of all men in office, to be 
 governed by those truths in all their official conduct ; ^nd if 
 
260 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 a civil ruler, being a member of a church, receives bribes to 
 pervert justice, or is guilty of any other violation of Christian 
 principle, either in his private conduct or his official acts, he 
 is as much amenable to the discipline of the church, as any 
 other person. But the theory always contended for by a 
 part of the Church of Scotland, and now embraced by the 
 General Assembly, goes further. It assumes, that Christ has 
 established two kinds of government on earth ; civil, to take 
 care of worldly concerns, and ecclesiastical, to take care of 
 all matters pertaining to religion ; that he has' established 
 church courts, to act in his name on all ecclesiastical ques- 
 tions ; and that the civil government may never reverse the 
 decisions of these courts, but must always execute them, 
 whenever force is necessary for their execution. This was 
 the leading thought in the " Solemn League and Covenant," 
 by which the Scotch Presbyterians bound themselves to pro- 
 cure and maintain, by force of arms if necessary, the estab- 
 lishment of the church according to the order of the gospel, 
 under Christ as its sole head. 
 
 But who shall decide what questions are civil and what 
 are ecclesiastical .' And what shall be done with questions, 
 numerous in Great Britain and all Europe, which are partly 
 ecclesiastical, and yet affect important civil rights and priv- 
 ileges .'' Here are difficulties which have never been sur- 
 mounted ; for if the church may determine the extent of its 
 own jurisdiction, it may make the civil government its mere 
 tool, as the Popedom has done ; and to this, no Protestant 
 government can submit. The state, therefore, takes the lib- 
 erty to interfere in all' questions that affect civil rights. Or- 
 dination is clearly ecclesiastical ; but it gives a right to a sal- 
 ary, which is a civil right. The right of presentation to a 
 parish is a civil right. It is worth money, more or less, ac- 
 cording to the income of the parislf, and the certainty that 
 the presentee will be ordained. The civil government, in 
 order to protect these and other civil rights, is obliged to 
 bring the church into subjection. But to this, the church 
 can never submit. These two governments can never act 
 harmoniously over the same people. One or the other must 
 be abolished, or become the submissive tool of the other, or 
 they must be at war. 
 
 But the Church of Scotland was also divided against it- 
 self, — as every church must be, which is composed of such 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 261 
 
 heterogeneous materials. To a great extent, the unconvert- 
 ed clergy took sides with the state against their more spirit- 
 ual brethren. They loved the arrangement to which they 
 owed their offices and salaries. They loved to study eccle- 
 siastical polity better than theology, and felt more at home in 
 church courts than in prayer meetings. They gained influ- 
 ence in the General Assembly, and used that influence to 
 strengthen their party, to discourage all efficient discipline, 
 and to give prevalence to a rationalizing Arrninianism, that 
 disturbed no man's conscience and alarmed no man's fears. 
 With the aid of such good men as they could manage, they 
 passed several acts, which some of the more pious deemed 
 subversive of the authority of Christ, the liberties of his 
 people, and the interests of religion. The minority were not 
 allowed to protest, on the minutes of the Assembly, as they ' 
 thought it their right and their duty to do. They therefore 
 protested in their own pulpits ; and for a public condemna- 
 tion of some of the doings of the Assembly, process was 
 commenced against Ebenezer Erskine in 1732. The next 
 year, he and three others were suspended from the exercise 
 of the ministerial office. This sentence was afterwards re- 
 called, but they -refused to return, and in 1740, the Assembly 
 dissolved their connexion with their congrega;tions and with 
 the national church. They, however, with others', had form- 
 ed the " Associate Presbytery ;" and after their deposition 
 they continued their ministerial labors among their people, 
 and many, of the agricultural population especially, adhered 
 to them. Yet far the greater part of the pious clergy, and 
 even of those who thought the Seceders abused, remained in 
 connexion with the General Assembly. The state of religion 
 among them is thus described by the Rev. James Robe, of 
 Kilsyth : 
 
 " There hath been a great and just complaint amongst god- 
 ly ministers and Christians of the elder sort, who had seen 
 better days, that for some years past, there hath been a sen- 
 sible decay as to the life and power of godliness. Iniquity 
 abounded, and the love of many waxed cold. Our defec- 
 tion from the Lord and backsliding increased fast to a dread- 
 ful apostasy. While the government, worship and doctrine 
 established in this church were retained in profession, there 
 hath been an universal corruption of life, reaching even unto 
 the sons and daughters of God." Of the controversy raised 
 
262 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 by the Seceders, he says : — " This unhappily filled the heads 
 and mouths of most professors to such a degree, as to mind 
 and converse about nothing, even on the Lord's day, but 
 ministers, church judicatures, and other disputable things, far 
 from the vitals of religion. The state of their souls was 
 much forgotten, and they were either disaffected to their 
 worthy ministers, and the Lord's ordinances dispensed by 
 them ; or if they attended, they were diverted by those 
 things from a concern about their regeneration, conversion, 
 and amending their ways and doings which were not good. 
 Wherever our lamentable divisions prevailed, serious religion 
 declined to a shadow." 
 
 Meanwhile, events abroad, as well as the declension at 
 home, were calling the attention of ministers, both of the 
 Kirk and Secession, to the revival of vital piety. Edwards' 
 Narrative of " Surprising Conversions " at Northampton had 
 excited attention. The awakening in England under White- 
 field could not but move the minds of Christians in the sister 
 kingdom. The Seceders had strong hopes that piety would 
 revive under their labors ; and Ralph Erskine, in August, 
 1739, wrote of some late sacramental meetings : — " The 
 Spirit of God was sometimes remarkably poured out, and I 
 hope the power of the Lord was present to heal many souls. 
 Enemies gnash with their teeth, as they do with you ; but 
 the Lord carries on his work." This was written to White- 
 field, in answer to a letter from him, inquiring about the As- 
 sociate Presbytery, for sympathising with whom he had been 
 blamed. Their sympathy was natural, for both parties were 
 zealous for the promotion of vital piety, both were protest- 
 ing against the corruptions of their own church, and both 
 were opposed by an overwhelming majority of their own 
 brethren. The correspondence continued, and the Seceders 
 invited Whitefield to Scotland. In June, 1741, Ebenezer 
 Erskine wrote : 
 
 " We hear that God is with you of a truth, and therefore we wish 
 for as intimate a connexion with you in the Lord as possible, for build- 
 ing up the fallen tabernacle of David in Britain ; and particularly in 
 Scotland, when you shall be sent to us. This, dear brother, and no 
 party views, is at the bottom of any proposal made by my brother 
 Ralph, in his own name and in the name of his associated brethren. 
 All intended by us at present is, that wJien you come to Scotland, 
 your way may be such as not to strengthen the hands of our corrupt 
 clergy and judicatories, who are carrying a course of defection, wor- 
 rying out a faithful ministry from the land, and the power of religion 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 263 
 
 with it. Far be it from us to limit your great Master's commission to 
 preach the gospel to every creature. We ourselves preach the gospel - 
 to all promiscuously who are willing to hear us. But we preach not 
 upon the call and invitation of the ministers, but of the people, which, 
 I suppose, is your own practice now in England ; and should this also 
 be your way when you come to Scotland, it could do. the Associate 
 Presbytery no manner of harm. But if, besides, you could find free- 
 dom to company with us, to preach with us and for us, and to accept 
 of our advices in your work, while in this country, it might contribute 
 much to weaken the enemy's hand, and to strengthen ours in the work 
 of the Lord, when the strength of the battle is against us." 
 
 This is perfectly honest. They wished for the promotion 
 of piety, for Whitefield's aid in promoting it, and for the in- 
 crease of credit, influence and " numbers which his coopera- 
 tion would give them ; and they were unwilling that any part 
 of these advantages should be enjoyed by their opponents, 
 who, they believed, were corrupting the church and destroy- 
 ing piety from the land. Ralph Erskine had written, April 
 10, 1741. 
 
 " Come, if possible, dear Whitefield, come, and come to us also. 
 There is no face on earth 1 would desire more earnestly to see. Yet 
 I would desire it only in a way that, I think, would tend most to the 
 advancing of our Lord's kingdom and the reformation work among 
 our hands. Such is the situation of affairs among us, that unless you 
 come with a design to meet and abide with us particularly of the 
 Associate Presbytery, and to make your public appearances in the 
 places especially of their concern, — I would dread the consequences 
 of your coming, lest it should seem equally to countenance our perse- 
 cutors. Your fame would occasion a flocking to you, to whatever side 
 you turn ; and if it should be in their pulpits, as no doubt some of 
 them would urge, we know not how it would be improved against us. 
 [ know not with whom you could safely join yourself, if not with us." 
 
 Whitefield wrote to both these brothers, that he could not 
 join himself to any one denomination of Christians ; that he 
 could visit Scotland only as an occasional preacher, " to 
 preach the simple gospel to all who are willing to hear." " I 
 write this," he says, " that there may be no misunderstanding 
 between us." 
 
 Meanwhile, there was probably some increase of spiritual 
 life in the national Church of Scotland, though little to that 
 effect has been recorded. Robe, of Kilsyth, informs us, 
 that in 1740 he began to preach on regeneration ; its necessi- 
 ty, its nature, and its effects. He then saw no fruit of these 
 sermons, except some increased seriousness among the pi- 
 ous while hearing them ; but he afterwards found that they 
 were the means of some instances of conviction and conver- 
 
264 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 sion. Similar events, we may presume, occurred in a few 
 other parishes ; but there was no movement of sufficient 
 power and extent to attract public notice, or secure a place 
 in history. 
 
 Whitefield arrived at Leith, July 30, 1741. As the Ers- 
 kines had foretold, he was urged to preach in Edinburgh. 
 He declined, and went the next day to Dunfermline, to see 
 Ralph ; for, as the Seceders had invited him to Scotland, he 
 felt bopnd to make his first public appearance among them. 
 Here he preached, to the satisfaction, and even delight, of 
 both ministers and people. The next day, Erskine accom- 
 panied him to Edinburgh, where he preached in the Orphan 
 House Park, to a large concourse of hearers, with good ef- 
 fect ; and afterwards in some of the churches. August 5, 
 he met the Associate Presbytery at Dunfermline, the mem- 
 bers having been called together " by a letter from Mr. 
 Ralph Erskine, who had formed the tryst with Mr. White- 
 field." There are several imperfect accounts of this con- 
 ference, all agreeing, however, in the most important partic- 
 ulars. Whitefield, in a half humorous, half pathetic letter 
 to his friend Noble, of New York, says : " They soon 
 agreed to form themselves into a Presbytery, and were pro- 
 ceeding to choose a moderator. I asked them, for what 
 purpose ? They answered, to discourse, and set me right 
 about the matter of church government and the Solemn 
 League and Covenant. I replied, they might save themselves 
 that trouble, for I had no scruples about it ; and that settling 
 church government, and preaching about the Solemn League 
 and Covenant, was not my plan.^' After some further re- 
 marks, he says, " I then asked them seriously, what they 
 would have me to do. The answer was, that I was not de- 
 sired to subscribe immediately to the Solemn League and 
 Covenant, but to preach only for them till I had further light. 
 I asked, why only for them .'' Mr. Ralph Erskine said, 'they 
 were the Lord's people.' I then asked, whether there were 
 no other Lord's people but themselves .'' and supposing all 
 others were the devil's people, they certainly had more need 
 to be (preached to, and therefore, I was more and more de- 
 termined to go out into the highways and hedges ; and that 
 if the Pope himself would lend me his pulpit, I would gladly 
 proclaim the righteousness of Jesus Christ therein." The 
 company soon broke up ; one of them preached a sermon 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 265 
 
 against prelacy and its appendages ; Whitefield retired, wept, 
 prayed, preached in the fields, dined with the Presbytery, 
 and took his final leave. 
 
 According to a minute by Ebenezer Erskine, it was pro- 
 posed to discuss Whitefield's opinion, that the Scriptures 
 allow the toleration of all sects. E. Erskine reminded him 
 that God had made him the instrument of converting many 
 souls ; that he ought to consider how that body was to be 
 organized and preserved ; that this could not be done without 
 ordaining elders over them, in which he must have the assist- 
 ance of " some two or three, met together in a judicative 
 capacity, in the name of the Lord." " Unto all which Mr. 
 Whitefield replied, that he reckoned it his duty to go on, 
 in preaching the gospel, without proceeding to any such 
 work." 
 
 Whitefield had some further correspondence with the Er- 
 skines, but the breach could not be healed. He would not 
 bind himself to preach in no pulpits but those of the Asso- 
 ciate Presbytery, and therefore they would have no connex- 
 ion with him. August 13, he wrote to a son of E. Erskine : 
 " The treatment I met with from the Associate Presbytery, 
 was not altogether such as I expected. It grieved me, as 
 much as it did you. I could scarce refrain from bursting 
 into a flood of tears. I wish all were like minded with your 
 honored father and uncle. Matters would not then be carried 
 with so high a hand." And again : "I doubt not but their 
 present violent methods, together with the corruptions of the 
 Assembly, will cause many to become Independents, and set 
 up particular churches of their own. This was the effect of 
 Archbishop Laud's acting with so high a hand ; and wheth- 
 er it be presbytery or episcopacy, if managed in the same 
 manner, it will be productive of the same effects. Blessed 
 be God, I have not so learned Christ." He remarked to a 
 lady, that the Associate Presbytery were building a Babel, 
 which would soon fall down about their ears. Subsequent 
 events have shown his sagacity. The Seceders quarrelled 
 among themselves, on some minute ecclesiastical matter, and 
 became divided, in 1747, into Burghers and Anti-Burghers, 
 between whom there was a long and bitter controversy. And 
 many have become " Independents." " The Congregational 
 Union of Scotland" is now a large and efficient body of 
 Christians. 
 
 23 
 
266 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Whitefield returned to Edinburgh, where the clergy of the 
 established church received him with the heartier welcome, 
 because they had heard of the conference at Dunfermline, 
 and knew that his powerful influence would now operate in 
 their favor, and against the Seceders. He, however, cared 
 little what ecclesiastical party gained or lost by his labors, if 
 he could only win souls to Christ. August 14, he wrote to 
 Howel Harris, his friend in Wales : "It would make your 
 heart leap for joy to be now at Edinburgh. I question 
 whether there are not upwards of three hundred in this city, 
 seeking after Jesus every morning. I have a constant levee 
 of wounded souls, and many quite slain by the law. God's 
 power attends me continually, just as when 1 left London. 
 At seven in the morning, we have a sweet lecture in the 
 fields,. attended, not only by the common people, but by per- 
 sons of great rank. Our congregations consist of- many 
 thousands. Never did I see so many Bibles, nor people 
 looking into them with more attention. Plenty of tears flow 
 from their eyes, and their concern appears in various ways. 
 I preach twice daily, and expound at a private house at night, 
 and am employed in speaking to souls in distress, a great part 
 of the day." So it was for several weeks. One day he 
 preached seven times. 
 
 At Glasgow, he preached ten sermons ; and some months 
 after, fifty persons were known, who appeared to have been 
 converted by means of them ; and the evident change in 
 them, had awakened others. He wrote from Aberdeen, 
 October 9 : " At my first coming here, things looked a little 
 gloomy ; for the magistrates had been so prejudiced against 
 me by one Mr. Bisset, that when applied to, they refused 
 me the use of the kirk yard to preach in. This Mr. Bisset 
 is colleague with one Mr. O., at whose repeated invitation I 
 came hither. Soon after my arrival, dear Mr. O. took me 
 to pay my respects to him. He was prepared for it ; and 
 immediately pulled out a paper, containing a number of in- 
 significant questions, which I had neither time nor inclination 
 to answer. The next morning, it being Mr. O.'s turn, I 
 lectured and preached. The magistrates were present. 
 The congregation was very large, and light and life fled all 
 around. In the afternoon, Mr. B. officiated. I attended. 
 He began his prayers as usual ; but in the midst of them, 
 naming me by name, he entreated the Lord to forgive the 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 267 
 
 dishonor that had been put upon him, by my being suffered 
 to preach in that pulpit. And, that all might know what rea- 
 son he had to put up such a petition, about the middle of 
 his sermon, he not only urged that I was a curate of the 
 Church of iEngland, but also quoted a passage or two, out of 
 my first printed sermons, which he said were grossly Armi- 
 nian. Most of the congregation seemed surprised and chag- 
 rined, especially his good-natured colleague, Mr. O., who, 
 immediately after the sermon, without consulting me in the 
 least, stood up and gave notice that Mr. Whitefield would 
 preach in about half an hour. The interval being so short, 
 the magistrates returned to the Sessions house, and the con- 
 gregation patiently waited, big with expectation of hearing 
 my resentment. At the time appointed, I went up, and took 
 no other notice of the good man's ill-timed zeal, than to ob- 
 serve in some part of my discourse, that if the good old 
 gentleman had seen some of my later writings, in which I 
 had corrected several of my former mistakes, he would not 
 have expressed himself in such strong terras. The people 
 being thus diverted frbm the controversy with man, were 
 deeply impressed with what they heard from the word of 
 God. All was hushed, and more than solemn. On the 
 morrow, the magistrates sent for me, expressed themselves 
 quite concerned at the treatment I had met with, and begged 
 me to accept the freedom of the city. But of this, enough." 
 " This triumph," says Southey, "Whitefield obtained as 
 much by that perfect self-command, which he always pos- 
 sessed in public, as by his surpassing oratory." " Mr. O." 
 (the Rev. James Ogilvie,) gives substantially the same ac- 
 count, except that he omits whatever was discreditable to his 
 colleague.* 
 
 Few other ministers of the established church, if any, 
 treated Whitefield so rudely as Bisset ; but many of them 
 opposed him. Willison, of Dundee, testified : " He is hated 
 and spoken against, by all the Episcopal party ; and even the 
 most of our clergy do labor to diminish and expose him. 
 This is not to be much wondered at, seeing his incessant 
 labors for Christ and souls is such a reproof to them. Be 
 sides, what he says publicly against the sending out of uncon- 
 verted ministers, and their preaching an unknown Christ, 
 this must be galling to carnal men."f However glad some 
 
 • Christian History, Vol. I. p. 281. t Ibid., p. 283. 
 
268 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 others may have been at first, to have Whitefield draw 
 crowds to the kirk, rather than to the Seceders, it was only 
 the more pious that were his enduring friends ; and doubt- 
 less some, even of them, feared the consequences of his 
 measures, and lent their influence to his opposers. " But 
 for him," as Philip well observes, " the moderate party 
 would have held the ascendant " in the established church ; 
 vital piety would have been obstructed by acts of the As- 
 sembly, and sneered into obscurity, and that church would 
 have been thoroughly corrupted. At least, nothing but an 
 influence like that which he exerted, could have prevented 
 such results. 
 
 About the end of October, he left Edinburgh, and passing 
 through Wales, where he was married, reached London 
 early in December. He spent the winter and spring in 
 England, in his usual labors, and with his usual success. 
 Meanwhile, greater things than he had seen there, were tak- 
 ing place in Scotland. 
 
 February 18, 1742, an "extraordinary outpouring of the 
 Holy Spirit" commenced at Cambuslang, a little parish 
 about four miles southeast from Glasgow, of which the Rev. 
 William McCulloch, a correspondent and admirer of Ed- 
 wards, "a man of considerable parts and great piety," was 
 pastor. "This concern," says Rev. John Hamilton, "ap- 
 peared with some circumstances very unusual among us ; to 
 wit, severe bodily agonies, outcryings and faintings in the 
 congregation. This made the report of it spread like fire, 
 and drew vast multitudes of people from all quarters to that 
 place ; and I believe, in less than two months after the com- 
 mencement of it, there were few parishes within twelve miles 
 of Cambuslang, but had some more or fewer awakened there 
 to a very deep, piercing sense of sin ; and many to a much 
 greater distance." Robe, of Kilsyth, says : — " The bodies 
 of some of the awakened are seized with trembling, fainting, 
 hysterisms in some few women, and with convulsive motions 
 in some others, arising from that apprehension and fear of the 
 wrath of God, [which] they are convinced they are under 
 and liable to, because of their sins. They have a quick ap- 
 prehension of the greatness and dreadfulness of this wrath, 
 before they are afiected." He believed, too, that these 
 effects of conviction were not altogether new in Scotland ; 
 having attended the great revival in the west of Scotland in 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 269 
 
 1625-1630. It was estimated that these bodily effects did 
 not appear in more than one fifth, some said not more than 
 one eighth, of the awakened. As no difference could be 
 discovered between the mental exercises of those who were 
 thus overcome and those who were not, the ministers friend- 
 ly to the revival supposed them to be only the natural effects 
 of strong feeling, operating on persons whose constitutions 
 were peculiarly susceptible. As the revival advanced, they 
 became less frequent, and nearly disappeared. 
 
 The awakening next appeared in Kilsyth, a parish of 
 " above eleven hundred examinable persons," about nine 
 miles northeast from Glasgow, where Mr. Robe had been 
 settled in 1713. " The most part of them," he says, 
 "have attended upon public ordinances and means of instruc- 
 tion as well as any about them. The most of them who are 
 about or under forty years, have attained such a measure of 
 knowledge of the principles of religion, as renders them infe- 
 rior to few of their station and education." On hearing of 
 the revival at Cambuslang, he sometimes spoke of it to his 
 congregation, and, as he afterwards learned, not without some 
 good fruit ; though few of his people went there, and none 
 of them were manifestly awakened. There was, however, 
 an increasing seriousness, and proposals for reviving societies 
 for prayer, which had been intermitted. On Saturday morn- 
 ing, April 16, the Rev. John WilJison, of Dundee, preached 
 at Kilsyth on his return from Cambuslang, where he had 
 been spending about a week. Several, as it afterwards ap- 
 peared, were awakened by the sermon. The next day, Mr. 
 Robe preached on the desirableness of regeneration. He 
 felt " more than ordinary tenderness in reading the text, and 
 could scarce do it without tears and emotion." He saw 
 much seriousness among his hearers. During the last week 
 in April, he visited the families in a part of the parish where 
 there appeared to be more than ordinary seriousness, and 
 about the same time, heard that several young girls, from ten 
 to sixteen years of age, had been observed meeting for prayer 
 in an outhouse. May 9th, which was the Sabbath, he found 
 that two of his people were awakened. On the 12th, he 
 preached at Cambuslang, where he saw "a great day of the 
 Mediator's power." Returning by a shorter but unfrequent- 
 ed way, he found a manufacturing family with which he was 
 unacquainted, in which six of the servants had been awakened 
 23* 
 
270 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 at Cambuslang ; and while he was there, six others were 
 seized with deep and pungent convictions. May J 6, Mr. 
 Robe continued his course of sermons on regeneration ; and 
 while urging its importance in the afternoon, " an extraordi- 
 nary power' of the Spirit from on high accompanied the 
 word preached." About thirty were found to be awakened, 
 many of whom were constrained by their distress to cry out. 
 After the sermon, the exercises were prolonged, Mr. Robe 
 sang and prayed, and then attempted to address them, but 
 his voice was drowned in their cries and groans. He direct- 
 ed that they should be brought to his closet, one by one, 
 while the precentor and some of the elders sang and prayed 
 with those in the kirk, where, to cut off occasion for re- 
 proach, he directed that no exhortation should be given. 
 Wednesday, May 19, he says, " We had a sermon for the 
 first time upon a week day. I preached, as did the Rev. 
 Mr. John Warden, minister of the gospel at Campsie, and 
 the Rev. Mr. John McLaurin, minister of the gospel at 
 Glasgow, who had come hither the night before at my invi- 
 tation. The number of the awakened this day, were as ma- 
 ny as were upon the Lord's day. The greatest number was 
 from the parish of Kirkintillock. There were also some 
 from the parishes of Campsie and Cumbernauld. The num- 
 ber of the awakened belonging to this parish, amounted this 
 week to forty." 
 
 Meanwhile, similar blessings were descending on other 
 parishes. At Kirkintillock, deep impressions were made on 
 many minds in April, by the fact that a company of children 
 had begun to meet in a barn for prayer. The Rev. James 
 Burnside inquired carefully into their case, and frequently 
 met with them. May 20, he, Mr. McLaurin and Mr. Robe 
 all preached, and many were awakened. At Auchenloch, in 
 the parish of Calder, four miles northwest from Glasgow, 
 fourteen were awakened, and " there was a great cry in the 
 congregation," May 11, under the preaching of the pastor, 
 the Rev. James Warden. At Badernock, which lies north 
 and west from Calder, where there was no pastor, James For- 
 syth, the pious schoolmaster, began in February to labor 
 with new diligence for the conversion of his pupils. His 
 exhortations soon began to take effect ; some of the older 
 people were awakened by observing the seriousness of the 
 children ; others, by visiting Cambuslang and other parishes ; 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 271 
 
 and in a short time there was manifestly a revival there. In- 
 deed, in every parish for some distance around Glasgow, 
 there were more or less awakened, and hopeful beginnings in 
 other parts of Scotland ; and wherever it had commenced, it 
 was going on with increasing power, when Whitefield return- 
 ed from London. 
 
 He arrived at Leith on the third of June, and proceeded 
 directly to Edinburgh. " He was received," says Gillies, ■ 
 "by great numbers, and by some persons of distinction, with 
 much joy, and had the satisfaction of seeing and hearing more 
 and more of the happy fruits of his ministry. He continued 
 to preach twice a day, as usual, in the Hospital Park, ^here 
 a number of seats and shades, in the form of an amphithea- 
 tre, were erected for the accommodation of his hearers." 
 He also heard other sounds than those of joy, or of peni- 
 tence. June 6, which was the Sabbath after his arrival, 
 Adam Gib, one of the Seceders, in the New Church at 
 Bristow, Edinburgh, publicly warned his hearers " against 
 countenancing the ministry of Mr. George Whitefield." 
 He, however, paid no attention to his opposers, but contin- 
 ued his triumphs at Edinburgh, and at other places to which 
 he was invited. The revival, too, continued to spread and 
 gain strength, in places which he never visited. McCuUock 
 invited him to Cambuslang. He went, and having preached 
 to a vast assembly at Glasgow in the morning, preached three 
 times at Cambuslang the first day. The last of these ser- 
 mons he commenced at nine o'clock at night, and concluded 
 at eleven. McCullock then preached till past one, "and 
 even then they could hardly persuade the people to depart. 
 All night in the fields might be heard the voice of prayer and 
 praise."* Mr. McCullock wrote, July 14, — " It is not yet 
 quite five months since this work began in this place ; and 
 in that time I have reason to think that above five hun- 
 dred souls have been awakened here, and brought under deep 
 
 • Such " night meetings " may grow very naturally out of high religious 
 feeling, and are not to be condemned as necessarily sinful. They are cer- 
 tainly much less objectionable than "night meetings " in theatres, ball- 
 rooms, and the like. Yet there is always danger that long continued ex- 
 citement and want of sleep will produce a feverish state of the brain and 
 nerves, in which the mind will not act soberly or safely. Experience has 
 taught the judicious friends of revivals in New England, to be very deci- 
 ded in guarding against unseasonable hours. Few would allow meetings 
 to contmue much later than nine o'clock. 
 
272 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 convictions of sin, and are now mostly, I believe, savingly 
 brought home to God. I do not in this number include 
 those that have been pretending to be under spiritual distress, 
 and have been discovered to be mere counterfeits ; nor those 
 that appeared to have nothing in their exercises but a dread 
 of hell, which, you know, when it goes no further, never 
 comes to any saving issue. Nor do I include those who 
 have been awakened by means of Mr. Whitefield's sermons 
 in this place, because I cannot pretend to compute them. 
 He has preached seventeen sermons here since he came last 
 to Scotland. He and Mr. Webster * assisted at dispensing 
 the Lord's Supper here last Lord's day,t and the day be- 
 fore and after, and were both much assisted and counte- 
 nanced in their sermons and exhortations, and a more than 
 ordinary concern appeared among the people all along ; and 
 particularly the time of Mr. Whitefield's sermon on Mon- 
 day, there was a very great weeping and mourning among the 
 auditory." The audience was estimated at twenty thousand. 
 " The whole work was without doors, in the open air. 
 There were two tents, and two ministers employed in speak- 
 ing in difFerent places all day ; except in the evening, when 
 Mr. Whitefield preached alone to all the vast multitude then 
 present. The tables, or services, were seventeen in num- 
 ber, each, except the last, which was not quite full, contain- 
 ing about one hundred or more." Whitefield says, " On 
 Saturday I preached to above twenty thousand people. In 
 my prayer, the power of God came down and was greatly 
 felt. In my two sermons, there was yet more power. On 
 Sabbath, scarce ever was such a sight seen in Scotland. 
 There were undoubtedly upwards of twenty thousand people. 
 A brae, or hill, near the manse of Cambuslang, seemed 
 formed by Providence for containing a large congregation. 
 Two tents were set up, and the holy sacrament was adminis- 
 tered in the fields. The communion table was in the field. 
 Many ministers attended to preach &nd assist, all enlivening 
 and enlivened by one another. When I began to serve a 
 table, the power of God was felt by numbers ; but the peo- 
 ple so crowded upon me, that I was obliged to desist, and 
 go to preach at one of the tents, whilst the ministers served 
 the rest of the tables. God was with them and with his 
 
 • Of Edinburgh. t July 11. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 273 
 
 people. On Monday morning I preached to near as many 
 as before ; but such a universal stir I never saw before. 
 The motion fled as swift as lightning from one end of the 
 audi lory to another. You might have seen, thousands bathed 
 in tears ; some at the same time wringing their hands, others 
 almost swooning, and others crying out, and mourning over a 
 pierced Saviour. But I must not attempt to describe it. 
 In the afternoon, the concern again was very great. Much 
 prayer had been previously put up to the Lord. All night, 
 in different companies, you might have heard persons praying 
 to and praising God." Such was the happiness and spiritual 
 benefit of this occasion, that though the communion was 
 usually observed only once a year in the same parish, Mr. 
 Webster proposed, and Mr. Whitefield desired, to hold an- 
 other communion season in a few weeks. McCullock and 
 his elders, after some deliberation, consented, and August 
 15 was appointed for that purpose. 
 
 The Associate Presbytery were filled with consternation. 
 Whitefield's labors, in the pulpits of the established church, 
 and at the invitation of its ministers, were producing the 
 very effects that the Erskines had predicted, — drawing men 
 away from the Seceders, and giving influence to their oppo- 
 nents. Men were fast forgetting them and their " testimo- 
 ny " against the corruptions of the church, and learning to 
 regard that corrupt church as God's favored channel of spir- 
 itual blessings. Something, they thought, must be done, or 
 the cause of reform would sink into obscurity and be ruined. 
 They met at Dunfermline, and on the 15th of July, publish- 
 ed their " Act anent a Public Fast." This act sets forth, 
 that Scotland stands indispensably bound, by the word of 
 God and sundry covenants, to preserve entire the reformed 
 religion of the Church of Scotland ; that the present gener- 
 ation, like their fathers, abjure and burn those covenants, in- 
 vade the rights of the Lord's people by the act restoring 
 patronages, refuse to give an explicit testimony to the great 
 truths of God that are now impugned, and even censure 
 those who have testified doctrinally and judicially against their 
 sinful proceedings, and do what they can to bury a testimony 
 for the cause of Christ, by pretending to depose several min- 
 isters of this Presbytery for opposing the corruptions of the 
 church ; that infidelity, atheism, and immorality abound and 
 are increasing ; that, " therefore, it is no wonder that the 
 
274 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Lord hath, in his righteous displeasure, left this church and 
 land to give such an open discovery of, their apostasy from 
 him, in the fond reception that Mr. George Whitefield has 
 met with, notwithstanding it is notourly known that he is a 
 priest of the Church of England, who hath sworn the oath of 
 supremacy, and abjured the Solemn League and Covenant ; 
 endeavors, by his lax toleration principles, to pull down the 
 hedges of government and discipline, which the Lord has 
 planted about fiis vineyard in this land ; and, in the account 
 he gives of his life, makes a plain discovery of the grossest 
 enthusiasm and most palpable error and delusion touching 
 his own experience, with reference to the effectual applica- . 
 tion of the redemption purchased by Christ ; yet, because 
 he is found a fit tool for bearing down a testimony for the 
 reformation principles of this church, he is highly commend- 
 ed and extolled by several ministers in their printed letters, 
 and likewise received into full communion with them ; and 
 thus, because they would choose their own way, in opposi- 
 tion to our known principles, the Lord hath also chosen their 
 delusions, in permitting the minds of multitudes, through the 
 land, to be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ, by 
 departing from the faith, and giving heed to seducing spirits, 
 who, by good words and fair speeches, deceive the hearts of 
 the simple ;" that people are imposed upon by ministers, 
 who, " notwithstanding all the ordinary symptoms of a delu- 
 sion attending the present awful work upon the bodies and 
 spirits of men, yet cry it up as a great work of God," thus 
 attempting " to deceive, if it were possible, the very elect, 
 out of the profession of their faith, and a testimony for our 
 covenanted reformation principles, as if it were nothing but 
 bigotry and party zeal," the promoters of the work being 
 "as far from acknowledging the former and present sins of 
 this church and land, as they were before this work began ;" 
 that " bitter outcryings, faintings, severe bodily pains, con- 
 vulsions, voices, visions, and revelations, are the usual symp- 
 toms of a delusive spirit ;" that there is nothing in this work 
 to distinguish it " from the common operations of the Spirit 
 of God upon hypocrites, or from the delusions of Satan," 
 but, on the contrary, it produces " the warmest opposition 
 and aversion to a testimony " in favor of the truths for which 
 the Seceders were contending, " contrary to the practice of 
 scripture converts and the experience of the saints of God in 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 275 
 
 this land, who, upon their conversion, still espoused the tes- 
 timony of their day, and contended for the present truth." 
 For these, " and many weighty causes and considerations," 
 the Presbytery appointed Wednesday, August 4, " lo be 
 observed as a day of solemn humiliation in all their congrega- 
 tions, and by all under their inspection, earnestly beseeching 
 and obtesting all and each of them" to examine themselves, 
 and to pray, among other things which are mentioned, that 
 God "would revive a covenanted work of reformation, and 
 direct this Presbytery in essaying to lift up a testimony for 
 the same ; that he would preserve all the lovers of Zion from 
 being soon shaken in their minds by the spirit of error and 
 delusion that is now gone abroad amongst us, and determine 
 them to mark those that cause divisions and offences by cry- 
 ing up a boundless liberty of conscience in all sects, contrary 
 to the doctrine we have learned from the word of God and 
 sworn in these lands, and avoid them ; that he would purge 
 his church of a corrupt ministry," " be merciful to his wit- 
 nessing remnant," and " preserve them from dividing amongst 
 themselves," about unimportant matters.* 
 
 Robe pronounced this act " the most heaven-daring paper 
 that hath been published by any set of men in Britain, these 
 three hundred years past." " You deckre," he says, " the 
 work of God to be a delusion, and the work of the grand 
 deceiver. Now, my dear brethren, for whom I tremble, 
 have you been at due pains to know the nature and circum- 
 stances of this work .' Have you taken the trouble to go to 
 any of these places where the Lord has appeared in his glory 
 and majesty .'' Have you so much as written to any of the 
 ministers to receive information of it .'' Is it not amazing 
 rashness, without inquiry or trial, to pronounce that a work 
 of the devil, which, for any thing you know, may be- the 
 work of the infinitely good and Holy Spirit .''" 
 
 They, however, felt no need of any such inquiries as Robe 
 urged upon them. Their principles enabled them to decide 
 beforehand, that the work could not be of God, but must be 
 of Satan. They believed that the work of God must begin 
 with the reformation of the church, and that he would carry 
 it on only " in a way of solemn covenanting," as in the days 
 of their ancestors. Ralph Erskine argued, that " aversion 
 
 • WhiteBeld Tracts. O. S. Ch. Lib. T;. i 
 
276 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 from, or opposition to, the testimony of the time," was op- 
 position to God, and that a conversion which "draws men 
 off from any of the ways of God," must be "a false conver- 
 sion." " The testimony of" that " time," they were confi- 
 dent, was the testimony which the Associate Preshytery was 
 bearing in favor of the Solemn League and Covenant, and 
 against the corruptions of the church ; and therefore the con- 
 versions under Whitefield, which drew men away from that 
 Presbytery, to worship in the churches of the corrupt estab- 
 lishment, must be false conversions, and the whole work must 
 be opposition to God. 
 
 But Adam Gib, though he said no more than is implied in 
 the Act anent a Fast, or in Ersisine's sermons, made himself 
 the most notorious of the Seceders. He pubUshed* his 
 " Warning against countenancing the Ministry of Mr. George 
 Whitefield," with a preface, and an appendix, " wherein are 
 shown," the tiilepage declares, " that Mr. Whitefield is no 
 minister of Jesus Christ ; that his call and coming to Scot- 
 land are scandalous ; that his practice is disorderly, and fer- 
 tile of disorder ; that his whole doctrine is, and his success 
 must be, diabolical ; so that people ought to avoid him, from 
 duty to God, to the church, to themselves, to their fellow- 
 men, to posterity, and to him." The main strength of the 
 work lies in the appendix, in which he argues : 
 
 " That Mr. Whitefield is no minister of Christy appears from the 
 manner wherein that office he professes to bear is (X)nveyed to him. 
 He derives it from a diocesan bishop, who derives his office from the 
 king, and the king professes not to be a church officer. — The manner 
 of conveyance is merely human, and so distinct from, and opposite 
 unto, a conveyance from Jesus Christ, according to his institution." 
 " Mr. Whitefield, in swearing the oath of Supremacy, has sworn that 
 Christ is not the supreme and sole head of his church ; and, in this 
 condition, he cannot possibly be a minister of this glorious head." 
 "He who professes to preach in the name of Jesus Christ, and declares 
 not the whole counsel of God, but, on tlie contrary, discredits and con- 
 demns part of it, and declares and promotes the counsel of Satan, to 
 the ruin of souls and the subversion of the kingdom of Christ ; it can- 
 not but be unwarrantable, provoking to God, and a path to swift perdi- 
 tion, to countenance his ministry, and drink in his doctrine. But this 
 charge, in all its parts, lies against Mr. Whitefield ; and therefore the 
 
 * Philip speaks as if this was done before Whitefield'g first visit to Cam- 
 buslang: but be was there at the great communion seasoo, J'tdy II, and 
 Gib's preface is dated July 33. Gib indeed says, that his Warning was 
 "published" in the Bristow church, June 6; but his preface shows that it 
 was then only published orally, from the pulpit. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 277 
 
 conclusion obtains in the present case." " He condemns not bigotry 
 and party zeal, merely as set in opposition to a due concern about the 
 appurtenances of Christ's visible kingdom of grace, but as he sets it in 
 opposition to a concern about the invisible grace of Christ. It is in 
 tliis light that he condemns it; which shows us that, under the names 
 of bigotry and party zeal, schismatical and seditious, Mr, Whitefield 
 condemns all concern and duty anent the visible kingdom of the Me- 
 diator, as such. This, then, is what he calls earthly, sensual, devilish. 
 — If this be not a discrediting and condemning of the counsel of God, 
 there never was such a thing. If this be not a declaring and promoting 
 the counsel of Satan on earth, it was never declared nor promoted in 
 hell." " As divine revelation, so whatsoever is thereby intimated and 
 ordained, concur unto both these noble ends, the salvation of men, in 
 subordination unto the glory of God. And it is God Mediator, into 
 whose hands this revenue of glory doth immediately come. Whatso- 
 ever glory he acquires, is a kingly glory. The glorifying of his priest- 
 hood mast respect him as a priest upon his throne. Zech. 4 : 13. 
 The glorifying of his prophetical ofBce must respect him as one hav- 
 ing authority. Mat. 7: 29. For, when he stands and feeds, (with 
 knowledge,) it is in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. 
 Mioah. 5 : 4. Thus the glory of his other offices is gathered unto his 
 kingly office, and all concurs unto a kingly glory ; whence it is evident, 
 that any glorifying of him whatever, that is not ultimately aimed at his 
 kingly office, is nothing better than a hypocritical show, that cannot 
 meet with acceptance. Moreover, this kingly glory is twofold, ac- 
 cording to his twofold mediatorial kingdom, visible and invisible. 
 Though his visible kingdom is to continue but for a set time, yet, dur- 
 ing that time, there can be nothing more indispensable than the af- 
 fairs of church government. Let men revile these externals never so 
 much, they are of no small account with Zion's king. The doctrine 
 and maintenance of church government is of as essential necessity to 
 the Mediator's glory in the church,* as the doctrine of grace is unto 
 the salvation of men. And which is of the highest importance, the 
 divine glory, or the salvation of all men ? It will not believe with 
 me, that any are rightly concerned about the salvation of themselves 
 or others, while contemning the visible glory of the Mediator ; while 
 Contemning the doctrine, being and exercise of church government, 
 that promote the same. It is not the salvation of God that those men 
 do mean. That salvation which is not actually subordinate unto the 
 divine glory, is a cheat. And that salvation which reconciles not men 
 onto the doctrine and maintenance of church government, in so fat 
 renounces subordination to the divine glory." "His errors communi- 
 cate diabolical corruption unto those very truths he reserves, as to their 
 immediate influence." " The doctrine of grace that Mr. Whitefield 
 retains, (Jannot possibly discover the true Christ, because his back is 
 towards him, in flouting away the doctrine that discovers Christ a king 
 of a visible kingdom. It avails nothing to say that the doctrine of 
 grace, by itself, may discover Christ in his invisible kingdom ; for his 
 kingly character, with respect to both his visible and invisible king- 
 
 * By "the Mediator's glory in the church," Gib means, the gloriousneas 
 of church courts. 
 
 24 
 
278 THE GRKAT AWAKENING. 
 
 doms, is, during the gospel day, one character, indivisible, and if any 
 clip it through, he spoils it all. But Mr. Whitefield uses the doctrine 
 of grace to discredit one half of that character, one half of that king ; 
 and therefore, as Christ cannot be divided, seeing Mr. Whitefield's 
 doctrine directly fights against him in part, it is not possible that it can 
 truly discover him at all. Mr. Whitefield and his followers have 
 much talk about Christ; but what Christ must it be ? His doctrine 
 cannot discover the true Christ, who died at Jerusalem, as we have 
 seen. It must therefore be a notional Christ. Yes, every Christ that 
 is not Christ a king, in a visible kingdom, must be a notional Christ. 
 O, then, how does the scene cast up .' The doctrine of grace, that 
 Mr. Whitefield publishes, is carried ofif from its true posture, connex- 
 ion and use, and applied to a diabolical use, viz : to create a Christ in 
 people's imaginations, as a competitor with the true Christ." " The 
 doctrine of grace, as diabolically perverted through Mr. Whitefield, is 
 versant about such a Christ as is merely a Saviour; and it hurries 
 men off in quest of such spiritual influences, convictions, conversions, 
 consolations and assurances, as are unconcerned with and hostile unto 
 the Mediator's visible glory.* But such a Christ, such influences, 
 convictions, conversions, consolations, assurances, are not of God. 
 They can be no better than idols set up in men's imaginations. 
 Hence it is, that as those who hear Mr. Whitefield, do thereby ap- 
 prove the satanical cast of his doctrine, and expose themselves unto 
 its influence, so therein, at best, they but hunt after and worship idols. 
 It is therefore to be fearfully expected, that God will, in judgment, 
 answer them accordingly, and send them an idol Christ, idol conver- 
 sions, &c. according to their lust." " But how is it that this judgment 
 of God must be accomplished.' Certainly, it must be by a spirit. 
 The Spirit of God it cannot be ; and the spirit of man can be only the 
 melanfaholy subject, and not the author, of such operations. It re- 
 mains, then, that God's great executioner, Satan, must be employed in 
 the producing of such effects. And what other can be expected, from 
 the justice of God, than that a diabolical doctride should become the 
 channel of a diabolical spirit and influence?" Satan "can enter no 
 further into a man, than his imagination. It is peculiar to the divine 
 Spirit, to penetrate into the soul. When a man, under this satanical 
 influence, is affected by any word of Scripture, it can hit only his im- 
 agination. It is not faith that brings in the word to his soul, but the 
 devil brings it in, with hurry, into his fancy. — His horrors must be 
 blind, as they will be more glaring than what the divine Spirit occa- 
 sions, just because they are on the fancy, and must kindle it. The 
 miserable man, under such satanical influence, can have no sight of 
 the true Christ, in the word without him, by a calm and quiet faith. 
 The only Christ he can see, is formed by Satan on his imagination ; or 
 Satan gives himself out there for the true Christ. And, as the poor 
 man's fancy may be thus so kindled as to craze his brain, gathering 
 his animal spirits in a hurry, to attend the angel of light that posses:- 
 seth his fancy, what can he then imagine, but that he is converted, 
 and in high communion with God ; and can he fail to be extatic and 
 
 * That is, the gloriousness of bis visible church, as seen in church judi- 
 catories. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 279 
 
 rapturous in his consolations? Can he fail to have his imagination 
 filled with assurance, when thus under strong delusions?" "The di- 
 vine Spirit doth improve human nature in its general condition, as he 
 works in a way agreeable to our frame ; but the satanical spirit must 
 operate the reverse of all this. And how can it be otherwise, seeing 
 the imagination is the first seat of his influence ? Hence he must 
 torture the animal frame ; as the divine Spirit, on the other hand, 
 tames the soul ; and as our Lord, in the days of his flesh, sent forth 
 his Spirit to chase out devils from racking men's bodies. Hence also, 
 Satan, while kindling men's fancies, must carry them out under strong, 
 sudden and blind impulses, frights, freaks, raptures, visions, revela- 
 tions, boastings, blunders." " Satan cannot make use of the whole 
 truth. He only deals with a part of it, and that for discrediting the 
 whole. And therefore, wherever a person falls under Satan's use of 
 the truth, he will soon cast up to be unconcerned about the public dis- 
 honors done to Jesus ; he will pretend regard lo him in his invisible 
 grace, that he may smother regard to him in his visible kingdom." 
 '•And now, though men should write a thousand volumes upon the 
 fine, the holy and evangelical-like appearances of that success which 
 attends the doctrine we have been considering ; yet, after all, they no 
 way vindicate it, till they overturn the arguments proving that it must 
 be devilish." "The diabolical set of the whole complex scheme is 
 what he [Whitefleld] cannot be privy to, or sensible of, in this world, 
 till God mercifully, if ever, break Satan's blinding snare. The proper 
 and designing author, then, of this scheme, whom we are ultimately 
 to consider, is not Mr. Whitefleld, but Satan : and thus our contend- 
 ings against Mr. Whitefleld must be proportioned, not to his design, but 
 Satan's, while hereof he is an effectual, though blinded tool." " As it 
 appears that God hath sent him strong delusion, that he should believe 
 a lie, I look not upon human argument as a means of God's appoint- 
 ment for rolling off the weight of that judg-ment. I expect not that 
 he is capable of being undeceived, but immediately by God; and 
 therefore I see no duty that men owe him, in the present case, but to 
 avoid him, and pray for him." * 
 
 Such were the arguments by which the Seceders justified 
 to their own consciences, and attempted to justify to others, 
 their opposition to Whitefleld. Gib does not deserve the 
 " bad eminence " among them, which most writers have 
 awarded him. The assertions and arguments of the " Act 
 anent a PubUc Fast " are as bad as any thing from the pen 
 of Gib ; and if the language is less virulent, it is made so by 
 the brevity and formality required in an official document, 
 and not by any dissent of the Associate Presbytery from any 
 of the views set forth in the " Warning" and its appendix. 
 Yet the members of this Presbytery were some of the most 
 excellent men of the age in which they lived. Their feelings 
 
 • Whitefleld Tracts, O. S. Ch. Library. 
 
280 THK GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 and conduct on this occasion were at variance with their gen- 
 eral character.* Fraser declares, that " they themselves 
 lived to repent of the rancor into which the heat of contro- 
 versy had at first betrayed them."! Gib, on his deathbed, 
 wished that there were no copies of his pamphlet on the 
 face of the earth, and said that if he could recall every copy, 
 he would burn them. The whole history is a lamentable 
 but instructive specimen of the unchristian absurdities into 
 which even a good man may be betrayed, and in defence of 
 which he may become most conscientiously zealous, when 
 a single idea gets entire possession of }\\s head, and " being 
 alone there, has every thing in its own way." 
 
 The Seceders were made the subjects of special prayer by 
 the good people at Cambuslang, when they met to pray for 
 the divine blessing on the approaching sacramental season. 
 McCullock. has given an account of that season, in a letter 
 to a friend : J 
 
 " The ministers that assisted at this solemnity were, Mr. 
 Whitefield, Mr. Webster from Edinburgh, Mr. McLaurin 
 and Mr. Gillies from Glasgow, Mr. Robe from Kilsyth, 
 Mr. Carrie from Kinglassie, Mr. Kneight from Irvin, Mr. 
 Bonner from Torpichen, Mr. Hamilton from Douglass, and 
 three of the neighbouring ministers, viz., Mr. Henderson 
 from Blantyre, Mr. Maxwell from Rutherglen, and Mr. Ad- 
 am from Cathcart. All of them appeared to be very much 
 assisted in their work. Four of them preached on the fast 
 day, four on Saturday, on Sabbath I cannot well tell how 
 many, and five on Monday, on which last day it was compu- 
 ted that about twenty-four ministers and preachers were pres- 
 ent. Old Mr. Bonner, though so frail that he took three 
 days to ride eighteen miles from Torpichen to ^Cambuslang, 
 yet his heart was so set upon coming here, that he could by 
 no means stay away, and when he was helped up to the tent, 
 preached three times with great life ; and returned with much 
 
 * Philip says : " It would be wrong, after having quoted so often from 
 Ralph Erskine's sermons, were I not to say, even of the sermons which are 
 most disfigured with tirades against Whitefield and the revivals, that they 
 are full of evangelical truth, and flaming with love to immortal souls, and 
 as faithful to the conscience, as any that Whitefield preached at Cambus- 
 lang. Indeed, had they been preached on the brae-head, at the great sa- 
 crament there, Erskine would as surely have slain his hundreds, as White- 
 field did hia thousands." 
 
 t Quoted by Philip. 
 
 t Christian History, Vol. I. 297; Glasgow W. History, No. 39. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 281 
 
 satisfaction and joy. Mr. Whitefield's sermons on Saturday, 
 Sabbath, and Monday, were attended with much power, par- 
 ticularly on Sabbath night about ten, and that on Monday ; 
 several crying out, and a very great but decent weeping and 
 mourning was observable through the auditory. On Sabbath 
 evening, while he was serving some tables, he appeared to be 
 so filled with the love of God, as to be in a kind of extasy 
 or transport, and communicated with much of that blessed 
 frame. Time would fail me, to speak of the evidences of 
 the power of God coming along with the rest of the assist- 
 ants. 
 
