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History of
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HISTORY OF

American Congregationalism

GAIUS GLENN ATKINS

AND

FREDERICK L. FAGLEY

'Che pilgrim ^ress

BOSTON AND CHICAGO

^'■c-t^

/, ! I

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

BY R. R. DONNELLEY & SONS COMPANY

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, AND CRAWFORDSVILLE, INDIANA

Foreword

TOWARD the end of the last century Williston Walker, then
Professor of Church History in Hartford Theological Seminary,
wrote A History of the Congregational Churches in America for
the American Church History series. Dr. Walker has put all American
church historians deeply in his debt for his profound scholarship and
his books have been standard. But great chapters in all history have been
written in the last fifty years and there have been highly important devel-
opments in Congregationalism which now merit record and recognition.
It has seemed to representatives of the Congregational fellowship, there-
fore, that the time had come for another history of their beginnings and
subsequent fortunes and achievements. This book is the result.

It has been written in collaboration, and the division of labor between
the two authors is evident in its structure and organization. But some
of the later chapters are of composite authorship and throughout the
whole really demanding enterprise there has been, between the writers,
a constant interchange of suggestion and mutual criticism. There is in
the book some measure of repetition; this both the reader and the critic
will note. That was inevitable, though the authors have sought to reduce
it to a minimum.

There are differences of opinion between all authoritative students
as to the confused beginnings of English Separatism and Independency.
The statements herein contained are supported by dependable docu-
mentation, but the specialist may find occasion for disagreement. All
possible pains have been taken to achieve accuracy in names, dates, and
facts. If there are still errors they should not, the authors trust, affect
the general accuracy of the narrative.

The authors confess their affection for the Fellowship of Churches
to which they belong, their pride in its achievements, and their con-
fidence in its principles. So much the critic will soon discern for himself.
But they have not, they hope, permitted their loyalties to cloud their
critical faculties. They have not minimized the more unhappy phases
of early American Puritanism, nor failed to recognize the significant
contribution of other communions to American religious life through
any sectarian concern.

They trust that the appendices and bibliography may be of service
to students not only of Congregationalism, but of American religious
history generally. They have sought to acknowledge their many in-

vi Foreword

debtednesses for subject matter and are grateful to patient and cooperative
librarians of many libraries.

Much of such a history as this lies in past and present controversial
regions. The Congregational historian can do no more than offer, as
best he can, the records of three hundred years of Congregationalism—
and rest from his labors.

Table of Contents

I. The Religious Situation in England at the End of the

Tudor Period ........ i

The Puritan Position; The Supplication of the Separatists; Petitions and
Supplications Denied; Formative Forces in the English Reformation; The
Break with Rome; The Elizabethan Settlement; The Case for the Puritan.

II. Historic Backgrounds OF Congregational-Separatism . 15

The "Great Church" Never Great Enough for the Whole of Christianity;
Pre-Reformation Groups; The Crucial Problem of the Reformation; Old
Movements with New Names; The Religious Influence of Holland Upon
England; A New Type of Church Inevitable; It Will Begin to Become
Congregational in England and America.

III. The First Adventures in English Congregationalism . 28

The Plumbers' Hall Society and Richard Fitz; "Without Tarrying for
Any"; The Norwich Church Examined; Browneists' Tribulations; The
Martin Mar-Prelate Affair; The First Separatist Martyrs.

IV. Sifted Seed Corn ....... 42

The Difficult Estate of English Non-Conformity; Refuge in Holland;
Leaders and Sources of the Pilgrims; Scrooby Manor; William Brewster —
Post-Master; John Robinson; From Scrooby to Leyden; The Leyden
Church Become Pilgrims.

V. Pilgrim and Puritan in a New World .... 56

The Leyden Church Seeks Support and a Destination; The Departure
from Leyden; The Epics of the Mayflower; Ashore at Plymouth; Concern-
ing Their Religious and Financial Estate; Enter the Puritan; Massachu-
setts Bay Is Chartered; Winthrop's Fleet Is Launched; The Puritan Ideal
of the Church; Dr. Samuel Fuller Is Called to Salem.

VI. The New England Way Becomes Congregational . . 79

"Clearing the Way"; The Cambridge Synod; The Churches Grow in
Numbers and Community; Intolerances and Hysteria; Salem Witchcraft.

VII. Entanglements and Disentanglements . . . . 91

The Half- Way Covenant; Extension of Churches and Population; The
State of the Churches Generally: Two Case Studies; Concerning Manners
and Morals; The "Way" and Its Changing Ways.

VIII. The Evangelical Revival and the Revolutionary War 104
Jonathan Edwards Is Called to Northampton; The 1740 Revival; An
Epoch-Making Exile; An Era of Theological Speculation; The New Eng-
land Clergy and the Revolutionary War; Political Preaching; Analogies
Between Church and State; Taxation Without Representation; "Stand
Armed, O Ye Americans,"

vii

viii Table of Contents

IX. The Unitarian Departure . . . . . .122

The Influence of British Thought upon New England Theology; The
Lines Begin to Form; The Churches Cease to "Fellowship"; The Trac-
tarian Period; The "Departure" Is Accomplished.

X. Westward Ho! . . . . . . . . 135

The Effect of the American Revolution Upon the Churches; Changes in
the Home Base; The Rebirth of the Missionary Spirit; Inception of the
y Plan of Union; How the Plan Worked; Its Consequences for Congrega-

tionalism; Debated Statistics.

XI. Congregationalism Carries On . . . . .149

The Era of "Boards" Begins; The Westward Expansion of New England;
Congregationalism Begins to Be National; Always Farther West; The
Continent Spanned; Samuel J. Mills — Statesman, Missionary-at-Large;
The Organization of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign
Missions; Incorporation of the Board; The Board Becomes Interde-
nominational.

XII. Recapitulation and Transition . . . . .164

The New England Clergy; The Great Succession; "The Old Order
V Changeth"; Horace Bushnell; Inherited Theology Meets a New Mind-

Order; Religious Liberalism; The Andover Controversy.

XIII. The Growth of National Consciousness . . .182

The Newtowne Synod, August 30, 1637 — The First Church Council; The
Cambridge Synod, September, 1646 — The Second Council; The Associa-
tion and Consociation; The Connecticut Discipline; The State Confer-
ence; The Iowa Plan; Interstate Relationship of Ministers' Associations;
The Influence of the National Societies; The Slow Growth of National
Consciousness; The Albany Convention; The Council of 1865.

XIV. The Council: Its Formation and Changes in Its Structure 208

The Pilgrim Memorial Convention; The English Union; The Call for a
National Council; The First National Council; Structural Developments;
The Executive Committee; The Executive Committee and the Commis-
sions; The Commission on Polity; The Constitution of 193 1; The Execu-
tive Committee as the Business Committee; The Moderator; The Moder-
ator's Responsibilities; The Secretary; Other Officers of the Council;
The Corporation.

XV. Concern for Education ...... 229

The Educational Purpose of the New England Settlers; Harvard; Yale;
The Need of Educated Ministers; The Educational Survey Commission;
The Free Colleges; The Foundation for Education; Development of the
Education Society; Education in the Christian Churches; Theological
Seminaries; Education Through Religious Journalism; The De%'elopment
of The Congregationalist; The Society Magazines.

Table of Contents
XVI. The Growth of Social Concern .....

Social Attitudes of the Colonists; Social Pioneers; The Social Crisis;
The Council for Social Action.

XVII. Evangelism and Worship ......

Parochial Evangelism; Beginnings of Present Program; The Commission
on Evangelism and the Devotional Life; The Christian Year; The Fellow-
ship of Prayer; The Pastor's Class; The Advent Season; Evangelism in the
Council; Worship and Hymnology.

XVIII. Later Development of Congregationalism .

The Way of the Churches; The 1865 Statement; The Proposed Manual;
The Manual Published; The Polity Committee; Summary of Polity De-
velopment; The Organization of a Church; Church Officers; Church
Membership.

XIX. The Council and the Boards .....

Before 1865: The Boards Before 1865; At the 1865 Council.
From 1 87 1 to 1913: Constitutional Provisions and Changes; Development
of Relationships; The Committee of 1892; The First Secretary for Pro-
motion; The Apportionment Plan; The "Together Campaign"; The
Commission of Nineteen.

From 1913 to 1925: The Commission on Missions; The Tercentenary;
The Care of the Ministry; The Interchurch World Movement; The
Foundation for Education; The Development of Joint Promotion; The
Committee of Twelve; The Strategy Committee; The Appraisal Commit-
tee; The Council for Social Action; The Net Result; The Debt of Honor.

XX. Church Union ........

Congregational Principles; The Declaration of Unity; The Free Baptist
Proposals; The Congregational Methodist; The Chicago Lambeth Quad-
rilateral; The Cleveland Proposal; The Concordat; The Disciples of
Christ; First Proposals for Merger with the Christians; The Congrega-
tional Quadrilateral; The Act of Union with the Methodist Protestants
and the United Brethren; The Evangelical Protestant Churches; The
German Congregational Church; The Universalist Churches; The Second
Proposal for Merger with the Christians.

XXI. The Ministry in Congregationalism ....

Early Ordinations; Installation; Recognition; The Nature of the Pastoral
Office; Changes Proposed at the Berkeley Council; Concerning Congrega-
tional Preaching and Preachers; Some "Commemorative Notices"; Con-
cerning Old Sermons; New Times, New Voices; A Renaissance of Pub-
lished Sermons. '

XXII. An Adventure in Liberty ......

Protestantism — An Adventure in Liberty; Congregationalism — A Historic
Development of This Adventure in Liberty; Liberty Becomes Service;
The Vitality of the Principles Involved.

Appendix I ......... .

Appendix II ......... .

Bibliography ..........

Index ...........

246
265

287

300

340

360

384

393
406

411
419

History of
American Congregationalism

CHAPTER I

The Religious Situation in England
at the End of the Tudor Period

JAMES STUART, King of Scotland, became James the First, King
of England in March, 1603. His ill-fated mother, Mary Queen of
Scots, was the daughter of Margaret Tudor, sister to Henry the
Eighth. Margaret's daughter, Mary, was therefore Elizabeth's cousin; and
Mary's son, Elizabeth's cousin once removed. He inherited the crown of
England from the Virgin Queen and consummated, among other less
happy things, the union under one sovereign of England and Scotland.
The tragedies of the Scotch court and the pity and folly of his mother's
life had early left their mark upon him.

James was awkward in carriage, spoke with a slobbering gravity, and
inherited the Tudor passion for absolute power without the wisdom to
adjust it to changed times. "Do I mak the judges?" he asked. "Do I mak
the Bishops? Then, God's wouns, I mak what likes me, law and gospel."
He had been more humble in Scotland, where he once praised God be-
fore the General Assembly of the Scotch Church "that he was born in
the time of the light of the Gospel" and "to be King of such a Church,
the sincerest Kirk in the world. ... As for our neighbor Kirk of Eng-
land, their service is an evil-said Mass in English," and he told his Scotch
Parliament "that he minded not to bring in papistical or Anglican
Bishops."^ His Presbyterianism fell away as he went south to take another
crown and become the head of another Church.

The Tudor period, much of which a very old man could remember,
had been epochal. It had seen the end of medieval and, perhaps, merry
England, and the effective assertion of the power of the throne over the
remnants of feudalism and the religion of the state. The sovereign had
ousted the Pope; no Papal Bull ran in England. Sea captains had claimed
for England the North American seaboard and its unmapped hinterland.
The gentleman adventurers of Elizabeth had singed the beard of the
King of Spain. Drake and a tempest had broken his Armada against all
the coasts of the North Sea and made her realm secure:

"A Sceptered isle, a precious stone set in the silver sea
Which serves it in the office of a wall."

iThis in general from Neal's History of the Puritans, part II, chap. 1.

2 History of American Congregationalism

A great literature had been evoked; an efflorescence of genius made a
single reign as nearly immortal as the temporal can be timeless. Milton,
a little later, would see England as an eagle flying proudly into the sun,
a puissant people superbly self-confident. But the nation was not in-
wardly at peace. It had still to carry an unfinished religious and ecclesi-
astical reformation to some accepted issue within the framework of the
English love of liberty, respect for authority, concern for established
order, reverence for precedent, and militant tenacity of individual con-
victions and opinion. In a spacious way, the action and interaction of
these essentially English qualities had made English history since Magna
Charta and determined its splendid and stormy course, politically,
socially, and religiously.

They were and are always the same qualities in action, though they
may contest different fields, and there might be a loose way of organizing
British history according to the fields contested. During the first half of
the Seventeenth Century religion furnished the field,^ and the representa-
tives of three contestant religious forces did not even wait for James to
get housed in Whitehall before they came into action. They went, or sent,
to meet him with protestations of loyalty, with petitions and remon-
strances. The bishops of the Anglican Church were first in the field.
Directly the queen was dead, Whitgift, Archbishop of Canterbury, had
sent his Dean express to Scotland to assure His Majesty of the unfeigned
loyalty of all the bishops and clergy of England and "to recommend the
Church of England to his countenance and favor—." The King assured
them.

I
The Puritan Position

While the King was on his way south, the Puritans presented their
"Millenary Petition," so called because they had hoped to have it sub-
scribed to by one thousand petitioners (actually there were about eight
hundred). They called it, having a liking for a good phrase well cap-
italized, "The Humble Petition of the Ministers of the Church of Eng-
land, desiring Reformations of Certain Ceremonies and Abuses of the
Church." The signers were, they said, neither factious nor schismatics,
but faithful ministers of Christ and loyal subjects to His Majesty. In
substance they asked that the cap and surplice be not urged; that the
rites of baptism be modified; that the ring be dispensed with in marriage;
that the church service be shortened; that church songs and music be
moderated to better edification; that none but canonical scriptures be
read in church.

2 This, of course, is to oversimplify. Contestant convictions about church, creed, and
religious faith involved social and political forces equally opposed.

The Religious Situation in England 3

They sought also more able ministers and better preachers; that the
bishops should, in substance, consider the need of the Church in their
disposal of its funds; and much else which aimed at the correction of
actual abuses not "agreeable to the word of God" and equally not agree-
able to a most considerable number of Englishmen.

There is no need here to follow the entirety of what was involved in
this petition to its momentous conclusions. Among other things it would
eventually provoke civil war, mobilize Oliver Cromwell and his Iron-
sides, create a brief, strange, splendid Puritan Commonwealth in Eng-
land and new Commonwealths in a new world— nothing of which could
then be foreseen.

The immediate issue was the Hampton Court Conference held in
January, 1604, where the King heard the controversialists and con-
tributed his own wisdom. To begin with he had nominated the disputants
and so predetermined the result. The Anglican side carried much the
heavier weight of metal: batteries of bishops, and the favor of the King.
The Puritans had only four disputants, whom the King sought to abash
with majestic frowns, says Neal. Dale^ believes the deference of the bish-
ops to have delighted and influenced the King, since his Scotch clergy had
shown him no such deference. "One had told him that all Kings were
the devil's bairns." How could he doubt the apostolic succession of a
bishop in lawn sleeves "kneeling on the floor and declaring that there
had been no such King since Christ's days," or the authority of an arch-
bishop who assured him "that he had spoken with the special assistance
of the Holy Ghost."

Neal laments the result of the Hampton Court Conference. There,
he says, was "lost one of the fairest opportunities . . . ever offered to
heal the divisions of the Church."* Two of the religious factions in Eng-
land had thus presented their prayers and complaints to the King. Be-
tween them they represented the religious majority of his subjects in
numbers, influence and stations.^ They would be the main actors in the
drama whose momentous action was beginning to develop.

There were also His Majesty's Roman Catholic subjects, then com-
monly called "papists." They were an entirely subject group and in no
position to ask for anything save tolerance. Their petition for open

3Dale, History of English Congregationalism, book III.

*The Conference did determine upon an authorized translation of the Bible. We owe
the King James Version to its initiative.

5 "Religious majority" is a cautious phrase. Actually religion in England at the be-
ginning of the Seventeenth Century was in a sad way. The discipline of Catholicism
was gone and no compensating discipline had been developed. "To the great mass of
people, then, religion meant little." "The people without discipline, utterly devoid of
religion, come to divine service as to a May-game; the Ministers for disability and
greediness be had in contempt." Essays Congregational and Catholic, edited by Albert
Peel, pp. 242-243.

4 History of American Congregationalism

toleration was phrased to evoke from the King responses both of recollec-
tion and affection. He was asked to remember that he was born of
Roman Catholic parents and had been baptized according to the rites
of the Church of Rome; that his mother was a martyr for that Church;
that he had called the Church of Rome his Mother Church, and there-
fore they presumed to welcome His Majesty into England.

The Supplication of the Separatists

His Majesty had other subjects, neither Anglican, Puritan, nor Papist,
who hoped much from his accession. They were behind the rest in seek-
ing access to the royal person, for they were relatively few in number, of
an humble sort, not well organized or else not organized at all. The only
groups which could speak for them in any representative way, moreover,
were in Holland, mostly in Amsterdam. Dale thinks there might have
been about three hundred of them, organized after their conception of
what they believed a true church should be.^ They would also have been
drawn and held together by their English speech, their love of England,
their lonelinesses and homesicknesses. They had, as yet, no name for
themselves save "True Christians" but they were reasonably agreed as to
what a Christian church should be and in their "supplication" they
were joined by their brethren still under grievous persecution at home.

These "True Christians" asked only to be permitted to live un-
harried in England nor be compelled "to the use or approbation of any
remnants of papery and human tradition." They enclosed in- their sup-
plication a copy of their Latin confession, possibly to prove that there
were scholars among them who could carry on a controversy in the ac-
cepted language of the scholarship of the age; certainly to prove that
they "were neither Anabaptist, Familists, nor heretics of any sort."''

6 The choice of a starting point in the history of a religious movement or body is
more or less arbitrary; in any history of Congregationalism it is much debated. We have
begun this history with the reign of James I to get a reasonably definite dating for the
beginnings of Congregationalism as it afterwards essentially continued to be both in
England and America. Having established the movement, its past may then be exam-
ined with a definite control.

7 This "confession" was first drawn up in 1596 after conference and correspondence
between George Johnson, still a prisoner of England, and the home group and Henry
Ainsworth, "teacher" of the Amsterdam group. It was a twenty-two page quarto, suffi-
ciently named and described "and published for the clearing of ourselves" (spelling
modernized) "from these unchristian slanders of heresy, schism, pride, obstinacy, dis-
loyalty, seditions, etc., which by our adversaries are in all places given out against us."
Three years later (late December 1598, or January 1599) a second edition of the Con-
fession was translated into Latin to command the respect of the Universities and men
of learning and influence in England and Holland and elsewhere. Dexter believes Ains-
worth, an entirely competent scholar, to have been the translator. This note in sub-
stance from Congregationalism as Seen in Its Literature, Henry Martyn Dexter, pp.
269 ff.

The Religious Situation in England 5

The suppliants, though not doubting the King's Latinity, thought
it wise to send along with the Confession a statement in English, ex-
haustive and well phrased, though spelled and capitalized after the
manner of the time, setting forth "the Heads of differences between
them and the Church of England as they understood it." These fifteen
"Heads of differences" may be taken in substance as an adequate state-
ment of that way of conceiving a Christian church and the right relation
between church and state, which, as yet unnamed, would become historic
English and American Congregationalism. Substantially they expressed
the position of the group who, sixteen years later, would migrate to
America for the precise purpose of enjoying, unpersecuted therefor, a
Christian fellowship so conceived in churches so organized.

The document itself is so compactly drawn as to make condensation
difficult, so significant that generalization is unfair. They believed, they
said, that Christ the Lord, by his last testament, left clear and sufficient
instructions in all necessary things for the guidance and service of his
Church to the end of the world, and that every particular church has
full interest and power by all ordinances of Christ so given. "That"—
and this single sentence is of crucial significance— "every true and visible
church is a company of people called and separated from the world by
the word of God, and joined together by voluntary profession of the faith
of Christ in the fellowship of the gospel." Only those thus called and
separated from the world can "be received and retained a member in
the Church of Christ, which is his body."

A church so gathered possesses, they held, a sovereign power in the
control and direction of its own affairs, both temporal and spiritual.
It may appoint discreet, faithful, and able men (though not yet in the
office of ministry) to preach the gospel and the whole truth of God. A
fellowship of believers thus joined together in holy communion with
Christ and one another have power to choose their pastors, teachers,
elders, deacons, and helpers and should not be subjected to any anti-
Christian hierarchy.

Ministers thus lawfully called by the church should take no civil
office nor be burdened with the execution of civil affairs. Here there is
a curious limitation of the ministerial office. They "should not celebrate
marriages nor bury the dead," which things belong as well to those with-
out as within the church. Church officers should be maintained by the
free and voluntary offerings of the church. State support is abjured. In
addition, the suppliants prayed the King to convert the endowments and
revenues of the prelates and clergy to a better use (a request sure to
array the whole Establishment against them).

Each particular church possesses the right of discipline over its own

6 History of A merican Congregationalism

members. The church should be governed only by the laws and rules
appointed by Christ in his testament. Worship should be in spirit and
in truth without liturgies or prayer books. There are but two sacraments,
which are to be administered according to the simplicity of the gospel.
The Lord's Day alone is to be observed; all monuments of idolatry (a
most sweeping phrase) are to be abolished; schools and "academies"
should be thoroughly reformed in the inteiest of true learning and god-
liness. Finally, all churches and people are bound in religion to only one
rule— that which Christ as Lord and King had appointed, "and not to
any other devised by man whatsoever."

This or any other history of Congregationalism, as it follows the
movement through, must take account of the modifications to which this
fundamental document will be subject. Much of it was projected against
backgrounds now greatly changed. In detail it lacked balance and made
too much of what has since proved inconsequential. There is in it an
excess of separatism and independency which time would correct, and
yet behind its dated phrasing and spelling there is a conception of the
Church, its fellowship and its office, which goes to the root of all Chris-
tian organization and communion. It opposed itself simply and superbly
to all then existing hierarchies and establishments. One reads it blindly
who does not feel its prophetic quality. One reads it superficially who
does not see that a millennium and a half of Church history are needed

to explain it.

Ill

Petitions and Supplications Denied

The king took little account of the Puritan protest, nor did the "Vice-
Chancellor, the Doctors, both the Proctors and others, the Heads of
Houses in the University of Oxford." These awesomely denominated
churchmen and scholars made and published their answers to the
"humble" petition of the "Ministers of the Church of England desiring
Reformation of certain ceremonies and abuses of the Church." They
refused to allow any changes in the processes or liturgies of the Estab-
lished Church or to acknowledge any validity in complaint or criticism.
Having thus confounded the Puritan to their own satisfaction, they
paid their compliments to the Amsterdam suppliants: These were "ab-
surd Browneists" abounding in a "selfe conceited confidence," holding
"pestilent and blasphemous conclusions." The exiles tried once more.
They issued in 1604 "an Apolojie or Defense of such true Christians as
are commonly (but unjustly) called Browneists," in which they pub-
lished their three petitions, reviewed their case, answered the doctors and
dedicated their effort "to the high and mighty Prince, King James, our
sovereigne Lord." Their sovereign Lord was still unmoved and nothing

The Religious Situation in England 7

was done to mitigate their sad estate. They thereupon gave up any
hope of going home to England and faced an indefinite residence in
Holland.

They had gone to Holland to escape persecution: so much from any
school history. But persecution is what the sociologist now calls an
"end effect," a quick and often tragic attempt to resolve tensions for
which no really sane resolution has as yet been found. Persecution is,
therefore, a proper subject of study for the moralist, the sociologist, the
psychologist, and the historian. The historian's task would seem to be
to furnish the data. The explanations belong, strictly speaking, to other
specialists, though such a clear-cut division of labor is practically im-
possible. History is written with something else besides ink, the over-
tones of its heroisms and tragedies are part of the still, sad music of
humanity. One cannot write of them unmoved.

There was once a proper technique of kindling a fire around a per-
son tied to a stake. (They did it awkwardly around Joan of Arc, and
pity still sees her through the smoke.) But the passions which kindled
such fires had always been engendered by long and complicated processes
and the fire itself was only a final flaming out of the conflict of irrecon-
cilable forces, as though the martyr's constancy were the flint, and the
pride and power or fear and stupidity of those who thus sought to
vindicate and defend their authority were the steel. These between them
kindled the fire, and the historian has few more difficult tasks than
to trace the genesis of the forces which finally engaged with so devastat-
ing a concreteness. It needs the whole course of Christian history to
explain Ainsworth, John Smyth and John Robinson in Holland, or
Barrow and Greenwood hanged in London of an April morning. And
it needs also some examination of the whole course of the English Re-
formation up to James Stuart's accession. For these Separatist suppliants
who petitioned the King for mercy were, among so many other things,
one of the as yet unresolved issues of the English Reformation be-
queathed as incorporeal hereditaments by Elizabeth to James. Few royal
inheritances have caused a ruling house more trouble.

IV
Formative Forces in the English Reformation

The English Reformation had taken its own line, a line by no means
simple. England had a tradition of Christian beginnings older than
Augustine, and had never been a docile daughter of Mother Church. It
is possible for the Anglican to make his case for an historically national
Church in whose administrations the pretensions of Papal power were an
intrusion, to whose real life they were extraneous. There might have

8 History of American Congregationalism

been a distinctively English Reformation of an entirely different char-
acter; a scholar's reformation, such as Erasmus sought; a purging of
abuses; a reassertion of the spirit of the New Testament; a slow leavening
of inherited ignorance by the new learning; the reformation the "human-
ists" sought.

There was always, Dean Inge maintains,* a tradition of "idealism in
English religious thought, neither Catholic nor Protestant," Platonic in
its sources, manifest in English poetry, discoverable in the positions of
the more free-minded theologians and even churchmen. It was sheltered
and continued in Cambridge, which may explain the sympathy of Cam-
bridge with Puritanism. These forces between them might have written
an entirely different chapter in English history, creatively transforming
the English Church.

There had also been since Wycliffe a scriptural and non-ecclesiastical
strain in English religious life, which anticipated and broke giound for
the Reformation. In a quiet, transforming way this might have in-
augurated a less dramatic Reformation and did actually reinforce the
Reformation once initiated. But an amorous King's caprice became the
point of departure for the whole movement. Henry the Eighth, for all
his Tudor absolutism and gusty passion for Anne Boleyn, would not
have dared the course he took without, at least, the inarticulate consent
of a strong minority of the English people and the cooperation, willing
or forced, of Parliament. But he did inaugurate the Reformation by a
tour de force. He broke with Rome for his own ends. He released not
so much a reform as a "Church Revolution by Royal Prerogative and
Acts of Parliament."^

The Break with Rome

The long story of the King's quest for annulment of his marriage to
Catherine of Aragon needs no retelling here. Its issue was subjection of
the English clergy to the throne and a clean break with Rome. He had
been excommunicated and naturally had no mind to take that lying
clown. The complete severance of his realm from the authority of the
"Bishop of Rome" was carried through by three acts of Parliament.
The first subjected the clergy to tlie crown absolutely. The second for-
bade the payment of annates to the so-called Bishop of Rome or the
presentation to him for ordination of any candidate for the office of
bishop or archbishop. Finally, no contributions of any sort should go
to Rome from England. Henceforth "the King's Realm was to be subject
only to laws made within it."

singe. The Platonic Tradition in English Religious Thought.

^Taylor, Thought and Expression in the Sixteenth Century, vol. 2, chap. 23 ff.

The Religious Situation in England 9

But it was not the intention, it was added, "to decline or vary from
the congregation of Christ's Church in any things concerning the very
articles of the Catholic faith in Christendom or in any other things dis-
closed by the Holy Scriptures and the word of God necessary for . . .
salvation, but only to make an ordinance, by policies necessary and
convenient, to repress vice and for the preservation of this realm in
peace, unity, and tranquility."'*' Within this spacious frame the actual
drama of the English Reformation was to be played out. The issue was
neither peace, unity, nor tranquility.

This complete severance of the realm of England from Papal au-
thority, administration, tribute, or contribution left the religious situa-
tion within the realm apparently unchanged save for one strategic fact.
Thereafter all reorganization and reform, doctrinal or ecclesiastical,
was the affair of the English people themselves, uncontrolled save by
their recognized political and church authorities, "any usage, foreign
law ... to the contrary notwithstanding." A required oath of allegiance
made it treason to "utter speech or writing derogatory to the King or
Queen, their titles, dignities, and orthodoxy." For refusing this oath Sir
Thomas Moore, so tolerant in Utopia and so rigid in England, and
Fisher were executed.

The course of refomiation under Henry the Eighth need not be fol-
lowed here in detail. He suppressed the monasteries and seized their
lands and plate; he gave about half the monastery lands to his friends,
who were thereafter sure to be more friendly than ever. He established
Biblical studies at the universities and ended Duns Scotus' scholasticism
and the Canon Law. He made Cromwell his vicar-general and pro-
ceeded to a reformation of doctrine— dogma, if you please. Ten Articles
were drawn (1536) "to stablyshe Christen Quietnes and Unitie amongst
us." They were cautious articles, and a good Catholic with some accom-
modation of his conscience might have subscribed to most of them. They
suited neither the Right (largely Catholics) nor the Left, those zealous
for more ceform.

The Right won and the Six Articles of 1539, called the "Six Bloodys"
were as Anti-Lutheran as they were Catholically orthodox. A final epistle
from the King to all his faithful and loving subjects softened a little the
rigidities of the Ten and Six Articles with such spacious phrases as
theologians, pressed a little, know how to use. The King finally died,
already much consumed by decay, and was gathered, one may trust, to his
fathers. They would have received him with mixed emotions.

His son, Edward the Sixth, ruled under rival Protectors and a Coun-
cil, all favorable to the New Learning. They repealed the worst of
lOTaylor, Thought and Expression in the Sixteenth Century, vol. 2, p. 79.

1 o History of A merican Congregationalism

Henry's highly penal statutes enforcing conformity and thereby loosed
a confusion of tongues. There was sore need, it appeared, of uniformity
in worship and the administration of the sacraments. This Cranmer and
certain discreet bishops accomplished "with the aid of the Holy Ghost"
and delivered to His Majesty "The Book of Common Prayer and Ad-
ministration of the Sacrament." Of the Book of Common Prayer, its
sources, contents, sense of liturgical order, the harmony of its prose, the
exquisite music of its prayers, the cameo quality of its collects (Cranmer
was a master at collects) and its influence upon the worship of English-
speaking people, enough has been written to make a library. It articu-
lated the Reformation in England. Newman has rightly held that the
Prayer Book, and not the Articles, is the norm of the faith of the
Church of England. Under Cranmer, Henry's Ten Articles became
Forty-two, strongly tinctured with Lutheranism. For all this, under
Mary, he paid with his life, but his mind "with its gift of cadenced
utterance" and passion for English religious autonomy, lived on.

The five-year reaction under Philip and Mary was bitter and costly,
with three hundred made martyrs to their faith. When Mary died in
1558 "all the churches in London did ring and at night [men] did
make bonfires in the streets and did eat and make merry for the new
Queen." Thereafter, for forty-five years Elizabeth had two cares and one
purpose: the cares were to save her crown and her realm and these cares,
continued, became her purpose. In the contention of Spain and Rome
she was bom out of wedlock and no lawful queen, and her realm might
therefore be taken by Spain for Rome. Hers was a parlous position, and
all that she did must be understood primarily in the light of her posi-
tion and her dominant purpose. How she maintained her throne and
defended her realm is an epic of English history. The telling of it fas-
cinates and baffles the historian.

The Elizabethan Settlement

Elizabeth worked by strategies and indirections, by compromises and
inconsistencies, with a woman's wiles, a statesman's grasp, and a soldier's
courage. She loved power as she loved jewels, and wore her power as she
wore her pearls. She knew how to choose her advisors and, without con-
senting, to be guided by them when it pleased her. She had the erudition
of a scholar and the tongue, if needed, of a fishwife. She evoked pas-
sionate loyalties which she repaid with royal caprice. She used her vir-
ginity as a counter in a game where her life and her realm were the
stake, but she considered her coronation ring the pledge of her wedlock
and marriage with her Kingdom and said it would be to her a full

The Religious Situation in England 1 1

satisfaction if there were engraved upon her tomb: "Here lieth Elizabeth
which reigned a virgin and died a virgin." She loved royal progresses
which bankrupted her hosts. She was jealous of the marriage of men
whom she could not and would not marry herself. She grew old and
faded under her red wig, her jewels and her pearl-bordered silks, and
bequeathed to England the beginnings of its empire, the sea-girt safety
of the state, the glory of its literature and religious contentions still
unresolved.

She inherited two main religious orders not to be reconciled: the old
Catholics, of which there were still a great number, and the new An-
glicanism which had not yet found itself. There would be in her time
the emergence of Puritanism and some restless promise of religious
separatism and ecclesiastical independency. Her main concern, naturally,
was with Catholic and Anglican. Puritanism she probably never under-
stood and for Separatists she had no use at all, only a relentless enforce-
ment of conformity. Her Catholic subjects needed careful handling.
Froude believed three-fourths of the nation, say 3,600,000, to have been
Catholic before the defeat of the armada." Her Protestant government
was, therefore, administered by a vigorous minority group. The Queen's
own secret sympathy was probably with her Catholic subjects. She had
an altar with candles in her own chapel. She told a protesting Spanish
ambassador that no Catholic subject of hers who acknowledged her as
lawful sovereign had suffered anything and that in spiritual matters she
believed as they did. It was a question of authority: "She would permit
no authority in England which did not center in herself."

England, threatened without, could not afford a civil war within.
The Queen saw, as she looked abroad, the Low Countries split up re-
ligiously; France torn by religious and factional fighting; the German
states hopelessly at odds. This must not happen to England, and there
were divisive elements enough in her imperiled realm." England would

11 This estimate is open to question. Hallam thought the Protestants two-thirds the
population; Lingard thought they were about equal. The Spanish ambassador (1559)
reported the nobility heretical, London and the seaports very heretical, the rest of the
country sound and Catholic: in the aggregate Catholics were in the majority. The Papal
Nuncio at Brussels (1607-1610) thought four-fifths of the people would become Catho-
lics if the old religion were established. Macaulay thought those ready to run any risk
for religion relatively few. The undetermined majority would go with the government.
These various estimates do not invalidate the statement that the Protestant government
was administered by ^ minority.

For a most carefully documented study of the Elizabethan settlement of religion in
her realm, see Albert Peel's chapter 12 in Essays Congregational and Catholic.