 " The number of people that were there on Saturday and 
 Monday, was very considerable. But the number present at 
 the three tents on the Lord's day was so great, that, so far 
 as I can hear, none ever saw the like since the revolution, in 
 Scotland, or even anywhere else, at any sacrament occasion. 
 Some have called them fifty thousand ; some, forty thou- 
 sand ; the lowest estimate I hear of, with which Mr. White- 
 field agrees, who has been much used to great muhitudes and 
 forming a judgment of their number, makes them to have 
 been upwards of thirty thousand. 
 
 " The number of communicants appears to have been 
 about three thousand. And some worthy of credit, and that 
 had proper opportunities to know, gave it as their opinion, 
 that there was such a blessed frame fell upon the people, that 
 if there had been access to get tokens, there would have 
 been a thousand more communicants than what were.* 
 
 " This vast concourse of people, you may easily imagine, 
 came not only from the city of Glasgow, and other places 
 near by, but from many places at a considerable distance. 
 It was reckoned there were two hundred communicants from 
 Edinburgh, two hundred from Kilmarnock, a hundred from 
 Irvin, a hundred from Stewarton. It was observed, that 
 there were some from England and Ireland here at this occa- 
 sion. A considerable number of Quakers were hearers. A 
 great many of those that had formerly been Seceders were 
 
 * Every baptized person, not under ecclesiastical censure, and having 
 passed examination as to doctrinal knowledge, has a legal right to the com- 
 munion in that church ; and the amount of pious feeling in a place is very 
 naturally estimated by the number who come forward to claim the privi- 
 lege. The applicant, however, must previously appear before the Church 
 Session, and obtain a " token " of his fitness, which he is to present and 
 return at the Table. 
 
 24* 
 
282 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 hearing the word, and some of them were communicants. 
 A youth that has a near view to the ministry, and had been 
 for some time under great temptations that God's presence 
 was no more to be enjoyed, either in the Church or among 
 the Seceders, communicated here, and returned with great 
 joy, full of the love of God. 
 
 " There was a great deal of outward decency and regula- 
 tion observable about the tables. * Public worship began on 
 the Lord's day just at half past eight in the morning.' My 
 action sermon, I think, was reasonably short. The third or 
 fourth table was serving at twelve o'clock, and the last table 
 was serving about sunset. When that was done, the work 
 was closed with a few words of exhortation, prayer and 
 praise, the precentor having so much daylight as to let him 
 see to read four Hnes of a psalm. The tables were all serv- 
 ed in the open air, beside the tent below the brae. The day 
 was temperate ; no wind or rain in the least to disturb. 
 Several persons of considerable rank and distinction, who 
 were elders, most cheerfully assisted our elders in serving the 
 tables. 
 
 " But what was most remarkable was, the spiritual glory 
 of this solemnity ; I mean, the gracious and sensible pres- 
 ence of God. Not a few were awakened to a sense of sin, 
 and their lost and perishing condition without a Saviour. 
 Others had their bands loosed, and were brought into the 
 marvellous liberty of the sons of God. Many of God's 
 dear children have declared, that it was a happy time to 
 their souls, wherein they were abundantly satisfied with the 
 goodness of God in his ordinances, and filled with all joy and 
 peace in believing." 
 
 " Besides Edinburgh and Glasgow," Gillies says, " it is 
 really wonderful to think how many places in the west of 
 Scotland he [Whitefield] visited within a few weeks, preach- 
 ing at every one of them. And when he retired for a day or 
 two, it was on purpose to write letters, and prepare pieces 
 for the press." For this last mentioned employment, his 
 American opposers helped to create the necessity. 
 
 Foulis, the celebrated University Printer at Glasgow, had 
 published a pamphlet, entitled, " The State of Religion in 
 New England, since the Reverend George Whitefield's arri- 
 
 * The Presbyterians of Scotland, and many in America, sit around a 
 table to receive the Lord's Supper. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 283 
 
 val there: in a Letter from a Gentleman in New England toZ 
 his friend in Glasgow. To which is subjoined an Appendix, 
 containing Attestations of the principal Facts in a Letter, by 
 the Reverend Mr. Chauncy, Pastor of the First Churcli of 
 Christ in Boston, Mr. John Caldwell, in New Londonder- 
 ry, Mr. John Barnard, Pastor of a Church in Marblehead, 
 Mr. Turell, Mr. Jonathan Parsons, Minister at Lyme, and ' 
 Dr. Benjamin Colman, Minister in Boston." The Letter 
 was merely a denial that any good had been done, an exag- 
 gerated account of all the disorders that had appeared since 
 Whitefield's arrival, and some stories that seem to be abso- ^ 
 lute fictions. Of the "Attestations" in the appendix, the 
 last three were garbled extracts, applied as their authors ■ 
 never intended, and all of them fell far short of sustaining 
 "the principal facts in the letter." The author "desired 
 and insisted that his name should not be mentioned," profes- 
 sing " apprehensions of the fury this account might raise 
 against himself among some of the high pretenders to a Chris- 
 tian spirit " in New England. He had good reason to fear 
 the ruin of his reputation for veracity. Foulis, however, 
 assures us that he was a layman, and Whitefield inferred, 
 from his commendation of the Episcopalians in Boston, who 
 had nothing to do with the revival, that he was one of them. 
 The letter was dated " May 24, 1742." Whitefield's an- 
 swer is dated " Cambuslang, August 31, 1742." Philip 
 says, "He proved pretty fully, although without bringing 
 home the fact to any one, that the pamphlet was altered in 
 Scotland, to suit a purpose. And there are dates of Scotch 
 publications in it, which could not have been known in Bos- 
 ton when it was written." The affair is worth examining, 
 for a lesson which it teaches. Whitefield's whole argument 
 reads thus : — ' 
 
 " There is one thing in the letter which makes me shrewdly sus- 
 pect that the letter itself is not genuine ; at least, that there has been 
 some additions made to it since it came to Scotland. For the' sup- 
 posed writer says, ' In the preface to the sermon published by Mr. 
 Edwards of Northampton, which, I see, is reprinted among you.' 
 Now, how this gentleman, May 24, could see at Boston, that Mr. Ed- 
 wards' sermon was reprinted in Scotland, which was not done till June 
 following, I know not. If it be said, that by the words ' among you ' 
 he means in Britain, I see that the printed advertisement in the Lon- 
 don Weekly History, of the publication of Mr. Edwards' sermon in 
 England, is dated May 1, and says, ' This day is published.' I my- 
 self was one that was chiefly concerned in publishing of it. I sent 
 
284 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 the first copy to Scotland, and, to my certain knowledge, it was never 
 published in Britain till May 1. Is it probable that people at Boston 
 should know this. May 24 ? " 
 
 This looks like a strong case ; but the proof is insuffi- 
 cient. Foniis shows, in his second edition, that the London 
 Weekly History of April 10 contained an advertisement of 
 the Sermon as " in the press," and as " earnestly recom- 
 mended by Mr. Whitefield ;" and that even in March, a 
 bookseller at Glasgow bad been requested to procure some 
 of them from London when printed. From these facts Fou- 
 lis argues, that Whitefield must have known that the inten- 
 tion of reprinting the sermon had been known in Britain, 
 long enough to reach Boston before the date of the letter ; 
 and on this he grounds a charge against Whitefield of " Je- 
 suitical dissimulation," in bringing forward an implied charge 
 of forgery, which he must have known to be false. That 
 there was time for the news to cross the Atlantic, is certain. 
 His Majesty's ship Dover arrived at Boston May 17, 1742, 
 in five weeks from Plymouth.* She must have sailed, 
 therefore, April 12, and brought London dates as late as 
 April 11, the day after the date, and probably two days after 
 the printing, of the advertisement. There was also, before 
 the 27th, and probably before the 24th, another arrival in 
 five weeks.* The disgrace of forgery, therefore, cannot be 
 fixed upon the editor of the pamphlet. Nor ought any one 
 to desire it. The disgrace of publishing it is enough. 
 Neither was Whitefield guilty of " Jesuitical dissimulation," 
 but only of inconsiderate haste in charging a scandalous 
 crime upon his opponents. He did not stop to think, as he 
 ought to have done, that a person writing on the 24th of 
 May, would very naturally say of a sermon which he knew 
 to have been "in the press" five weeks before, "which, 
 I see, is reprinted among you." He understood it strictly, 
 as an assertion, that the writer had seen some notice of its 
 actual appearance in the market ; and this, he knew, was high- 
 ly improbable. Many of the irritating charges of that day, 
 on both sides, arose from a similar want of deliberate inves- 
 tigation, and not from any design to misrepresent. In the 
 midst of such high and general excitement, it could hardly 
 be otherwise. Excited men cannot wait for the slow move- 
 
 • Boston News Letter, May 20 and May 27, 1742, Lib. Mass. Hist. Soc. 
 
 ' I 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 285 
 
 ments of patient investigation. They assert, with undoubt- 
 ing confidence, what they believe to be true, but what the 
 other party confidently believes to be false ; and thus they 
 destroy their own reputation as honest men. The contro- 
 versy concerning this pamphlet doubtless confirmed each par- 
 ty in the belief, that the other was deliberately dishonest. 
 This must be remembered, if we would do justice, either to 
 Whitefield, to his friends, or to his opponents. 
 
 There were many other publications, for and against 
 Whitefield and the revival. The Arminianizing clergy of 
 the national church were all against him ; as were also some 
 of the most thorough Calvinists. Among the latter, John 
 Bisset, Ogilvie's colleague at Aberdeen, who preached 
 against Whitefield on his first visit, published, October 26, a 
 letter of one hundred and twelve pages, "On Communion 
 with a Priest of the Church of England." He heartily be- 
 labors all parties ; the Seceders, for first inviting Whitefield 
 to Scotland, and then disguising the fact, instead of frankly 
 confessing the sin, in their " Act anent a Fast;" a part of 
 the clergy of the church, for using Whitefield to break down 
 the Seceders ; and all parties in that church, for not testify- 
 iiig against the inroads of false doctrine, v He quotes re- 
 spectfully a passage from Adam Gib's pamphlet, which, he 
 says, he has preserved from the flames, to which Webster of 
 Edinburgh had sentenced the whole edition. 
 
 Meanwhile, Whitefield had returned to London,* where. 
 Gillies says, " he foupd a new awakening at the Tabernacle, 
 which had been much enlarged." But the revival continued 
 in Scotland. In several parishes, awakenings commenced 
 in July and August, 1742, and in others about the beginning 
 of 1743. March 30, 1744, Mr. Hamilton wrote from Glas- 
 gow to Mr. Prince : " The state of religion in our country 
 is much the same as when I wrote you last. The strong sen- 
 sible awakenings are in a great measure ceased ; and indeed 
 it could not be expected they should continue long ; but the 
 effects of them, with great numbers, I hope will never cease. 
 There are still many instances of persons awakened and hope- 
 fully converted in a more silent way. The ordinances con- 
 tinue to be more frequented than formerly ; a more close at- 
 tention to the preaching of the word, and a greater power 
 
 * He was at Glasgow, October 20, and at London, November 6. 
 
2S6 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 accompanying it ; and especially sacrament occasions hqve 
 of late been remarkably blessed for the quickening and com- 
 fort of sincere Christians. Our societies for prayer and con- 
 ference are likewise in a flourishing condition in many parts." 
 
 Yet even then intelligence' had just been received, of 
 awakenings in the north of Scotland, where the revival 
 seems to have been attended with fewer objectionable cir- 
 cumstances than at Cambuslang and Kilsyth. There was a 
 revival, too, in the remote Highlands. It was in the parish 
 of Lockbroom, the largest in Scotland, being more than one 
 hundred miles in Circumference. It had no pastor ; but 
 Hugh Cameron, the, pious schoolmaster, travelled from place 
 to place, gave personal instruction, formed societies for con- 
 ference and prayer, and was the means of enlightening many 
 souls. - 
 
 The benefit of this revival extended even to Holland. 
 Accounts of the awakenings at Cambuslang and Kilsyth 
 were translated into the Dutch by the Rev. Mr. Kennedy, 
 of the Scots Congregation at Rotterdam. Some of the 
 clergy recommended the work from their pulpits. Several 
 editions were sold, and it was made " a means of quickening, 
 enlightening and consolation to many." 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 The Retival in New England. — Conventions and Testimonies. 
 
 The Generaj, Convention of Co n gregational Ministe rs in 
 MassacEus^tts obtained_-it§_form and offic ial character gradu- 
 ally. It grew out of the c ust_o m of yisitmg Bost on~on the 
 day^ofjthe opening of jLhe.- colonial legislature. As many 
 pastors were thep in Boston, it became a custom for them to 
 meet together, to converse on matters of general interest, 
 hear a sermon from some one of their number previously ap- 
 pointed, and take up a collection for some pious object, 
 commonly the support of missions among the heathen. 
 Sometimes, if not always,? they had a moderator and a clerk, 
 but kept no record of their proceedings.* The declaration 
 
 * The vote directing the purchase of a book for records, was passed in 
 1748. It is still preserved, on a loose piece of paper, as originally written. 
 
i^y^^^ " 
 
 ^m^mm^^ 
 
 l»^wll^ 
 
 
 
 rlYk. ^JclmjaJL, 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 287 
 
 of its opinions, however, especially when unanimous, or 
 nearly so, could not fail to exert a powerful influence ; and 
 it was determined to bring that influence to bear against the 
 revival. The result of the effort was published in the fol- 
 lowing words : 
 
 « The Testimoht of the Pastors of the Churches in the Province of 
 Massachusetts Bay, in New England, at their Annual Convention 
 in Boston, May 25, 1743, against several Errors in Doctrine and 
 Disorders in Practice, which have of late obtained in various Parts 
 of the Land ; as drawn up by a Committee chosen by the said Pas- 
 tors, read and accepted, paragraph by paragraph, and voted to be 
 signed by the Moderator in their name, and printed. 
 
 " We, the pastors of the churches of Christ in the province of Mas- 
 sachusetts Bay, in New England, at our Annual Convention, May 25, 
 1743, taking into consideration several errors in doctrine and disorders 
 in practice that have of late obtained in various parts of the land, look 
 upon ourselves bound, in duty to our great Lord and Master, Jesus 
 Christ, and in concern for the purity and welfare of these churches, in 
 the most public manner to bear our testimony against them. 
 
 "I. As to errors in doctrine ; we observe that some in our land look 
 upon what are called secret impulses upon their minds, without due 
 regard to the written word, the rule of their conduct ; that none are 
 converted but such as know they are converted, and the time when ; 
 that assurance is of the essence of saving faith ; that sanctification is 
 no evidence of justification ; with other Antinomian and Familistical 
 errors which flow from these ; all which, as we judge, are contrary to 
 the pure doctrines of the Gospel, and testified against and confuted 
 in the Acts of the Synod of August, 1637 ; as printed in a book enti- 
 tled 'The Rise, and Reign, and Ruin, of Antinomianism, &c., in New 
 England.' 
 
 " II. As to disorders in practice, we judge, 
 
 "l.TTie itinerancy, as it is called, by which either ordained minis- 
 ters or young candidates go from place to place, and without the 
 knowledge, or contrary to the leave of the stated pastors in such pla- 
 ces, assemble their people to hear themselves preach, — arising, we 
 fear, from too great an opinion of themselves, and an uncharitable 
 opinion of those pastors, and a want of faith in the great Head of the 
 churches, is a breach of order, and contrary to the Scriptures, 1 Pet. 
 4 : 15; 2 Cor. 10 : 12, to the end, and the sentiments of our fathers 
 expressed in their Platform of Church Discipline, chap. 9, sect. 6. 
 
 "2. Private persons of no education and but low attainments in 
 knowledge and in the great doctrines of the gospel, without any reg- 
 ular call, under a pretence of exhorting, taking upon themselves to be 
 preachers of the word of God, wo judge to be a heinous invasion of 
 the ministerial ofiice, offensive to God, and destructive to these church- 
 es; contrary to Scripture, Numb; 16: 1 Cor. 28, 29, and testified 
 against in a ' Faithful Advice to the Churches of New England ' by 
 several of our venerable fathers. 
 
 "3. The ordaining or separating.of any persons to the worl^ of the 
 evangelical ministry at large, and. without any relation to a particular 
 
2B8 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 charge, which some of late have anhappily gone into, we look upon 
 as contrary to the Scriptures, and directly opposite to our Platform, 
 chap. 6 sect. 3, and the practice of the Protestant churches ; as may 
 be seen in 'The order of the Churches Vindicated,' by the very Rev- 
 erend Dr. Increase Mather. 
 
 " 4. The spirit and practice of separation from the particular flocks 
 to which persons belong, to join themselves with, and support lay ex- 
 horters or itinerants, is very subversive of the churches of Christ, op- 
 posite to the rule of the gospel, Gal. 5: 19, 20; Jude 19; 1 Cor. 12: 
 25 ; 1 Cor. 3 : 3, and utterly condemned by our Platform, chap. 13, sect. 
 1, 5, and contrary to their covenant engagements. 
 
 "5. Persons assuming to themselves the prerogatives of God, to 
 look into and judge the hearts of their neighbours, censure and condemn 
 their brethren, especially their ministers, as Pharisees, Arminians, 
 blind and unconverted, &-c., when their doctrines are agreeable to the 
 gospel and their lives to their Christian profession, is, we think, most 
 contrary to the spirit and precepts of the gospel and the example of 
 Christ, and highly unbecoming the character of those who call them- 
 selves tlie disciples of the meek and lowly Jesus. John 13: 84, 35 ; 1 
 Sam. 16: 7; Mat. 7: 1; Rom. 14: 10. 
 
 " 6. Though we deny not that the human mind, under the operations 
 of the Divine Spirit, may be overborne with terrors and joys; yet the 
 many confusions that have appeared in some places, from the vanity 
 of mind and ungoverned passions of people, either in the excess of 
 sorrow or joy, with the disorderly tumults and indecent behaviour of 
 persons, we judge to be so far from an indication of the special pres- 
 ence of God with those preachers that have industriously excited and 
 countenanced them, or in the assemblies where they prevail, that they 
 are a plain evidence of the weakness of human nature ; as the history 
 of the enthusiasms that have appeared in the world, in several ages, 
 manifests. Also, 1 Cor. 14; 23,40. At the same time we bear our 
 testimony against the impious spirit of those that from hence take 
 occasion to reproach the work of the Divine Spirit in the hearts of the 
 children of God. 
 
 " Upon the whole, we earnestly recommend the churches of this 
 country to the gracious care and conduct of the great Shepherd of the 
 sheep, with our thankful acknowledgments for his merciful regard to 
 them in supplying them with faithful pastors, and protecting them 
 from the designs of their enemies, and advancing his spiritual king- 
 dotn in the souls of so many, from the foundation of this country to 
 this day ; and where there is any special revival of pure religion in 
 any parts of our land at this time, we would give unto God all the 
 glory. And we earnestly advise all our brethren in the ministry care- 
 fully to endeavour to preserve their churches pure in their doctrine, 
 discipline and manners, and guaj-d them against the intrusion of itiner- 
 ants and exhorters, to uphold a spirit of love towards one another, and 
 all men ; which, together with their fervent prayers, will be the most 
 likely means, under God, to promote the true religion of the holy Je- 
 sus, and hand it, uncorrupt, to succeeding generations. 
 
 " Signed, Nathaniel E-ells, Moderator, 
 
 in the name and by order of the Convention." 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 289 
 
 This was forthwith published, without note or comment, 
 and was copied by Dr. Chauncy into his work on the " State 
 of Religion iti New England," and has been published else- 
 where, in the same style. Happily, something may be 
 known of its secret history, though not so much as seems 
 desirable. 
 
 < The Rev. Joshua Gee, pastor of the Second Church in 
 Boston, is represented by Dr. Chauncy as a man of more 
 genius than any other of the Boston ministers, and one who 
 might have been a great man, but for his indolence and love 
 of ta:l'king. A newspaper satirist of the day, describes him 
 as one Mvhb never loved to do any thing himself, but was ex- 
 cellfetil; at setting others at work. His name scarcely appears 
 in the history of the revival, till this movement in the Con- 
 vention. This seems to have fairly roused him, and he talk- 
 ed and set others to work to some purpose. He addressed 
 a printed letter, dated June 3, to Mr. Eells, moderator of 
 the Convention, which called forth replies from the Rev. 
 Beiijarairi Prescott of Salem, and Rev. John Hancock of 
 Brairttiree. Thes6 letters furnish what information we have, 
 concerning the adoption of thi^ Testimony.* 
 
 The Convention m6t, May 25. What preliminary consul- 
 tations had been held, does not appear. Hancock says, that 
 he had " reason to think that multitudes in those places that 
 had been fent with them, [disorders,] as well as others, had 
 great eipectations of receiving such a faithful Testimony " 
 from the Convention. Gee intimates his suspicion, that it 
 Vvas intended to carry Out the designs of a party. Prescott 
 states, that "upon, the motion of some members of the Con- 
 vention, that they would take into consideration, and give 
 th6\t advice upon some melancholy accounts then given, 
 vVhich related to the state of religion in the land, and specially 
 iti some particular parts of it," it was proposed, and Voted 
 Without opposition, to appoint a committee, to report the 
 neit morning, immediately after the Convention sfermon, 
 x*^hich was to be at nine o'clock. After the sermon, th^ 
 Convention retired to Dr. Sewall's, who was one of the com- 
 rhitttte, but had not met with them. He had but just time 
 to glance af the report, before it was presented. Gee says, 
 
 ' All the^g letters are preserved in the AthensBum Library, and those of 
 Hancock and Prescott in ihat of the Old South Church. 
 25 
 
290 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 that when the report was presented, Dr. Sewall " declared 
 his judgment that it ought to have contained an attestation to 
 a revival of religion in many parts of the land, by such a 
 work as an assembly of pastors at their annual convention 
 should publicly acknowledge to his praise, and that this 
 ought to have preceded the testimony against errors and dis- 
 orders ;" and that it ought to testify against Arminianism, as 
 well as Antinomianism. A debate arose, and finally three 
 were added to the committee, and the report was recommit- 
 ted. The committee met at Dr. Sewall's, after dinner. 
 Prescott, who was one of them, says, that in relation to Ar- 
 minianism, it was observed, that in the statements which had 
 led to the appointment of the committee, nothing was said of 
 its prevalence, or of disorders arising from it, and as they 
 could not be expected to testify against all errors, there was 
 no reason for testifying against that in particular ; so the 
 matter was dropped, except that the word " Arminians " was 
 added after the word " Pharisees" in the fifth article. The 
 last sentence of the sixth article was added, and the words, 
 "and where there is special revival of pure religion in any 
 parts of our land, we would give unto God all the glory," 
 were inserted in the concluding paragraph. 
 
 When the report, thus amended, was brought in, an at- 
 tempt was made to adopt it entire, by a single vote ; but the 
 Convention decided first to consider the articles separately. 
 The first five articles passed with little or no opposition ; 
 some, however, refusing to vote, because the Testimony did 
 not contain an open acknowledgment of the revival. On the 
 sixth article, a very earnest debate arose. , During this de- 
 bate. Gee attempted to speak. Dr. Chauncy objected, that 
 eight years before, Gee had, by a written instrument, with- 
 drawn from the Convention, and urged that he should now 
 be asked whether he spake as a member. Gee refused to 
 ,answer, and was not permitted to speak. Several urged the 
 duty of testifying fully that there had been a glorious work 
 of divine grace in the land. It was replied, that as the revi- 
 val had not appeared in all places, many pastors, who had 
 not seen it, could not join in testifying its reality. But, it 
 was said, neither had errors and disorders appeared in all 
 places, and the Convention might as well rely on information 
 concerning one, as concerning the other. Webb, of Boston, 
 then gave an account of the revival among his people, and 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 291 
 
 Others were ready to follow him. Gee says, "they were 
 interrupted in a rude manner, and treated with open con- 
 tempt ;" that " many earnest pleas for their being heard were 
 
 stifled in clamor and opposition ; that the Rev. Mr. W s 
 
 of W n,* who was one of the committee, testified 
 
 against the bad spirit of the assembly, and the ill-treatment 
 given to pastors whp desired to speak ; and that he declared 
 openly, that "he had seen much of the gracious work of 
 God, in a late revival of rehgion among his people, and this, 
 without any appearance of the errors and disorders mentioned 
 in the Testimony ;" that others wished to speak, " but saw it 
 was in vain to desire and wait for a patient hearing." Han- 
 cock admits, that there was too much warmth on both sides ; 
 but says those who wished to speak, " to the best of my re- 
 membrance, were generally treated with respect and decen- 
 cy." Prescott gives a sketch of this part of the debate. It 
 was said, against hearing any more statements, that the Con- 
 vention did not need to hear them, " there having been abun- 
 dant publication, already, of these things." When it was 
 urged that these accounts should be believed, as well as ac- 
 counts of errors and disorders, the -reply was, that equal 
 credit was given to the facts, in both cases ; but in one case, 
 the facts were such as evidently amounted to errors and dis- 
 orders, but in the other, they were not such that the hearer 
 could testify that there had been a revival of religion. It 
 was then urged, that, if the acknowledgment of the revival 
 were omitted, the Convention would not give that glory to 
 God which was his due. The reply was, that " God would 
 certainly have the glory of his grace in every instance where- 
 in it was displayed ;" that every convert would praise him 
 for his own conversion, and that every church where there 
 was a revival, — Mr. Webb's, for instance, — would thank' 
 him for that revival, so that the whole would be acktiowledg- 
 ed ; but the praises of those who were not personally ac- 
 quainted with the facts, it was argued, could serve no impor- 
 tant purpose. But the great argument was, that "if the 
 Convention should give so full and enlarged a testimony for 
 a glorious work of divine grace," the disorderly and errone- 
 ous " would be led to apply it to themselves, and take it for 
 granted, that, however they might be chargeable with some 
 
 * Probably, Williams of Weston. 
 
292 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 errors and disorders, yet, in the judgment of the Convention, 
 they had experienced that which was an evidence of a re- 
 markable divine influence," and therefore would " but httle 
 regard our testifying against errors and disorders." That is, 
 the Convention did not dare to tell the whole truth and' risk 
 the consequences, lest it should defeat the good object they 
 had in view. 
 
 At length, the question on the adoption of the whole pa- 
 per, was put and carried. The vote was disputed, and a 
 count was ordered. The moderator counted thirty-eight 
 votes in the affirmative, which he pronounced to be a majori- 
 ty ; and that number was entered on the minutes by Mr. 
 Prince, the scribe. Gee suggests a doubt whether there 
 would have been a majority, without the votes of ministers 
 from other colonies. Hancock and Prescott think there 
 were more than thirty-eight affirmative votes, and that the 
 moderator counted only that number, because no more were 
 necessary to decide the question. The mode of subscrip- 
 tion was then to be decided. Gee writes to Eells, "I am 
 sensible you plainly told the assembly, you could not sub- 
 scribe it for yourself personally, upon which there was a vote 
 for your signing it as moderator." On this, Prescott says 
 nothing. Hancock wrote to Eells, to know if it was true, 
 and whether he would testify that there were only thirty-eight 
 affirmative votes ; but he received no answer. Eells was a 
 cautious man. Hancock says, he was "the most famous of 
 any in these parts, for a steady opposer of the very errors 
 and disorders mentioned in the Testimony." 
 
 Gee regretted that the proposal for,a personal subscription 
 did not prevail ; for then it would have appeared that the 
 Testimony was voted by less than one fifth of the ministers of 
 Massachusetts. He thought the Testimony, as it was, " pow- 
 erfully tended to unhappy effects, both among those who live 
 at a great distance from us, and among our own churches," 
 and that nothing " could be better calculated and contrived 
 to confirm the fallacious accounts of the ' State of Religion in 
 New England,' which had lately been sent over to Scotland 
 by some virulent opposers " of the revival. 
 
 This same Convention furnished another important " Tes- 
 timony." It was contained in the election sermon, by the 
 Rev. Nathaniel Appleton, pastor of the first church in Cam- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 293 
 
 bridge ; a man famous for his extreme care, if any care can 
 be extreme, always to speak the exact truth. He said : — 
 
 "I cannot but think there are many things at this day that have a 
 plausible appearance at first view, and yet are of a dangerous tenden- 
 cy; which I think, ministers, if they would be a light to their people, 
 should instruct and warn them about, with the meekness and gentle- 
 ness of Christ. 
 
 "As, particularly, ministers leaving their own particular charges, 
 and going from place to place, without any regular call or desire, in- 
 truding themselves into other men's parishes ; whereby they are in 
 danger of exciting and' gratifying their own pride, stirring up itching 
 ears in the people, and leading them away from love and esteem of 
 their own faithful ministers. 
 
 " So, again, ministers setting up to preach without premeditation 
 and study, looks plausible to the weak and ignorant, but is of danger- 
 ous tendency. 
 
 "Again, encouraging illiterate persons publicly to exhort, which, by 
 speaking freely and boldly upon some points, lead the people to think 
 they have more of the Spirit of God than their ministers ; by which 
 means such novices are in danger of being lifted up with pride them- 
 selves ; and the end of it with respect to the people, if it should go 
 on, would be ignorance and error ; for many of the gross errors and 
 corruption.s of the church of Rome have come in at the door of igno- 
 rance. 
 
 " Again, pretending to immediate impulses of the Spirit, and taking 
 them for their guide, rather than the Holy Scriptures, or pretending by 
 such impulses to explain the Holy Scriptures. So all disparaging 
 speeches about the Scriptures, as if they were useless to the uncon- 
 verted, and as if the converted had the Spirit in such a degree as in 
 any measure to supersede the use of the word ; pretending, also, that 
 none but the saints have any understanding of the Scriptures, and as 
 if they could understand all Scriptures without any help of human 
 study and learning. Those are very dangerous things, that must be 
 pointed out, and the people enlightened in, that are in danger of being 
 carried away with them. 
 
 " Again, false notions about faith, as if assurance was of the es- 
 sence of saving, justifying faith. Or the refining faith in such a man- 
 ner as to separate it from good works, and pleading for such a faith as 
 the apostle says is dead. So the speaking too shghtly of good works, 
 and leading people into an apprehension of the Heedlessness of them, 
 and making them careless about them, are dangerous points., 
 
 "Again, leading people to think it is of necessity for them to know 
 the particular time of their conversion. 
 
 " So, again, their uncharitableness towards others ; a freedom in 
 judging men's state, even though they are regular and blameless in 
 their lives ; and a pretending it is an easy thing to judge whether men 
 are in a state of grace or not ; and a denying, at the same time, that 
 sanctification is any evidence of justification. 
 
 "Now these and such like are stumbling-blocks ; yea, some of them 
 dangerous rocks, that ministers must be as a light unto their people 
 25* 
 
294 T«B GREAT AWAKENING, 
 
 about, and must hold the light of God's word to them, that they may 
 see and avoid them. 
 
 " But then there are stumbling-blocks on the other hand, yea, most 
 dangerous rocks, which ministers, if they would be as lights unto the 
 world, must point out, and warn seasonably and earnestly against. 
 
 "Thus, the denial of there having been a glorious work of God in 
 the land of late ; and the speaking disparagingly of those convictions, 
 and all that serious concern that has been stirred up in multitudes, as 
 if there was nothing of the Spirit of God in any of them ; and as if 
 all the religious commotions had been the work of the devil, or had 
 been wrought in a mere mechanical way ; and the ridiculing and re- 
 proaching such persons in general and without distinction, and dis- 
 couraging rather than encouraging any concernedness of soul, and so 
 the lulling men asleep in their carnal security again, that began to be 
 roused up, and the settling them in their natural, unconverted state ; 
 these, I say, are dangerous things, and ministers must hold up the 
 light of God's word, and show people the danger hereof." 
 
 It was from hearing this sermon, of which they requested 
 a copy for the press, that the Convention went to Dr. Sew- 
 all's, and engaged in the debates which have just been de- 
 scribed. 
 
 The next day, Friday, May 27, some friends of the revival 
 met, and agreed to hold another Convention. Accordingly, the 
 following notice appeared in the Boston Gazette of May 31 : 
 
 " It is desired and proposed by a number of ministers, both in town 
 and country, that such of their brethren as are persuaded there has 
 of late been a happy revival of religion, through an extraordinary di- 
 vine influence, in many parts of this land, and are concerned for the 
 honor and progress of this remarkable work of God, may have an in- 
 terview at Boston, the day after the approaching commencement ; to 
 consider whether they are not called to give an open conjunct testi- 
 mony to an event so surprising and gracious ; as well as against those 
 errors in doctrine and disorders in practice, which, through the permit- 
 ted agency of Satan, have attended it, and in any measure blemished 
 its glory and hindered its advancement : and also to consult the most 
 likely methods to be taken, to guard people against such delusions 
 and mistakes as in such a season they are in danger of falling into, 
 and that this blessed work may continue and flourish among us. 
 
 " But if any gentlemen who heartily concur in the end and design of 
 this proposal, may be hindered in providence from giving their pres- 
 ence at this designed interview, it is earnestly desired they would 
 send their attestations, and communicate their thoughts seasonably 
 in writing : though at the same time it is hoped, none will suffer 
 small difficulties to prevent their attendance on an afiair of such im- 
 portance to the interest of Christ's kingdom, both here and in other 
 parts of the world.'' 
 
 The official account of this Conventipn reads as follows: — 
 
 "Agreeable to this invitation, a considerable number of ministers 
 
 met at Boston on Thursday July 7, in the forenoon : when the Rev. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING, 295 
 
 Mr. White of Gloucester, opened the assembly with prayer. They 
 had some discourse ; and then adjourned (in order to attend the pub- 
 lic lecture) to half an hour past two in the afternoon. 
 
 " In the afternoon they met, to the number of ninety, chose Dr. 
 Colman moderator, Dr. Sewall assistant, and Mr. Prince and Mr. Hob- 
 by, scribes. But Dr. Colman excusing himself, Dr. Sewall acted as 
 moderator. 
 
 " They then proceeded to read letters from twenty-eight who were 
 absent, bearing their testimony to this remarkable work of God in the 
 land. And after further inquiries, declarations, discourses and de- 
 bates, a little after eight in the evening, was read, proposed and put, 
 without any objection, the following vote, viz. 
 
 " We, pastors of churches in the provinces of the Massachusetts 
 Bay and Neyr Hampshire in New England, met at Boston this seventh 
 day of July, 1743, being persuaded there has of late been a happy re- 
 vival of religion, through a remarkable divine influence, in many 
 parts of this land, and apprehending it our duty to give an open con- 
 junct testimony, to the glory of God, to an event so surprising and 
 gracious,.as well as against those errors in doctrine and disorders in 
 practice, which, through human frailties and corruptions and the per- 
 mitted agency of Satan, have attended it, and in any measure blem- 
 ished its glory and hindered its advancement; came to the following 
 resolution : that a committee be chosen to consider the premises and 
 make a report to-morrow morning at nine o'clock. Voted in the affir- 
 mative, generally, 
 
 " And chose the Rev. Dr, Sew9,ll, Mr, Wiggles worth, Prince, Adams, 
 Cooper, Nathaniel Rogers, Leonard and Hobby, to be said Committee, 
 
 " The Rev. Mr. Moody prayed ; and they adjourned to meet to- 
 morrow morning at nine o'clock. 
 
 "Friday morning, about ten, they met again, to the number of about 
 seventy. Dr. Sewall prayed, and then presented the Committee's re- 
 port. First we read the whole throughout ; then began again, and read 
 the introduction ; then read and severally considered the following 
 paragraphs; and after divers amendments, proceeded to subscribe. 
 
 " Voted, That Mr. Prince, Cooper and Gee be a Committee to take 
 care of publishing the subscribed Testimony and Advice, together with 
 suitable extracts from the letters communicated to us. 
 
 "■ Rev. Mr. Baxter returned thanks and prayed ; and about three in 
 the afternoon, we dissolve. 
 
 " A true account, according to the minutes. 
 
 " Thomas Prince, Scribe. 
 
 "The Testimony and Advice of an Assembly of Pastors of Church- 
 es in New England, at a meeting in Boston, July 7, 1743, occasion- 
 ed by the late happy Revival of Religion in many parts of the Land. 
 " If it is the duty of every one capable of observation and reflec- 
 tion, to take a constant religious notice of what occurs in the daily 
 course of common providence ; how much more is it expected that 
 those events in the divine economy, wherein there is a signal display 
 of the power, grace and mercy of God in behalf of the church, should 
 be observed with sacred wonder, pleasure, and gratitude ! Nor should 
 the people of God content themselves with a silent notice, but publish 
 with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all his wondrous works. 
 
296 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 " More particularly, when Christ is pleased to come into his church 
 in a plentiful effusion of his Hnly Spirit, by whose powerful influen- 
 ces the ministration of the word is attended with uncommon success, 
 salvation-work carried on in an eminent manner, and his kingdom, 
 which is within men, and consists in righteousness and peace and joy 
 in the Holy Ghost, is notably advanced, this is an event which, above 
 all others, invites the notice and bespeaks the praises of the Lord's 
 people, and should be declared abroad for a memorial of the divine 
 grace ; as it tends to confirm the divinity of a despised gospel, and 
 manifests the work of the Holy Spirit in the application of redemp- 
 tion, which too many are ready to reproach ; as it may have a happy 
 effect, by the divine blessing, for the revival of religion in other pla- 
 ces, and the enlargement of the kingdom of Christ in the world ; and 
 as it tends to enliven the prayers, strengthen the faith, and raise the 
 hopes, of such as are waiting for the kingdom of God, and the coming 
 on of the glory of the latter days. 
 
 " But if it is justly expected of all who profess themselves the disci- 
 ples of Christ, that they should openly acknowledge and rejoice in a 
 work of this nature, wherein the honor of their divine Master is so 
 much concerned ; how much more is it to be looked for from those 
 who are employed in the ministry of the Lord Jesus, and so stand in a 
 special relation to him, as servants of his household, and officers in 
 his kingdom ! These stand as watchmen upon the walls of Jerusa- 
 lem ; and it is their business not only to give the alarm of war when 
 the enemy is approaching, but to sound die trumpet of praise when 
 the JCing of Zion cometh, in a meek triumph, having salvation. 
 
 "For these and other reasons, we, whose names are hereunto an- 
 nexed, pastors of churches in New England, met together in Boston, 
 July 7, 1743, think it our indispensable duty, (without judging or cen- 
 suring such of our brethren as cannot at present see things in the 
 same light with us,) in this open and conjunct manner to declare, to 
 the glory of sovereign grace, our full persuasion, either from what we 
 have seen ourselves, or received upon credible testimony, that there 
 has been a happy and remarkable revival of religion in" many parts of 
 this land, through an uncommon divine influence ; after a long time 
 of great decay and deadness, and a sensible and very awful withdraw 
 of the Holy Spirit from his sanctuary among us. 
 
 "Though the work of grace wrought on the hearts of men by the 
 word and Spirit of God, and which has been more or less carried on 
 in the church from the beginning, is always the same for substance, 
 and agrees, at one time and another, in one place or person and anoth- 
 er, as to the main strokes and lineaments of it, yet the present work 
 appears to be remarkable and extraordinary, 
 
 " On account of the numbers wrought upon. We never before saw 
 so many brought under soul concern, and with distress making the in- 
 quiry, What must we do to be saved ? And these persons of all 
 characters and ages. With regard to the suddenness and quick pro- 
 gress of it. Many persons and places were surprised with the gra- 
 cious visit together, or near about the same time ; and the heavenly 
 influence diffused itself far and wide like the light of the morning. 
 ^Iso in respect of the degree of operation, both in a way of terror and 
 in a way of consolation ; attended in many with unusual bodily ef- 
 fects. 
 
THE QBEAT AWAKE.NINQ.. 297 
 
 " Not that all who are accounted the subjects of the present work, 
 have had these extraordinary degrees of previous distress and subse^ 
 quent joy. But many, and we suppose the greater number, have been 
 wrought on in a more gentle and silent way, and without any other 
 appearances than are common and usual at other times, when persons 
 have been awakened to a solemn concern about salvation, and have 
 been thought to have passed out of a state of nature into a state of 
 grace. 
 
 " As to those whose inward concern has occasioned extraordinary 
 outward distresses, the most of them, when we came to converse with 
 thpm, were able to give, what appeared to us, a rational account of 
 what so affected their minds ; viz., a quick sense of their guilt, mis- 
 ery, and danger ; and they would often mention the passages in the 
 sermons they heard, or particular texts of Scripture, which were set 
 home upon them with such a powerful impression. And as to such 
 whose joys have carried them into transports and extasies, they in 
 like manner have accounted for them, from a lively sense of the dap- 
 ger they hoped they were freed from, and the happiness they were 
 now possessed of; such clear views of divine and heavenly things, 
 and particularly of the excellencies and loveliness of .Tesus Christ, 
 and such sweet tastes of redeeming love, as they never had before. 
 The instances were very few in which we had reason to think these 
 affections were produced by vjsionary or sensible representations, ox 
 by any other images than such as the Scripture itself presents unto us. 
 
 "And here we think it not amiss to declare, that in dealing with 
 these persons, we have been careful to inform them, that the nature of 
 conversion does not consist in these passionate feelings ; and to warn 
 them not to look upon their state safe, because they have passed out 
 of deep distress into high joys, unless they experience a renovation 
 of nature, followed with a change of life, and a course of vital holiT 
 ness. Nor have we gone into such an opinion of the bodily effects 
 with which this work has been attended in some of its subjects, as to 
 judge them any signs that persons who have been so affected, were 
 then under a saving work of the Spirit of God. No ; we never so 
 much as called these bodily seisures, convictions ; or spake of them 
 as the immediate work of the Holy Spirit. Yet we do not think them 
 inconsistent with a work of God upon the soul at that very time ; but 
 judge that those inward impressions which come from the Spirit of 
 God, those terrors and consolations of which he is the author, may, ac- 
 cording to the natural frame and constitution which some persons are 
 of; occasion such bodily effects ; and therefore that those extraordina- 
 ry-outward symptoms are not an argument that the work is delusive, 
 or from the influence and agency of the evil spirit. 
 
 " With respect to numbers of those who have been under the im- 
 pressions of the present day, we must declare there is good ground to 
 conclude they are become real Christians ; the account they give of 
 their conviction and consolation agreeing with the standard of the 
 Holy Scriptures, corresponding with the experiences of the saints, 
 and evidenced by the external fruits of holiness in their lives ; so that 
 they appear to those who have the nearest access to them, as so many 
 epistles of Christ, written, not with ink, but by the Spirit of the living 
 God, attesting to the genuineness of the present operation, and repre- 
 sentmg the excellency of it. 
 
298 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 " Indeed, many, who appeared to be under convictions, and were 
 much altered in their external behaviour when this work began, and 
 while it was most flourishing, have lost their impressions, and are re- 
 lapsed into their former manner of life. Yet of those who were 
 judgefi hopefully converted, and made a public profession of religion, 
 there have been fewer instances of scandal and apostasy than might 
 be expected. So that, as far as we are able to form a judgment, the 
 face of religion is lately changed much for the better in many of our 
 towns and congregations ; and together with a reformation observable 
 in divers instances, there appears to be more experimental godliness 
 and lively Christianity, than the most of us can remember we have 
 ever seen before. 
 
 "Thijs we have freely declared our thoughts as to the work of God, 
 so remarkably revived in many parts of this land. And now, we de- 
 sire to bow the knee in thanksgiving to the God and Father of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ, that our eyes have seen and our ears heard such 
 things. And while these are our sentiments, we must necessarily be 
 grieved at any accounts sent abroad, representing this work as all en- 
 thusiasm, delusion and disorder. 
 
 " Indeed, it is not to be denied, that in some places many irregular- 
 ities and extravagances have been permitted to accompany it, which 
 we would deeply lament and bewail before God, and look upon our- 
 selves obliged, for the honor of the Holy Spirit, and of his blessed 
 operations on the souls of men, to bear a public and faithful testimony 
 against; though at the same time it is to be acknowledged with much 
 thankfulness, that in other places, where the work has greatly 'flour- 
 ished, there have been few, if any, of these disorders and excesses. 
 But who can wonder, if at such a time as this, Satan should intermin- 
 gle himself, to hinder and blemish a work so directly contrary to the 
 interests of his own kingdom ? Or if, while so much good seed is 
 sowing, the enemy should be busy to sow tares ? We would there- 
 fore, in the bowels of Jesus, beseech such as have been partakers of 
 this work, or are zealous to promote it, that they be not ignorant of 
 Satan's devices ; that they watch and pray against errors and miscon- 
 duct of every kind, lest they blemish and hinder that which they de- 
 sire to honor and advance. Particularly, 
 
 " That they do not make secret impulses on their minds, without a 
 due regard to the written word, the rule of their duty : a very dan- 
 gerous mistake, which, we apprehend, some in these times have gone 
 into. That to avoid Arminianism, they do not verge to the opposite 
 side of Antinomianism; while we would have others take good heed 
 to themselves, lest they be by some led into, or fixed in, Arminian 
 tenets, under the pretence of opposing Antinomian errors. That lay- 
 men do not invade the ministerial office, and, under a pretense of 
 exhorting, set up preaching ; which is very contrary to gospel order, 
 and tends to introduce errors and confusion into the church. That 
 ministers do not invade the province of others, and in ordinary cases 
 preach in another's parish without his knowledge, and against his 
 consent; nor encourage raw and indiscreet young candidates, in rush- 
 ing into particular places, and preaching publicly or privately, as 
 some have done, to the no small disrepute and damage of the work in 
 places where it once promised to flourish. Though at the same time 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 299 
 
 we would have ministers show their regard to the spiritual welfare of 
 their people, by suffering them to partake of the gifts and graces of 
 able, sound and zealous preachers of the word, as God in his provi- 
 dence may give opportunity therefor ; being persuaded God has in this 
 day remarkably blessed the labors of some of his servants who have 
 travelled in preaching the gospel of Christ. That people beware of 
 entertaining prejudices against their own pastors, and do not run into 
 unscriptural separations. That they do not indulge a disputatious 
 spirit, which has been attended with mischievous effects ; nor discov- 
 er a spirit of censoriousness, uncharitableness, and rash judging the 
 state of others ; than which scarce any thing has more blemished the 
 work of God amongst us. And while we would meekly exhort both 
 ministers and Christians, so far as is consistent with truth and holi- 
 ness, to follow the things that make for peace ; we would most ear- 
 nestly warn all sorts of persons not to despise these outpourings of 
 the Spirit, lest a holy God be provoked to withhold them, and instead 
 thereof, to pour out upon this people the vials of his wrath, in temporal 
 judgments and spiritual plagues ; and would call upon every one to 
 improve this remarkable season of grace, and put in for a share of the 
 heavenly blessings so liberally dispensed. 
 
 " Finally, we exhort the children of God to continue instant in 
 prayer, that He with whom is the residue of the Spirit, would grant us 
 fresh, more plentiful and extensive effusions, that so this wilderness, 
 in all the parts of it, may become a fruitful field ; that the present ap- 
 pearances may be an earnest of the glorious things promised to the 
 church in the latter days ; when she shall shine with the glory of the 
 Lord arisen upon her, so as to dazzle the eyes of beholders, confound 
 and put to shame all her enemies, rejoice the hearts of her solicitous 
 and now saddened friends, and have a strong influence and resplen- 
 dency throughout the earth. Amen! Even so. Come, Lord Jesus ; 
 come quickly ! 
 
 " After solemn repeated prayer, free inquiry and debate, and seri- 
 ous deliberation, the above Testimony and Advice was signed by 
 
 Samuel Moody, pastor of the First Church in York. 
 
 JoH.v White, pastor of the First Church in Gloucester. 
 
 Joseph Sewall, pastor of the South Church in Boston. 
 
 Samuel Wigglesworth, pastor of a church in Ipswich. 
 
 Ames Cheever, pastor of the church in Manchester. 
 
 Thomas Prince, a pastor of the South Church in Boston, — to the 
 substance. "~ * 
 
 JoHiv Webb, a pastor of ^ church in Boston. 
 
 John Cotton, pastor of the church in Newton. 
 
 .losEPH Adams, pastor of the church in Newington, New Hamp- 
 shire. 
 
 James Allin, pastor of. the church in Brookline. 
 
 John Chipman, pastor of a church in Beverly, to the substance, 
 scope, and end. 
 
 William Cooper, a pastor of a church in Boston. 
 
 Thomas Foxcroft, a pastor of the First Church in Boston. 
 
 Joshua Gee, pastor of the Second Church in Boston. 
 
 Joseph Emerson, pastor of the First Church in Maiden, to the 
 scope and substance. 
 
300 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 HeSht MeSsingek, pastor of the First Church in Wrentham. 
 
 James BATiEf , pastor of the Second Church in Weymouth. 
 
 Nathanael Leonard, pastor of the First Church in Plymouth. 
 
 Thomas Smitb, pastor of the First Church in Falmouth. 
 
 Nathanaei, RoGEKSj a pastor of the First Church in Ipswich. 
 
 JosiAH CoTTOK, pastor of ai church in Providence, to the general 
 scope and tendency. 
 
 Habijah Wei-d, pastor of the church in Attleborough, to the sub- 
 stance, scope and end. 
 
 WiLi/iAH HoEBT, pastor of the First Church in Reading. 
 
 James Pike, pastor of the church in Summersworih, New Hamp- 
 shire. 
 
 John Warrejt, pastor of the church in Wenham. 
 
 Nathan Webb, paetor of the church in Uxbridge. 
 
 Jedediah Jewet, pastor of the First Church in Rowley. 
 
 John Emerson, pastor of the church in Topsfield, to the scope and 
 substance. 
 
 John Moorhead, pastor Of a churbh in Boston. 
 
 Solomon Prentice, pastor of the church in Grafton. 
 
 James Chandler, pastor of the Second Church in Rowley. 
 
 Othniel Campbell, pastor of the Second Church in Plympton. 
 
 JoMN Seccomb, pastor of the church in Harvard. 
 
 Ward Cotton, pastor <5f the First Church in Hamptoft,, New 
 Hampshire. 
 
 AmoS Main, pastor of the church in Rochester, New Hampshire. 
 
 John Cotton, pastor of the Church in Halifax. 
 
 James Diman, pastor of a church in Salem, to the subBtalice, scope, 
 »id end. 
 
 Phineas Hemmingwat, pastor of th& church in Townshend. 
 
 David Goddard, pastor of the church in Leicester, to the sub- 
 stance. 
 
 Samuel Bachellor, pastor of the Third Church in Haverhill. 
 
 DANiitL Btis«, pastor of the church in Concord. 
 
 Samuel Tobet, pastor of the church in Berftley. 
 
 Elias Haves, pastor of tie Second Chufch in Wrenthato. 
 
 Thomas Balch*, paBtor of a church in Dedham. 
 
 Samuel Chandler, pastor of the Second Church in York. 
 
 Samuel Hill, pastor of the church in Marshfield. 
 
 JosBWA TuFfs,- pastor of the church in Litchfield, New Hamp- 
 shire. 
 
 Samuel Veazie, pastOf of the chUrCh iii DuxboroUgh. 
 
 John Porter, pastor of the Folirth^ Church in Bridge*ater. 
 
 JoNATHAi* Ellis, pastor of the Second Church in Plymouth. 
 
 Josiah Crocker, pastor of the church in Taunton. 
 
 Daniel Emerson, pastor of the Sebond Church iii Dunstable. 
 
 Francis Worcester, pastor of the Second Church in Sandwich. 
 
 "We, whose names are underwritten, concur with the Testimony 
 for the substance of it, ^xoeptidg that article of itinerancy, or minis- 
 ters and others intruding into other ministers' parishes i^ithout their 
 consent, which great disorder' we apprehend not suflScichfly testified 
 against therein. 
 
 Benjamin Colman, a pastor of a church in Bostoti, 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 301 
 
 Joseph Baxter, pastor of the church in Medfield. 
 Nathaniel Eells, pastor of the Second Church in Scituate. 
 Joseph Dorr, pastor of the First Church in Mendon. 
 Samuel Checkley, pastor of a church in Boston. 
 Benjamin Bass, pastor of the church in Hanover. 
 Hull Abbot, a pastor of the church in Charlestown. 
 Ezra Carpenter, pastor of the church in Hull. 
 Ebekezer Turell, pastor of the church in Medford. 
 EBE^EZER Parkman, pastor of the church in Westborough. 
 Thomas Prentice, a pastor of the church in Charlestown. 
 Simon Bradstreet, pastor of the Second Church in Marblehead. 
 John Powle, pastor of the Second Church in Hingham. 
 Andrew Eliot, a pastor of a church in Boston. 
 Thaddeus JVIaccartt, pastor of the church in Kingston." 
 
 The Attestations published by the Committee were from 
 the Rev. John Rogers, of Ipswich ; Jeremiah Wise, of Ber- 
 wick, Me. ; Peter Thacher, of Middleborough ; William 
 ShurtlefF, of Portsmouth ; Jonathan Russel, of Barnstable ; 
 Benjamin Allen, of Falmouth, Me.; William Thompson, of 
 Scarborough, Me. ; Samuel Jefferds, of Wells, Me. ; John 
 Hovey, of Arundel, Me. ; Nicholas Loring, of North Yar- 
 mouth, Me. ; Moses Morrill, of Biddeford, Me. ; John Rog- 
 ers, of Kittery Me. ; Stephen Williams, of Springfield ; Pe- 
 ter Raynolds, of Enfield ; Jonathan Edwards, of Northamp- 
 ton ; Samuel AUis, of Somers ; John Woodbridge and David 
 Parsons, of Hadley ; Edward Billing, of Coldspring ; Timo- 
 thy Woodbridge, of Hatfield ; Chester Williams, of Hadley ; 
 Daniel Putnam, of Reading ; Oliver Peabody, of Natick ; 
 John Tucke, of Gosport, N. H. ; David Hall, of Sutton ; 
 Benjamin Bradstreet, of Gloucester ; John Wales, of Rayn- 
 ham ; Ivory Hovey, of Rochester ; Nathaniel Appleton, of 
 Cambridge ; Jonathan Parker, of Plympton ; David McGreg- 
 ore, of Londonderry, N. H. ; Joseph Meacham, of Coven- 
 try, Ct. ; Benjamin Lord, of Norwich, Ct. ; Hezekiah Lord, 
 of Preston, Ct. ; Solomon Williams, of Lebanon, Ct.; Dan- 
 iel Kirtland and Jabez Wright, of Norwich, Ct. ; John Ow- 
 en, of Groton, Ct. ; Samuel Mosely, of Windham, Ct. ; Jon- 
 athan Parsons, of Lyme, Ct.; Eleazer Wheelock, of Leban- 
 on, Ct. ; Benjamin Pomroy, of Hebron, Ct. ; David Jewett, 
 of New London, Ct. Attestations were afterwards received 
 and published, from the Rev. John Blunt, of Newcastle, 
 N. H. and Benjamin Ruggles of Middleborough. The num- 
 ber of signers at the meeting was 68 ; attestors by letter, 
 45 ; total, 113. But this was by no means the whole num- 
 26 
 
302 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 ber of those who were of the same sentiments, even in 
 Massachusetts.* 
 
 Concerning the statements and views of those that attend- 
 ed the meeting, the Rev. Mr. Prince testified : — 
 
 " That very few of the ministers present in the late venerable assem- 
 bl)', complained of errors or disorders in the parishes they belonged to: 
 that several declared they had none from the beginning ; but in the 
 extraordinary revival of religion among their people, the work had 
 been carried on with great seriousness and regularity : that others de- 
 clared, that where there had been some disorders and mistakes at first 
 in some, through the great numbers suddenly and mightily awakened, 
 the great distress of some in their convictions, the great joy of others 
 upon their laying hold on Christ and finding a wondrous change with- 
 in them, the frailties of some and the surprise of all ; yet in a little 
 while they saw and owned their mistakes, came into a more settled 
 way of thinking, speaking and behaving, and the disorders ceased : 
 declaring also, that both errors and disorders had been greatly magni- 
 fied and miiltiplied above what they really were in the congregations 
 they belonged to : and that, as far as they could learn, the greatest 
 - errors and disorders were in those places where the ministers opposed 
 the work, and thereby lost much of their respect and influence." 
 
 He also explained the qualification annexed to his own sig- 
 nature, and to that of some others. They objected to the 
 clause, " That ministers do not invade the province of oth- 
 ers, and in ordinary cases preach in another's parish without 
 his knowledge and against his consent." They do not seem 
 to have questioned its correctness, wheh rightly understood ; 
 but they thought it "in danger of being construed and per- 
 verted to the great infringement of Christian and human liber- 
 ty of conscience." 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Opposition to the Revival in Connecticut, — Fains and PenaltieE.^ 
 The Separatists. 
 
 As early as 1741, some of the clergy of Connecticut de- 
 termined to call in the aid of the civil government, to prevent 
 
 * An attestation was also sent by the Rev. Messrs. Anthony Stoddard, 
 John Graham, Joseph Bellamy and Reuben Jndd, of Woodbury; Samuel 
 Cook, of Stratfield ; Hezekiaii Gold, of Stratford ; Jedidiah Mills, of Rip- 
 ton; Ebenezer White, of Danbury ; Benajah Case, of New Fairfield; 
 David Judaon, of Newton, Ct, and Rlisha Kent, of Philippi, N. Y. ; but, 
 falling into careless or unfriendly hands, it was detained till near the close 
 of 1744. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 303 
 
 and punish disorders. In the latter part of that year, certain 
 ministers near New Haven obtained an Act of the General 
 Assembly, calling a "Grand Council," or Convention, at 
 Guilford, to consist of three ministers and three lay delegates 
 from each association. The Consociation of New Haven 
 county met at New Haven, to appoint delegates, on the 
 10th of November. The Rev. Mr. Whittelsey, of Walling- 
 ford, proposed that the delegates should receive instructions, 
 which was voted. He then wrote down three questions, the 
 first of which was, "whether a number of ministers going 
 abroad, and preaching and administering the seals in another 
 parish, without the consent of the minister of the parish, he 
 not disorderly." Voted in the affirmative. — This question 
 may have been suggested by events in Mr. Whittelsey's own 
 parish. There was a Baptist church there, the members of 
 which had, some years before, been under his ministry. 
 Near the close of the year, the since celebrated Bellamy 
 preached to them, as their elder, John Merriman, says, " to 
 very good satisfaction and success on several persons," some 
 of whom were yet members of Mr. Whittelsey's congrega- 
 tion ; so that it seemed to be the desire of both denojnina- 
 tions, to hear other Congregational ministers of similar views 
 and spirit. Not improbably, there were symptoms of such a 
 state of things earlier than November. The Convention at 
 Guilford met November 24. They resolved, among other 
 things : — " That, for a minister to enter another minister's 
 parish, and preach or administer the seals of the covenant, 
 without the consent of, or in opposition to, the settled minis- 
 ter of the parish, is disorderly : notwithstanding, if a con- 
 siderable number of people in the parish are desirous to hear 
 another minister preach, provided the same be orthodox, and 
 sound in the faith, and not notoriously faulty in censuring 
 other persons, or guilty of any other scandal, we think it or- 
 dinarily advisable for the minister of the parish to gratify 
 them, by giving his consent upon their suitable application to 
 him for it, unless neighbouring ministers should advise him to 
 the contrary."* 
 
 * Robbins' " Plain Narrative of the Proceedings " against hira. O. S. 
 Ch. Lib. Trumbull has copied a large part of this pamphlet into his "His- 
 tory of Connecticut," and added some facts that occurred after its publica- 
 tion. — It is believed that no account can be found of the doings of the 
 Convention at Guilford, or of the instructions given at New Haven to the 
 delegates, except what Robbins has preserved, which is here given. 
 
304 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 The legislature, at their next session, which was in May, 
 1742, passed " An Act for regulating abuses and correcting 
 disorders in ecclesiastical affairs." The preamble sets forth, 
 that the Assembly did formerly, by law, establish and confirm 
 the Platform of church government agreed upon at Saybrook 
 in 1708, under which peace and quietness had been enjoyed, 
 till, of late, sundry persons had been guilty of certain disor- 
 ders ; whereupon the Assembly directed the calling of a gen- 
 eral convention at Guilford in November last, at which an 
 attempt was made to prevent growing disorders ; notwith- 
 standing which, divers ordained ministers and licentiates still 
 continue to go into the parishes of settled ministers without 
 any lawful call, and there preach and administer the seals ; 
 and illiterate persons, who have no ecclesiastical character, 
 set up as exhorters, by which they create disorder in the 
 churches, and are the means of introducing unqualified men 
 into the ministry, especially where one association meddles 
 with affairs that by the Platform belong to another. 
 
 Here the Assembly seem to take it for granted, that the 
 Saybrook Platform had been imposed by law upon all the 
 churches, as the ecclesiastical law of the colony. The fact 
 was far otherwise. The act referred to was entitled " An 
 Act in approbation of the Agreement of the Reverend Elders 
 and Messengers of all the Churches in this Government, 
 made and concluded at Saybrook, in 1708." It declares 
 '' their great approbation of such a happy agreement," and 
 ordains, " that all churches within this government that are or 
 shall be thus united in doctrine, worship and discipline, be, 
 and for the future shall be, owned and acknowledged estab- 
 lished by law;" and it contained a proviso, "that nothing 
 herein shall be intended or construed, to hinder any society 
 or church that is or shall be allowed by the laws of this gov- 
 ernment, from exercising worship and discipline in their own 
 way, according to their consciences." Accordingly, many 
 churches, already organized according to the Cambridge 
 Platform, still adhered to it, and others were organized on 
 the same plan. These were sometimes called " Congrega- 
 tional " churches, by way of distinction. For years, no one 
 suspected that the Saybrook Platform was binding on any 
 church which had not voted to accept it. Besides, the 
 Assembly had, in 1730, expressly declared that, besides 
 churches on the Saybrook Platform, Congregational and 
 Presbyterian churches were allowed and protected by law. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 305 
 
 The first section of the act of 1742 enacted, "that if any 
 ordained minister or other person licensed as aforesaid to 
 preach, shall enter into any parish not immediately under his 
 charge, and shall there preach or exhort the people, he shall 
 be denied and secluded the benefit of any law of this colony 
 made for the support and encouragement of the ministry ; 
 except such ordained minister or licensed person shall be 
 expressly invited and desired so to enter into such other par- 
 ish, and there to preach and exhort the people, either by the 
 settled minister and the major part of the church of said 
 parish, or, in case there be no settled minister, then by the 
 church or societyin said parish." 
 
 The second section enacted, that if any association of 
 ministers "shall undertake to examine or license any candi- 
 date for the ministry, or assume to themselves the decision 
 of any controversy, or to counsel and advise ■ in any affair, 
 that by the Saybrook Platform is vyithin the province and ju- 
 risdiction of any other association ; then, and in such case, 
 every member that shall be present in such association so 
 licensing, deciding or counselling, shall be, each and every 
 of them, denied and secluded the benefit of any law of this 
 colony, made for the support and encouragement of the min- 
 istry." 
 
 The third section prescribed the mode of inflicting pun- 
 ishment ; for punishment was to be inflicted without trial. 
 The minister of the parish in which any such offence should 
 be committed, or the civil authority, or any two of the com- 
 mittee of the parish, were to send an information thereof in , 
 writing, under their hands, to the clerk of 'the offender's own 
 parish ; and then the clerk was to stop ail legal proceedings 
 for collecting the offender's salary. No provision was made 
 for cases in which false information might be sent to the 
 clerk, either by mistake or design. 
 
 The fourth section was directed against "exhorters," who 
 were forbidden to hold forth, unless invited as required in the 
 first section. 
 
 The last section enacted, "that if any stranger or for- 
 eigner, that is not an inhabitant within this colony, including 
 as well such persons that have no ecclesiastical character or 
 license to preach, as such as have received ordination or li- 
 cense to preach by any association or presbytery, shall pre- 
 sume to preach, teach, or publicly to exhort in any town or 
 26* 
 
306 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 society within this colony, without the desire and license of 
 the settled minister and nnajor part of the church, town or 
 society, or at the call and desire of the church and inhabit- 
 ants of such town or society, provided that it so happen that 
 there is no settled minister there ; that every such teacher or 
 exhorter shall be sent, as a vagrant person, by warrant from 
 any one assistant or justice of the peace, from constable to 
 constable, out of the bounds of this colony."* 
 
 This was the law against which Davenport declaimed so 
 violently ; and this was the session at which he was brought 
 before the Assembly and sent home to Soutbold, as before 
 related. At the same session, the Assembly advised the 
 faculty of the college at New Haven, that all proper care 
 should be taken to prevent the students from imbibing the 
 errors that prevailed among the Separatists, and that those 
 who would not be orderly and submissive, should be expelled. 
 
 The General Association met at New London, June 16, 
 1742, soon after this act was passed. Trumbull furnishes 
 the following extract from its records : 
 
 "This General Association being of opinion, that the God of all 
 grace has been mercifully pleased to remember and visit his people, 
 by stirring up great numbers among us to a concern for their souls, 
 and to be asking the way to Zion, with their faces thitherward, which 
 we desire to take notice of with great thankfulness to the Father of 
 mercies: being also of opinion, that the great enemy of souls, who is' 
 ever ready with his devices to check, damp and destroy the work of 
 God, is very busy for that purpose : we think it our duty to advise 
 and entreat the ministers and churches of this colony, and recommend 
 it to the particular associations, to stand well upon their guard, in such 
 a day as this, that no detriment arise to the interests of our great Lord 
 and Master, Jesus Christ: 
 
 " Particularly, that no errors in doctrine, whether from among our- 
 selves or foreigners, nor disorders in practice, do get in among us, or 
 tares be sown in the Lord's field : 
 
 "That seasonable and due testimony be borne against such errors 
 and irregularities as do already prevail among some persons ; as par- 
 ticularly, the depending upon and following impulses and impressions 
 made on the mind, as though they were immediate revelations of 
 some truth or duty that is not revealed in the word of God ; laying too 
 much weight on bodily agitations, raptures, extasies, visions, &c.; 
 ministers disorderly intruding into other minister's parishes ; laymen 
 taking it upon them, in an unwarrantable manner, publicly to teach 
 and exhort; rash censuring and judging others; that the elders be 
 careful to take heed to themselves and their doctrine, that they may 
 save themselves and those that hear them ; that they approve them- 
 selves in all things as mmisters of God, by honor and dishonor, by 
 
 " See the Act, entire, in Trumbull's " History of Connecticut." 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 307 
 
 good report and evil report ; that none be lifted up by applause to a 
 vain conceit, nor any be cast down by any contempt thrown upon them, 
 to the neglect of their work ; and that they study unity, love and 
 peace among themselves : 
 
 " And further, that they endeavour to heal the unhappy divisions that 
 are already made in some of the churches, and that the lilce may for the 
 future be prevented ; that a just deference be paid to the laws of the 
 magistrate, lately made to suppress disorders ; that no countenance be 
 given to such as trouble our churches, who are, according to the con- 
 stitution of our churches, under censure, suspension or deposition, for 
 errors in doctrine or life." 
 
 The consociation of New Haven county met September 
 28, thanked the legislature for passing the act against disor- 
 ders, and prayed tliat it might continue in force. 
 __^t jheir sesaioa J]] jy[a.yvJLZ4-Si_the Assembly repealed the 
 " Act for the Relief _ of Sober Conscien ces," as it was usu- 
 ally called. That act was passed in 1708, the year in which 
 the Saybrook Platform was adopted. It provided that such 
 as soberly dissented from the prevailing worship and belief, 
 might, on taking certain oaths required in the English act of 
 toleration, be exempt from taxation for the support of the 
 ministers from whom they dissented. Now, as this act was 
 repealed, sober dissenters had no longer any mode of relief, 
 except by applying severally to the Assembly, for a special 
 act to meet each individual case ; and the Assembly was 
 growing continually more averse to granting any such indul- 
 gence. At thq same session, an order was passed for the 
 arrest of the Rev. John Owen of Groton, for uttering hard 
 speeches against the laws and officers of the colony ; but the 
 secretary neglected to issue the writ*.^ 
 
 There was a church at (Milford, ) which declared itself 
 Presbyterian, put itself under the care of the New Brunswick 
 Presbytery, and ap|)lie d to that body to send them a preache r. 
 They se nt the Rev. Samu e l Finley, afterwards president of - 
 the college at Princeton. He came, but was sent out o f the 
 co lony as a " vag rant." He afterwards returned, and preach- 
 edTo a Congregational church at New Haven ; probably, that 
 which had been gathered after Davenport's first visit. He 
 was arrested, and sentenced to be again transported from the 
 colony ; but through the negligence, perhaps intentional, of 
 some officer, the sentence was but partly executed, and he 
 returned and preached a third time. Both these churches 
 had been legally recognised as churches, under the laws of 
 the colony. His preaching, it was said, " greatly HisgniptRfl 
 a nd disturbed the pe ople." alid was the principal motive for 
 
303 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 an additional act, passed by the Assembly in October, 1743. 
 This additional act required, that every person transported 
 under the former, should pay the costs of his transportation ; 
 and if he should return again and offend. in the same way, it 
 was made the duty of any assistant or justice of the peace, 
 on information, to cause him to be arrested, and to give bonds 
 in the penal sum of one hundred pounds, lawful money, for 
 his peaceable and good behaviour till the next county court in 
 that county, and that he would not thus offend again ; and 
 the next county court might, if they should see cause, fur- 
 ther bind him during their pleasure.* The Association of 
 New Haven county also took up the matter, and formally 
 resolved that no member of the Presbytery of New Bruns- 
 wick should be admitted into any of their pulpits, till satis- 
 faction had been made for sending Mr. Finley to preach 
 within their bounds. f 
 
 At this same session, the Assembly ordered the arrest of 
 the Rev. John Owen, of Groton, and Benjamin Pomroy, of 
 Hebron, but it was not executed till the next session. They 
 carried proscription into the affairs of government. Justices 
 of the peace, and other subordinate officers who were deem- 
 ed " New Lights," were removed from office, and men of 
 different views were put in their places. This policy was 
 rigidly maintained till 1748, when some, at least, of the dis- 
 placed " New Light " justices were restored. 
 
 These laws were not allowed to remain a mere dead letter. 
 Both civil and ecclesiastical authorities joined to enforce 
 them. A few instances of their execution, which Trumbull 
 has preserved, may serve as specimens of many. 
 
 Soon after the first of these laws was enacted, the Rev. 
 Mr. Pomroy, of Hebron, received an invitation from some 
 of the people of Colchester, to preach to them. From the 
 habits of intimate and friendly intercourse which existed be- 
 tween them, he never suspected that it could be otherwise 
 than agreeable to Mr. Little, the pastor, and made the ap- 
 pointment accordingly. Contrary to expectation, Mr. Little. 
 
 * See " The Essential Rights and Liberties of Protestants. A Seasonable 
 Plea for Liberty of Conscience and the Right of Private Judgment in matters 
 of Religion, without any control from Human authority." O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 Backus says, that Col. Klisha Williams, afterwards president of Yale Col- 
 lege, and " the best president they ever had," was its " undoubted author." 
 The true doctrines of liberty have seldom been so well exhibited and de- 
 fended, even in 1776. 
 
 f Trumbull. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 309 
 
 objected, and forbade him to preach in his meetinghouse. 
 A great concourse of people had assembled, from several 
 towns. Mr. Pomroy preached to them in a grove. A cer- 
 tificate of this fact was lodged with the clerk of his society, 
 which of course annulled the legal contract between him and 
 his people, for his support, and during the next seven years, 
 he was dependent on the voluntary contributions of his 
 hearers. 
 
 The orders for his arrest, and that of Mr. Owen of Gro- 
 ton, have been mentioned.- They were brought before the 
 Assembly in May, 1744. Mr. Owen made such concessions, 
 that he was released on paying the costs. Mr. Pomroy also 
 made some concessions ; but he had said some hard things 
 against these laws, which, as he knew them to be true, he 
 could not retract. He was sentenced to pay costs, £ 32, 10s. 
 8d, and to give bonds in the sum of £50 for his good beha- 
 viour till the next May. 
 
 Many of the leading clergy were accused of Arminianism. 
 They indignantly denied the charge. The truth seems to 
 have been, that they were moderate Calvinists in their doc- 
 trinal discussions, but Arminian in their "practical applica- 
 tions." They discussed the doctrines of original sin, regen- 
 eration and justification by faith, like Calvinists ; but advised 
 and exhorted their people just as Arminianism would have 
 taught them to do. They led their hearers to believe, that 
 by a certain round of duties, performed while still impenitent, 
 they might insure their regeneration ; that regeneration would 
 probably come in a still, quiet way, so that neither they nor 
 others would perceive any very decided change at any one 
 time ; and that the proper course for a sinner to take was, to 
 go steadily about the duties which God has appointed for im- 
 penitent sinners to perform before conversion, and leave the 
 event with God. Whatever they meant, such was the state 
 into which they threw the minds of their followers. It was, 
 practically, Arminianism. If any one preached Calvinism 
 thoroughly, to the very end of his sermon, maintaining that 
 God has made no promise to such as industriously perform 
 certain duties while impenitent ; that nothing done during 
 impenitence counts at all towards the justification of the 
 doer ; that deferring repentance and faith, and doing some- 
 thing else first, is flat rebellion against God ; all such preach- 
 ing was said to make people think lightly of good works, and 
 was condemned as " Antinomian." And it must be confess- 
 
310 THE GREAT AWAKENlNjG. 
 
 ed that some, in their zeal against the prevalent theology, 
 did become really Antinomian, and others were sometimes 
 led, in the heat of argument, to use Antinomian language. 
 It was the policy of the Arminianizing clergy, to strengthen 
 their party by ordaining young men who adopted their views, 
 wherever they could, even over churches where there were 
 strong opposing minorities ; and they were accused of doing 
 it, even where the dissentients were the majority. This was 
 one principal ground of the "separations," of which so much 
 was said. As early as 1738, the Rev. Samuel Whittelsey, 
 son of Mr. Whittelsey of Wallingford, was ordained at Mil- 
 ford, against the remonstrance of a large minority. A part 
 of the people seceded and formed the Presbyterian church, 
 for preaching to which Mr. Finley was transported from the 
 colony. These Presbyterians were compelled, by legal pro- 
 cesses, to pay taxes for the support of Mr. Whittelsey. 
 
 The church at Canterbury was strictly Congregational, 
 being organized on the Cambridge Platform. During the 
 revival, its members were divided into parties. Some of 
 them seem to have become decidedly Antinomian and fanat- 
 ical. One party, acting in the name of the church, gave a 
 call to Mr. James Cogswell, to become their pastor. This 
 was probably in the summer of 1744. The otler party 
 pronounced Mr. Cogswell an unconverted man, refused to 
 hear him, and maintained separate meetings. They asserted 
 that they were a majority of the church, and therefore were 
 the church. The other party, counting some twelve or 
 fifteen against whom a vote of excommunication had been 
 passed, advanced a similar claim, and invited the Consocia- 
 tion of Windham county to ordain Mr. Cogswell. This, it 
 was understood, would bring the church under the jurisdic- 
 tion of the Consociation, according to the Saybrook Plat- 
 form. Among the opponents of Mr. Cogswell was a Mr. 
 Cleaveland, who had two sons, John and Ebenezer, in col- 
 lege at New Haven. Being at home in September, while 
 Mr Cogswell was preaching to the other party, they attended 
 worship with their father, and one of them, who was a mem- 
 ber of the church, partook of the Lord's Supper. On their 
 return to college, they were expelled, November 19, for 
 attending the meeting of the Separatists at Canterbury. In 
 this expulsion, the Faculty declared that they acted in view 
 of the advice given them by the legislature in May, 1742. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 311 
 
 The facts became known, and produced a deep sensation 
 throughout the colony. About this time, some members of 
 the Senior class in college subscribed money for printing an 
 edition of Locke's Essay on Toleration. The Faculty 
 heard of it, called the offenders before them, and extorted 
 confessions from all but one. Just before commencement, 
 the obstinate senior found that his name was omitted in the 
 list of those on whom degrees were to be conferred. He 
 went to the Faculty, and told them that he was of age, and 
 had property wherewith to defend his rights ; and that, if his 
 degree was withheld, he would apply to the King in council 
 for redress. He then left them ; but was soon informed that 
 he might take his degree with his class. 
 
 December 28, the Consociation ordained Mr. Cogswell as 
 pastor of the church at Canterbury. About fifty families 
 refused to acknowledge him as their pastor, or the Consocia- 
 tion as a body authorized to act in the case ; adhered to the 
 Cambridge Platform, and maintained separate worship, at 
 which " exhorters " were often, if not commonly employed, 
 and which seems not to have been remarkable for sound doc- 
 trine, a Christian spirit, or decorousness of demeanor. Some 
 of the " exhorters " were arrested, and as they refused to 
 give the Required bonds in the sum of £ 1 00, to cease from 
 exhorting, were imprisoned. Some of the people had their 
 property seized and sold by legal process, to pay Mr. Cogs- 
 w;ell's salary ; and others were imprisoned to compel them to 
 pay. Others, Trumbull says, were arrested^and imprisoned 
 for not hearing him. 
 
 The effort to enforce the universal reception of the Say- 
 brook Platform seems to have been vigorous and determined. 
 A new church was formed at Salisbury, on the Cambridge 
 Platform, and the Rev. John Lee was ordained as its pastor 
 in 1744. The Association of New Haven county reprimand- 
 ed the church for adopting that Platform, and suspended 
 Messrs. Humphreys of Derby, Leavenworth of Waterbury, 
 and Todd of Northbury, from the ministry, for assisting in 
 the ordination. The ordination, however, could not be an- 
 nulled. In 1766, Lee was still pastor at Salisbury, and 
 preached the election sermon before the legislature. Hum- 
 phreys was at one time expelled from the Association, for 
 preaching to a Baptist church.* 
 
 * There were probably some circumstances which were thought to aggra- 
 vate the offence ; but Trumbull mentions none. 
 
312 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 An attempt was also made to enforce the Saybrook Plat- 
 form aigainst the First Church in Branford, and its pastor, 
 the Rev. Philemon Robbins. The Baptists in Wallingford, 
 just after Mr. Bellamy had preached to them, as mentioned in 
 the beginning of this chapter, obtained a promise from Mr. 
 Robbins, to preach to them on the sixth of January, 1742. 
 Before he went, he received a request from forty-two mem- 
 bers of Mr. Whittelsey's church in Wallingford, to abstain 
 from preaching there, and a line signed by two ministers of 
 neighboring parishes, advising him not to go. Still, as he 
 had promised, and as " it was a time of religious concern 
 among them," he went, and preached two sermons, with 
 good effect. For this, a complaint was entered against him 
 at the next meeting of the Consociation, February 9. As 
 his preaching was before the Act against Disorders, he could 
 not be deprived of his salary for it ; and as he and his church 
 had never adopted the Saybrook Platform,* it was difiicult to 
 force him to a trial. The Consociation, however, continued 
 to harass him till September, 1746, when, after an ex parte 
 trial, and after hearing the charges and testimony against him, 
 they pronounced him guilty. A year or two after, as he made 
 no confession, the Consociation voted to depose him from 
 the ministry. The act of deposition was never rescinded, 
 but he continued to act as pastor of the church. In 1755, 
 the Consociation invited him to take part with them in an 
 ordination ; after which he was treated as if these things had 
 never happened. 
 
 The charges on which he was condemned, and his own 
 statements concerning them, are instructive, as they show 
 how men, at that day, first misunderstood and then misrepre- 
 sented each other. Mr. Robbins, in arguing against the 
 doctrine, " that the death of Christ not only satisfied for, but 
 wholly took away, original sin from all persons," said : 
 " Even infants were by nature children of wrath, and, while 
 unsanctified, were as odious in the sight of God as snakes or 
 vipers are to us ; " adding, that serpents, when they first 
 come into the world, are not odious on account of any mis- 
 chief they have done, but because of their serpentine nature ; 
 and also, that " no doubt, multitudes of them [infants] are 
 
 " This was one of the churches which refused to send messengers to the 
 convention which formed the Saybrook Platform. Trumbull. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 313 
 
 sanctified and saved." On this was founded a charge, that 
 he had " taken it upon him to determine the state of infants 
 dying in infancy, declaring that they were as odious in the 
 sight of God, as snakes and vipers were unto us ; and left it 
 wholly in the dark, whether there was any saved or not." 
 He had taught, that " there is no promise of any saving good, 
 in all the Bible, made to any unconverted man, or any sinner 
 while in an unconverted state." He was charged with 
 teaching, " that there is no promise in all the Bible that be- 
 longs to sinners ; " and this was condemned as "Antinomian- 
 ism." He had said: — "When a sinner is converted, he 
 knows it. That is, he knows the change, though it may be 
 he is not satisfied, or rather, does not then think, that it is 
 conversion. — Yet, can a man be brought out of the kingdom 
 of Satan into the kingdom of the Son of God ; can a man be 
 brought out of midnight darkness into noonday light, and not 
 know there is a change .'' " This struck at the hopes of k 
 numerous class, who were comforting themselves with the 
 belief, that regeneration is to be expected by all who observe 
 certain moral and religious rules, but takes place so quietly, 
 and produces so little change at the time, that neither the 
 person himself, nor his most intimate friends, can know any 
 thing about it. He was therefore accused of teaching, "that 
 it as easy for persons to know when they are converted, as it is 
 to know noonday light from midnight darkness." He had said, 
 " The most vicious person stands as fair or fairer for con- 
 viction and conversion, than the strictest mere moralist, that 
 is settled upon his lees and built strong on his own righ- 
 teousness. Publicans and harlots shall enter the kindom be- 
 fore such." He was accused of teaching, " That the most 
 vicious or vilest person stands as fair or fairer for conviction 
 and conversion than the strictest moral man ; thereby making 
 holiness and obedience to the law of God no way necessary 
 to be found in men for their salvation." There had also 
 been some disorderly proceedings introduced into meetings 
 for worship by Davenport, Brainerd, and Buel. Some of 
 these Mr. Robbins endeavoured to prevent at the time, and 
 others he regretted afterwards. His, real offence doubtless 
 was, being a zealous, active and efficient promoter of the re- 
 vival. For this, a member of the Consociation told one of 
 his uneasy people, — "If you can get hold of Mr. Robbins, 
 27 
 
314 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 catch hold." That expression, the man said, opened his 
 eyes, and he afterwards sustained his pastor.* 
 
 One charge against Mr. Robbins was, " his justifying Mr. 
 Allen [Rev. Timothy Allen, of West Haven] in his com- 
 paring the Scriptures to an old almanac." On this, Mr. 
 Robbins remarks : " I have no otherways justified Mr. Allen, 
 than only by telling the answer he made to his charge, which 
 was, as near as I can remember, thus : ' The reading of the 
 Holy Scriptures, without the concurring influence and opera- 
 tion of the Spirit of God, will no more convert a sinner, than 
 the reading an old almanac' I have heard him lament the 
 manner of expression, and he has offered to confess it to the 
 Association of this county. But the news of a man's peni- 
 tence %eldom reaches so far as the sound of his crime." 
 
 This story of Mr. Allen circulated extensively, and was 
 put into several shapes. Dr. Chauncy wanted it to put 
 into his book against the revival, and wrote to Mr. Whittel- 
 sey, scribe of the Consociation, for an authentic statement. 
 Whittelsey replied officially, after examining his documents : 
 " I find one of the articles charged and proved against him 
 was, that he had publicly said, that the word of God, as con- 
 tained in the Old and New Testaments, is but as an old alma- 
 nac ; for which, and various other crimes proved against him, 
 he, continuing obstinate, was deposed by the Consociation." 
 The letter published in Scotland on the " State of Religion 
 in New England," said of Connecticut : "The people in that 
 colony are still wilder than these in Boston. The converts 
 all pretend to a light within, without the direction of which 
 they will not go about the ordinary offices of life. One of 
 their ministers is dismissed from his people, for preaching 
 that an unconverted man is not capable ofunderstanding one 
 word of the Bible, and that to a converted man it is no better 
 than an old almanac, because he has a brighter light with- 
 in him. But not many parishes would have turned away 
 their minister for such an opinion as this." It underwent 
 other equally gross perversions. According to Trumbull, 
 Allen lamented the improper language in which he had ex- 
 pressed his meaning, when on his trial before the Consocia- 
 tion. Yet they deposed him, saying, that they had blown out 
 one New Light, and would blow them all out. This was in 
 
 * Robbins' " Plain Narrative." O. S, Cli. Lib. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENINQ. 315 
 
 1741. In 1800, he was pastor of a church in Chesterfield, 
 Mass., at the age of 85. His "other crimes " are not spe- 
 cified ; but were probably indiscreet efforts for the conversion 
 of men. 
 
 The case of the Separatists demands a distinct considera- 
 tion ; a matter of some difficulty, from the want of sufficient 
 documents, ^nd from the fact, evident from such documents 
 as remain, that they neither clearly understood themselves, 
 nor were understood by their contemporaries. Enough may 
 be learned, however, to establish sonie important facts. 
 
 They prevailed mostly in New London and Windham 
 counties. Here,, notwithstanding legal enactments, they 
 continued to grow, and even gained strength from opposition. 
 Many of the clergy seem to have labored earnestly and with 
 a good spirit for their recovery, but with little success. 
 
 December 11, 1744, the " Associated Ministers of the 
 County of Windham " addressed a Letter* on this subject 
 " to the people in the several societies in said county." 
 They commence by expressing their conviction, that " there 
 has been of late, in a few years past, a very great and merci- 
 ful revival of religion in most of the towns and societies in 
 this county, as well as in many other parts of the land." 
 They also believe that the prince of darkness, unable any 
 longer to destroy men by keeping them in a state of security 
 and formality, was compelled to resort to a new device, 
 " imitating, as nearly as he could, the work of the Holy 
 Ghost, both by setting on imaginary frights and terrors, in 
 some instances, on men's minds, somewhat resembling the 
 convictions of the blessed Spirit and awakenings of the con- 
 science for sin, and also filling their minds with flashes of joy 
 and false comforts, resembling somewhat, in a general way, 
 the consolations of the Holy Ghost. — This, in its beginning, 
 was not so plainly discerned and dis,tinguished, in many in- 
 stances, from the work of the Holy Spirit, especially as there 
 was sometimes a mixture of such things with the true expe- 
 riences of the people of God ; and it was also partly owing 
 to the injudicious and violent opposition of some to this work, 
 who, while they saw bad things attending it, and many people 
 taken with them, boldly concluded it was all of a piece, and, 
 with tremendous rashness, ascribed it all to the devil ; while 
 
 • O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 
316 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Others, on the other hand, looking on the good, and being 
 persuaded that it was a day of God's wonderful power and 
 gracious visitation, suddenly and weakly concluded, that 
 there was little wrong in the appearances, besides mere hu- 
 man weaknesses and unavoidable infirmity." In the progress 
 of the work, they believed Satan had succeeded in instigating 
 some to provoke persecution, by which they were hardened 
 more and more in their errors, " and many are drawn away 
 after them, partly out of pity to them, and by wrong con- 
 clusions, that their sufferings are an evidence that they are 
 right, and partly out of opposition to others, whom^they think 
 to be carnal and ungodly men." " Some of the most con- 
 siderable " of the errors of the Separatists, the Association 
 state to be, 
 
 " 1. That it is the will of God to have a pure church on earth, in 
 this sense, that all the converted should be separated from the uncon- 
 verted. 
 
 " 2. That the saints certainly know one another, and know who are 
 Christ's true ministers, by their own inward feelings, or a communion 
 betjf een them in the inward actings of their own souls. 
 
 " 3. That no other call is necessary to a person undertaking to preach 
 the gospel, but his being a true Christian, and having an inward mo- 
 tion of the Spirit, or a persuasion in his own mind, that it is the will 
 of God that he should preach and perform ministerial acts : the con- 
 sequence of which is, that there is no standing instituted ministry in 
 the Christian church, which may be known by the visible laws of 
 Christ's kingdom. 
 
 " 4. That God disowns the ministry and churches in this land, and 
 the ordinances as administered by them. 
 
 5. That at such meetings of lay preaching and exhorting, they have 
 more of the presence of God than in his ordinances, and under the 
 ministration of the present ministry, and the administration of the ordi- 
 nances in these churches." 
 
 Proof was then adduced of the errors of one of the ex- 
 horters, Mr. Elisha Paine, who had formerly been encour- 
 aged by someof the ministers, and who was " known to be of 
 much superior abihty to the others." It appears from the tes- 
 timony, that for want of clear ideas concerning the Trinity, Mr. 
 Paine sometimes used language tinctured with Sabellianism ; 
 and that he held saving faith to be, the persuasion of a sinner, 
 that Christ died for him in particular. He held the doctrine 
 of a particular atonement ; that is, that Christ died for cer- 
 tain individuals, and not for others ; and that in conversion, 
 God reveals to the sinner the fact, that he is one of that 
 number. He held, too, that the saints, by virtue of grace in 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 317 
 
 themselves, know the certainty of grace in others ; so that 
 they need not mistake in distinguishing the converted from 
 the unconverted- He had also declared, that "it was made 
 manifest to him, that Christ was about to have a pure church, 
 and that he had not done his duty in time past in promoting 
 separations and divisions among the people, and that for time 
 to come he should endeavour to promote and encourage sepa- 
 rations ; and that likewise Christ's own ministers would have 
 their churches rent from them by reason of their not doing 
 theit duty in that respect." Being asked what duty they 
 neglected, he replied, that " they did not separate those who 
 were converted from the unconverted in the church." 
 
 About a year afterwards, (October 9, 1745,) a Separate 
 church was organized at Mansfield, whose Confession of Faith 
 throws clearer light on some parts of their belief. Among 
 them are 
 
 '^ Article 15. We believe we are of that number who were elected 
 of God to eternal life, and that Christ did live on earth, die and rise 
 again for us in particular; that he doth now, in virtue of his own 
 merits and satisfaction, make intercession to God for us, and that we 
 are now justified in the sight of God for the sake of Christ, and shall 
 be owned by him at the great and general judgment ; — which God 
 hath made us to believe by sending, according to his promise, (John 
 16,) the Holy Ghost into our souls, who hath made particular applica- 
 tion of the above articles." 
 
 " 18. That all doubting in a believer is sinful, being contrary to the 
 command of God, and hurtful to the soul, and an hindrance to the 
 performance of duty." ^ 
 
 "20. We believe, by the testimony of Scripture and by our own ex- 
 perience, that true believers, by virtue of their union to Christ by 
 faith, have communion with God, and by the same faith are in Christ 
 united to one another ; which is the unity of the Spirit, whereby they 
 are made partakers of each other's gifts and graces, without which 
 union there can be no communion with God, nor with the saints." 
 
 "21. That whoever presumes to administer or partake of the seals 
 of the covenant of grace without saving faith, are* guilty of sacrilege, 
 and are in danger of sealing their own damnation." 
 
 22. [This relates to the church, and has, among others, these par- 
 ticulars; — 
 
 " 3. That true believers, and they only, have a right to give up their 
 children to God in baptism." 
 
 "7. That at all times the doors of the church should be carefully 
 kept against such as cannot give a satisfying evidence of the work of 
 God upon their souls, whereby they are united to Christ." 
 
 " 9. That a number of true believers, being thus essentially and vis- 
 ibly united together, have power to choose and ordain such officers as 
 
 * They did not profess to be inspired as grammarians. 
 
 27* 
 
318 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Christ has appointed in his church, such as bishops, elders and deacons; 
 and by the same power, to depose such officers as evidently appear to 
 walk contrary to the Gospel, or fall into any heresy. Yet we believe, 
 in such cases, it is convenient to take advice of neighbouring churches 
 of the same constitution. 
 
 " 12. We believe that all the gifts and graces that are bestowed 
 upon any of the members, are to be improved by them for the good of 
 the whole ; in order to which there ought to be such a gospel freedom, 
 whereby the church may know where every particular gift is, that it 
 may be improved in its proper place and to its right end, for the glory 
 of God and the good of the church. 
 
 " 13. That every brother that is qualified by God for the same, has 
 a right to preach according to the measure of faith, and that the 
 essential qualification for preaclung is wrought by the Spirit of God ; 
 and that the knowledge of the tongues and liberal sciences are not 
 absolutely necessary ; yet they are convenient, and will doubtless be 
 profitable if rightly used; but if brought in to supply the want of the 
 Spirit of God, they prove a snare to those that use them and all that 
 follow them." * 
 
 In order to understand the true position of these Separa- 
 tists, in relation to the churches and the ministry, the reader 
 must recollect the position of their opponents. The practice 
 of the " Half-way Covenant" had become general, and men 
 joined the churches as a means of grace ; as one of those 
 performances by which, while yet unregenerate, they were 
 to put themselves ia a hopeful way for conversion. Against 
 the doctrine, that "It is the will of God to have a pure 
 church upon earth, in this sense, that all the converted should 
 be separated from the unconverted," the Windham county 
 ministers argue : " To separate all true believers from those 
 who are only nominally, but yet professedly so, and by their 
 out\\'ard works and doctrines not proved to be otherwise, is 
 to set up two visible kingdoms of Christ in the world, and to 
 take one of these visible kingdoms out of another." In op- 
 position to the doctrine, that all are to be admitted to the 
 church as believers, who are " not proved to be otherwise," 
 the Separatists maintained, that " the doors of the church 
 should be carefully kept against such as cannot give a satisfy- 
 ing evidence " of their piety. The ministers argued, that all 
 who make " an outward, credible profession of Christianity," 
 must be admitted to the church, because it is impossible 
 for us to know who are converted and who are not. The 
 Separatists held, that the saints have certain knowledge of 
 
 "Seethe articles, entire, in the Result of a Council of the Windham 
 County Consociation, held at Scotland, January 13, 1747. Athenaeum 
 Library. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 319 
 
 each others' piety. The ministers would bring unconverted 
 men into the churches, that the "seals of the covenant" 
 might be the means of their conversion. The Separatists 
 pronounced such use of the " seals " to be " sacrilege." The 
 ministers believed, that Christ has instituted certain rules 
 concerning an "outward call" to the ministry, by observing 
 which, a man, whether converted or not, may be made one 
 of his true ministers, so that men are bound to receive him 
 as such. The Separatists held, that an "inward call " was 
 indispensable, and was sufficient. They were the ignorant 
 and blundering, but zealous and conscientious advocates of 
 some important truths, which they mixed with pernicious 
 errors, but which their adversaries totally opposed. They 
 denounced and separated from the churches, as made up, in 
 part, of hypocrites ; meaning, not intentional deceivers, but 
 persons who professed religion while destitute of true piety. 
 The ministers defended the practice of admitting such hypo- 
 crites into the churches, quoting, " The kingdom of heaven 
 i^ like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures 
 of meal, till the whole was leavened." " The kingdom of 
 heaven," they say, "intends the church of Christ, with all 
 the ministry and ordinances of his word. — The leaven is the 
 gospel doctrine, and the holy influence of the true members 
 of Christ. — But how can this mass and meal be leavened by 
 it, when the leaven is taken away from it, and kept at a dis- 
 tance and never to touch it ? " They quoted, too, " But in 
 a great house, there are not only vessels of gold and silver, 
 but also of wood and of earth, some to honor and some to 
 dishonor." The vessels of wood and of earth, they main- 
 tained, are these hypocrites,* who, though unconverted, must 
 be admitted into the church, and "be there, among the 
 wheat and honorable vessels, — that they may be under 
 proper ordinances for their conversion, and for the trial of his 
 people." 
 
 But, in despite of all such reasonings, the zealous declara- 
 tion of the exhorters, that hypocrites ought not to be in the 
 church, would strike many of their plain, honest hearers with 
 a very truth-like sound ; and though they might not know 
 how to dispose of the arguments on either side, they would 
 say, " It stands to reason, that hypocrites ought not to be in 
 
 * They use this very word, in this very connexion. 
 
320 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 the church." They would feel, too, that if religion be so 
 great a matter as ministers pretend and conscience commands 
 us to believe, the difference between a saint and a hypocrite 
 must be such that they can ordinarily be distinguished from 
 each other ; so that hypocrites, as a general rule, may be 
 excluded from the church. In these thoughts lay nearly all 
 the moral power of the Separatists. By the force of these, 
 they maintained themselves against all the attacks of their ad- 
 versaries, and what is more, against the influence of their own 
 blunders and bad spirit, till Edwards published his treatise on 
 the " Qualifications for Full Communion." That treatise took 
 their best weapons out of their hands, and, by a judicious 
 use of them, accomplished the work upon which they were 
 bringing disgrace. The errors of both parties were van- 
 quished by a clear statement of the truth. 
 
 On the question, whether the saints have certain knowl- 
 edge of each others' piety, the Separatists had a less advan- 
 tageous position. It is doubtless true, that men of congenial 
 spirits soon feel their congeniality ; and cases are not very 
 uncommon, of hypocrites, who have. lived for years so as to 
 escape church-discipline, but for whom the truly pious were 
 never able to work themselves into a feeling of brotherly love 
 and Christian confidence. But there may be congeniality 
 between bad spirits, as well as good, and a man may very 
 naturally " feel his heart going out in love " towards another, 
 when both are deeply tinctured with the same faults, and 
 especially if both are sinfully bitter against the same enemies. 
 This wonderfully sweet " communion between them in the 
 actings of their own minds," when carefully analyzed by an 
 accurate observer, with good specimens before him, some- 
 times yields very unexpected ingredients, the most abundant 
 of which is mutual flattery. The flattery is commonly im- 
 plied, rather than expressed. Each shows himself wonder- 
 fully pleased with whatever the other says or does. Each 
 openly considers the traits of which the other is proud, as 
 proofs of uncommon piety. Each calls wrath against the 
 other's opponents, "holy indignation." In such ways, with- 
 out ever expressing their opinions of each other directly, 
 they flatter each other incessantly. Each sees his own 
 image in the other, and they really have " certain knowledge," 
 that they are very much alike ; but, unhappily, the traits in 
 which they resemble each other are no part of Christian 
 
THE &REAT AWAKENING. S2l 
 
 character, and therefore their congeniality is no proof that 
 either is a converted man. And the same congeniality may 
 be felt between the unholy affections of one who is sanctified 
 in part, and the same affections in one who is not sanctified 
 at all, and may be the means of deceiving them both. 
 Among those who are thus bound together, party spirit nat- 
 urally usurps the name and place of brotherly love; hatred of 
 opponents passes for zeal for God ; and defamation and bitter 
 railings are counted Christian boldness. It is a communion 
 in evil, and gives activity and vigor to all the evil in which 
 they have communion with each other. All this was strik- 
 ingly exemplified by these Separatists ; and they were the 
 more readily led into it, because the truth condemned so 
 much that they hated. 
 
 The Separatists at Mansfield, in the beginning of the 
 twentieth article of their Confession of Faith, appeal to their 
 " own experience," as one of the grounds of their religious 
 belief. On the same ground, they professed to know that 
 God approved the labors of their exhorters. They asserted, 
 that they enjoyed more of the presence of God in hearing 
 them, than in hearing the regular clergy. The answer of the 
 ministers to this argument is candid and conclusive. 
 
 "We were, divers of us, at the first apjlearance of these things, 
 considerably at a loss, and rather inclined to think that God did own 
 such mistaken zeal, so far as to awaken and quicken many souls and 
 do them good, and might intend it as a means of humbling to us, for 
 our carelessness and want of zeal in his service and love to souls. 
 And though we know that God will never set aside his own ordinan- 
 ces, yet as to ourselves^ we hope we can truly say, we are not only 
 willing to be laid aside from our pulpits, but to be buried in our graves, 
 and have our names forgotten upon the earth, if our blessed Lord may 
 be glorified and souls saved through that means. And we did, several 
 of us, set ourselves, with as much diligence as we could consistently 
 with our other business, to examine into this matter. — Upon our best 
 observation, So far as we can remember, when we have observed any 
 pious souls, who have by means of such meetings and performances in 
 them had a more passionate and affectionate outgoing of love to God 
 and Christ, it has been generally attended with much corrupt mixture 
 of carnal joy, or bitterness, or pride, more than usually attends the 
 fruits of the Spirit with the pure institutions of the gospel. — People 
 who are most zealously affected to these meetings, — do indeed often 
 speak of wonderful discoveries of the gloriousness of God and the 
 preciousness of Christ ; but, for the most part, when they come to 
 explain these discoveries, they give an account of some powerful sense 
 of Christ's infinite and amazing love in dying and bearing hell for 
 them in particular ; and seem to have been filled with a strong and 
 
322 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 passionate love to him for what he has assuredly done for them, with- 
 out any acting of faith in the veracity of God in the gospel offer of 
 salvation. — And when they speak of the views of the terrible justice 
 and holiness of God, it seems too often to direct them to personal 
 applications, and to be terminated on particular objects whom they 
 think to be opposers, and with vehemence to treat them as discovered 
 to them to be the objects of the divine displeasure. The discoveries 
 which many of them have at such times, are of the certainty that this 
 is the work of God, and an assurance that he will carry it on in spite 
 of earth and hell." 
 
 Thus they were led to ascribe to the Holy Spirit, views 
 and feelings which in reality sprung from their own revenge- 
 ful tempers ; and some of them, whose subsequent lives 
 evinced their piety, for a while behaved worse than a pious 
 man, not awfully deceived, could be induced to behave. 
 
 The ministers concluded their letter with excellent advice, 
 addressed in a good spirit, to all classes of men. One pas- 
 sage shows that they had learned one lesson, which some of 
 their brethren in other parts of the colony did not yet under- 
 stand. They say to the unconverted : "If private persons, 
 who are not obliged by any oath or office, keep stirring up 
 prosecutions, and promoting and furthering the corporal pun-^ 
 ishment of religious disorders, and driving on coercive mea- 
 sures to reclaim those that wander out of the way of under- 
 standing, this is not only the most effectual method to prevent 
 their conviction, but is also like to be the occasion of neg- 
 lecting your own souls, comforting yourselves with a false 
 zeal for God and his cause, while you remain as great stran- 
 gers to God as you were born." They must have had near- 
 ly the same opinion of the influence of prosecutions com- 
 menced by men in office ; but this they respectfully left to 
 be inferred. 
 