12 One may, in a paragraph, understand Elizabeth's attitude toward religious divi-
sionists from the present attitude (1941) of American public opinion toward radical
economic groups. These religious groups which now seem to us to have been so harm-
less, asking only very simple freedoms in religion, were for Elizabeth the equivalent of
Communists, Fifth Columnists, "borers from within," and other various groups under
investigation by the "Dies Committee." (1941).

1 2 History of A merican Congregationalism

not in the end escape civil war, but it would be postponed until the
realm was secure from invasion, and Oliver Cromwell would face
Catholic Europe masterfully unafraid. Many English religious leaders
favoring reform fled to the Continent to escape persecution during
Mary's brief reign. There they came under Luther's influence in a
measure, still more under Zwingli's, and most of all under Calvin's at
Geneva. They seem to have been impressed by the simplicity of Cal-
vinistic worship, the austerity of Calvinistic morals, the Biblical char-
acter of Presbyterian polity, and, in general, by the logical completeness
with which Calvin had made an end of the old systems. Geneva was not
then a city either of religious reaction or religious compromise. It was
instead the foyer, as Michelet says, of the Reformed faith. If there was
need anywhere in Europe of a martyr to be broken on the wheel or
burned at the stake, he was there in Geneva ready to keep his rendezvous
with death, singing his psalms and praising God.

VII

The Case for the Puritan

The English, who had savored the Genevan ardor, naturally found
Elizabeth's Anglican Church with its baitings, compromises, survivals of
vestment and liturgy, and general "Mr. Facing-Two-Ways" character, a
poor thing and not even their own. Even some bishops wanted a more
tnorough-going reform, and a considerable number of the clergy wanted
no bishops at all. The New Testament, they believed, did not con-
template Anglican bishops. They would have "elders" instead and make
the administration of the Church the business of the clerical group
rather than an Episcopal autocracy.

The bishops themselves for the most part could hardly be offered
as exhibits, unspotted by the world, of a divinely instituted Episcopacy.
They were rich beyond proportion in a poor society and at the sore cost
of the lower clergy. They were given to assertions of power— and in cruel
ways— for which they had no legal support. Their vestigial vestments
were irritating because they clothed hard hearts. The hungry sheep
looked up and were not fed.

All this ferment was beginning to be Puritanism, would presently
become quite completely Puritanism, and would write its own chapters
in English and other history. The threat of the Armada had unified
England and won for Elizabeth the deepened loyalty of her Roman
Catholic subjects. Since they had to go to church, it was politic to make
church as homelike to them as possible, especially in liturgy and sym-
bolism. This naturally increased the dissatisfactions of the Puritan wing;
the "right" and "left" grew further apart.

The Religious Situation in England 1 3

All these slow, uneven, and hotly disputed modifications of the
medieval religious order in England were carried by a minority in state
and church officialdom. The laity were to do as they were told and were
for the most part content to do it. No such dramatic moments ever at-
tended the English Reformation as Luther's burning of the Papal Bull
or any such pastoral idylls as that of the folk of a German parish who
left their parish church one Sunday morning and went out to worship,
as Luther would have them, under the trees. But no one was left at
all in the church, and so they went back as a congregation. There was
little of the idyllic in the English Reformation and few discoverable
enthusiasms. Its procedures were, as Taylor and Sibelius hold, typically
English, and it was in a profound way representative of the English
temper and temperament. The Tudors, autocratic as they were, knew
their England and in what and how far they could carry their realm with
them. The Stuarts never did, and so lost their realm. The long contested
action of the Elizabethan settlement had begun in 1558, when "the
Lorde began to shew mercy unto Englande by removinge Queene Mary
by death." It was ended as far as legislation could end it in 1571, when
Parliament by statute compelled the clergy to subscribe to the English
version of the Articles of Religion. The result was the Anglican Church,
in substance, as it has since continued. But the Anglican Church was far
more than the Thirty-nine Articles. These seem then to have been almost
marginal to the real controversies. There is no way of stating the issues
involved either clearly or concisely.

If one says that a strong minority of the clergy wanted more of
Geneva and less of Roman Catholic compromises and accommodations,
he would be right and vague enough. Actually it was a kind of fourth
dimension warfare, an engagement carried on between contestant con-
ceptions of religion itself, of worship, of piety, and the very drama of
the soul; between symbolism and literalisms; between ethics and aesthet-
ics; between the Bible and tradition; between high-handed authority
and an embattled instinct for at least a modicum of liberty for the Church
in the conduct of her own affairs. There was the grand strategy.

Minor matters, and not so minor either, were involved. The relative
stipends of the clergy were unbelievably unfair. The clergy themselves
were too largely incompetent. The religious needs of the realm were not
being competently met— and so on and on. The ejection of non-conform-
ing clergymen made all these conditions worse, since Elizabeth and her
Archbishop Parker seemed set to harry out of the Establishment the most
spiritually sensitive, intelligent, and religiously earnest clergymen, with
consequences which had a long repercussion both in Old England and
New England.

14 History of American Congregationalism

For our purposes here three things are significant. First, the Queen
had her way; second, the action so far had been between the two wings
of the Establishment, carried on within the Establishment. Finally, no
sufficient account was taken of an obscure, formless stir of protest and
quest in the realm, arresting in its possibilities and destined to write a
noble history of its own. It was not strong enough to register in high
places or secure any support; only disquieting enough to irritate au-
thority and occasion cruel suppressions. Officialdom seems to have
sensed the portent of it by instinct rather than foresight. It brought with
it to begin with only flotsam and jetsam; little movements, nominally
religious, of obscure folk, strangely and variously named, with no agree-
ment among themselves but only disagreements over the apparently
inconsequential, signs of a rising and potent tide behind them. They,
too, had their own long and significant genesis which it is the task of
the next chapter to trace.

CHAPTER II

Historic Backgrounds of
Congregational-Separatism

No CHRISTIAN communion has ever been quite content until
it has claimed for its doctrines, polities, and practices the
authority of the New Testament, and usually to the exclusion
of any other communion's right to advance such claims. An earlier
school of Congregational historians claimed New Testament authority
and priority for Congregationalism and supported their claims both
with zeal and documentation. Most competent historians would now
agree that they made their case too strong. No competent scholar would
deny that there have been throughout the entire course of church history
marginal movements tending to assume group forms of organization and
asserting some independence from outside ecclesiastical authority. These
movements were fluid as water, appearing and disappearing without
apparent organic connection and yet with arresting persistence.

This has made it possible for so sound a historian as Dale to find true
Congregationalism in Corinth and Ephesus, and prophetic intimations
of Carr's Lane Church throughout the whole course of church history.
Waddington^ traces what he calls "the development of the principles
denominated Congregational" from the zenith of the papacy under
Innocent, the Third, to the commitment of the poor folk of Richard
Fitz's group— the first church of the Congregational order in the English
Reformation, he says, of which we have information— to Bridewell Jail
in 1567. His learned and voluminous survey includes many movements
whose leaders would be much surprised to find themselves nominated
the forerunners of English Congregationalism and whom most Congrega-
tionalists would not, without some urging, accept as their spiritual
forebears.

And yet there is through these hundreds of now yellow pages a
principle of historic control and an approach to Fitz and the Plumbers'
Hall group, which any historian of the genesis of Congregationalism
must at least broadly take into account. In substance it comes to this:
there has never been since apostolic times an entirely unified Christian
Church. The task of completely satisfying the incalculable variety of
iWaddington, Congregational History, i2oo-j$6y.

1 6 History of A merican Congregationalism

minds, temperaments, regions, and races included for at least twelve
hundred years in the administration of western Christianity, was beyond
the power of any ecclesiastical organization. The "Great Church" suc-
ceeded in that impossible task to a degree which the most critical his-
torian must recognize with respect and even admiration, though he might
question both method and results as not always being of the essence of
Christianity. The non-conformities, refusals, adventures, escapes— no
one word is enough— took various forms. The Church simplified the
whole affair by calling all those who refused her obedience heretics and
dealt with them accordingly. But this was far too easy, begged too many
questions, and finally resulted in the dissolution, beyond repair, of the
order the "Great Church" sought to maintain.

The "Great Church" Never Great Enough for the
Whole of Christianity

There were, to begin with, theological and doctrinal divergencies,
militant antagonisms of belief. These evoked passions and partisanships,
created contentious literatures, were debated in stormy councils. Some
of them died out through the sifting years. Some of them were silenced
by the sheer assertion of ecclesiastical authority, others were left un-
resolved, being not crucial enough to arrest the slow formulation of
orthodoxy. Still others were, with a strange audacity, set face to face
in the historical creeds and left there.

Then there were survivals of earlier and simpler faiths; old, old
provinces, so to speak, of fellowship and worship which the "Great
Church" never completely subdued, but against which she maintained
a kind of guerilla warfare. It is difficult to maintain, as has been done,
their uninteiTupted derivations from the primitive church, but one may
safely assume another succession besides the Papal or apostolic; a suc-
cession of those for whom religion was never an order of priests and
prelates, nor worship the adoration of a jewelled altar, nor faith sub-
mission to a many-articled treed. These believed that they continued the
simplicities and intimacies and sanctities which the Acts of the Apostles
record. Dale thinks there is evidence for such survival of apostolic teach-
ing and fellowship among the shepherds living in the secluded valleys
of the Alps. Milton had voiced this belief in one of the noblest of his
sonnets:

"Avenge, O Lord, Thy slaughtered saints, whose bones
Lie scattered on the Alpine Mountains cold;
Even them who kept thy truth so pure of old."

When one considers the tenacity of folk-lore and folk-custom, the
persistence of beliefs and habits near to field and hearthstone, the sur-

Historic Backgrounds of Congregational-Separatism 1 7

vival of a primitive Christian faith and practice under favoring circum-
stances does not seem unlikely. The Waldensian Church claimed such a
succession.

There are certainly curious parallelisms of both faith and worship
under similar conditions in widely separated regions. Simple and lonely
folk without much resource for liturgy and ceremonial fall back natur-
ally upon simple forms of praise and prayer. They develop also a strong
"group" consciousness and, having or seeking none to direct them, take
control of their own affairs. (This was essentially the situation "of the
true Christians falsely called Browneists" in Amsterdam beneath the
high towers of old churches or in Plymouth between the sea and the
pines.) Or else, seeking a norm for their own Christian lives and a cor-
rection of costly departure from the Christian way there has always been
the New Testament for the questing to turn to if only they could find
or read it.

So the whole Waldensian movement, whose heroisms and sufferings
constitute a noble though shadowed chapter in medieval church history,
grew out of Peter Waldo's having the gospel translated by a scholar, the
translation written down by a practical writer, and copies given to the
common people. Waldo and his Waldensians had no thought of break-
ing with the church. They were seeking something the church did not
supply and there was an implication of revolt in their professed obedi-
ences. Zealous historians of Separatist movements have even claimed
that monasticism was Separatist because the monasteries were in theory
self-governing, at least in their election of abbots and abbesses, and do
represent a classic example of withdrawal from the distractions of the
world and complete commitment to the interests and services of re-
ligion. But for all that, monasticism cannot be accurately exhibited as a
branch of the Congregational family tree.

There was, however, as it began to degenerate behind monastic walls,
a renaissance of its quest and finer spirit, first in the Netherlands and
then in Germany, whose bearing not only upon Protestantism but upon
Separatists themselves cannot be ignored.^

2 These movements— it is hard to find a better name— produced two classics of Chris-
tian devotion: the Imitation of Christ and the Theologia Germanica. The Theologia
Germanica, later in date than the Imitation, was and remains anonymous. The Imita-
tion is so associated with Thomas k Kempis that his authorship of it, though questioned,
is a tradition it is best to accept. Michelet (Histoire de France, vol. 6, book X) thinks
the Imitation to have been the voice of the profound hopelessness of Fifteenth Century
Europe; the old order was dying, the new in slow and agonizing travail. The devout,
being already dead to so much of the world through misery and hopelessness, chose to
die to the rest of it and find their peace in the crucifixion of themselves and escape
the world through the "Royal Way of the Holy Cross." The Theologia Germanica owes
much more to mysticism generally and German mysticism specifically than the Imita
tion.

i8 History of American Congregationalism

Pre-Reformation Groups

In the Netherlands, groups o£ Christian women seem to have been
formed almost spontaneously. The distress of their economic condition,
the anarchy of society, and the spiritual sterility of a disintegrating
Catholicism moved them to create their own sanctuaries of fellowship
and peace. Monastic societies supplied a form which they adapted to
their own needs. They took no vows binding for life, but they did vow to
live unmarried and under the authority of a superior while in the com-
munities. They wore a designated costume, ate at a common table, and
had stated hours for prayer and mutual encouragement.

They supported themselves by their own labor (mostly weaving),
cared for the poor and sick, and naturally the common people, to whom
they themselves belonged, loved them. They called themselves Beguines,
or praying women. Michelet, who thinks they also sang, has a nobly
imaginative passage describing them singing at their looms in the low
rooms of Flemish houses facing narrow streets, and so finding a peace
neither the Church nor the world could give them. Men imitated them
and their communities were called Beghards. They, too, were unmarried,
lived under a master, ate at a common table, wore a distinctive garb,
worked at their handicraft, also mostly weaving,^ and helped the poor
and suffering. These communities later fell into grave disorders, but
they were links in a long human chain leading to free and democratic
religious organizations.

There were also gioups more loosely organized who sought to live
laboriously, simply, devoutly, and charitably. They took for themselves
lovely names: 'Triends of God" and "Brethren of the Common Life."
The Brethren called dieir houses Brother-Houses. They took no life-
binding vows, but they usually surrendered their property to a common
fund. They copied books, preached to the people, and conducted schools.
Such as these had no quarrel with the Church and lived in obedience
to and communion with it. They were simply trying to be Christians as
they believed the Gospels wanted them to be and found their spiritual
peace in their labor, their charity, their own humble souls, and their
group fellowship.

All these movements, escapes, supposed returns to a true Christianity,

3The significance of the weaver's trade in the complicated mediation of religious in-
fluence, particularly between Holland and England, is more than economically signifi-
cant. It was the one international handicraft. A Dutch weaver could support himself
in London, an English weaver in Amsterdam. Persecuted groups could thus maintain
themselves in exile. These paragraphs should be either qualified or amplified. Actually
the beginnings of these orders seem as old as the last crusades.

Historic Backgrounds of Congregational-Separatism 1 9

had for their background an extremely distressed economic order. Fol-
lowing the discovery of America and the Spanish exploitation of the gold
of Central and South America, there had been a long process of rising
prices which bore hard on the already poor. The tentative beginnings of
the capitalistic system were slowly displacing the Medieval guild system,
which was overshadowed by merchant-companies needing relatively
enormous capital. There began to be "rich" and "poor" in new senses of
those old words; a "proletariat" class within the cities, which was liable
to be swollen by the influx of discontented and ruined peasants from the
country districts. All the lands were war-ravaged. The ancient liberties
of free cities were beginning to be lost and their hopeless rebellions put
down with fire and blood. Little was left of feudalism save the pride and
rapacity of the barons, and these were gradually being brought to heel
by a new type of king. Nationalisms, splendid and portentous in promise,
were taking shape. The Reformation of the Church herself, long overdue,
was profoundly and on the whole disastrously affected by all of these
conditions.*

All this, in the line we are following, culminated in distinctly sep-
aratist groups in which there was the promise and potency of Protestant-
ism—the nebulae of Protestantism. Most of these were still communicants
of the Catholic Church, but their nominal attachments were loose, their
real allegiances were to their own groups and what they believed to be
the true way of Jesus Christ. They dissolved in the vast upheavals of
the Reformation but they left, on the Continent, an unpurposed and
undesignated bequest: the quest for a simple, fraternal, non-ecclesiastical
form of religious life. That went underground; it did not disappear.

Ill
The Crucial Problem of the Reformation

For the purposes of this study, then, almost one thousand years of
European history had so unified Church, state, and society that any
disentangling of their interwoven fabric would be unbelievably difficult;
and yet the unification was never complete. The Church had a theory,
which it tenaciously maintained, of its own sovereign apartness. The
state, whatever its form, was only its instrument. The ultimate loyalty
of the citizen being thus to the Church, the Church was able to impose
its own unified will upon society and so secure, in theory at least, a
spiritually unified order.

Much is to be said for such a unity, and the ideal is now strongly

4 There is now most extensive literature to document these general statements. Later
historians have specialized in the social and economic causes of the Reformation. Lind-
say's History of the Reformation is sound and accessible.

20 History of American Congregationalism

urged not only by the Roman Catholic Church, which has never sur-
rendered it, but by Protestants who would like to regain it. But it
furnished Reformers and the Reformation their most difficult problem:
how to adjust their conceptions of a Church and a Christian order to
their massive and tenacious inheritance. Any simple statement of the
problem is too simple, but this might do: Was the new order to be simply
a purged, reformed continuance of the old order; or must there be a
new gathering together out of the debris of the old order— a new order
of individuals, reborn in loyalties, confession, and religious experience?
An almost literal beginning of Christianity all over again? One position
would conserve historical unities, though greatly modifying them. The
other position challenged them, disregarded them, sought at any cost to
get clear of them.

The history of the Reformation may, spaciously, be written in terms
of the travail and confusion of these two contestant conceptions, and
always with the Papal Church in the background contesting both posi-
tions and winning back much lost ground through the division of its
opponents. The German Reformation was finally compelled to adjust
itself to the conception of the continuing Christian order. It divided
Germany into blocks whose orientation was deteraiined by the attitudes
of the heads of the picture-puzzle of curiously named little states which
made up Martin Luther's Germany. Something, of course, beside the
caprice of Margraves, Electors and the rest was in action: the religious
tempers and reactions of the German people; but the result was a kind
of anomalous, sectional state-church or churches, which might explain the
strength and weakness of Lutheranism in Germany.

John Calvin's Church, if it had been confined entirely to France,
might have been a "gathered" Church. It was in theory. But his residence
in Geneva made his Presbyterianism a state-church as completely served
by the magistrates as the Roman Church had ever been. There was then
even in Calvin's Church, and at the same time, a "gathered" and a con-
tinuing Church— a contradiction which eventually perplexed a Pur-
itanism deeply in debt to Calvin and the Reformed Church leaders. How
they wrestled with it in New England we shall presently see. Old Eng-
land under the Stuarts was nearly torn apart by these embattled concep-
tions. The North-Netherlands and Scotland adopted in toto the Genevan
system. It came to be called the "Reformed Church," the purified con-
tinuity of a going Christian society which had ceased by crucial tests to
be Roman Catholic, but sought still to maintain the organic unity of
the Church and society. At the same time, the "Refonued" Church had
either surrendered or denied the theory of the saving power of the sacra-
ments, which was really the umbilical cord which had attached the new-

Historic Backgrounds of Congregational-Separatism 2 1

born of almost thirty generations congenitally to Mother Church. This
type of Protestantism was thus entangled in contradictions it has never
been able to escape.

Old Movements with New Names

Such pre-Reformation movements of a semi-Independent and Sep-
aratist character as we have so far considered were submerged and their
distinctive forms lost in the vast upheaval of the Protestant Reformation.
Then they began to reappear with new names and in response to new
occasions. They had been essentially withdrawals from the travail of an
anarchical world. They reappeared as distinct assertions of religious and
ecclesiastical independence, and in defiance of all the established ecclesi-
astical orders which issued out of the Reformation. As one sees them now
detachedly and as a whole, they were in their formless movements the
ground swell of a new social order. They did not know the word de-
mocracy, nor had they, to begin with, any theory of a democratic church
or a democratic state; but they presaged a democracy both in church and
state, and as their scattered tides gathered confluent power they would
presently wash the bases of the thrones, both of kings and prelates,
overturn immemorial inheritances and usher in a new order.

This is possibly a too-grandiose generalization, but the course of
events from the middle of the Sixteenth Century validates it. For all
that, it oversimplifies a movement which cannot possibly be simplified.
In its earliest continental forms it was certainly a protest, amongst other
things, of the common-folk of central Europe against their unendurable
economic conditions already noted. Very likely the tragic issue of the
Peasants' War contributed to the lawless aspect of these obscure move-
ments of the socially and spiritually submerged. On the Continent there
was one general, if unsavory, name for all these groups. They were Ana-
baptists. The whole Anabaptist movement has for thirty years now been
most carefully examined by most competent historians. They do not
agree in their conclusions as to its causes and its character; they do agree
as to its significance. Actually their attitude toward infant baptism, for
which they were named, was always only a detail. They represented the
revolt of the dispossessed against society and the turning of Demos in
his sleep. There were moral excesses in the movement, mostly marginal,
which gave thoroughly immoral authorities the advantage of spurious
moral indignation. Churches and states which could unite in nothing else
united in persecuting them. The fiendish instruments of torture in
Nuremburg Museum are still rusted red with their blood.

It is not easy to put into words the essentially revolutionary char-
acter of the whole movement. It was driving at the very heart of sacer-

22 History of American Congregationalism

dotal authority, the mystic and imponderable creation of a thousand
years which had held Western Europe in fee, and which by its approvals
and consecrations had supported all secular authority. More than that,
the whole movement was the logical and inevitable result of the dissolu-
tions of the Protestant Reformation. The reformers themselves had re-
fused to accept the implications of their own attitude. Luther went so
far and hesitated. Calvin masked the revolutionary character of his re-
form with a rigid theology and a stern discipline, but here was the revolu-
tion itself, bare-boned and irreverently crude.

It was quite impossible, as we have seen, to confine other and more
acceptable consequences of the Continental Reformation to the Con-
tinent itself. A Shakespeare's sceptered isle set in a silver sea which served
it in the office of a wall, might maintain itself against armadas, but
there were other invasions against which the channel was no defense.
Confessedly it is quite impossible to understand the English Reformation
without some examination of the action and interaction of Continental
influences upon the English religious estate. This is a commonplace as far
as the genesis of Puritanism is concerned, and yet there has been a
tendency on the part of historians generally to limit Continental in-
fluence to these more respectable and recognized forms. That contention
on the face of it seems indefensible, but no conclusion which does not
more or less beg the question is possible. The question of the influence
of Continental Anabaptists upon English Separatism has been long and
carefully considered and most competent authorities hold that there was
no such influence, or else that it is negligible or untraceable.

Burrage* finds a tendency toward Separatism making its first appear-
ance in England about 1550. It was a process of evolution, and there
may have been roots of it in old England herself in Lollardism, in other
obscure movements, and in very human tendencies. A few isolated Ana-
baptists had been found in England before 1550 "chiefly or only for-
eigners" and had been banished or burned. The term is loosely used to
designate ". . . any persons of irregular or fanatical religious opinion,"
a spacious phrase whose incidence depended a good deal upon the station
of those who used it to indict others. Apparently these early conventiclers
who engaged the unfavorable attention of the authorities were only
marginally heretical. One of them held that predestination was "meater
for devils rather than Christian men." Another claimed "that learned
men were the cause of great errors, the children were not born in or-
iginal sin."

They debated "whether to stand or kneel at prayer and whether

sBurrage, The Early English Dissenters in the Light of Recent Research, vol. 1,
pp. 41 ff.

Historic Backgrounds of Congregational-Separatism 23

with their hats on or off." They did refuse communion in the Church of
England and for this eventually two of their leaders were burned. But
these were not technically Anabaptists, and if historians should recog-
nize that Anabaptism is an entirely inadequate name for all these related
movements it would clear the air. It was not so much against pestilent
opinions that the authority was defending the realm as against pro-
foundly revolutionary attitudes whose implications they seemed to have
felt. The precautionary measures which the authorities took and the
books published as wholesome antidotes against the heresies and sects of
the Anabaptists would seem to indicate an obscure sectarian ferment in
England by the middle of the Sixteenth Century. An unusually tolerant
opponent of such movements did not advocate using "Material fyre and
faggot" against them. The heresies themselves he thought were no "ma-
teriall thynge" but ghostly, that is, "a woode spirite," and they would be
best exorcised "with the sworde of Goddes word and with a spiritual
fyre."

Turner was wiser than perhaps he knew. There was a movement in
the air as real as it was intangible and pervasive. Apostolic Christianity
once went along with caravans and galleons, with the sailor, the trader,
the traveller. All religion has always moved with human contacts; dom-
inant movements of the human spirit can never be kept in mind-tied and
spirit-tied compartments. No censor can black out a "woode spirite."

The Religious Influence of Holland upon England

The ghostly invasion of England is more likely to have been by way
of Holland than any other Continental source. The Dutch seem to have
been the only people who learned toleration from their own sufferings.
Early Anabaptists had been persecuted in Holland (1522), but time
corrected their excesses. They changed their name to Mennonites and
became exemplary Christians, almost too exemplary.^ There was a con-
stant commerce between England and Holland. English and Dutch
sailors could understand each other's language. England became an
asylum for the Dutch persecuted under Spain; Holland an asylum for
persecuted English. A good deal of all this is later of course than, say,
1550. One can only hold that it implies an exchange of influence through
a considerable period, an influence which cannot be traced through any

6 Campbell, The Puritan in Holland, England and America, vol. i, pp. 245, ff.
Campbell possibly overstresses his thesis: the debt of Puritanism to Holland— but his
position could probably now be accepted less critically than in 189a. Erasmus wrote
from Basle in 1555 "The Anabaptists are crowding in here from Holland. . . These
Anabaptists are no joke. They go to work, sword in hand, drive their creed down
people's throats" etc., Froude, p. 419.

24 History of American Congregationalism

literature. Its carriers were illiterate persons and not the written word.
Bunyan's old women sitting in the sun and talking of God are far more
significant for the hidden ways of religion than documents and theologies.
It is surely not a mere coincidence that eastern England, commercial
and trading England, nourished the Puritan and the Separatist.^

One may assume, dierefore, a contagious religious quest and restless-
ness, marginal it is true, but with a power of penetration. The radical
social and economic groups in the present period are like that. Their
patterns would be the same: Always a mutually sympathetic group,
generally a leader around whom they coalesced, an excess of argument
with consequent disagreements and petty lesions, unstable as water and
yet registering like a tidal river the pressure of the sea behind them, the
compulsion of celestial forces. No authority could understand them, no
authority has ever understood such movements; and since authority
could not understand, it would not tolerate diem.

The positions, contentions, convictions for which and around which
these groups organized themselves were impossibly various in detail, but
sought one thing: the recovery of New Testament Christianity in one
form or another, in doctrine, worship, simplicity or austerity of life;
also liberty, Luther's liberty of a Christian man. That was for them the
condition precedent of everything else. They might not be fit for it,
might abuse it, might not understand it; and they really did not seek a
great deal of liberty, only to pray as they pleased, argue as they pleased
matters too high for them, and meet in low rooms undisturbed. The
early Christians asked only the same. Their supplications for such liber-
ties are pathetic with the tears of things, and their supplications being
denied, they were deported or burned. Those who were burned are
reported to have met death joyfully. What they were dying for seemed
worth the cost to them. On the whole archbishops and bishops do not
show well against these backgrounds of fire. One of them said of a
troublesome heretic that if he persisted in his errors "The Lawe will . , .
frie him at a stake." Doubtless for the honor of the "Godhead of Christe
and of the Holie Ghoste" which he was reported to have denied.*

A New Type of Church Inevitable

Naturally the prelates would be persona non grata to those whom
they persecuted. It is against human nature to be grateful for being

7 But the Scrooby District, as we shall see, was truly rural.

SThese pages are in debt to Burrage. He maintains, however, that the case against
the Bishops should not be made too strong.

Historic Backgrounds of Congregational-Separatism 25

"fried at a stake" or seeing one's friends burned. The association of
clerical vestments with such vindications of the Church and her faith
may also have prejudiced the Puritan and Separatist against such gar-
menture. The more extreme would be led to question the Christian
necessity of bishops, and specifically such bishops. That would lead to
consideration of the nature and constitution of a Church more truly
apostolic and more essentially Christian. This was in the main the line
which English Separatism, eventually to become Congregationalism,
took.^

A new type of church was therefore inevitable. It was the predestined
conclusion in Protestantism of the long, long line of quests, escapes,
experiments and separatism in all their variety and confusions already
noted. It would be only a conventicle to begin with, a meeting together
of the like-minded if enough like-minded could be found to meet to-
gether with reasonable agreement. There would be no church buildings
for them, not for a long time. The establishment had taken over the old
Catholic churches and such of their endowments as kings and nobles had
left unplundered. These sectaries inherited nothing save the scaffold,
the stake, and the rack. They were beginning as St. Paul's churches had
begun; and if they claimed for themselves scriptural authority and be-
lieved themselves to be returning to apostolic simplicities and purities,
they had a case.

Sooner or later questions about church government and organiza-
tion, about the ministry, were sure to emerge. These Separatists, unless
they had an already ordained clergyman for a leader, were without or-
dained ministers and had nowhere to look for them. How then should
they call and ordain their ministers and what should be their offices?
All such questions were equally inevitable; so, for that matter, was their
form of organization.

Given any group sufficiently isolated, sufficiently sympathetic, suffi-
ciently argumentative, and at the same time sufficiently committed to
any cause, religious or secular, the general form of their organization
is already determined for them. It will be a unitary group organization,
conducting its own affairs through some expression of its common will.
Unless it is organized and assembled from without by a missioner, it

sjust here in writing this history a principle of selection becomes imperative. English
Anabaptism eventually became the English Baptist Church. We shall meet Baptists
later in Boston and Providence Plantations. For the purpose of this book they belong
to Baptist historians. Puritanism, as yet only a promise, would eventually become a
major force. But though non-conformity tended to be puritanical, Puritanism was not
Separatist. It wanted to be the English Church. Separatism, eventually to become
Congregationalism, took its own line till 1648 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. That line
must necessarily be rather exclusively followed in the next chapters. One of the best
compact examinations of the development of group technique in the Reformation is
chapter 8, Tudor Puritanism, M. M. Knappen.

26 History of American Congregationalism

will choose its own group officials, call them what it pleases, and honor
them as the group pleases. These "officials" will be substantially a chair-
man and an assisting committee.

Once chosen they may become permanent or be changed as often
as medieval Florence changed her municipal officers. They may be
distinguished by title or garmenture or not. Something like this must
have begun in the old Stone Age and been renewed after the last Ice
Age, and an immense deal of human business, important or unimportant,
has been, is still, and will continue thus to be conducted. ^° It is the first
resource of the questing, the visionary, or the prophetic. Whatever breaks
off from an established pattern, under whatever impulse, repeats this
primitive and inevitable technique.

As group-sects multiply and coalesce, some "at the top" organization
naturally develops and presently the whole going affair becomes pretty
complicated and quite imposing. Then the ingenious in church or state
would invest their own order with some form of "divine right," call
any protest against or separation from it rebellion, heresy, or schism and,
having the power, make it extremely uncomfortable, dangerous, or even
fatal thereafter to doubt, deny, or secede. Also authority would date its
own beginnings back as far as it could go by the records, then further
by tradition, and then clear back by gratuitous and deftly argued assump-
tion, and discover schism where there was as yet nothing really to be
schismatic from, save the anachronistic ideology of the reconstructors of
vanished pasts."

VII

It Will Begin to Become Congregational in England and America
This process of group fission and fusion is abundantly illustrated
throughout the whole history of the Christian Church. Where secession
from or protest against the "Great Church" has taken formidable forms,
through numbers or the influence of a popular leader, such movements
constitute the historic heresies, and the historian deals with them, so
to speak, in the mass. Where the Separatists have been few in number,
isolated, widely spread in time and geography, they have taken, in-
evitably, some form of group expression. This is what makes it possible
for even a trained historian, with strong "Congregational" predilections,

10 H. G. Wells in his Shape of Things to Come anticipates a group of survivors form-
ing themselves into a cell of a new civilization after about one hundred years of the
fighting now going on (1942).

"This is a perfectly unpatterned digest of Church— and much other— history. Those
who would disagree with it, and there are enough, would call it fanciful and irreverent
and even those who would agree in substance would call it naive, or trivial, or wanting
in dignity of documentation. For all that, it is about what happened in the develop-
ment of Christian organization. It had to. See Guingnebert's Christianity, to make it
respectable.

Historic Backgrounds of Congregational-Separatism 27

to find "latent Congregationalism" in early protest movements^^ or to
make "Congregationalists" of Lollards and Waldensians, not to speak
of the churches in Corinth, Ephesus, and Philadelphia, all of which has
a measure of truth, but tends to overprove the case.

Finally, the members of any more or less experimental group cannot
escape the influence of their inner and outer inheritances. It is im-
possible for any cause in any extremity to break all the filaments which
hold society together. The social or religious experimentalist must always
tie into his new fabric some thread of the pattern he seeks to escape;
some habit older than he knows will control his more radical departures,
and the disciplines of the past subdue him in spite of himself.

A group of English men and women, therefore, in dissent and religious
adventure, will still be English and weave the texture of their race into
their new fabric. English Congregationalism, using the word in its
simplest meanings, will not be Dutch or German. It will still express the
English love of liberty in some precedent of law. Its disorders will be
orderly. It will have due regard for use and wont. Moral excess will be
the exception. It will not be theologically speculative; it will be a way
of faith and worship within the frame that is England, and if it should
cross the seas, it will name its new home New England— and become
American Congregationalism.

i^Dale, History of English Congregationalism, chaps. 2 and 3.

CHAPTER III

The First Adventures in
English Congregationalism

SINCE, as has been said, some form of group organization is almost
inevitable in any pioneer movement, one must be cautious in
reading back the later meanings of Congregationalism as a
denominational name into the appearing and disappearing perilous
little fellowships of humble English folk toward the end of the Sixteenth
Century.^ They were always in danger, compelled to secrecy, always being
broken up only to get together again. There could be no organized asso-
ciation of groups. That would come later. The remarkable thing is that
we know as much about them as we do. We owe what knowledge we
have more largely to the records of those who harried and tried them
than to their own "remains." They were in no position to elect a clerk
or keep "minutes." Such papers would be perilous.

There was, under Mary, at least one "congregation" composed of
members of the Church of England.^ They used the Second Prayer Book

iThey did not name or particularize themselves save to think that they sought to
be "true Christians." They were mostly named by those who harried them, and beside
being characterized as pestilent and luireasonable, they were named for their leaders,
Browneists or Barrowists and the like. They would come out of the established Church,
but it would be very difficult to document their own use of "Separatists" as a confes-
sional word— and the same with "Independents." The word "congregation" does not
appear in Browne's 185 Questions and Answers "Concerning the Life and Manners of
all True Christians." It is always "the Churche." So in the London Confession of 1589,
though in its third printing (1641) "congregation" is substituted for church. In the
Second Confession of the London-Amsterdam Church (1596) "Church" and "Christian
Congregation" seem interchangeable, and congregational aiuonomy is plainly set forth,
but even so, "congregation" is a synonym rather than a label. The congregation are
the faithful who constitute the church, and the implicit "Congregationalism" of the
Confession is a means to an end and not an end in itself.

An introductory word may be said about the names "Independent" and "Congrega-
tional." Some prefer the former as being the older, but the oldest name is "Separatist."
Next came "Congregational," which occurs in the writings of Henry Jacob (1563-
1624?), whereas "Independent" was still a novelty in 1643— a novelty to which the
"Dissenting Brethren" vehemently objected. The historical circumstances explain
why "Independent" and "Free Church" became the designated terms during the next
150 years or more in Great Britain, while in the United States "Congregational" became
the universally accepted denominational designation. (F. J. Powicke: Third Interna-
tional Cojigregational Council, p. 260.)

2Burrage, The Early English Dissenters in the Light of Recent Research, vol. 1,
p. 70. John Smith, so-called minister of Plumbers' Hall, said under examination: "We
bethought us what were best to doe, and we remembered that there was a congrega-
tion of us in this citie in Queene Maries dayes."

First A dventures in English Congregationalism 29

of Edward the VI. They were not in any sense of the word "Separatists."
Their number varied and they did not often meet in the same place;
in Alice Warner's house, in shoemaker Frogg's house, in a dyer's house.
Their ministers were Church of England or "a Scotchman." They did
not pray for Mary or Philip, nor did they apparently celebrate the sacra-
ment of communion. Their alms were given to prisoners and to the poor.
They met at seven in the morning or eight or nine. They dined together,
"tarried after dinner till two of the clock" (p.m.) and, among other
things, "they talked and made officers."

There were foreigners among them, "Frenchmen, Dutchmen, and
other strangers," who called each other brothers. The Englishmen
"seemed young merchants." They lived a hunted life; one can see them
fleeing through the alley-streets of old London, or taking to a ship.
Once, when the house in Thames Street where they were meeting was
beset with enemies, they were saved by a mariner, who rowed them over
the river "using his shoes instead of oars." There was a similar congre-
gation at Stoke who covenanted "by giving their hands together" that
they would not receive the mass at all. Such congregations sought to
separate not from the Church of England, but from Queen Mary's re-
turn to Catholicism. Their organization was necessarily fluid, but Bur-
rage thinks reformers like Browne might have known of them through
Foxe's Book of Martyrs, then in its first (Latin) edition. Quite as likely
Browne could have heard them talked about by sympathizers.

Churchmen who had fled to Geneva to escape Mary came back to
Elizabeth indoctrinated with Calvinism and strongly inclined to the
Reformed policy, as well as to a much more thorough reform in worship.
They found manners and morals in England in sad contrast to godly
Geneva, and they hoped to be humble instruments in the further puri-
fication of the Church. They were not immediately silenced; they were
heard for a season, but in 1565 all licenses of preachers were called
in and new licenses were granted only "to such as proved conformable
and agreeable." This naturally left a considerable number of unlicensed
ministers without occupation and aggrieved. About this time (1566?)
the name Puritan appears (Burrage) in English literature.

The Bishop of London was deeply grieved over the prevalent con-
troversies about things of no importance, as vestments and the like.
The more learned clergy seemed on the point of forsaking their ministry.
The pained Bishop does not note that their licenses had probably been
revoked. Many of the people also contemplated forsaking "us" and
setting up private meetings. "However . . . through the mercy of the
Lord [and the Act of Uniformity] most of them have now returned to
better mind."

30 History of American Congregationalism

The Plumbers' Hall Society and Richard Fitz

Not all. Bishop Grindal wrote (1568) that controversy broke out
again. London citizens "of the lowest order with a few ministers re-
markable neither for their judgment nor learning" openly separated,
met in fields, private houses, or ships, administered their sacraments,
ordained ministers, elders, and deacons. Also they were beginning to
follow a hallowed pattern in excommunicating those who separated
from them. There were about two hundred of them, more women than
men. The Privy Council, implementing the "mercy of the Lord," im-
prisoned their leaders and sought to put a "timely stop to this secte."
This was the Plumbers' Hall Society. They do not seem to have been
Separatists, accurately so called. They were "retired" members of the
Church in protest against corruption.^ One "congregation" like Plumbers'
Hall, meeting in different places, might easily be mistaken for many
congregations and, since the authorities acted upon information received,
the informers themselves would so differ in what they reported as to
make the groups seem more numerous than they really were.

There was as yet no uniformity of procedure. One newly-invented
sect called themselves "the pure or stainless religion." Their preacher
used half a tub for a pulpit and was girded with a white cloth. They
brought their own food and divided money amongst those who were
poorer, seeking to imitate the life of the Apostles. So far, save for the
half-tub and the white cloth, they might have been the Church at
Corinth. Because they would not enter the churches nor partake of the
Lord's Supper, the Queen's Council arrested the preacher and the leaders
and appointed persons to convert the rest.* So the Spanish Ambassador
reported to the Escurial.

There were seceders from Plumbers' Hall, on Bishop Grindal's author-
ity, and also the excommunicated. These, Burrage holds, did not re-
turn to the state Church but moved still further to the left, a phrase

^Whether they were or were not Separatists has been much debated. Burrage thinks
not and documents his position. They were independent Puritans, using the German
order of worship, etc. (See Burrage, The Early E7iglish Dissenters in the Light of Re-
cent Research, pp. 82 ff.) Peel thinks them to have been Separatist but not "specifically
Congregational." They desired to be like "the best Reformed Churches." The congre-
gation in the house of "James Tynne, goold smythe" may have been another group.
They are as likely to have been the same general group meeting in another place with
variations in personnel. The experiences, disciplines, and feuds of the congregation
of English exiles at Frankfort in the main belong to this general period and have
a bearing not here considered upon English Independency.

4 There were, according to the estimate of a well-informed Catholic, about 5000 fol-
lowers of the "pure or apostolic" religion in London in 1568. They also called them-
selves Puritans or "Unspotted Lambs of the Lord." Carlyle also held that if a preacher
could find a tub he had a pulpit. {Sartor Resartus.)

First Adventures in English Congregationalism 3 1

the bishops would not have recognized. There had been a congregation
in 1567 with Richard Fitz for their minister. A careful comparison of
names leads Burrage to believe that the seceders from Plumbers' Hall
united with the "Privy Church" of Fitz. This group suffered various and
ill fortunes. Fitz eventually died in prison; the members were in sad
repute with the bishops. Twenty-seven of them appealed to the Queen.
There is also still extant a paper signed with Fitz's name, in which he
defined the object of the "Privy Church," and a third paper in black-
letter which seems to be the covenant of the group.

On the basis of these documents. Dr. Robert Dale in his monumental
History of English Congregationalism concluded: "The first regularly
constituted English Congregational church of which any record or tradi-
tion remains was the church of which Richard Fitz [he signed his name
Fitze] was pastor; and he died in prison for his loyalty to Congrega-
tionalism." This conclusion is challenged also on the basis of the docu-
ments. The group were Separatist and Congregational enough, but Con-
gregationalist by accident, and it could not have been a regularly con-
stituted English Congregational church.^ It was not concerned at all
with being "Congregational," which some may hold the most signifi-
cantly Congregational thing about it. It simply wanted the Queen and
her ministers "to bring home the people of God to the purity and truthe
of the Apostolyck Churche." For that blameless desire they had, they told
the Queen, been so persecuted that the very walls of the prisons "about
this city would testify God's anger against this land for such injustice
and subtle persecution." Burrage is probably cautiously right. English
Congregational policy was an evolution; here was an early stage, and its
tradition survived. Ainsworth and Robinson refer to it: "A Separatist
Church in the beginning of Queen Elizabeth's days."

Meanwhile the national Church was having troubles of its own. The
Queen and Parliament did not agree over Church legislation; a rela-
tively strong party wanted a Presbyterian and not an Episcopalian
Church, "thereby bringing the bishops into incredible disfavor." Thomas
Cartwright, Lady Margaret professor of divinity at Cambridge, contended
for the Presbyterian Puritans; Whitgift, Master of Trinity, Chancellor
of Cambridge, and afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury, championed
the Establishment. Personal rancors embittered a discussion by no means
academic. Whitgift had helped depose Cartwright of his professorship
and drive him into exile. Theological and ecclesiastical controversy has
rarely been overly courteous and Elizabeth's age was used to strong

5 So Peel concludes: "Richard Fitz's church was simply the earliest Separatist congre-
gation of which any considerable historical record has been preserved." The First Con-
gregational Churches.

32 History of A merican Congregationalism

language. Cartwright lost, but the question had still to be settled. Some-
thing more, Dale says, than a dispute about the New Testament stand-
ing of bishops and elders, or the Geneva gown and surplice, was in-
volved. For one thing, the people wanted preaching and the majority
of the Established clergy could not preach. Some of them lived in
"notorious vice" or else they were sluggish and inefficient. The Puritan
wanted better ministers with more religious zeal. These were the real
matters in issue behind a murk of words. The essential and incidental
were hopelessly involved.^

"Without Tarrying for Any"

Cartwright and his party put their hope in the Queen and the
bishops. Robert Browne would not "tarry for any" and put his hope,
as he believed, in the Great Head of the Church. Browne alive was a
storm-center of and for controversy, and has so continued dead. He was
long misrepresented by those who loved neither him nor his system and
equally a source of pride and embarrassment for his friends and the
friends of his system. Since the turn of the century, say from 1905, the
more critical use of available documentary material and a calmer temper
has made a more just estimate of him possible. He was born a gentle-
man; his ancestors can be traced back to the Fourteenth Century: pros-
perous merchants, aldermen, a sheriff, a coat of arms. Robert's grand-
father, Francis, had a charter from Henry the Eighth to remain covered
in the presence of the King and all his Lords. Robert himself, born about
1550, was the third of seven children. He went to Cambridge University
(1570), matriculated at Corpus Christi, and probably took his degree
in regular form. He became domestic chaplain to the Duke of Norfolk,
disseminated doctrines the authorities thought seditious, and was cited
to appear before the Ecclesiastical Commission, but by the Duke's pro-
tection and advice refused to appear.^

He next taught "schollers"^ for three years and lectured to whomsoever
would come to a gravel pit on Sundays, to the distaste of the rector.
Then came the plague and he went home (1578). When it was safe he
returned to Cambridge, studied theology, and began preaching "without
leave and special word from the Bishop." He was gladly heard, having

6 For a detailed and documented account of the complaints against and criticisms
of the Established order and its "amazing state of disorder" see Peel's chapter in Essays
Congregational and Catholic.

^Burrage, The Early English Dissenters in the Light of Recent Research, chap. 3
Burrage's chapter is compact, judicious, well documented. Dale's study is the kindest.
Dexter's long chapter the most analytical. Peel does not believe that Robert was ever
chaplain to the Duke of Norfolk. 'That was John.

8 His own declaration.

First A dventures in English Congregationalism 33

power, unction, and a genius for irritating authority. There was in him,
the Master of Trinity felt, "something extraordinary . . . which would
prove the disturbance of the Church if not seasonably prevented." He
declined the offer of a Cambridge pulpit and sent back the money they
would have given him, being convinced that they were not yet rightly
grounded in Church government. He was especially concerned about
the bondage of the parishes to the bishops. He fell "sore sick," doubtless
through inner conflict, and while ill was inhibited by the Bishop from
further preaching. It is difficult to condense his own account of his
seeking, but in the end it led him entirely out of the Established Church,
and in 1581 (possibly 1580) he began to gather a "company" in Norwich,
which became "the first regularly constituted Congregational church on
English soil."^ (Italics author's.)

Ill

The Norwich Church Examined

First of all this was a "gathered church." Browne had been led to
conclude that "the Kingdom of God was not to begin by whole parishes,
but rather of the worthiest, were they never so fewe." This was epoch-
making, fundamentally divisive, and creative. It challenged, at its source,
the entire conception of what one may loosely call the organic continuity
of the Christian order, and found the joints in the armor of the estab-
lished Anglican Church.

Latin Catholicism had developed a consistent system bound together
by living filaments. Every child was born into her order and spiritually
incorporated therein by baptism. He was thereafter nurtured and in-
structed, confirmed, confessed, absolved, and continued in his Christian
life and hope of salvation by sacramental grace. The sacraments, faith-
fully received and administered by those who had the power to make
them effective, carried him beyond any power of his to caiTy himself.
The Church asked only obedience and assured salvation. She dismissed
the dying as she had received the new born; and if there was some
painful waiting in Purgatory, even that could be expedited. No words
are quite equal to evaluating this system. Even the most Protestant
imagination must acknowledge its spell. It was the soul of Western cul-
ture for almost a thousand years.

The Reformers groped for ways of preserving this organic continuity,
but none of them succeeded. Something was gone. (Incidentally, no
ecumenical Church can hope to recover it either.) The Anglican reforma-
tion sought institutional continuity within the political frame of the
realm of England, but had then, and even in its most extreme Anglo-

9 Peel supports this conclusion.

34 History of American Congregationalism

Catholic forms has now, no equivalent for sacramental grace. Its liturgies,
disciplines, and instructions sought to foster "a godly, righteous, and
sober life." There were dimensions below this level into which a com-
municant might and did fall, and above it into which he might ascend,
and did; but it was admirably adapted to the felt needs of the English
soul.

There was always an alternative. The condition precedent of a
Church might be a fellowship who had become, as they believed. Chris-
tians through their own considered choice and confession; or else being
already Christians by nurture and baptism, as were Browne's flock,
should accentuate their Christian life by such qualities of devotion and
earnestness as would set them apart both from the Church and the world.
It was impossible, then, of course, for any body of confessed Christians
to set out as if there had been no true Christianity or any right Church
since St. Paul was carried off to Rome. The Separatist was bound to
society by countless and unbreakable ties and was thus from the first
involved in a contradiction between his profession and his estate.
Browne's company brought into their meeting place in Norwich more
of their religious inheritances than they left outside. Nonetheless, they
had ceased to be a "parish" and had become a "congregation. "^•> (This
distinction will reappear in the American Unitarian Departure.)

In the second place it was a definitely organized congregation in
accordance with clearly expressed principles: the principles of covenant,"
agreement, and mutual consent. "So a covenant was made and their
mutual consent was given to hold together." The covenant idea was not
new. Anabaptists had used it. Given such situations as those in which
helpless groups found themselves, some sort of covenant was almost

10 If the distinctions between those two famihar and now somewhat interchangeable
words were traced to their historic sources and analyzed as to their two "ideologies,"
they would illuminate the whole controversy between the continuing and the gathered.

11 The New England churches made the "covenant" specifically the basis of their
existence. The collection of "visible saints," said Richard Mather, is the "matter" of a
church: the covenant which unites or knits the saints into one visible body is the
"form." "Some union or band there must be amongst these whereby they come to
stand in a new relation to God, and one towards another, other than they were before;
or else they are not yet a church, though they be fit materialls for a church, even as
soul and body are not a man, unless they be united; nor stones and timber an house,
till they be compacted and conjoyned." Mather further defined the covenant quite
precisely: "a solemne and publick promise before the Lord, whereby a company of
Christians, called by the power and mercy of God to fellowship with Christ, and His
providence to live together, ... do in confidence of His gracious acceptance in Christ,
binde themselves to the Lord, and one to another, to walke together by the assistance
of His spirit, in all such ways of holy worship in Him, and of edification one towards
another, as the Gospel of Christ requireth of every Christian Church and the members
thereof." This is essentially very lovely, true and adequate. Quoted in The New Eng-
land Mind, pp. 435-438, Perry Miller, an exhaustive, rather tough-fibred, indispensable
study of the backgrounds of all New England thinking, writing, and preaching in the
Seventeenth Century.

First A dventures in English Congregationalism 35

automatic, either expressed or implied. They must "hould" together.
The Norwich covenant is included in the sections of Browne's "True
and Short Declaration" which describes the organization of his congre-
gation, not as an official document but as an almost artless narration
of what and how they did. Like so many old and artless narratives, it
achieves a very perfect art. Dexter believes the covenant proper to have
been incorporated in the first three sentences of Browne's narrative.

The basis of the covenant was Scriptural, as they understood the
Scriptures. "There were certain chief points [spelling modernized]
proved into them by Scriptures, all which being particularly rehearsed
into them, with exhortation, they agreed upon them . . . saying to this
we give our consent."

"First, therefore, they gave their consent, to join themselves unto the
Lord, in one covenant and fellowship together and to keep and seek
agreement under his laws and government; and therefore utterly flee
and avoide such-like disorders and wickedness as were mentioned before."

"Further they agreed of those which should teach them and watch
for the salvation of their souls, whom they allowed and did choose as
able and mete for that charge. For they had sufficient trial and testimony
thereof by that which they heard and saw by them, and had received
of others. So they prayed for their watchfulness and diligence, and
promised their obedience."

"Likewise an order was agreed on for their meetings, prayer, thanks-
giving, reading of the Scriptures, exhortation and edifying by all men
which had the gift or by those which had a special charge therefor,
and for the carefulness of putting forth questions, to learn the
truth. . . ."^^ A long paragraph on discipline and good conduct follows
and what would now be the by-laws of such a Church. There is a signifi-
cant sentence on "seeking to other Churches to have their help." "Thus,"
Browne concludes, "all things were handled, set in order, and agreed on
to the comfort of all, and so the matter wrought and prospered by the
good hand of God." Certain words, later to become familiar, are wanting.
There were no pastors, teachers, elders and deacons; only "teachers,
guards and releavers.""

Browneists' Tribulations

The last sentence of Browne's was prematurely optimistic. Since
Browne was vehement against bishops, they reported him "to have

izBurrage, The Early English Dissenters in the Light of Recent Research, p. 98.
13 What a "releaver" (reliever) might be, the account does not say. He would still
be useful in most churches.

36 History of A merican Congregationalism

greatly troubled the whole country and brought many to great dis-
obedience of all laws and magistrates." Browne himself was at least
twice imprisoned and the congregation so harried that in 1582 they re-
moved to Holland (Middelburg in Zeeland) where the magistrates
granted them freedom of faith and worship." There was already an
English Church in Middelburg (Cartwright's). Historians unfavorable
to Browne maintain that Browne, Harrison, and their company joined
that congiegation and then withdrew. Dexter finds no evidence for that.
The fortunes of that self-exiled little company remain obscure. There was
only loneliness for them abroad, persecution at home. They seem never
to have been numerous (thirty or forty persons), and they found agree-
ment difficult. Also Mrs. Browne enters into the rather sad, drab picture.
Browne apparently held that under certain conditions "the covenant
between husband and wife might be dissolved."

Browne's own two years in Middelburg were his book-writing period.
The books were sent "in sheets" to England, there bound and circulated.
The authorities found them incendiary documents, two men were hanged
for dispersing them, and the Queen issued a proclamation against them,
naming specifically "Robert Browne and Richard Harrison." The pro-
clamation was long and verbose, but pointed for all that. Having any-
thing at all to do with Browne's books was sedition and so punishable.^^

In 1584 Browne went to Scotland to reform the Scotch Kirk. This we
take to have been his most valiant folly. That Kirk had no mind to be
reformed nor to be told that "the whole discipline of Scotland was
amisse." He travelled Scotland extensively and concluded from his own
observations that there was more wickedness in the best of Scotland
than the worst of England, which should have won him Samuel John-
son's approval. He went back to England, to contentions and imprison-
ments, and finally to conform to the doctrine of the Church of England,
and through Burleigh's influence to be received again into the ministry.
Thereafter for forty years he was the rector of a little rural parish. His
conformation could not have exorcised the revolution in his restless soul,
for he died in Northampton jail. He had been in jail so much that he
might have thought a prison his true home.

For a long time after his death he was a storm center of controversy.
Later Separatists, as we have seen, protested against being called "Browne-

14 There was then a large Dutch population in Norwich. They had been brought
over to revive a decayed weaving industry. They had a church of their own, under
Elizabeth's protection. This has led many authorities to conclude that Browne began
by preaching to the Dutch, who had Anabaptist leanings, and so leavened his own
countrymen. Dexter thinks this at least exaggerated.

15 Browne's third book, A Book which Shewth, develops his idea of church polity.
Burrage thinks it was his idea of an ideal polity for England, along completely demo-
cratic lines, magistrates included. No wonder they did not like it.

First A dventures in English Congregationalism 37

ists." Bradford defended Plymouth men against such a charge. An
Anglican said that he left to the Church of England the ample legacy
of his shame. Dexter thinks him to have been broken in mind as well
as body, living in that strange borderland between far-sighted wisdom
and immediate folly in which creative dissenters have so often lived.
At the same time there was in his extravagant, controversial, over-
written writing and preaching, insights, contentions and convictions
which the future would purge, continue, and even adopt. It is impossible
to trace the channels through which what he released reached a more
ordered issue, but his spirit marched on.^^

V
The Martin Mar-prelate Affair

Satire is a very old weapon and supposedly effective. It is at least
eminently satisfactory to the satirist, though there have always been two
edges to it. It usually attends an order already for one reason or another
fallen into some kind of decay; and when it seems to have given the
coup de grace to classes or institutions, it is usually because they have
been otherwise weakened. But literature would have been less bright
without it, and contemplating its employment against what one already
dislikes is one of the respectably reprehensible pleasures of life. The
priest and the prelate in all religions have been since most primitive
times, vulnerable to satire. The reasons therefore belong to the psychol-
ogists and moralists; the results belong to the historian. English litera-
ture had for long been thus brightened. Chaucer had a genial gift along
these lines and there had been Piers Plowman for whom

"The frere with his phisike, this folk hath enchanged
And plastered them so easily, they dread no synn."

Earlier anti-Church satire had been discreetly done in Latin— a
scholar's game. Erasmus had published his 'Traise of Folly" about the
same time as his "Edition of the New Testament." It is difficult to say
which publication was the more popular or strategic.^^ Erasmus' tech-
nique was sure to be borrowed by men with less scholarship and far less
wit and used against English prelates. For the purposes of this study,
the "Martin Mar-prelate" little, black-letter brochures are the most im-
portant. They were in the main an answer to one John Bridges, Dean

isBurrage is kinder to Browne than Dexter who, he thinks, shared (say) Bradford's
feeling and later Congregational prejudice against Browne as not being on the whole
an ancestor one would boast of. At his best he was a literary and religious leader not
unworthy of a place beside Hooker and Cartwright.

17 See for example the Dialogue between Julius II, a familiar spirit, and St. Peter.
Life and Letters of Erasmus, James Anthony Froude, p. 149. Erasmus' authorship of
it is not established. He denied it mockingly. The general opinion was: "Either Eras-
mus or the Devil."

38 History of American Congregationalism

of Sarum, who had published 1400 pages in "Defence of the Government
Established in the Church of England for Ecclesiastical Matters," with
a half page of verbose and curiously capitalized subtitles. These old au-
thors wanted their readers to know definitely what their books were
about.^*

Fourteen hundred highly controversial pages present a long and vul-
nerable front, and Martin found his openings, presented his compliments
to the Dean of Sarum, and proceeded to irritate him as with porcupine
quills (the simile is Dexter's). The cause of sincerity, he affirmed, was
wonderfully graced by John's writing against it. "For I have heard some
say," (spelling modernized) "that whosoever will read his book shall
as evidently see the goodness of the cause of reformation and the poor,
poor nakedness of your government, as almost in reading all Master
Cartwright's books." Martin sadly lacks reverence for the hierarchy. The
Archbishop of Canterbury is "paltripolitan" and "his gracelessness"
John of London has "a notable brazen face." Brother Bridges was very
likely hatched in a "goose nest." The devil, he thinks, is not better prac-
ticed in bowling and swearing than the Bishop of London.

There are anecdotes of no credit to the clergy and plainspeaking
of their faults, and so on and on. It is dull reading now; anything but
dull then. The humor is no coarser than contemporary Elizabethan
humor, and seemed to suit the time. Oxford and Cambridge students
read the tracts. One was shown to Queen Elizabeth, who may have en-
joyed it, for Her Majesty could use much the same language if she were
moved to it. Altogether there were seven little books. They called out
answers in Latin and bad verse. There was never such a tempest in a
tea pot. Not a tea pot either, for there was in the Tracts the challenge
of another ecclesiastic order, carefully considered and searching judg-
ments of the Church and churchmen hard to confute. The realm was
disturbed and all its agents mobilized to hunt down the writer and
printer.

The poor presses and the types were moved from place to place; if
one set was destroyed another was hidden somewhere to be used. The
authorities were baffled and the question of authorship still plagues the
historians. Dexter thinks two men managed it all: John Penry, printer
and publisher, and "Martin" himself. It was generally believed that
Penry was also the author, though it was never proved definitely against
him. Dexter argues at length that Barrowe was the author (Dale does not)
and that the two— Penry and Barrowe— took the close secret to heaven
with them within sixty days of each other in 1593. "Small wonder,"
Dexter adds, "that it has been well kept since."
18 Sixteenth Century equivalent of the pubhsheis' "blurb."

First A dventures in English Congregationalism 39

The First Separatist Martyrs

The bearing of the Martin Mar-prelate brochures (which have
evoked a most considerable literature) upon Congregational history is,
first, to illustrate the bitterly controversial temper into which Christians
had then fallen, and, second, to demonstrate tragically the then helpless
estate of humble folk who met in little scattered groups always in
peril of their lives and watered the future with the blood of their
martyrs. For through a course of events directly related to the Tracts,
Greenwood, Barrowe, and Penry (or Ap-Henry) are chronicled as the
first Congregational martyrs. That designation is probably too precise.
They were Separatists, militant against the Establishment and seekers
of another way. They would, for all that, have found it difficult to say
themselves for what they died, save that the authorities did not know
what else to do with them but to hang them. Neither did the authorities
ever make clear to themselves or their victims what case they had against
them.

Greenwood and Barrowe were more conspicuous in the whole affair
than Penry. John Greenwood matriculated in Corpus Christi, Cam-
bridge, where Browne and Harrison had been in 1577-8. He was in due
course ordained deacon and priest. He had no peace of conscience in
Episcopal orders, withdrew from the Establishment, and was arrested
in 1586 while holding a "private conventicle" and sent to Clink Prison.
There was little then to choose between being publicly executed and
dying in prison, except that hanging was kinder. The prisons were too
foul for words and their dark and verminous dungeons enforced a living
death upon those who finally died and were obscurely buried and for-
gotten.^^

In Clink,2° of a November (1586) morning whose probable gloom
must have deepened the darkness of Greenwood's dungeon, Greenwood
was visited by Henry Barrowe whom His Grace the Archbishop had been
seeking to apprehend. The occasion was too convenient. Barrow was
taken by the keeper of the prison and shipped by boat the same after-
noon to Lambeth. Barrowe was ten years older than Greenwood, well
bom and a barrister. He had led a disorderly life, but passing a church
one day with a friend he was halted by a sermon loud enough to be

19 A footnote of Dexter 's records the fate of twenty-five "falsely called Browneists";
Robert Aweburne died in Newgate; Scipio Bellot died in Newgate; Robert Bowie died
in Newgate; Margaret Farrar discharged from Newgate sick unto death, dying in a
day or two— and so on and on— "died in Newgate," "died in Newgate," till the list is
finished.

20 That name seems to have persisted and became a convenient general name for a
night's lodging for (say) driving through a red light.

40 History of American Congregationalism

heard in the street. He went in and there was wrought in him such a
reformation of life that the libertine became a Puritan of the strictest
sort, and the barrister turned to theology. The suddenness of his con-
version explains its radical completeness.

He was attracted to Greenwood, and together they agreed upon the
need of a complete reorganization of the Church and its afiEairs. They
may have been influenced by Browne, whose books had for four years
been accessible in England, Barrowe protested to no purpose the illegality
of his arrest. (The Anglican authorities show very badly in the long
procedure against him.) The examinations and his replies range along
the whole front of embattled religious conceptions and church systems.
He was virtually asked to incriminate himself, and the clarity of his
legally trained mind in his answers gave to the records a revealing
precision. The questions of right and truths are incidental. Barrowe stood
for something the Anglican prelates meant to break and they had the
power. The structural qualities of two positions can be seen through
all the verbosities.^^ There was no reconciling them. Between Barrowe
and his prosecutors a great gulf was fixed.

The prosecutors did not find it easy to make a case which would
satisfy the forms of the law. The processes against Greenwood were
associated with the processes against Barrowe, and the pitiful affair
dragged on for six years. Their condemnation was predetermined. The
ropes were finally "tyed" around their necks and they were in the act
of praying for the Queen when they were for the last time reprieved.
There had been a supplication to the Lord Treasurer that "in a land
where no Papist was put to death for religion, theirs should not be the
first blood shed, who concurred about faith with what was professed in
the country. . . ."

Nothing was gained but six days. They were hanged of an April
morning by the contrivance of the Prelates "as early and secretly as
well they could in such a case." (Their friends believed the Queen did
not know of it.) "Two aged widows were permitted to carry their wind-
ing sheets to the gallows. "^^ The case against Penry was still more diffi-
cult to establish, but they got him hanged also. None of these men
denied their faith or proved unchristian in their death.

Meanwhile, for the safety of the realm and the convenience of the
Lords Spiritual and Temporal, "An Act To Retain the Queen's Subjects
in Obedience" (act Eliz. 35 CI) was passed. In the verbose substance of
it any person or persons over sixteen years old, who refused for a month

21 If one would dissect out the essentials on either side— a weary task— one would have
a clear understanding of the radical religious mind of the period.
22 Dexter, Congregationalism as Seen in Its Literature, p. 245.

First Adventures in English Congregationalism 41

to attend Divine Service as established by Her Majesty's Laws, or in-
fluenced others in any way so to do, or denied Her Majesty's power in
causes ecclesiastical and so on and on, being lawfully convicted, should
be committed to prison, without bail, until they conformed. If convicted
offenders did conform within three months, they should abjure the realm
(get out of England)! If they refused to flee— or having fled should return
—they should die as "Deemed" felons without benefit of clergy.^^ (Eliz.
35CII).

There was a terrible finality in this act. It made any kind of non-
conformity almost fatally dangerous and group meetings impossible.
It left the little questing congregations no choice. They must conform
or flee; so two congregations, one of them destined to become historic,
fled to Holland.

23Arber, The Story of the Pilgrim Fathers. Introduction. This is an invaluable col-
lection of original documents to which this history, for a chapter or so, is deeply in
debt.

Note— This chapter has been written and in parts rewritten as the writer has sought
new authorities, precised his facts, and corrected conclusions. There are necessary
qualifications to any conclusions in the general field here covered. It is extremely dif-
ficult to nominate the first Congregational church by later tests of the polity. It was
to begin with and has since continued an always developing and changing order.
Robert Browne's church seems to meet more of the tests for the honor of Congrega-
tional primacy than any other candidate. We shall see in later chapters that it is ex-
tremely difficult to date the first user of "Congregational" and "Congregationalism"
as now understood.

If any reader should desire to explore the backgrounds of these and later chapters
there are three rather massive works of outstanding value. The first is Tudor Puri-
tanism, A Chapter in the History of Idealism by M. M. Knappen. The second. The
New England Mind: The Seventeenth Century, by Perry Miller. The third, The Rise
of Puritanism, William Haller. To these for brilliant interpretation might be added
the second volume of Henry Osborn Taylor's Thought and Expression in the Sixteenth
Century. These books are treasure houses for the understanding of the deep rooting of
an order now (1942) embattled.

CHAPTER IV

Sifted Seed Corn

THE congregations already considered by no means complete the
lists of Non-Conformists, Seekers, and Separatists in England.
East Anglia and London nurtured most of them, but they pene-
trated England, "sparsed of their companies into several parts of the
realm, and namely into the West, almost to the uttermost borders
thereof."* These congregations were widely separated. They broke out
sporadically, were broken up, appeared again, had a power to outstay
relentless persecution. They must, therefore, have had a tenacious root-
ing in one racial characteristic of the English people. Any movement
so tenacious, so spontaneous, so epidemic, and for all its petty variations,
so definitely patterned, cannot be dismissed, as Anglican historians and
others dismiss it, as an irritating species of contrary-mindedness, fanatical
about the inconsequential, sadly unappreciative of the blessings of
bishops and the established order.

The only possible conclusion is that the Anglican Church was not,
and never has been, a completely national Church. There was something
in England it could not and would not contain. The Wesleys were to
prove that in another way 200 years later. Henry Osborn Taylor in his
admirable study of Sixteenth Century thought and expression concludes
that the "Middle Way" of the Anglican Reformation was "the only path
religion could have trod." England could not be Puritan. Otherwise it
would have gone against the very giain of the "vigorous love of life, the
expansion of its daring, the vaunt and happiness of its poetry, and withal
to its love of seemly form and fitting social conventions," ^ which were the
very essence of Elizabethan England.

All that is true enough, though finally the best of Puritanism— English
Puritanism— would temper the spirit of England and give it a splendid
and militant force. Still less was Presbyterianism native to the English
spirit. But Independency was and is native to the English spirit, and to a
degree the secular English historian has been far more ready to recognize
and glory in than the religious historian. It was and is an expression of
the English love of liberty which the poets have sung and the orator

iBurrage (The Early English Dissenters in the Light of Recent Research, p. 185),
traces these obscure congregations with an investigator's patience and a scholar's docu-
mentation.

2 Taylor, Thought and Expression in the Sixteenth Century, vol. 1.

Sifted Seed Corn 43

praised, and to which in her seasons of extremity those whose stupidity,
bishops included, has more than once imperiled British liberty, have ap-
pealed—and never in vain— to save them. An instinct for free group-man-
agement of their own affairs by those whom those same affairs most in-
timately concerned is as old as the Saxon occupation of English soil.

The Difficult Estate of English Non-Conformity

Naturally it would seek to express and realize itself in their religious
life. These experimental religious groups appearing and disappearing,
stamped out and down and presently in evidence again, had deep-down,
interlacing and far-reaching roots, unconquerably vital. In some ways
the treatment of English religious Independency by Anglican authority
is one of the most unworthy and arrogant chapters in English history.' For
one thing, it reveals, as all similar repressive movements reveal, the Estab-
lished Church's sheer lack of confidence in its own cause. When a Church
for centuries uses every device in its power to compel people to come to
it and fails, it would better look to its own assumed catholicity. The
whole pressure of English power and advantage has been from the first,
and in subtle ways still is, against the Free Churches.