 The Separatists were neither deterred by penalties, nor 
 won by persuasion. On or about October 9, 1745, several 
 members of the church at Mansfield, and of neighbouring 
 churches, met and organized themselves as a church. None 
 of them had letters of dismission from the churches to which 
 they belonged, and some of them were under censure, pro- 
 bably- for ecclesiastical irregularities. They adopted the 
 Confession of Faith, from which extracts have already been 
 given. January 15, 1746, or near that day, they met, "un- 
 der pretence of ordaining Deacon Thomas Marsh as teach- 
 ing elder." Several ministers attended, to remonstrate with 
 them. They were reviled, and, being unable to gain a can- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 323 
 
 did hearing, they read a protest against their proceedings. 
 For some reason, now unknown, the ordination was deferred. 
 About a month afterwards, they met again, for the same pur- 
 pose ; but on that very day Deacon Marsh was arrested and 
 imprisoned. They ordained John Hovey teaching elder ; 
 Thomas Denison, John Austin and Matthew Smith, laymen, 
 imposing hands upon him. They, then ordained Matthew 
 Smith and Thomas Denison, ruling elders ; and John. Aus- 
 tin and Shubael Dimick, deacons. In July, Hovey, Smith, 
 and Denison ordained Deacon Thomas Marsh, teaching el- 
 der, and the next day ordained Thomas Stephens to the same 
 office at Plainfield. All these persons were supposed, by the 
 neighbouring ministers, to be destitute of the necessary qual- 
 ifications for their offices. 
 
 The members of the Consociation of Windham county 
 assembled as an ecclesiastical council at Scotland, January 
 13, 1747, and having made arrangements for preparing their 
 business, and recommended to the churches to keep days of 
 fasting and prayer in the interim, adjourned February IT. 
 At their adjourned meeting, after a careful inquiry into facts, 
 they considered it their duty to bear solemn, official testimo- 
 ny against the errors of the Separatists. They decided, that 
 there was no good reason for separating from the churches ; 
 and that if there was, the Separatists had not taken the regu- 
 lar gospel steps to reclaim their erring brethren before sepa- 
 rating from them, but had separated in an uncharitable and 
 unchristian manner. Therefore, they resolved, the churches 
 ought to withdraw fellowship from them. Yet they were not 
 to be given up as hopeless, but efforts ought to be made with 
 them as individuals, to reclaim them from their errors. 
 
 As, it had been asserted that some of the ministers of the 
 county held, that the saints have certain knowledge of each 
 others' piety, that illiterate and unauthorized men ought 
 sometimes to preach, and that outcries and bodily agitations 
 are evidence of the presence and influence of the Spirit of 
 God, the council made careful inquiry, and found that not 
 one of the ministers in the county held any of these opinions. 
 Yet, they admitted, " some of us have been too unguarded, 
 and missed it in our conduct in several things ; and particu- 
 larly have erred in too hastily passing judgment on persons as 
 converted." Some of them had given occasion to think 
 they were in favor of exhorters, by a letter to Elisha Paine, 
 
334 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 who., they hoped, might be useful ; "but have since found 
 abundant cause to alter our judgment, and lament our weak- 
 ness, and the hurtful consequences of it to the interests of 
 Christ's kingdom." The letter appears to have been writ- 
 ten when Paine was in prison, and thought to-be in danger 
 of unusually severe treatment. * 
 
 There were churches of Separatists in New London, 
 Stonington, Preston, Norwich, Lyme, Canterbury, Plain- 
 field, Windsor, Suffield, and Middletown. Trumbull says, 
 that the whole number in the colony, '•'first and last," was 
 "ten or twelve." At Preston, Paul Parks was ordained as 
 teaching elder, and was charged not to premeditate what he 
 should say in his preaching, but to speak as the Spirit should 
 give him utterance. 
 
 The condition of the Separatists in Connecticut excited a 
 lively interest among some of the Dissenters in England, 
 who appointed a committee to watch over their religious lib- 
 erty. Dr. Avery, the chairman, wrote a letter on the sub- 
 ject, which was read in the General Assembly. Gov. Xaw, 
 in reply, informed Avery of their errors and extravagances. 
 Avery replied, that civil penalties were not the appropriate 
 remedy, and could not cure them. What influence this cor- 
 respondence had, is doubtful ; but as the rigor of legal pros- 
 ecution was relaxed, their zeal diminished, and they became 
 gradually less irregular. When Edwards' treatise on the 
 " Qualifications for Full Communion " had overthrown the 
 Half-way Covenant, and the churches no longer justified the 
 admission of " hypocrites," the Separatists ceased to be the 
 representatives of any important truth not held by the regu- 
 lar churches, and the strong^ reason for their existence was at 
 an end. By degrees, some returned to the communion from 
 which they went out ; but more generally, they united with 
 the Baptists. In 1818, Trumbull believed the denomination 
 to be extinct. 
 
 It is the united testimony of all witnesses, when speaking 
 of New England in general, that New London and Windham 
 counties were the principal seat" of the evils produced by ex- 
 horters and separations. What and how great they were 
 there, the reader has seen. From a candid consideration of 
 the whole subject, it appears that some of their departures 
 
 * Trumbull, and the result of the Council, before quoted. Ath. Lib. 
 

 ^ Cv l^^-1- c i 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 325 
 
 from truth, good order, and a Christian spirit, were really as 
 gross as they have been represented ; but that they were be- 
 trayed into some of their errors, by their opposition to other 
 errors, scarcely less pernicious, generally prevalent around 
 them, 'and obstinately defended by the regular churches. It 
 appears, too, that the prevalence of Separatism and its con- 
 comitant errors and ^vils was far less extensive than it has 
 usually been represented ; that the amount of evil fairly 
 chargeable to this source in the whole country, has been 
 greatly overestimated, while the good which it aided to ac- 
 complish, has not been acknowledged. It must be admitted, 
 too, that these disorders arose, in part, from the early errors 
 of some of the most prominent promoters of the revival. 
 This is unanswerably proved byjheir own confessions, made 
 when the experience of three pr fpiir years had taught them 
 wisdom. But it iS equally certain, that a vast majority of 
 the friends of the revival, both clergy and laymen, were, from 
 the beginning, their steady and intelligent opposers ; and 
 nothing can be more unjust than charging upon them, as a 
 body, the peculiar errors of the Separatists. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 The Conteoversy in Massachusetts. — Whitefield's Second Visit to 
 New England. — His subsequent Labors and his Death. 
 
 Some of the leading features of the controversy as it 
 existed in Massachusetts, have already been exhibited ; espe- 
 cially in the account of the Testimonies, Chapter XVI. To 
 give a minute history of all, even of what still remains in 
 print, would be both tiresome and useless. Only some of 
 the more important publications can be noticed, with such 
 specimens of the remainder as may afford a fair sample of 
 the whole. The giants in this controversy, beyond all dis- 
 pute, were Ed wards and Cha uncy. These men seem well 
 to have understood their relation to each other and to the 
 contest. Chauncy sometimes appeared as the avowed antag- 
 onist of Edwards ; and though Edwards seldom, if ever, 
 mentions either Chauncy or his publications, it is perfectly 
 28 
 
326 THE GREAT AWAKENING, 
 
 obvious to any one who reads them both, that he often had 
 him distinctly in view, and wrote to oppose his influence. 
 
 C hauncy's first seri ous attack was the publication of " The 
 Wonder ful Narrative : or^_a_FaithfiiL A ccount of the Fren ch 
 Prophets, their~A.gitations, Ecstasies, and Inspirations! To 
 vvfiicF are added, several other remarkable instances of Per- 
 sons under the influence of the like Spirit in various Parts of 
 the World, particularly in New England : With an Introduc- 
 tion, directing to the proper JJse of such Extraordinary Ap- 
 pearances in the course of Providence." The ^ F rench 
 prop hets first appeared about the year 170 0. For more than 
 a century, persecution, sometimes resisted, with various suc- 
 cess, by civil war, and sometimes endured with patient sub- 
 mission ; royal promises, made in guile and broken in perfi- 
 dy ; unexpected massacres in times of peace ; arrests, im- 
 prisonments, executions on the gibbet, on the wheel, or at the 
 stake, had composed the external history of French Protes- 
 tantism. Now, for the last time, a few thousands of them, 
 in the almost inaccessible fastnesses of the Cevennes, rose in 
 arms against their oppressors. The war raged for years. 
 Often, in battle, quarter was neither given nor accepted by 
 either party. At the beginning of the winter of 1703, Mon- 
 trevel, the royalist general, ordered a country forty leagues 
 in extent, to be laid waste, and the cottages to be torn down 
 or burned. A famine followed, and meanwhile the gallows 
 was always kept standing, and the hangman within call. It 
 is not necessary to believe that, as has been asserted, some 
 of the Huguenots were trained to imposture. They firmly 
 believed that they were the Lord's people; and they had 
 good reason to regard their persecutors as his enemies. 
 They could not doubt that God would sustain his own cause ; 
 and when it became evident that nothing but miracles could 
 save them, they expected miracles. W^nt of food and sleep 
 and rest, disordered their bodies, and therefore intense 
 thought, violent emotion, heroic hopes, and the sight and suf- 
 fering of horrible wickedness more easily overpowered their 
 imaginations. Some thought themselves inspired. They 
 were seized with tremblings and convulsions. They spake, 
 as was supposed, with other tongues than their vernacular. 
 They professed to deliver messages from God, and to pre- 
 dict future events ; and if a desperate attack on their ene- 
 mies was made at their suggestion and proved successful, the 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 327 
 
 event was received as evidence of their divine commission. 
 The insurrection was brought to an end, partly by negotiation 
 and partly by force. In 1706, three of the prophets, who 
 are said to have had but little reputation among their own 
 people, took refuge in England, where others appear to have 
 joined them soon afterwards. Though their prophetical 
 character was not acknowledged by the French Protestants 
 already settled in London, they succeeded in gaining follow- 
 ers, even among the titled nobility, and what is more, among 
 men of some education ; but after a few years, their attempts 
 at working miracles, and especially the failure of their pre- 
 dictions, that certain of their company would rise from the 
 dead, destroyed their credit. They seem at last to have 
 lost all self-respect ; to have acquired the art of bringing on 
 at will those mental and bodily paroxysms which had been 
 mistaken for illapses of the Holy Spirit, and to have exhib- 
 ited their prophetic gifts for gain. Chauncy's object was, 
 to bring discredit upon the revival, on account of the invol- 
 untary outcries, faintings and convulsions that attended it, 
 by showing that these were signs, not of the presence of the 
 Holy Spirit, but of enthusiasm or imposture, as in the case 
 of the French prophets. The work was regarded by the 
 friends of the revival as a powerful and mischievous book. 
 It was republished in Scotland. 
 
 The first publication of Edwards on thissubject, vyas his 
 ser monTon "The iJistinguishing Marks'of a^York of the 
 Spi rit of God ; applied to that unco mmon Operation wh ich 
 has lately appeared on the Min ds of many of the Peop le of 
 th is Land." It was preached at New Haven, Septemb er 
 1 0, 1741, and soon published, with a preface by Mr. Coo p- 
 er, of Boston, and republished in England and Scotland. In 
 this sermon he argued, first, negatively, that neither the work 
 being carried on in a very unusual and extraordinary way, nor 
 its being accompanied with effects on the bodies of men, nor 
 its occasioning a great ado and much noise about religion, 
 nor impressions on the imaginations of many of its subjects, 
 nor the influence of example in carrying it on, nor the fact 
 that many who seem to be its subjects are guilty of great im- 
 prudences and irregularities, nor the delusions of Satan that 
 accompany the work, nor the falling away of some into gross 
 errors and scandalous practices, nor the fact that the earnest 
 preaching of the terrors of the law is a means of carrying it 
 
328 THE GREAT AWAKEiNING. 
 
 on, is any proof ihat the work is not of God ; and secondly, 
 he set forth the positive marks by which a real work of the 
 Spirit of God may be distinguished from all counterfeits. 
 
 An answer to this sermon and its preface, by one who 
 styled himself " A L over of Truth and Peace," and who, if 
 no t Dr. C hauncy, t5Quglit_andujy£Qte- V'erY much m his sty le, 
 w as published at Boston. Of the positive marks of a genu- 
 ine work of GodTwhich Edwards had laid down, he says : 
 "I acknowledge, that the rules and marks he mentions are 
 good ; but cannot join with him in explaining those rules, 
 and applying them as he does." He might have made the 
 same remark on the whole sermon ; for he nowhere dis- 
 putes the truth of a single principle for which Edwards 
 contends, but spends his whole force in discussing their ap- 
 plication to "the late religious commotions." Nor is there 
 much, if any, express contradiction between them in respect 
 to facts. Edwards fixes his attention mainly on the good 
 which those commotions were accomplishing, makes that 
 prominent in the discussion, and thence infers that the work 
 was, " in the general," from the Spirit of God. His antag- 
 onist does not deny that many souls had been savingly renew- 
 ed ; but in his picture, the evil is always made prominent, and 
 therefore the work " in the general " is condemned. And 
 such was the prevailing style of the controversy. 
 
 In 1742, Edwards published his " Thoughts on the R evi- 
 va l gf"Religion in iSew En gland," which was the great work 
 on t hat side of the cont roversy. The next year, Ghau ncy 
 published his " iSeasonable Thoughts on the State o f Reli- 
 gionHTN ew England,' which was the pnncipal work on th at 
 sHe! These works are much like their predecessors, though 
 on a l arger s cale. Edwards admits and censures the evils 
 that prevailed, but dwells upon the good that had been ac- 
 complished, concludes the work to be from the Spirit of 
 God, and 'ehcourages solicitude for its continuance. Chaun- 
 cy admits that good had been done, but represents the evil 
 as predominant, and wishes the " commotion " at an end. 
 Neither of them, however, gives any definite estimate of the 
 amount either of the good or the evil that had been done } 
 so that, even on that point, there is no explicit contradiction 
 between them. Nor is there any very important difference 
 in the rules by which they would judge of the genuineness of 
 a revival. The real parting point between them was never 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 329 
 
 made the subject of discussion, and perhaps was not distinctly 
 seen by either. Chauncy was shocked at the " censorious- 
 ness " of the revivalists. In his view, every man ought to 
 he regarded and treated as a true Christian, as a really pious 
 man and an heir of heaven, who did not prove the contrary 
 by embracing some " datqnable heresy," or by committing 
 some scandalous immorality, even though no positive evi- 
 dence of his piety could be found. He demanded for all 
 such persons, a regular and unimpeached standing in the 
 churches, and if regularly ordained, in the ministry also ; for 
 perhaps they were already regenerate, and if not, they were 
 in the way of their duty, and might reasonably hope to be 
 regenerated before leaving the world. The revivalists saw 
 that these views were deceiving and ruining many souls. 
 They preached to such persons, as under the wrath of God, 
 and in the straight road to eternal perdition. This, in 
 Chauncy's view, was shocking censoriousness. He could 
 have no patience with it ; for, as he thought, it disturbed the 
 quiet of good men, or of those who were in a fair way to 
 become good ; it tended to excite the wrath of those who 
 were thus denounced, and to fill families and communities 
 with discord ; it divided churches and parishes into parties, 
 and destroyed the comfort and endangered the salaries of 
 ministers. When Davenport condemned ministers by name 
 as unconverted, and advised their people to separate from 
 them, and some followed his advice, he saw in it only the 
 carrying out of the principles of all the revivalists. He 
 thought it the duty of all men to resist such a system, and do 
 their utmost to make all things quiet again. Edwards, on the 
 other hand, had not yet emancipated himself from the " half- 
 way covenant" views in which he had been educated, and 
 therefore was not yet furnished with the ideas which he need- 
 ed, to meet this point as it ought to have been met. He 
 correctly acknowledged censoriousness to be a great sin, 
 which had been awfully prevalent ; but he did not show, as 
 was desirable, that much which had been condemned as cen- 
 soriousness, deserved a better name. He contented himself 
 with showing that, notwithstanding this evil, the work might 
 be, and certainly was, of God, and that men ought to labor 
 for its promotion, notwithstanding the imperfections and inci- 
 dental evils with which it was attended. 
 
 In the conclusion of this treatise, Edwards recommends, 
 28* 
 
330 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 as a means of promoting the revival, "that a history should 
 be published once a month, or once a fortnight, of the pro- 
 gress of it, by one of the ministers of Boston, who are near 
 the press, and are most conveniently situated to receive ac- 
 counts of it from all parts." Agreeably to this suggestion, 
 the " Christian History " was established the next year. 
 Similar publications were commenced about the same time 
 in London and Glasgow. 
 
 Some of the minor controversies of the day show more 
 precisely the form which some of these subjects took in many 
 minds. 
 
 The Rev. Theophilus Pickering, pastor of the Second 
 Church in Ipswich, wrote, February 3, 1742, to the Rev. 
 Nathaniel Rogers, Junior Pastor of the First Church, and 
 Mr. Daniel Rogers, who was then preparing for the min- 
 istry : * — ^ 
 
 " I am at a loss to understand the distinction betwixt the ordinary 
 and usual work of God in the conversion of sinners, and that work 
 wherein you are engaged, which you emphatically call 'This Work — 
 This Work of God.' And inasmuch as you have been mindful in 
 your public prayers to beg of God that he would convince and stir up 
 such ministers as are backward to that which you call ' This Work,' 
 and have also, by expressions dropped in private conversation, led me 
 into a belief that it would be very agreeable to you to see me disposed 
 to encourage 'This Work,' as you call it; inasmuch as a good 
 agreement among ministers is of great consequence to religion, and 
 my coming into your sentiments and measures may as well happily 
 tend to the advantage of my ministry in general, (if you are in the 
 right,) as be well pleasing to some of my parishioners, who zealously 
 affect you and are at the pains to ply me with their importunate solici- 
 tions : — Therefore I beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God, 
 that you would endeavour to resolve my doubts with respect to ' This 
 Work ' that you contend for, — • . 
 
 " 1. By declaring what it is, and wherein it differs from the convert- 
 ing work of God that was carried on in New England from the days 
 of our fathers. 
 
 * A communication in the Boston Evening Post of November 22, 1742, 
 begins thus : " We lately heard from ^ork, that on or about the 1 3th of July 
 last, one Mr. D — I R — s summoned together a solemn (and we think an 
 unlawful) assembly, consisting of the elders and pretended messengers of 
 some of the neighbouring churches, to ordain the said R — s at large, to be a 
 vagrant preacher to the people of God in this land ; contrary to the peace of 
 our Lord the King and Head of his church, and to the good order and con- 
 stitution of the churches in New England, as established by the Platform. 
 — In which transaction. We hear that the Rev. Mr. M — y, W — se, J. 
 R — s and G — m resolutely proceeded, although some others of the neigh- 
 bouring ministers justly bore their testimony against such an irregular 
 action. ' — The Cambridge Platform allows no ordination, except as elder 
 of some church. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 331 
 
 "2. By showing, from the Sacred Scriptures, that those things (if 
 such there be) in which it differs, are the work of the Spirit of God, 
 and unexceptionable grounds for your terms of distinction." 
 
 The Messrs. Rogers answered, February 5 : 
 
 " By the work we hope our hearts are engaged in, which, as you 
 may have observed, we call ' This Work — This Work of God,' we 
 mean God's work of convicting and converting sinners ; and we do 
 not mean to distinguish it from the convincing and converting work of 
 God, carried on in New England in the days of our fathers, or any- 
 where else in any age of the Christian church ; for we suppose God's 
 work in convincing and converting sinners to be ever the same, as to 
 the substantial parts of it. Nevertheless, as this is a work distinct 
 from all the other works of God, it may surely be spoken of with vari- 
 ous marks of distinction." 
 
 They then expressed their belief that this work had for 
 some time been carried on with unusual power, and their 
 desire that all ministers would cooperate in promoting it. 
 This was not satisfactory. Pickering wrote again, Februa- 
 ry 15, and endeavoured to extort a confession, that by 
 " This Work," they meant more than they were willing to 
 confess, and that it included " some effects attendant, as visi- 
 ble signs or open discoveries " of the Spirit's operations. 
 Receiving no answer, he wrote again, July 16, in the same 
 strain. " That which I want to know," he says, " is, What 
 and how much you take into that which you call ' This 
 Work of God,' as grounds of distinction ; and upon what au- 
 thority you receive it. If there be a differMit manner of op- 
 eration, or new evidences, — that have not been usual in the 
 conversion of sinners in later times, — I pray you to enume- 
 rate and ascertain them ; — to show me vi^hat Scripture war- 
 rant you have to expect such things in the present age of 
 the church ; and evince, by the word of truth, that those 
 things are to be believed to be the work of God." He 
 wished to get an acknowledgment, that the faintings, outcries, 
 ■and other disorders were a part of the work itself, and not 
 mere accidental attendants on it ; for he could then prove 
 that a part of the work was bad, and therefore not from God. 
 He wrote again, August 18 ; but he received no answer, ex- 
 cept that to his first letter.* 
 
 The same question was brought up in Turell's " Dialogue 
 on the Times." 
 
 " N'eighhov.r. Sir, the grand question I want to be resolved in is, 
 What is the Work of God ? 
 
 * See the Correspondence, in the O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 
332 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 « Minister. There are many things which may be called the work 
 of God, and are really so ; as the work of creation, providence, re- 
 demption in general ; and some eminent acts of mercy and judgment 
 have had that name given them in particular ; and our faith and obe- 
 dience are styled so in the gospel. But that which is now called the 
 work of God in the land, and appears so to me, is ' The work of his 
 grace, wrought on the hearts of many by his word and Spirit.' It is 
 past a doubt with me, that the blessed Spirit has been sent down to 
 convict, convince and convert sinners, and to quicken, enliven and 
 comfort the saints ; and a conspicuous reformation is wrought in some 
 places. 
 
 " M But do you mean neither more nor less, Sir, by the work of 
 God among us, or the outpouring of the Spirit, than this work of grace, 
 in conviction, conversion, light, and comfort .' 
 
 " M. I am persuaded it is safest and best to fix upon this only, 
 as the present work of God in the land, and not to place it in uncer- 
 tain appearances. I have good reason to think, (having had opportu- 
 nity to converse with all sorts of persons,) that if ministers and Christians 
 had thus fixed it, there would not have been that seeming opposition 
 to it from good men ; and that we should also have cut off occasion 
 from those who are enemies to serious godliness, to scoff at it."* 
 
 He then goes on to show, that neither outcries, faintings, 
 dreams, trances, visions, revelations or impulses are any part 
 of " The Work," and that some of them are of very danger- 
 ous tendency. This Dialogue was published in the sum- 
 mer or autumn of 1742. The revival had been powerful at 
 Medford, where he was pastor, and some of the first outcries 
 in that region were among his own people, and under his 
 own preaching. He believed that " some scores had been 
 savingly wrought upon." In the preface to his " Directions 
 to his People," published early in the spring of that year, he 
 declares, " that of the many I have conversed with under the 
 common impressions, two or three excepted, they have been 
 all wrought upon in a way agreeable to the gospel, and just as 
 I should have desired seven years ago." The " Direc- 
 tions " are in the same spirit with the " Dialogue on the 
 Times," and were published, he tells us, partly to vindicate 
 his character, which had been injured by a report that, from 
 being a zealous promoter of the glorious work of God's grace, 
 he had become an opposer ; and partly, that the opposers and 
 enemies of the work might no longer say that its friends 
 swallowed down every thing, and attributed all appearances 
 and imprudent management to the God and Spirit of order. 
 
 The reader will now understand why Dr. Colman, in 
 1744, was so scrupulous about the phraseology of Daven- 
 
 •O. S. Ch.Lib. ' 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 333 
 
 port's " Retractations." Davenport at first wrote : — "I am 
 now fully convinced and persuaded, that several appendages 
 to this glorious work are no essential parts thereof, but of a 
 different and contrary nature and tendency ; which appenda- 
 ges I have been, in the time of the work, very industrious in 
 and instrumental of promoting, by a misguided zeal." At 
 Dr. Colman's suggestion, that this might be misunderstood, 
 he amended it, so as to read : — " Several things, which in 
 the time of the work I was very industrious and instrumental 
 in promoting by a misguided zeal, were no parts of it, but of 
 a contrary nature and tendency." So careful were the lead- 
 ing promoters of the revival to have this matter understood. 
 And with its friends, they were successful. " These extra- 
 ordinaries " soon came to be regarded by all, as they had 
 ever been by most, as " no parts " of the work, and they 
 have long since ceased to appear in our congregations. 
 With its opposers, they labored in vain. The argument for 
 which Pickering made such persevering efforts to secure a 
 foundation, was too convenient to be spared ; the language 
 of some exhorters and a very few ministers afforded some 
 pretext for using it; the party clung to it pertinaciously, and 
 handed it down to their successors ; and to this day, many 
 Unitarians, Universalists and infidels suppose that such things 
 are really " parts " of a revival. 
 
 How much excuse the conduct of some zealous revivalists 
 furnished for such a conclusion, it is impossible to ascertain, 
 and difficult even to conjecture. Complaints in general 
 terms, of horrible disorders all over the land, are abundant ; 
 but it is seldom possible to ascertain exactly what they were, 
 or where they happened ; and the proof of their existence is 
 seldom any thing more than the assertion, that " they are no- 
 torious." All the " censorious," that is, all who required 
 positive evidence of piety before admitting its existence, 
 were counted as promoters of all , disorders. Numerous 
 friends of the revival, who were well acquainted with the 
 facts, and whose testimony is unimpeachable, complained in 
 express terms, "that disorders and errors had been both 
 multiplied and magnified by unfriendly reporters ; " and a 
 careful examination of the documents of the day will convince 
 any candid man, tha^ they had reason to complain. Yet it is 
 certain, that there were great errors and disorders, and that 
 some persons, and even some ministers, condemned all who 
 
334 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 endeavoured to repress them, as opposers of the revival. 
 Croswell* pronounced " the excellent Mr. Turell " an oppos- 
 er, and thought his " Directions " to be " more infectious and 
 poisonous than ' The French Prophets,' or the ' Trial of 
 Mr. Whitefield's Spirit.'" Croswell may have been pro- 
 voked to this, in part, by what he esteemed a personal attack. 
 Turell had cautioned his people against certain itinerants, 
 whom Croswell supposed to be Mr. Buel and himself. It is 
 certain, too, that real opposers were sometimes exceedingly 
 artful, and did the work of opposition so adroitly, that it 
 was difficult to fasten the charge upon them. One* notice- 
 able instance deserves to be recorded. 
 
 The Rev. Jonathan Ajh_ley.,iiLI).e.erfield>-being_iji_Boston, 
 Mr .jCooper, out_of_gojji'J.esy4-and - not b ec a u se he n e e ded 
 assistance, invhed him to preach at Br attle Street on the 
 SaBFatTi^^'T^Jovember^Si 1742. Mr. Ashley's text was, 
 Paul's commendation of charity, 1 Corinthians 13: I — 3. 
 He compared the state of the churches in New England to 
 that of the church in Corinth, where there had been " a very 
 plentiful effusion of the Divine Spirit." He mentioned 
 many particulars in which the two cases resembled each 
 other, the same faults prevailing in both. He set forth the 
 excellence of charity, and proved that without it, all signs of 
 piety on which men are disposed to rely, are deceptive. 
 Considered in itself, the sermon was a good one. The faults 
 against which he inveighed, were actually in the land ; and he 
 carefully guarded himself against the danger of contradiction, 
 by not stating definitely how extensively they prevailed. It 
 was a carefully guarded statement of some of the principal 
 truths on which the opposers of the revival relied for the sup- 
 port of their cause, without any mixture of their usual misrep- 
 resentations. But the great practical question between the 
 two parties then was, whether efforts ought to be made for 
 the continuance of the revival, or for the restoration of uni- 
 versal quiet ; and the general tendency of the sermon was, to 
 leave an impression in favor of the latter. Everybody un- 
 derstood the preacher's aim. A few expressed their disap- 
 probation by leaving the house. The opposers of the revi- 
 val felt that they had gained a triumph, by having such a ser- 
 mon preached in that place ; and, to make their triumph com- 
 
 * Letter to Turell, O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 335 
 
 plete, the sermon must be published, " at the request of 
 many of the hearers." This would make the impression far 
 and wide, that Mr. Cooper and the church at Brattle Street 
 had changed their minds, and instead of wishing still to pro- 
 mote the revival, were now wishing to put down all excite- 
 ment. A copy was requested for the press. Cooper saw 
 the bearing of these things, and wrote to Ashley, remonstrat- 
 ing against the unkind and unfair advantage taken of his min- 
 isterial courtesy, and urging him to withhold his sermon from 
 the press. Ashley, however, furnished a copy, and it was 
 published ; and Cooper must submit to the virtual misrepre- 
 sentation of his sentiments, or expose himself to ridicule. He 
 was not the man to hesitate in such a case. Though fully 
 aware, as he said, of the sneers he should encounter, he im- 
 mediately informed the public, through the Boston Gazette, 
 of the whole affair, and stated his objections against the pub- 
 lication of the sermon. This, as he had foretold, brought 
 upon him a shower of newspaper wit and sarcasm, and among 
 other things, a taunting letter from Ashley himself He was 
 ridiculed for thinking a correct knowledge of his opinions so 
 important to the public, and for setting himself up as a censor 
 of the press, and as a man whom ministers must consult, be- 
 fore publishing their sermons. Such was the position in 
 which the opposing party had placed him, without violating 
 the letter of any of the laws of courtesy. They had only 
 exercised their undoubted rights. They had done like a 
 merchant who gets another man's property so adroitly, that 
 the law can take no hold of him. — There is some doubt 
 how far Ashley was to blame in this affair. One of his letters, 
 probably that to Cooper, afterwards published, was carried 
 to the Boston Gazette for insertion, by Eliot, the publisher 
 of the sermon. The editor of the Gazette refused to insert 
 it, said that it had been altered, and offered Eliot ten pounds 
 for a sight of the original. Eliot said that the original was 
 not then in his possession, and refused to produce it.* 
 
 But, after all allowances for mistake and misreJ)resentation, 
 testimony remains definite and conclusive, of sad disorders. 
 One of the most remarkable instances was at Ipswich, in 
 1744. A particular account of it, signed by the Rev. 
 
 * The Sermon is in the O. S. Ch. Lib.; and all the pamphlets in the 
 AthensBum Lib. See also, Boston Gazette for December 1742, and Janu- 
 ary 1743, in the Mass. Hist. See. Lib. 
 
336 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Messrs. Joseph White, Samuel Wiggles worth, John Webb, 
 John Chipman, Joshua Gee, Joseph Emerson, William 
 Hobby, John Warren, Jedediah Jewett, Simon Bradstreet, 
 and James Chandler, most of whom were well known friends 
 of the revival, and who visited Ipswich on purpose to inves- 
 tigate the affair, was published in the Boston Gazette of July 
 54, and copied into the Evening Post of July 30. It ap- 
 pears from their statement, that one Richard Woodbury, of 
 Rowley, who had taken it upon himself to travel as an ex- 
 iiorter, had in the spring sent letters of reprehension and ex- 
 portation, " in a style presumptuous, if not blasphemous," to 
 ■many ministers in the vicinity. The Rev. Nicholas Gilman 
 assisted him in preparing these letters, and about the first of 
 June, with the assistance of "several laics," privately or- 
 dained him as an evangelist. After his ordination, he went 
 with Gilman to visit several of the ministers to whom the 
 letters had been addressed, and came to Ipswich about the 
 first of July. Here his language was blasphemous and pro- 
 fane, and his public and private conduct, ridiculous and ab- 
 surd. He professed to come as a special messenger from 
 God, authorized not only to teach, but to pronounce tempo- 
 ral curses on the rebellious. He told one who doubted his 
 mission, that he should be convinced" before they met again ; 
 and told another, that he should be dead and in hell in an 
 hour or two. On one occasion, having asserted his power to 
 bless and curse eternally whom he pleased, he said he was 
 poor, and those present must give for the support of the gos- 
 pel, or their money should burn with them in hell. He pre- 
 tended to cast out devils and work other miracles ; and 
 sometimes he drank healths to "King Jesus," and to "the 
 King of kings and Lord of lords." Woodbury received no 
 countenance from any minister except Gilman, and one or 
 two others, who are not named. The venerable senior pas- 
 tor of the First Church in Ipswich, the Rev. John Rogers, 
 testified, that notwithstanding the disturbance thus occasioned 
 for a time, the good work of grace was still going on among 
 his people. 
 
 A communication which immediately follows this state- 
 ment in the Evening Post, is one of the most remarkable 
 pieces of impudence extant. The writer says, he is glad 
 that these " Rev. gentlemen have their eyes so far opened at 
 last, as to declare publicly against such detestable things ;" 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 337 
 
 and adds, " It were to be wished that they, and others ' of 
 their brethren, had been earlier in their opposition." The 
 eyes of these gentlemen had never needed opening to the 
 detestable nature of such things. They had publicly declar- 
 ed against every thing of the kind, in the solemn " Testimo- 
 ny " of July 7, 1743. Some of them had declared publicly 
 against Davenport and his disorders. As for " others of 
 their brethren," Tennent had warned the churches against 
 enthusiasm as early as 1741 ; Parsons had published his 
 "Needful Caution" early in 1742; and many others had 
 fully declared their disapprobation of all "such detestable 
 things " in many ways, besides their united " Testimony " in 
 1743. All these things were quite as " public " as any dis- 
 orders had been ; and yet the writer would have men believe 
 that these gentlemen and their brethren had always been blind 
 to the evil nature of such things till now, and that their pub- 
 lic declaration against them was something new. The fact 
 that such an insinuation was thus publicly made, shows that 
 there was a class of men who were ready to receive it as 
 truth. 
 
 There were serious contentions and divisions in some of 
 the churches, and separations from them ; though there is no 
 reason to believe the oft-repeated assertion, that the land was 
 full of such cases. 
 
 A council from ten churches was convened at Exeter, 
 January 31, 1743. It appears from their published result, 
 that ",a considerable number of the brethren "had withdrawn 
 from the communion of the church, and had called a council, 
 which had met, and sanctioned their proceedings ; which, in 
 the opinion of the council now called, ought not to have been 
 done. The " dissatisfied brethren " assigned several reasons 
 for withdrawing. One was, the refusal of the pastor to ad- 
 mit certain preachers into his pulpit ; another was, the con- 
 duct of the pastor, in " discountenancing such as had been 
 the subjects of a glorious Work of grace." A third was, the 
 settlement of the pastor. Rev. Woodbridge Odlin, whom 
 they regarded as an opposer of the work of God, and the 
 validity of whose settlement they disputed. A fourth was, 
 the pastor's refusal to call a church meeting, except on cer- 
 tain conditions which the brethren thought objectionable, and 
 "which the usages of that church did not authorize him, to re- 
 quire. The "dissatisfied brethren" refused to unite in call- 
 29 
 
338 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 ipg this council of ten churches ; and the council, after hear- 
 ing an ex parte statement, sustained the pastor and "standing 
 brethren."* 
 
 The Rev. Ezra Carpenter, pastor of the Church in Hull, 
 was one of the signers of the " Testimony" of July, 1743 ; 
 yet some of his people were dissatisfied, because, as they 
 thought, he did not preach the doctrines of grace, and was 
 an opposer of the revival. A council was called in 1743, 
 which advised the church to remain at peace with its pastor, 
 as there was no reason for dissatisfaction. This result pro- 
 cured only a partial and temporary peace. The discontent 
 revived, and Mr. Carpenter was dismissed in 1746. Mr. 
 Eells, of Hingham, was moderator of both councils, f 
 
 There were difficulties in the- Second Church in Bradford ; 
 but the " Brief Narrative" of the aggrieved brethren, does 
 not show what connexion they had with the revival. They 
 accused Mr. Balch, their pastor, of Arminianism. H6 told 
 Ichabod Cheney, " if you think my principles to be errone- 
 ous, you ought to prove them so." Cheney brought forward 
 his charges in writing, March 10, 1744, with written testi- 
 mony to support them ; but some informality was alleged 
 against his mode of proceeding, and he and his witnesses 
 were put under censure. They proposed a mutual council. 
 Mr. Balch objected, that a council would decide according 
 to its party predilections. A council was called, selected 
 by Mr. Balch and his friends. It sustained him and the 
 church against the aggrieved brethren. They invited the 
 First Church in Gloucester, who were thorough-going friends 
 of the revival, to take up the subject ; but the church in 
 Bradford refused to hear them, and nothing was effected. J 
 Mr. Balch, Tucker of Newbury, Barnard of Haverhill, and 
 others in that region, were known as Arrainians.§ In 1746, 
 Balch was engaged in a public controversy in defence of Ar- 
 minianism, against Wigglesworth of Ipswich and Chipman 
 of Beverly. There can be no doubt, that the difficulties in 
 Bradford were aggravated and hastened to a crisis, by the 
 state of mind which the revival produced. 
 
 The troubles in the Second Church in Ipswich, of which 
 the Rev. Theophilus Pickering was pastor, manifestly grew 
 
 * O. S. Ch. Lib. * Boston Gazette, Dec. 16, 1746. 
 
 ("Brief Narrative." O. S. Ch Lib. 
 
 § Historical Sketch of Haverhill, Mass. Hist. Soc. Col. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 339 
 
 out of the revival, and ended in a division of tlie church. 
 As early as the beginning of 1742, some of his people were 
 dissatisfied with his conduct in respect to the revival, and 
 wished him to engage in promoting it. Meetings were held 
 in the parish, attended by the Rev. Messrs. White of Glou- 
 cester, Emerson of Maiden, Nathaniel and Daniel Rogers; 
 and probably by others. -Pickering wrote to Nathaniel Rog- 
 ers, and published his letters, complaining that they preached 
 in his parish without his consent.* March 12, 1744, twenty- 
 six members presented a remonstrance to the church against 
 the pastor, containing fourteen specifications under three gen- 
 eral heads ; and on the 27th of April, a second was present- 
 ed, containing eight new specifications. Not obtaining satis- 
 faction, they separated from the church, and finally became 
 the Fourth, Church in Ipswich, over whom the Rev. John 
 Cleaveland, whose expulsion from Yale College has already 
 been mentioned, was settled in 1747. The twenty-two spe- 
 cifications were laid before a council called by the Second 
 Church, which met May 20 and June 10, 1746. One of 
 the charges was, " Your not being instant, in season and out 
 of season, in the work of God ; and that, when God's Holy 
 Spirit hath so wonderfully been poured out upon many per- 
 sons in many places, and in yours in particular, you did not 
 close with its operations, and so be instrumentally a -promoter 
 of God's work upon the hearts of his people under your care ; 
 but contrariwise, so treated the work of God and the subjects 
 thereof, styling it enthusiasm and imagination, as if it might 
 proceed from a distempered brain, or conceit in the mind." 
 On this the council judged, " That the Rev. Mr. Pickering 
 has been wanting in his ministerial duty, in the late times, in 
 his not early and thoroughly examining into the nature of the 
 religious appearances among his flock, whereby he might 
 have been better enabled to distinguish between things holy 
 and profane ; and that he has too much neglected the in- 
 structing and guiding the subjects of those operations, inso- 
 much that, we fear, he is in some measure chargeable with 
 the irregularities which have happened among them." An- 
 other charge was, "Your not examining into the experiences 
 of those that have offered themselves to join with the church 
 in full communion, as you ought." The council say, " We 
 
 * See the Correspondence, already quoted. 
 
340 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 fear that Mr. Pickering in some instances has been negligent 
 in his duty of examining persons in order to their admission 
 to the Lord's Table." Several of the charges related to a 
 transaction, of which the account is very imperfect. It ap- 
 pears, hovi'ever, that, in April, 1744, during a conversation 
 with some of his parishioners, something had been said of 
 his " losing a parish ;" that he took minutes of the conversa- 
 tion, complained of them to the Grand Jury, and urged their 
 presentment ; and that he demanded of them sufficient secu- 
 rity, to refund all damages that might in any way arise to him 
 in consequence of their conduct. The council judged that 
 on this point the aggrieved had just cause of offence, and 
 that Mr. Pickering had made Christian satisfaction. They 
 judged also that the aggrieved had had " hard treatment," 
 in respect to several applications for church meetings and 
 councils. On other charges, affecting Mr. Pickering's or- 
 thodoxy and ministerial character, they found "no just cause 
 of offence ;" and on the whole, that he was "not guilty, in 
 general, according to the tenor of the charges brought against 
 him by his aggrieved brethren." They pronounced the con- 
 duct of the aggrieved} in withdrawing from the communion 
 of the church, setting up a separate meeting, and inviting 
 
 Sersons of doubtful character, coming to them in a disorder- 
 / manner, to teach them from time to time, unjustifiable, 
 and worthy of the censure of the church ; though they rec- 
 ommended " great tenderness, and even long-suffering," in 
 dealing with them. One of the ministers, it was said, did 
 not vote for this result, as he thought it too severe on Mr. 
 Pickering ; and three ministers and three messengers protest- 
 ed against it, as too lenient towards him, and too severe on 
 the aggrieved ; though they disapproved the separation. 
 The venerable John White, of Gloucester, was moderator, 
 and all the ministers, except two, were signers of the Testi- 
 mony of July, 1743.* 
 
 In such a state of things as these specimens indicate, Wh jtei-. 
 fiel d returned to Nf;w ^"g'fi"'^! A.fter a voyage of elev en 
 \ yeeks, he arrived at York, in Maine,! October 19, 17 44 . 
 
 * See Pamphlets on the Chebacco Controversy, in the Q. S, Ch. Lib. and 
 AthentBum. 
 
 t Gillies says, " at New York, in New England." Philip, in his account 
 of Whitefleld's landing, gives the name correctly ; but in another part of 
 his work (p. 254) calls it " Toronto ;" confounding the place with Toronto 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 341 
 
 Owing to some slight imprudence, he became unwell before 
 landing, and violently and dangerously sick soon after. By 
 the sedulous attention of his host, a physic i an, once a noted 
 deisT71) ut now one of his spiritual children, he obtained re - 
 lie fafter four days, and from that time gradually imp roved . 
 T he good Mr. Moody called upon him, and said. " Sir, y ou 
 ar e, first, welcome to Arnic a ; secondly, to New Eng land ; 
 thirdly , to all faithlu llminist.ers in New England : fourth ly, 
 t o all the good people in New England ; fifthly, to all the 
 g ood people of Y ork.j and sixthly an d lastly, to me, d ear 
 Sir, less t han the least ofall." The " Christian History" 
 announced his arrival, and added, " that his intention was, to 
 pass on to Georgia ; and, as he goes on, to meddle with no 
 controversies, but only to preach up the parts of vital piety 
 and the pure truths of the gospel, to all that are willing to hear 
 them." AtJ ^r. Moody's earnest request, after some h esi- 
 tat ion, he prsachfid , and immediately went to Portsmou th, 
 Novembe r 6. He preached that evening for Mr. Fitch, and 
 was to have preached the next morning, but was too ill, 
 and deferred it till afternoon. His audiences were large, at- 
 tentive, and affected. In the evening, his malady returned,* 
 and confined him at Portsmouth till November 24. 
 
 in Upper Canada, which was once called York. British poets, however, 
 must bear the palm for blunders of this kind. See how Montgomery, in 
 his " Greenland," describes the country on the St. Lawrence. 
 
 " Regions of beauty there these rovers found, 
 The flowery hills with emerald woods were crowned ; 
 Spread o'er tiie vast savannas, buffalo herds 
 
 Ranged without master. 
 
 Here from his mates a German youth had strayed, 
 Where the broad river cleft the forest glade ; 
 Swarming with alligator shoals, the flood 
 Blazed in the sun, or moved in clouds of blood ; 
 The wild boar rustled headlong through the brake." 
 
 Alligators in the St. Lawrence ! and buffaloes feeding in the savannas on 
 its, banks! He might as well confound England with Egypt; fill the 
 Thames with crocodiles, and make the hippopotamus feed on its shores 
 among the papyrus. Campbell, who says, that Americans cannot write 
 poetry, is quite as bad. In his "Gertrude of Wyoming," he makes the 
 Oneida Indians, in Western New York, hunt not only the alligator, but 
 the condor, which is found only on the Andes, in South America. He is 
 equally wrong, though more excusable, where he makes his Oneidas call a 
 spirit, " Manitou," like their more northern neighbours. The Iroquois 
 have no labials in their language. They think it ridiculous for a man to 
 " shut up his mouth when he goes to talk." 
 
 • Shurtlefl; Chr. Hist. II. 320. Whitefield's own dates, here, seem to be 
 in peculiar confusion ; owing, perhaps, to his sickness. [ , 
 
 29 * "' ' ' 
 
343 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 It must have been of his second day at Portsmouth, that, 
 he wrote : " My pains returned ; but what gave me most 
 concern was, that notice had been given of my being to 
 preach. I felt a divine life, distinct from my animal life, 
 which made me, as it were, laugh at my pains, though every 
 one thought I was ' taken with death.' My dear York phy- 
 sician was then about to administer a medicine. I, on a 
 sudden, cried out. Doctor, my pains are suspended ; by the 
 help of God, I will go and preach, and then come home and 
 die. With some difficulty I reached the pulpit. All looked 
 quite surprised, as though they saw one risen from the dead. 
 I, indeed, was as pale as death, and told them they must look 
 upon me as a dying man, come to bear my dying testimony 
 to the truths I had formerly preached to them. All seemed 
 melted, and were drowned in tears. The cry after me, 
 when I left the pulpit, was like the cry of sincere mourn- 
 ers, when attending the funeral of a dear departed friend. 
 Upon my coming home, I was laid on a bed upon the ground, 
 near the fire, and I heard them say, 'he is, gone.' But God 
 >vas pleased to order it otherwise. I gradually recovered." 
 
 The day before he left Portsmouth, Shurtleff wrote : 
 " The prejudices of most that set themselves against him be- 
 fore his coming, seem to be in a great measure abated, and 
 in some, to be wholly removed ; and there is no open opposi- 
 tion made to him. I have frequent opportunities of being 
 with him, and there always appears in him such a concern 
 for the advancement of the Redeemer's kingdom and the 
 good of souls, such a care to employ his whole time to these 
 purposes, such sweetness of disposition, and so much of the 
 temper of his great Lord and Master, that every time I see 
 him, I find my heart further drawn out towards him." 
 
 " Saturday, November 24," says the " Christian History " 
 of December 15, "the Rev. Mr. Whitefield was so far re- 
 vived as to be able to take coach, with his consort, and set 
 out from Portsmouth to Boston ; whither he came, in a very 
 feeble state, the Monday evening after : since which he has 
 been able to preach in several of our largest houses of pub- 
 lic worship, particularly the Rev. Dr. Colman's, Dr. Sew- 
 all's, Mr. Webb's, and Mr. Gee's, to crowded assembhes of 
 people, and to great and growing acceptance. At Dr. Col- 
 man's desire, and the consent o? the church, on the Lord's 
 day after his arrival, he administered to them the holy com- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 343 
 
 munion. And last Lord's day he preached fox the venerable 
 Mr. Cheever, of Chelsea, and administered the Holy Sup- 
 per there. The next day preached for the Rev. Mr. Emer- 
 son of Maiden. Yesterday he set out to preach at sorae 
 towns to the northward ; proposes to return hither the next 
 Wednesday evening, and, after a few days., to comply with 
 the earnest invitations of several ministers, to go and preach 
 to their congregations, in the southern parts of the province. 
 
 " He comes with the same extraordinary spirit of meek- 
 ness, sweetness, and universal benevolence as before : in 
 opposition to the spirit of separation and bigotry, is still for 
 holding communion with all Protestant churches. In oppo- 
 sition to enthusiasm, he preaches a close adherence to the 
 Scriptures, the necessity of trying all impressions by them, 
 and of rejecting whatever is not agreeable to them, as delus- 
 ions. In opposition to Antinomianism, he preaches up all 
 kinds of relative and religious duties, though to be perform- 
 ed in the strength of Christ ; and, in short, the doctrines of 
 the Church of England, and the first fathers of this country. 
 As before, he first applies himself to the understandings of 
 his hearers, and then to the afiections : and the more he 
 preaches, the more he convinces people of their mistakes 
 about him, and increases their satisfaction." 
 
 The administration of the Lord's Supper by a priest of 
 the Church of England in the Congregational Church at 
 Brattle street, gave offence. Some said, that the consent of 
 the church was neither given nor asked, and Dr. Colman 
 was blamed for introducing Whitefield by his own authority. 
 Dr. Colman's defence was, that as it was customary for pas- 
 tors to invite the assistance of other ministers on such occa- 
 sions, he thought it unnecessary to call for a vote of the 
 church ; that he plainly intimated his intention in his prayer 
 after sermon, and then, on coming to the table, said, 
 " The Rev. Mr. Whitefield being providentially with us, 
 I have asked him to administer the ordinance ;" and that, by 
 the countenances of the people, it seemed to be universally 
 agreeable to them, which he supposed to be all the consent 
 which the case required. Certainly Dr. Colnian was not to 
 be severely blamed for such a proceeding ; and the account 
 fully exonerates Whitefield from the charge afterwards 
 brought against him, of violating ecclesiasticaL order on this 
 
344 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 occasion. He had a right to consider Dr. Colman's invita- 
 tion as sufficient proof of the orderliness of the service.* 
 
 Meanwhile, opposition had been shovfing itself, and pre- 
 paring to act publicly and officially. The propriety of invit- 
 ing him into the pulpit had been discussed in private corre- 
 spondence, and anonymously in the newspapers. A writer in 
 the Boston Evening Post, of November 19, insisted, that 
 before being invited into any pulpit, he should be required to 
 show himself penitent for his itinerancy, to retract his slan- 
 ders, especially against Archbishop Tillotson, to acknowledge 
 his injurious treatment of the Boston ministers, especially in 
 sending Mr. Tennent to insult them, and to render a fair 
 and just account of the money he had received for his or- 
 phan house. Some of the articles were evidently mahcious, 
 and even mean. One of them upbraided Whitefield with 
 his wife's non-attendance at a certain lecture, at which, how- 
 ever, as it afterwards appeared, she was present. One of 
 the most respectable was in the Evening Post of Decem- 
 ber 17. The writer says of Whitefield: " Indeed, he 
 seems to be more cautious than formerly, and so refrains his 
 lips from speaking all the gross things, which were so shock- 
 ing to all serious and thinking persons ; and he insists some- 
 thing more upon the substantial and useful doctrines and du- 
 ties of religion. But an express and full acknowledgment 
 of his faults, and an honest testimony against bad principles 
 and uncharitable speeches and disorderly walking, is still alto- 
 gether wanting, and therefore every thing else he says or 
 does can have little or no good effect : the evil will still re- 
 main the same that it was." Such was the general strain of 
 the more serious and gentlemanly writers. They maintained, 
 that the whole tribe of itinerants, exhorters and Separatists 
 still claimed him as on their side ; and they demanded some 
 pubhc declaration from his pen, which should compel them 
 to abandon that claim. He, however, relied on the effect of 
 his present unobjectionable labors, and no such declaration 
 appeared. 
 
 At length, organized opposition commenced. First ap- 
 peared " A Letter from Two Neighbouring Associations of 
 
 * President Quincy, in his History of Harvard College, represents Dr. 
 Colman as one of the " Liberal " party in the ministry of that day, in dis- 
 tinction from the " high Calvinists," who invited and sustained Whitefield. 
 He nowhere intimates that Colman and Whitefield had any intercourse. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKBjVING. 345 
 
 Ministers in the Country, to the Associated Ministers of Bos- 
 ton and Charlestown, relating to the admission of Mr. White- 
 field into their Pulpits."* It was dated December 26, 
 1744. The merabers of the first of the two associations 
 were Caleb Cushing, of Salisbury ; Joseph Whipple, of 
 Hampton Falls ; John Lowell, of Newbury ; Pain Win- 
 gate, of Amesbury ; Jeremiah Fogg, of Kensington ; Na- 
 thaniel Gookin, of North Hampton, N. H. ; Elisha Odiin, 
 of Amesbury ; Peter Coffin, of Kingston ; William Par- 
 sons, of South Hampton, N. H. ; and Samuel Webster, of 
 Sahsbury. The members of the second were John Bar- 
 nard, of Andover ; Joseph Parsons and William Balch, of 
 Bradford ; James Cushing, of Haverhill ; Christopher Ser- 
 geant, of Methuen ; William Johnson, of Newbury ; John 
 Cushing, of Boxford ; Thomas Barnard, of Newbury, and 
 Edward Barnard, of Haverhill. They disclaim all desire to 
 dictate to the Boston ministers what preachers they should 
 receive, and justify their public remonstrance on this occa- 
 sion by saying, that the consequences of Mr. Whitefield's 
 admission would not be confined to the churches whom he 
 was permitted to address, but would be public and extensive, 
 affecting the interests of other ministers and churches. 
 They assume, as an undisputed truth, that great and grievous 
 disorders had prevailed among the churches, through the in- 
 fluence of itinerants. They ask : " Brethren, are you satis- 
 fied Mr. Whitefield approves not of these disorders ? Is 
 he against separations ? Is he an enemy to enthusiasm .'' — 
 And why have you not imparted the grounds of your satis- 
 faction, if you have received any, to the public .'' — Do you 
 find in him a disposition to the most plain Christian duty, of 
 humbly confessing and publicly retracting his wicked and 
 slanderous suggestions concerning the ministry, and concern- 
 ing our colleges, so much our glory ? Have you prevailed 
 with him to make full satisfaction to the injured ? Has he 
 done it, or is he doing it ? Do you find him inclined to heal 
 the unhappy divisions occasioned by his former visit ? Can 
 you learn whether we are to be united in affection and Chris- 
 tian communion, or whether some one party is not, if pos- 
 sible, to prevail upon the ruin of the rest .'' " They avow 
 their belief, that his former visit had done more harm than 
 
 * O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 
346 THE GKEAT AWAKENING. 
 
 good. They inquire, "Have you not, by opening your 
 pulpit doors to this gentleman, encouraged and spirited up 
 the weaker sort of people to expect the like of their minis- 
 ters .'' — And can any thing perplex their conduct, more 
 than yours, in asking Mr. Whitefield to preach ; as it must 
 undoubtedly create much disaffection to them, in many of 
 their people, for refusing him .'' " They urged, that as coun- 
 tenancing Mr. Whitefield would have an extensive influence, 
 and greatly affect ministers and churches throughout the land, 
 it ought not to have been done without previously consulting, 
 by some general meeting or method, those whom it must af- 
 fect ; that it was wrong for a few thus virtually to determine 
 for all, in a case of common and universal concern ; and 
 that, even after consultation, he ought not to have been ad- 
 mitted, unless there was a prospect that it could be done 
 without endangering the peace of the churches. And finally, 
 they besought all who had not taken this ' step, seriously to 
 consider the dangers and mischiefs to which it might lead, 
 and to present an unshaken opposition to the sohcitations of 
 those who should urge them into it. 
 
 To this was appended an extract from the records of 
 another Association, which met at Cambridge, January 1, 
 1745 : — 
 
 " Present, the Rev. Messrs. John Hancock, of Lexington ; Wil- 
 liam WiUiains, of Weston ; John Cotton, of Newton ; Nathaniel Ap- 
 pleton, of Cambridge ; Warham Williams, of Waltham ; Seth Storer, 
 of Watertown ; Ebenezer Turell, of Medford ; Nicholas Bowes, of 
 Bedford, and Samuel Cook, of Cambridge. 
 
 " The Rev. Mr. Appleton having applied to his brethren of the said 
 Association for our advice, relating to a request which hath been made 
 to him by a number of his church and congregation, that he would 
 invite the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield to preach in Cambridge; — 
 After supplications to God, and mature consideration of the case pro- 
 posed, and the several pleas made in favor of said request, and the 
 state of the town, as also the many weighty objections which lie against 
 the said Mr. Whitefield with respect to his principles, expressions and 
 conduct, which are not yet answered, nor has any Christian satisfac- 
 tion been given by him for them : considering also how much the 
 order, peace and edification of the churches of this land are endan- 
 gered, together with the divided, unhappy state of many of them, 
 
 " It was unanimously voted. That it is not advisable, under the 
 present situation of things, that the Rev. Mr. Appleton invite the Rev. 
 Mr. Whitefield to preach in Cambridge. 
 
 " And they accordingly declared, each of them for themselves re- 
 spectively, that they would not invite the said gentleman into their 
 pulpits." 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 347 
 
 This advice was signed by each member of the Associa- 
 tion, and attested by John Hancocii, Moderator. 
 
 Of the signers of the letter to the Boston pastors, several 
 appear to have been decided opposers of the revival, in all its 
 stages, and the name of no one of them is found among its 
 friends. The Association which gave advice to Appleton 
 was, at least in part, of a different character. The part act- 
 ed and the declaration made by Williams of Weston at the 
 General Convention in 1743, should certainly rescue his 
 name from the list of opposers. Appleton's sermon on the 
 same occasion shows where he stood.* Cotton and Tur- 
 ell were signers of the Testimony of July, 1743, and Ap- 
 pleton sent in his Attestation, to be published with its doings. 
 Turell was an early and influential promoter of the revival, 
 and the first " outcries " in the region around him occurred 
 among his own people, under his own preaching. Cotton's 
 character is also fully vindicated by his " Earnest Exhorta- 
 tion to seek the Lord while he may be found, and call upon 
 him while he is near ;" being " Two Sermons, delivered at 
 the Lecture in Newton, April 29^ and May 8, 1741, when 
 many were seeking for direction and assistance under their 
 convictions from the Spirit of God striving with them." f 
 In a note appended to these sermons, he states, that more 
 than three hundred young people of his charge, besides 
 many advanced in years, had lately visited him as serious in- 
 quirers. In the close of the second sermon, he bears decided 
 testimony in favor of the revival, as it existed in neighbour- 
 ing towns, and in other colonies ; and the sermons them- 
 selves were wise and able efforts to promote, it. They were 
 delivered a little more than seven months after Whitefield's 
 first arrival in Boston. — Such were four out of the nine, 
 who subscribed the advice and pledge at Cambridge. 
 
 The "Testimony" of the Faculty of Harvard College, 
 " against the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield and his conduct," 
 was dated December 28, 1744. J THr Faculty say : "We 
 look upon his going about in an itinerant way, especially as 
 he hath so much of an enthusiastical turn of mind, utterly in- 
 consistent with the peace and order, if not the very being, of 
 these churches of Christ. And now, inasmuch as, by a cer- 
 tain faculty he hath of raising the passions, he hath been the 
 
 * See Chapter XVI. t O. S. Ch. Lib. t O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 
348 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 means of rousing many from their stupidity, and setting them 
 on thinking, whereby some may have been made really better, 
 on which account the people, many of them, are strongly at- 
 tached to him, (though it is most evident that he hath not any 
 superior talent at instructing the mind, or showing the force 
 and energy of those arguments for a religious life which are 
 directed to in the everlasting gospel,) therefore," to meet 
 prejudices in his favor, they give the reasons for their Testi- 
 riiony. 
 
 First, they charged him with "enthusiasm;" meaning by 
 an enthusiast, "one that acts either according to dreams, or 
 some sudden impulses and impressions upon his mind, which 
 he fondly imagines to be from the Spirit of God, persuading 
 and inclining him thereby to such and such actions ; though 
 he bath no proof that such persuasions or impressions are 
 from the Holy Spirit." This they sustained by numerous 
 quotations from his journals and other writings. Some of 
 their proofs were unanswerable. Others were made by put- 
 ting a worse construction upon his words than was necessary, 
 though not worse, perhaps, than had been put upon them by 
 some of his admirers. For example, they quoted from his 
 sermon on the "Indwelling of the Spirit," the words, "to talk 
 of any having the Spirit of God without feeling it, is really to 
 deny the thing." This, they express their fear, "has led 
 some to take the expression literally, and hath given great 
 satisfaction to many an enthusiast among us since the year 
 1740, from the swelling of their breasts and stomachs in their 
 religious agitations, which they have thought to he feeling the 
 Spirit, in its operations on them." There is no reason to 
 suppose that Whitefield understood the word in that sense, 
 or to doubt thai it was so understood by some of his enthu- 
 siastic followers. 
 
 They next charged him with being " an uncharitable, cen- 
 sorious and slanderous man." In proof, they refer to " his 
 monstrous reflections upon the great and good Archbishop 
 Tillotson," and quote from his Journal, where he says he 
 was obliged to tell Commissary Garden he believed he was 
 an unconverted man. " But what," they ask, "obliged him 
 to tell all the world of it in his Journal .-' " They refer to his 
 "reproachful reflections" on Harvard College, in his Jour- 
 nal, "where are observable, his rashness and his arrogance. 
 His rashness, in publishing such a disadvantageous character 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 349 
 
 of US, because somebody had so informed him. Surely he 
 ought, if he had followed our Saviour's rule, to have had 
 greater certainty of the truth of what he published of us to 
 the whole world. But his arrogance is more flagrant still ; 
 that such a young man as he, should take upon him to tell 
 what books we should allow our pupils to read. But then he 
 goes further, when he says, of Yale College as well as ours, 
 ' As for the universities, I believe it may be said, their 
 light is now become darkness, darkness that may be felt.' 
 What a deplorable state of immorality and irreligbn has he 
 hereby represented us to be in ! And as this is a most wick- 
 ed and libellous falsehood, (at least as to our College,) as 
 such we charge it upon him." They finish this head of his 
 censoriousness, by quoting what he had said of the clergy ; 
 that he was " persuaded the generality of preachers talk of 
 an unknown, unfelt Christ;" and '^Many, nay, most that 
 preach, I fear, do not experimentally know Christ." In 
 view of these things, they pronounce him " an uncharitable, 
 censorious, and slanderous man ; guilty of gross breaches of 
 the ninth commandment of the moral law, and an evident 
 disregard to the laws of Christian charity, as they are deliv- 
 ered to us in the New Testament. And now," they ask, 
 ">is it possible that we should not look upon him as the 
 blamable cause of all the quarrels on account of religion, 
 which the churches are now engaged in .' And this, not only 
 on account of his own behaviour, but also as the coming in of 
 those hot mqn* amongst us afterwards, (who, together with 
 the exhorters that accompanied them, cultivated the same 
 uncharitable disposition in our churches,) was wholly owing 
 to his influence and example." 
 
 They next bear testimony against him as "a deluder of 
 the people," in the affair of contributions for the orphan 
 house. He had made the people believe, that the orphans 
 were to be under his own immediate instruction, and encour- 
 ag64 them to expect that some of them would in time preach 
 the gospel to the people here, or to their children, and this 
 made them willing to contribute; but "he has scarce been 
 there for these four years ; and besides, hath left the care of 
 
 * " The Tennents," Philip says, in his "Life and Times of Whitefield ;" but 
 only one Tennent came, and he was not accompanied by exhorters. The 
 allusion is not to Tennent, but to such men as Davenport, and Croswell 
 and Buel, and others of less character, who are deservedly forgotten. 
 
 30 
 
350 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 them with a person whom these contributors know nothing 
 of, and we ourselves have reason to believe, is Jittle better 
 than a Quaker." This person was Barber, Davenport's 
 early friend, vpho m^t Whitefield at Newport. They thought 
 him " little better than a Quaker," because he followed im- 
 pressions instead of the written word of God. They pro- 
 nounced Whitefield's account of disbursements unsatisfactory, 
 because several charges of large amount were "for sundries, 
 no mention being made therein what the sum was expended 
 for, nor to whom it was paid." 
 
 Such were their objections against the man. They also 
 bore testimony "against his manner of preaching." 
 
 First, they thought his extempore manner of preaching 
 " by no means proper," because extempore preachers are, 
 of necessity, less instructive, the greater part of the sermon 
 being commonly " the same kind of harangue which they 
 have often used before, — so that this is a most lazy manner " 
 of preaching ; and because it exposes the preacher to utter 
 rash expressions, and even dangerous errors, as Whitefield 
 had done in several instances, probably from that cause. 
 
 " But lastly," they say, "we think it our duty to bear our 
 strongest testimony against that itinerant way of preaching, 
 which this gentleman was the first promoter of amongst us, 
 and still delights to continue in. — Now, by an itinerant 
 preacher, we understand one that hath no particular charge 
 of his own, but goes about from country to country, or from 
 town to town in any country, and stands ready to preach to 
 any congregation that shall call him to it. And such an one 
 is Mr. Whitefield ; for it is but trifiing for him to say, as we 
 hear he hath, that he requires, in order to his preaching any- 
 where, that the minister also should invite him to it ; for he 
 knows the populace have such an itch after him, that when 
 they greatly desire it, the minister (however diverse from 
 theirs his own sentiments may be) will always be in the ut- 
 most danger of his people's quarrelling with, if not departing 
 from him, should he not consent to their impetuous desires." 
 An itinerant, too, must be an exciting preacher, or he would 
 not find employment ; and when he has excited the passions 
 of his hearers, can instil into them almost any doctrine he is 
 pleased to broach, however erroneous ; as had been done by 
 the itinerants who followed Whitefield, " and thrust them- 
 selves into towns and parishes, to the destruction of all peace 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 351 
 
 and order." " But which is worse, and is the natural effect 
 of these things, the people have thence been- ready to despise 
 their own ministers ; and their usefulness among them, in too 
 many places, hath been almost destroyed." Nor could Mr. 
 Whitefield pretend that he was acting in the scriptural office 
 of an evangelist ; though he seemed to prepare the way for 
 it, where, in his journal of his voyage to England after his 
 former visit, he said, " God seems to show me it is my duty 
 to evangelize, and not to fix in any particular place." For, 
 they argue, "the duty of that officer certainly was not to go 
 preaching, of his own head, from one church to another, 
 where officers were already settled, and the gospel fully and 
 faithfully preached ;" and to suppose that such an officer was 
 needed to labor among churches supplied with faithful and 
 able pastors, would be to suppose that Christ, through inca- 
 pacity or unfaithfulness, had failed to appoint the necessary 
 officers in the ministry. 
 
 They conclude, by recommending to pastors, " to advise 
 with each other in their several Associations, and consider 
 whether it be not high time to make a stand against the mis- 
 chiefs which we have here suggested as coming upon the 
 churches." — This was signed by the President and whole 
 Faculty. 
 
 What the greater part of the Faculty thought of the revi- 
 val at first, is not known. Wigglesworth, Hollis Professor 
 of Divinity, was a thorough Calvinist, and probably favored 
 it. The feelings of the President, Holyoke, were unequiv- 
 ocally expressed in his Convention sermon,* May 28, 1741. 
 " And though religion is still in fashion with us, yet it is evi- 
 dent that the power of it is greatly decayed. Indeed, those 
 two pious and valuable men of God,f who have been laboring 
 more abundantly among us, have been greatly instrumental, 
 in the hands of God, to revive this blessed work ; and many, 
 no doubt, have been savingly converted from the error of 
 their ways, many more have been convicted, and all have 
 been in some measure roused from their lethargy. But the 
 power of i-eligion had been greatly weakened, and hath for a 
 long time been too much in show and profession only." He 
 had then seen the revival in progress for more than eight 
 
 * O, S. Ch. Lib. 
 
 t " IVIr. Whitefield and Mr. Tennent," is Prince's marginal annotation. 
 
352 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 months. He had also read Whitefield's Journal, and alludes 
 to what he said of the College, in these words : " I can, 
 from my own examination of things, assure this venerable 
 assembly that that society hath not deserved the aspersions 
 which have of late been made upon it, either as to the prin- 
 ciples there prevalent, or the books there read ; and though 
 such as have given out a disadvantageous report of us in 
 these respects, I doubt not, have done it in a godly jealousy 
 for the churches of Christ, that are to be supplied from us, 
 yet, blessed be God, they are at least mistaken herein ; nor 
 has that society been in so happy a state as to these things, 
 from the time that I was first acquainted with the principles 
 there, which must be allowed to be the space of four or five 
 and thirty years at least, as it is at this day." 
 
 These passages show, that Holyoke did not sign this 
 " Testimony " because he was a " a cold man," or an enemy 
 to the revival, or out of revenge for Whitefield's remarks on 
 the College. Those remarks, though he felt their injustice, 
 he forgave, in consideration of the good motive which he 
 ascribed to their author, whom he still regarded as a " pious 
 and valuable man of God." The secret of his change can 
 be explained. 
 
 When Whitefield first arrived at Boston, he came at the 
 invitation of several of the leading pastors and others, to la- 
 bor a few weeks with them and for them. This kind of 
 " itinerancy," if it might be called by that name, had always 
 been practised and approved in New England. It continued 
 to be practised, without objection, during this revival, by 
 Edwards and others. After Whitefield's return to England, 
 he published the declaration already quoted from his Journal : 
 " God seems to show me it is my duty to evangelize, and 
 not to fix in any particular place." At first, partiality for its 
 author prevented any unfavorable interpretation of this lan- 
 guage ; but experience at length taught the public what it 
 meant. The evangelizing was to be performed, not in re- 
 gions where Christ had not been named, or where there was 
 a destitution of the means of grace, h|ut among old and es- 
 tablished churches, even if supplied with able and faithful 
 pastors. A divine command to evangelize in such places, 
 evidently implied a divine command to pastors and people in 
 such places, to welcome his evangelical labors ; so that 
 whenever he should come, none could refuse him without 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 353 
 
 being guilty of rebellion against God. Whitefield may not 
 have been fully aware of the import of his claim ; but Da- 
 venport and his associates understood it, and felt equally sure 
 that God had called them also to evangelize in the same 
 style. They went forth accordingly, and demanded admis- 
 sion into churches where they had not been invited. If the 
 pastor refused to welcome them, they appealed at once to 
 his people, denounced him as an enemy of the work of God 
 and a child of the devil, who was leading them blindfold to 
 hell, and called upon them to separate from him. Regard 
 for ecclesiastical order being thus trampled under foot, there 
 was nothing to hinder laymen from receiving and obeying the 
 same "impressions." A swarm of unordained exhorters ac- 
 companied and followed the ordained itinerants, and penetrat- 
 ed into still other parishes and neighbourhoods, spreading en- 
 thusiasm and confusion wherever they went. And for all 
 this, both the itinerants and exhorters quoted Whitefield's 
 authority. This led to a reconsideration of the whole sub- 
 ject. It was found that Whitefield's language and conduct 
 would bear the construction which his enthusiastic friends 
 had put upon them. His extravagant commendations of Da- 
 venport were remembered. His regard for dreams and im- 
 pulses were called to mind. And then, he was a clergyman 
 of the Church of England, and could not be ,supposed to 
 have any special regard for Congregational church order. 
 Though he must have been informed of the disorders com- 
 mitted under the sanction of his name, he had never denounc- 
 ed them, or authorized any, of his correspondents to do it for 
 him ; and since his return, though frequently called upon to 
 speak, he preserved an unbroken silence, and even allowed 
 the " Christian History " to announce, that he intended to take 
 no part in any of these controversies. From all this, many 
 inferred that he approved the disorders that had been com- 
 mitted, and would labor to promote them ; and others believ- 
 ed that they grew naturally out of faults of which he had been 
 guilty, so that he was, in an important sense, " the blamable 
 cause " of their occurrence ; and that, as he intended to con- 
 tinue. the practice of the same faults, his labors would pro- 
 mote the same eVils. 
 
 The next publication, January 3, 1745, was a letter from 
 the Rev. Nathanael Henchman, pastor of the First Church in 
 Lynn, to the Rev. Stephen Chase, of Lynn End, givina; his 
 30* 
 
354 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 reasons for declining to admit Mr. Whitefield into his pulpit.* 
 Though the work of an individual merely, it deserves notice, 
 as a specimen of the thorough-going opposers of the revival. 
 He speaks of the time, as one " wherein were never more 
 lectures, prayers and sermons, with high pretences to extra- 
 ordinary light and devotion, and, it may be feared, never less 
 vital religion. I confess, Sir," he says, " it is not a little 
 satisfaction to me, that, while I am a sorrowful spectator of 
 the divisions, separations and confusions which took their ori- 
 gin from this gentleman, I have never timorously secreted 
 myself, nor betrayed the cause of Christ, by giving place to 
 strolling itinerants and swarms of mean animals called ex- 
 horters, who are protected by their notorious ignorance and 
 brazen impudence, with the countenance of some." His first 
 objection against Whitefield was, his want of good standing 
 in the Church of England, where he had not settled his af- 
 fair with Commissary Garden, and where many refused him 
 their pulpits. The second was, his " slanderous treatment 
 of our colleges." The third was, "the insufferable pride 
 and vanity of the man, with his intemperate, glowing zeal. 
 Who ever equalled him in vain-glorious boasting ! — How 
 frequently doth he publish his peculiar intimacy with heaven !" 
 Fourthly, " his sermons are mostly one set of expression's, 
 from variable texts, addressed more to the passions than the 
 nobler powers of the reasonable mind ; which, if gravely de- 
 livered by another, Mr. Whitefield's admirers would not 
 account fit to entertain Christians." Fifthly, " his frequent 
 changing sides, — (in one country he is a true son of the 
 Church of England, in a second a staunch Presbyterian, and 
 in a third, a strong Congregationalist,) is one argument with 
 me, that his honesty is not to be relied on." — "Sixthly, his 
 listening to dreams, impulses, impressions, inward feelings 
 and secret whispers, as though religion was all extasy, is dan- 
 gerous to the church of God." — " Seventhly, his industri- 
 ous and officious crowding himself into other men's labors, 
 I account a great disorder. Had he a special commission 
 from God, to be a universal and general visitor of the whole 
 church militant, and Christ's vicegerent to determine all ec- 
 clesiastical matters, and could he prove his mission and pro- 
 duce his credentials, the case would be different. But sure 
 
 * O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 355 
 
 I am, our Bible knows no such spiritual overseer and sur- 
 veyor-general of the churches ; nor will his pretences to un- 
 common sanctity, and fancying he is exalted above the ordi- 
 nary clergy, convince the world that Christ hath subjected all 
 his ministers to Mr. Whitefield's authority, and by him to be 
 killed and made alive at pleasure." — Eighthly, he suspected 
 that Whitefield came to prosecute two grand designs. The 
 first was, " to make a purse for himself, by begging with 
 great solemnity for his poor little ones at the orphan house 
 in Georgia, — the most ill projected scheme since darkness 
 was on the face of the deep, to found an orphan house in an 
 infant and expiring colony, and in the heart of an enfemy's 
 country ; though it answered well his mendicant intention." 
 This design he inferred, partly from his neglecting to pub- 
 lish a full account of his disbursements, though often called 
 upon to do it. In the postscript. Written after the account 
 had been published, he objected to it, because he " omitted 
 saying for what and to whom large sums had been paid, and 
 hath offered no vouchers," so that the whole ^ was merely 
 " an abuse on mankind." And he inferred the same design 
 " partly from his preaching mostly in our large towns, and 
 slighting the lesser parishes, where souls are as precious, but 
 ready money not so plenty." The second grand design im- 
 puted to Whitefield was, " to raze the foundation of our 
 churches, and change the religion of New England." This 
 design, "to destroy our ecclesiastical constitution," was 
 inferred " from his striking immediately, and with a bold face, 
 at our standing regular ministry, without regard to their pub- 
 lic character and extensive usefulness. — Had Mr. White- 
 field been employed by a secret hand behind the curtain, I 
 cannot readily conceive he could have embraced a more 
 probable method to subvert our church constitution." As 
 to the pleas, that Whitefield had done much good, and that 
 he was changed for the better. Henchman replied : "I 
 scruple his having done good, but as God may have brought 
 good out of evil ; and at the same time, I believe God hath 
 permitted him to do vastly more evil than good. Nor can I 
 look upon Mr. Whitefield as changed for the better, while 
 the Separatists are sweetly hugged by him, and he continues 
 m the neglect, as hitherto he hath done, of what the plain 
 laws of Christ require of him ; to repair, to the utmost of 
 his power, in a plain, explicit and public manner, the great 
 
356 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 injuries he hath offered to religion, to our colleges, and the 
 character of many valuable gentlemen with us ; and as an 
 honest and upright clergyman of the Church of England, that 
 he make his peace at home, and steadily adhere and preach 
 agreeable to the Thirty-nine Articles, which, lie saith, he 
 proved true from the word of God, before he subscribed 
 them." To " make his peace at home " as the Church of 
 England then was, Whitefield must have preached baptismal 
 regeneration, and justification by decent morals ; and nothing 
 but that, or something equally quieting, would have satisfied 
 Henchman.* 
 
 Next came " The Sentiments and Resolution of an Associ- 
 ation of Ministers, convened at Weymouth, January 15, 1745, 
 concerning the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield. "f I' 's in a bet- 
 ter spirit, or at least in a better style, than any of the preceding, 
 and has some additional thoughts. Having declared their con- 
 currence with the Faculty of Harvard College and the three 
 Associations already mentioned, in the articles exhibited 
 against Mr. Whitefield," they add : " Whatever charity may 
 prompt us to think of the honesty of his design, yet we cannot 
 but disapprove of him as an itinerant preacher. We know not 
 any such officer appointed by Christ, the Head of the chilrch, 
 nor what warrant Mr. Whitefield can plead, besides his ovra 
 impulses and impressions, for his acting in that capacity." 
 They bear testimony " against his enthusiastic spirit," and 
 then proceed to notice some things that had occurred lately. 
 One was, " Mr. Whitefield's conduct with respect to those 
 
 * The History of the First Church in Lynn is instructive. Its qtiiet, if it 
 had ever heen disturbed, became as profound as Henchman himself could 
 wish. It was perfectly free from " intemperate, glowing zeal." It was agi- 
 tated by no feeling about religion that could cause the least disturbance. 
 As a consequence, there was no anxiety about soundness of doctrine, 
 but rather a disposition to receive without questioning the most quieting 
 doctrines that could be preached. The quiet grew deeper and deeper, un- 
 der a succession of Unitarian ministers, till there were but three male mem- 
 bers in the church, and the people were left without a pastor, because 
 there was not feeling enough about religion to raise a minister's salary. 
 While thus destitute, some theological students from Andover visited 
 them, and occasionally performed such labors as the rules of the Seminary 
 permit. The agitating doctrines of grace soon began to produce feeling. 
 Increasing numbers began to care about religion. At length, by the aid 
 of the Massachusetts Missionary Society, an Orthodox pastor was settled, 
 under whom the quiet of others still was disturbed, and the church grew, 
 till they were again able to support a pastor without aid. The minutes 
 of the General Association for 1840 inform us, that it has 166 members, 
 of whom 42 are males, and 250 children and youth in Sabbath School and 
 Bible Class. 
 
 t O. S. Ch. Library. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 857 
 
 persons who cry out in the public assemblies, and are suppos-' 
 ed to be religiously affected by the preaching of the word. 
 This gentleman has said, in one of bis journals, that 'he be- 
 lieves these things come from the devil.' Accordingly at his 
 first preaching in Boston, in this visit, he spake openly to a 
 woman that cried out, desired her to refrain, and added, that 
 ' such things are not for the glory of God.' And several 
 times since, he has in words borne testimony against this dis- 
 turbance, calling it a stratagem of Satan. But it has been 
 observed, especially while he was preaching in the country 
 towns, that upon such an incident be would at once raise his 
 voice, as if he was trying to vie with them in screaming ; and 
 by these means others are affected in the like manner, and the 
 cry waxes louder and louder, till the assembly is thrown into 
 confusion ; and afterwards a pompous account is published 
 to the world, of the power of God, and the visible tokens of 
 his presence in that congregation. — And how much worse 
 is it, if at such a time public thanks have been given to God 
 for the effects of his power and grace,, before he has had any 
 opportunity to converse with the persons thus affected, to know 
 their state of mind." — They were "surprised and grieved," 
 that he, a priest of the Church of England, should administer 
 the Lord's Supper in Congregational churches. — They tes- 
 tified against his preaching, " as having a tendency to pro- 
 mote a spirit of bitterness. He is often crying out of perse- 
 cution ; and has said, that if it were not for the restraints of 
 human laws, the streets would run down with the blood of 
 the saints. At the same time the people think, and per- 
 haps are taught to think, that few or none are saints, but those 
 who adhere to him and his cause. What must be the effect 
 of this, but to raise the most virulent enmity and malice in the 
 hearts of his followers, against those who are called opposers, 
 and to dispose them to treat one another as the most inveterate 
 enemies .'' " — They condemn his practice of singing hymns 
 in the public roads, when riding from town to town ; and 
 finally remark, that in almost every town where he had 
 preached, the consequence had been, more or less alienation 
 between the minister and people ; sometimes the minister 
 and sometimes the people being for him, and the other 
 against him ; whence came contention, and the obstruction 
 of the pastor's usefulness. " Wherefore," they say, "we 
 now declare, each one for himself, that we cannot with a 
 
358 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 good conscience, and therefore will not, directly nor indi- 
 rectly, encourage Mr. Whitefield to pi-each, either publicly 
 or privately, in our respective parishes." 
 
 Of themselves they say : "We are free to acknowledge that 
 some of us, a few years ago, pleased ourselves with the hope- 
 ful prospect of an happy state of the church. But, alas, the 
 many sad effects of an enthusiastic, erroneous and divisive 
 spirit, which have appeared since, chiefly promoted by Mr. 
 Whitefield's itinerancy, and the other gentlemen who followed 
 his steps, now afford a melancholy proof that this judgment 
 was formed too suddenly, and upon too weak evidence. 
 Whatever pleasing scenes the fancies of any of us might then 
 paint to ourselves or others, yet now we are all filled with 
 fearful apprehensions, from the black and thick cloud which 
 hangs over our churches, and threatens their ruin, unless the 
 Sun of Righteousness mercifully appears to dissipate it." 
 They then exhort all " to examine, how far they have been 
 accessory to the present difficulties and confusions," and 
 " beg that none may n|jistake a party spirit for the spirit of the 
 gospel, or imagine that religion consists in either an obstinate 
 attachment or violent opposition to Mr. Whitefield." 
 
 This was signed by Samuel Niles, of Braintree, Modera- 
 tor ; Nathanael Eells, of Scituate; Samuel Brown, of Abing- 
 ton ; Ebenezer Gay, of Hingham ; Daniel Perkins and John 
 Angier, of Bridgewater ; John Taylor, of Milton ; Samuel 
 Dunbar, of Stoughton ; Jonathan Bowman, of Dorchester ; 
 William Smith, of Weymouth ; John Fowle, of Hingham ; 
 and Philip Curtis, of Stoughton. They were, as their own 
 statement implies, of different opinions concerning the revival 
 from the first, and in all probability, differed now concerning 
 its character at the beginning. Eells and Fowle were sign- 
 ers of the Testimony of July, 1743. Perkins invited Ten- 
 nent to his pulpit in 1741, which was a principal means of 
 promoting the revival in Bridgewater. The cautious part 
 acted by Eells, as moderator of the General Convention in 
 1743,* shows something of his views ; and he soon found 
 occasion to express them very definitely. To counteract the 
 influence of all these testimonies against Whitefield, the names 
 of the signers of the Testimony of July 1743 were publish- 
 ed in the newspapers, as witnesses to his great usefulness. 
 
 * See Chaper XVI. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 359 
 
 Eells explained himself thus, in the Evening Post of Februa- 
 ry 4 : " I have been, and still am, of the opinion that there 
 hath been, in several towns in New England, within a few 
 years past, a great revival of religion ; but never was of the 
 opinion, that ' Mr. Whitefield was, under God, the principal 
 means ' of reviving it. — Possibly he may have been an in- 
 strument of doing good to some particular persons that have 
 heard him ; but, according to the best observation that I have 
 been capable of making, I never found reason to think that 
 God made him the principal means of its revival. He hath, 
 if I am not much mistaken,- been the means of much censori- 
 ousness, confusion and disorder, in one place and another ; 
 and I verily believe that God, in judgment^ and not in mercy 
 to this people, hath sent him again into this country." 
 
 To the publication of this Association was added a note, 
 in which the Rev. Messrs. Nehemiah Walter, of the First 
 Church in Roxbury ; James Allen, of the church in Brook- 
 line ; and Natbanael Walter, of the Second Church in Rox- 
 bury, express their approbation of whjt had been published 
 by the College Faculty and the three Associations; and their 
 determination not to invite Mr. Whitefield, or any other itin- 
 erant, into their pulpits. Nehemiah Walter was the venera- 
 ble Puritan, the successor of Eliot, whom Whitefield visited at 
 Roxbury, soon after his first arrival at Boston. According 
 to his Journal, the interview was highly satisfactory to both. 
 Allen of Brookline signed the Testimony of July, 1743, and 
 sent an account of the revival among his people to Cooper, 
 which was published in the " Christian History." 
 
 It was impossible for Whitefield to keep silence, as he 
 had intended. He had inflicted injuries, which justice re- 
 quired him to repair ; and while he neglected it, his enemies 
 took advantage of the neglect, and good men were becoming 
 disaffected. His private correspondence shows what he 
 thought of the charges against him. January 18, he wrote 
 to a friend : " Some occasions of offence had undoubtedly 
 been given whilst I was here and preached up and down the 
 country. Nothing, however, appeared, but a pure divine 
 power, working upon, converting and transforming people's' 
 hearts of all ranks, without any extraordinary phenomena at- 
 tending it. Good Mr. Tennent succeeded rae. Numbers 
 succeeded him. Lecture upon lecture was set up in various 
 places. One minister called to another to help drag the 
 
360 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 gospel net. And by all accounts I can have from private in- 
 formation, or good Mr. Prince's weekly History, one would 
 have imagined the millennium was coming indeed. But in 
 this mixed state of things, wild fire will necessarily blend it- 
 self with the pure fire that comes from God's altar. This 
 the enemy long waited for. At last, it broke out and spread 
 itself, and it must be confessed, by the instrumentality of 
 many good souls, both among clergy and laity, who, mistak- 
 ing fancy for faith, and imagination for revelation, were guilty 
 of great imprudence. AH is laid to me, as being the pri- 
 mum mobile ; though there was not so much as the appear- 
 ance of any thing of this nature, when I left New England 
 last." February 19, he wrote : " Some unguarded expres- 
 sions, in the heat of less experienced youth, I certainly did 
 drop. I was too precipitate in hearkening to and publishing 
 private information, and, Peter-like, cut off too many ears." 
 This is certainly not very far from the truth. Yet there is 
 reason to suspect that he still thought too favorably of the 
 " disorders" and they- authors. In a letter dated February 
 6, he informs a friend, that " the high sheriff, who was once 
 roost foremost in persecuting the good Mr. Davenport," was 
 " a little convinced." Davenport, at that time, would hard- 
 ly have called his treatment at Boston, persecution. His 
 "Retractation " was dated July 28, 1744. 
 
 •Whitefield began by publishing a letter to Dr. Chauncy, 
 dated November 19, 1744, and written while he was sick at 
 Portsmouth. In his " preface to the reader," dated January 
 18, 1745, he says, "I should have published it much soon- 
 er, had I not hoped that the manner and method of my 
 preaching would, by the blessing of God, have rendered it 
 needless. But being called upon from different quarters to 
 give an account of my conduct and some part of my writ- 
 ings, I now think it my duty to publish the letter." 
 
 It was in reply to some parts of Cbauncy's " Seasonable 
 Thoughts on the State of Religion." Its temper, Chauncy, 
 in his answer, dated January 31, acknowledged to be unex- 
 ceptionable, though its substance failed to remove his objec- 
 tions. 
 
 Chauncy's leading objection was against itinerant preach- 
 ing. " This," he said, " had its rise, at least in these parts, 
 from Mr. Whitefield ; though I could never see, I own, up- 
 on what warrant, either from Scripture or reason, he went 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 361 
 
 about preaching from one province and parish to another, 
 where the gospel was already preached, and by persons as 
 well qualified for the work as he can pretend to be." White- 
 field replied : " But did I come unasked .'' Nay, did not 
 some of those very persons who were as well qualified for 
 the work as I can pretend to be, send me letters of invita- 
 tion .' Yes, assuredly they did, or otherwise, in all probabili- 
 ty, I had never seen New England." This was certainly a 
 sufficient justification of his first visit, if he came merely as an 
 invited minister, to render occasional assistance to those who 
 requested it ; but it did not touch -the question, by what war- 
 rant he set up as an itinerant for life. On this point, he only 
 referred to a former promise to inform the world at some fu- 
 ture time, how he " was led out into " his " present way of 
 acting." Chauncy had intimated, that Whitefield's itinerat- 
 ing had not been to his temporal disadvantage. "He has 
 certainly made large collections ; and if, in doing this, he had 
 a fellow-feeling with the orphans, it is no more than might be 
 expected." Whitefield understood "fellow-feeling" to 
 mean " fellow-sharing," of such a kind as would prove him 
 "a consummate villain." He felt hurt by this imputation 
 upon his honesty, and pronounced it " ungentleman-hke, as 
 well as uncharitable." Chauncy, in return, felt hurt by this 
 interpretation of his words, and protested that such a thought 
 never entered into his heart. Chauncy, though incapable of 
 appreciating such a man as Whitefield, was too good a judge 
 of character to suspect him of intentional dishonesty. An- 
 other charge was, that " the spirit of rash, censorious and 
 uncharitable judging" of ministers "first appeared in Mr. 
 Whitefield, who seldom preached but he had something or oth- 
 er to say against unconverted ministers." He replied, " Was 
 there any harm in this .'' Are not unconverted ministers the 
 bane of the Christian church .''" It did not occur to him, 
 that preaching against that " bane " in almost every sermon, 
 implied that the bane was very plenty, and that a great deal 
 of such preaching was needed ; in other words, that he 
 thought a great part of the ministers unconverted, and the 
 people willing to have it so. Of the offensive sentence near 
 the close of his New England Journal, — "Many, perhaps 
 most that preach, I fear, dp not experimentally know 
 Christ,"— ^ he said : "I confess, this was too unguarded ; for 
 whether in fact it was true or not, that most that preach in 
 31 
 
362 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 New England did not experimentally know Christ, yet I 
 ought to have taken more time before I delivered my judg- 
 ment. I thank you, Rev. Sir, for pointing out this fault to 
 me. But that I had a design, either in preaching or writing, 
 to alienate people's minds from their standing ministers, 1 
 utterly disavow. My whole design in preaching was, to 
 show the unspeakable danger of persons taking upon them to 
 preach Christ to others, till they are acquainted with him 
 themselves ; and in my writings, to give an impartial account, 
 as far as I was informed, how affairs which concern the 
 kingdom of God, stood in New England." This is doubt- 
 less an honest account of the matter, as it lay in his own 
 mind. But to many, it was not satisfactory. They could 
 not believe that so eloquent a man could be so short-sighted. 
 They thought he must have designed to produce the effects 
 which followed so naturally from his words. But this was a 
 topic, on which universal satisfaction ought not to have been 
 given. There were those whom nothing would satisfy, but 
 an abandonment and condemnation of the truth. 
 
 Of^bis treatment of Archbishop Tillotson, Whitefield said : 
 " I acknowledge that I spoke of his person in too strong 
 terms, and too rashly condemned his state, when I ought only 
 to have censured his doctrine." As to his regard to impul- 
 ses and impressions, he showed that some passages quoted 
 from his writings admitted a safer sense than had been as- 
 cribed to them ; but it was plain from his arguments, that his 
 views were not, even yet, entirely correct. 
 
 Next, and before this could have gone into circulation, 
 came a pamphlet containing the Testimony of an Associa- 
 tion convened at Marlborough, January 22, 1745, and that 
 of a number of ministers in the County of Bristol. These 
 were in a worse spirit than any public body had yet exhibited. 
 The first endorses the Testimony from Harvard College, and 
 that of " some of our Rev. fathers and brethren in the minis- 
 try." It denies, that Whitefield had "come with another 
 spirit than before," as he still adhered to the same errors, 
 and as he published no confession of his faults. It was 
 signed by John Prentice, of Lancaster ; Israel Loring, of 
 Sudbury ; Job Gushing, of Shrewsbury ; John Gardner, of 
 Stow ; William Cooke, of Sudbury ; Nathan Stone, of 
 Southborough ; John Swift, of Acton ; Aaron Smith, of 
 Marlborough; Ebenezer Morse, of Shrewsbury ; Thomas 
 
THE GREAT AWAKEMNG. 363 
 
 Goss, of Bolton ; Elisha Marsh, of Narraganset, No. 2 ; 
 Joseph Davis, of Holden, and John Mellen of Lancaster. 
 
 The other is remarkable only for this passage : "When 
 Mr. Whitefield first came among us, he used his utmost 
 craft and cunning, to strike the passions and engage the af- 
 fections of the people ; and when he had wrought them up 
 into a fond opinion of his excellencies, and ihey began to 
 look upon him as one endowed with an uncommon measure 
 of the Spirit, he continued to insinuate that unconverted 
 ministers could do little or no good to souls ; that dead men 
 might as well beget living children. Having thus prepared 
 the way, he leaves the country with this most vile insinuation : 
 ' That many, nay, most that preach, I fear, do not experi- 
 mentally know Christ, and the universities are become dark, 
 darkness in the abstract.' Well, what is the language of all 
 this .'' He that runs may read. Dead men may as well be- 
 get living children, as an unconverted minister do good to 
 souls. The most of your ministers are unconverted. You 
 must, then, if you have any regard to your souls, separate 
 from them, and seek better help. But what will you do .'' 
 You can't have any help from the colleges. There is noth- 
 ing but darkness, — darkness that may be felt. You must 
 then content yourselves with some illiterate exhorters, until 
 you can have a supply from the Shepherd's Tent, the Orphan 
 House, or elsewhere. It appeareth to us, that the devil, 
 with all his cunning, could not take a more direct step to 
 overthrow these churches, hurt religion and the souls of 
 men." This was signed by Joseph Avery, of Norton ; 
 John Greenwood and David Turner, of Rehoboth ; Eben- 
 ezer White, of Norton ; Solomon Townsend, of Barring- 
 ton ; and John Burt, of Bristol. No proof has been found 
 that any whose names are on these papers, were ever friends 
 of the revival. 
 
 This, so far as appears, was the last of the associated min- 
 isterial Testimonies against Whitefield, as well as the least 
 creditable to its authors. The number of pastors who signed 
 them was sixty-three. Of these, nine are known to have 
 been early friends and promoters of the revival, and it is 
 probable that others were on the same side ; but concerning 
 the early sentiments of the greater part of the sixty-three, 
 there is no proof, while it is certain that some of them were 
 opposers from the beginning. 
 
364 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 The next day, January 23, 1745, was the date of White- 
 field's reply to the Faculty of Harvard College. It is one 
 of his ijiost finished productions of the kind, and that on 
 which he mainly relied for the defence of his conduct in 
 New England. 
 
 In defending himself against the charge of enthusiasm, he 
 is partially, and but partially, successful ; for, while he had 
 never been so bad as they represented him, he was not yet 
 wholly recovered from his early mistakes. He justifies what 
 he had said of Archbishop Tillotson's works ; but says, 
 " This does not prove that I cast reflections, which you call 
 monstrous, upon Archbishop Tillotson, as to his personal 
 character." How this is to be reconciled with his previous 
 concession to Dr. Chauncy, that he had done wrong in judg- 
 ing "his state and person," he does not explain. He asks 
 whether what he wrote of the College, was not true when 
 he wrote it ; says, that he had no idea of representing their 
 character to be so bad as they seemed to understand, but 
 only that there had been a great religious declension, such as 
 the President, in his Convention sermon, acknowledged to 
 prevail throughout the land. He adds: "However, I am 
 sorry I published my private informations, though from cred- 
 ible persons, concerning the colleges, to the world ;" and 
 assured them he should be glad to find that the President's 
 testimony, in his Convention sermon the next spring, was 
 correct. Whitefield's testimony concerning his own meaning 
 is to be admitted. Yet, if he meant in his Journal, only 
 what he asserts in this explanation, his language was blamably 
 strong, and naturally had the effect of slander. And yet it 
 is certain, from the testimony of Edwards and other contem- 
 porary evidence, that the colleges did need admonition. 
 Some, well acquainted at Cambridge, asserted that White- 
 field's statements were none too strong. The fact, that two 
 of the Faculty had lately been deposed for gross immorality, 
 was quoted as evidence on both sides ; by one, as evidence 
 that immorality was found there, and by the other, as evi- 
 dence that it was not allowed. Both inferences were proba- 
 bly correct. 
 
 As to the orphan house, Whitefield asked, could it be 
 proved that the contributions made for its support, were not 
 faithfully applied for that purpose.' Did he promise to be 
 always there .'' And if providentially absent more than he 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 365 
 
 expected, could he help it ? And did the people know noth- 
 ing of Barber, who was with him in his tour through New 
 England ; and who, whatever might have been reported of 
 him, was a good man ? The published accounts, he said, 
 were satisfactory to the contributors ; and indeed, they would 
 have been satisfied without any, for they had confidence in 
 his honesty. But did the Faculty ever see any that were 
 more particular ? Were those of the Society for Propagating 
 the Gospel more so ? If money were entrusted to them, for 
 the College, would they publish a more particular account ? 
 Here, Whitefield judged incorrectly. His account was, as 
 his enemies said, " general and lumping," not audited, and 
 without vouchers, — such as ought to satisfy none, except 
 those who had other reasons for confidence in his honesty. 
 It was much more severely handled in Scotland, than here. 
 
 Extempore preaching, he decidedly preferred to any oth- 
 er. Yet he did not preach, or pretend to preach, without 
 previous study. His sermons cost him as much previous 
 labor, as if they were written ; so that this way was not a lazy 
 manner of preaching. The dangerous errors, which they 
 said' he had uttered, were mere slips of the tongue, and had 
 been retracted as soon as he was informed of them. 
 
 Itinerancy he defended, as scriptural and right. Under- 
 standing an evangelist to be, what they say an itinerant is, 
 "one that hath no particular charge of his own, but goes 
 about from country to country, or from town to town in any 
 country, and stands ready to preach to any congregation that 
 shall call him to it." For the divine command, " Go ye into 
 all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature," he 
 argued, "authorizes the ministers of Christ, even to the end 
 of the world, to preach the gospel in every town and country, 
 though not 'of their own heCad,' yet whenever and wherever 
 Providence should open a door, even though it should be in 
 a place ' where officers are already settled, and the gospel is 
 fully and faithfully preached.' This, I humbly apprehend, 
 is every gospel minister's indisputable privilege." He asked, 
 " Was not the Reformation began and carried on by itinerant 
 preaching.? Were not Knox" and other reformers, "itin- 
 erant preachers .'"' He then quoted from the appendix to 
 Baxter's Reformed Pastor, a plan which had been adopted 
 in some parts of England, for circular lectures, by settled 
 ministers selected for the purpose, and with the consent of 
 31 * 
 
366 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 the pastors. As to the " hot men " that came after him, he 
 knew not who they were, and ought not to be held accounta- 
 ble for their conduct. He then quoted from Holyoke's Con- 
 vention sermon, and from their Testimony itself, evidence 
 that his labors had been useful. His eloquent conclusion 
 must be given entire. 
 
 " Gentlemen, I profess myself a Calvinist as to principle, and preach 
 no other doctrines than those which your pious ancestors and the 
 founders of Harvard College preached long before I was born. And 
 I am come to New England with no intention to meddle with, much 
 less to destroy, the New England churches, or turn out the generality 
 of their ministers, or settle them with ministers from England, Scot- 
 land or Ireland, as hath been hinted in a late letier written by the 
 Rev. Mr. Clapp, Rector of Yale College. Such a thought never en- 
 tered my heart ; neither, as I know of, has my preaching the least ten- 
 dency thereunto, I am determined to know nothing among you, but 
 Jesus Christ and him crucified. I have no intention of setting up a 
 party for myself, or to stir up people against their pastors. Had not 
 illness prevented, I had some weeks ago departed out of your coasts. 
 But as it is not a season of the year for me to undertake a very long 
 journey, and I have reason to think the great God blesses my poor 
 labors, I think it my duty to comply with the invitations that are sent 
 me, and, as I am enabled, to be instant in season and out of season, 
 and to preach among poor sinners the unsearchable riches of Christ. 
 This indeed I delight in. It is my meat and my drink. This I think 
 I may do, as a minister of the King of kings, and a subject of his 
 present Majesty, King George, upon whose royal head I pray God the 
 crown may long flourish. And as I have a right to preach, so, ^ hum- 
 bly apprehend, the people, as Christians, as men, and New England 
 men in particular, have a right to invite and hear. If the pulpits 
 should be shut, blessed be God, the fields are open, and I can go with- 
 out the camp, bearing the Redeemer's sacred reproach. This I am used 
 to, and glory in; believing that if I suffer for it, I shall suffer for 
 righteousness' sake. At the same time I desire to be humbled, and 
 ask public pardon for any rash words I have dropped, or any thing I 
 have written or done amiss. This leads 'me also to ask forgiveness. 
 Gentlemen, if I have done you or your society any wrong. Be pleased 
 to accept unfeigned thanks for all tokens of respect you showed me 
 when here last. And if you have injured me in the Testimony you 
 have published against me and my conduct, (as I think, to say no more, 
 you really have,) it is already forgiven, without asking." 
 