When these groups ceased to be harried with exile and imprisonment,
they were denied office unless they conformed by taking the sacrament,
the strangest use of it ever devised. The national universities were shut
in their faces, and Matthew Arnold called them Philistines for their lack
of culture. Their worship was ridiculed and their meeting places, when
at last they had them, denied the name of a church. Always social pres-
tige was against them and eager to make their more successful children
conform. And yet, they have persisted, shared with the Establishment
almost half the population of England,^ created their own schools and
colleges, written Milton's Paradise Lost and Browning's Ring and the
Book, sent Bright and his like to Parliament, and furnished England some
of the greatest of her preachers, the wisest of her statesmen and the more
humane and sensitive elements of her national conscience. It is presump-
tions, therefore, for the Anglican churchmen to claim that, save in its
official status, theirs is unqualifiedly the national Church, and a judicious
historian, like Taylor, generalizes too broadly in finding in the Eliza-
bethan settlements a via media entirely representative of the English
temper, religious or otherwise.

3 And it now begins to be paralleled from rather unexpected sources in American
church history writing.

■^A loose statement, though in the peak period of the Free Churches twenty-five years
ago it was probably so. The "Free Churches" of course include the Methodist (several
branches) and the Baptists.

44 History of American Congregationalism

What one really traces through a tangle o£ documents and detail,
which only a specialized scholar can cite and an extremely specialized
historian digest, is the superficial disorder of a great tide charged with
destiny, gradually finding its true channels. It was all bound to be a proc-
ess of trial and error, of costly experimentation. There were excesses,
crudities, and also a long-suffering patience and courage; an anvil-like
power to wear the hammer out. If, as the devout have always believed,
there is a Power beyond ourselves, slowly realizing great purposes and
reaching toward ends which at last reveal the meanings of the process, it
needs a dogmatic astigmatism to deny that Power in action in the emer-
gence of Free Churches.^

The long, costly, and heroic history of English Congregationalism
and the Free Churches does not lie within the scope of this volume,
though we shall see presently how the English and American movements
found each other. A combination of conditions, circumstances, and inner
and outer pressures made American Congregationalism and something
vaster: the Pilgrim adventure and the Pilgrim contribution to religion
and statecraft. The pioneers of the movement held that they were seed
corn, sifted and tested for the harvests of the future, and certainly they
were sifted. Any teller of a great tale has to take care not to read too
much back into beginnings. But the issue we are following needed for
its really creative inception an unusual group. They must be tenacious,
they must have a faculty of coherence, they must have a wise common
sense, and above all they must have capable leaders of a practical genius.
They must have a sense of order, power of adaptation, and unusual
courage. Their enthusiasms must not mislead them, but they must at
the same time be obedient to the vision they believed heavenly. The
choice was finally between two exiled congregations: one in Amsterdam,
the other in Leyden, Holland.

Refuge in Holland

The martyrdom of Greenwood, Barrowe, and Penry troubled the Eng-
lish authorities. After all, a magistrate should have some concern for
justice and a bishop for Christianity. The state, as has been said, could
imprison, banish, or hang sectaries under the Act of Elizabeth 35. chap-
ter 1; or hang them without benefit of clergy under chapter 2. They
were reasonably content, therefore, to let the nonconformists exile them-
selves, though, on the general principle of harrying them as much as
possible, they made even that cruelly difficult. The unusually forward
position of Holland as to religious tolerance has already been noted, and

5 For example, Charles Clayton Morrison in What Is Christianity.

Sifted Seed Corn 45

an ease of movement between the Dutch states and England was facili-
tated by transportation, a working, mutual linguistic understanding and
opportunity for livelihood. (Weaving again.)

Francis Johnson was well born, master of arts and fellow of Christ's
College Cambridge. He had not been preaching long before his Presby-
terian leanings were complained of.^ The want of elders in the Establish-
ment was, he doubted not, the cause of ignorance, atheism, idolatry,
profanation of the Sabbath and, in general, the failure of Anglicans to
live godly, righteous, and sober lives. For this more or less hypothetical
opinion, he was for long imprisoned and then expelled from the uni-
versity. He finally went to Holland and became pastor of English wool
and cloth merchants at two hundred pounds a year, which proves the
prosperity of the merchants. He discovered in a printing shop copies of
a book of Barrow and Greenwood. These he reported to the magistrates
who instructed him to burn them, and he himself fed the flames. But he
kept out two, "that he might see their errors." Instead they converted
him. He gave up his charge, returned to London and inherited, as near
as may be, the leadership of the Greenwood and Barrowe group. Mean-
while members of the group found their way to Amsterdam.

There for four years they were without pastors or teachers and very
poor, "miserably rent, divided, and scattered." Henry Ainsworth joined
them presently and with his aid they published a True Confession of the
Faith, protested their loyalty to Elizabeth and complained of the un-
christian slanders which their adversaries had given out against them.
Those still in London, having pastors and elders, continued and func-
tioned as a Church. They must have found it difficult, because Francis
Johnson and later his brother George were in prison. For Francis there
were mitigations; while still in prison he found opportunity to woo and
wed a well-to-do widow of desirable person and undesirable, so George
thought, pride.

Francis disregarded his brother's advice and "being inveigled and
over-caiTied" with the lady, married her secretly. The marriage irritated
the Archbishop of Canterbury and he put the groom into closer confine-
ment. The lady showed an unscriptural fondness for whale-bone stays,
"golde rings," an "excessive deal of lace" and a preposterous hat, all of
which grieved the saints, led George to unfraternal expressions and prom-
ised no excess of brotherly love in Amsterdam, where about April, 1597,
the brothers and many of their flock after diverse hindrances and some
perils, managed to get themselves. With those who had preceded them,
they became the "^Ancient Church" in Amsterdam.

The Ancient Church did not prosper. The leaders could not or did
6 Dexter, Congregationalism as Seen in Its Literature, chap. 5.

46 History of American Congregationalism

not agree as to polity, the laity were undisciplined, George was jealous
of Francis, Mrs. Francis could not be reformed in her love of dress. On
the contrary, her whale-bones went from bad to worse, though Francis
said his wife paid for her own clothes and had the right to wear them.
Mrs. Johnson was reported to have expressed regret for her marriage, and
so on and on. Evidently this congregation was not the destined seed corn.

Ill

Leaders and Sources of the Pilgrims

Other seed beds were in preparation, this time outside London. All
these groups were of necessity fluid. Any attempt to trace all their half-
hidden filaments is almost hopeless, and there was not, could not have
been, much overt cooperation between them. Travel was difficult, and
they were always under suspicion by the authorities. Yet there must have
been some movement of the faithful from one group or region to another
group or region.'' There is also in a period of great intellectual ferment
a contagion of impulses and ideas as difficult to trace as the course of
wind-borne seeds. But now, having got the Johnsons with their followers
and Mrs. Johnson's whale-bone "busks" unhappily in Amsterdam, Lin-
colnshire in England comes next, and the Pilgrim's Progress of the Rev.
John Smyth. Whether or no "fate sought to conceal him by calling him
Smith" it has made his biography most difficult to write, since the most
careful investigators do not agree as to which John he was, at least to
begin with, for there were three contemporaneous John Smiths, all clergy-
men, two of whom wrote and published upon prayer. It was perhaps to
distinguish him from the others that he changed Smith to Smyth or
Smythe.

Arber identifies him as the John of Christ's College, Cambridge, who
took his M.A. in 1593, and concludes that he was born about 1572, en-
tered the university about 1586 and was forty years old when he died in
1612. So much for dates. He was for two years, then, preacher or lecturer
in Lincoln and a conforming clergyman, though he had earlier been
cited before Cambridge authorities for an Ash- Wednesday sermon, in
which he advocated a disturbingly strict observance of the Sabbath.*
After the fashion of preachers then and since, he published four of his
sermons on "The Bright Morning Star"; later still, a long and imposingly
titled book on prayer. He entitled himself, "John Smith, Minister and
Preacher of the Word of God." John Cotton thought his Lincoln min-
istry exemplary. His later career Cotton chose "rather to tremble at than
discourse of."

7 Their names can be traced through records and legal processes. The lists of names
in the last chapters of St. Paul's letters show similar movements of individuals.
8 Arber, The Story of the Pilgrim Fathers.

Sifted Seed Corn 47

But he was a born "seeker" (Francis Johnson had been his tutor),
and after a period of "doubting" he renounced the Church of England
and became pastor (1606) of a congregation in Gainsborough, which
had covenanted together "as the Lord's free people." Smyth organized
this group on his own lines; only one kind of elder he held to be truly
Scriptural. Two years later this congregation also went to Amsterdam.
Arber thinks the Pilgrim (Scrooby) church migrated about the same
time because, in October 1608, Bishop Hall published a volume of con-
troversial letters, the first of which he addressed to Master Smith and
Master Robinson, ringleaders of the late separation at Amsterdam. The
Scrooby church thus enters the picture for the first time and by way of
Gainsborough, since the Scrooby group met with Smyth's congregation
at Gainsborough for a short time. (Gainsborough is George Eliot's St.
Oggs in the Mill on the Floss.)

Scrooby Manor

What Arber calls the Pilgrim District in England lies in the broad
valley of the lower Trent, a pastoral region still, and in 1600 apparently
so retired, Arber thinks, as to have been inaccessible to religious unrest
coming from without. Scrooby itself lies toward the north of the region.
There was once an Archepiscopal palace of which little remains save the
memory of Cardinal Wolsey. There he sought to escape King Henry's
wrath when he had swum too far in his sea of glory, and remained for a
season (1530), ministering many deeds of charity. The farm house
which Brewster occupied and from which his company set out remains.
The land belonged— perhaps still does— to the Archbishop of York.^

sQueen Elizabeth in 1582 requested by letter Edwin Sandys, then Archbishop of
York, to lease to Her Majesty two manors: Southwell and Scrooby, upon what seemed
to the grieved Archbishop very hard terms. The Queen would pay forty pounds a
year for the manor of Scrooby which had been paying the Archbishop one hundred
seventy pounds a year; also His Grace was compelled by law to keep in repair the two
manor houses. "Whither I resort for my lodgings ... as I come thither for your
Majesty's service. By this lease ... if it should pass: I am excluded out of both."

There follows a careful inventory of the resources, tenantry, timber, privileges and
possible revenues of the manors. The Archbishop concludes that if he should execute
the leases, the See of York would lose 70,000 pounds (multiply now by 5). "Too much.
Most Gracious Sovereign! too much—." Two or three sentences hid under legal verbi-
age are unexpectedly significant. The one thousand tenants of the manors, "poor
copyholders for the most part" (no guarantee of permanence) "had enjoyed great
liberties and customs." All these by this lease may be "racked" (rent raised to the
uttermost) and as the Prophet saith "the skin pulled off their backs." "The cry whereof
would sound in your Majesty's ears to your great discontent." (Italics author's.)

This should not be overpressed, but one does not wonder that poor "copy holders"
likely to be rack-rented by a greedy Queen and spiritually nourished by an Arch-
bishop who could lose 70,000 pounds in the rewriting of two leases, may have felt
doubly that their souls could be less expensively saved and that they might, by the
temporal head of the Church, be more justly ruled. I [Atkins] have seen no examina-
tion of this possibility in the sources, but there is most likely to have been an economic
unrest behind English Separatism as behind Continental Anabaptism.

48 History of American Congregationalism

The Separatist movements we have so far considered were distinctly
urban, mostly London, or else their leaders had disturbed the universi-
ties. Traceable also amongst them is the influence of trade and travel,
especially with Holland. The Scrooby region, on the contrary, was re-
mote, sparsely populated, truly rural, passing slowly from Roman Catholi-
cism to Protestantism.'" The peasantry were illiterate. (Shakespeare's
Nick Bottom, Peter Quince, Tom Snout.) They were far from the out-
side world, the Great North Road only an unfenced horse track. How
could the religious feraient of the time have reached them? (Here the
author follows Arber's documentation.)

In the main Nottinghamshire men founded the Pilgrim Church under
the influence of Richard Clyfton, William Brewster, and, for two years,
Richard Bernard. Bernard stayed in the Establishment, and Clyfton was
pastor of the church at Scrooby from 1606 to 1608, John Robinson being
his assistant. Robinson afterwards reproached Bernard sharply for dis-
solving his covenant. Clyfton, Brewster, and Robinson were Cambridge
University men. Arber's conclusion, therefore, is that these three leavened
the Pilgrim region with Separatism and that without them there would
have been no Pilgrim Fathers.

Bradford confirms this substantially. It was, he wrote, "by the travail
and diligence of some godly and zealous preachers and God's blessing on
their labours . . . in the north parts, many became enlightened by the
Word of God and had their ignorances and sins discovered unto them.
. . ." This has been so far a chronicle of clergymen who had been moved
to protest against and separation from the Established Church of Eng-
land. They were various in temper and capacity. They have left us,
voluminously written, their arguments, controversies and confessions.
There is, besides, a moving record of their imprisonments, banishments,
or executions. They have, in addition, one thing in common: their minds
and speech are Elizabethan; they belong, in spite of all their struggle to
get free from it, to the order which nourished them. Now suddenly a lay-
man emerges of wisdom and force enough to carry through an essentially
great enterprise with limited means and against almost unbelievable diffi-
culties, and a minister whose mind did not belong to Elizabeth and her
time at all. The layman is William Brewster; the minister, John Rob-
inson.

William Brews ier— Post-master

Brewster had been a Cambridge undergraduate, which argues a rea-
sonably well-to-do father and a family love of learning, who became post-

lOArber thinks it likely that of the three men who were in succession postmasters at
Scrooby, the grandfather was a Catholic, the father a Protestant, the grandson a Sepa-
ratist. Other authorities do not accept Arber's estimate of the Scrooby region. They
think it to have been relatively well populated with an intelligent folk.

Sifted Seed Corn 49

master at Scrooby upon his father's death. That was a position whose
importance then is not indicated by rural postmasterships now. It was
actually a position demanding marked executive ability and substantial
capital. '^ The office must have been unexpectedly lucrative. No wonder
Stanhope wanted it for his cousin. One takes it also that in 1590
Brewster was in good standing with the authorities.

Brewster, not yet an elder, would have been then the first lay "pillar"
of a Congregational church of whom we have record. ^^ Of Brewster's
conversion to non-conformity there seems no record. "He did much
good in the country where he lived," Bradford wrote, "in promoting
and furthering religion." He practiced what he professed, encouraged
others to his example, procured good preachers, and bore most of the
charges. (A most admirable "pillar"!) For three or four years the general
fellowship met (as has been said) at Gainsborough. But the distance
was long for Brewster's neighbors; they could not conceal their comings
and goings— always at peril. They therefore formed a separate church
with Clyfton for pastor, Robinson for leader, and Brewster for elder.
(So Dale, but Brewster became elder only later in Leyden.) If Brewster
was the executive force in the Scrooby church, John Robinson went far
toward shaping all its subsequent history and much other history besides.

iiArber's chapter 6 is as fascinating as it is illuminating. There is, to begin with,
a letter from John Stanhope, Master of the Posts (1590) to William Davison, some-
time a secretary of State to Queen Elizabeth. When "Old Brewster died," Stanhope
had apparently promised to use his influence to have his own cousin appointed, on
the ground that "Young Brewster" had not used the office during his father's lifetime
and had besides been too independent about the whole affair, never went to see Stan-
hope, "made his way according to his own liking," (apparently always William Brews-
ter's way), and so on. To this Davison replied that Brewster had administered the post,
by record, before his father's death and had been postmaster himself about a year
and a half. (Since this correspondence is dated 1590, "Olde Brewster" must have died
early in 1589.)

Next: There was her Majesty's accounting with the Post of Scrooby. Beginning
April 1, 1590, William Brewster's "ordinary wages" ran about thirty pounds a year
(multiply now by 5). Brewster's wage ceased the last of September, 1607. (Therefore
the Pilgrims could not have started to leave England before late autumn, 1607.)

Next: A list of the posts between London and Berwick-upon-Tweed. (One of the
four "post roads" in England.) Twenty-nine stations across 3371/2 miles. (Scrooby almost
halfway— 152 miles north of London.)

Finally, the orders of Her Majesty's Privy Council for the posts between London
and Scotland (with additional instructions from Stanhope.) Each postmaster must
have in his stable (for Her Majesty's service) three good horses, with saddles and fur-
nishings, three stout leather bags, three horns to blow by the way. Only fifteen minutes
will be allowed for change of horses, etc. Each post must have in addition four good
horses, and two horns for contingencies or commissions. The posts shall ride, from
March to September, seven miles an hour (London to Berwick forty-two hours). In
winter five miles an hour (sixty hours each way). In such a way Her Majesty expedited
her mails and documents, through every weather and some peril. Finally the post-
master has general control of the traffic. He would forward unofficial travelers and
perhaps lodge them. He would have (beside his wage) from one-and-a-half pence to
two pence per mile for the use of his horses and gear.

i^Dale (History of English Congregationalism, p. 195), says that Brewster had been
private secretary to Davison, "who esteemed him as a son." There is no mention of
this in Davison's reply to Stanhope but it may explain Davison's attitude.

50 History oj American Congregationalism

John Robinson

Robinson matriculated at Corpus Christi, Cambridge, a nursery of
Independents and Puritans, in 1592, at about seventeen years of age.
The Elizabethan Age was then at its peak, a summit in English history,
luminous with fadeless lights or else a sky studded with stars. The uni-
versities would have acknowledged and reflected all this. There were
then in Cambridge about three thousand collegians. Corpus Christi had
one master, twelve fellows, fourteen scholars and one hundred and
thirteen students. There seems to have been a severe discipline, a long
listening to prayers, exercises in Latin, Greek, Hebrew, logic, public dis-
putations, beer and beef and a possible "birching" for attending a bear-
baiting or a cock fight. But in Robinson's time these regulations were
relaxed. There were Puritan irregularities in worship. ^^

Robinson seems to have been at Cambridge for seven years and to
have won a fellowship. His studies were controlled by Elizabethan
statutes: Rhetoric, Logic, Philosophy, for a Bachelor of Arts degree;
Philosophy, Astronomy, Perspective, Greek, and Divinity for a Master-
ship in Arts. Any graduate entitled to a Master's hood would have a
sound grounding in the classics, Hebrew, and such philosophy as was
then recognized. Also he would be a logical disputant though withal
somewhat dry. The time and the place lent themselves to religious con-
troversy. The consciences of the Puritans were uneasy over bishops and
prayer books. A newly appointed Lady Margaret Professor of Divinity

13 Dexter thus fills the gaps, which a then rather scanty knowledge of Robinson's
early life occasioned, with an extended and possibly idealized account of undergradu-
ate life at Corpus Christi, Cambridge in 1592. Burgess' John Robinson, undertakes
with new documentation to fill Dexter's gaps with more pertinent facts than 'trundle
beds.' The result is a work of about 400 pages, but the net gain in added significant
knowledge (of Robinson's youth) is not especially pertinent.

He was a Robinson of Sturton— son to John Senior, and grandson to Christopher. The
Robinsons seem to have stood well with their neighbors, the Essex gentry, to the ex-
tent of witnessing a will or even executing it. Their own wills show them a careful
and thrifty stock who did not mean that a "lyninge sheet" or a "silver spoone" should
be left unbequeathed. Also they remembered the poor and commended their own souls
to God and their bodies to the earth. As in most family trees of comparable men their
women-folk command respect.

John Jr., Burgess thinks, was born about 1576, one of four children. Nothing is known
of his boyhood, save that at some school or other he gave enough promise to continue
his education at Cambridge, which his father could then afford. Burgess then gives
Dexter's description of undergraduate life at Corpus Christi with slightly more detail
and so eventually gets John, Fellow of Corpus Christi, to Norwich. In a prematurely
placed chapter Burgess deals with the White (or Whyte) family, one of whose young
women, Bridget, Robinson married, and for whom possibly he gave up his Fello\\'ship.
She made him a good wife; she connected him with the Carvers. Some of the \Vhite
family money bought the famous house in Leyden which housed not only John and
Bridget but the Pilgrim Church.

For the rest Burgess' book goes into details not too useful here.

Sifted Seed Corn 5 1

seems to have doubted predestination. There would have been no dearth
of argumentation for Robinson to hear and share. He was a good enough
scholar to be elected Fellow after a rigid examination (one of twelve
of his college).

This has always been a most desirable academic honor, carrying with
it dignities, emoluments, good dining, and a secure and sheltered station
in which a Fellow may grow old and, if he pleases, picturesquely peculiar
and sterilely learned. There seems to have been no condition against
tenure till death, save getting married.'^ Robinson might have lived and
died in lovely Cambridge, untroubled and forgotten.

A Fellow could serve a parish and hold his Fellowship. Robinson
took orders in the Anglican Church, went north and took a cure of
souls near or in Norwich. But he felt the cure of his own soul uncertain
and not to be accomplished in the Established Church. He inclined more
and more toward the principles of Separatism. Now "Separatism" was
then and still is an elastic word, ranging from inner withdrawal to
bitter, militant antagonisms. Robinson began gently. Suspended but not
excommunicated, he sought permission to preach in a "leased chapel"
or to be master of the hospital at Norwich. ^^ These were refused him.
They could hardly have been more than way stations in his Pilgrim's
Progress. He was under an inner compulsion "as a burning fyre shut up
in my bones." It is not easy to explain a "burning fyre" in cold words.

And this Robinson never quite succeeded in doing, nor any of his
fellowseekers. When he sought to justify his separation from the Church
of England (1610) a single sentence in which he examines his own state
of mind and soul runs to nearly three hundred words, wanting in order
and clarity. Dexter is naturally a sympathetic interpreter. Robinson, he
thinks, loved the Church into which he was born and baptized, left it
reluctantly, and only when he gave up hope of its becoming a true New
Testament Church, as he understood the New Testament. There was
no hope of that under James and his bishops. He knew in some way of
the Gainsborough group and determined to join it, resigned his Fellow-
ship, and presented himself at Gainsborough (1604). When a little later
it seemed wise for the group to divide into two bodies for safety and a
company under Smyth went to Amsterdam there to "bury themselves and

14 Newman, who had a genius for dramatizing himself, made an epic of his gaining
a Fellowship, and had no desire at the time save to live and die in it.

15 This seems to indicate a desire to continue religious work (he was still a Fellow
with its stipend) quietly and semi-independently. He would have been a kind of
chaplain in the hospital, or else a preacher in his own hired church. Bishop Hall said
(1610) and acidly, that he did not doubt to say that if Robinson had been granted
either the "Hospitall or a lease from thaC Citie," "this Separation from the Communion,
Government, and worshippe of the Church of England would not have been made by
John Robinson," which is pure and unlikely conjecture.

52 History of American Congregationalism

their names," Robinson went with the Scrooby group. They had peace
of spirit in the old manor house, but no safety. So they resolved to go to
the Low Countries where, they had heard, was "freedome of Religion
for all men."

VII

From Scrooby to Leyden

That was more easily proposed than done. Bradford's narration of
their fortunes and misfortunes is an epic in miniature. They were to
begin with an humble farming folk, not acquainted with trades nor
traffic and used to a plain, country life. They must, in a country they
knew naught of, learn a new language and make a living they knew not
how. They had heard also that Holland was a dear place and subject to
the miseries of war. Many thought it an adventure almost "desperate."
"But these things did not dismay them . . . they rested on [God's]
Providence: and knew whom they had believed." The English authori-
ties, having given them no choice but conformity, exile or death, would
not suffer them to go. "Ports and harbors were shut against them." The
mariners whom they paid to take them, charged them exorbitantly and
betrayed them to searchers and officers, who plundered them to their
shirts. They were imprisoned in Old Boston, families were separated,
women left behind without a "cloth to shift them." One boat encoun-
tered such a storm as St. Paul suffered and was driven almost to Noi^way.
But, says Bradford, they reached their desired haven. The troubles of
those left behind made their cause famous for courage and constancy.
All got over at length, some in one place, some in another, and they met
together again, according to their desires and with no small rejoicing.^^

Robinson and Brewster were the last to get over. Everything was so
different "as it seemed they were come into a new world," though the
poverty they faced belonged then as since to the immigrants' world.
They were not at home in Amsterdam nor in the "Ancient Church,"
torn by scandal and opposing counsels. Therefore, in 1609, by the records
of Leyden, "with due submission and respect: Jan Robarthse Qohn Rob-
inson), minister of the Divine Word, and some of the Members of the
Christian Reformed Religion, born in the Kingdom of Great Britain,
to the number of one hundred persons or thereabouts, men and women,
represent they are desirous of coming to live in this city by the first of
May next (1609): and to have the freedom thereof in carrying on their
trades, without being a burden in the least to anyone."

iBArber (The Story of the Pilgrim Fathers, p. 93), precises all this with geographi-
cal detail. Any comment on the courage of this little group is an impertinence. Com-
fortable theologians and churchmen who have not better names for all this than
"schism" and "unimaginative biblicism" make themselves verbosely ridiculous. St.
Paul would have understood them better in A.D. 60.

Sifted Seed Corn 53

In response the Court of the City of Leyden declared: "that they
refuse no honest persons free ingress to come and have their residence
in this city; provided that such persons behave themselves and submit to
the laws and ordinances: and therefore the coming of the Memorialists
will be agreeable and welcome" which against the background of King
James of England must have convinced them that they were in a "New
World"; also Leyden in the cleanness and breadth of its streets, its
Lindens and canals, the charm and elegance of its buildings— all as
compared with London would have confirmed that conviction.

Thereafter they had twelve reasonably peaceful years "enjoying
much sweet and delightful society and spiritual comfort together." Their
numbers grew from England. They were adaptable, thrifty, laborious.
They learned weaving or else they were hat makers, twine spinners,
masons, carpenters, cabinet makers, tailors, brewers and bakers, even
tobacco pipe makers." They married, as the registries in Leyden Stadhuis
record with detail of dates, witnesses, and their estate in pleasant detail.
Familiar names appear: White, Carpenier, Fuller. Some of them even
matriculated in Leyden University.

Nothing anywhere, say from 1609 to 1620, could have been so peace-
ful as Bradford twenty years after remembered the Christian Fellowship
of Master Robinson's Church to have been. But as far as in them lay
they did live at peace with all men. If they could not, they purged the
church of the incurable and incorrigible "when no other means would
serve; which seldom came to pass." (The discreetest of sentences.) There
were at this time daily and hot disputes in the university, apparently
between two members of the theological faculty. ^^ Naturally Robinson
could not stay away and being himself well grounded in the controversy,
began to be "terrible to the Arminians" and finally put the Arminian
professor, so Bradford held, to inglorious rout in a public disputation.
(The opinion of said professor not on record.) Also in May, 1611,
Robinson, his brother-in-law Tickens (a looking-glass maker), and two
others bought a house of which transaction there is a detailed record in
the Leyden equivalent of the Registry of Deeds, price about fourteen
hundred English pounds; three hundred fifty pounds down and eighty-
seven pounds, ten shillings annually thereafter "to the last penny."
"And all this in good faith and without fraud."

i^Dexter, Congregationalism as See7i in Its Literature, p. 386. An admirable training
for living in a really new world.

18 Calvinism vs. Arminianism. A classic controversy involving the Grace of God,
human freedom, sin, etc., to be continued later in New England.

54 History of American Congregationalism

VIII

The Leyden Church become Pilgrims

For all that they were still exiles of poor estate and English. Leyden
could not be final. There is pathos and a little humor in Bradford's
analysis of the motives which led Robinson and Brewster to consider
another migration: that Holland was a hard country to live in; that
many, having spent their estate, were forced to return to England; that
it was "grevious to live from under the protection of the State of Eng-
land"—a strangely proud, pathetic, homesick reason. The only protec-
tion England had ever given them was the Clink, or Newgate or the
shadow of the hangman's noose. Also they were likely to lose the name
and language of Englishmen and very unlikely ever to influence the
Dutch to keep the Sabbath properly, nor could they properly educate
their own children.

Then follows a statesmanlike paragiaph too long to quote, impos-
sible to condense. In substance, if God would discover a place for
them, "though in America," and the King and state permit them, they
would there demonstrate the blessings of liberty, enlarge the dominions
of the state and the Church and therefore the more "glorify God, do more
good to our country,!^ better provide for our posterity . . . than ever in
Holland." So much Governor Winslow wrote in 1646. Bradford says the
same things, perhaps more intimately. They were getting old and tired.
Leyden was not a good place for their children, who were becoming
soldiers or sailors. There was also, though not mentioned, the unhappy
example of the Ancient Church in Amsterdam. In Holland they would
be lost. In some remote part of the world, they might become at least
stepping stones for others to use to propagate and advance the "Kingdom
of Christ."

There is behind and through this loose account of the twelve Leyden
years an amount of detail, impossible to reduce to the scale of this
volume. Three lines deserve a much more extended attention. First, the
development of Robinson's views and convictions. Burrage, pp. 290 ff,
thinks Henry Jacob to have strongly influenced Robinson in Leyden.
He defines Jacob "as a Congregational, Non-Separatist Puritan." 2° He
believed that within the framework of the Church of England each
congregation was sufficient to manage its own affairs, without help from
Archbishops and Bishops, apparently on a "covenant" basis. Jacob and

19 Which is, perhaps, why "There'll always be an England."

2ojacob gathered a church of his own. It later followed the Pilgrims, almost as a
body, to New England, settled in Scitiiate where part of it has maintained an unbroken
existence (now Unitarian). Anothei' part now in Barnstable claims to be the original
Jacob church.

Sifted Seed Corn 55

others were in Leyden (1610-1616) and modified Robinson's rigid
Separatist attitude. Robinson ceased to be a "Close-Communionist"— if
he ever had been one.

He received into his congregation members of the Church of England
"without any renunciation of the Church of England, without any re-
pentance for their idolatries" which pained the more strict. Not long
before his death, Robinson stated his own attitude toward the Anglican
Church in sympathetic but discriminating terms. He esteemed many in
that Church, he said, as true partakers of the faith and fellow members
of "that one mistical body of Christ scattered far and wide through
the world." And that he had always, in spirit and affection, Christian
fellowship and communion with them. But he could not, he stated,
submit unto their church order and ordinances without being con-
demned of his own heart. In all this, and much else, Robinson was
about two hundred years ahead of his time. He did give to the Leyden
group a leaven of true catholicity which Congregationalism has con-
served and exercised to a degree far beyond later, and now contem-
poraneous, groups which specialize in Church Unity.

A second line deserving attention is the publishing activity of Brewer
and Brewster, who founded the first "Pilgrim Press." They published
nothing but Pilgrim books, and their press was suppressed for it. The
Pilgrim publications pained King James, a sensitive monarch. He moved
Whitehall to action. Sir Dudley Carleton (apparently Ambassador at
the Hague) was instructed to trace their authorship and ask the States
General to apprehend him "as they tender His Majesty's friendship."
The States General passed the task on to the authorities of the Uni-
versity of Leyden. They got Brewster (and his type) and "laid him fast"
in the University's prison, a significant item for a University, which led
sympathetic scholars to plead "Privilege." The University refused to
surrender Brewster and after any amount of heated correspondence.
Master Brewster's types were kept in jail and Brewster dismissed, which
also pained King James, who rebuked his Lord Ambassador. Brewster
was sought unsuccessfully for a year. His friends sheltered him and it is
doubtful if the Dutch authorities really wanted to find him. But could
the Mayflower have sailed without him?^^

2iArber has thirty-five pages of letters re Brewster and his press. They are most in-
triguing. Their substance is that Brewster "being incerti Unis, he is not yet to be
Hghted upon."

CHAPTER V

Pilgrim and Puritan in a New World

THE Pilgrim has made the historian his debtor by furnishing a
detailed account of the conditions and difficulties of English
migration in the seventeenth century. His was the second group
to gain and maintain a foothold upon the Atlantic seaboard of what
was to become the United States of America, and this has subordinated
his religious quests to his social adventure. Many things combined to
make the Pilgrim an ideal colonist. He was a born adventurer, else he
would not have been a nonconformist. He was a nationalist (the word
had not yet acquired its sinister significance) by all his racial inheritances,
made proudly self-conscious by the Elizabethan Age. Lost in Leyden, he
felt himself called to enlarge the dominions of his realm and the realm
of Christ, a dual motivation whose combined force cannot easily be
exaggerated. He had won strength from the disciplines he had under-
gone, the self-reliance they had engendered. He was the survival of the
fittest for the task to which he half-unconsciously had been called. ^

He drew the courage and capacity to endure, without which New
Plymouth would be only a memory, from the high sources of his re-
ligious faith and devotion, though for a time the magnitude of their
secular adventure naturally turned the minds of the Leyden group
away from religious and ecclesiastical controversies. Having none to
gainsay them, their free and simple worship became only a part of the
routine of their always-endangered and laborious lives. The drum which
called them to worship might at any time call them to the same "meeting
house" to stand off the Indians and there must have been times when the
Separatism for which they had so long contended became an almost
unbearable loneliness. With a great price they obtained their freedom.
Their story then must now be continued in terms of negotiations, de-
cisions, and the details of getting to Plymouth Bay.

They began it all with a clear knowledge of perils and difficulties.
They would be, they knew, "liable to famine and nakedness and the
want (in a manner) of all things. . . . Then there would be the con-
tinual danger of the savage people, the very hearing of whose can-
nibalistic cruelties could not but move the very bowels of men to grate

iThe saga of the selection of wheat fit for high Northern latitudes or corn to ripen
in a short summer is the best analogy.

Pilgrim and Puritan in a Neiv World 57

within them." They would need more money than their combined
estates would amount to; neither did the issue of such other adventures
in migration as they knew about assure them. On the other hand the
Spaniard in Holland "might prove as cruel as the savages in America"
(actually these savages were amateurs in cruelty as compared with the
then Spaniard), "the famine and pestilence as sore, and their liberty less
to look out for remedy."^ So it was concluded to put their design into
execution "by the best means they could."

Some of them were earnest for Guinea, where, they had heard, little
labor was needed to live and less clothing. Others were for some parts
of Virginia. But a sound instinct warned them against Guinea, and their
concern for their cause of religion made them cautious of the Virginians.
They were willing to live under the general government of Virginia,
but at a protective distance. They began, also, negotiations with the
Dutch, looking toward settlement in that indefinite region then known
as the New Netherlands. The States General did not favor this, since they
feared that English colonists in Dutch territory might dispose "His
Majesty of Great Britain to people the aforesaid lands with the English
Nation," a well-grounded fear. There was then (1620) actually no colony
on the Island of Manhattan, only fur traders. But these negotiations,
though fruitless, did leave them with a favorable impression of the Dutch
territories in America and they later sought to get the Mayflower nearer
the Hudson River before they left her.