 This by no means satisfied the Faculty. It was soon an- 
 swered by Prof. Wiggleswortt ; and even as late as Novem- 
 ber, 1754, when Whitefield was again in the country, and 
 preached at Cambridge, Wigglesworth followed his preach- 
 ing with two lectures, on " The Ordinary and Extraordinary 
 Ministers of the Church," in which, and in the notes ap- 
 pended, the same doctrines are advanced and the same 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 367 
 
 charges are brought as in the Testimony ; and what is still 
 more, the charges of bad intentions, brought by the Faculty 
 of Yale College, are endorsed. Yet his persevering kind- 
 ness was at length acknowledged. Tn 1764, he solicited do- 
 nations of books for their library, lately destroyed by fire. 
 Four years afterwards, while Holyoke was still President, 
 the following minute was entered on their records : 
 
 " At a meeting of the President, and Fellows of Harvard College, 
 August 22, 1768, the Rev. G. Whitefield having, in addition to his 
 former kindness to Harvard College, lately presented to the library a 
 new edition of his Joarnals, and having procured large benefactions 
 from several benevolent and respectable gentlemen ; Voted, that the 
 thanks of the Corporation be given to the Rev. Mr. Whitefield, for 
 these instances of candor and generosity." 
 
 The "Declaration" of the Faculty of Yale College was 
 dated February 25, 1745. After endorsing the Testimonies 
 of the Faculty of Harvard College and of four Associations 
 near Boston, they " think it proper more largely to insist 
 upon two things." 
 
 " First, it has always appeared to us, that you and other itinerants 
 have laid a scheme to turn the generality of ministers out of their 
 places, and to introduce a new set, of such as should be in a peculiar 
 manner attached to you ; and this you would effect by prejudicing the 
 minds of people against their ministers, and thereby induce them to 
 discard them or separate from them. And this appears to us, 1. Be- 
 cause the principles which you and the other itinerants laid down, did 
 naturally and necessarily produce this effect ; which are these : 
 
 " 1. That the generality of mij/isters are unconverted. 2. That all 
 unconverted ministers are half beasts and half devils, and can no more 
 be the means of any man's conversion, than a dead man can beget 
 living children. — Upon the publication of these principles, people are 
 filled with the greatest prejudices against their ministers, and a multi- 
 tude of separations immediately and necessarily followed. 
 
 " 11. This consequence, that people should discard or separate from 
 their ministers, not only necessarily and in fact follows from the fore- 
 going principles, but it was also intended and designed. These 
 two principles, that the generality of ministers are unconverted, and 
 that they are such baneful and pernicious men as you have declared, 
 when discharged among the multitude, and received into their minds, 
 do as naturally and necessarily tend to make them discard their minis- 
 ters, as a brace of bullets discharged into their hearts has to take away 
 their natural lives. It is utterly inconceivable to us, that men should 
 from time to time zealously propagate such principles, and yet never 
 design or think that they should have any such effect." 
 
 They quote his solemn declarations to Dr. Chauncy and 
 the Faculty of Harvard College, that he had no such design ; 
 but they tell him plainly that they do not believe him, and 
 
368 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 that fairness and consistency require him freely to own his 
 design. Then they infer, that if all unconverted ministers 
 are to be discarded, a new supply must be introduced. This 
 supply cannot come from the colleges, because " the light 
 in them is but darkness." It must therefore consist either 
 of exhorters, or foreigners. 
 
 "You publicly told the people in New England, that they might ex- 
 pect, in a little time, some supply from your orphan house ; and you 
 told the Rev. Mr. Edwards, of Northampton, that you intended to 
 bring over a number of young men from England, to be ordained by 
 the Tennents. Whether any were to come from Scotland or Ireland, 
 we think, is not material. And it has been the constant practice of 
 the Tennents, and their Presbytery, of late years, to send ministers to 
 supply the separations in New England ; particularly Messrs. Pinley, 
 Sacket, Blair, Treat, and sundry others, to preach to the separations 
 at Milford, New Haven, &c., and some of them showed written orders 
 for it, from that Presbytery. Yea, so violently were they engaged to 
 supply us with their ministers, that they would do it in direct opposi- 
 tion to the civil and ecclesiastical government. Thus the scheme ap- 
 pears to us evident in every part of it, both from the principles you 
 have laid down, and by the constant endeavours from time to time to 
 put it in practice." 
 
 The other thing which they thought proper " more largely 
 to insist upon," was his supposed " scheme to vilify and sub- 
 vert our colleges, and to introduce a set of ministers into 
 our churches by other ways and means of education." In 
 proof of this, they quote his description of the state of the 
 colleges, and Gilbert Tennent's assertion, that the public 
 academies were " corrupted," and recommendation of pri- 
 vate seminaries, " under the care of skilful and experienced 
 Christians." They assert, that " soon after the publication 
 of these slanders upon the colleges, this was upon several 
 accounts in a worse state than it was before. Sundry of the 
 students ran into enthusiastic errors and disorders, censured 
 and reviled their governors and others ; for which some were 
 expelled, denied their degrees, or otherwise punished ; and 
 some withdrew to that thing called " The Shepherd's Tent."* 
 
 * Backus, (Eccl. Hist. N. E. Vol. II. page 145,) after giving an account of 
 Davenport's arrest in Connecticut, his examination at Hartford, and his ex- 
 pulsion from the colony,adds : — " Separations were hereby caused at New 
 London, New Haven, and Milford." "And it was impressed on sundry 
 minds, that they must go forth their way, and erect a Shepherd's Tent at 
 New London, to educate persons in for the ministry. Such a school was 
 therefore opened, to which a number resorted, wherein Allen presided." 
 This Allen was the same who had been censured for comparing the Bible 
 to an old almanac. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 369 
 
 They quote another of his solemn disclaimers in his letter to 
 Dr. Chauncy, say plainly that they do not believe it, and 
 conclude by exhorting ministers and churches to avoid him, 
 as one of those that " cause divisions and offences." 
 
 Meanwhile, Whitefield was preaching at Boston, and mak- 
 ing excursions in> the vicinity. The Evening Post of 
 March 11, said, " Prince, Webb, Foxcroft and Gee are the 
 directors of Mr. Whitefield's public conduct, as he himself 
 has lately declared at Newbury." He had other powerful 
 friends among the clergy, and still more among the laity, 
 who invited him by vote into some pulpits, where the pas- 
 tors were " shy " of him. His friends in Boston offered to 
 build for him "the largest place of worship ever seen in 
 America," but he declined. Lectures were proposed at 
 six o'clock in the morning. He complied, and had audien- 
 ces of two or three thousands. There were "movings" 
 and " meltings " under his preaching as formerly, and some 
 interesting cases of conversion ; but there was no revival, in 
 the present technical sense of that word. People heard, 
 and were affected ; but there was no spreading among the 
 impenitent, as if by sympathy, or by a simultaneous impres- 
 sion on all, of those views which constitute conviction of 
 sin. Nor ought any thing else to have been expected. 
 Both ministers and people were thinking too much about the 
 man, to profit by his preaching. 
 
 February 7, he was at Ipswich, where he spent some days. 
 Mr. Pickering, of the Second Church, declined admitting 
 him to his pulpit, and assigned his reasons in a letter, which 
 was published. It contains the usual objections set forth in 
 the various " Testimonies," and is remarkable only for one 
 convenient metaphor. The Bishop of London had publish- 
 ed something concerning " Lukewarmness and Enthusi- 
 asm." Whitefield had said in reply, "all ought to be thank- 
 ful to that pilot, who will teach them to steer a safe and middle 
 course." Pickering asks, " But what if the pilot should 
 take the vane for the compass .'' " 
 
 Early in March, he made another excursion to the East, 
 as far at least as Berwick, in Maine. About the middle of 
 the month he was at Exeter. Here some of the more 
 zealous members of the church had withdrawn, and formed a 
 new church. As already related, their act had been sanc- 
 tioned by one council, and censured by another, the last of 
 
370 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 which met in January, 1743.* Whitefield preached to them 
 twice, though Mr. Odlin, the pastor of the church from 
 which they had withdrawn, " solemnly warned and charged 
 him against preaching in his parish." f In the newspaper 
 account, those to whom he preached are called "Separa- 
 tists." Odlin evidently claimed a right to control their hear- 
 ing the gospel, and the Evening Post sustained his claim. 
 The Post J was the favorite organ of the party opposed to 
 the revival. The affair throws some light on the character 
 of the " separations," and of the complaints concerning 
 them. 
 
 This spring the celebrated expedition against Cape Breton 
 was undertaken. Col. Pepperell, a devoted friend and con- 
 stant hearer of Whitefield, was chosen to the command. 
 Mr. Sherburne, another of his friends, at whose house he 
 often lodged, was appointed commissary. Sherburne said 
 that Whitefield must favor the expedition, or the serious peo- 
 ple would not enlist. He also requested a motto for his flag. 
 This Whitefield refused to furnish, as it would be out of 
 character. But Sherburne's importunity finally prevailed, 
 and he gave, " JViZ desperandum, Christo duce ;" Fear 
 nothing, while Christ is leader ; upon which great numbers 
 enlisted. Some of the " aggrieved brethren" at Chebacco, 
 who separated from Mr. Pickering, seem to have been 
 among the number. Whitefield preached to the troops be- 
 fore their departure ; but he excused himself from going as 
 their chaplain, by saying he thought he might be more useful 
 by stirring up the people to pray for their success. In about 
 six weeks, news came that Louisburgh had surrendered, and 
 Whitefield preached a thanksgiving sermon for the victory. 
 The fall of Louisburgh, " the Gibraltar of America," aston- 
 ished Europe ; and the boldness, the persevering energy and 
 military talent displayed by this little army of the Colonies, 
 in doing, without the aid they had requested, what the most 
 able warriors thought scarce possible to be done by any 
 force, procured the honor of knighthood for the commander, 
 and the most lavish commendations for all engaged in the 
 enterprise. Whatever may be thought of their views of 
 
 * Result of Counnil at Exeter, O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 t Eve. Post, March 25, 1745. 
 
 } " Tom Fleet's paper," as Fleet said the revivaUsta called it, by way of 
 contempt. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 371 
 
 Christian duty in respect to war, the result shows that the 
 subjects of this great revival were not weak-minded men, 
 even after their conversion. 
 
 After a visit to the south, Whitefield was again in Boston 
 in July. In August, he was again at Philadelphia. He re- 
 mained in the Middle and Southern Colonies, till he em- 
 barked, March 15, 1748, for Bermuda, which he left early 
 in June for England. He visited New England again in 
 1754, again in 1764, and finally in 1770, when he died, on 
 the Sabbath morning, September 30, at Newburyport, and 
 was buried, according to his own desire, in front of the pul- 
 pit of his friend Parsons, formerly of Lyme, but now pastor 
 of a church here, which the revival had called into existence. 
 
 An encomium on his virtues and his labors, his piety and 
 his eloquence, would be in place here, but is needless. 
 They are well known to all men. It is more to the purpose 
 of this work, to transcribe the testimony v?hich convinced 
 the Synod of Glasgow, in Scotland, October 6, 1748 ; sup- 
 posed to have been published originally by Dr. Erskine of 
 Kirkintillock, but preserved and endorsed by Gillies. 
 
 A motion had been made, tending to prohibit or discour- 
 age ministers from employing Mr. Whitefield, and some 
 speeches were made in its support. It was said in reply, 
 among other things, that " with regard to his imprudences, 
 there is a great difference between blunders owing to a bad 
 heart, and those that are owing only to a misinformed judg- 
 ment ; especially When the mistakes that occasioned them, 
 have misled several great and good men. Whether Mr. 
 Whitefield's scheme of an orphan house be prudent or not, 
 it is demonstrable that it was honestly meant. The magis- 
 trates of Savannah published, three years ago, in the Phila- 
 delphia Gazette, an affidavit that they had carefully examined 
 Mr. Whitefield's receipts and disbursements, and found that 
 what he had collected in behalf of the orphans, had been 
 honestly applied, and that besides, he had given considerably 
 to them of his own property. As to his maintaining that 
 assurance is essential to faith, encouraging an unwarrantable 
 regard to impressions, and being too hasty in pronouncing 
 men carnal or converted, his sentiments in these particulars 
 have been altered for upwards of two years ; and now he 
 scarce preaches a sermon, without guarding his hearers 
 against relying on impressions, and telling them that faith and 
 
372 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 a persuasion that we are justified are very different things, and 
 that a holy life is the best evidence of a gracious state. 
 These retractions are owing to a real change of sentinnent. 
 Letters from correspondents in New England show, that this 
 dhange is at least of two years' date, and that ever since it 
 happened, he has preached and acted with remarkable cau- 
 tion." The motion was rejected, by a vote of forty-seven 
 to thirteen, and such as chose to invite him into their pulpits, 
 never afterwards met with any molestation. 
 
 This witness is true, and is confirmed by other testimony. 
 Gillespie, of Carnock, wrote to Edwards, September 19, 
 1748 : " I was glad to hear you write, that he [Whitefield] 
 labored with success in New England, in rectifying mistakes 
 he had favored, about intimations made by the Lord to bis 
 people, &c., and heartily wish he may be directed to apply 
 an antidote here, where it is also needed." Though right in 
 the main from the beginning of his ministry, his early errors 
 had been great, and nowhere had they shown themselves 
 more prominently, or produced more injurious effects, than 
 in New England. His second visit, in 1744, was made 
 while he was in the process of recovery from them, and was 
 doubtless a means of hastening its completion. The perfect 
 vindication of his character for pecuniary honesty, furnished by 
 the magistrates of Savannah, came out in 1745, — after that 
 visit. For the remainder of his life, the faults of his character 
 were like the spots on the sun ; detected, without much difii- 
 culty, by the cool and careful observer who takes pains to 
 look for them ; but, to all practical purposes, lost in one gen- 
 eral and genial effulgence. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 The Revival oontihded at the Sooth. — The Presbyterian Synods. — 
 The Rise of PreBbyterianism in Virginia. — Whitefield's labors in the 
 Southern Colonies. — The healing of the " Great Schism." 
 
 The protest of 1741,* failed entirely to answer its most 
 important purpose, — that of preventing the intrusions of 
 Tennent and his friends into the congregations of their op- 
 
 • See Chapter V. 
 
THJE GREAT AWAKENING. 373 
 
 poser$. As should have been foreseen, they felt that, having 
 been cast out of the communion of the Synod, they were no 
 longer under any kind of ecclesiastical obligation to regard 
 the ministerial authority of those who had excluded them ; 
 but were at perfect liberty to preach the gospel to all who 
 might apply for it, without the least regard to the Synod or 
 its members. The same impression was made on all who 
 desired their labors ; and on the second day after the schism, 
 the Presbytery of New Brunswick received applications for 
 supplies of preaching from eighteen or twenty places, most 
 of which were beyond their bounds, and from fragments of 
 old congregations, under the pastoral or presbyterial care 
 of their opposers. It was resolved to send preachers to 
 them all, as far as practicable.* They divided their Pres- 
 bytery into two, which held a united meeting annually, by the 
 name of the " Conjunct Presbytery." They were joined by 
 several who had not been excluded by the " Protestation." 
 It is evident from the results which appeared in subsequent 
 years, that they continued their efforts for the diffusion of 
 piety ; though little is known of the details of their labors 
 and success, beyond what is contained in the letters of the 
 Tennents, Blair and Dickinson, which have been given in a 
 preceding chapter, and their labors in Virginia, which will 
 soon be noticed. A church was formed in Philadelphia in 
 1743, and Gilbert Tennent became its pastor. At its first 
 communion, in May, 1744, the number of communicants 
 was more than one hundred and forty, nearly all of whom 
 were fruits of the revival. 
 
 The members of the Presbytery of New York refused, 
 from the first, to acknowledge the legality of the Protest by 
 which the New Brunswick brethren had been excluded from 
 the Synod. After several vain attempts to have it set aside, 
 they withdrew from the Synod of Philadelphia, and formed 
 the Synod of New York, which held its first meeting at 
 Elizabelhtown, September 19, 1745. It included the Pres- 
 bytery of New York, and all the members of the " Conjunct 
 Presbytery," and was decidedly superior to the Synod of 
 Philadelphia, not only in active piety, but in numbers, tal- 
 ents, and weight of character.! What the New York breth- 
 ren thought of the revival, may be gathered from the fact, 
 
 ♦ Prof. Hodge, Const. Hist, Vol. II. page 197. t Ibid. 254. 
 32 
 
374 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 that Dickinson and Pemberton were leading members ; and 
 still further from the following passage in their Protest to 
 the Synod of Philadelphia, May 29, 1742. 
 
 "We protest against all those passages in any of the pamphlets 
 which have been published in these parts, which seem to reflect upon 
 the work of divine power and grace which has been carrying on in 
 so wonderful a manner in many of our congregations ; and declare to 
 all the world, that we look upon it to be the indispensable duty of all 
 our ministers to encourage that glorious work, with their most faithful 
 and diligent endeavours. And in like manner, we protest and declare 
 against all divisive and irregular methods and practices by which the 
 peace and good order of our churches have been broken in upon." 
 
 At their first meeting, the Rev. William Robinson was 
 appointed to spend some months in missionary labors among 
 the rising congregations in Virginia. As these had been 
 brought into existence by this revival, a brief account of their 
 origin will be in place. It is taken from a letter written, 
 June 28, 1751, by the Rev. Samuel Davies, afterwards 
 President of the College at Princeton, to the Rev. Mr. 
 Bellamy of Betblem, Ct., who had requested the infor- 
 mation.* 
 
 " I hope I may observe without the umbrage of calumny, 
 what glares with irresistible evidence on the eyes of the seri- 
 ous of all denominations among us, that religion has been, 
 and in most parts of the colony still is, in a very low state. 
 A surprising negligence appears in attending on pubHc wor- 
 ship, and an equally surprising levity and unconcernedness 
 in those that attend. Family religion is a rarity ; and a sol- 
 emn solicitude about eternal things is still a greater. Vices 
 of various kinds are triumphant, and even a form of godliness 
 is not common. The clergy universally, as far as my intelli- 
 gence extends, have embraced the modish system of Armi- 
 nian divinity, (though I allow myself the pleasure to hope 
 there are sundry conscientious persons among them,) and the 
 Calvinistic, or rather Pauline articles of their own church are 
 counted horrendous and insufferable. But I suppose that 
 universal fame has superseded my information ; and therefore 
 I willingly exempt myself from the disagreeable task. 
 
 " I cannot find there has been a dissenting minister settled 
 in Virginia, till lately, since its first plantation. You no 
 doubt remember what Dr. Mather, and Mr. Neal from him, 
 relate of the sending of Messrs. James, Knowles and Thom- 
 
 * O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING, 375 
 
 son into it from New England, at the invitation of sundry of 
 its inhabitants, above a hundred years ago ; and of their be- 
 ing compelled to depart the colony by the Governor's order, 
 after preaching a few sermons : since which there have;, been 
 hardly any attempts made to obtain such ministers till a few 
 years ago ; and many of the populace knew little or nothing 
 of any denomination, but that in which they have been edu- 
 cated. 
 
 " I have reason to hope, Sir, there are and have been a 
 few names in various parts of the colony, who are sincerely 
 seeking the Lord, and groping after religion, in the commun- 
 ion of the Church of England ; which I charitably presume 
 from my finding there were a few of this happy character in 
 and about Hanover before the late revival of religion. Such 
 were awakened, as they have told me, either by their own 
 serious reflections, suggested and enforced by divine energy, 
 or onVeading some authors of the last century, particularly 
 Bolton, Baxter, Flavel, Bunyan, &c. Some of them were 
 wont to attend on public worship in the established church, 
 without much murmuring at the entertainments there ; though 
 they were sensible these were vastly inferior to what past ages 
 were favored with, and often wondered if there were such 
 doctrines taught any where in the world at present, as they 
 found in the writings of these good men. Others of them, 
 though they had no objections against the ceremonies of the 
 Church of England, except a few, who were shocked at the im- 
 practicable obligations imposed upon the sponsors in baptism, 
 were utterly dissatisfied with the usual doctrines taught from 
 the pulpit. Though these were generally true, and would have 
 been useful, in their connexion with the scheme of evangel- 
 ical doctrines ; yet so many necessary truths were neglected, 
 as rendered those that were inculcated of very little service. 
 The whole system of what is distinguished by the name of ex- 
 perimental religion, was passed over in silence. The depravity 
 of human nature, the necessity of regeneration, and its prere- 
 quisites, nature and effects, the various exercises of pious 
 souls according to their several cases, &c. these were omit- 
 ted ; and without these, you know. Sir, the finest declama- 
 tions on moral duties or speculative trjuths will be but 
 wretched entertainment to hungry souls. 
 
 " The few that professed a dissatisfaction with the general 
 strain of preaching in church, and therefore either absented 
 
376 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 themselves, or attended with murmuring and reluctance, 
 were generally counted whimsical creatures, and hypocritical 
 affectors of singularity. And indeed they could not but own 
 their sentiments singular ; ibr they knew of none in the 
 present age of the same mind with them ; and therefore had 
 no prospect of obtaining a minister to preach to them tl^se 
 doctrines they thirsted for. Their notions, as far as I can 
 learn, were sound in the main, though intermixed with some 
 corrupt notions verging towards Antinomianism, the opposite 
 extreme to that they had left. And though this rendered 
 them more odious to their adversaries, and furnished them 
 with occasions more plausibly to expose them ; yet, consid- 
 ering their circumstances, as being destitute of a judicious 
 minister to instruct them in the doctrines of the gospel, and 
 caution them against mistakes ; and as laboring tinder the pre- 
 judices of education, and transported with the sallies of their 
 first zeal, which is generally imprudent and wild ; I arif more 
 surprised at their soundness and regularity in most things, 
 than at their mistakes and extravagances in a few. 
 
 " In this case about ten or twelve persons, who are now 
 members of my congregation, had been for some time 
 before the revival of religion which began in the year 1743. 
 One Mr. Samuel Morris, (for I am not ashamed publicly to 
 mention his name, notwithstanding' the calumnies flung upon 
 it by many,) a person of a forward, sociable spirit, who had 
 for some time been extremely anxious about his eternal state, 
 and unweariedly seeking relief by all means within his reach, 
 at length obtained a discovery of that glorious method of sal- 
 vation through Jesus Christ, to which sinners from all the 
 ends of the earth look, and are saved, and wliere they uni- 
 versally agree to fix all their hopes, notwithstanding the great 
 diversity of their circumstances as to situation, education, 
 outward instruction, i&c. The distinct relation he has given 
 me of his exercises at that time and since, and the prevailing 
 piety of his common behaviour, leave me no room to be anx- 
 ious about the sincerity of his religion ; though, as it is com- 
 mon in such cases, his former pious zeal to do good, with a 
 few very pardonable imprudences that attended it, have fixed 
 an indelible odium on his character among many who opposed 
 the religious concern he attempted to promote. After this 
 discovery of the gospel, his soul was anxious for the salvation 
 of his neighbours, and inflamed with zeal to use means to 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 377 
 
 awaken them. This was the tendency of his conversation ; 
 and he also read to them such authors as had been most use- 
 ful to him, particularly Luther's Comment upon the Galatians, 
 which first opened to him the way of justification through 
 Christ alone, and his Table Discourses ; sundry pieces of 
 honest Bunyan's, &c. By those means, a few of his neigh- 
 bours were made more thoughtful about rehgion than usual, 
 and doubtful they had lived till then in a careless ignorance 
 of it ; but the concern was riot very extensive. 
 
 " I have prevailed. Sir, on my good friend before men- 
 tioned, who was the principal private instrument of promot- 
 ing the late work, and therefore well acquainted with it, to 
 write me a narrative of its rise and progress from this period 
 till my settlement here ; and this, together with the substance 
 of what he and others have told me, I shall present to you 
 without any material alterations, and personate him, though I 
 shall not exactly use his words. 
 
 " ' The Rev. Mr. Whitefield had been in Virginia, 1 
 think, in the year 1740, and at the invitation of the Rev. 
 Mr. Blair, our late Commissary, had preached in Williams- 
 burg, our metropolis, about sixty miles from Hanover. His 
 fame was much spread abroad, as a very warm and alarming 
 preacher ; which made such of us in Hanover as had been 
 awakened, very eager to see and hear him ; but as he left 
 the colony before we heard of him, we had no opportunity. 
 But in the year 1743, a young gentleman arrived from Scot- 
 land with a book of his sermons preached in Glasgow, and 
 taken from his mouth in short hand, which with difficulty I 
 procured. After I had read it with great liking and benefit, 
 I invited my neighbors to come and hear it ; and the plain- 
 ness, popularity and fervency of the discourses being pecu- 
 liarly fitted to affect our unimproved minds, and the Lord 
 rendering the word efficacious, many were convinced of their 
 undone condition, and constrained to seek deliverance with 
 the greatest solicitude. A considerable number convened 
 every Sabbath to hear these sermons, instead of going to 
 church, and frequently on week days. The concern of 
 some was so passionate and violent, that they could not avoid 
 crying out, weeping bitterly, &c., and that when such indica- 
 tions of religious concern were so strange and ridiculous, that 
 they could not be occasioned by example or sympathy, and 
 the affectation of them would have been so unprofitable an 
 32 » 
 
378 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 instance of hypocrisy, that none could be tempted to it. 
 My dwellinghouse at length was too small to contain the 
 people ; whereupon we determined to build a meetinghouse, 
 merely for reading ; for we knew of no minister in the world 
 whom we could get to preach to us according to our liking ; 
 and having never been accustomed to social extempore pray- 
 er, none of us durst attempt it in company. By this single 
 mean, sundry were solemnly awakened, and their conduct 
 ever since is a living attestation of the continuance and happy 
 issue of their impressions. When the report of these ser- 
 mons and the effects occasioned by reading them was spread 
 abroad, I was invited to several places to read them, at a 
 considerable distance ; and by this means the concern was 
 propagated. 
 
 *' ' About this time, our absenting ourselves from church, 
 contrary, as was alleged, to the laws of the land, was taken 
 notice of; and we were called upon by the court, to assign 
 our reasons for it, and to declare what denomination we were 
 of. As we knew but little of any denomination of dissenters, 
 except Quakers, we were at a loss what name to assume. 
 At length, recollecting that Luther was a noted reformer, 
 and that his doctrines were agreeable to our sentiments, and 
 had been of special service to us, we declared ourselves Lu- 
 therans ; and thus we continued till Providence afforded us 
 an unexpected opportunity of hearing the Rev. Mr. William 
 Robinson.' 
 
 " Here, Sir, it may be proper for me to lay aside the per- 
 son of my informer for a while, and interrupt the connexion 
 of his relation, to give you some account of the travels and 
 successes of that zealous, faithful and laborious minister of 
 Christ, the late Mr. Robinson, whose dear memory will min- 
 gle with my softest and most grateful thoughts, as long as I 
 am capable (if reflection. He was in the ministry about six 
 years, and never took the charge of a congregation till a few 
 months before his happy and triumphant exit. The neces- 
 sitous circumstances of many vacancies, and the prospects of 
 more extensive usefulness, engaged him to expose his shat- 
 tered constitution to all the hardships and fatigues of almost 
 uninterrupted itinerations ; and it has been ray lot to trace 
 his travels in sundry parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland and 
 Virginia ; and I cannot recollect one place in which he had 
 officiated for any time, where there were not some illustrious 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 379 
 
 effects of his ministry. He had a noble, disinterested ambi- 
 tion to preach the gospel where Christ was not named ; and 
 therefore, by the permission of the Presbytery, he took a 
 journey through the new settlements in Pennsylvania, Vir- 
 ginia and North Carolina, in which he continued about two 
 years, oppressed with the usual difficulties a weakly constitu- 
 tion finds in travelling a wilderness, and animated only by his 
 glorious successes. He continued for some time in Lunen- 
 burg, a county about one hundred miles southwest of this, 
 where, (as I shall have occasion to observe more fully here- 
 after,) a small number of Presbyterians from the northern 
 colonies were settled, intermixed with a number of loose 
 Virginians ; and there he was the happy instrument of re- 
 claiming many thoughtless creatures, and foundirrg a flourish- 
 ing congregation. In Amelia also, a county somewhat nearer 
 this -than the former, his labors were extensively blessed ; and 
 while he was there, or near it, some of the people in Hano- 
 ver, having had some imperfect information of him, sent him 
 an invitation to come and preach to them, though they knew 
 very little of his character or method of preaching, only that 
 it was uncommon, and tended to awaken people. They ven- 
 tured to make an appointment for him to preach at their read- 
 ing house (if I may so call it) before they received any 
 promise from him by their messenger ; and with much diffi- 
 culty he came against the day appointed. Some of the peo- 
 ple were anxious to discover his principles privately, in the 
 morning, before he was to preach ; but knew not how, till 
 they fell upon the device of asking his opinion of some books 
 they approved of. Upon his declaring his approbation of 
 these tests of orthodoxy, they were transported with the most 
 pleasing expectations, and with eager impatience, attended 
 him to the place where he was to preach. 
 
 " I shall now reassume the person of my informer, and 
 proceed in his narrative, 'On the sixth of July, 1743, 
 Mr. Robinson preached his first sermon to us, from Luke 13 : 
 3, and continued with us preaching four days successively. 
 The congregation was large the first day ; and as the report 
 of him spread, it vastly increased on the three ensuing. It 
 is hard for the liveliest imagination to form an image of the 
 condition of the assembly on these glorious days of the Son 
 of man. Such of us as had 'been hungering for the word be- 
 fore, were lost in an agreeable confusion of various passions, 
 
380 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 surprised, astonished, pleased, enraptured ! so that we were 
 hardly capable of self-government ; and some could not re- 
 frain from publicly declaring their transport. We were over- 
 whelmed with the thoughts of the unexpected goodness of 
 God, in allowing us to hear the gospel preached in a manner 
 that surpassed even our former wishes, and much more our 
 hopes. Many that came through curiosity, were pricked to 
 the heart ; and but few in the numerous assemblies on these 
 four days appeared unaffected. They returned astonished, 
 alarmed with apprehensions of their dangerous condition, 
 convinced of their former entire ignorance of religion, and 
 anxiously inquiring, what they should do to be saved. And 
 there is reason to believe there was as much good done by 
 these four sermons, as by all the sermons preached in these 
 parts before or since. 
 
 " ' Before Mr. Robinson left us, he successfully endeavour- 
 ed to correct some of our Antinomian mistakes, and to bring 
 us to carry on the worship of God more regularly at our 
 meetings. He advised us to meet to read good sermons, 
 and to begin and conclude with prayer and singing of Psalms, 
 which till then we had omitted.* When we next met, we 
 complied with his directions ; and when all the rest refused, 
 I read and prayed with trembling and diffidence ; which 
 method was observed in sundry places, till we were furnished 
 with a minister. The blessing of God remarkably attended 
 these more private means ; and it was really astonishing to 
 observe the solemn impressions begun or continued in many, 
 by hearing good discourses read. I had repeated invitations 
 to come to many places round, some of them thirty or forty 
 miles distant, to read ; with which I generally complied. 
 
 " When Mr. Robinson took his leave, the people offered him a consider- 
 able sum of money, as a reward for his services. He refused it, lest the 
 purity of his motives should be suspected ; which, in view of the circum- 
 stances of that whole region, was probably judicious. At his first stopping- 
 place, he found the money in his saddle-bags. He immediately returned 
 to Mr. Morris, to restore it. His friends were mortified that he had come 
 solely to bring back the money, aijd urged that they knew not what to do 
 with it, as it had been collected in smallsums from many donors, and could 
 not well be returned. A new thought seemed to strike him. He proposed 
 to take the money, and give it to a very promising young man, who was 
 studying divinity at the north, and who greatly needed assistance; adding, 
 that when licensed, he should come and be their minister. The proposal 
 was accepted, and the money was given to Samuel Davies. The sense of 
 obligation for this assistance was what determined Davies, when licensed, to 
 go to Virginia, ^m. Q,uart. Reg. IX : 307. ' 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 381 
 
 Considerable numbers were wont to attend, with eager atten- 
 tion and awful solemnity ; and sundry ■were, in a judgment of 
 charity, thoroughly turned to God, and thereupon erected 
 meetinghouses, and chose readers among themselves, by 
 which the work was more extensively carried on. 
 
 " ' Soon after our father, Mr. Robinson, left us, the Rev. 
 Mr. John Blair paid us a short visit ; and truly, he came to 
 us in the fulness of the gospel of Christ. Former impres- 
 sions were ripened, and new formed on many hearts. One 
 night, in particular, a whole house full of people was quite 
 overcome with the power of the word, particularly of one 
 pungent sentence that dropped from his lips ; and they could 
 hardly sit or stand, or keep their passions under any proper 
 restraints, so general was the concern during his stay with 
 us ; and so ignorant were we of the danger persons in such 
 a case were in of apostasy, which unhappy observation has 
 since taught us, that we pleased ourselves with the expecta- 
 tion of the gathering of more people to the divine Shiloh, 
 than now seem to have been actually gathered to him ; though 
 there be still the greatest reason to hope, that sundry bound 
 themselves to the Lord in an everlasting covenant, never to 
 be forgotten. 
 
 " ' Some time after this, the Rev. Mr. John Roan was 
 sent by the Presbytery of Newcastle (under whose imme- 
 diate care we had voluntarily placed ourselves) to supply us. 
 He continued with us longer than either of the former ; and 
 the happy effects of his ministrations are still apparent, in 
 many instances. He preached at sundry places at the earn- 
 est solicitations of the people, which was the happy occasion 
 of beginning and promoting the religious concern, where 
 there were Ihtle appearances of it before. This, together 
 with his speaking pretty freely about the degeneracy of the 
 clergy in this colony, gave a general alarm, and some mea- 
 sures were concerted to suppress us. To incense the indig- 
 nation of the government the more, a perfidious wretch de- 
 posed, he heard Mr. Roan use somfe blasphemous expres- 
 sions in his sermon, and speak in the most shocking and 
 reproachful manner of the established church. An indict- 
 ment was thereupon drawn up against Mr. Roan, (though by 
 that time he had departed the colony,) and some of the 
 people who had invited him to preach at their houses, were 
 cited to appear before the General Court, (which, in this 
 
382 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 government, consists of the Governor or Commander-in- 
 chief, and His Majesty's council,) and two of them were 
 fined twenty shillings sterling, besides the costs, which in one 
 of the cases would have amounted to near fifty pounds, had 
 the evidences demanded their due. While my cause was 
 upon trial, I had reason to rejoice that the throne of grace is 
 accessible in all places, and that helpless creatures can waft 
 up their desires unseen, to God, in jthe midst of a crowd. 
 Six evidences were cited to prove the indictment against Mr. 
 Roan ; but their depositions were in his favor ; and as for 
 the evidence mentioned just now, who accused him of blas- 
 phemy against God and the church, when he heard of Messrs. 
 G. Tennent's and S. Finley's arrival, he fled, and has not 
 returned since ; so that the indictment was dropped. I had 
 reason to fear being banished the colony ; and all circumstan- 
 ces seemed to threaten the extirpation of religion among the 
 dissenters in these parts. 
 
 " ' In these difficulties we lay, without any person of a pub- 
 lic character to appear in our favor ; whereupon we deter- 
 mined to acquaint the Synod of New York with our case ; 
 hoping that a synodical representation of it to our worthy 
 Governor, the Hon. Sir William Gooch, might free him 
 from the misinformations under which he labored, and pro- 
 cure us the liberties granted to Protestant Dissenters by the 
 Act of Toleration. Accordingly, four of us went to the 
 Synod, May, 1745, when the Lord favored us with success. 
 The Synod, being informed of our difficulties, and presuming 
 they might be removed by an impartial representation of our 
 affairs, drew up an address to our Governor, and sent the 
 Rev. Messrs. G. Tennent and Samuel Finley to wait on his 
 honor to present it, and to officiate a few days among us. 
 Sir William received them with condes9ension ^nd respect, 
 and granted them liberty to preach in Hanover. By this 
 means, the tremendous cloud that hung over us was dissipa- 
 ted for a time, and our languid hopes were revived. Mr. 
 Tennent and Mr. Finley continued with us about a week ; 
 and though the deluge of passion in which we were at first 
 overwhelmed, was by this time somewhat abated, yet much 
 good was done by their ministry. The people of God were 
 refreshed, and sundry careless sinners were; awakened. 
 Some that had confided before in their moral conduct and 
 religious duties, were convinced of the depravity of their 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 383 
 
 nature, and the necessity of being renewed in the spirit of 
 their mind ; though indeed there were but few unregenerate 
 persons among us at that time, that could claim so regular a 
 character ; the generality of professors indulging themselves 
 in criminal liberties, and being remiss in the duties of reli- 
 gion ; which alas ! is too commonly the case still in such 
 parts of the colony as the late revival did not extend to. 
 
 " ' After these gentlemen had left us, we continued vacant 
 for a considerable time, and kept up our meetings for read- 
 ing and prayer in sundry places ; and the Lord favored us at 
 these occasions with his gracious presence. I was again re- 
 peatedly presented and fined in court for absenting myself 
 from church, and keeping up. unlawful meetings, as they 
 were called ; but the bush flourished in the flames. 
 
 " ' The next that were appointed to supply us, were the 
 Rev. Messrs. William Tennent and Samuel Blair. They 
 waited on the Governor, and readily obtained his permission 
 to officiate among us. Their labors were not in vain in the 
 Lord. They administered the sacrament of the Lord's 
 Supper among us before their departure ; which was the first 
 administration of that heavenly ordinance among us since our 
 dissent from the Church of England ; and we have reason to 
 remember it till our last moments, as a most glorious day of 
 the Son of man. The assembly was large, and the novelty 
 of the mode of administration did peculiarly engage their at- 
 tention. The children were abundantly fed, and crthers were 
 brought to hunger and thirst after righteousness. It ap- 
 peared as one of the days of heaven to some of us ; and we 
 could hardly help wishing we could, with Joshua, have de- 
 layed the revolutions of the heavens, to prolong it. 
 
 "' Messrs. Tennent and Blair continued with us about a 
 fortnight ; and immediately after their departure, Mr. White- 
 field came and preached four or five days in these parts ; 
 which was the happy means of giving us further encourage- 
 ment, and engaging others to the Lord, especially among the 
 Church people, who received his doctrines more readily than 
 they would from ministers of the Presbyterian denomination. 
 
 " ' After his departure, we were destitute of a minister, 
 and followed our usual method of reading and prayer at our 
 meetings, till the Rev. Mr. Davies, our present pastor, was 
 sent by the Presbytery to supply us about six weeks, in 
 S^pring, Anno 1747, when our discouragements from the gov- 
 
384 , THE GRBAT AWAKENING. 
 
 ernment were renewed and multiplied : for on one Sunday, 
 the Governor's proclaoiation was set up at our meetinghouse, 
 strictly rec|,uiring all magistrates to suppress and prohibit, as 
 far as they lawfully could, all itinerant preachers, &c., which 
 occasioned us to forbear reading that day, till we had time to 
 deliberate and consult what was expedient to do ; but how 
 joyfully were we surprised before the next Sabbath, when 
 we unexpectedly heard that Mr. Davies was come to preach 
 so long among us ; and especially, tliat he had qualified him- 
 self according to law, and obtained the licensure of four 
 meetinghouses among us, which had never been done be- 
 fore ! Thus, when our hopes were expiring, and our liber- 
 ties more precarious than ever, we were suddenly advanced 
 to a more secure situation. Man's extremity is the Lord's 
 opportunity. For this seasonable instance of the interposi- 
 tion of divine providence, we desire to ofier our grateful 
 praises ; and we importune the friends of Zion generously to 
 concur in the delightful employ.' " 
 
 Such was the rise of Presbyterianism in Virginia. In 
 1748, Davies obtained licenses for three more meeting 
 houses, and thenceforth divided his time among the seven. 
 Notwithstanding many troubles from the partisans of the 
 Church of England, who had the government of the colony 
 in their hands, Presbyterianism continued to gain strength, 
 and even when this letter was written, the revival was still in 
 progress. 
 
 Meanwhile, Whitefield was laboring in other regions, es- 
 pecially Pennsylvania and Maryland. His course, and the 
 general results of his labors, as he estimated them at the 
 time, may be learned from his letters. He wrote ; — 
 
 " Bohemia, Md., October 8, 1746. — I trust the time for 
 favoring this and the neighbouring southern provinces is come. 
 Everywhere, almost, the door is opened for preaching, great 
 numbers flock to bear, and the power of an ascended Saviour 
 attends the word. For it is surprising how the Lord causes 
 prejudices to subside, and makes my former most bhter ene- 
 mies to be at peace with me." 
 
 ^^ .Annapolis, Md., jyovember 8, 1746. — Lately I have 
 been in seven counties in Maryland, and preached with abun- 
 dant success." 
 
 "■ Charleston, January 22, 1747. — The Lord Jesus is 
 pleased to give me great access to multitudes of souls." He 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 385 
 
 wrote from the same place, March 15, that Bethesda was 
 never in a better condition ; that he had opened a Latin 
 school there during the winter ; that the Spirit was striving 
 with several of the children, and that he hoped yet to see 
 ministers furnished from Georgia. April 28, he wrote from 
 Bohemia, of the success of Davies in Virginia ; but a proc- 
 lamation had been issued against itinerants, so that the door 
 was shut against Whitefield. 
 
 ^'- Wicoacomico, Md., May 16, 1747. — Maryland is 
 yielding converts to the blessed Jesus. The gospel seems 
 to be moving southward." 
 
 " JSTear Jfewton, Md., May 21, 1747. — I have been now 
 a three hundred miles' circuit in Maryland, and through one 
 or two counties in Pennsylvania. Everywhere the people 
 .have a hearing ear, and I trust some have an obedient heart." 
 
 "Philadelphia, June 1, 1747. — At present I have full 
 work here. The congregations yesterday were evidently 
 large, and for this month past I have been preaching to thou- 
 sands in different places." 
 
 He soon went to New York, and then to Newport, Bos- 
 ton, and Portsmouth. On his return, he wrote to Gilbert 
 Tennent : 
 
 " JVeto York, August 29. — My reception at Boston, and 
 elsewhere in New England, was like unto the first. Arrows 
 of conviction fled and stuck fast. Congregations were larger 
 than ever, and opposers' mouths were stopped. Will you 
 now take another trip .''" Tennent was not at liberty to com- 
 ply, even if he desired it. 
 
 After short visits to Philadelphia and Bohemia, Whitefieid, 
 according to previous arrangements, went to spend the win- 
 ter in North Carolina. His letters from Bathtown continu- 
 ally express hopes of a revival, but none of them record its 
 existence. Yet his labors doubtless prepared the way for 
 those of the Synod of New York, which were successfully 
 carried on a few years afterwards. In May, 1748, he em- 
 barked for Bermuda, whence, after some weeks, he continu- 
 ed his voyage to England. His subsequent visits to these 
 colonies were much of the same character, though at times, 
 as at New York in 1764, attended with remarkable success. 
 
 To provide a supply of ministers for carrying on the good 
 vyork extensively and permanently, the Synod of New York 
 procured, in 1746, the first charter for the College at 
 33 
 
386 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 Princeton. The Rev. Jonathan Dickinson was chosen its 
 first President, and continued in that office til! his death, in 
 
 1747. Mr. Burr, the son-in-law of Edwards of Northamp- 
 ton, succeeded him. The charter was unacceptable, and in 
 
 1748, another was granted by Governor Belcher, who was 
 Governor of Massachusetts at the time of Whitefield's first 
 arrival. For many years, this college received a large pro- 
 portion of its students from New England, where many of the 
 pious had more confidence in it, than in Harvard or Yale. 
 Among its later Presidents were Edwards, who succeeded 
 his son-in-law, Davies and Finley, — all ardent and success- 
 ful laborers in this great revival. In 1753, Gilbert Tennent 
 and Samuel Davies made a successful visit to England and 
 Scotland, by appointment of the Synod at the request of the 
 Trustees, to procure funds for its support. 
 
 Twenty-two ministers were present at the formation of 
 the Synod of New York in 1745. Eight others attended in 
 1746 ; nine others in 1747 ; three others in 1748 ; five 
 others, besides the whole Presbytery of Suffolk, on Long 
 Island, in 1749. Six new members were reported in 1750 ; 
 nine in 1751 ; three in 1752 ; five in 1753 ; six in 1754 ; 
 three in 1755 ; six in 1756 ; three in 1757 ; and one in 
 1758. The whole number reported as belonging to the Syn- 
 od that year, was seventy-two. The Synod of Philadel- 
 phia, meanwhile, received twenty-two members ; but, owing 
 to deaths and other causes, had only about the same number of 
 members which the division left, — a little more than twenty. 
 They had made some efforts to build up new churches in 
 Virginia and elsewhere, but with rather moderate success. 
 
 It is evident from these facts, that the impulse given to 
 'the progress of religion in 1740, was still felt. With occa- 
 sional visits from Whitefield and the constant labors of the 
 Tennents and their allies, the revival continued for many 
 years, — not always in the same place, or the same form, but 
 substantially existing and eflScient in increasing the number 
 of the pious. In no other way can we account for the fact, 
 that the number of ministers in the Synod of New York was 
 more than tripled in seventeen years. 
 
 Notwithstanding repeated efforts at reconciliation, in which 
 the members of the New York Presbytery usually took the 
 lead, the schism continued till May 29, 1758. Gilbert Ten- 
 nent had long heen anxious for a reunion. In 1749, he pub- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 387 
 
 lished his Irenicum Ecclesiasticum, for the purpose of pro- 
 moting it. In this and other writings, be argued powerfully 
 against several sentiments and practices which had been as- 
 cribed to him, and even against some which he had appar- 
 ently held. The parties became convinced that there were 
 no differences between them sufficient to justify their separa- 
 tion. All felt the need of union, in order to the greatest 
 prosperity of the cause of religion. The Synod of Philadel- 
 phia, too, must have perceived that they were steadily losing 
 their importance, and could escape becoming an insignificant 
 sect, only by uniting with that body which would certainly be- 
 come the Presbyterian church in America. 
 
 In arranging the terms of union, the Synod of Philadel- 
 phia declared, that the "Protestation " of 1741 had never been 
 judicially adopted, and was not accounted a synodical act, 
 but only the act of those who signed it ; so that there was no 
 need of revoking it. As to " rash judging " and "intru- 
 sions," it was agreed, " That it shall be esteemed and treat- 
 ed as a censurable evil, to accuse any member of heterodoxy, 
 insufficiency or immorality, in a calumniating manner, or oth- 
 erwise than by private brotherly admonition, or by a regular 
 process according to our known rules of judicial trial in 
 cases of scandal. And it shall be considered in the same 
 view, if any presbytery appoint supplies within the bounds of 
 another presbytery without their concurrence ; or if any 
 member officiate in another's congregation without asking and 
 obtaining his consent, or the session's, in case the minister be 
 absent. Yet it shall be esteemed unbrotherly for any one, 
 in ordinary circumstances, to refuse his consent to a regular 
 member when requested." The whole subject of licensure 
 and ordination was left to the presbyteries, without interfer- 
 ence from a Synod's committee. Congregations which had 
 become divided during the schism, were to be united where 
 it could conveniently be done ; but where both parties had 
 settled ministers, should be allowed to remain as they were. 
 The Synod of New York declared its belief unaltered con- 
 cerning the revival ; and the united Synod declared, that a 
 change to penitence, faith and a holy life is to be ascribed 
 to the Spirit of God, even though attended with " bodily, 
 commotions " and other irregiilarities ; and that persons who, 
 without such a change, fancy themselves converted because 
 they have had visions, or tratlces, or faintings, or the like, 
 are "under a dangerous delusion." 
 
388 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 The number of members of this united body, which was 
 called " The Synod of New York and Philadelphia," was 
 ninety-six.* Of these, seventeen are known to have been 
 graduates from Princeton, three from Harvard, and twenty- 
 three from Yale. Others of them, as the Tennents, had 
 been educated in this country, and many were from Europe. 
 
 In the Presbyterian Church, after the union, the friends of 
 the revival had an overwhelming preponderance on account 
 of their numbers, and still more on account of their activity, 
 energy, and weight of character. They imparted their spirit 
 to the church itself, when acting as a whole ; to the young 
 men who entered its ministry, and to the new congregations 
 that were added to its communion. And thus the Synod of 
 Philadelphia were saved from following their allies in New 
 England, in Scotland, in Ireland, and in England, into the 
 dead sea of Arminian ineflSciency, and the bottomless gulf of 
 Unitarianism. Had the Synod of Philadelphia been strong 
 enough to stand alone, its history would have been like that 
 of Henchman's church at Lynn. It would have kept all its 
 congregations still and quiet. It would have repressed all 
 strong feeling about religion. It would have induced a gen- 
 eral apathy in people and ministers, in which neither would 
 have cared much for any thing but the privilege of remaining 
 undisturbed. Consequently, all disturbing doctrines would 
 have been first neglected, and then disbelieved, and the truly 
 orthodox " standards " of the church would have been either 
 altered, or regarded as a dead letter. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 THE RESULTS. 
 
 T he first inquiry of most readers will b^. How m any 
 w ere truly converted during this r evivaL ? A preci se answer 
 to this question i s impossi ble. Whitefield's records of his 
 own success scarcely form a basis for a conjecture. As has 
 
 '• Prof. Hodge's List, Const. Hist Pres. Styles says," above 100;" and 
 adds, 41 destitute congregations in Pennsylvania and Delaware alone. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 389 
 
 been shown, he immensely overrated the numbers of his 
 hearers ; and he had very little opportunity to ascertain how 
 many of them received any saving benefit from his labors. 
 When he saw hundreds or thousands at a time melted by his 
 eloquence, he called it a "gracious melting," thanked God 
 for the display of his power, hoped they would prove true 
 converts, and hurried away to preach the gospel to other 
 thousands. Multitudes of cases answered to his hopes. 
 Other multitudes were only made to weep by his eloquence, 
 without being converted, convicted, or even alarmed. The 
 same is true, to a less extent, of other itinerants of the day. 
 
 Various estimates have been given, of the number added 
 to the churches. Dr. Cogswell * thinks it probable, that 
 twenty-five thousand were added to the churches in New 
 England. Trumbull f estimates the number of converts in 
 New England in two or three years, at thirty or forty thou- 
 sand. Others place the number as high as fifty thousand. 
 To these must be added the numerous accessions to the 
 Presbyterian Church, which we can only conjecture from 
 the rapid increase of settled pastors. Where so many new 
 congregations were formed, we may be sure that many old 
 ones were enlarged. 
 