The Leyden Church Seeks Support and a Destination

In the late winter or early spring of 1620 Thomas Weston came to
Leyden representing certain "Gentlemen Adventurers" in London who
were willing to underwrite (so to speak) a colonial enterprise for the
sake of the profit to be gained thereby in trade. The King was about to
make a grant, to "sundry honorable Lords," of the more northerly re-
gions of the Virginia Patent, to be quite secluded from the Jamestown
government, and called New England.^ Fishing off these coasts was said
to be good and promised a return on investments. So Master Weston
argi^d. The negotiations with the Dutch were broken off, and John
Carver and Robert Cushman were sent to London to conclude an agree-
ment with the Adventurers. (This in early spring, 1620.)

It had been a tedious and tricky business on the part of the London
gentlemen, a vital affair for the Pilgrims. As early as 1617 the Leyden

2A11 this Bradford's narration.

3 This grant was not signed till November. 1620. Arber thinks they could not have
heard of it before they left the Continent {The Story of the Pilgrim Fathers, p. 304).
But they might have heard.

58 History of American Congregationalism

group had sought to conciliate the King, with migration to Virginia in
view. In seven articles signed by Robinson and Brewster, they professed
their assent to the Thirty-nine Articles of 1562. They sought, they said,
to keep spiritual communion in peace with "Conformists and Reform-
ists." They acknowledged the King's majesty and authority to be su-
preme. He had the moral right to appoint bishops and civil overseers
throughout his realm. They acknowledged the authority of the English
bishops as derived from the King. (There must have been some mental
reservation in this.) They desired to give all superiors due honor, to be
in fellowship "with all that fear God, to have peace with all men and
wherein they erred to be instructed."

The King's Secretary of State advised His Majesty favorably about
this petition. The petitioners, he said, were troublesome in England but
they might in America advance His Majesty's dominions and enlarge
the gospel. The King thought it a good and honest notion and, being
Scotch, asked about possible profits. Fishing, he was told, promised gain.
"So God have my soul!" he exclaimed, " 'tis an honest trade! It was the
apostles' own calling." Thereupon the agents of the "pilgrims" went to
the First Virginia Company (this must have been still 1618) from whom
they received a patent (February 1619), a loan of three hundred pounds,
which they later paid back, and a definite agreement. Now there were,
for the confusion of the historian, two Virginia Companies, both char-
tered in 1606: (a) The London Virginia Company with a grant of ter-
ritory between 34° and 41° North Latitude; (b) The Second or Plymouth
Virginia Company with a grant between 38° and 45° North latitude.

This apparent inability of the King's proper bureau either to add or
subtract resulted in confusions and counter-claims and, as far as the
Pilgrims were eventually concerned, uncertainty first as to where they
wanted to go and, second, once on the high seas as to where they really
were going. The London Company went bankrupt, the Plymouth Com-
pany surrendered its charter, and the New England Company, as noted,
took over the Northern coasts. The Pilgrims seem to have held under the
Plymouth Company to begin with and finally to have landed on territory
to which they had no patent.

The "Adventurers" who financed the Pilgrim's migration were a
voluntary association of about seventy persons of various station and
possession. "They aimed," so Captain John Smith said, "to do good and
plant religion." They entertained also, mistakenly as it turned out, some
hope of worldly gain. They helped plant religion and so did great good,
but made no profit. They must have known the religious and church
convictions of the Leyden group, their history and the disfavor in which
they were held by English authorities, since these things had not been

Pilgrim and Puritan in a Neiv World 59

done in a corner. One may assume amongst them, therefore, a sympa-
thetic attitude toward Independency, though their later attitudes should
qualify that assumption.

It is difficult to brief the agreement finally concluded, after much
negotiation and amendment, between the Leyden group and the Com-
pany. It was a joint-stock enterprise. The shares seem to have been rated
at ten pounds each. The Company paid in money and the migrants con-
tributed themselves, each person over sixteen years of age being rated at
ten pounds. All profits and benefits were, for seven years, to remain
undivided in the common stock. In substance there would be no private
property. At the end of seven years there would be an equal division
between the Adventurers and the Planters. These conditions were
sufficiently modified in the course of the negotiations to permit the Pil-
grims two free days a week to work for themselves and to receive their
houses and improved lands at the end of the seven years. Actually the
right of private property and individual initiative was permitted long
before the seven years were up, and the Colony bought out the Company.

All this fascinating detail is complicated enough, but there is in all
the documents which deal with the enterprise— and there are more than
one would think— a showing of good sense and practical wisdom on the
part of Robinson and Brewster. They seem to have been men who would
hold their own in any directors' meeting. They were shrewd and far-
sighted and as little like Sixteenth Century religious enthusiasts as could
be. After about three years of planning, exploring, bargaining, much
letter writing, journeys from Leyden to London and back, and Elder
Brewster's being sought by the English authorities, they were ready. The
Gentlemen Adventurers would furnish them ship and gear and they
hoped to land somewhere on the North Atlantic Seaboard, God willing.

"They sought the Lord by a public and solemn fast for his guidance."
The guidance so secured seems to have been soundly practical. They
would not all go at once. The youngest and strongest should go first
and they that went should freely offer themselves. If the majority went,
the pastor would go with them; "if not, the Elder only." Finally, "if the
Lord should frown" upon their proceedings, those that went would
return, those who remained helping them. "If God should be pleased
to favor them," those who went and stayed would "help over such as
were poor and ancient and willing to come." The major part stayed.

II
The Departure from Leyden

The partings were like those of St. Paul with his friends at Miletus,
or like all partings across which lies the shadow of finality, tender with

6o History of American Congregationalism

the tears of things. Winslow's and Bradford's descriptions (here com-
bined) are classic: "They that stayed at Leyden feasted us (this was after
the Fast) at our Pastor's house, being large, where we refreshed ourselves
after our tears with the singing of Psalms . . . there being many of the
congregation very expert in music: and indeed it was the sweetest melody
that ever mine ears heard." "The time being come that they must depart,
they were accompanied by most of their brethren . . . into a town . . .
called Delftshaven where the ship, the Speedwell, lay ready to receive
them. So they left that goodly and pleasant city, which had been their
resting place near twelve years, but they knew that they were pilgrims
and looked not much on these things, but lifted up their eyes to the
heavens, their dearest country, and quieted their spirits."

Winslow gives a summary of the "wholesome counsel Master Robin-
son gave them." It was wise as Robinson was always wise and for open-
ness of mind and spirit could not then, or too often now, easily be
matched. A sentence or two has become memorable. They were to follow
him no further than he had followed Christ; "and if God should reveal
anything to us by any other instrument of his, to be as ready to receive
it, as ever we were to receive any truth by his ministry. For he was very
confident that the Lord had more truth and light to break forth out of
his holy word." He urged also— and this bore strongly on the whole
future of American Congregationalism— that they should study union
with English Puritanism.'*

They came with a prosperous wind to Southampton where they
found the "bigger ship" come from London with all the rest of their
company. (The name of the "bigger ship" does not occur in the Brad-
ford manuscript. Her name. The Mayflower, first appears in the Official
Records of the "Old Colony" in 1623.) It was not safe for Brewster and
others against whom the bishops had acted to go to London. Hence,
they went to Southampton. The company managed in the end to get
away without official hindrance, but the Speedwell was something else.
Her unseaworthiness may have changed the pattern of New England
colonial history.^ She was "leaky as a sieve" under full sail because she
was overmasted. She had been refitted in Holland and pressed with too
much sail (the fault, Arber thinks, of the Pilgrims themselves). The
master of the ship, Reynolds, had no stomach for the enterprise at best
and welcomed an excuse first to put in for repairs at Dartmouth and,

^The magistrates of the city of Leyden gave them a good recommendation. "These
English," they said, "have Hved amongst us now these twelve vears; and yet we never
had any suit or accusation come against any of them." Arber, The Story of the Pilgrim
Fathers, p. 152.

5 Normally the ships should have left Southampton early in August and made the
Hudson River in early autumn. What then? No New Plymouth; maybe no American
Congregationalism— so Arber.

Pilgrim and Puritan in a New World 6 1

finally, a hundred leagues beyond Lands-End to go back to Plymouth
and put everything in the "bigger ship." These delays disheartened some,
who themselves went back, and finally put the rest to sea in an over-
crowded vessel in September to face the autumnal North Atlantic and
disembark in winter on a desolate shore. (The tradition is that Master
Reynolds was a tricky rascal, which may be. He had only to crowd sail
to make the Speedwell a sieve.)

Ill
The Epics of the Mayflower

One hundred and two persons finally left Plymouth on the May-
flower. William Butten died on the way across and Oceanus Hopkins
was born. So there were one hundred and two of them when the "com-
pact" was signed. In December Peregrine White, the first born in New
England, made one hundred and three.^ They were at sea over two
months, storm-tossed, imperiled, uncomfortable beyond description. One
tradition is that their captain deliberately kept them away from Vir-
ginia, but what they seem actually to have desired was a landing near
the Hudson. The New World welcomed them with shoals and breakers
and Cape Cod's Pollock-rip. It was perilous navigation in the unchar-
tered waters. They had the sea behind them and an empty region before
them out of which to choose, and which they had not purposefully
sought. The charter of the Adventurers may not have covered that par-
ticular territory, but that was a detail which could be remedied.

For all that the region was not superficially unexplored or unmapped.
It was already known (Captain John Smith takes credit for that) as a
marvelous fishing ground. Thirty to fifty sail went yearly, says Captain
John, to the New England coast to trade and to fish, which does not fit
in with the isolation of the Plymouth Colony. Smith later (1630) claimed
that if the group had taken his advice and used his maps, they would
have saved themselves much misery. Instead, to avoid charges, they
"would try their own conclusions though with great loss" being "con-
trarious" people who would learn only through costly experience. For
all that he thought well of the Pilgrims, though they refused his help
and made too little, he held, of his advice.^

It is a shame to condense their great little epic. They deemed the
first land they saw to be Cape Cod, "goodly land wooded to the brink of

6 There are full and detailed lists of families, individuals, and their economic station,
but these should be the specialty of the genealogist.

7 The most vivid and detailed account of their first experience is found in a "Relation
or Journal of the Beginnings and Proceedings of the English Plantation settled at Ply-
mouth in New England" etc., London, printed for John Bellamie, 1622. It is anonymous
(signed G. Mourt, possibly George Morton). It would seem of coinposite authorship
"writ by the various actors."

62 History of American Congregationalism

the sea." The harbor at Provincetown was commodious. Whales were
playing in its waters, but there were no cod. They tried the "mussels"
with distressful results. The beach being shallow, they were forced to
wade ashore (result: coughs and colds). All this did not conduce to
harmony and, there being some appearance of faction, they drew up the
"Association and Agreement" famous in history as the Mayflower Com-
pact. (Spelling modernized. See Appendix for original form.)

"In the name of God, Amen. We whose names are underwritten, the
loyal subjects of our dread Sovereign Lord King James; by the grace of
God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland King; Defender of the Faith;
etc."

"Having undertaken for the glory of God, and advancement of the
Christian faith, and honour of our King and Country, a voyage to plant
the first^ colony in the northern parts of Virginia; [we] do by these
presents, solemnly and mutually, in the presence of God and one of
another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a Civil Body
Politic, for our better ordering and preservation; and furtherance of the
ends aforesaid; and, by virtue hereof, to enact, constitute and frame such
just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions, offices, from time to
time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general
good of the Colony; unto which we promise all due submission and
obedience.

"In witness whereof, we have hereunder subscribed our names.^ Cape
Cod, 11th of November, in year of the reign of our Sovereign Lord King
James of England, France and Ireland 18: and of Scotland 54, Anno
Domini 1620."

This needs no comment. The compact was as simple as it was in-
evitable. It was natural for men whose corporate religious life was sup-
ported by a covenant so to constitute their "Civil Body Politic." The
genesis of it was in the essential fibre of their being, the inevitability
of it in their situation, the direct simplicity of it in their souls and their
speech. Not until Gettysburg battlefield was dedicated would so epochally
much be said in an equal space of words, or the words themselves
carry so grave a weight.^ And the Gettysburg classic did no more than
continue the Covenant. King James was still their "dread sovereign"
but they were their own men. If a partisan cared to press it, it was and
is a Congregational covenant drawn by a great social and religious philos-
ophy, articulating a timeless passion, meeting a great occasion with the
directness of freedom and the wisdom of discipline. Alongside it a "State

SThis compact was signed by 41 out of the 65 adult male passengers then on board.
91 (Atkins) have not counted, but I should think that from "Having" to "Obedience"
Lincoln's address and the Covenant are almost the same lens:th.

Pilgrim and Puritan in a New World 63

Church" is an artificial ingenuity; here religion and society for a brief
but shining time were one "in the Name of God. Amen."

The Covenant was part of the day's work, but where should they
settle? Autumns on Cape Cod are often late and soft and kind— and mis-
leading. There should have been some bronze of oak leaves in the forests
against the green of the pines and whiteness of birch. The ground they
found, under the sand, to be excellent black earth. "The wood for the
most part open and without underwood; fit either to go, or ride in."
They used juniper for firewood while they lay at Provincetown. It
smelled strong and sweet. Their first enterprise of discovery covered
a good deal of the shank and hook of Cape Cod, brought them minor
alarums with Indians, tantalizing sights of game and birds and thirty-six
goodly ears of corn which they brought away with them. Also there was
much wading in the shallow sea, and coughs and colds.

Their second enterprise of discovery led them through regions fur-
ther west to a vacant Indian village and netted them still more com.
"It was God's good Providence that we found this corn: for else we
know not how we should have done." Neither of these "discoveries"
quite satisfied them. There was, their pilot had heard, another promising
harbor twenty-four miles across from their then anchorage. Thither they
made shift to go in their shallop; and, being landed, were for the first
time under arrow fire from the Indians. (Enter Captain Miles Standish
—no casualties.) They found Plymouth Bay at last, thought it right for
their needs, and returned to the Mayflower. The master sailed that much-
enduring boat into Plymouth Bay. A party explored still further, so far
as Kingston, but now the need to disembark the whole group was urgent
and the season had turned vile. So finally they brought, not without
peril, the people ashore at Plymouth.

Ashore at Plymouth

Now they had been on and off the Mayflower for a month, any day
of which might have been Forefather's Day. Romance has chosen Mon-
day, December 11, O. S., for on that day, says the narration, "we sounded
the harbour and found it a very good harbour for our shipping: we
marched also into the land: and found divers cornfields and little run-
ning brooks, a place very good for situation." The Mayflower was then
still at Provincetown with the majority of the company.^" She weighed
anchor on the fifteenth to make for Plymouth Harbour, which, after

10 It seems, therefore, that the delightful picture of the Pilgrims, men, women, and
children, disembarking in a body and going ashore with "Plymouth Rock" as a stepping
stone can hardly be documented.

64 History of American Congregationalism

bearing off to sea because of a northwest wind, they managed on Satur-
day, December 16, "so it pleased God . . . [that] we came safely into
a safe harbour."

What follows in this narration is both trivial and epic, pitiful and
splendid. They built shelters for themselves and a fort. They had a
sense of Indians moving about them in the shadowed forests. They strove
through sleet and rain and wind. They were grateful for food and safety
and made little of their miseries— and they died, almost half of them.
In 1621 they laid out "meersteads" and "garden plots" which must have
been of a communal character. This got them too little corn and too
much misery so that in the spring of 1623 ^^^Y resolved to "set corn,
every man for his own particular: and in that regard trust to them-
selves." This had very good success, for it made all hands very indus-
trious. "Even the women now went willingly into the field." And they
kept learning. There was for a time a little peace amongst the Indians
themselves . . . and "we for our part walk as peaceably and safely in
the wood as in the highways of England."

Something must be allowed for Winslow's roseate descriptions, as
though the guile of the real estate promoter touched his usually sober
goose quill. For the temper of the air he finds as agreeable as England.
There is an abundance of fish and fowl; "our Bay is full of lobsters;"
"here are giapes . . . strawberries [there still are], plums [still highly
esteemed for jelly], and roses." "The country wanted only industrious
men to employ it." Also the Pilgiums, pilgrims no longer, had learned
out of bitter experience how future expeditions should be fitted." By
1623 the colony was small, fairly well rooted, very slowly growing, but
a going concern.

V
Concerning Their Religious and Financial Estate

Now for men and women whose master motive for almost twenty years
had been free worship in their own way, the paucity of reference in
letters home to their great joy in free worship is arresting. The explana-
tion would seem to be simple. The sheer struggle for existence took
everything they had. They were in a new world which had captured
their imagination. They were beginning, inside of three years, to become
Yankees, a shrewd type which, except on rare occasions, does not allow
its religion to get out of hand. Also they had no longer anyone to argue
religion with until they had developed their own contentious factions,
and Plymouth Colony could not as yet afford the luxury of faction. The
neighboring Indians, on the contrary, had an oversupply of factions and

11 The detail is fascinating: paper and linseed oil for windows, cotton yarn for
lamps. Butter they wanted very much (no cows yet), etc.

Pilgrim and Puritan in a New World 65

Sought to entangle the colonists therein at considerable and tedious
length, the accounts whereof gain interest from the attempts of the early
chronicler, who spelled his own English inconsistently, to Anglicize In-
dian names.

Since the Pilgrims, in setting out, had advanced hopes of doing mis-
sionary work among the Indians as one of their lawful reasons for
emigrating, they did their best as opportunity offered. The Indians
hearkened with grave attention and "liked well to hear of God's work of
creation and preservation; of his laws and ordinances, especially the
Ten Commandments." They excepted against "only the Seventh," think-
ing there were many inconveniences in it, that a man should be tied to
one woman. The Pilgrims also sought to teach the Indians to say grace
before meals.

In theory the new Plymouth church and the Leyden church were one
church under John Robinson, pastor. He had expected himself to follow
the Mayflower, but the Pilgrims were poor and the merchant adventurers,
rather inconsistently, were willing to finance the congregation's passage
but not that of the minister, who was still held a Browneist. But a pastor
three thousand miles away is little comfort, and the church suffered.
Critics complained that there was "wante of both the Sacraments." The
reply of the colonists is just and sad. "The more is our greife that our
pastor is kept from us, by whom we might Injoye them, for we used to
have the Lords Supper every Sabbath, and baptisme as often as there was
occasion of children to baptize."

The poor little colony was everybody's fair game. Puritans made them
as much trouble as the Establishment.'^ They kept Robinson in Leyden
and sent over one John Lyford or Lyforde, an unctious rogue whose
unmasking brightens a sombre narrative. They would impose "the
French Discipline" upon Fort Hill. Their concern for Presbyterianism
did not prevent them from charging outrageous interest on small loans
to keep starving women and children alive. '^ The factors to whom the
Pilgrims entrusted the trade goods cheated them going and coming.
One of their shiploads was captured by a courteous French pirate. The
letters which passed between New Plymouth and Leyden are sad and
tender. Robinson died on March 1, 1625. Roger White of Leyden wrote

12 The final liquidation of the commercial aspect of the enterprise is a long and
complicated story. The colonists finally bought themselves out for nine annual payments
of 200 pounds a year. Their leaders became their trustees (with the equivalent of a lien
on the colony). They traded in beaver furs and Indian corn, bought up a bankrupt
trading post (at Monhegan Island), salvaged a wrecked French ship, and in nine years
paid out. They were embryonic Yankees, shrewd, laborious, honest to the last penny.
13 The Lyforde episode is told at length in John Brown's Pilgrim Fathers. Plot and
counterplot, opened letters, espionage and counter-espionage, Seventeenth Century
"Fifth Column" business.

66 History of American Congregationalism

a moving account of his death to Bradford: "if either prayers, tears, or
means would have saved his life, he had not gone hence." He was buried
in St. Peters Church and "the University and ministers of the city ac-
companied him to his grave with all their accustomed solemnities, be-
wailing the great loss . . . some of them sadly affirmed, that all the
Churches of Christ sustained. . . ."i" It was a year before they knew it
at Plymouth. (Miles Standish brought back the news after a business
trip to London, where the plague made negotiations difficult.)

The Pilgrims were equal to the adjustment of a pastorless state. There
is a classic description often quoted of the settlement written in 1627 by
one De Rasieres, a Dutch envoy sent over to further trade between the
colony and the States General. Their houses were hewn plank with
gardens behind, enclosed in a stockade. They had a corporate meeting
place with cannon atop (one 1200 pounds in weight). They assembled
for worship to the sound of drums and marched up and in military
form, cloaked and armed. The Governor brought up the procession with
the minister at his right and Miles Standish marshalling it all. Then they
did celebrate the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, heard the word and
prayed, listened to "prophecying" (Roger Williams was there that Sun-
day), and went afterwards gravely home. There would have been in 1627
an abundance of other processions in the great churches of Christendom,
vested and ordered according to historic liturgies, but one may gravely
wonder where there was anywhere any processional so significant in its
simplicity, so hallowed by faith and courage and sacrifice as that silent
procession up Fort Hill. If all those who had hoped and suffered and died
to make it possible could have become there and then reincorporate,
they would have matched the innumerable company of the Book of
Revelation.

For eight years and seven months the Leyden-Plymouth church was
the only church in what is now New England. The colony grew slowly.
Its possible constituency was always a minority and limited in resource.
One may measure its territorial extensions along the pleasant coast by
the dates of the founding of new churches, always coincident with the
setting out of a new town ("township" outside New England). By 1632
there were folk enough to plant Duxbury (say eight miles from Ply-
mouth) and Marshfield (say fifteen miles).''' They prospered modestly, but
they lacked ships for trade and fishing. The beaver would soon be used
up and out, there was water power only for little neighborhood mills.
The soil could be coaxed into productiveness but was not encouragingly

14 Burgess, The Pastor of the Pilgrim Fathers, a Biography of John Robinson, pp. 302
ff. This is an admirable book and sets forth much new knowledge about Robinson.
15 The town of Marshfield dates its incorporation from 1641.

Pilgrim and Puritan in a New World 67

fertile.'® The later history of Plymouth church will presently be touched
upon; the general history of the "Old Colony" belongs to Massachusetts
history. The general bequest of the Pilgrims, their faith, their courage,
their wisdom and their ways of worship, was peace and kindliness. The
shadows of intolerance and fanaticism which darken the early history of
Massachusetts Bay do not reach to Plymouth. They dealt more fairly
with the Indian than any other colony save William Penn's or Roger
Williams'. Their descendants have good reason to be proud of them.

Though they could not of themselves have populated Massachusetts
nor framed New England Congregationalism, they did when the times
were ripe influence it in ways far beyond their numbers and their status.
In many ways the currents of population and power which set toward
Boston Bay were far more full and strong, but the true genesis of Amer-
ican Congregationalism is from Scrooby to Leyden and from Leyden to
Fort Hill in New Plymouth, where for one bleak winter the living did not
dare to mark the graves of their dead lest the Indians lurking in winter
woods should know how few they were.

VI
Enter the Puritan

The same letter (April 28, 1625) in which Roger White wrote "his
loving friend, Mr. William Bradford, Governor of Plymouth in New
England," the news of John Robinson's death, reported another death.
". . . we have lost our old King James, who departed this life about
a month ago . . . and we have a new King Charles of whom there is
great hope of good. ..." That hope was premature. For as White
wrote to his "very loving friend" the first of December, 1625, the King
had already in a proclamation dated the 13th of May (1625) expressed
his full resolution: "to the end that there may be one uniform course of
government in and through all his whole monarchy," Virginia included,
"so that some conceive he will have both the same civil and ecclesiastic
government that is in England, which occasioneth their fear."

This resolution of the King, with the conception of his own divine
right to be both state and church which lay beneath and behind it, be-
gan an epochal chapter in England and New England. His headless body
would finally write "finished" at the end of it, and unfinished as well.

16 It must have been well timbered. No first growth pine are likely left. There were
oak certainly for so late as 1840 (and later) the North River was famous for its ship-
yards and sailing craft. And there were stones. It is hard to see how the Pilgrims could
have escaped landing on one. Old stone walls, mute witnesses of an incredible toil now
loose themselves in old fields retaken by second or third wood growth. And the amateur
gardener still finds the supply unexhausted. But it is a lovely region in which the old
is treasured and restored and the quiet roads wind through three hundred years of
memory.

68 History of American Congregationalism

For beginning with Charles' taking the throne, the tension of forces
which had been in action in England since Elizabeth's death would
finally issue in civil war, and what no conference had been able to re-
solve would be fought out on the fields of Marston Moor and Naseby,
and not there resolved. The throne and the Church were finally to be
called to account by embattled Puritanism and the auditing would be at
once tragic and nobly creative.

This study began with a reference to the "Millenary Petition" ad-
dressed to King James on his way to Whitehall, in which almost a
thousand ministers of the English Church prayed him for a much more
thorough-going reformation of Queen Elizabeth's Church. They would
have more preaching and less liturgy, fewer vestments and more well-
educated clergy. They would restrain the bishops, purge English wor-
ship of any vestige of Roman Catholicism and enforce upon both the
clergy and the laity of the Church a far more godly, righteous, and sober
life than was then in evidence. How far the King could have carried
England with him had he enabled the Millenary Petition with his full
royal power is beyond knowing. Very likely he could not have so car-
ried it.

But there must have been possibilities of adjustment which might
have altered the future course of English political and religious history.
Whether or no it was in the King's power to have made them, he had
no mind to try. The Hampton Court Conference, as we have seen, settled
nothing, save that the King meant to have his way and having savored
the quality of Presbyterianism in Scotland, meant to have none of it
in England.i^ The first result of the King's policy was the alienation
of the pulpit, at a time and in a situation when the power of the pulpit
cannot easily be exaggerated.^^ The realm was seamed with discontents,
rivalries and ambitions, and the Stuarts had an infallible gift for alienat-
ing in turn every recalcitrant group, every protesting interest. The harm,
in the long last, they did others was not comparable with the harm they
did themselves.

It is impossible to understand the course of Puritanism during this
period of English and American history without a recognition of the
strategic part played by the Puritan preachers. Puritanism itself was a
preachers' movement, the prophet challenging the priest. This has always
been a risky business, especially when the magistrate is on the priest's
side; but until the outbreak of the Revolution it was possible for the

17 This is a loose statement, for Puritanism should not be too closely identified with
Presbyterianism. But Cartwright and his associates certainly looked to Geneva for the
Scriptural model of Church government.

18 For an entirely competent study of Puritan preaching see The Rise of Puritariism,
William Haller. Parts of this chapter are deeply in debt to Haller.

Pilgrim and Puritan in a New World 69

preacher campaigning, so to speak, upon a purely religious and theolog-
ical terrain to supply the magistrates no case against him, and at the
same time to create political and social attitudes which would in time
become an affair not only for magistrates but for armies.

"The Puritan imagination," Haller says, "saw the life of the spirit as
pilgrimage and battle." As a pilgrim, a Christian should not and would
not entangle himself in the things of this world, and yet the labor and
austerities with which he carried through his pilgrimage conduced to a
most comfortable accumulation of the things of this world. Vanity Fair
was only a way station, but he proved himself a shrewd trader in its
booths. Any pilgrim must, however, contemplate some issue of his pil-
grimage in a better country or else his heart would fail him. He might
naturally therefore sometimes wonder, confusing the temporal and the
eternal, whether his own present realm might not become that better
country and, like Blake, let not his sword sleep in his hand till he had

". . . built Jerusalem
In England's green and pleasant land."

Since life is a battle, he might also find it difficult to distinguish between
material and purely spiritual weapons.

The Old Testament and not a little of St. Paul supplied the preacher
with enough "images of wayfaring and warfaring"^^ to kindle his imag-
ination and adorn his rhetoric. The result was an ornate pulpit style and
a kind of nebulous splendor in Puritan preaching which confuses and
fascinates. There is an astounding excess and ingenuity of imagery along
with keen insight and the forthright use of strong words. Satan is always
on the alert, and though a man may "take twelve of the thirteen steps
to heaven, yet except he stride the thirteenth, he shall misse Heaven-
Gate, and fall into the fire of Hell forever." 2°

The Anglicans were not behind in preaching either, and yielded to
none in ingenuity of image and device (for example, John Donne). They
prided themselves on their finer culture and continued the "Elizabethan
love of witty phrase and poetic image." The Puritan thought himself
more spiritual, if less witty, and opposed the "Word of Wisdom" to the
wisdom of words. In the end the Puritan preacher and not the Anglican,
in the battle of the pulpits, won the popular mind. (Haller again.)

Now, to repeat, all this was done in a region where the writs of the
magistrates did not run, nor as yet involved the preacher in any pro-
nounced opposition to the authorities. It did stir up and maintain
highly emotional attitudes, and there were implications in it of a revo-
lt The fine phrase is Haller 's.

20 Out of all this John Bunyan would presently make Everyman's Pilgrim Progress;
after which all the rest could be forgotten.

'70 History of American Congregationalism

lutionary character. Such preaching habituated the popular mind to the
ideal of warfare and made it easy, when the times were ripe, to exchange
the sword of the spirit for the weapons of Cromwell's Ironsides. Some-
where in and through it was the conception of a state ordered and con-
trolled in the Puritan way, the realm of God on earth.

All this was in action during the whole reign of King James. He
dealt with it as he could, but so much was beyond his reach. The In-
dependents and Separatists who wanted Reformation without tarrying
for any could be reached and were reached and dealt with as we have
seen, but this slow shaping of a public opinion, militant, discontented,
seeking partly what it knew and more it did not know, could not be
reached and controlled. It could be threatened, irritated, and mis-
handled, all of which intensified the force with which it finally came
into action. What it did in England is a great chapter in English his-
tory.^^ Our concern is what it did to and in New England.

VII
Massachusetts Bay Is Chartered

The Puritans, Independents, and Separatists had trouble enough
under James. Their estate became much worse under Charles and
theological rancors grew. The Puritan had always been and continued
Calvinist, but to a considerable degree so were and are the Thirty-nine
Articles. They offered little ground for theological disputes. But around
1630 the Church theologians began to repudiate election and reproba-
tion. One of them wrote that he considered predestination the "root of
all rebellion and disobedient intractableness, and schism and sauciness
in the country." The Puritans did not take this lying down and accused
the bishops of "Heretical and Grace-destroying Arminian novelties which
have of late invaded, affronted and almost shouldered out of doors the
ancient, established, and resolved doctrines of our Church." ^^ "Our
Church" is significant. They, the Puritans thought, were the true Church;
the bishops were usurpers.

The high churchmen not only provoked the laity by new doctrines;
they so affirmed the Divine Right of Kings in general and Charles in
particular, that to resist any ordinance of the King was to resist the
ordinance of God and receive damnation; which would make any Par-
liament either an assembly of rubber stamps or candidates for damna-
tion. This would involve the power of the purse in any disputed ques-
tion of money sought or granted, and on this, the question of taxation,

2iCarlyle, Oliver Cromwell Introduction, called it the "last of all our heroisms."
But there have been new English heroisms since Carlyle's time.
22 Miller, Orthpdoxy in Massachusetts, pp. 41 ff.

Pilgrim and Puritan in a New World 7 1

the King and Parliament finally came to fatal odds. The accounts of the
last days of the Parliament of 1629 are stirring enough. His majesty dis-
solved it by Proclamation, calling some of its members "vipers." For
about eleven years thereafter he reigned without a Parliament. During
these eleven years the Massachusetts Bay Colony was founded.

It was in its inception purely a trading company. ^^ The chartered
companies of the period were not corporations in the present legal sense.
They were a participation by the members in a common line of enter-
prise. They secured travelers in foreign lands the favor and protection of
the crown and avoided the dangers of competition between fellow coun-
trymen, being, therefore, in theory monopolistic. Their charters, there-
fore, gave them (the trading companies) unusual rights. The "governors"
and "assistants" had a power not only to supervise and direct the business
venture, but they could also "oversee the conduct of the members in many
ways," and regulate the details of their social and private activities. They
were in fact or possibility "bodies politic" and thus had in them the
germs of self-directing political communities. But the Massachusetts Bay
Company was the only trading company which became a political com-
monwealth. (Hart as cited)

This the Company owed to provisions peculiar to its own charter and
the careless generosity, which he must have regretted, of Charles the
First.^"* The genesis and development of the Massachusetts Bay Company
is a history in itself, compact with factual detail, complicated in action
and indispensable to any understanding of American Congregationalism."
The Pilgrims planted the first permanent settlement in New England, but
the Bay Colony became the Province and the Province became the Com-
monwealth. For all its religious content Massachusetts Bay was in struc-
ture and legal form a trading company and it so remained until the
charter was annulled in 1684. It all began, specifically, with the "Dor-
chester Adventure. "^^ Dorchester (England) merchants had been sending
ships to fish for cod off the New England coast. It would be well, they
thought, to have a base on the New England mainland. They would not
then need to send so many fishermen across, which was slow and costly.

23 Hart, Commonwealth History of Massachusetts, vol. i, p. 64. "British Colonial
expansion from the days of John Cabot to the days of Cecil Rhodes has proceeded
almost always in its first stages through the medium of private business enterprise."

24This complicated business of "Charters" in New England colonial history must
have given generations of school boys and girls headaches.

25 This account is taken from two authorities: Commonwealth History of Massa-
chusetts, edited by Albert Bushnell Hart, and Orthodoxy in Massachusetts, Perry Miller.
This general acknowledgment makes it unnecessary to be always citing authorities and
pages. Miller's contribution will be indicated as needed. John Dickinson contributed
the chapter (5) in Hart which is here most drawn upon.

26 A schoolboy's headaches would also be aggravated by the fact that the companies
were sometimes named from the English City in which the merchants seeking trade
lived, and sometimes from the region they sought to colonize.

7 2 History of A merican Congregationalism

They would get help from the settlement and between seasons the settlers
could turn farmers and so provision the ships for their return voyages, or
sell to other fishers using the waters. Also the fishermen, being nine or
ten months from home, suffered from a want of religious instruction.
This seems to have been the suggestion of John White, local Dorchester
minister.

It is likely also that the somewhat roseate account of the semi-para-
disaical character of unpopulated Massachusetts, which the Pilgrims about
this time were getting published in London, may have captured the im-
agination of the Dorchester adventurers. So a little religion, the hope of
gain and the allure of a new world led them to contribute needed capital
and try for a new world settlement. They put Roger Conant, who had
left the Plymouth Pilgrims because of religious difference, in charge and
naturally named the new settlement Dorchester. The Dorchester venture
was a failure, eventually came under the direction of John Endicott,
took on a definite religious character, and lost its nominal distinction.
Meanwhile a new accession of strength came from England.

VIII

WiNTHROP's Fleet is Launched

The Earl of Warwick (Puritan) secured from the Council for New
England and for Endicott and five associates a spacious grant between
the Merrimac and the Charles Rivers, reaching indefinitely west." The
religious motif now enters strongly. The project attracted Puritans of
rank and resource who would plant their gospel in New England. These
associated themselves with Endicott and secured another Charter from
the crown, this time as the Massachusetts Bay Company. The King was
off guard when he granted it, being much occupied with a recalcitrant
Parliament. The Charter was granted March 4, 1629.^* ^^^ ^^Y^ later the
King dissolved Parliament and announced that thereafter he would give
no account of his actions save to God alone. Evidently he did not secure
divine approval, for he was subsequently compelled to reconvene Par-
liament.

The last eight years had been hot with controversy in England and
confusion amongst Puritans. They were concerned with larger things
(so they thought) than trade in Massachusetts. The crisis of 1629 brought
matters to a head— significant and far-reaching matters on both sides of
the Atlantic. Oliver Cromwell went home to stock a grazing farm and
Winthrop began to assemble his fleet. Eleven ships bearing Winthrop,

27 Some of this territory had already been granted to Robert Gorges. Result: future
complications. The same territory was later granted to Massachusetts Bay. The council
was ungeographically generous.

28 The "1621" in Hart must certainly be a misprint.

Pilgrim and Puritan in a New World 73

the Charter, between nine hundred and one thousand immigrants, the
future Commonwealth of Massachusetts, a history beyond the dream of
the most daring, and the enabling force of American Congregationalism,
sailed from Cowes and Southampton in the spring of 1630. Oliver Crom-
well was then being named Justice of the Peace for the Borough of Hunt-
ington. They reached the New England coast in June and the loveliest
month in the somewhat capricious climate of that coast welcomed them.

All the freight of these eleven ships was historic and prophetic. But
why was the Charter aboard? And by what right? There is no denying
the significance of its being there. That meant self-government for the
colony, the beginnings of American democracy, and other things much
less praiseworthy. Historians and lawyers are never done debating the
legality of the transfer. There was no express language in the instrument
itself requiring "the company to reside and exercise its power in Eng-
land," but the docket under which it passed the Seals states in as plain
language as possible that it provided for "the election of governors here
in England" which doubtless was the official mind and intention.

The provisions of the Charter were simple. The stockholders or "free-
men" should meet every three months in a "General Court." The "Gen-
eral Court" elected the officers— twenty of them— governors, deputy
governors, eighteen directors. The Governor governed, the assistants
(directors) managed. The General Court could admit freemen (new
stockholders) and "make laws and ordinances for the good and welfare of
said company, provided such laws and ordinances were not contrary or
repugnant to the laws and statues of the realm of England." The criminal
jurisdiction could go no further than lawful fines, imprisonments or such
and other corrections as were permitted similar corporations in this "our
realm of England." In general by precedent and judicial decisions an ap-
peal lay, in criminal jurisdiction, from the courts of the corporations to
the courts of the realm.

In plain words the General Court of Massachusetts Bay could not
impose or execute the death penalty save after an appeal had been heard
by an English court. When, therefore, the four Quakers were executed in
1659, the authorities exceeded their lawful power, but this made no dif-
ference to their victims. In substance, self-government went to New Eng-
land with the Charter. Competent historians maintain that the adventur-
ers meant from the first to remove the company to New England. All this
affected the religious conduct of the colony so directly as to have become
an important phase of Congregational development.

So much for the Charter. The seven hundred-odd emigrants aboard
Winthrop's fleet were assembled by Winthrop and a small group on
Cannon Street in London. White had found supporters for the "Dor-

74 History of American Congregationalism

Chester Adventure" in the west country. Winthrop's company came from
London City and the eastern English counties. This region— old East
Anglia— was the nursery of Independents and Separatists and was in gen-
eral strongly opposed to the established Church. Names are always sig-
nificant, being carried across seas and continents by the homesickness of
the migrant. The names of towns and cities in eastern England are re-
peated in America along the eastern division of the Boston and Maine
railway, like, as Uriah Heep said, "the ringing of old belles;" the names
on the smoke-darkened headstones in Bunhill Fields burying ground have
been continued on headstones in uncounted New England burying
grounds. The motives of Winthrop's migrants were not wholly religious.
The hard-pressed tenantry of the nobility and landed gentry responded,
as the "homesteader" has always responded, to the promise of a hundred
acres of land in a new world. And there were always born adventurers.
The leaders of the movement were in sympathy with the Puritan
elements in the Establishment but apparently that was not pressed.
Many of Winthrop's passengers were still loyal to the English Church,
and they meant still to be Englishmen. So Higginson said in an often
quoted passage. "We will not say as the Separatists were wont to say at
their leaving of England, Tarewell Babylon! Farewell Rome!' But we
will say, Tarewell Dear England! Farewell the Church of God in Eng-
land and all the Christian friends there! We do not go to New England as
Separatists from the Church of England; though we cannot but separate
from the corruptions in it; but we go to practise the Positive Part of
Church Reformation and propagate the Gospel in America." A little of
this may have been meant for the King and all those in authority, and
the substance of it sincere.^^

The Puritan Ideal of the Church

The Winthrop Company scattered themselves through the Boston
Bay region and their settlements eventually became what is now the
Boston "Metropolitan Area." Other ships followed and by the end of
1630 there were an estimated two thousand persons in the colony. The
religious or at least the ecclesiastical picture changed almost immediately.
Three thousand miles of "unplumbed, salt, estranging sea" changed every
perspective. The Puritan would naturally have set up the ecclesiastical
system of Scotland and Geneva in New England, but you cannot have
Synods and General Assemblies with only two thousand people.

29For a most detailed account of Winthrop, his fleet and his company see Banks,
The Winthrop Fleet of i6jo.

Pilgrim. and Puritan in a New World 75

Perry Miller, in an excellent study of orthodoxy in New England
maintains, in a well argued and documented chapter, that there was a
strong element amongst the protestors against the Establishment who
might be called "Non-Separatist Congregationalists," though the name is
anticipatory. These had as little love for Presbyterianism as for bishops.
"What a terrible Popedome and Primacie these rigid Presbyterians de-
sire." It is not easy to put what they wanted in plain words. They could
not do it themselves. They apparentlywanted the solidityof an established
Church and the free action of independent churches— a pretty impossible
combination. If such a system could be managed, it would still be a part
of the Church of England, but would have at the same time a measure of
self-government impossible under Episcopacy. It could still be a "gath-
ered" Church with a covenant basis. The way of calling and ordaining of
pastors seems to have been their greatest concern. In their theory, pastors
ought to be chosen by their flock; in Anglican theory and practice, they
were usually nominated by someone who owned the "living" and installed
by a bishop.^"

The more moderate sought a compromise. The people could "con-
sent" to the pastoral candidate and thereby make the nomination good
because a "believing congregation consenteth to have him." Such consent
might be merely mental with mental reservations but it would save the
face of everybody concerned, and you have a Congregational pastor under
a bishop. There might even be a kind of under-cover spiritual reordina-
tion by the congregation which would suit their theory and add as it were
Congregational sanction to Episcopal validity.^^ Parish churches would
thus, in theory, be Congiegational. The Bishops would be "general vis-
itors and overseers of the churches to see that the pastors doe their duties"
—on the whole an engaging idea— and maybe an approximation to what
might have been one stage in post-apostolic development of Church
polity.

Neither the King nor his bishops cared for any of these things. They
meant to break Puritanism and all its branches, though Charles, accord-
ing to Cotton, was more tolerant of Separatists than of Puritans, probably
because he thought them relatively harmless. For Puritanism carried a
double threat, political as well as religious. The King may have been,

30 One does not find in the voluminous literature of the period— or later— a due recog-
nition of the "patron" situation. It is pretty complicated but the great land-owners
owned also the right to nominate incumbents for their parish churches, a privilege
often sadly abused and used to provide a respectable station and an assured livelihood
for a younger son or somebody else's younger son. The parishioners had nothing to
say, and the Bishop was usually cooperative. An underground rebellion against this
confessedly curious system must be taken into account.

31 This procedure, vaguely felt for in this line of argument, has since been definitely
proposed as a bridge between Presbyterianism or Congregationalism and Episcopacy,
it might work.

76 History of American Congregationalism

from the first, more fearful of the political implications of Puritanism
than its threat to the Establishment. At any rate the political and the re-
ligious were tied up in one bundle. The Puritan was naturally on the side
of Parliament by every inheritance and came into his own, so he believed,
for one tragic and heroic period, through political upheaval become re-
bellion.

For Parliament was the citadel of English liberty. A King without a
Parliament was a despot, and a Parliament without the power of the
purse was an empty form. Charles' blind determination to reign without
a Parliament drove him straight toward civil war. The Puritan had been
told by his preachers for a long generation that life is a warfare. He not
only identified himself with the Parliamentary cause; he was the cause
incarnate. Laud, to make the King's case more hopeless, harried the realm
with religious persecution. The issue was thus predetermined— "To your
tents, O Israel" or else to Massachusetts Bay. For all this combined not
only to launch Winthrop's fleet, but within eleven years to bring the
population of the colony up to twenty thousand. New England became
for the Puritan a wide "door of liberty." There he might set up a form of
church government impossible in Old England. His magistrates would
still enforce religion (that he clung to), but the magistrates would be of
his own choosing, the religion they enforced would be his kind of re-
ligion, and his dream of a divine order of society be realized.'^

Dr. Samuel Fuller Is Called to Salem

Details of this conception suffered, almost immediately upon the
Puritans' landing, a most significant sea-change. They brought two
ministers with them, Francis Higginson and Samuel Skelton. The Com-
pany had given them also a wide door of liberty in the future exercise
of their ministry "in teaching both our owne people and the Indians,"
expressing only the pious hope that they would make God's word the
rule of their actions. Both these men. Miller thinks, had Congregational
leanings. They were therefore predisposed to conversion. Now Endicott,
with a group which had out-sailed the rest, settled at Salem— or, better,
named their settlement because there they would find peace. Endicott
fell ill with scurvy, then and long afterwards the plague of slow-sailing
ships. Dr. Samuel Fuller, deacon and doctor at Plymouth, was the only
physician on the lonely coast. He would have been skilled in the treat-
ment of scurvy, for his colony in the first winter had almost perished of

32 This is the crux of Miller's argument. It explains the long course of religion, and
many other things, in the colony and clears them of inconsistency. They had as yet
no theory of tolerance at Massachusetts Bay.

Pilgrim and Puritan in a Neiv World 77

it. So he went to Salem and, as Endicott writes Bradford, was of great
service to them. Fuller had been a deacon in the Pilgrim church at
Leyden and was competent for spiritual as well as bodily ailments. He
not only defended Plymouth against the evil reports "that hath been
spread of you touching their particular," but, according to a tradition
Congregational historians cherish, converted doubting Endicott to Con-
gregationalism. (So Dexter)

Miller has less confidence in sudden conversion, and in this case with
reason. Two Stuart Kings and the Bench of Bishops had been trying
vainly to get Puritans to change their minds and mend their ways for
thirty years, and they had powerful instruments of persuasion. And here
was Fuller doing it almost overnight. One may allow something for the
amenable mind of a sick man and more to Fuller's evangelical power.
But, Miller holds, Endicott was already half-converted, or else Deacon
Fuller could not so suddenly "persuade a headstrong man like Endicott"
or lead ministers like Skelton and Higginson so easily to see the Sepa-
ratist light. They were all predisposed to the Congregational way.^^

Consequently, on the sixth of August, 1629, ^^^ Salem Company
united to form a church by covenant. They elected and ordained their
"pastor" and "teacher," though both had received established ordination
in England.^* The Salem Church, seeking peace, sent their first "letter
missive" to the Plymouth church that they might have their approbation
and even guidance. The Plymouth delegates, headed by Bradford, went
by sea and were hindered by cross winds, "but they came into the Assem-
bly afterwards and gave them the "right hand of fellowship." Salem was
living up to its name. Winthrop and his company, therefore, found
Salem church a going concern and followed the pattern in founding
new churches. This, says Walker, was the real inception of American Con-
gregationalism.

The number of churches could grow but slowly. They could not out-
run the slow increase and dispersion of population. There were but five

33 There were all sorts of cross lines here too numerous to disentangle. John Robin-
son had urged the Pilgrims to recognize their Puritan brethren. Jacobs (who influenced
strongly Congregationally-inclined Puritans) had himself been influenced by Robinson
or else vice versa. There was a prepared liaison between Plymouth and Salem. When,
later, the news of what was happening in their colony reached the Company in London—
as it did through the brothers Browne, who brought their Prayer Books with them and
for the public use of them were shipped back home (first case of deportation)— the
London Company rebuked Endicott most mildly, and mostly for his lack of tact.
(Miller in part.) Dexter thought differently. He reads in the letter displeasure and
rebuke.

34 Which was true of the early Massachusetts Bay ministry. If there is any virtue in
Episcopal ordination, though much attenuated, there are more vestiges of its virtue in
Congregationalism than any other American communion save the Episcopalian— which
a Presbyterian would deny. Walker dates the organization of the Salem Church a few
months earlier.

78 History of American Congregationalism

Congregational churches on the continent ten years after the Mayflower
discharged her Pilgrims. Twenty years after, there were but thirty-five.
But the sifted seed-corn was planted. The problem was to save the Con-
gregational way from the reproach of disorder and prevent the Presby-
terian way from becoming too magisterial. The next chapter considers
their solution of that problem.

CHAPTER VI

The New England Way
Becomes Congregational

MASSACHUSETTS Bay Colony prospered economically from the
first; there was no starvation there. There was apparently ample
capital behind it; its executives were capable, its people com-
petent and inventive. They had fish, fur, and wood to export and within
ten years had begun to build their own ships, make their own bricks,
glass, and textiles. They printed an Almanac for 1639 upon their own
press (imported) and next year the Bay Psalm Book. Agriculture was
basal; the whole family delved and span from dawn to dark. Religion
was their only avocation and that they took with a seriousness beyond
exaggeration. Indeed their concern for their souls made it their real vo-
cation. Were they not wayfarers seeking Heaven Gate and always in peril
of missing it?

The church, therefore, was fundamental in their social and even po-
litical organization. Their slowly widening circles of settlements were
churches before they were towns. Being essentially a religious and not a
political commonwealth, the ministers, not the magistrate, were masters.
For if Plymouth suffered from want of ministers, having none but ab-
sentee John Robinson for almost ten years and then a parson suspected
of the Puritans, Massachusetts Bay had too many from the beginning.
They were masterful, well educated, had been in danger or without par-
ishes in England, and so were eager to share the Puritan Land of Pure
Delight. They were welcomed and honored beyond their desert. Win-
throp was hard-headed enough, but he wrote: "I honoured a faithful
minister in my heart and could have kissed his feet."^ When the Gov-
ernor is like that, the magistrates are clay and the minister the potter.

In 1631 the colony took momentous and far-reaching action. It was
enacted: "that for time to come noe man shall be admitted to the free-
dom of this body politicke, but such as are members of some of the
Churches . . . within the same." No one, therefore, could vote who was
not a church communicant, and no one could become a church member
save on a minister's allowing. This was destined to make both church

lAdams, The Emancipation of Massachusetts, p. 32. This is a careful study of the
New England way.

8o History of American Congregationalism

and commonwealth all kinds of trouble. The actual issue was not a state
church but a church-state which John Calvin in Geneva would have en-
vied. The town meeting was the church meeting, a little secularized; the
church meeting was the town meeting, supposedly spiritualized. The sys-
tem would in time become democratic; it was in its inception entirely
the contrary. It "was a speaking aristocracy in the face of a silent Democ-
racy." And the clerical aristocracy was the more autocratic because it sup-
posed itself to be doing the will of God.

The people went to church too much, so the Court of Assistants
thought,^ since their daily services left them too little time to work. Legis-
lation was helpless before this avidity for sermonic delights. The devout
sat for hours in frigid "meeting houses" emotionally swayed by fear and
longing. No wonder the minister was master. Historians cannot escape
calling all this "Congregational" and "Congregationalism," but it was
not so named to begin with. It was the "New England Way" (Dexter),
distrusted in England, worked out by processes of trial and error in New
England. The name Congregational, like Topsy, "just giowed." John
Cotton uses it definitely in The Way of the Congregational Churches
Cleared (1648) and that assumes an earlier controversial use of it. It
would not become more definite until set against the backgiounds of
later denominationalism.'

"Clearing the Way"

It was not easy to clear "the way of the Congregational churches."
The final, historic adjustment was a working resolution of three forces:
first, a Separatist-Independency which crossed in the Mayflower and had
behind it in England and then in America two long generations of trial
and error, persecution, exile, courage, and adventure; and above and be-
hind all that an increasingly consistent conception of how a church
should be gathered and administered. Second, a complete or Puritanical
semi-Presbyterianism whose emulation was Scotland and whose ideal was
Geneva. Third, the inherited and still continued conception of the right
of the magistrate to order religion. Doctrine was not so much involved
as yet; they were all in substance Calvinists. The migiations from Eng-
land became increasingly Puritan in personnel after 1629-30. The King
and Laud were for the time supreme, but the Puritan and Parliamentary
rebellion was gathering head. Naturally immigrants so tinctured were
critical of Independency. It still for them smelled of Browneism.

2 Adams, The Emancipation of Massachusetts, pp. 34 ff.

3 Very likely it formulated itself in opposition to Presbyterianism, but one cannot
document that guess.

The New England Way Becomes Congregational 8 1

There were always dangers to be guarded against: heresies, evildoers,
dangerous leaders, etc. (Cotton names them at highly rhetorical length.)
If then a church were trusted with complete autonomy, the cause of reli-
gion and the safety of the commonwealth would be imperiled in three
possible ways: "Blasphemers" might covenant together in a congrega-
tion; an established church fall from grace, or an unsound minister let
black sheep into his flock. Against these perils a system of defenses was
built. Since the church generally preceded township organization, the
General Court must not and would not, it enacted in 1635, approve any
new church save as the company proposing to establish it "first acquaint
[spelling modernized] the magistrates and the elders of the great part of
the churches in this jurisdiction with their intentions and have their ap-
probation therein." Further, no person, being a member of a church not
thus approved by magistrates and the majority of the churches, "shall
be admitted to the freedom of this Commonwealth."

The Cambridge Platform of Church Discipline gave the magistrate
coercive power over corrupt or schismatical churches "as the matter shall
require." Since it was the duty of Christian magistrates to take care that
the people be fed with sound doctrine, no person would be allowed to
preach to "any company of people or be ordained against the veto of
two churches, the Council of State, or the General Court." In case of
proposed ordination the approbation of neighboring churches was re-
quired. Finally, no meeting house could be built without leave from the
freemen of the town or the General Court, all of which is in substance a
curious combination of some of the later statutes of Queen Elizabeth and
what became and has continued good Congregational usage. The "New
England Way" was complete in theory as far as legislation could define
and support it.

Within this general frame, for almost two generations, details of wor-
ship, administration, authority, and belief were worked out. The forms
of worship were almost inevitable, following Geneva's pattern: prayer,
a psalm, the Word, God there and then present and speaking through
the Old and New Testaments; the sermon to give the sense and apply
the use of the Word. The minister in his wooden pulpit, the elders on
both sides, the people listening with "Reverence and Attention."* If
there were "prophets," men with a gift for exhortation, present they
might, if time and the elders permitted, speak as they were moved.
Questions were allowed, save from women. Baptism and the Lord's
Supper administered, a psalm again, an offering and the final word of
blessing.^

^Dexter, Congregationalism as Seen in Its Literature, p. 423.

sDexter (from Cotton), Congregationalism as Seen in Its Literature, p. 423.

82 History of American Congregationalism

What was actually happening during this period was an attempted
fusion of Congregational and Presbyterian theory and practice. The
status and authority of the elder had been in debate in England from
the very rise of Puritanism. The attempt to impose the "ruling elder"
upon New England congregations created reams of disputatious writing,
long vanished and long-winded arguments and in general a now exces-
sively dusty detail. Two conceptions were in opposition which could not
finally be reconciled in one church body: government from the top by
the clergy and assisting authorities— the elders— or Congregational con-
trol. Each has its virtues when singly and consistently followed. They
could not be tied up in one bundle; then nor practically since.

The Cambridge Synod

The immediate result of this situation was the famous Cambridge
Synod, usually and rightly considered a most significant milestone on the
New England Way. The position of the Bay Colony was perilous. The
Puritan in England was beginning to control Parliament. Migrants to
New England were, therefore, increasingly of a Presbyterian persuasion
and it pained them deeply to be denied the right to vote. They therefore
petitioned the General Court for relief. If relief were denied they would,
they lamented, be "necessitated to apply our humble desires to the hon-
orable house of Parliament, who, we hope, will take our sad conditions
into their serious consideration." Oliver Cromwell was then very soon to
take the sad condition of Parliament into his serious consideration and,
through Colonel Pride, purge it to his liking.

Massachusetts then as afterwards prepared to legislate for herself.
The General Court, therefore, "desired" that the churches "sit in Synod
(in September, 1646) to discuss, dispute and cleare up, by the word of
God" questions of church government and discipline. Also they invited
delegates from Plymouth, Connecticut and New Haven. Most of the
Massachusetts churches and a few from the other colonies responded—
cautiously. They got so far as appointing a committee (a hallowed Con-
gregational procedure) to draw up a scriptural mode of church govern-
ment. They were dispersed by an epidemic and met again in August,
1648. Result: the Cambridge Platform— seventeen chapters— covering
about everything. It has since furnished Congregational church historians
an ample and fascinating material.^ The situation was the thing. Here
was a society destined to democracy in both administration and religion,
and at the same time afraid of it. Their little commonwealth was im-

6 The Platform will be considered at length and with documentation in the second
part ot this history.

The New England Way Becomes Congregational 83

periled by a distant but unsympathetic Parliament and Quakers and
Baptists at home. There was as yet no social tradition, no long habitude
to steady and support them.

The local setting of the Synod was across the Charles River from Bos-
ton but the backgrounds and necessities of it were as much in old as in
New England. There also the religious situation was complicated enough.
The Civil Wars had been fought by Cromwell and his Ironsides under
the supposed control of Puritan parliaments of a strong Presbyterian
persuasion. To Puritan parliamentary action British and American Cal-
vinism owes the Westminster Confession which "for substance of doc-
trine" the New England church accepted and long professed. There was
therefore on both sides of the Atlantic a brotherly unanimity of belief.
But Cromwell himself was more sympathetic with the Independent than
with the Presbyterian, finding him probably less obstructive, and the In-
dependent wing of the New England leaders could count for the time
upon his far-reaching support in the contentions about church govern-
ment which were the real matter in debate at Cambridge. A few years
before this Council was called, a group of English divines had sent over
a list of nine "positions" on which they asked the advice of the Colonial
ministers. Another group of Puritan ministers in England drafted a set
of thirty-two questions which they sent to America.

The Colonial churches had two champions. Reverend Thomas Hook-
er and Reverend John Cotton, two men who had been friendly rivals in
England where each had reached a position of eminence. They came to
America in the same ship after persecution in England. Both were con-
sidered by the First Church of Boston where John Cotton was called.
Thomas Hooker took the church at Newtowne (Cambridge), and as has
often been told, Hooker very soon gathered up his followers and removed
to "Hartford-on-Connecticut."

When the "questions" and "positions" of the English leaders de-
manded attention, Cotton and Hooker not only spoke on these matters,
but both took up their pens in defense of the freedom of the American
churches. Cotton's The Keyes to the Kingdom of Heaven, published in
England in 1644, had been widely read. The English had also read his
Way of the Churches which was published in England without Cotton's
consent. The manuscript of Hooker's great work on church doctrine was
lost at sea, but other of his writings were circulated. Later on The Summe
of Doctrine was published from his notes after his death in 1648. Al-
though these books were either published or in process, the church lead-
ers felt that a more definite reply than individual witness was needed to
the questions from England. These, then, were the "agenda" of the
Synod— these and the future of the New England Way.

84 History of American Congregationalism

For the problem was to save the Congregational Way from the re-
proach of disorder and prevent the Presbyterian Way from getting the
control of the congregation. The issue was a system of checks and bal-
ances.^ Authority, according to the Cambridge Gospel of John Cotton, is
reserved wholly to the elders; the elders are prevented from tyranny and
oligarchy by the liberty of the brethren, and the Platform was quite con-
fident that the power of the elders and the privileges of the brethren
"may agree sweetly together." Somewhere behind it all was the perennial
question of the hen and the egg or vice versa— which came first? For there
would be no elders without the call of the congregation, and no congre-
gation without the approbation of the elders. After that, though, the
pious hope was expressed that the final authority would be from Christ
and not from men, and the elders held the whip hand, which they meant
to keep.

Miller, to whose interpretations this section is in debt, calls this theory
of dual authorities cooperating a "triumph of ingenuity." Dexter saw in
it a Congregationalized Presbyterianism or a Presbyterianized Congrega-
tionalism which was Genevan outside the local congregation and Pilgrim
inside the local congregation. The Cambridge Conference has another
distinction: it was a laborious and sincere effort on a small scale to reach
a working accommodation between the non- (or anti-) Anglican groups
of the more moderate sort, to break down the walls of partition between
Puritan and Pilgrim and of the twain to make one new man. Seen now
in retrospect it was an early experiment in ecumenicity; or in plain
words, the attempt to unite what English Calvinistic Protestantism there
was then on the American continent.

Had it held creatively and widely for the next one hundred years,
American Congregationalism and Presbyterianism would have continued
one fellowship, become one denomination.* Actually forces beyond the
control of Cottons and Hookers were against it. There was a tenacious
independence, a tough-grained individualism in the common folk of
the colonies which the stony soil nourished and the perils of the frontier,
then so near to Boston, tended to harden. They meant in half-uncon-
scious and inarticulate ways to manage their own affairs. The New Eng-
land way socially, temperamentally, politically, was more spacious and
potent than the new England Church Way, and in an inelegant phrase,
soaked it up. The elders fade out of the picture; synod became in time
an alien word. The shrewd New England faculty kept what it felt it

7 No one as far as we know has yet found in the Cambridge Platform the germinal
rudiments of the L'nited States Constitution. Both sought the same ends.

SA most alluring supposition. Perhaps if all immigration from the British Isles had
come for the next hundred years through the Port of Boston it might have come true.
But when the Scotch Irish began to crowd in through Philadelphia and Baltimore—!

The New England Way Becomes Congregational 85

needed; the fellowship of the churches, their mutual responsibility for
the common well being, and quite literally, a neighborly oversight, shar-
ing, and submission. This would in time become a habit, a tradition, a
self-imposed and self-accepted discipline, native to the soil and the soul
of the region then; native, since, not so much to soils as to souls who
found and still find it a good way for them.^

Ill

The Churches Grow in Numbers and Community

Between forty and fifty churches adopted the Cambridge Platform
for "substance of doctrine." (Dexter.) This indicates a relatively rapid
gi'owth in New England population and a corresponding increase in
churches. Since New Haven was asked to Cambridge (an interchange of
visits is now a habit, though not for purely religious ends), there must
have been followers of the way in New Haven. The relation of the colo-
nists to the Indian is no part of this history, though it has important
bearings upon it. Plymouth got on kindly with them, with qualifications,
but in general the colonists with intervals of trying to convert them,
fought them to extermination.

The Pequots were strong and hostile. As long as they held the interior
lines of communication, travel was unsafe between Massachusetts, Rhode
Island, and Connecticut and interior colonization perilous. The situation
was complicated by feuds between the Narragansetts and Pequots. Urged
by Roger Williams, the Narragansetts made a treaty with Boston. The
Pequots ravaged the little interior settlements, especially in Connecticut,
whose colonists called for help. The first joint action of all New Eng-
land colonies seems to have been in the campaign which followed and
wiped out the Pequot nation (1637). It was a cruel but effective busi-
ness. The Connecticut coast could now be colonized and travel was safe.

The last wave of Puritan migration, therefore, chose New Haven har-
bor and settled New Haven in the spring of 1638. The noble old church
on the "Green" inherits the tradition of the First Church of Christ in
New Haven. Its first pastor, John Davenport, Oxford graduate, eloquent
and forceful, was conservative, theocratic. The power of the clergy was
extreme, only church members could vote, and though the "blue laws"
were an impudent and unveracious invention of the Rev. Samuel Peters,
ecclesiastical control of manners and morals was rigid in New Haven.
Hartford was another story. Adventurous John Oldham explored the
Connecticut Valley in 1633 and brought back glowing reports. Attempts

9It should be added— and the ministers, elders, and magistrates would be shocked to
find it in a footnote— that the Synod safeguarded orthodoxy by agreeing upon a list of
eighty-two errors condemned by the word of God.

86 History of American Congregationalism

at settlement followed; one of them tragic in experience and heroic.
Meanwhile Thomas Hooker, pastor of the Newtowne church, was at
odds with the Boston heirarchy, politically and ecclesiastically. He was
on the side of the sturdy "freemen" who wanted to be freemen and had
no love for a self-perpetuating closed corporation of either magistrates
or ministers. Winthrop favored restriction of the suffrage: "The best
part," he said, "is always the least and of that best part the wiser part is
always the lesser." ^°

"In matters which concern the common good," Hooker maintained,
"a general council chosen by all, to transact businesses which concern
all, I conceive most suitable to rule and most safe for relief of the whole."
Hooker and his Newtowne congregation sought a terrain more favorable
to this noble philosophy than a Boston suburb. In June 1636 a hundred
of them, Hooker at their head, went through the woods to Hartford,
taking along one hundred and sixty head of cattle. That pilgrimage was
one of the idylls of New England colonization. There would be laurel in
the pine woods, the thrush and the veery singing at sunset, clear brooks
to follow across the height of land, and at last the bright waters of the
beautiful river. Immigi^ation from England was at its peak and the settle-
ments along the river grew. The Dorchester and Waterbury congrega-
tions followed in a body. Here at last freedom was on the march, the
dreams of a thousand years come true. For a year Massachusetts Bay
governed the towns through commissioners, but next year Windsor, Hart-
ford, and Wethersfield set up a General Court of their own. At its open-
ing session Hooker proclaimed that "the foundation of authority is laid
in the free consent of the people"; "that the choice of public magistrates
belongs unto the people by God's own allowance"; "that they who have
power to appoint officers and magistrates have the right to set the bounds
and limitations of the power and place unto which they call them."
Afterwards the freemen of the three towns wrote a freeman's constitution.
"The first written constitution," says Fiske, "known to history, that cre-
ated a government."

Intolerances and Hysteria

Meanwhile in Boston the preachers and magistrates proceeded to
write a chapter of provincial history which went far to disprove Win-
tjlirop's assurance that the few are always the wise "and the fewer the
wiser." The Puritan treatment in New England of the witches, Quakers,
and Baptists has created a most considerable literature, emotive or crit-
ical. It was shameful and, from what only yesterday was a modern point

10 All this from John Fiske's The Beginnings of New Eiigland, p. i5iff. Cotton and
Hooker, Fiske comments, anticipate Hamilton and Jefferson.

The New England Way Becomes Congregational 87

of view, impossible," and apparently terribly inconsistent. No proper
understanding of it is possible save against the backgrounds of its own
actors and its own time. The smallness of the stage itself magnified the
drama, but it was an aspect of the general mind of the period. Witch-
craft is an immemorial superstition. Anabaptists had rusted instruments
of torture with their blood since the beginning of the Reformation. The
Quakers were hunted people in England as well as America.

The Puritan was ruled by an iron creed. Otherwise he would himself
have been broken. But an iron creed may become too strong for weak
hands. "So," says a possibly prejudiced writer, "Augustine's predestina-
tion was safe with him, comprehensible in Calvin, tiresome in the Eng-
lish Puritans." ^^ He was a hard man, otherwise he also would have been
broken, and he was consumed by his own intensities. The people were
on edge emotionally. Their excess of churchgoing and what they heard
in church obsessed them with hopes and fears. They were lonely, a hand-
ful on the fringe of a continent. They had no releases but religion. The
frame of Puritanism was never large enough for the whole of life any-
where, and least of all in a frontier settlement pathetically bare of cul-
tural resources. The passions of the frontier are always violent since there
are so few channels to carry them off; and finally, when religion goes
cruel, it is cruelly cruel.

It is impossible here to separate the social from the religious, or know
whether one is writing a secular or church history because in and about
Boston then nothing was purely secular. There were two intolerances and
one hysteria, the first intolerance against the Baptists or the Anabaptist,
so-called. Puritan Congregationalism was going to have troubles enough
of its own over infant baptism, but it would sufEer none to deny it. So
with much verbiage and archaic spelling, the General Court (1644)
ordered and agreed that anyone condemning or opposing infant baptism
or seducing others to do so, should, if they could not be brought to
change their minds, be banished. There were protests against the act
from divers merchants and others, and Parliament asked questions about
it. Edward Winslow quieted Parliament with the assurance that it would
be gently executed, which they proceeded to do by whipping "one
Painter, for refusing to let his child be baptized." Painter bore it with-
out flinching and boasted that "God had assisted him." For Baptist lean-
ings Henry Dunster was removed from the presidency of Harvard and
driven out of the colony with a sick wife and child in March, his salary
unpaid. He found sanctuary in Plymouth.

"Its vast and tragic parallels in European anti-Semitisra, concentration camps, etc.,
qualify that statement.

12 Williams, The Descent of the Dove.

88 History of American Congregationalism

The case of Roger Williams is classic. No doubt Williams was argu-
mentative, difficult, a born nonconformist. He tried Massachusetts Bay
sorely and in about every possible way. He advocated complete separa-
tion of church and state; equal protection for all forms of religious
faith; no compulsory church attendance; no tithes or taxes for the sup-
port of religion; and perhaps worst of all, he denied the right of the
colonists to their lands. The soil belonged to the Indians; it would be
held rightfully only by purchase from them. The King's Patent was in-
valid and the acceptance of it a sin needing to be publicly reported."
There was no place about Massachusetts Bay for such a man as that
(he had been minister at Salem), so the General Court sought to deport
him. He escaped through the wintry woods, found shelter with Massasoit
whose language he could speak and of whom he sought to make a Chris-
tian—or something like it. In the Spring he went on to Narragansett Bay
and so began Providence Plantation (1636), whose name is beautifully
significant and whose street names perpetuate the spirit of its settlers.
Islands in the Bay were named after Williams' daughters. There he
sought to make operative his doctrine of "soul liberty."'^

The colony's dealing with the Quakers was far more tragic. This
again must be understood from that time and not ours. The wisdom and
grace of the "Friends," won through many tribulations and now exer-
cised for the healing of the nations, invests the very name with the finest
of Christian qualities. But their beginnings were erratic and their early
peacefulness has been vigorously denied by such apologists as Dexter and
others. They maintain that Williams and the Quakers were the aggres-
sors, had no business in or about Boston anyway, asked for persecution
and drove the authorities to frenzy. (So Ellis, quoted by Adams.) There
is no doubt about the frenzy. It was contagious, and magistrates and
Quakers were possessed by it.