 The number of Congregational churches, too, was increas- 
 ed. The Rev. Ezra Sly]eSjj3|lJSew|icirl,.£fJtexwar,ds_Eresi- 
 
 d'^"1.0J[.Tglg_C-G]lP^£j_ir_..b'f^ Sfirmnn nn "Christian TTpinrij" 
 pnblisihpH in 17finjsf3^ps thpf sinr-.p 1740, "f in aug menta- 
 ti on of above 15 new chur.ch£s_has_taken. place, founded not 
 on the separations, but naturaHncrease into new towns and 
 parishes,' making the v^hole number of Congregational 
 churches 530. If, by this " augmentation," the number of 
 churches only kept pace with the increase of population, it 
 shows the influence of the revival ; for wKhout that influence, 
 a greater proportion of new settlements would have remained 
 without churches. But doubtless it was otherwise, and many 
 of them vi'ere established in the older parts of the country, 
 by the peaceable division of towns and parishes, to meet the 
 increased desire for religious privileges. For instance, a revi- 
 val began at Leicester, about the commencement of the year 
 1742. Edwards, as has been mentioned, spent several 
 weeks there, laboring with great success. In May, 1744, a 
 
 * Christian Philanthropist, p. 392. t History Ct. t O. S. Ch. Lib. 
 33* 
 
390 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 new church was organized in the west precinct of Leicester, 
 and, in November following, the Rev. Joshua Eaton was or- 
 dained as its pastor.* Nor may we suppose, that all the 
 churches which were " founded on the separations " were 
 useless. In some instances, they were founded on separa- 
 tions from degenerate churches and an unconverted ministry, 
 as even charity must admit, and were the means of estab- 
 lishing and preserving gospel ordinances in their life and 
 power, where otherwise there would have been only the dead 
 form of religion. Some of them occurred where the Chris- 
 tian population was large enough to justify division. Though 
 all or nearly all of them were more or less disorderly at first, 
 and some of them too dis'orderly to be capable of long hfe, 
 some of them became regular and orderly churches, and sub- 
 sist as useful institutions to this day. President Clapp, who 
 in 1742 forbade his pupils to attend the Separate meeting at 
 New Haven, became an attendant there himself in less than 
 fen years. f Still more of the Separatist churches became 
 Baptists, and still subsist ; and the older Baptist churches 
 were considerably increased during the revival, and especially 
 after 1745. Their increase is not included in the estimate 
 of Dr. Styles. 
 
 We have, then, these elements of conjecture : 1. The es- 
 timates of the number of converts during a few years in New 
 England, by men who were active in those times or remem- 
 ber them, vary from twenty-five to fifty thousand. 2. One 
 hundred and fifty Congregational churches were regularly 
 formed in less than twenty years, including the years in which 
 the country was distracted and its growth impeded by the 
 " old French wars." 3. A considerable number of Sepa- 
 ratist churches was formed, which really added to the strength 
 of the Redeemer's tingdom. 4. There was an increase of 
 strength, known to be considerable, to the Baptist churches 
 in New England. 5. The number of Presbyterian ministers 
 had increased from forty-five or less, before the schism, to 
 more than one hundred ; and Presbyterian congregations had 
 increased, so that there were forty-one desitute, in Pennsyl- 
 vania and Delaware alone. — The growth of the country, 
 notwithstanding the wars bj' which it was retarded, accounts 
 for some part of this increase ; but after all due allowance 
 
 * Boston Gazette, Nov. 27, 1744. t Backus, Eccl. History N. E. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 391 
 
 on that account, it is evident that the revival had done much 
 to enlarge the number of the pious and extend the influence 
 of religion . 
 
 But the increase in the number of churches and church 
 members is a very inadequate measure of the increase of 
 piety. Great numbers of church members were converted. 
 We must remember that the practice of admitting to the 
 communion all persons neither heretical nor scandalous, was 
 general in the Presbyterian church, and prevailed extensively 
 among the Congregational churches. In consequence, a 
 large proportion of the communicants in both were uncon- 
 verted persons. Multitudes of these were converted. Of 
 course, there was no census of the unconverted members of 
 the several churches, or of the conversions among them ; 
 nor would any of them be counted as additions to the church- 
 es. In some cases, the revival seems to have been almost 
 wholly within the church, and to have resulted in the conver- 
 sion of nearly all the members. A large addition ought to 
 be made, on this score, to the estimated number of conver- 
 sions. 
 
 No (considerable deduction is to be made from these esti- 
 mates, on account of the supposed converts who in the end 
 " feli away ;" for the estimates rest mostly on facts of a later 
 date than their apostasy. At the commencement of the re- 
 vival, the practice of attempting to distinguish between the 
 converted and the unconverted was for the most part obso- 
 lete, and, except among the Separatists, there was little 
 thought of reviving it. Any manifest approach towards it 
 was condemned by the majority, even of the pious, both in 
 the ministry and out of it, as "uncharitable," " censorious," 
 and " divisive." Very naturally, therefore, they counted 
 and reported the number of the " awakened," including 
 church members and others ; and thus the impression was 
 very extensively made, that the "awakened," generally, 
 were expected to prove real Christians. It was to estimates 
 formed under the influence of such habits of thought, that 
 Edwards alluded, in his letter to Dr. Erskine, of June 28, 
 1751. "I cannot say that the greater part of supposed con- 
 verts give reason, by their conversation, to suppose that they 
 are true converts. The proportion may, perhaps, be more 
 truly represented by the proportion of blossoms on a tree, 
 which abide and come to mature fruit, to the whole number 
 
392 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 of blossoms in the spring."* The result would be much the 
 same now, if all whose attention is aroused during a revival, 
 were at first counted as "supposed converts." The esti- 
 mates already given, are founded on facts and opinions gath- 
 ered after the false blossoms had fallen off. 
 
 The value of these conversions must not be estimated by 
 their number alone. Their proportion to the population of 
 the country must be considered. Dr. Styles supposed the 
 number of inhabitants in New England, in 1760, to be 501,- 
 909 ; and fifteen years afterwards, at the commencement of 
 the war of the Revolution, the population of all the colonies 
 was supposed to be three millions, at the most. He ap- 
 proves the statement of Franklin, that the population of New 
 England doubled in about twenty years ; so that in 1740, it 
 could not have been much over 250,000 ; and for the other 
 colonies a similar reduction should be made. Suppose, how- 
 ever, the whole population of all the colonies to have been 
 2,000,000. It is now about 17,000,000, or more than 
 eight times as great. Suppose the whole number of converts 
 to have been 50,000, which seems quite low enough. They 
 would bear as great a proportion to the whole number of in- 
 habitants, and would do as much towards changing the rela- 
 tive power of the religious and irreligious, as the conversion 
 of 400,000 would do now. 
 
 We should remember, too, that many of these converts 
 were already, and had long been, church members, and, from 
 their want of piety, were at best dead weights to the church- 
 es. They now became active and valuable members. 
 There was a twofold gain. In every such instance, the 
 church felt its encumbering burden diminished, and its 
 strength increased. Almost every church has its dead 
 weights, and knows what an impediment they are to its use- 
 fulness ; but few in this day are able even to imagine the 
 condition of a church, where a large part of the members 
 give no evidence of piety, except that they are neither heret- 
 ical nor scandalous ; still less, the condition of a church, 
 composed almost entirely of dead weights, all supposing that 
 God looks upon their membership with approbation. What 
 must be the value of a revival, in which the members of 
 such a church are converted into active Christians .' What 
 
 * Dwight's Life of Edwards, p. 460. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 393' 
 
 shall we say of a revival, which works such a transformation 
 of churches throughout the length and breadth of the land ? 
 
 And what shall be said of ministers, who are mere dead 
 weights? Whiteiield was rash, and Tennent was severe, in 
 their judgments of the number of unconverted ministers. 
 They were probably fewer than these men supposed, espe- 
 cially in New England. Still, it is useless to deny their ex- 
 istence. When the colleges received young men without 
 even the appearance of piety; to prepare for the ministry ; 
 when, if graduates were found to possess competent knowl- 
 edge, and were neither heretical nor scandalous, their piety 
 was taken for granted and they were oi'dained of course ; 
 when the doctrine that unconverted ministers, though ortho- 
 dox in doctrine and regular in their lives, were " the bane of 
 the church," gave offence, we'may be sure that unconverted 
 ministers existed. And such, not universally, but to a la- 
 mentable extent, was the base in all the colonies. There 
 can be no doubt, that a considerable number of ministers 
 were converted during the revival. Such Was their own' 
 judgment concerning themselves ; and in the opinion of 
 others, their previous and subsequent lives showed its cor- 
 rectness. Of nearly equal importance was the conversion of 
 a considerable number of students, preparing for the ministry. 
 At the time of Whitefield's third visit to America, from 
 1744 to 1748, there were not less than twenty ministers in 
 the vicinity of Boston, who considered him as the means of 
 their conversion.* Those who owed their conversion to the 
 revival, in the whole country, must have been considerably 
 more numerous. The value of such an infusion of life into 
 the ministry was incalculable. Every such conversion relieved 
 the church of a "bane," and gave her a blessing. Nor' was 
 this all. Many truly pious ministei-s had a very low standard 
 of duty, of hope, and of effort. They were scarce aware 
 that any thing was required of them, besides the conscientious 
 performance of a certain round of official services. These' 
 being performed, they trusted that God added his blessing, 
 whether they could see any signs of it or not. Believing 
 that all orthodox and moral men ought to be in the church, 
 they felt no practical need of any evidence, by which those 
 #ho were merely such, might be distinguished from the truly 
 
 ♦ Philip's Life and Times, p. 311. 
 
394 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 regenerate; and feeling no need of it, they ceased to look 
 for it, or expect it. They regarded the new birth as an im- 
 perceptible inward work, which they hoped was going on 
 among their people. Many such pastors were awakened to 
 new views of ministerial duty, learned to be no longer satis- 
 fied without manifest evidence of usefulness, and thenceforth 
 labored to produce ascertainable changes among the people 
 of their charge. On the whole, the beneficial influence of 
 Jthe revival on the ministry was immense. 
 
 But this was not all that the revival did for the ministry. 
 It fully and finally killed the doctrin e, that an unconvfirtRH 
 mmistry mi^ht be to lerated. At its commencement, opinions 
 on this suhject were in a state not easily understood by men 
 of the present day. Parents felt that they were doing a wor- 
 thy deed, by consecrating their unconverted sons to the min- 
 istry, and sending them to the colleges to be prepared for it. 
 The colleges felt that it was their business to take such 
 youths and prepare them ; and to doubt the fitness of those 
 whom they had trained to the profession, seemed to be an 
 attack both upon their reputation and their income. The 
 extensively prevailing view of regeneration, as a work attend- 
 ed by no ascertainable evidence, discouraged all questioning 
 concerning a minister's spiritual state. There was a dread, 
 too, of the Popish doctrine, that the word and sacraments 
 derive their efficacy from the minister, and not from Him 
 who instituted theni. It was very natural, therefore, that 
 Dr. Chauncy, in reply to Whitefield's question : " Are not 
 unconverted ministers the bane of the Christian church," 
 should write : "If they appear to be unconverted, by a con- 
 duct visibly contradictory to the gospel, I own they are a 
 plague to the church of God, as well as the greatest scandal 
 to religion. Nor is it a hurt, but a service to the interest of 
 Christ, to expose their character, and lessen their influence 
 to do mischief. But the case is widely difierent, where, so 
 far as appears to the world, they are the men their profession 
 obliges them to be. If, by unconverted ministers, you mean 
 those who appear to be so by a faith or life visibly contradic- 
 tory to the gospel, I entirely agree with you. But if you 
 intend, by unconverted ministers, those whom God knows to 
 be so, though from what outwardly appears they ought to be 
 well thought of, I doubt not but you are under a great mis- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 395 
 
 take."* And again : " Conversion does not appear to be 
 alike necessary for ministers in their public capacity as offi- 
 cers of the church, as it is in their private capacity. "f Who 
 would write so now .'' Who now would condemn as errone- 
 ous in doctrine, a single sentence in Tennent's Nottingham 
 sermon ? What theological seminary would open its doors, 
 or what education society would supply funds, to a young 
 man not supposed to be regenerate ? The false doctrine of 
 that day was not, even then, firmly established, especially in 
 New England. Men still remembered the old Puritan doc- 
 trine and practice, that none should be ordained without a 
 satisfactory examination in respect to their Christian experi- 
 ence. Every body felt, that calling a minister unconverted, 
 would have the effect, among his people, of calling him unfit 
 for his place. The error was mostly a practical one, con- 
 sisting in a lax administration, and a false theory, partially 
 and hesitatingly adopted, to justify it. When a bold and vig- 
 orous attack was made, it fell at once. The demand, that a 
 minister should be a converted man, was felt to be reasona- 
 ble, and when public attention was once strongly fixed upon 
 the question, the churches and the community soon settled it 
 cprrectly. And the correct settlement of this question is a 
 permanent good, of inestimable value. It has practically" 
 reached all evangelical denominations in the United States, 
 so that no leading man in any of them would dare to write 
 now, as Chauncy wrote, or even as " the venerable Stod- 
 dard " had written before him. This permanent good result 
 infinitely outweighs all the temporary evils, great as they cer- 
 tainly were, produced by the Separatists and other enthusi- 
 asts during the contest. The revival not only furnished many 
 converted pastors then, but secured a converted ministry for 
 coming times. 
 
 Of the progress of truth on this subject in the Presbyteri- 
 an Church, there are some interesting records. In 1761, 
 three years after the union of the two Synods, an overture 
 was introduced to the following effect : " As holiness is a 
 qualification requisite in a gospel minister: Quere, whether 
 it be the duty of a Presbytery, or possible for them, to make 
 candidates give a narrative of their personal exercises, and 
 upon this form a judgment of their real spiritual state towards 
 
 * Letter to Whitefield. O. S. Ch. Lib. t Seasonable Thouffhts. 
 
3,96 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 God, as the ground of admitting or rejecting them ? "* The 
 question was deferred till the next year, when its authors gave 
 an explanation of its meaning. They stated, that all were 
 agreed as to the duty of obtaining satisfactory evidence of 
 the candidate's experimental acquaintance with religion, 
 " excepting that some insist on requiring and using an ac- 
 count of the candidate's personal exercises and experiences 
 in religion, as a means of a judicature's satisfaction and 
 ground of their proceedings with him ; which we disallow. 
 So the case to be resolved seems only, whether a candi- 
 date's declaration of his own personal experiences and exer- 
 cises in religion, given in the way of narrative of these, or 
 in answer to questions put to him concerning them, should be 
 required by a judicature, as one appointed, warrantable and 
 useful means of forming a judgment of his experimental ac- 
 quaintance with religion, according to which judgment they 
 are to receive or reject him."f There was no difference of 
 opinion as to requiring " a serious profession and godly life." 
 After each member had expressed his views, the Synod vot- 
 ed, that a declaration of the candidate's personal experience 
 should be required, as a proper means of forming a judgment 
 of his experimental acquaintance with religion. Forty min- 
 isters and twenty-three elders attended this meeting. Only 
 thirteen voted in the negative, and one was doubtful. If all 
 voted, there were forty-nine in the affirmative. 
 
 'The question then arose, whether this vdte was not a vio- 
 lation of the sixth article of the agreement by vvhich the Syn- 
 ods were united, by which both Synods were allowed to act 
 according to their own judgment on this subject ; " for it 
 was well known to the Synod of New York, that the presby- 
 teries belonging to the Synod of Philadelphia did not ex- 
 amine a candidate's experiences." The question being put 
 to each member, it appeared that the members of the Synod 
 of New York who were present at the union, generally un- 
 derstood the sixth article to require a relation of experien- 
 ces, but the members of the Synod of Philadelphia under- 
 stood it otherwise. To avoid another schism, the Synod 
 declared that the vote just passed was to be understood only 
 as an expression of opinion, and not as a law, binding upon 
 such as tliought, differently.! Even this failed to give uni- 
 
 * Prof. Hodge. Const. Hist. IT. 394, from "Minutes, p. 50." 
 
 t Ibid. 396. " Minutes, pp. 64, 65." t Ibid. 399. "Minutes, p. 73." 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 397 
 
 versal satisfaction ; and Messrs. Robert Cross, Francis Ali- 
 son, John Ewing, John Syfnington and James Latta were 
 formed into a Presbytery for one year, to be called the Sec- 
 ond Presbytery of Philadelphia.* The question whether this 
 Presbytery should be allowed to remain in being, was deferred 
 from year to year till 1766, when it was voted in the affirma- 
 tive, several of the New Brunswick ministers protesting 
 against it. 
 
 In the Presbytery of Donegal, the troubles on this subject 
 were still greater. To terminate them, the Synod divided 
 the Presbytery in 1765. This gave dissatisfaction, and va- 
 rious expedients were proposed to make peace. A protest, 
 entered in 1766, declares, that the "distressed brethren 
 could not in conscience submit to the examination of the 
 hearts or experiences of candidates in the way voted by the 
 Synod, as they esteemed it contrary to the word of God, to 
 common sense, and the uniform practice of the Protestant 
 churches." Two ministers, Joseph Tate and John Beard, 
 formally withdrew -from the communion of the Synod, and 
 several others appear to have been on the point of doing it. 
 In 1768, the dissatisfied were distributed among the Presby- 
 teries of Donegal, Newcastle, and the Second Presbytery 
 of Philadelphia, where views similar to their own prevailed ; 
 and thus this schism was healed. 
 
 The difference of opinion respecting experiences, though 
 not formally made prominent, was at the bottom of the con- 
 troversy which produced the schism of 1741, when the 
 Tennents and their friends were in the minority, and were ex- 
 cluded. In 1762, their majority was about forty-nine to 
 fourteen, or seven to two. 
 
 The revival also did much to furnish means of education 
 for the ministry, and for all the learned professions. The 
 reader has already seen that it produced the College at 
 Princeton, and thus prepared the way for the Theological 
 Seminary there. It was also the parent of Dartmouth Col- 
 lege. Among the Mohegans converted in 1741, was Sam- 
 son Occum, then seventeen years of age. In December, 
 1743, Wheelock of Lebanon, whose labors in the revival 
 have been repeatedly noticed, received him as a pupil, and 
 he pursued his studies in the family for several years. In 
 
 * Const. Hist. II. 377. This was probably the first instance of an "elec- 
 tive affinity" Presbytery. 
 
 34 
 
398 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 1748, Wheelock determined to commence a school for the 
 education of Indian preachers, and a donation from Joshua 
 Moor, a farmer in Mansfield,' in 1754, gave it a permanent 
 foundation. The influence of the revival on several Indian 
 tribes helped to furnish him with pupils, and in 1762, he had 
 more than twenty under his care. In 1766, the Rev. Na- 
 thaniel Whitaker and Occum, who had become a preacher 
 of some distinction, went to England to solicit funds for the 
 Institution. Occum attracted unusual attention, Whitefield 
 aided them, and a large amount of funds was obtained. The 
 school was afterwards removed to its present location, in 
 Hanover, N. H., and Dartmouth College was added to it.* 
 
 The influence of this revival on the c ause of missi ons to 
 the heathen ought not to be overlooked. The New Eng- 
 land Pilgrims had set the Protestant world the first example 
 of such labors, and they and their descendants had sustained 
 the work for more than a century. Societies had been 
 formed in Great Britain to aid them ; and at a later day, some 
 kindred movements had been commenced on the continent 
 of Europe. Within a few years, several missions had been 
 established among the American Indians, but few conversions 
 had followed them. The most prosperous was the Stock- 
 bridge Mission, under Sargeant. The revival gave an im- 
 pulse to the work at nearly all the stations. On Long Isl- 
 and, thirty-five adults and forty-four children were baptized 
 by Mr. Horton, in two years from his arrival in 1741. Soon 
 after, there were numerous conversions among those near 
 Stonington ; and a visit from them was the means of awaken- 
 ing those in Westerly, R. I. An account of this last awak- 
 
 * It may be proper to mention, that with the fonnding of Dartmouth 
 College, in 1770, a series of revivals commenced, vrhich continued for sev- 
 eral years, and spread over several towns in that vicinity. They were evi- 
 dently a result of the revival of 1740, and possessed many of its leading 
 characteristics. There may have been no outcries or convulsions ; but 
 there were remarkable dreams and visions, and wonderful experiences, 
 which, in the minds of the judicious, even then, betokened future apostasy. 
 The author of this history has known several of the converts as Univer- 
 ealists and Infidels, and well remembers the excommunication of some of 
 them. He has known others as stable and consistent Christiana, Several 
 of them became eminent ministers of the gospel ; and to the influencfe of 
 one of them, — the Rev. Asa Burton, D. D., for more than half a century 
 pastor of the church in Thetford, Vt., — more than to any other man, the 
 extensive prevalence of sound religion in that part of New England must 
 be ascribed. It is certain, that spurious conversions were much more nu- 
 merous then, than in late revivals in the same region. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 399 
 
 ening, from the pen of Mr. Parks, the missionary, is given 
 in the preceding pages. Heathenism seems to have been 
 extirpated from that whole region. In 1743, Brainerd be- 
 gan his missionary career at Kaunaumeek. In 1745 he re- 
 moved to New Jersey, and commenced his labors at the 
 Forks of the Delaware and at Crosweeksung. His first vis- 
 it to the latter place was attended with the evident presence 
 of the Holy Spirit in the awakening and conviction of his 
 hearers. When, after two weeks, he left them for a season, 
 William Tennent was sent for and came to Supply his place. 
 The work went on under Tennent's preaching, and received 
 still a new impulse on Brainerd's return. All Christendom 
 knows the glorious scenes that followed. These dates, and 
 the name of Tennent, and the history of Brainerd while -at 
 New Haven, show that Brainerd's triumphs were a part of 
 this great revival. He soon died ; but he " yet speaketh," 
 and his influence is feh wherever there are missions. Wheel- 
 ock's Indian School has already been mentioned. In 1763^ 
 it had three missionaries and eight school-masters laboring 
 among the Indians ; and from this school and from conver- 
 sation with Whitefield, the Rev. Samuel Kirkland went forth, 
 in 1764, on his mission to the Oneidas. Whitefield visited 
 and encouraged both this Indian School and Brainerd's mis- 
 sion. And finally, the Concert of Prayer for the Conver- 
 sion of the World was first suggested by the leading revival- 
 ists in Scotland, in October, 1744 ; and the influence of Ed- 
 wards and their other American allies gave it prevalence here. 
 
 But there were results of another kind, no less important 
 than these ; results bearing directly on the constitution of 
 the churches, and on the principles which animated and gov- 
 erned them. 
 
 The revival set bou nds to the progress of here sy. That 
 a cokland formal Arminianism extensively prevailed, is too 
 notorious to be questioned. The decided Calvinists of that 
 d&y asserted, that Socinianism also was making progress in 
 the land. Though the charge was denied for many years, 
 Unitarians now maintain that it was true, and in this they are 
 probably correct. The growth of Unitarianism was doubt- 
 less modified by the revival, but did not originate in it ; for 
 it was already in the land, and growing in secret, when the 
 revival commenced. A contemporary document will here 
 be in place. 
 
400 THE GREAT AWAKEiNING. - 
 
 In the summer of 1745, Prince, Webb and Gee of Bos- 
 ton, and Hobby. of Reading, published an invitation to the 
 friends of the revival, to meet at Webb's, on the last 
 Wednesday in September.* The meeting was attended by 
 Prince, Webb and Gee of Boston, White of Gloucester, 
 Rogers of Kittery, Bailey of Weymouth, Leonard of Ply- 
 mouth, Rogers of Ipswich, Owen of Groton, Ct., Hobby 
 of Reading, Parker of Plympton, Jewett of Rowley, Cotton 
 of Halifax, Hemenway of Townsend, Bliss of Concord, 
 Porter of Bridgewater, Ellis of Plymouth, Crocker of Taun- 
 ton, Rogers of Gloucester, and Conant of Middleborough ; 
 and their " Testimony " was afterwards subscribed by Camp- 
 bell of Plympton, Shaw of Bridgewater, Goddard of Leices- 
 ter, and flovey of Rochester ; in all, twenty-four. No rea- 
 son is assigned, why it received so few signatures ; as the 
 friends of the revival generally are known to have entertained 
 similar views. Probably, the greater part of them thought it 
 inexpedient to agitate the country by a " Testimony " just 
 at that time, when the angry controversies occasioned by 
 Whitefield's return had not subsided, and when the itinerants 
 would take unfair advantage of every thing that could be 
 pressed into their service. In their " Testimony " they 
 say: — 
 
 " We cannot but also observe that the principal means of the late 
 revival were, the more than ordinary preaching up such Scripture and 
 most important doctrines as these, namely : The all seeing eye, purity, 
 justice, truth, power, majesty and sovereignty of God ; the spirituality, 
 holiness, extent and strictness of his law ; our original sin, guilt, de- 
 pravity and corruption by the fall ; including a miserable ignorance of 
 God and enmity against him, our predominant and constant bent to sin 
 and creatures above him; our impotence and aversion to return to 
 him; our innumerable and heinous actual offences, and thereby our 
 horrid, aggravated guilt, pollution and odiousnes? in his eyes ; his 
 dreadful and efficacious wrath and curse upon us ; the necessity that 
 his law should be fulfilled, his justice satisfied, the honor of his holi- 
 ness, authority and truth maintained in his conduct towards us ; our 
 utter impotence to help ourselves, and our continual hazard of being 
 sent into endless misery; the astonishing displays of the absolute wis- 
 dom and grace of God in contriving and providing for our redemption ; 
 the divinity, mediation, perfect holiness, obedience, sacrifice, merits, 
 satisfaction, purchase and grace of Christ ; the nature and necessity 
 of regeneration to the holy image of God by the supernatural opera- 
 tion of the divine Spirit ; with the various parts of his office in enlight- 
 ening our minds, awakening our consciences, wounding, breaking, 
 
 * Evening Post, Aug. 19, copied from Boston Gazette, July 3. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 401 
 
 humbling, subduing and changing our hearts, infusing his saving gra- 
 ces, exciting and helping us in the exercise of them, and in all obedi- 
 ence, witnessing with our spirits that we are the children of God, and 
 ' raising his consolations and joys in us ; the difference between hig 
 saving graces and merely moral virtues without sanctification, whereby 
 multitudes are deceived to their eternal ruin ; in special, the nature 
 and necessity of receiving Christ, so as to be ac,tually united to him 
 and have entire and everlasting interest in him, to be forthwith justified 
 by his imputed righteousness, adopted into the number of the children 
 of God, entitled to all their privileges assured in the covenant of 
 grace, have Christ as our mediatorial and vital Head of all good, with 
 his constant dwelling and acting by his Spirit in us ; and then, in con- 
 tinual acts of faith, deriving from him fresh supplies of spiritual liveli- 
 ness and comfort, as also light and strength for every duty and to 
 carry on our sanctification ; the nature of gospel obedience and holi- 
 ness, and their necessity, not as the matter of our justification, but as 
 the fruit and evidence of justifying faith, and to glorify God and enjoy 
 him the principal end both of our creation and redemption : and lastly, 
 the sovereignty of the grace of God in this whole transaction, from its 
 original, in the decree of election, to its consummation in glory. 
 
 " And as the more than ordinary preaching up these great truths of 
 revealed religion and experimental piety, being the same which were 
 BO successfully preached by the first sound and pious fathers of New 
 England, have been the principal means of the late revival ; we are 
 sorry to see, that under the name of New Light, many of the preach- 
 ers of these most important truths, and especially those which concern 
 the office and operation of the Spirit of grace in bringing lost and 
 perishing souls to Christ, are by many run down and ridiculed; as 
 those our pious forefathers were in their day, under the same or alike 
 reproachful terms, by many on the other side of the water ; and they 
 who preach the same truths of the gospel and- experimental piety aa 
 those great divines, Hooker, Cotton, Shepard, Goodwin, Owen, Flavel, 
 the Mathers, Willard, Stoddard, are represented by some as New 
 Light, Enthusiastical or Antinomian preachers ; whereby the awful 
 danger grows, of banishing even the faith of the glorious office of that 
 divine Agent in the work of conviction, conversion, sanctification and 
 comfort, first out of our pulpits, and then oiit of the land. Yea, to so 
 deplorable a pass have some traducers of this revival brought us, that 
 if any of the young generation begin to leave off their cursing, swear- 
 ing, immoderate drinking, obscene discourse, grow concerned for their 
 souls, and repair to the word ; they are immediately branded and vili- 
 fied by their vain companions with the name of New Lights, and 
 efforts are made to laugh them^out of their serious concern for their 
 souls and eternity; which we fear has been the ruinous case of many. 
 "In such an awful situation of things as this, we cannot but appre- 
 hend that the divine Head of the church now loudly calls us, and all 
 others who seriously believe and are deeply concerned for those great 
 truths of the gospel as collected in the above said Catechism and 
 Confession of Faith, with the interest of vital piety ; without imposing 
 in the least on others, or assuming any authority over the conscience 
 of any, which we utterly abhor, as directly contrary to the very nature 
 of religion itself; to unite our resolutions and endeavours, by all proper 
 34* 
 
402 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 means, consistent with liberty of conscience, to maintain, encourage 
 and promote the same." 
 
 They then copied an act of the General Assembly of the 
 Church of Scotland, in 1736, recommending the faithful 
 preaching of the doctrines of grace. This they approved, 
 as the best way of guarding against errors of all kinds, "in 
 particular the Socinian, Antinomian and Arminian ;" and 
 concluded by urging all ministers, whatever they might have 
 thought of the revival, to unite in maintaining and promoting 
 "the said important truths, and the power of godliness." 
 
 The revival was, in all its valuable features, a manifest ex- 
 ample of the power of those doctrines. Those whojeceived 
 benefit from it, knew that those doctrines were the means of 
 conferring that benefit upon them. The whole multitude of 
 converts regarded those doctrines as the means of their own 
 salvation, and as the indispensable means of the salvation of 
 others. Thus a great company of orthodox preachers and 
 many tens of thousands of orthodox Christians were raised 
 up, whose own experience forbade them to doubt the impor- 
 tance of doctrinal truth. Otherwise they might have gone on, 
 like the mass of those whom the revival failed to reach, into 
 the abyss of open and undisguised Unitarianism. In this 
 respect, even the bitterness of controversy was overruled for 
 good. It made men sensible that there were important dif- 
 ferences of opinion among them, and that the defence of the 
 truth was committed to its friends, and not to the pubhc gen- 
 erally. 
 
 The Baptist churches also shared, both in the danger and 
 the deliverance of that day. Their own historian, speaking 
 of the revival in its earlier stages, says : 
 
 " A measure of it was granted to the Baptists in Boston, Leicester, 
 Brimfield, Newport, Groton and Wallineford ; but as the work was 
 begun and carried on almost wholly by Peedobaptists, from which de- 
 nomin£tion their forefathers had suifered much, most of the Baptists 
 were prejudiced against the work, and against the Calvinian doctrine 
 by which it was promoted."* 
 
 W-ith the Separatists, they had more sympathy. Both 
 agreed in rejecting the whole Halfway Covenant theory, and 
 all its consequences. Both entertained the same views of 
 ordination, and of Christian liberty. Both had the same op- 
 ponents, and to a great extent, for the same reasons. It 
 
 * Backus, Eccl. Hist. N. E., Vol. II. page 134. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 403 
 
 was natural, therefore, that they should first love each other, 
 and afterwards unite ; and thus the influence of the revival 
 was carried into the Baptist churches, especially in Rhode 
 Island and its vicinity, in 1749 and afterwards.* 
 
 Another result of the revival was, a better knowledge of 
 the nature of religious experience. Without great ignorance 
 on this subject, many of its worst disorders would have been 
 impossible. Edwards wrote to Gillespie of Carnock, in 
 1751, concerning his dismission : 
 
 " Another thing that has evidently contributed to our calamities, is, 
 that the people had got so established in certain wrong notions and 
 ways in religion, which I found them in, and could never beat them out 
 of. Particularly, it was too much their method to lay almost all the 
 stress of their hopes in religion on the particular shape and method of 
 their iirst work ; that is, the first work of the Spirit of God on their 
 hearts, in their conviction and conversion ; and to look but little at the 
 abiding sense and temper of their hearts, and the course of their exer- 
 cises and trials of grace, for evidences of their good estate. Nor had 
 they learned, and many of them never could be made to learn, to dis- 
 tinguish between impressions on the imagination and lively spiritual 
 experience. And when I came among them, I found it to be too 
 much a custom among them, without discretion or distinction of occa- 
 sions, places or companies, to declare and publish their own experien- 
 ces, and oftentimes to do it in a light manner, without any air of solem- 
 nity. This custom has not a little contributed to spiritual pride, and 
 many other evils. When I first settled among the people, being young 
 and of little experience, I was not so thoroughly aware of the ill con- 
 sequences of such a custom, and so allowed, or at least did not testify 
 against it, as I ought to have done. 
 
 " One thing that has contributed to bring things to such a pass at 
 Northampton was, my youth and want of more judgment and experi- 
 ence at the time of that extraordinary awakening about sixteen years 
 ago. Instead of a youth, there was want of a giant in judgment and 
 discretion, among a people in such an extraordinary state of things. 
 In some respects, doubtless, my confidence in myself was a great in- 
 jury to me ; but in other respects, my diffidence of myself injured me. 
 It was such that I durst not act my own judgment, and had no 
 strength to oppose received notions and- established customs, and to 
 testify boldly against some glaring false appearances and counter- 
 feits of religion, till it was too late. And by this means, as well as 
 others, many things got a footing, which have proved a dreadful source 
 of spiritual pride, and other things that are exceedingly contrary to true 
 Christianity. If I had had more experience and ripeness of judgment 
 and courage, I should have guided my people in a better manner, and 
 should have guarded them better from Satan's devices, and prevented 
 the spiritual calamity of many souls, and perhaps the eternal ruin of 
 some of them." 
 
 * Backus. 
 
404 . THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 If Edwards made such confessions, what might have been 
 made by others ? Their own accounts of the revivals in their 
 parishes, copied into former parts of this work, show in part. 
 The want of discrimination between true and false experien- 
 ces must have struck every reader. And yet these are fa- 
 vorable specimens, such as were published for edification, 
 and are almost wholly free from the grosser errors, which 
 prevailed extensively among the Separatists and others. In 
 fact, false experiences were so prominent, that they were 
 supposed by many to constitute what was called "the work" 
 and " this work of God ; " and under this delusion, some in- 
 dustriously promoted them, while others made the most ex- 
 travagant of them a ground of reproach against the whole re- 
 vival. Many of the more judicious protested against this 
 error, but were unable so to set forth the difference between 
 true and false experiences, as to disabuse the public mind. 
 
 Edwards first took up this subject among his own people, 
 in a course of sermons, dehvered, probably in 1742 and 
 1743.* The substance of these sermons was afterwards 
 thrown into the form of a " Treatis e concerning Religious 
 Affections," and published un3er that title early in 174,6. 
 It was immediately republished in England and Scotland, 
 and from that time. to the present, has been the standard work 
 on that subject, both there and here ; nor is there any reason 
 to suppose that it will ever be superseded. 
 
 Some may think it a fault in this excellent work, that so 
 much of it is occupied in refuting errors that are too absurd 
 to be entertained, even by the weakest and most ignorant 
 minds. But when the work was written, those errors, even the 
 most absurd of them, actually prevailed, and were working 
 mischief extensively ; and it is by the light which that work 
 shed on the Christian world, that we now see their absurdity 
 so clearly. Errors concerning the " Witness of the Spirit," 
 texts of Scripture impressed upon the mind, and the nature 
 of saving faith, are common, even in the writings of good and 
 sober men of that day ; f while the most extravagant notions 
 
 * Dwight's Life of Edwards, p. 223. 
 
 t The Rev. Jonathan Dickinson, of Elizabethtown, N. J., was one of the 
 greatest and safest men of that age. Yet, in his " Display of Special 
 Grace," his true convert is made to tell how he first received comfort by a 
 text of Scripture, which came to his mind in a new light; and no intima- 
 tion is given that comfort does not always come to the convert in that way, 
 or that persons may deceive themselves by taking comfort in that manner. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 405 
 
 of comfort being given by impressions on the mind ; by see- 
 ing Ciirist on thie cross, or smiling from tiie judgment-seat ; 
 of assurance of acceptance with God conveyed in dreamf, or 
 by effects on the body ; of the value of religious loquacity, 
 and of feelings that are irrepressible, or that come strangely and 
 unaccountably, and are not made on purpose by him that 
 feels them, with other errors of the kind, were rife and highly 
 esteemed among the Separatists and exhorters. The Rev. 
 Andrew Croswell, already repeatedly mentioned, who was 
 one of the most powerful of the itinerants, and jvho had much 
 about him that was good and needed at the time, published a 
 book entitled, " What is Christ to me, if he is not mine.-" Or a 
 Seasonable Defence of the Old Protestant Doctrine of Justi' 
 fying Faith ; " in which he maintained that saving faith consists 
 in " a man's believing, this moment, that God doth, for Christ's 
 sake, forgive his sins, and that Christ, with all his benefits, be- 
 long to him, notwithstanding his unworthiness." This faith 
 he held to be produced in the sinner's mind by the immediate 
 influence of the Holy Spirit, revealing the fact that he is one 
 of those for whom in particular Christ died ; contrary to what 
 Edwards maintains, " that no revelation of secret facts by 
 immediate suggestion is any thing spiritual and divine, in 
 that sense wherein gracious effects and operations are so.'' 
 Indeed, a Hst of the errors confuted in the " Treatise on Re- 
 ligious Affections," would form a very perfect summary of 
 the false Calvinism of the day. 
 
 This treatise conferred a double benefit upon the churches. - 
 In the first place, it destroyed confidence in false experien- 
 ces, so that men were no longer deceived with respect to their 
 own piety, or that of others, by many things which had for- 
 merly deceived them ; and thus the number of false hopes 
 and consequent apostasies has been vastly diminished, many 
 souls have been saved from deluding themselves to their own 
 destruction, and the cause of Christ has been saved from 
 much reproach. And secondly, as a consequence of this, 
 false experiences have in a great measure ceased ; for when 
 certain states of mind are understood to be worse than worth- 
 less, men are no longer tempted to work themselves into 
 them, or ministers to produce them ; and, satanic agency 
 apart, a false experience is always the work of man. To 
 estimate the amount of good achieved by this work, consider 
 what the state of rehgion would be, if all the errors against 
 
406 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 which Edwards contends, were zealously urged and exten- 
 sively prevalent in the churches.* 
 
 The restoration of the true doctrine .concerning church 
 membership was another important result of the revival : and 
 this, too, was produced through the mind of Edwards. He 
 must have seen the stupefying influence of the prevailing prac- 
 tice on the unconverted, who supposed that, as they were in 
 the church according to God's appointment, their course of life 
 was in some respect acceptable to him ; and that, being in 
 covenant with him, they were in little danger of dying till 
 prepared for death. It is certain that the conduct of the 
 Separatists received his anxious attention. He must, there- 
 fore, have seen their arguments against the admission of hy- 
 pocrites into the church ; and it was not in his nature to 
 cast arguments away through prejudice, without ascertaining 
 what mixture of truth there might be in them. He must 
 have seen, too, how closely the practice of receiving uncon- 
 verted members was connected with the cant about " censori- 
 ousness," and the demand that no orthodox and moral man 
 should be considered, addressed, or in any way treated, as 
 an unconverted person. In short, the revival must have 
 shown him how the prevalent usage, in many ways, took off 
 i the edge of divine truth, and shielded men from its assaults. 
 ' Dr. Hopkins says, that Edwards had scruples on this point 
 at the time of his ordination, but not such as to prevent his 
 adopting the practice with a good conscience ; " but at length 
 his doubts increased ; which put him upon examining it 
 thoroughly. The result was, a full conviction that it was 
 wrong." He does not tell when this change of opinion took 
 place ; but it was evidently before his Treatise on the Affec- 
 tions was published ; f and Dr. S. E. Dwight intimates, that 
 
 * The authority of this Treatise has been sustained, mainly, by the evi- 
 dent wisdom of its practical conclusions, which commend themselves to 
 every man's conscience, while the philosophy which runs through it has 
 not been generally understood. Edwards derives all gracious affections 
 from " a new simple idea," whioji is different, in its very nature, from any 
 idea received through the bodily senses, and " which could be produced 
 by no exalting, varying or compounding " of any ideas thus received. But 
 according to the philosophy which has generally prevailed for many 
 years past, man can have no ideas but such as are received through the 
 bodily senses, or are formed from those thus received ; and of course, the 
 " new simple idea " of which Edwards speaks, is impossible. If the doc- 
 trine of that Treatise is right, the intellectual philosophy which has usu- 
 ally been taught in our colleges is wrong. 
 
 f Edwards' Works, 4 : 361. Worcester's edition. Dwight's Life of Ed- 
 wards, p. 305, 314. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING.- 407 
 
 it was communicated to some of his people still earlier. 
 But it was not till December, 1748, that he had occasion to 
 act officially on his new principles, by telling a young man 
 who offered to join the church, that he could not be active 
 in admitting him, without a profession of piety. In Febru- 
 ary, 1749, he communicated his views to the committee of 
 the church, and proposed to preach on the subject ; for, 
 though he correctly claimed it as his undoubted right to se- 
 lect the subjects of his sermons according to his own discre- 
 tion, he thought it not proper to bring that agitating topic into 
 the pulpit, without the express approbation of his people. 
 They were unwilling that he should preach on it ; but, as the 
 church ought to be informed' of his opinions and his reasons 
 for them, they proposed that he should do it in print. Ac- 
 cordingly, he prepared his '•' Humble Inquiry into the Rules 
 of the Word of God, concerning the Qualifications requisite 
 to a Complete Standing and Full Communion in the Visible 
 Christian Church." It was printed at Boston, under the'^ 
 supervision of Foxcroft, and with a letter from him to Ed- 
 wards, as an appendix, proving, by a multitude of learned 
 quotations, that the Protestant churches of Europe had always 
 held saving grace to be an indispensable qualification for ac- 
 ceptably partaking of the Lord's Supper. They did not, 
 however, touch the question, whether the church ought to 
 exclude those who give no evidence of saving grace, or 
 whether the question of fitness, except in cases of heresy 
 and scandal, should be left wholly to the communicant. 
 They did not touch the conclusion against which Edwards j' 
 was arguing, but they demolished one of its chief supports. ^ 
 
 "Mr. Edwards was sensible," his biographers tell us, 
 " that his principles were not understood, but misrepresented 
 through the country ;" but they do not tell us what principles 
 were imputed to him. We may learn it, however, from a 
 consideration of the circumstances. 
 
 The practice introduced by Stoddard had become general 
 in New England. The old churches which had never 
 adopted it, kept on their way quietly, and their dissent at- 
 tracted no attention. The Separatists, however, had been 
 loud in their denunciations of churches which admitted 
 " hypocrites " to their communion, and were the only body 
 then before the public, as opposers of the church member- 
 ship of unconverted persons. The strength of their system, 
 
408 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 that which gave it any hold on the consciences of men, lay 
 in the very doctrine which Edwards had now avowed. What 
 could be more natural than a cry, that he was going over to 
 the Separatists, or perhaps, that he had actually adopted their 
 
 views 
 
 ? 
 
 The Rev. Solomon Williams, of Lebanon, whose influ- 
 ence in reclaiming Davenport was well known, and who had 
 published a reply to Croswell's book on " Justifying Faith," 
 and who had thus become prominent as an opposer of the 
 Separatists, answered Edwards' work of the Qualifications 
 for Communion. Edwards, in his rejoinder, which finished 
 the controversy, as it left nothing more to be said, complain- 
 ed that Williams had misrepresented his views. Among 
 other " misrepresentations," he charged Edwards with hold- 
 ing, that the church should require a relation of the candi- 
 date's " inward experiences." For this, the Separatists 
 were distinguished. He charges Edwards with insisting on 
 " an account of such inward feelings, as are by men supposed 
 to be the certain discriminating marks of grace." This, 
 again, likened him to the Separatists ; and he himself re- 
 marks on this imputation, " Mr. Williams knew that these 
 phrases, ' experiences ' and ' inward feelings,' were be- 
 come odious of late to a great part of the country." He 
 represented Edwards' principles to be " such as suppose 
 men to be searchers of others' hearts ;" a standing reproach 
 against the Separatists. Another misrepresentation was, 
 that Edwards would attempt, as if it were practicable, to ex- 
 clude all unsanctified persons from the church. This also 
 was like the Separatists. In a note appended to his Reply, 
 Edwards says, " Many reports spread about the country^ 
 that I insisted on perfection as a term of communion." Per- 
 (fectionism had appeared among the Separatists. About the 
 time of his dismission^ some of the Separatists wrote to him, 
 claiming him as one of their number ; * and doubtless they 
 had advanced similar claims at an earlier date. 
 
 But we need not rely on inferences. Edwards himself 
 sums up these misrepresentations, in the preface to his Fare- 
 well Sermon, in these words : ^' That I insisted on persons' 
 being assured of their being in a state of salvation, in order 
 
 * Backus' Eccl. Hist, of the Baptists in N. E. Backus was first a Sepa- 
 ratist, and became a Baptist about this time, 
 
THE GREAT AWAKEiMNG. 409 
 
 to my admitting them into tiie church ; that I required a par- 
 ticular relation of the method and order of a person's inward 
 experiences, and of the time and manner of his conversion, 
 as a test of his fitness for Christian communion ; yea, that I 
 have undertaken to set up a pure church, and to make an 
 exact and certain distinction between saints and hypocrites, 
 by a pretended infallible discerning of the state of men's 
 souls ; that in these things I had fallen in with those wild 
 people, who have lately appeared in New England, called 
 Separatists ; and that I myself was become a grand Separ- 
 atist." 
 
 The Separatists had now made themselves even more odi- 
 ous than they were when Davenport was their leader. Some 
 of them had become, in their own esteem, too holy to re- 
 ceive the ordinances from any such minister as was then on 
 earth, and therefore baptized each other. Some of them 
 had risen above the obligation of their marriage covenants, 
 and the scandalous fruits of their unlawful intercourse had 
 become notorious.* Their progress, and the mischiefs they 
 wrought, had been sufficiently alarming, before such scandal- 
 ous immoralities had appeared among them, and while Da- 
 venport was their greatest man. What, then, might be ex- 
 pected if Edwards, with his gigantic power and immense 
 personal influence, should put himself at their head } When 
 we consider also, that, as related by his biographers, several 
 leading men had previously become disaffected, and were 
 ready to believe the worst concerning him, and to propagate 
 their belief, it cannot appear strange that Northampton 
 was in commotion, that his people refused to hear him 
 preach in defence of his supposed Separatism, and that the 
 greater part of them were dissuaded from reading his book. 
 
 The final council on this subject was held Jgne 22, 175Q. 
 There were present, ten pastors and nine delegates. On the 
 question of his dismission, the pastors were equally divided. 
 Each of the delegates voted as his pastor did ; and as the 
 ]R,ev. Mr. Billings, of Cold Spring, had no delegate, there 
 was a majority of one in favor of his dismission. Four pas- 
 tors and three delegates of the minority published their pro- 
 
 * backus gives particular instances, with the recital of which it is better 
 not to stain these pages. He says, however, and doubtless with truth, that 
 snch things were not chargeable on the Separatists generally. 
 35 
 
410 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 test, for several reasons ; one of which was, " his sentiments 
 being, as we apprehend, perfectly harmonious with the mind 
 of our Lord Jesus Christ, and strictly conformable with the 
 practi ce of the ap ostles, and that of the Reformed Church 
 in general throughout the world." Four of the majority 
 published a reply to the Protest. This called forth a Vindi- 
 cation of the Protest, by the Rev. William Hobby, of 
 Reading, one of the protesters. This provoked, from the 
 same members of the majority^ " A Letter to the Rev. Mr. 
 Hobby, in answer to his Vindication." This letter contained 
 statements which Edwards was obliged to "nail to the coun- 
 ter," in a letter to Hobby, through the press. It was now 
 June, 1751. His Reply to Williams was not published till 
 November, 1752 ; about three years and a half after his first 
 publication on the subject. 
 
 T he influence of these proceedings and pu blications could 
 
 not but be great.; ThFTtiamp of Kd'^a'-Hg wafTgfTKVTgti to 
 
 rally all who had still held to the primitive constitution of the 
 New England churches ; and when called forth, they were 
 far from being contemptible, either in numbers or in weight 
 of character. His influence was enough to recommend the 
 doctrine to all the friends of the revival. The revival itself, 
 by reviving the belief that the unregenerate ought to be treat- 
 ed as unregenerate, in order to their conversion, prepared 
 and predisposed the minds of its friends to receive his doc- 
 trine. His dismission produced a deep feeling of astonish- 
 ment, of sympathy for him, and of indignation against his 
 opposers, not only throughout New England, but in the other 
 colonies, and even in Great Britain. All these things drew 
 attention to this controversy, and disposed the pious to be 
 on his side. Half the ministers of the council that dismissed 
 him, declared, in their protest, that they believed his doctrine 
 to be according to the Scriptures, and one of them, Billings 
 of Cold Spring, was dismissed in the spring of 1752 for his 
 adherence to it; but, as few, churches could be willing to 
 place themselves by the side of that in Northampton in the 
 public estimation, it is not known that any other minister was 
 dismissed for the same cause. 
 
 A full account, in detail, of the spread of Edwards' doc- 
 trine co ncerning church memb ership, would be interesting 
 and instructive ; but materialsTor it could be found, only by 
 examining the records of the several churches that acted upon 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 411 
 
 it ; and those records, in most cases, were badly kept, and 
 a great part of them have been lost. We know, however, 
 the pn eral result. Every Con g ;reg:ational church in Ne w 
 Eo jIaiidTprobably, has eTth er adopted that doct rine,* or_be- 
 come Unitarian. Theluture destiny_of^ each o f the church- 
 es ^ seems to have d ependecTni ore on its treatme nt of ihis 
 q uestion, than on a ny other single event. Those that were 
 friendly to the revival, generally, but not universally, returned 
 with Edwards to the ancient doctrine and practice, were 
 thenceforth composed of members wha made a credible pro- 
 fession of piety, and are saved. T hose hostile to the-rev r- 
 val, reg arded that doctrine and practice as " divisive," a s 
 " u ncharitab le," as " censorio us," as "an invasion of God 's 
 {prerogative, to jud ge the he art." They continued the prac- 
 tice of making no discrimination between men as converted 
 or unconverted, and in most, but not all cases, the result is, 
 that now, no man is excluded from their communion for any 
 error in doctrine, or any immorality in practice ; f and in 
 some of them, even the form of church membership is given 
 up ; the churches, as distinct from the congregations, no long- 
 er exist, and the ordinances are administered indiscriminately 
 to all who will receive them. — 
 
 This revival nf th e ancien t doctrine produced other im- 
 portant cons equences. It destroyed the power of the 8ep- 
 aji^TsTsr They ha d lived and increaseidjivjhepower^ the 
 tru th, that c hurche s ought to be composed of pious m en . 
 For a time, they alone had attracted attention as its advo- 
 cates. It had now a more conspicuous advocate. The 
 man to whom all eyes were turned as its chief defender, was 
 not one of their number. Their weapon was taken away, 
 and wielded by a mightier hand. The host that rallied un- 
 der him, out-numbered them immensely, surpassed them still 
 more in talents, in learning, and in Christian character, and 
 
 * In some, — the Old South Church in Boston, for example, — the Half- 
 way Covenant system has never been expressly abrogated, but only fallen 
 into disuse. 
 
 t At least, the most extensive inquiries which the author has been able 
 to make, have led him to the conclasion, that no such thing as discipline 
 exists in the Unitarian churches. Some of their leading publications have 
 submitted in silence to the charge of its entire absence, when they might 
 be expected to deny it if they could. All their language conceftiing ex- 
 communication and exclusion, strengthens this belief. This is a sufficient 
 reason, and should be urged as the prominent reason, why membership in 
 a Unitarian church cannot be a passport to our communion tables. 
 