The action against Baptists and Quakers covered thirty-odd years
and began in 1642. The first period ended by royal decree when Charles
II interfered and ordered those under arrest sent to England. A yeai" later
the King confirmed the Massachusetts charter, excluding by a royal letter
the Quakers from general toleration. Thereupon the General Court
passed the Vagabond Act (since in substance found useful in various
states for dealing with undesirables). Under this Act anyone deemed a
vagabond could be whipped without limit after a second conviction, and
the whips were no toys. During these twenty-one years three men and

i3In substance from Fiske, The Beginnitjgs of New E7igland, pp. 140-141.

i^For a carefully documented and detailed account of the actions against the Bap-
tists see Adams, The Emancipation of Massachusetts, chap. 4. He does not soften the
story but the documents speak for themselves. "Bridewell" and "Clink" were duplicated
in Boston.

The New England Way Becomes Congregational 89

one woman were hanged, others branded, many otherwise cruelly dealt
with. These pioneer Quakers, possessed by a sense of mission, met perse-
cution with fanaticism, even to the unclothing of their bodies, and sadly
disturbed the decorum of the meeting house. But for all that only a
counter-fanaticism gone sadistic would have whipped three women on
their bare backs from Dover to Durham, ten stripes in each town.

Anne Hutchinson, who proved a unique insurgent, was a "move-
ment" all by herself. She was an early feminist, gave lectures which drew
their hearers away from the churches, and founded a woman's club (a
pioneer Margaret Fuller) which criticized sermons. Her theology was
highly objectionable to the orthodox. She claimed the spirit of prophecy
and proclaimed "the inner light." Here, perhaps, was the head and front
of the Quakers' offending, though Anne was not a Quaker. The Puritan
light was God's word, there on the preacher's pulpit; final, authoritative,
inerrant, and the preacher was its instrument. There could be no com-
promise between the "word" and the "inner light." This may explain
the Puritan dislike and distrust of "enthusiasm" and his consequent treat-
ment of the Quaker and other self-nominated prophets or prophetesses.
So Mrs. Hutchinson and her friends were ordered out of the colony, pos-
sibly with some unconfessed regret on Cotton's part; he seems rather to
have liked the lady, who had been his parishioner, follower, and quite
sympathetic friend in Boston, England. She was thereafter a pilgrim
herself, she and her group. Followers founded Exeter and Hampton in
now New Hampshire. She herself with others settled at the mouth of
Narragansett Bay, eventually Rhode Island Plantation, and with nearly
all her children was at last murdered by the Indians near Stamford (Con-
necticut). Thomas Hutchinson, last royal governor of Massachusetts,
was one of her descendants. So much for Anne Hutchinson and for the
Quakers. (These datings need precision. The persecution of Baptists
began in 1642. The Quakers began to come in 1656.)

Salem Witchcraft

Salem witchcraft was the last hysteria. This also needs to be under-
stood from the time, the setting, and the temper of the actors. The colony
was under political and social strain. Its charter had been revoked and
the set-up was being reorganized under William and Mary. The new
charter changed many things, especially the relation of the colony to the
crown (no part of this history) and overthrew "the temporal power of
the Church," though by no means the influence of the clergy. It is pos-
sible that their passion to keep their sorely-threatened dominance over
the people started the whole foolish and tragic business. Everybody be-

go History of American Congregationalism

lieved in witches; England was as bad as New England. Perhaps only a
sincere regard for the safety of their flocks led to a proposal to collect
stories of sorceries and such.

Increase Mather made the book (1683-84) and soon suggestion began
to act. Four years later some children showed, it was thought, signs of
possession. (Compare the Wesleys at Epworth.) Their symptoms would
now be familiar to any alienist, but they hanged an Irish washerwoman
with whom one of the daughters had quarrelled. The Mathers, Increase
and Cotton, blew up the fire. The governor created a court to try witches.
The devil and his servants rode abroad and unseen devils as well. The
only defense was accusation. No one was safe. None were burned, but
more than enough were hanged. There was confiscation of property,
doubtless a good many satisfied envies and grudges, and apparently a
general scaring of people back to church. "In the whole," concluded Cot-
ton Mather,!^ ". . . the devil got nothing, but God got praises, Christ got
subjects, the Holy Writ got temples, the Church got additions, and the
souls of men got everlasting benefits." And the Mathers would eventually
get a most unsavoury reputation. Then it all ended.

But there was a power of correction in the commonwealth for all
these follies. ^^ The people themselves. No dispassionate student can read
democracy back into the first sixty-odd years of New England church
history, nor political history either. It was not there. The situation was
always anomalous: a trading company exercising sovereign powers, the
mother country in revolution, and beneath or above it all the dream of
God's own state, and they (magistrates and ministers) his vice-regents.
Hart, surely an impartial historian, held the power of the clergy in the
Massachusetts system to have been undemocratic and unfortunate.

But a deeper current ran against all this. If one calls it ecclesiastically
the bequest of Plymouth and John Robinson, he will be right enough.
If he called it the destined issue of the society itself, men and women
being slowly disciplined into free obediences and self-obedient freedoms,
he will be more right still. If he maintains that it was, both ecclesiasti-
cally and politically, Congregationalism getting itself disentangled from
an alien system and finding itself at last, he may seem a special pleader,
but he will be hard to confute.

15 Adams, The Emancipation of Massachusetts. "Wonders of the Invisible World"
quoted.

16 There has been on the part of historians an unfair discrimination against New Eng-
land in studies of religious intolerance. New England had no monopoly of it. Virginia,
for example, had its share. There was a decade (1760-1770) of violent persecution of
Baptists in that colony— a period of complete toleration in Massachusetts. "Baptist
preachers were stoned out of Culpepper County in 1765 and jailed in Spotsylvania
County in 1768." James Madison, The Virginia Revolutionist, i/^i-ijSo, by Irving
Brant. This fascinating biography also stresses the influence of- a growing hostility to
Virginia Anglicanism upon the whole movement toward colonial independence.

CHAPTER VII

Entanglements and Disentanglements

IT IS impossible to do anything with the history of American Congre-
gationalism without recognizing its organic relation to and entan-
glement in the very structure of New England colonial society to
begin with; in past and contemporaneous English history, in a strategic
phase of the Reformation and, finally, in the stern, heroic, and impos-
sible Puritan ideology. It cannot possibly be dissected out of its age and
its environment until it disentangled itself. The limitations of the stage
complicated the whole situation. It was always crowded with actors be-
lieving their seacoast fringed the cosmos. There was and is a superabun-
dance of documentation. How so much of so little consequence said and
written was saved is a marvel and a snare to the specialists. It is difficult
to see the wood for the trees.

Standing far enough off one can trace the continuing forces. First of
all was the attempt to make the colonies God-ruled societies through
legislation and legal enforcement, and if need be by the two-handed
whip and the gallows. Second, the effort to continue the autocracy of
ministers and elders in the face of a tenacious instinct for freedom and
social and economic interests; third, the determination of the colonies
not to be governed without representation by Kings or Parliaments or
bishops three thousand miles away; fourth, and most significant for
American Congregationalism, the effort of the Presbyterian-minded to
make New England Presbyterian, an ecclesiastical frame to which the
real genius of the province was not native.^ Finally, though Massachus-
etts by no means dominated the Connecticut and New Haven churches,
it did supply the larger outlines of the New England way.

For these reasons the acts and actors of Massachusetts Bay almost un-
escapably get an apparently disproportionate attention in all studies of
American Congregationalism. Once one gets clear of that period, the
going is easier. If one stands far enough back from the relatively short
period from 1630 to 1689, he sees among many other things significant
changes in the small populations themselves. After 1640 many of the
best men in the colony went back to England to reinforce the Puritan

lAny Presbyterian would want that statement qualified and in the light of what
American Presbyterianism became it should be. But colonial Massachusetts was three
hundred years nearer Geneva.

92 History of American Congregationalism

and Parliamentary forces there. There was consequently less competent
and broadminded leadership and a lowered morale. The immigrants
who later followed Winthrop's fleet did not all come for religious rea-
sons. They came to trade or to better their conditions or to get on in the
New World.

If the first phase, then, of American Congregationalism was a strug-
gle between Independency and Presbyterianism, the next phase is one
more chapter in the long story of the Church and the world. Very soon
the ministers began to lament the sad estate of manners and morals.
They sound a familiar note, and after 1660 are dark with despair. Their
real trouble is as easy now to see as it is hard to condense into a brief
statement. The earliest Congregationalists, projecting the name back-
ward, were all for a "gathered Church." Real Christians should leave
the Established Church, find each other out, covenant together and so
become a true Church on their own initiative. That needed, then, both
burning conviction and courage, and in this first phase there was little
need for recruiting. When the Pilgrim came to Plymouth, his little group
was entirely unified, religiously and socially. Town meeting and church
meeting were the same folk. But presently there would be children and
children's children and, maybe, the "ungodly." What then?

When the Puritan came to Massachusetts Bay or New Haven, the
company of church communicants and the entire society were also very
nearly identical. The restriction of suffrage to communicants was almost
automatic and created no tensions. And there was the pious and almost
pathetically unconsidered expectation that this quite ideal— to the Puri-
tan—condition would continue. He meant to have no intruders. The
continent was spacious; let them go, if need be with his vigorous assist-
ance, somewhere else. His children and children's children would be, he
also assumed, as godly as he was himself. That was what his ministers and
elders were for. These hopes were, naturally, disappointed and in their
defeat his troubles began.

I
The Half- Way Covenant

Within thirty years the bases of citizenship had to be broadened. The
state could not be limited to the church; there was too much pressure of
all kinds against it. By the King's Mandate (1664) all freeliolders "not
vicious in conversation and orthodox" (though of different persuasions
concerning church government) "must have the vote." This took away
from the churches a powerful, though indefensible, argument for church
membership. Also the first religious impulses had spent themselves and
for all the preaching of all the preachers there was nothing entirely to
take its place. There began to be an increasing number of noncommuni-

Entanglements and Disentanglements 93

cants, the always expanding margin of secularized society. Morale was
lowered; children were not as pious as their parents.

The whole religious system met its most unexpected challenge and
problem in a little child, the child of a nonchurch member. It must be
baptized. The saints had dealt harshly with those who denied that; but
on what grounds beside an immemorial custom, and with what safe-
guards? Catholicism had a coherent position. Besides his mother's arms,
the child was born into the arms of Mother Church. Baptism was a
saving sacrament, the first of the sacraments which assured his salvation,
as Extreme Unction was the last. He spent his years between the two, a
corporate member of an indivisible order. The Anglican Church had
a device: godparents. Communicants could always be found who would
sponsor the infant and for him or her renounce the world, the flesh, and
the devil. After that he would be taught, confirmed, admitted to com-
munion and, so assisted, lead a godly, righteous, and sober life.

The Baptist had a logical position: do not baptize any infant. Let
baptism and conscious confession of faith go together. The Puritan-Con-
gregationalist could not accept Catholic sacramentarianism, he would
have nothing to do with godparents, and he was not a Baptist. A pro-
found instinct with all its implications of affection and faith was met by
a rigid system which had not foreseen the situation. The church leaders
were in a dilemma. They could neither deny the child of a noncommuni-
cant baptism nor consistently administer it. For in the second and third
generations family discipline had become more relaxed and not all the
children of the members "owned the covenant" and, hence, were not "of
the church." According to the rules of the day,^ the children of nonmem-
bers could not be baptized, but only children of church members. To
remedy this situation, the famous Half-Way Covenant came into use,
whereby children whose grandparents were members of the church, but
whose parents were not, could be baptized, although such persons were
not received into full membership. They did not have the right to com-
munion, but males so received, when they came of age, had the right to
vote in town elections. Even so the Covenant was not easy to subscribe
to. In the archives of the Old North Church in Boston, there is the record
of a covenant to which these "half-way" members assented:

You now from your Heart professing a serious Belief of the Christian Religion,
as it has been generally declared and embraced by the Faithful in this Place, do
here give up yourself to God in Christ; promising with his Help to endeavor
to Walk according to the Rules of that Holy Religion all your Days; Choosing
of God as your best Good, and your last End, and Christ as the Prophet and
Priest, and King of your Soul for ever. You do, therefore, submit unto the Laws
of his Kingdom, as they are administered in this Church of His; and you will
^Walker, The Creeds and Platforms of Congregationalism, p. 238.

94 History of American Congregationalism

also carefully and sincerely labour after those more positive and increased Evi-
dences of Regeneration, which may further encourage you to seek an Admission
unto the Table of the Lord.^

This pledge would now admit to full membership in Congregational or
most other churches— with a generous margin. The covenant engendered
divisions and controversies of an extent which does not now seem believ-
able.

Those early church members lived in close relationship to God, who
was concerned with their thoughts and deeds and, according to the theol-
ogy of the day, sometimes punished wrong-doing through sickness and
misfortune. Calamities and accidents were frequently taken as expressing
God's displeasure of wrong-doing. This belief was the foundation of the
practice of public and private fasts and days of repentance. When, there-
fore, there came a series of sorrows, from droughts to sicknesses, hard
times, and King Philip's War, it was no wonder that the General Court
ordered a synod to find out the evils that had provoked the Lord to bring
his judgments upon New England and, more important, what could be
done in the way of reformation. The synod reported thirteen prevalent
sins and suggested twelve ways of amendment.'* Some of the sins seem
quite modern; many of the recommendations for reform might be the
report of the "resolutions committee" at the annual meeting of almost
any denomination. Also many held the Half-Way Covenant itself was
the chief occasion for Jehovah's wrath.

The peculiar tribulations and tensions of such groups and movements
as we have been considering from almost the first page were direct or in-
direct results of their ideals and intensities. Life was wayfaring and war-
faring, and there were many adversaries. But they had from the first an
unformulated instinct for the salvation of society as well as their souls.
"Social Salvation" was not in their vocabulary, but they sought to achieve
it by outer and inner instrumentalities. Their relative failures and posi-
tive excesses were due to their programs of legal prohibitions and en-
forcements. Their enduring achievements were down or up another road.
All these beginnings, dreams, darings, possible and impossible ideals,
need to be seen against the vaster backgrounds of England and even Eu-
rope. So seen they gain by every test. "Despite [their] errors ... it may
fairly be questioned whether any public in the early stages of any frontier
settlement showed higher qualities. . . , Proof of this is the influence
which they left behind them in this country and the ideals which they
have set before other lands." ^

3C. Mather, Magnolia Christi Americana, v:84 (Quoted by Dexter, p. 476.)
^Dexter, Congregationalism as Seen in Its Literature, pp. 478-479.
^Hart, Cojnmorixvealth History of Massachusetts, p. 391.

Entanglements and Disentanglements 95

Extension of Churches and Population

All the colonial churches being, in a way difficult now to understand,
the religious expression and organization of their entire corporate life,
the number of churches grew organically with the needs of a growing
population. There were not and would not be until almost the Nine-
teenth Century any societies organized for home missions and no entirely
unchurched frontiers in northeast America until after the Revolutionary
War. The migratory movements in Massachusetts were northeast along
the coast (Maine was then part of Massachusetts), and slowly west. Fron-
tier settlements like Deerfield and Northfield were long in peril of the
French and Indians, but tenaciously they held lonely outposts on the
edge of the northern wilderness. Little colonization was possible in what
is now Vermont until the power of New France was broken on the plains
of Abraham.^

The result was a century of digging in rather than spreading out.
Colonial New England society was unified and particularized. It was
purely an English stock. Class distinctions, though definite, were not
extreme and never rigid. Colonial New England never overdid democ-
racy. No more than one-third the adult male population could vote in
Boston as late as 1775.^ There were from the beginning the elements of
a provincial aristocracy: lesser English gentry, "university men," the
clergy, merchants whose sons' sons would freight their ships for the seven
seas, the governors, deputies to the colonial legislatures, and magistrates.
These would in the course of time with a proper admixture of pride of
ancestry and the climate, combine to create a type which history and
literature have delighted to characterize, not always kindly. But the type
did not dominate the social pattern.

The root-hold of the society, and therefore of its churches, was in a
stony and inhospitable soil. It functioned, for all intimate and really
vital ends, as we repeat, through the town meeting and the church. The
town meeting for all its early limitations of suffrage came as near being
democracy in direct action as is humanly possible. In a single sentence,
demanding much enlargement, the whole interrelated order functioned
from the ground up. This made it tough-fibered and coherent. The

6 The growth of American Protestant denominationalism is therefore tightly tied up
with the irregular expansion of the whole seaboard frontier. New England was con-
tained by an indefinite Canada and New York. The small Middle Atlantic colonies more
or less contained each other. Southern and eastern New York was contained toward
its own interior by the Five Nations— until Sullivan broke them. And the whole Eng-
lish terrain was contained by strategic French forts at the headwaters of the Ohio and
in the Mississippi Valley.

7 Hart, Commonwealth History of Massachusetts, chap. 7.

96 History of American Congregationalism

menace of the French and the Indians, a growing opposition to royal
administration, and the strange undefined sense of destiny which directed
the whole enterprise from and before the sailing of the Mayflower, drew
the New England colonies together. Their first confederacy was pro-
phetic. Socially and religiously they became an organism whose members
were at once independent and interdependent. One moved without any
sense of strangeness from colony to colony. As the adventurous pushed
against the always yielding wilderness, the filaments of the body, social,
religious, and political were lengthened but never broken. When there
were enough of them the central administration set off a town and such
as desired became a church. Thereafter, the town was part of a common-
wealth, the church part of a fellowship.

We should not make it too simple nor too idyllic, but the situation
would be difficult to match for unity, coherence, and organic develop-
ment in the long records of colonization. The contemporaneous con-
fusions of English history sheltered the growth of New England auton-
omy. Presbyterian-Puritanism as a force to be reckoned with faded out
of the English picture. Cromwell himself sympathized with the religious
Independents. The second Charles was occupied with his mistresses, and
with the second James the curtain fell for the Stuarts. The colonies were
heckled and irritated; but their social, political, and religious structures
were intensified rather than weakened. There was as yet no real equiva-
lent of modern denominational competition. The Anglican came and
for a season got, in plain words, a dose of his own medicine which he
took with a wry face. He found himself the dissenter. One cannot say
that it did his soul any good or moved him to suggest a more Christian
attitude toward the so-called dissenter in England; his disabilities were
removed in New England long before the disabilities of the non-Angli-
can, Protestant, or Catholic were removed in Old England. Methodism
was still far below the horizon. When the alarums and excursions against
Baptists and Quakers were over, the apprehensive found that nothing
happened, though there were forty-eight Baptist churches in Massachus-
etts by 1780.

Ill

The State of the Churches Generally: Two Case Studies

Congregationalism was for the time, the region, and the folk a "natu-
ral." One may doubt if since the Reformation anywhere, save in Scot-
land, society, a religion, and a church-way were so one and indivisible.
Statistically, to repeat, the churches giew with the increase and exten-
sion of population; in theory, one to a town. Getting to church or any-
where else was difficult. There were no roads in any modern sense any-
where on the fringes. Settlers used Indian trails for years and the early

Entanglements and Disentanglements 97

highway commissions planned only for "horse and foot."* And there
would have been more "foot" than "horse." Therefore the churches must
not be too far apart. The magistrates could veto the establishment of a
church or the "town" vote one. There were very likely always enough.

The churches were usually named after the towns and the towns got
their names from Old England, the Bible, the Indians, an important first
settler or some natural feature. Level tenain was always noteworthy;
so Wethersfield, Springfield, Deerfield. Once the town was named, a char-
acteristic economy in nomenclature designated its minor localities by
the quarters of the compass: north, east, south, west, and center. So the
churches were locally known: the South Deerfield or North Hadley or
else "The Center Church." In the growing centers of population simple
arithmetic sufficed: First, Second, Third, or Fourth. Streets were useful
to name a church after— if there were streets; so Brattle or Park. Saints
were not thus commemorated until the fellowship got some saints of its
own. The total result was a rather standardized and unimaginative no-
menclature. A case study of any old Congregational church would clothe
such bare bones as these with flesh.

We may use as example the Marshfield, Massachusetts, church, which
disputes with Duxbury the high honor of being the first-born of Ply-
mouth. (As a matter of fact, it is a kind of Jacob and Esau affair.) The
little church was the germ of the settlement. All meetings were held in
the church building; all the freemen were church members— ideal but
not permanent. There were individual gifts to establish the church.
Winslow gave land, and William Thomas, draper, gave a nine-foot linen
cloth for the communion table. When a pastor was finally found he was
moved at the expense of the town. His "passing rich at forty pounds a
year" salary— not then so bad— was to be paid by the town; by 1661 it
was two years in arrears (how he made out is not on the record). Two
years later the town voted thirty-five of the forty pounds to be raised by
taxation; the church should pay the other five in cattle, butter, or Eng-
lish goods. Arnold was under suspicion for heresy, and the church had
its own dissenters. A citizen was imprisoned for saying of the Marshfield
Church that "they were all liars."

Concise church records date from 1696. The old building was re-
paired, another built, sites were changed, ministers came and went. (The
Great Awakening, still to be studied, changed the picture.) Doctrines
were disputed, a slave was baptized, a fourth church was built, etc. In
due time Daniel Webster discovered Marshfield and went to the First

sjames Ford in a fascinating chapter on Colonial Social Life (Hart, Commonwealth
History of Massachusetts, chap, lo) touches on about everything which could be put
in thirty pages but says nothing of roads and transportation, which are the first con-
dition of any social life at all.

gS History of A merican Congregationalism

Church. He is said to have been regular in attendance and the pew he
used is now marked with a brass plate. (All this from Joseph Hagar's
delightful history of Marshfield.)

The First Congregational Church in Milford, Massachusetts, is an-
other interesting case study. It was founded in 1743, through extension
of population and the thorny matter of tax-supported religion. A group
of younger men had moved away from the "Center," and when it was
proposed to build a new church on the old central site they protested.
If they were to be taxed to support a church, they wanted it nearer their
homes. After four years of dispute and fifteen town meetings, the voters
decided on the old site, whereupon the protestants organized themselves
into the "aggrieved" party and a church, not without much difficulty.
The basis of their fellowship was a covenant. By belligerent persistence
the aggrieved party got not only a church of its own but an independent
taxation "precinct" and a "learned and orthodox minister" who shep-
herded it for forty-nine years. After his death it took ten years to find a
successor and the church is said to have heard forty candidates. A Mr.
David Long was finally chosen (i8oi) whereupon the church requested
the "selectmen" to concur, since his salary ($450) was raised by taxation.
But after 1780 Baptists, Methodists, and Universalists had settled in the
precinct (now become the Town of Milford) and formed their own so-
cieties. They naturally objected to being taxed to support Mr. Long and
made their own case. The town meeting voted to exempt all other de-
nominations from taxation for the cost of settlement and salary of Long;
whereupon the town voted to concur with the church in calling him.

This did not bring peace to Milford. Fifteen years later (1815) the
Congregational church organized itself into a separate parish and re-
nounced town support. And still there was no peace in Milford. For
when the church decided to move and sell the old church building, a
party in the town claimed that the building belonged to it and, there-
fore, could neither be moved nor sold without the consent of the town.
In the end the church did what it meant to do; dismantled the old build-
ing, moved it— the records do not say where— and built anew. Prayer
each day began and ended the labor. The work was crowned with a
noble spire, the pews sold for $7000, and a balance of $3000 was left
in the treasury.

We have followed these two "case studies" in detail because they are
the history of Congregationalism for 150 years. The variation in detail
would be endless.^ Marshfield is typical of the organic growth which
churched the whole of New England till the "Great Awakening." Milford

9A precise study of case histories would show too many churches built by factions,
family quarrels, rivalries, and jealousies. (So Professor Hilda Ives.)

Entanglements and Disentanglements 99

is useful to illustrate the complications which grew out of the town-church
theory and tax-supported public worship, and the slow and wrangling
disentanglement of the whole inconsistent system. Also for one thing
more: the pews were sold. Literally, since by the definition of the common
law being fixtures fastened to the floor, they could be held, transferred,
or bequeathed by deed and taxed as real estate to support public worship.
The corporate church officials were, therefore, in some cases called
assessors. This was true of the Second Church in Greenfield, Massachu-
setts at the beginning of this century. Owned pews, not peculiar to
Congregationalism, could naturally be rented or, if transferred, as they
eventually were in the churches generally, to the society (the holding
corporation), they could still be rented by the society. 1°

The final result of these godly integrations of real estate and wor-
ship was the pew-rental system by which, with no longer an actual basis
in title deeds for pews, the privilege of worshipping God in a designated
pew under the ministrations, say, of the Reverend Henry Ward Beecher
(this highly ingenious variant of the system seems to have originated in
his Brooklyn church) was auctioned off. The most desirable pews went
to the highest bidder and a holy competition (not wholly spiritual) aug-
mented the revenues of the society. The total sum so received tended to
become a test of the minister's popularity and a register of the local state
of religion. When the pews ceased to rent well, a foresighted minister
would better begin to pray for a call. Congregationalism had by no
means a monopoly on this procedure. It was widespread in the late
eighteen hundreds. The more defensible side was the "family pew," whose
dear associations need only to be suggested.

IV
Concerning Manners and Morals

Many of the points involved in any account of the development of
first-period Congregationalism, which ended with the "Great Awaken-
ing," deserve a monograph instead of a paragraph. To begin chronolog-
ically everybody was a church member, but if the churches were to go
on they must have new members. In that ideal time prospective members
seem to have sought the church rather than to have been sought by it.
They made their desire known and were examined, in the semi-Presby-
terian era, by the elders, who inquired "as to the work of grace upon
their souls, or how God hath been dealing with them about their con-
version." The banns, as it were, were then published and opportunity

10 Or by the owners. The pew-holders of the First Church in Burlington, Vermont,
surrendered their pews— all save one thrifty family, nonresident, who rented it on their
own and used the rentals to pay their own subscription to another church.

1 oo History of A merican Congregationalism

for objection offered. If none objected, the candidate in the presence of
the churcli at a proper time made profession of his religious faith and
experience. Men were searchingly dealt with and must speak out. A
woman, as the weaker vessel, might have her confession read by the pas-
tor or received on the testimony of the elders "without anymore adoe."
Thereupon the church members voted by the "usual signe"— uplifted
right hand— the candidate assented to a covenant, the church through the
elder promised to guard and guide the new member, and after a final
prayer "they departed away with a blessing." And this technique, much
softened but substantially unchanged even to the "usual signe," still
continues.

The churches took the responsibility of discipline seriously and there
were sufficient occasions. The procedure was much like joining the
church, only in reverse. The case was taken to the elders and by them
to the church, whereupon the erring brother or sister was admonished,
urged to repentance and if unrepentant, excommunicated. In cases of
excommunication the people were not asked for the "usual signe"; silence
gave consent. The records of the elder churches well into the nineteenth
century are sadly shadowed by the frequency and detail of discipline. Few
pleasures were allowed the Christian. Was not life wayfaring and war-
faring? The elan vital therefore of a physically vigorous people made its
own far more blameworthy channels. There is abundant evidence for
the potency of New England rum and sexual irregularities.

James Ford (Hart, Commonwealth History of Massachusetts) thinks
the extent of such immorality to have been overstressed. And it received
then, as the records of it have received since, an unusual degree of pub-
lic and particularized attention. Actually American society everywhere
was then mostly a frontier society and the cruder immoralities follow the
frontier. Ford also thinks the general repressive system to have accentu-
ated the cruelty of a generally cruel epoch. It was a hard time for chil-
dren. They were plentifully engendered, for their labor was needed. They
were worked hard for long hours, and infant mortality was high.^^ They
were baptized on the very first Sabbath after birth, though the ice in a
fireless church had to be broken to do it. Thereafter they were told that
they were by nature utterly depraved and in peril of hell. And the rod
was not spared. Even John Robinson, naturally kind, urged a stern dis-
cipline. Such records of their fears and pieties as they have left us are
pathetic documents.

Their elders found their religion none too easy. They spent long
Sabbath hours in bare meeting houses (Sabbath began at six o'clock
p.m., Saturday), a sermon might be four hours long, and the cruel in-
11 See the pathetic little gravestones in any old burying ground.

Entanglements and Disentanglements loi

tensity of it may have been a substitute for fire in the meeting house.
Also if a preacher is to keep it up for four hours, he will need to warm
himself up with shoutings and warnings. The form of worship did not
greatly change, or else changed but slowly. Their elements were always
simple: prayer, praise, the Word, and the sermon. The only possible
variations were in the arrangement of the elements. There had been to
begin with apparently only one prayer— the long prayer— and it was long;
an opening and closing prayer could be added. There were no hymns,
only metrical versions of the Psalms, some of them nobly done. Since
most of the congregation did not even possess a Psalm book, the Psalms
were "lined" out. The leader, the elder, when there were elders, read
two lines, the congregation sang them, and so on. Organs were taboo,
but stringed instruments were permitted and the church choir began its
services and its eccentricities.'^

The sacrament of the Lord's Supper was administered more often
than in a later usage, and the chalice (not then so called), the plates and
the cups were the first treasured possessions of poor churches. They were
pewter in the first period, afterwards silver, much cherished and often
very beautiful. There was a semi-closed communion. The church build-
ings were "meeting houses" from the first. In the Eighteenth Century, as
wealth increased, taste was disciplined and architectural plans were
brought over from England. They achieved an unmatched distinction of
dignity, simplicity, and proportion, built of noble timbers by master
craftsmen. The minister or ministers, with the officials, faced the congre-
gation. There they saw their flock, men on one side, women on the other,
in order of their dignity and social status. The children seem to have
been placed by themselves under the care of a tithing man. Though
"public worship" was tax-supported, offerings were taken. All this, one
must add, was not peculiar to the New England way. Presbyterians in
New Jersey were worshipping in much the same fashion.

The "Way" and Its Changing Ways

The significant thing as one follows all this through is not the detail
but the structure. The "way," as patterned and stabilized at the Cam-
bridge Synod, kept on. The elder, to repeat, faded out of the picture;
the deacon emerged. He inherited many of the elder's duties without
the elder's authority and became a type too often caricatured." Actually
he was devout and faithful, loving and serving his church, distributing

12 There will be toward the end of this history a brief resum^ of the development of
Congregational worship.

i3So still in the David Harum radio broadcast (1941).

102 History of American Congregationalism

charity as a Christian and distributing the elements of the Lord's Supper
with reverential hands. The synod faded out of the picture, too; the last
noted by Dexter in 1708. The method of conference and association con-
tinued. Distinctions between pastor and teacher also faded out of the
picture, though the phrase persisted. The churches could not afford a
clerical staff and were fortunate to have one man both pastor and teacher.
The ministers naturally had their own meetings. Sixteen hundred and
thirty-three dates definitely the beginning of such conferences or associa-
tions. They felt themselves charged with responsibility for the well-
being of the churches and the body politic and took their responsibility
seriously; also they were responsible for the status and conduct of their
fellow ministers.

These responsibilities also presently became a pattern: permanent
organization, subject to call by a moderator; mutual consideration of
important matters; supervision of clerical manners and morals; exami-
nation of candidates for the ministry; recommendation of ministers to
"bereaved" (pastorless) churches, etc. Gradually such associations vali-
dated the "ministerial standing" of their members and kept the first lists
of ministers in good standing. They would have the power of trial and
in extreme cases of unfrocking the unworthy. If these associations should,
for tlie general business of the churches, add to the ministers the lay dele-
gates chosen decently and in order by the churches, you would have a
representative ecclesiastical body. A sound, self-protective instinct kept
these associations within neighborly, local bounds. In rural regions the
county supported a convenient geographical unit; as the cities grew in
population they became units.

This particular line of development was in its inception protested as
savoring of Presbyterianism. Both sides won in that controversy. The
associationists got their associations, but the association could only ad-
vise, resolve, suggest. Its power was moral and not legal, but most good
churches did what they were asked to do, if they could.^* Otherwise they
could be mourned over but not coerced. This one may hold to be far
more significant than the distinction, without much difference between
names. Congregationalism has since developed a most considerable cen-
tralization and state- and nation-wide meetings with delegates and all
the rest; but the vital relations of a Congregational church are with its
neighbors, and a Congregational minister can be reached upon any
charge only through those who presumably know him best. There is
discipline in the background— we are not a lawless folk— but there is de-

i''The authority of any ecclesiastical body over church property is— back of behind—
the fulcrum for the leverage of any church authority. If the property can legally be
taken over, the congregation is pretty helpless; otherwise it can keep on, though alone.

Entanglements and Disentanglements 103

fense in the foreground. There have been heresy hunts in the Congrega-
tional field, but where a minister's own local association refuses to join,
he is secure. That imponderable but tenacious barrier has been, as we
shall see later, the secret of the free movement of Congregational re-
ligious and doctrinal thought. By 1740 this general structure had taken
the form and begun to project the lines it would hold to in all its future
extension. Before it ceased to be almost entirely localized in New Eng-
land, two momentous things would happen. The religious life of New
England would be changed by the "Great Awakening"; Wesleyan Evan-
gelism would become a force in all the colonies; and the coherence of
the old Puritan order, though not destroyed, would be sadly strained.

CHAPTER VIII

The Evangelical Revival and
the Revolutionary War

JOSEPH TRACY called his famous history of the revival of re-
ligion in the time of Edwards and Whitefield "The Great Awaken-
ing," which seems from his preface to have been a current phrase,
though he does not indicate the source. Edwards called his account of
the movement 'Thoughts on the Revival of Religion in New England
in 1740." His title, though precise, is provincial. What happened in
Northampton cannot be dated to a year and was only one highly dra-
matic episode in the evangelical movement which, during the Eighteenth
Century, in one form or another and under the leadership of men whose
names are historic, so profoundly affected English-speaking Christianity
as to date an epoch.