412 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 was not justly chargeable with their offensive irregulatities ; 
 still less with the immoralities which had begun to appear 
 among them. The adoption of this doctrine, too, shielded a 
 multitude of churches from their most dangerous attacks ; 
 for they could no longer plausibly denounce them as churches 
 that knowingly admitted hypocrites. Thus disarmed of its 
 strength, the sect ceased to grow, and soon began to de- 
 cline.* • 
 ^ The influence of this change on other communions has 
 been important. The doctrm e that ch urches ought to be 
 co mposed of pious men, so~appeals to the coH scTe nce., th at 
 none who hold to a disc overable di fference between the pi- 
 ous and the impious , can wholly wTthstand it. In the Uni- 
 ted States, its power is felt in'eyery sect, where experim en- 
 tal religion is not^ condemned as a d^usion. There is noth- 
 ing in the " Standards " of the Tresbyterian Church, which 
 
 * They Seem to have been increasing and organizing rapidly about this 
 time. Backus (Vol. 3, page 175) gives the following fist of Separatist or- 
 dinations ; — 
 
 " Solomon Paine, at Canterbury, Sept. 10 ; Thomas Stephens, at Plain- 
 field, Sept. 11 ; Thomas Denison, at Norwich Farms, Oct. 29 ; Jedediah 
 Hyde, at Norwich Town, Oct. 30 ; Matthew Smith, at Stonington, Oit. 10 ; 
 John Fuller, at Lyme, Deo. 25 ; Joseph Snow, at Providence, Feb. 12, 
 1747; Satntiel WadS^otth, at Killingly, June 3; Paul Park, at Preston, 
 July 15 ; EWm Marsh, at Windham, Oct. 7 ; Ebenezer Frothingham, at 
 Wethersfield, Oct. 28; Nathaniel Shepherd, at Attleborongh, Jan. 20, 
 1748 ; — Isaac Backus, at Bridgewater, April 13 ; John Paine, at Rehoboth, 
 Aug. 3 ; William CarpM:er, at Norton, Sept. 7 ; John Blunt, at Sturbridge, 
 Sept. 23; Sienczer JIfocft, at Lyme, Jan. 12, 1749; — Joshua Nickersoo, at 
 Harwich, Feb. 23 ; Samuel Hyde, at Bridgewater, May 1 1 ; John Palmer, 
 at Windham, Miy V7; Samud Hoveyt at Mehdon, May 31 ; SaiuUel 
 Drown, at Covehtry, Oct. II; Stephen Babcock, at Westerljf, April 4, 
 1740, [probably a misprint for 1730 ;] Joseph Hastings, at SuiEeld, April 7; 
 Nathaniel Ewer, at Barhstable, May 17 ; Jonathan Hyde, at Brookline, 
 Jah. 17, IWI ; Ezekiel Cole, at Sutton, Jan. 31 ; Rbenezer Wadsworth, at 
 Grafton, March 20 ; Nathaniel Draper, at Cambridge, April 24 ; Peter 
 Warden, May 17." — To these he adds an "&o." Not improbably, the 
 jjuiictuation is erroneous, so as to throw some of them info the wrong year. 
 Those in italics became Baptists. 
 
 He also informs us, that Elder Moulton baptized thirteen members of 
 the Separatist church in Stnrbridge, in 1749, and soon after, all its officers 
 and most of its members, more than sixty in number. They were taxed, 
 to suppott the mihister of the Congregational church. In Framingham, a 
 church was organized bj a couftoil in 1747. It seems to have been at Ifeast 
 tinctured with SepafatiSm. Its members were taxed for the support of 
 the minister of the town, and became Baptists. In Titicut, between 
 Bridgewater and Middleborough, where a revival had commenced in 1741, 
 some parish difficulties ended in the establishment of a Separatist meeting 
 in December, 1747 ; a church was organized in February, 1748 ; its mem- 
 bers were taxed, as usual, and became Baptists. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 413 
 
 requires evidence, or even a profession, of personal piety, as 
 a condition of memberstiip ; and yet it is very generally re- 
 quired. The written law of the Wesleyans is as Wesley 
 left it ; admitting all " who have the form, and are seeking 
 the power, of godliness," with such a seeking as the unre- 
 generate are capable of ; but they are generally unwilling to 
 admit, that they receive unconverted men to their commun- 
 ion. In the Protestant Episcopal Church, there are multi- 
 tudes who regard "confirmation" as a profession of piety, 
 such as is made by those who join Congregational churches, 
 and who are grieved if it is not so understood by others. In 
 all these communions, the influence of this great idea on the 
 members and on the public around them, doubtless enforces 
 a stricter discipline, and makes membership without apparent 
 piety more uncomfortable and less common. It does much 
 to keep unfit members out of those communions, and to se- 
 cure regularity of life among those^hat are within. The in- 
 fluence of the revival in this resjJect can scarce be estimated 
 too highly. It brought out^d presented in bold relief, the 
 idea, that conversion is a change, ordinarily discoverable by 
 its effects, so that he who exhibits no evidence of it, may 
 with propriety be regarded as an unconverted man ; and then 
 it created a demand in the public conscience, for evidence 
 of conversion in church-members ; and the beneficial mflu- 
 ence of this demand is felt in all evangelical churches. 
 
 It would be curious, and might be instru ctive, but it wo uld 
 require a volume, to trace out the influence of this gre at 
 awakening on whaTHasTDeen called " New England Theo lo- 
 gy." Its great names are, EdwarHs, who was the great man 
 of the revival; Bellamy, his pupil, a younger but scarcely 
 less powerful laborer in it ; and Hopkins, who was converted 
 during the revival, and also studied theology with Edwards. , 
 The revival could not fail to exert a powerful influence on 
 their theological inquiries ; and there is abundant evidence, 
 in the style of reasoning which they introduced, that it did 
 not. From beginning to end, it all looks at practical results ; 
 it seeks to produce the phenomena of a revival ; it aims to 
 work a change in the sinner's mind, of which he will be sen- 
 sible, and which others may observe. For this purpose, it 
 addresses him as a sinner, as an unbeliever, over whom 
 proof-texts, even from the word of God, have no controlling 
 power. It aims to show him the reasonableness of the con- 
 35* 
 
414 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 stitution under which God has placed him, and of the de- 
 mand, that he should immediately "repent and be convert- 
 ed ;" and to make him feel his entire dependence on God, 
 and at the same time, his entire responsibility for his moral 
 State. Its defects sprung from the same source. It too 
 much neglected whatever in theology did not bear, obviously 
 and directly, on these favorite points. It paid too little atten- 
 tion to Biblical proof, the force of which the impenitent and 
 unbelieving would not feel. And in the hands of some men 
 of a later day, it was too much biased in favor of whatever 
 scheme promised to work well in bringing sinners under con- 
 viction. In other words, its continual regard for practical 
 utility led some to embrace doctrines which they, judged to 
 be convenient, instead of doctrines which they had proved to 
 be true ; or more accurately, perhaps, to take their own 
 opinion of the convenience of a doctrine, for proof of its 
 truth. 
 
 Something was accomphshed, too, in the cause of religious 
 liberty, in various parts of the country ; but as the mode of 
 operation was not everywhere the same, they must be con- 
 sidered separately. 
 
 In New England, it gave a mortal wound to parish despo- 
 tism. The idea of religious liberty which the Puritans 
 brought with thein to New England, was Correct so far as it 
 went ; and it went far in advance of their age. They held 
 that each duly organized "congregation of faithful men " is a 
 church, an entire church, having full power to manage it§ 
 own religious concerns, and not subject, in spiritual matters, 
 either by appeal or otherwise, to any larger body, or to any 
 man or body of men ; being under no religious obligations to 
 other Christian communities, except those of Christian kind- 
 ness, confidence and respect. Even those of them who were 
 called Presbyterians, held to a presbytery of elders in each 
 congregation, elected by the brethren, and not to a presby- 
 tery composed in part of the representatives of other church- 
 es ; for it was a fundamental principle with them, that no Con- 
 gregational church could rightfully be subjected to any earthly 
 jurisdiction out of itself. In each church, every question 
 was to be decided by a majority of votes, or by the elected 
 presbytery. There were two guards against the despotism 
 of the majority. First, the church had no jurisdiction over 
 any but its own members, and no one became a member ex- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. . 415 
 
 cept by his own request. Secondly, every member in reg- 
 ular standing, had a right to transfer his membership to some 
 other church, whenever he judged it necessary " for better 
 edification." A system of religious liberty so perfect as this, 
 the modern world had never seen, and few of its wise men 
 had ever thought of ; and it would not be easy, even now, 
 to tell what important additipn has been made to its prin- 
 ciples. 
 
 But their system was in danger. Except themselves and 
 a few bold, truth-trusting brethren in England, nobody had 
 any respect for it, or would hesitate to demolish it in a mo- 
 ment, at the call of a slight temptatiori. The " no-hUman 
 government theory " of modern days was then rife among the 
 Quakers, some of whom reduced it to practice more revolt- 
 ihgly than any have done of late. The German Anabaptists 
 had claimed authority from heaven, to overthrow? all govern- 
 ment but their own, by force of arms. The Puritans saw, 
 or thought they saw, confusion coming in from both these 
 sources. They knew that they must maintain good order in 
 their colony, or the English government would put it in order 
 for them without ceremony, and probably in a way which 
 would riot spare their system of religious liberty. They 
 thought it" necessary, therefore, to repress Quakerism from 
 the beginning ; and when, after some years, their Baptist 
 brethren began to adopt the German doctrine of close com- 
 munion, to denounce their churches as no churches of Christ, 
 and to gather others in utter disregard of them, they thought 
 the whole brood of errors which had desolated Germany 
 with civil war, was coming in upon them, and that this 
 'heresy also must be repressed. It was doubtless a false 
 alarm ; but it was natural and honest, and soon gave way to 
 the force of evidence. The Church of England, too, or 
 some of its members, as soon as the colonies began to rise 
 in importance, wished to subject them and all their inhabi- 
 tants to Episcopal jurisdiction ; * and the plan was not aban- 
 
 * Probably many, and perhaps most, of the Episcopalians in the colonies, 
 were innocent of any such design, and merely desired liberty to enjoy such 
 forms of worship as they preferred ; but the hopes of some of the leaders were 
 avowed without disguise, and those of others were plainly visible through 
 the disguise they threw over them ; while the whole party were in favor of 
 a system, which would in the end have subjected all the colonists to the 
 dominion of bishops. 
 
416 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 doned, till the establishment of Independence rendered it 
 hopeless. 
 
 Though each particular form of danger had not been fore- 
 seen, the Puritans had been aware from the beginning, that 
 their system of religious liberty would be assaulted by various 
 forms of anarchy on the one hand, and of despotism on the 
 other ; and they felt obliged to guard vigilantly against the 
 approaches of both. They allowed the formation of no 
 church, nor any preaching that might lead to the formation of 
 a church, on any anarchical or despotic principles. They 
 required every church member to submit quietly to the major- 
 ity of his brethren ; or to transfer his membership, peaceably 
 and regularly, to another church " for better edification ; " 
 or to unite with others of his own mind, in peaceably and 
 regularly forming a new church, which should be free from 
 any principles of anarchy or despotism ; and lo do this pub- 
 licly, under the eyes of the rulers of the land, so that the 
 safety of their proceedings might be known to all.* That 
 compelling all men to receive freedom with its necessary 
 safeguards, even against their will, may itself be a species of 
 despotism, seems not to have occurred to them ; or, if it did, 
 they knew not how to avoid it. The whole country was di- 
 vided into parishes, in each of which a church was organized 
 and a pastor settled according to law, with whose rights none 
 were allowed to interfere. Almost universally, those mem- 
 bers of a parish who were not members of the church, regard- 
 ed its pastor as their religious tpacher, and were active in his 
 selection, settlement and support. He was the minister of 
 that parish. He was held responsible for the religious in- 
 struction of its inhabitants. The idea grew up very natur- 
 ally, that those who held him thus responsible, should not put 
 themselves under other teachers without his leave, and that 
 other teachers ought not to derange his plans of usefulness, 
 by breaking in upon his parish contrary to his judgment ; and 
 
 * If those who held to the baptism of believers only, and that by immer- 
 sion, had been willing to form their churches in this way, it is by no means 
 certain that they would have met with any opposition. It is quite certain, 
 that they were not " persecuted " for their belief concerning baptism, or for 
 acting according to it, till they became close-communionists, and set at 
 nought the established ecclesiastical order. Then their principles, as they 
 believed, forbade them to recognise the standing churches as churches of 
 Christ, by taking letters of dismission from them ; and the natural result, — 
 natural in that age of the world, — soon followed. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 417 
 
 tliiis it caltie to be extensively felt, both by mittisters and 
 others, that a pastor had at least a moral right to control the 
 giving and receiving of religious instruction within the geo* 
 graphical bounds of his parish. 
 
 There would be no valid objection against this system, if 
 we could only secure, in every parish, a pastor who would 
 supply all the spiritual wants of every one of his parishioners ; 
 or if every pastor would be aware of his own deficiencies, and 
 supply them by procuring such assistance as he needs. But 
 as the world is, it exposes the parishioners of a worldly, a he- 
 retical, an indolent or an incompetent pastor, to spiritual star- 
 vation ; and that, nothing can bind them to endure, or other 
 ministers to allow. People have a right to such preaching 
 as they need ; and the ministers of Christ have a right to 
 preach his gospel to all those who need their labors ; and no 
 minister whose people are perishing through his deficiencies, 
 can possibly have any Christian right to interfere. 
 
 This truth, the revival made to be deeply felt. There 
 were many pastors, whose people needed other pfeaching 
 than theirs. Their people became convinced of it, and 
 would hear othef preachers. Zealous ministers became con- 
 vinced of it, and Would preach to the perishing, wherever 
 they found them. The solemn claims of eternity, deeply 
 felt, overcame all regard for parish lines and the official au- 
 thority of ministers. 
 
 This point was vigorously coritested ; as appears by the 
 whole warfare against itinerants, and in much of that against 
 the Sepai!atists. The reader has already seen how it was as- 
 sailed by Testimonies in Massachusetts, and in Connecticut 
 by legislation. Ministers not only refused to opeii their pulpits 
 to itinerants, and cautioned their people against hearing them, 
 — which they had an undoubted right to do, if the itinerants 
 were dangerous men, — but in some instances, that of Odlin, at 
 Exeter, for example, forbade itinerants to preach within cer- 
 tain geographical limits. They laid the hand of authority, 
 also, on members of their churches. Dr. Chauncy, in his Con- 
 vention Sermon in 1744, urged a bold and vigorous use of 
 church discipline, as a means of repressing disorders, and 
 building up the churches " in peace and holiness." Though he 
 spoke in general terms, he alluded very distinctly to the " ex- 
 harters,"who " left their own business, and took upon them the 
 work that was proper to ministers," and to the disorders which 
 
418 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 attended their meetings ; though he also intimated that others, 
 who " walk in a disorderly manner," needed discipline. In 
 the Convention Sermon of the next year, the Rev. Peter 
 Clark spoke still more plainly. He proposed the inquiry, 
 "Whether the disorderly separations, that have so greatly 
 prevailed in the several churches of the land, have been duly 
 animadverted on in the way of ecclesiastic£(l discipline." 
 This, he thought, " the most likely method of putting a stop 
 to it, by keeping up the reverence of order in the church of 
 God ; by representing the beauty and majesty of Christ's 
 spiritual government ; by letting men know that the church 
 of Christ is not a confused routj or like ' a city broken down, 
 and without walls,'' leaving men at fheir liberty to go and 
 come without control." This advice was followed, proba- 
 bly, in many places. The historian of Chelmsford states, that 
 all Separatism, and all following after itinerants and exhort- 
 ers, was effectually repressed there by church discipline. In 
 many places the Separatists, not having organized their 
 churches regularly, according to law, were harassed by taxa- 
 tion for the support of the ministers from whom they had se- 
 ceded, of which several instances have been mentioned. At - 
 last this system of annoyances became too odious to be con- 
 tinued, and fell into disuse ; but the contest never ceased, 
 till the law enabling towns to settle ministers was repealed, and 
 «very citizen was left to do as his conscience or his^cove- 
 tousness might dictate, about supporting the gospel. It is 
 well known that the Unitarians, who are the ecclesiastical 
 successors of the disciplining party', defended that law to the 
 last ; and that the Baptists, and all who are descended in 
 whole or in part from Separatism, were ever its uncompro- 
 mising opponents. 
 
 In New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the opera- 
 tion was different. Here was the principal seat of the Pres- 
 byterian Church. The agreement by which the two Synods 
 were united after the schism, bound each minister to open his 
 pulpit in ordinary cases to any brother who desired it. This 
 was evidently intended to secure to the friends of vital piety 
 the privilege of preaching to till Presbyterians,' and to all 
 Presbyterian congregations the privilege of hearing good 
 preaching. But the greatest danger there was from episco- 
 pacy. Under the administration of Lord Cornbury, in 1707, 
 the Rev, Francis Makemie, the patriarch of Presbyterian- 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 419 
 
 ism, had been arrested and imprisoned for several months, 
 for preaching in New York ; and there is little doubt that on 
 his discharge, he was obliged to repair to Boston, to get the 
 account of his trial and imprisonment printed.* And when 
 the First Presbyterian Church in New York, some years 
 after, applied to the king for a charter, that they might be 
 enabled to hold their own house of worship and burying- 
 ground, instead of vesting them in the Church of Scotland 
 as trustee, the Episcopalians for some time successfully re- 
 sisted the application. The Episcopalians then claimed to 
 be the established church in New York, to which all but the 
 Dutch, whose right of dissent was secured by treaty, owed 
 ecclesiastical obedience. Indeed, some of them advanced 
 the same claim, in respect to all the colonies. The great 
 increase of strength which the revival gave to Presbyterian- 
 ism, was a powerful element of resistance to that claim. 
 
 In Virginia, Episcopalianism was as rigidly established and 
 enforced by law, as ever Puritanism had been in New Eng- 
 land. All were taxed to support the clergy, and compelled 
 by fines to attend worship. In the preceding century, mis- 
 sionaries from New England had been arrested and sent 
 home. The account already given from the pen of Davies, 
 concerning the origin of Presbyterianisra in Virginia, shows 
 the want of religious liberty at that time, and what was the 
 first efficient agency in promoting it. Presbyterianism con- 
 tinued to grow, and to struggle for liberty and equality of 
 rights, till, being joined by the increasing power of the Bap- 
 tists f and by other influences, it overthrew the spiritual des- 
 potism which had subsisted from the planting of the colony. 
 
 The establishment of religious freedom in Virginia was 
 perfected by the aid of that political party, of which Jeffer- 
 son was the leader. Jefferson, in his youth, had gained his 
 first clear idea of a republican government, from seeing the 
 Congregationalism of a Baptist church in his vicinity. 
 Though a French infidel in respect to religion, he was in fa- 
 vor of liberty everywhere. It was good policy, too, for 
 him and his party to strengthen themselves by an alliance 
 with thp friends of religious freedom. Their writings, 
 speeches and votes on this subject procured them favor with 
 ^— ^ . .-^ 
 
 * See the account, in the O. S. Ch. Lib. with Ms. annotations by Prince. 
 f The First Baptist Association in Virginia was formed in 1766. 
 
-taq TH£ GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 all the Baptists, Methodists, and other opponents of the 
 Church of England at the South, and with the members of 
 the same sects generally throughout the country ; while it 
 threw all the friends of universal taxation for the support of 
 the gospel, and all whose dread of French infidelity was 
 their strongest religious feeling, into the opposite party. 
 Thus the influence of the revival in Virginia reacted upon 
 New England, and aided in the complete establishment of 
 religious fredom.* 
 
 It would be saying too much , to ascribe to the revival any 
 a ppreciable iafluence in pr'odycui R t he ijidFpenc[ince~oiri he 
 uniitecrBtat es ; though the waking up of mind among men 
 of all classes, the revival of those truths in which the free 
 s ftirit of Purita nism had its origin, the earnest discussion of 
 the principles of freedom and human rights, and the habit of 
 contending for rights sturdily and with religious zeal, which 
 was nourished among men of all orders, were doubtless 
 useful in preparing many minds for the questions that awaited 
 them. The causes of resistance to British aggression, how- 
 ever, were older and more geiieral thafl the influence of the 
 revival, and operated strongly in the minds of families and 
 classes that opposed it, such as the Hancocks of New Eng- 
 land, and the Episcopalians of Virginia. But the revival, 
 commencing when the mature men of the Revolution were in 
 their youth, was evidently a merciful provision against the 
 dangers of that day. The demoralizing influence of war 
 awaited the land. The political writings of Thomas Paine, 
 through all of which there runs a secret vein of infidel meta- 
 physics, were to become popular. The country was about 
 to be brought into close alliance and friendly intercourse with 
 France, where infidelity was already rife, and was soon to be 
 openly predominant. The French republic was to dazzle 
 the world with promises of freedom more perfect than the 
 world had ever seen, but of which infidelity was an essential 
 constituent, and this country was to be under peculiar temp- 
 tations to be deluded by them. The religious principles of 
 the country needed to he strengthened in advance, against all 
 
 * This was not the principal cause which produced the old Federal and 
 Democratic parties, and detejrniiiied the ohar»<ster of each ; huj its influ- 
 ence was too important to be overlooked, and must be duly appreciated by 
 every one who wpuld understand theif history. The political aflinities 
 then formed, continue still to operate in some parts of the country ; thaugh 
 the cause which produced them has long ceased to exist. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 421 
 
 these dangers. With all the accession of strength that reli- 
 gion received from the revival, it did but just stand the 
 shock ; and for a long time, many of the pious feared that 
 every thing holy would be swept away. Strengthened by so 
 many tens of thousands of converts, and by the deep sense 
 of the importance of religion produced in other tens of thou- 
 sands, both in and out of the churches, religion survived, in 
 time rallied and advanced, and is marching on to victory.* 
 
 This great revival should teach the Christian world some 
 salutary lessons, which it would be improper to close this 
 work without mentioning. 
 
 It should teach, that there is a proper sphere for the la- 
 bors of itinerant evangelists, and where it may be found. 
 
 That a pastor may sometimes, with propriety, leave his 
 own flock for a season, in the care of a substitute, or even 
 without a substitute, to labor where his help is needed and 
 desired, no one, perhaps, has ever doubted. The utility of 
 this practice is too manifest to be called in question. Such 
 labors were often performed by Edwards and others in New 
 England ; and by the Tennents and others in New Jersey 
 and Pennsylvania. Such was Tennent's visit, and White- 
 field's first visit, to Boston. But this is not itinerant evan- 
 gelism. Nor is there any good reason why a licentiate, or 
 an ordained minister temporarily without charge, should not 
 assist a pastor who needs and desires his assistance. The 
 question relates not to these. It relates wholly to itinerant 
 evangelists by profession ; to those who, like Whitefield, 
 deem it their " duty to evangelize, and not to fix in any par- 
 ticular place." It can scarce be any man's duty to resolve 
 that he will continue in such labors during life ; for he can- 
 not know what the calls of duty shall be on the morrow ; but 
 there is a proper field for such labors, and some ought to en- 
 gage in them. 
 
 Such a field was presented by Great Britain and her 
 
 * Notwithstanding all that is said of the " degeneracy of the age," and 
 notwithstanding all the lamentable facts which give it plausibility, the au- 
 thor is fully convinced, as the result pf the best induction from facts with- 
 in his power, that this country, as a whole, has been steadily advancing in 
 religion, in good morals, in regard for law and order, and in rational, Chris- 
 tian ideas of liberty, almost if not quite from the beginning of the present 
 century. That Scripture is fulfilled, which declares, that " the memory of 
 the wicked shall rot." The faults and follies of former years are to a great 
 extent forgotten, and therefore the past looks better than it really was. 
 36 
 
422 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 American colonies in the time of Whitefield. In all parts 
 of the kingdom, there were churches which had a name to 
 live, but were dead. Many pastors, in various parts, were 
 loose in their lives ; many in all parts were unsound in doc- 
 trine ; and still more were, — to use Tennent's language, — 
 "contentedly unsuccessful." They were unwilling to be 
 roused, or that their people should be roused, from their slum- 
 bers. They must be suffered to lead their people down to 
 perdition, or some evangelist must break in upon them and 
 rouse them against their will. It was so in New England ; 
 though, in Whitefield's judgment, less so than in any other 
 part of the world. The best men of that day were perfect- 
 ly aware of it ; though, for various reasons, they did not 
 proclaim it without reserve. The " contentedly unsuccess- 
 ful " were in regular ecclesiastical standing, and generally 
 free from any such overt act of sin or avowal of heresy as 
 would furnish grounds for deposing them ; and the cases of 
 many were so doubtful, that a good man would not dare to 
 accuse them, lest he should do them injustice ; while an ac- 
 cusation against the whole body, as containing unsound mem- 
 bers, would be met, as it was in the Synod of Philadelphia 
 when Blair and Tennent made it, by a challenge to point out 
 and convict the guilty* They therefore brought no accusa- 
 tions ; but they silently assumed the need of itinerant evan- 
 gelists, and acted accordingly. This may have been a blam- 
 ably timid course, but it was perfectly natural. Its character 
 was well understood at the time. Tennent was questioned 
 in the newspapers, whether his coming to New England was 
 not prompted by the belief, that the settled ministers there 
 were insufficient for their work. Chauncy, in his letter to 
 Whitefield, put the same interpretation on Tennent's visit. 
 To this question, no inoffensive answer could be returned, 
 and it was not answered ; though Tennent answered distinctly 
 all the other questions that accompanied it. The same cen- 
 sure on the ministry was implied in the arguments by which 
 the employment of itinerants was defended. It was said that 
 no great reformation had ever been effected without such la- 
 bor ; that the Reformers in Germany, and Knox and his co- 
 adjutors in Scotland, and even the apostles themselves, were 
 itinerants. Prince said, that Jesus Christ was an itinerant 
 preacher. This argument was to the purpose, only on the 
 Supposition that here, as in the cases referred to, people 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 423 
 
 were led astray by false or incompetent guides, who ought to 
 be converted, or displaced by a reformation. Whitefield 
 himself gave his opinion without reserve in his Journal, that 
 " many, perhaps most that preach," were unconverted men ; 
 and though he afterwards justly condemned his rashness, in 
 saying this with so little opportunity to know the facts, he 
 never retracted his opinion. Other itinerants, besides Da- 
 venport, were still more reckless, and attacked individual 
 ministers by name, as unconverted, and wrote them letters 
 of admonition and warning accordingly. Tennent's " Not- 
 tingham Sermon " was republished at Boston, and extensive- 
 ly circulated. Every thing, in short, implied the belief, that 
 there was an extensive deficiency in the ministry, and that 
 a reformation was needed. The' sounder part of the minis- 
 ters and churches could not, for many reasons, proclaim that 
 they were too good to need the remedy which they insisted 
 on administering to their brethren. If itinerants were to be 
 employed, they must be encouraged to go through the land, 
 and preach to all indiscriminately, wherever they could. 
 Thus, and thus only, could the hearers of " contentedly un- 
 successful " ministers be effectually reached. It was done. 
 The state of the country demanded and justified the doing of 
 it. Whatever language of general approbation may have 
 been used concerning the employment of itinerants, the con- 
 trolling motive for employing them was evidently drawn from 
 the existing need of their labors. Among the Presbyterians, 
 and in England, the same motives were avowed with less 
 restraint. 
 
 The ministry for whose reformation such a system is 
 adopted, cannot be expected to submit to it quietly. It be- 
 gins with an implied declaration, that they are unfit for their 
 places, and unworthy of the confidence which is reposed in 
 them, and of the emoluments they receive ; arid it threatens 
 to reduce them to their proper level. A few may be com- 
 pelled, by their own consciences, to admit the truth of the 
 charge, and may reform ; but generally, they will resent and 
 repel the attack. The evangelist will often be compelled to 
 violate ecclesiastical order and ministerial courtesy ; for he 
 goes where that order is made a wall of defence against sav- 
 ing truth, and where that courtesy would require him to hon- 
 or the unfaithful. If successful, he will divide churches and 
 unsettle ministers. He may wish and seek to avoid it as far 
 
424 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 as possible, by the conversion of whole churches with their 
 pastors ; but such will not be the usual result of his labors. 
 He brings "not peace, but a sword," and sets neighbours, 
 friends and families " at variance," and will be condemned 
 as a disturber of the peace of society and of the churches ; 
 as an "uncharitable," "divisive" and "slanderous" man. 
 Unpleasant as such, things are, he should be prepared for 
 them, and meet them without disappointment, and without ir- 
 ritation. If he is a suitable man, and performs the labors 
 and endures the trials of his vocation with a right spirit, the 
 result will be, as it ever has been, good. 
 
 The events of that day, however, give no sanction to the 
 employment of itinerants, where there is no such need of 
 them. How could they ? How could the usefulness of 
 Evangelists, in breaking in upoh degenerate churches in de- 
 spite of unfaithful pastors, prove that they must be useful in 
 a community of sound churches under faithful pastors ? The 
 experiment was not tried ; for there was no considerable re- 
 gion on earth, in which to try it. Some things were said, 
 indeed, in favor of employing itinerants irrespective of any 
 fault in the ministry or the churches ; but they were said un- 
 der the influence of strong temptation. Men must say them, 
 or own that the employment of itinerants implied an accusa- 
 tion, which they were unwilling to bring. They were the 
 mere speculations of tempted men, concerning what would 
 be proper in a stale of things that did not then exist, and 
 who were mainly led to employ itinerants by other motives. 
 They are therefore of little weight. 
 
 It is true, that itinerants labored in some of the soundest 
 churches, under some of the best pastors, in the land ; and 
 that good results followed. It is equally true, that evil re- 
 sul,ts followed their labors in such places ; and it is not pos- 
 sible to ascertain how much of the good, or of the evil, was 
 fairly chargeable to their influence. It must be remembered, 
 that the revival was not commenced by the labors of itiner- 
 ants, but of settled pastors ; of Edwards and others in New 
 England, and of the Tennents, Blair, and their coadjutors 
 in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. It commenced even be- 
 fore Whitefield began to preach in Etigland. Or if we, 
 most unphilosophically, leave the " Surprising Conversions" 
 at Northampton and other places before 1739 out of the 
 account, still the revival had commenced and been spreading 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 425 
 
 in New England, under the labors of the pastors, for nearly 
 a year before Whitefield arrived ; and there was every en- 
 couragement to hope, that it would be more extensive, pow- 
 erful, and fruitful of good, than any that New England had 
 ever witnessed. In its progress, some of the richest harvests 
 were gathered in towns where itinerants never labored ; and 
 in some places where the best results attended their labors, 
 the awakening had commenced before their arrival, and the 
 results would have been good, perhaps equally good, and 
 possibly even better, without their assistance. 
 
 The history of that period, therefore, furnishes no decisive 
 answer to the question, whether itinerant evangelists ought to 
 be' employed among sound churches having faithful pastors ; 
 though it furnishes an abundance of facts, from which a parti- 
 san may construct a plausible -argument on either side. But 
 it shows that churches rnay be so degenerate, and pastors so 
 unsound, unfaithful, or " contentedly unsuccessful," as to jus- 
 tify and demand their employment. If any attempt to em- 
 barrass, and practically to nullify, this conclusion, by asking 
 who is to judge where evangelists are needed, and whether 
 every evangelist is to judge for himself, and go wherever his 
 own vanity prompts him, the answer is ready. The right 
 and wrong of every case depend upon its circumstances, and 
 not upon any man's judgment concerning it. The evangelist 
 must inquire, and consult, and judge correctly, and act ac- 
 cordingly, or take the consequences of doing wrong. Neither 
 his office, nor his erroneous opinion that he is doing right, 
 nor the approbation of any man or body of men, can justify 
 him in intruding his services upon those who would be better 
 without them, or can bind any to receive his labors, who do 
 not need them. As the majority of the signers of the Tes- 
 timony of July, 1743, correctly thought, "this liberty can- 
 not be invaded or denied without inhumanly invading the es- 
 sential rights of conscience ; so it must be left to the serious 
 consciences both of ministers and people," whether they will 
 admit an evangelist among them. In like manner, the " se- 
 rious conscience " of the itinerant must decide, to whom he 
 will offer his services, and how strenuously he will seek ac- 
 cess to those who reject him. 
 
 Another lesson is one of admonition, concerning the dan- 
 gers that attend a revival. Human beings, while on earth, 
 are always in some danger of doing wrong things, and of act- 
 36* 
 
426 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 ing in a wrong spirit, The spirit of a revival gives them an 
 impulse towards that which is good, but by no means makes 
 them infallible ; while, in many cases, the consciousness that 
 ^ they are moving mainly in a right direction, diminishes their 
 ■ sense of liability to error. Those whose humility and self- 
 distrust are too weak in proportion to their zeal, naturally 
 become obstinate in their errors, and condemn all who hesi- 
 tate to embrace them. When the most zealous leaders have 
 at length placed themselves clearly in the wrong, the common 
 sense of mankind revolts against them, their influence for 
 good ceases, and the revival ends in a quarrel. In lime, 
 passion subsides ; those who have quarrelled are assailed by 
 remorse ; they become penitent ; they seek and obtain par- 
 don for their sins ; another revival commences, and, if they 
 have not learned humility and a teachable spirit, ends Hke the 
 former. Instead of moving steadily onward in the straight 
 Jine of duty, they move in a circle, which at first touches that 
 line, and varies from it, as they advance, only by an almost 
 imperceptible difference, which no man can notice without 
 seeming censurably cold ; but which gradually diverges, and 
 at length carries them away at right angles from their proper 
 course, and then backward, and round again to the point 
 from which they started. 
 
 When a revival is very powerful and very general, so that, 
 to those within its influence, the whole world seems to be 
 awakened, they are very apt to talk of " the spirit of the 
 age," to take that spirit for their guide, and to condemn or 
 approve of men, in proportion to the entireness with which 
 that spirit governs them. This is " mistaking the vane for 
 the compass," and is sure to end in evil. The spirit of any 
 age is the spirit of the men of that age ; the spirit of men 
 either wholly sinful, or sanctified but in part. It is, there- 
 fore, either wholly or in part, a wrong spirit ; and whoever 
 gives himself up to be led by it without reserve, will inevita- 
 bly be led into sin and folly. Such persons, " measuring 
 themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among 
 themselves, are not wise." The spirit of the purest revival 
 has in it a mixture of error and of evil, and must be often 
 corrected by a standard more perfect than itself, or it will 
 bring itself to an end by its own faults. Detecting the faults 
 of a revival, therefore, and correcting them, is a work of the 
 first importance. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 427 
 
 On this subject, the history of the "Great Awakening"' 
 is full of instruction. 
 
 Consider the temptations and errors of Whitefield ; his 
 letter to Pemberton of New York, asking pardon for his arro- 
 gant treatment of him, when " puffed up" with success ; his 
 letter from Savannah, full of thanks for reproof, and entreat- 
 ing forgiveness of all his friends for his " too imperious car- 
 riage ;" his dictatorial letter to Wesley, written while " puffed 
 up " by his first triumphs at Boston, which every writer on 
 his character mentions to this day, — his friends with regret 
 and his enemies with triumph ; the self-complacent vanity 
 with which he told how well he preached whenever the gov- 
 ernor heard him ; and the rash and indecent haste, with 
 which he condemned the majority of New England pastors as 
 graceless men, when he had not had time to form even a 
 probable conjecture of their character. Think of the half 
 holy, half ambitious aspirations of Barber and Davenport, for 
 a great revival, which should do great good and make them 
 great men ; and how Davenport, more and more deceived, 
 continually rising in his own esteem, and mistaking the un- 
 healthy stimulus of a fever for the illapses of the Holy Ghost, 
 became an obstinate and wrathful fanatic. To say nothing 
 of multitudes of weak and ignorant men, who, moved by the 
 spirit of the age, gave themselves out for great ones, and 
 went about zealously doing mischief where they meant to do 
 good, — think of saner men than Davenport ; of Allen, com- 
 paring the Bible to an old almanac : of Wheelock, raising his 
 voice, so as to increase the confusion, when his hearers cried 
 out, pushing the most exciting exercises to the most exciting 
 extent and duration, and recording in his journal before he 
 slept, that so many "were converted" that evening; of 
 Brainerd, thinking, feehng, speaking and acting with such 
 "indecent heat," for months, that he himself condemned his 
 journal for that period to the flames, and began anew by re- 
 cording its condemnation. The proof is conclusive, that 
 leaders in a revival are in special danger of becoming proud,, 
 arrogant, rash and unsafe men. Nothing but exemplary 
 watchfulness over their own spirits, aided by faithful admoni- 
 tions and rebukes from those who see their faults, and attend- 
 ed by the special grace of God, can prevent it. The prpof 
 is conclusive, too, that the itinerant revivalist is in pecuHar 
 danger. As he naturally soon leaves a place where he is 
 
428 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 unsuccessful, he spends most of his time where his own 
 power over the minds of men is the most conspicuous object 
 in his sight, and where he is delighted with the visible proofs 
 of his own eminent usefulness ; and he is evermore surround- 
 ed by those who, either through design or indiscretion, act 
 the part of flatterers, even otherwise than by their presence 
 and interested attention to all he says. He has abundant 
 reason to know, with Whitefield, "how difficult it is, to meet 
 with success, and not be puffed up with it," and to say with 
 him, " my corruptions are so strong, and my employ so dan- 
 gerous, that I am sometimes afraid." 
 
 The itinerant's danger is the greater, from the improbabil- 
 ity that he will receive such admonition and reproof as he 
 needs. If he has habitual attendants, as Whitefield had, 
 they will mostly be his devoted friends, who admire all his 
 errors. Much the greater part of his intercourse is with 
 comparative strangers, who are aware that they do not know 
 him well enough to admonish him judiciously, and that he 
 does not know them well enough to appreciate their admoni- 
 tions, and who therefore excuse themselves from the task. 
 Opposers will speak of his faults; but his friends will pro- 
 nounce their censures unjust, and will be indignant ; and he 
 will see that they are exaggerated, and perhaps malicious, 
 and will probably give no heed to them ; or perhaps he will 
 think, that what " the enemy " hates, must be right ; and, as 
 he finds numbers ready to sustain him, will go on in his er- 
 rors. What good man ever needed checking in his career, 
 more than Davenport, when he came to Boston .' And yet 
 what an outcry was raised, because the pastors protested 
 against his errors, while they avowed their hope, that God 
 had used him "as an instrument of doing good unto many 
 souls !" "And why," exclaimed Croswell, in his published 
 reply, " are they not willing that God should use him as an 
 instrument of doing good unto more souls } " And numbers 
 of zealous men were found, to echo the reply ; Boston was 
 filled with angry controversy, and the awakening there was 
 at an end. Even such faults as his could not be reproved, 
 without bringing such rebukes upon the reprovers. The 
 preacher and his partisans grow wild together ; and whatever 
 be his faults, no one can mention them, without being de- 
 nounced as an opposer of the work of God.* 
 
 * For a further illustration, see Turell's Directions to his People, and 
 CroBwell's Answer. 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 429 
 
 Alrnost inevitably, therefore, the itinerant will become an 
 obstinate man ; obstinate in his errors, and obstinate in pro- 
 portion to his errors. Of all the itinerants of that day, 
 Whitefield is the only undoubted exception. Davenport, 
 indeed, was said to be reclaimed by the labors of Williams 
 and Wheelock ; but it was not till his bodily fever subsided. 
 While that continued, no reproof had any effect upon him, 
 but to bring down upon the reprover a sentence of condem- 
 nation, as an unconverted man, and an opposer of the work 
 of God; or at best, as " Jehoshaphat in Ahab's army." 
 As to the re.st, scarce an instance can be found, in which 
 any one of them profited by admonition or reproof. Some 
 of them at length became pastors of churches as excited as 
 themselves, and both grew sober together. Others sunk into 
 insignificance and are forgotten. But Whitefield profited by 
 reproof. Sometimes, when more than usually " puffed up," 
 as on his visit to Northampton, he suffered in this respect 
 like other itinerants, and pointing out his errors rather alieur 
 ated him than reformed him ; but very generally, he was 
 thankful to friends who reproved him, and candidly considered 
 the rebukes even of his enemies, and, if they had convicted 
 him of real faults, confessed them and reformed. Witness 
 his treatment of Dr. Chauncy, and of the Faculty of Harvard 
 College.* This trait in his character saved him ; and he 
 continued to be useful, and to rise in public estimation, to the 
 end of his life. Had he been obstinate, like others, he 
 would have sunk, like them, into obscurity after a short ca- 
 reer, and been long since forgotten by the world at large, as 
 they have been. Whitefield was not more distinguished from 
 other itinerants by his surpassing eloquence, than by his read- 
 iness to be corrected ; and this, without which all his other 
 gifts would have been worse than lost, should receive the 
 special attention of those who think of making him their 
 model. 
 
 It is, however, of little use to give advice to men who are 
 vain and ignorant enough to entertain such a thought. Make 
 Whitefield their model ! What would you say to a man who 
 
 * Doubtless, " Prince, Webb, Foxcrofl and Gee,'' who, it was said, " di- 
 rected all his public conduct" during his second visit, were of use to him 
 in this respect ; but his letter to Chauncy was written while he was sick at 
 Portsmouth, before he met them ; so that, though it was probably improved 
 by their suggestions before publication, the honor of originating it is clearly 
 his. 
 
430 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 should seriously propose to make Samson his model, in feats 
 of bodily strength ? You would Say of him, that his egregi- 
 ous over estimate of himself renders him unfit to be reasoned 
 with. A man of sufficient power to be a Whitefield, would 
 be incapable of forming himself after a model. He must, 
 from the nature of his own mind, strike out a course for him- 
 self. Whitefields cannot be made by imitatfon ; and he who 
 is not aware of it, is incapable even of understanding the 
 character that he would assume. It is of little use to argue 
 with them. Though it is lamentable that any thing of the 
 kind should occur in the history of religious effort, they must 
 be left to realize what Pollock says of those who would ape 
 Lord Byron : — 
 
 "Many, that aimed to imitate his flight 
 With weaker wing, unearthly fluttering made, 
 And gave abundant sport to after days."* 
 
 But they will not merely make sport. They will do positive 
 injury. All religious effort which does not commend itself 
 to the understandings and consciences of men, brings dis- 
 credit upon religious effort in general, and upon all who are 
 engaged in it, and thus destroys their power to do good. 
 The bad behaviour of itinerants, the avowed imitators of 
 Whitefield, from 1742 to 1744, furnished the enemies of the 
 revival with an excuse for shutting the whole class, including 
 Whitefield himself, out of their pulpits ; and such an excuse 
 that their people very generally sustained them, and many 
 who were friends and efficient promoters of the revival at 
 first, were compelled to unite with them. Nor was this all. 
 The enemies of the revival were furnished with means of 
 blackening the reputation of the whole work. They were 
 able to make many believe that those errors and their bad 
 fruits were essential and main parts of what was called " this 
 work," and "this work of God ;" and thus, that the work, 
 as a whole, was a bad work from the beginning, and ought 
 
 * It is often said, that Whitefield cannot have been a very great man, be- 
 cause his sermons contain only plain, common thoughts, such as men of 
 ordinary minds habitually use. But what made those thoughts so common ? 
 They were not common when he began to utter them. In England espe- 
 cially, and to a considerable extent, here also, they astonished nis hearers 
 by their strangeness. What is more common, than a voyage across the 
 Atlantic ? But was Columbas, therefore, only an ordinary man ? The 
 case of Copernicus is more nearly parallel. He reasserted a truth which 
 had been uttered, repudiated and forgotten. That truth is now common, 
 even among schoolboys. But was he, therefore, only a child in intellect? 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 431 
 
 to be opposed. Evangelism tempted the itinerants into er- 
 rors, and into obstinacy in error ; and their errors furnished 
 materials for a wall, tvhich effectually stopped the progress 
 of the revival.* 
 
 And finally, the Great Awakening should teach a lesson 
 of faith, of encouragement, of cheerful hope, even in the 
 darkest times. We are too apt to be thrown into despon- 
 dency by every departure from our own notions of order and 
 propriety, and to think that when every thing does not move 
 exactly as we would have it, every thing is going to destruc- 
 tion. We forget the inspired sentiment : " The wrath of 
 man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath thou shalt 
 restrain." We forget, that all the powers of darkness are en- 
 tirely under the control of the Father of light, and are per- 
 mitted to make no movement,' which he will not overrule for 
 the advancement of his cause. Irregularities may work evil, 
 
 * It is surprising, that the enemies of the revival were so generally able 
 to hold their places. By the outcry which they raised, one would think 
 that a great part of them were driven from their parishes, and that the rest 
 were in imminent danger; whereas, in fact, the increase of dismissions 
 was very little more than in proportion to the growth of the country, and 
 the increase in the number of pastors ; as will appear by the following ta- 
 ble, constructed from several volumes of the American Quarterly Register. 
 
 Dismissions in nine Counties in Massachusetts, from 1731 to 1760, inclusive. 
 
 Counties. 
 Suffolk, 
 Middlesex, 
 Norfolk, 
 Essex, 
 Worcester, 
 Plymouth, 
 Hampshire, (now Hampshire, 
 Hampden and Franklin,) 
 Bristol, 
 Berkshire, 
 
 Total. 
 
 1731 to 1740. 
 
 3 
 2 
 4 
 3 
 1 
 
 1 
 1 
 
 
 15 
 
 1741 to 1750. 1751 to 1760. 
 
 2 
 2 
 2 
 4 
 4 
 5 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 1 
 2 
 3 
 3 
 5 
 4 
 
 6 
 3 
 1 
 
 28 
 
 The causes of the dismission of Edwards at Northampton, in 1750, and 
 of Billings of Cold Spring, soon after, have already been stated, Maccarty, 
 of Kingston, was a friend of the revival ; and the opposition of its enemies 
 among his people led to his dismission in 1745 ; after which he spent the 
 long remainder of a useful life at Worcester. Burr, of Worcester, was dis- 
 missed in ] 745 ; and Lincoln's History of Worcester suggests, that probably 
 the " New Lights " were in part the cause of it. There may have been 
 other cases of the kind, but no intimation of them has been found. Con- 
 sidering how many of them were worthy to be dismissed, such could not 
 have been the result, had not the faults of the itinerants and their partisans 
 enabled them to enlist the consciences of men on their side, against the 
 revival, after it had become degenerate. 
 
432 THE GREAT AWAKENING. 
 
 and it may be our duty to resist them ; for our resistance 
 may be the appointed means of restraining " the remainder 
 of wrath." But God will surely produce an overbalance of 
 good, and will bring good, even out of the evil. Our system 
 of forms and opinions may be the best the world ever saw, 
 and better than any other that we can conceive ; but God's 
 time may have come to make the world wi^er, and introduce 
 better forms and opinions even than ours. In such revolu- 
 tions, the human understanding seldom goes intelligently fore- 
 most, clearly comprehending the good to be accomplished, 
 and the means of attaining it. Oftener, God stirs up the 
 hearts of men to an irrepressible longing for something bet- 
 ter than their rriinds clearly conceive ; society is agitated by 
 their well-meant but ill-directed efforts, like those of the Sep- 
 aratists, seeking a pure church ; till at length, some giant 
 mind, like that of Edwards, or more often, the common 
 sense of the community of the pious, discerns the rising truth 
 which is to enlighten the world. In the church, as in the 
 natural body, painful and alarming symptoms are generally the 
 struggle of the vital powers against some latent cause of dis- 
 ease ; but, as the church cannot die, the struggle ends in the 
 victory of the vital powers, and the establishment of more 
 perfect health. 
 
 When did appearances ever justify more gloomy forebod- 
 ings, than from 1742 to 1745 ? The whole land was full of 
 angry controversy. Pastors were divided against pastors, 
 churches against churches, and the merrifcers of the same 
 church against each other, and against their pastor. The 
 established rules of ecclesiastical order were set at defiance, 
 and openly trampled upon in the name of God ; and numbers 
 were everywhere found to justify and adhere to those that 
 did it. Ignorant and headstrong men were roaming at large, 
 pretending to be under the immediate guidance of the Holy 
 Ghost, and slandering the best men in the land, and multi- 
 tudes believed them. Religious meetings were often attend- 
 ed with disorders, from which the most reckless " new 
 measure man " of the nineteenth century would shrink back 
 in absolute dismay. Conversions^ most evidently spurious, 
 were proclaimed as real, and God was publicly praised for 
 them ; and supposed converts, concerning whom even the 
 judicious had hoped favorably, were falling away by thou- 
 sands. One system of false theology was gaining favor, as a 
 
THE GREAT AWAKENING. 433 
 
 means of opposing these evils ; and another system, equally 
 false and more directly pernicious, was mingling with the re- 
 vival itself, and spreading as it advanced. Why should not 
 y good men be alarmed .'' Select, from the preceding accounts, 
 ten places, where the revivals were the most pure, and or- 
 derly, and unexceptionable. The occurrence of ten such 
 revivals now, in orthodox churches under the guidance of 
 pastors of good repute, would fill the land with consternation. 
 It is no wonder, that good, judicious, sober men were alarm- 
 ed ; that they thought the conversion of some hundreds 
 or thousands had been purchased at too dear a rate ; that 
 they pronounced the revival a source of more evil than good, 
 and on the whole, itself an evil ; that they joined its oppcsers,. 
 and ever after kept as far as practicable from every thing of a 
 similar appearance. Now, when the lapse of a century has, 
 shown to what those things were tending, we see clearly 
 enough that the fears of those good men deceived them, and 
 that those only were in the right, who adhered to the revival, 
 , while they contended against its errors. 
 
 There was, indeed, abundant cause to apprehend evil, and 
 to be active in opposing it, and setting bounds to its progress. 
 In this work, Edwards lamented that he had not dared, in 
 the earlier stages of the revival, to do what he afterwards saw 
 to have been his duty, lest he should do mischief; and 
 others had much more reason than he had, for the same la- 
 mentation. But there never was any reason to fear that God 
 would not take care of his own kingdom, or to forget that by 
 those very commotions, he was working out the best in- 
 terests of his church and of the human race. We can see 
 that it was so ; and they ought to have believed that it would 
 prove so. They could then have labored with cheerful 
 hope, with courage, and therefore with effect, in promoting 
 the good and diminishing the evil. We should profit by their 
 history, and, in the midst of commotions which threaten the 
 stability of all that is good on earth, should remember, th^at 
 the great Disposer of eventsis only exchanging what is im- 
 perfectly good for what will be better, and is, with an infinite 
 calmness, working out results, which, though now beyond 
 our comprehension, will minister to our everlasting joy. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 37