Any adequate account of the evangelical revival belongs to large-
scale histories, secular as well as religious, of either England or America.
By the middle of the Eighteenth Century the forces of the Reformation
were entirely spent and the patterns of Protestantism apparently fixed.
Persecution was over, but "disabilities" answered the same purpose. The
American colonial religious picture was drawn with broad strokes: Con-
gregationalism, and one may here use the designation with reasonable
accuracy, from what would now be Maine to the Hudson River; Dutch
Reformed, from Manhattan Island up the Hudson to the Mohawk
River; Presbyterianism of a strong Scotch-Irish flavor in the Middle
Atlantic colonies; the Anglican church dominant in the South; Baptists
and Quakers in Rhode Island; Quakers in Pennsylvania, and also Angli-
cans, some of them quite vociferously unhappy about being themselves
"disabled" wherever there were prosperous merchants and English
officials.

There were no Methodists yet— only John Wesley with his troubled
soul, and Sally Kirkland in Georgia. The interminable processes of
European wars first menaced and then involved our northern colonial
frontiers. The times were hard but the epochal religious controversies
seemed over. It is not easy to say in a sentence or so what this implied
or else to say it directly. Irreverently said, all good Christians everywhere

104

Evangelical Revival and the Revolutionary War 1 05

had, for two hundred years, been fighting each other with tongue, pen,
and sword— Catholic and Protestant to begin with; next Protestants
amongst themselves, and specifically in England. But toward the middle
of the Eighteenth Century religion seemed to have outlived its militancies
and its crusades. One must not say that it had anywhere become con-
sistently noncombatant; but compared with the great campaigns this
was guerrilla warfare. And now that the causes were won, lost, or com-
promised, the Christian occupations of the protagonists seemed gone.
Consequently, religion in both England and the colonies lost fervor and
direction, became increasingly an aspect of respectable social life, any-
thing but demanding. In addition thought at last was taking its own
free and inquiring lines without ecclesiastical let or hindrance, though
by no means inclined to let religion alone.

Utilitarian ethics, deistic faith, and a psychology— not quite so named
yet, which made of us only tablets to be written upon by our sensations
—began to challenge both inherited ethics and religious faith. One may
call it, if he pleases, the beginning of the secularization of society. New
England church life reflected all this acutely. The intense and demand-
ing practice of religion had been in its social catechism the chief end
of man. For that it had waged its battles and organized its society. Its
religious leaders would therefore be very sensitive to any falling off in
church membership or any lapse in morality, and the rigidity of the
Puritan ethic made lapses in morality out of relatively inconsequential
things. We have considered already the distress of the ministry over the
third New England generation, their endeavor to find a formula for the
baptism of the children of noncommunicants in the Half- Way Covenant
and the controversies thus occasioned. All such things as these condi-
tioned the "Great Awakening."

Jonathan Edwards Is Called to Northampton

The town of Northampton, Massachusetts, as Ebenezer Pomeroy,
moderator, attests, voted by a very great majority on November 21, 1726,
that a proper committee "should invite the Reverend Mr. Jonathan
Edwards to settle amongst them in the work of the ministry and in con-
venient time to take office amongst them, ... to assist our Reverend
Pastor Mr. Stoddard in the work of the ministry." Stoddard had been
minister in Northampton for fifty-five years, and the assistant chosen by
the town committee was his grandson. It seemed the happiest of arrange-
ments. Stoddard was eighty-four; Edwards, twenty-three. Stoddard had
shared almost the entire growth and perils of a prosperous frontier settle-
ment. He had been of a moderate but liberal temper, had defended the

io6 History of American Congregationalism

Half-Way Covenant and baptized all his middle-aged parishioners. He
understood their virtues and their faults and doubtless thought North-
ampton more in peril of an Indian raid than hellfire.

His grandson, who for two years would sit with his grandfather on the
settee behind the pulpit, preach at one Sabbath service and so ease his
grandfather into an honored tomb, was already known for brilliancy of
mind and deep spirituality. The unusual distinction in American life
of the descendants of Jonathan Edwards and Sarah Pierpont has fur-
nished students of heredity fascinating data, perhaps over-stressed. His
biographers have therefore naturally sought to account for Jonathan
himself. Their research shows no more than that he came of good English
stock.

His immediate forebears were either coopers or clergymen; but, save
that all pioneers have force and courage, nothing in them explain him.
John Robinson has as good a family tree. One can make a better case for
the distaff side than the male. He was born at East Windsor, Connecticut,
October 5, 1703, the fifth child and only boy in a family of eleven chil-
dren. His parents were in their early prime. His father Timothy was
clergyman of a recent and growing settlement where churchgoers car-
ried muskets to church during his infancy. Eunice Williams of Deerfield,
half-sister of Esther Edwards, had been killed by one blow of the toma-
hawk by a "cruel and bloodthirsty savage" along Green River when
Jonathan was four months old. Travel was hazardous. The people lived
and died within the limits of their townships. All rural ministers were also
farmers and young Jonathan was habituated to farm chores. His dawning
sense of God was inseparably associated with the sights and sounds of the
countryside in which he grew up.

He had accurate powers of observation and he wrote an essay on
spiders of which his biogiaphers make what they can. He thought them,
however, "the corrupting nauseousness of the air" and in time found them
a fit symbol for sinners whom an angiy God would at his pleasure drop
into hell. He was early taught Latin and to remember that he was born
to die. When he was thirteen years old he rode away on horseback to
Yale College. His austere and lonely boyhood was over, if he ever had
a boyhood. Yale and Jonathan were about the same age then and botli
troubled with growing pains. Actually, Edwards was better orientated
than the College, since it had so far belonged to the peripatetic school,
its students scattered, its location still undecided. The trustees finally
decided on New Haven in November 1716. Ten Freshmen matriculated
and, disliking their tutors, presently went as a body to Wethersfield and
the tutorship of Elisha Williams. There they stayed for two years. Aided
and abetted by the Hartford factions they even put on a rival commence-

Evangelical Revival and the Revolutionary War 1 07

ment in 1718. All these episodes brighten the early history of Yale, but
they were not conducive to sound learning.

They doubtless also confirmed Edwards in that inner detachment
from outer turmoil which became the habit and resource of his life.
Locke's essay on the human understanding stimulated his precocious
mind and revealed to him the serene domain of abstract speculation
that would thereafter be his homeland, though not always serene. The
significant thing about these youthful speculations is their philosophic
idealism, arrestingly parallel to Berkeley. Debate exists therefore among
his biographers as to whether he could have read Berkeley or did. There
is no decisive proof either way. His kind of mind was equal to reaching,
independently, such conclusions. Indeed the nucleus of all his future
speculations and conclusions were in the nine foolscap pages of his under-
graduate composition on the mind.

Meanwhile Yale undergraduate manners and even morals tried him
sorely. He lamented "monstrous impieties and acts of immorality lately
committed." It reads now like a combination of John Bunyan and St.
Augustine recounting the sins of their youth. Only for Edwards these
were the sins of other youths. After graduation he was pastor for eight
months of a Presbyterian church in New York. He was next called to
Bolton, Connecticut, but never settled, for Yale wanted him for a tutor
and Sarah Pierpont was in New Haven. His tutorship there was as trying
as his engagement to Miss Pierpont was beatific, so after two years he ac-
cepted the Northampton call. He began at once by marrying Sarah,
distinguished by lineage, beauty, mystic devotion, practical wisdom. It
was a marriage made in heaven, and her renown matched her husband's.

Whitefield thought the Edwards household an example of Christian
simplicity. In Mrs. Edwards he saw, figuratively, "a daughter of Abra-
ham" and was moved to renew the prayers he had been putting up to
God for a similar "daughter of Abraham." He felt it, on many accounts,
his duty to marry, but humbly left the choice and bestowal of the longed-
for daughter of Abraham to the Lord, having, he said, no choice of his
own. Edwards, who himself walked humbly enough before God, had
more initiative. He had indirectly had Sarah in mind for four years and
what he has written of her is classic. She was seventeen and bore him
many children. Also she was a force to be reckoned with in any account
of the "Great Awakening."

Edwards was one of William Janes' "Twice Born Men," and his ac-
count of his own illumination is classic. He was soul-kin to the great
mystics, though with a sense of the presence of God in nature not always
found in the literature of mysticism. His experience of what might be
called "crisis" conversion— though in his own case very gently modulated

io8 History of American Congregationalism

and with deep emotional content— colored his evangelical appeal. It
would not be accurate to say that "conversion" thereafter took on new
meanings and became focal. The "new birth" was old as the gospels or
older, and there had been St. Paul on his way to Damascus and a great
succeeding company. Also the Puritan had expected those who joined his
churches to have had a religious experience and to tell it to the elders.
But since then a different emotional emphasis was in gestation in colonial
Protestantism, and in England as well; it broke through first in North-
ampton under Jonathan Edwards' ministry. Enter the revival and re-
vivalist, in a sense little changed in the last two hundred years.

Edwards apparently did not consciously initiate just that. His revival
was a by-product of his theology and the whole matter is extremely com-
plicated. A theologian like A. V. G. Allen^ needed nearly four hundred
pages for Edwards; Elizabeth Winslow^ as much. The Great Awakening
and the Wesleys distinguish the religious history of the Eighteenth Cen-
tury. Condensation therefore is impossible, especially as the examination
of a profound and subtle theology is also involved. In a misleadingly
spacious sentence or two, the frigidities of Calvinism were challenged by
a rival system and religion had grown cold and formal. In consequence
the Puritan ethic was giving way and church life was suffering. For
Edwards a pure Calvinism, though he did not call it that, was the key-
stone of the breaking arch, and he became its New England champion.
One might call his theology against its contemporaneous backgrounds
a "neo-orthodoxy." He had by every testimony a power in preaching
which defies analysis.

II
The 1740 Revival

For long he read his sermons from closely written, crossed out, written
in and blotted manuscript. Any scrap of paper was precious. He even
used the margins of newspapers, though not in the pulpit. He was in-
tensely quiet, like a dynamo. He had the most vivid of imaginations, a
power of description both poetic and terrible, an entirely untactful cour-
age and a desperate earnestness. Above all he was not only "God-in-
toxicated"; he was consumed by the sovereignty of God, the fateful brev-
ity of life, and its eternal issues in a heaven more real than the guardian
mountains of his valley and of indescribable felicity and a hell, if any-
thing more real, of indescribable torment.

Also there were wooing notes and an equally indescribable setting out
of the sweetness of communion with God born of his own beatific vision

1 Allen, Jonathan Edwards.

2Winslow, Jonathan Edwards, iyo^-iy^8. This chapter is deeply in debt to this
excellent book.

Evangelical Revival and the Revolutionary War 1 09

in his father's rocky pasture field years before. In time something is
bound to give way under the cumulative force of preaching like that, if
one adds a cumulative emphasis upon the sinfulness of sin and a definite
cataloging, with the pointed and accusing finger, of the sins of North-
ampton town— sins of so deadly a sort that only the mercy of God, long
now overtried, saved that still stockaded settlement from the fate of
Sodom and Gomorrah.' The break came in 1734. An excessively pleasure-
loving young woman came to her pastor, a repentant seeker. This seems
to have astonished Edwards himself. Young people renounced their
gaieties. Their elders began to ask "what must I do to be saved?" Edwards
was wise in council and direction, enemies were reconciled, there were
"showers of blessings." The town was reborn, the old church could not
hold the people and grew to more than six hundred members, which in a
settlement of about two hundred families meant the entire population
from (say) ten years of age up.

A movement which began with emotionalism would in the end either
break under emotional tension, or, more normally, when everybody had
been gathered in the harvest would be over. Both these things happened.
Thomas Stebbins tried suicide and failed; Joseph Hanley, uncle to
Jonathan, tried and succeeded. There was an epidemic of similar at-
tempts. Reaction set in, ecstasy was over, Northampton must go about
its business again and channel religious zeal into the building of a new
church. And for several years no one joined that church.

The fires were banked but not out. The Northampton awakening
naturally moved other churches to desire and pray for a similar quicken-
ing. Five years later there were similar revivals, and not only in New
England. The Presbyterians of the middle colonies began to be stirred
deeply. Then came Whitefield, an Anglican clergyman, zealous for souls,
impatient of Episcopal authority, with a voice like all the pipes of a great
organ, a preacher of inexplicable power— literally the first great footloose
Protestant evangelist. He ranged the colonies from Savannah to northern
New England, was attended by throngs, preached indoors, outdoors,
anywhere. And those who heard him were like reeds shaken in the wind.
He is a study in himself and until a generation ago amazingly modern.
He raised money for his orphanage and railed at the godless and un-
regenerate ministers who did no more than stay in one parish and do
the best they could. They took that with surprising meekness, then as
later.

During this period there were such physical manifestations of spiritual
struggle as would follow the frontier until almost the middle of the last

3Sodom and Gomorrah not quoted from Edwards' sermons: simply the author's
rhetoric.

1 1 o History of A merican Congregationalism

century. Whitefield rejoiced in them, saw in them a manifestation of the
power of the Holy Ghost and possibly his own power. He thanked God
when the sinners went down as before a cannonball. Edwards was not
quite so sure. All this was in so many plain words a fear-motivated, hell-
fire-threatened revival within the frame of a Calvinistic theology. Natur-
ally John Wesley and George Whitefield did not see eye to eye. For
Wesley knew with a sure insight that an enduring religion of religious
experience must be built on another foundation. Both the grace of God
and the response of the penitent soul must be more free. So Whitefield
was an episode, and John Wesley released a vast, creative, and enduring
religious force.

This second stage of the Great Awakening grew to almost a colonial
hysteria. Gilbert Tennant of New Jersey became the leader of all that
was worst in it. He was hellfire and damnation, shouting and stamping.*
The preaching for which Edwards is popularly remembered, as far as he
is, belongs to this period; for example, the Enfield sermon, July 8, 1741.
He was really trying to rekindle fires of which only ashes were left. He
took the thunderbolts of the divine wrath in his own hands and hurled
them at his congregation. "A most terrible sermon," said Isaac Watts
who later read it; needing, he thought, "a word of Gospell at ye end it."^
So the Awakening ran its course. Yale and Harvard stood out against it,
and some ministers (notably Charles Chauncy, Boston First Church).

It certainly brought multitudes into the churches and inflamed re-
ligious zeal. One hundred and fifty new Congregational churches (Tracy)
were formed from 1740 to 1760, though the increase of population might
account for some of them. They were, in a sense the first Separatists
never contemplated, "gathered churches," without roots in any old order.
That was gone. There was a considerable increase of Baptist churches,
and Methodism was coming. The "evangelical" spirit was released and
a concern for the salvation of all men everywhere, which would presently
become foreign missions. Also in direct and indirect ways a philanthropic
spirit was engendered which would first challenge slavery and later other
social injustices. There was an increased need for ministers who must
be educated. That meant or would mean more theological seminaries.
Whitefield would find many successors. The revival became a technique
of church life not to be challenged until Horace Bushnell, and D. L.
Moody would, in the memory of some who may read this chapter, do
for England and America what Whitefield had done, with a greatness of
grace and wisdom Whitefield never possessed. Finally the Awakening
occasioned, if it did not create, the first American theology.

^Winslow, Jonathan Edwards, ijo^-iy^S, p. 189.
sWinslow, Jonathan Edwards, ijo^-iy^S, p. 192.

Evangelical Revival and the Revolutionary War 1 1 1

III

An Epoch-Making Exile

Jonathan Edwards' long and epochal pastorate came to an end in
Northampton most unhappily. There were divisions and antagonisms
which the brotherly love of the first revival had not ended. The young
people were getting out of hand again and reading improper books with
distressing consequences. The books, Leslie Stephen thought, might have
been such then popular novels as Pamela which Richardson himself said
he published in order to cultivate the principles of virtue and religion
in the minds of the youth of both sexes. Eighteenth Century English fic-
tion lacked Victorian delicacy, but would not now be censured. At any
rate when the church officers and their pastor began to consider dis-
cipline, they found Northampton's "best people" involved, and the in-
vestigation was dropped. The old question of qualification for full com-
munion got involved, the estrangement could not be healed, an ecclesi-
astical council dissolved Edwards' pastoral relationship, the church
ratified the findings of the council by an overwhelming majority, and at
the last he was forbidden by a town-meeting vote to enter the pulpit.
So he was turned adrift.

The only thing which illumines the whole unhappy passage, save the
light it let in on human nature, is the spirit in which Edwards bore it.
His only recorded impatience was with the Congregational system. A
Scotch friend inquired if he would consider a church in Scotland, sign
the Westminster confession, and submit to Presbyterian church govern-
ment. He would subscribe, he answered, to the confession in substance
and, being out of conceit with independent church government— as he
well might be— had long thought the Presbyterian way "most agreeable
to the word of God and the reason and nature of things."^ He did not go
to Scotland, but his Scotch friends sent him generous contributions. He
went instead to Stockbridge, Massachusetts, as missionary to the Indians,
a mission supported by a proper Board in Boston— one of the first of
many— and a society in England.

His was an epoch-making exile. The Indians could not have profited
greatly by his preaching; they did by his friendship. Some of the white
settlers, he discovered, were misusing the funds meant for their wards—
an early chapter in a shameful story. There was a gritty practical strain
in Edwards and a hatred of any evil. He set out to expose both the abuses
and the abusers. The main offender's family were prominent and re-
lated to his Northampton enemies. It was a two-year fight which he won,
but his peace was a solitude which he made historic. The curious desk
6 Allen, Jonathan Edwards, p. 271.

1 1 2 History of American Congregationalism

upon which he wrote is still in the vestry of the Stockbridge church— a
kind of little wooden pyramid turning on a central standard. He made
that table a "Maginot Line" in defense of his inherited and rigorous
Calvinism. He would Have said himself that he was defending something
vaster: the sovereignty and grace of God, the validity of his moral order,
and the reality of religion as he conceived it. The defense of the whole
system, he thought— and his age agreed with him— turned on the nature
and function of the human will.

Here not only rival systems but God and man were engaged. If the
will were free, then God's predestinations were at the mercy of capricious
men, and his elections could be counted out. At the same time, how can
any moral responsibility be justified without freedom to choose or to
reject? If man is God's puppet, then hell arraigns God's justice, and
heaven is a divine caprice. These were burning questions then; Milton's
fallen angels discussed them in their lurid dark, and the New England
farmer in his rocky fields, not to speak of philosophers and theologians.
Edwards wrote his treatise on the will in four months, but all the life-
long workings of his powerful mind gave it form and life.

Allen calls it the literary sensation of the Eighteenth Century and one
of the few great books in English theology. It made Edwards known in
the intellectual capitals of Great Britain and became in its own turn a
storm-center of contiroversy. Careful students of Edwards reduce his argu-
ment to, perhaps, a too simple paradox: man is free as he is inclined, but
his inclinations are determined for him. Therefore for following his in-
clinations he is free enough to be judged of God. Which answered Ed-
wards' purpose and adjourned the real question: what or who determines
the inclinations? His motives, Edwards answered, but his motives lie out-
side his control. This would seem to the irreverent to save God's sov-
ereignty at the cost of his honor. Actually Edwards seems to have main-
tained a limited freedom and to have anticipated conclusions upon which
science, psychology, and philosophies would later converge: we are
shaped by forces beyond our tracing, carried by currents beyond our con-
trol, toward destinies beyond our vision. Edwards founded the mystery
of it all in God, and left it there.

An Era of Theological Speculation

Having finished with the will, Edwards continued to build the vast
structure of his speculative thought until the contemplation of it be-
comes awesome. They said of Durham cathedral that it was half-fortress
and half church of God. Edwards' theology was all that, unassailable
save as to its foundations, impregnable if assaulted with the war-gear

Evangelical Revival and the Revolutionary War 1 1 3

against which he designed it, and now left there between earth and sky
as thought and interest moved into other regions.^ But Edwards remains
the first American theologian and metaphysician, the man who broke the
old order in maintaining it; first also in the long line of Congregational
theologians with momentous consequences. They called him from Stock-
bridge to the presidency of Princeton which his son-in-law, Aaron Burr,
had resigned. There he died prematurely of a crude inoculation for
small-pox, there he was buried, and there in his weathered, above-the-
ground tomb he found the peace life denied him.

Samuel Hopkins and Emmons, the conjoint products of Edwards' in-
fluence (Hopkins lived in the Edwards' home), the Great Awakening, a
temper at once humble and arrogant, very plain living and very high
thinking, initiated and continued an era of theological speculation. Hop-
kins entitled his first treatise: "Sin, Through Divine Interposition an
Advantage to the Universe: And Yet, This No Excuse for Sin or Encour-
agement To It." All this and much more Hopkins labored through to the
comfort of those who believed it and the irritation of those who did not.
Eternal punishment was, he thought, a bright display of the divine
character and an occasion of so much happiness in heaven "that should
it cease and this fire could be extinguished, it would, in a great measure,
obscure the light of heaven."* On such strong meat as this the fathers of
our faith were fed. Somewhere behind it all was a consuming passion for
the glory of God, and the utter prostration of all human interests and
inclinations at the foot of his throne hid in darkness and light. This was
preeminently true of Edwards, whose God was sweetness and severity
beyond Edwards' mystic power to say. The result should be so complete
a dedication of self to God that, as Hopkins held, one should be willing
to be damned for his glory.^

The Awakening, as already noted, was criticized by the colleges and
by no means blessed by all the clergy. Edwards' treatise on the will was
quite as much a dressing down of another school of theology as an in-
quiry into truth. The opposing schools were already entitled— always a
sign that controversy has matured and become embittered. The conserva-
tives were called "Old Lights." The advanced were "New Lights,"^" and
they forgot their Christianity in their contentions. The "Half-Way Cove-

^The Maginot Line is not a bad analogy. It is probably still there (July, 1941) but
France is subject.

8 Walker, Ten New England Leaders, p. 349.

9 This became a famous test question, much asked at ordaining councils. There is, as
it began to be worn thread-bare, a classic anecdote: A much-heckled candidate for the
ministry was finally asked it. He replied that he was not, personally, but he was per-
fectly willing the council should be.

lOThe use of "New Light" and "Old Light" through this period are confusing. Some-
times the "new lights" are "revivalists"; sometimes they are theological "liberals."

1 14 History of American Congregationalism

nant" furnished tlie occasion, but the forces engaged were vast and
various— new minds and new times. As far as Congregationalism was con-
cerned, Geneva was beginning to lose its hold on New England. Eastern
Massachusetts, specifically, was going "New Light" theologically and de-
veloping a revolutionary temper politically. Harvard College was the
contributing temper intellectually. Boston ministers and churches— still a
minority— were breaking with their Calvinistic inheritance, slowly but
significantly. Connecticut was more conservative. The Anglican church
was relatively stronger in Connecticut than Massachusetts and the as-
sociations with Middle Colony Presbyterians much more intimate and
sympathetic. (Newark, New Jersey, had been settled by Connecticut
migrants.)

The result was not only a definite cooperation, the consequences of
which are still to be considered here, but in Connecticut itself a Con-
gregationalism strongly colored with Presbyterianism." Given the temper
of the time, the rigidity of the systems involved, and the looseness of the
ecclesiastical system, the unity of the inherited Congregational order,
impaired by the Great Awakening and strained by profound theological
disagreement, began to face doctrinal disruption. But a more inclusive
warfare on other contested fields subordinated all lesser differences to
the epic struggle of the colonies against their mother land. The compact
in the cabin of the Mayflower became the unseen, not yet comprehended
device on the battle flags of a people who began with no flag of their own.

The New England Clergy and the Revolutionary War

There were, naturally, other issues in the last half of the Eighteenth
Century amongst the colonies which fringed our seaboard and other oc-
casions for belligerency than the purely theological. The colonies were
involved from the first in the long series of European wars which began
with William and Mary. New England was earlier and more deeply
involved than other colonial groups because its frontiers marched with
the frontiers of New France and there could be no security in lonely
outposts as long as Quebec and Montreal were hostile. French naval
bases in waters contiguous to New England menaced its shipping. Be-
sides Britain's cause was the colonies' cause and in defending her own
Britain protected them.

American historians generally have held that the French and Indian
War and the Seven Years War initiated and then accelerated the move-

iiSo late as 1799 the Hartford North Association told the world that the churches of
Connecticut at large were not and never had been Congregational churches according
to the ideas and forms of the Cambridge platform. They held the independent churches
to be Separatists. Walker, Creeds and Platforms of Congregationalism, p. 556.

Evangelical Revival and the Revolutionary War 1 1 5

ment for colonial independence, at least from Virginia north, and most
definitely in New England. The colonies were drawn together for de-
fense and consultation and became corporately self-conscious. Their
young men were trained in arms; the people became habituated to war.
The British government, with some show of reason, thought that the
colonies should bear their share of the cost of wars which had made them
safe and imposed their taxes, therefore, without so much as saying "by
your leave." We would now call them "nuisance" taxes. They did not
bear overly hard upon the taxed, but the mischief they did was fateful,
or else it was fateful but not mischief. When the historians of this school
have stressed the added irritations caused by the determination of Lon-
don merchants to keep the colonies economically dependent, ^^ ([-^qj j-gg^
their case.

All this is beyond debate, but these seeds of political discontent— and
eventually revolution— fell upon a soil already prepared for exactly such
issues. A temper impatient of any kind of arbitrary control had been
native to New England from its beginnings. It had crossed the Atlantic
in the Mayflower and sailed with Winthrop's fleet. A long century of
theological controversy had toughened its fibre and furnished it supports.
The debates about ecclesiastical polity and the relative authority of
congregations, elders, parsons, associations, and synods, which now seem
inconsequential, were far more than a dress-rehearsal for the Declaration
of Independence, the Revolutionary War, and constitutional conventions.
For these contestants fought their little battles with heavy guns. The
principles they invoked were competent for deployment, in the discussion
of social and governmental policies. Alice Baldwin maintains that the
Congregational-Puritan clergy of New England were the chief agitators
for the Revolution, blessed it when it began and supplied much of the
morale which carried it through. ^^ (Incidentally, her documentation cor-
rects the loose statements of an earlier chapter of this book about the
influence of Eighteenth Century thought upon the New England clergy.)
Miss Baldwin's facts and conclusions constitute a fascinating chapter in
the history of American Congregationalism.

The very large majority of ministers and churches in New England
were then Congregational. In 1760 Ezra Stiles estimated that there were
530 Congregational churches in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New
Hampshire— Maine was still in Massachusetts— and 550 ordained min-

12 The Northern colonies were getting flourishing little industries going. The "South"
welcomed English imports.

13 All this and much more is developed by Alice M. Baldwin in The New England
Clergy and the American Revolution. Her documentation is as rich as her conclusions
are convincing. Reading her book has been one of the compensations of working
through a deal of dusty authorities.

1 1 6 History of A merican Congregationalism

isters mostly Congregational, which means that the folk of the colonies
were, say, eighty per cent Congregational before the Revolution. The
clergy had lost the undue and unwholesome respect in which they had
been held but they were still the learned men in unlettered communities
sharing in a most intimate way community life. They were means of
contact between their parishioners and the outside world.

They tutored promising boys for college and so directed their minds.
They preached then, as now, on the events of the day. In the larger towns
they lectured once a week on whatever they thought their audiences
needed to be advised about and they supplied sermons for all important
civic occasions. The "Election Sermon" delivered on general Election
Day by some distinguished preacher specially chosen for that honor was
really the "keynote" address. It was usually printed by order of the As-
sembly or General Court and widely distributed. Naturally, the preacher
brought all his forces into action, quoted impressively, exhorted the
magistrates and pled for the well-being of the Commonwealth."

All this is a pattern for ministerial conduct which held for more than
a hundred years.

VI
Political Preaching

There were, besides, sermons preached on Muster-Days, on the anni-
versaries of the Ancient and Honorable artillery, on Thanksgiving and
Fast Days. No clerical group before or since had more opportunities for
influencing public opinion upon the entire conduct of the common life
of the colonies. (Sainte-Beuve noted, in Port Royal, the significance of
the sermon before the era of newspapers.)

They dealt with the fundamentals of government, they sought the
sources of authority. Their theology was legalistic, God was sovereign
and his laws should be supreme in all affairs, sacred and inviolable.
There they were for all to read in the Old and New Testament, unwrit-
ten but regnant in the "law of Nature," "twisted into the very Frame and
Constitution" of the human soul. God himself, in his divine administra-
tion, is bound by the laws of his own nature. God and man are bound
together in a "covenant" relationship of mutual rights and duties. The
divine government is the pattern for all human government, itself a com-
pact between the governing and the governed, which neither party must
violate. This is pure Eighteenth Century political theory.

i-^Channing's sermon on Spiritual Freedom is a noble example of an "election ser-
mon" of a later date (May 1830). His passages beginning, "I call that mind free—" are
classic and have been often declaimed.

Evangelical Revival and the Revolutionary War 1 1 7

VII
Analogies Between Church and State

It is easy to see what room there was upon such ample foundations
to build the structures of Church and Commonwealth. Churches were
enabled by a covenant relationship between the members and God and
between the church members themselves. All civil government was of
divine origin, founded in common consent for the common good, to
maintain good order, liberty, and prosperity. The majority agreed with
Elisha Williams that any government which did not originate from the
people and in which they did not make their own laws was a tyranny and
"absolutely against the Law of God and Nature," and he quoted Locke
to prove it. Sturdy Samuel Stoddard held that God deeply resents abuses
offered unto rulers by the people or by the people unto their rulers.
Liberty, of course, had its dangers and must not be overdone. "The
majesty of laws must be revered, where the liberties of a people must be
secured." Liberty must not get out of hand.

So early as 1715 it seemed to be getting out of hand. We have noted
the dissolution of the old order, the lapses from Puritan ethics and the
want of religious zeal which so troubled Jonathan Edwards. It troubled
the clergy generally. There were, the more conservative thought, dan-
gerous "leveling" forces in action. Those who should have been godly
had grown worldly. There began to be the poor and the prosperous,
taxes were heavy, distinctions of rank began to be ignored, the discon-
tented criticised the authorities, there were floating phrases of a sinister
sort— "liberty" and "equality."

The clergy, however, did not agree in their apportionment of blame.
The conservative blamed the people and reminded them that the powers
that be are ordained of God. The liberals blamed the governments for
failing in their duties and between them they threshed out over and over
again the right principles of administration and citizenship both in
Church and state. There could not have been a better training school
for what was to come. Both wings seemed to have agreed that govern-
ment was a compact; they differed simply about which party to the com-
pact had broken it. Rulers, John Hancock of Lexington and grandfather
of John Hancock, maintained, must be "Benefactors." If they are not they
are "Burdens," "Plagues" and "Punishments." He told the General Court
in plain words that they would thus forfeit respect, become obnoxious
to the people, and incur divine displeasure.^^

So the sermons went on, but as one follows them through Miss Bald-

15 They would, he said actually, "become * * obnoxious * * to the Divine Dis-
pleasure"—a subtly puzzling sentence.

1 1 8 History of A mericafi Congregationalism

win's citations, he sees an emerging philosophy of society and theory of
government surprising in range, solidity and penetration. These preach-
ers were advanced and courageous thinkers and quite shrewd politicians.^^
They naturally held an uneven front. Those of a Presbyterian com-
plexion stood up for discipline and authority. The Congregationally-
minded stressed the liberty of the believer and the citizen and the ob-
ligations and limitations of rulers. Less was said about equality, but they
were all agreed about the sanctity of property. Liberty and property
were more often associated than liberty and equality. Jared Eliot ana-
lyzed (1736) the just powers of government in the province of taxation
with an acumen which would do credit to a modern specialist in politicial
science.

There were, also, then as now, middle-of-the-road men who recon-
ciled extremes with spacious phrases. "Liberty must not be overlaid, nor
authority trampled under foot;" "That there may be a reconciliation or
due concurrence in the balancing of one justly with the other." This
balance Urian Oakes thought was a characteristic of the "Congregational
Way" whose "sweet temperament" preserved both liberty and authority.
Thus they preached on and on. The entire ecclesiastical machinery of
Connecticut during the pre-Revolutionary period only missed being
Presbyterian by want of a General Assembly (ecclesiastical) at the top.
Connecticut was slipping from the "sweet temperament of the Congiega-
tional Way." Result: alarums and excursions and certain churches went
their own sweet, temperamental independent way. They were called
"Separatists" and ill-spoken of. In return they lamented "priest-craft" in
the colony and warned the people against "an ambitious and designing
clergy."

The Great Awakening led many Connecticut ministers, magistrates
and the "chief gentlemen of the colony" to take extreme measures against
itinerant preachers and evangelists at large, and the foraiation of addi-
tional Congregational churches. In 1743 the legislature forbade the estab-
lishment of new churches without its permission.'^ All this was, Protes-
tants held, a violation of the Connecticut Constitution and William and
Mary's Act of Liberation. There is no denying that the authorities were
foolishly high-handed. Boys were expelled from Yale for attending
"Separatist" meetings, men and women were imprisoned for conscience
sake and legally elected representatives opposed to such a policy refused

16 Lyman Beecher, who should know, said that in his youth all Connecticut parsons
were politicians. Actually a Congregational minister had then and still has to be
something of a politician in his own parish— also a diplomat.

17 Yale College took a strong stand. Any student who said "directly or indirectly"
that college officials or tutors were "hypocritical, carnal or unconverted" must for his
first offense make "publick confession in the Hall" and for a second offense be expelled.

Eva?igelical Revival and the Revolutionary War 1 1 9

their seats in the Assembly.^* All this reads now like the Wars of the
Kites and the Crows, but the fundamentals of civil and religious liberty
were involved. New churches were being organized to meet the needs of
the newly-converted, denominationalism was coming into action. Bap-
tists, for example, were taxed to support the ministers of what was, in
substance, a state church. The "Separatist" Congregational folk were
taxed to support the official churches. "Taxation without representation"
was more than a phrase; it became a burning question and a very concrete
reality.'^

VIII
Taxation without Representation

After the middle of the Eighteenth Century, the principles involved
in these ecclesiastical and religious controversies were deployed upon a
vaster field. The growing tensions between the colonies and the British
government slowly solidified the colonies. The more glaring internal
injustices were corrected; the disentanglement of the Puritan Common-
wealth in governmental action and the church and religious life of the
people was getting on, though as yet far from final. Liberty, so the
colonists felt, was being endangered by its English authors. The full
examination of this belongs to American history generally and involves
great chapters in British history.

The bonds of every sort which bound the colonies to Great Britain
were strong; they were not easily broken. So late as 1760, said Ezra Stiles,
"all the New England sects are loyal, but the principles of loyalty to the
illustrious house of Hanover are inculcated on the people by the Con-
gregational clergy with peculiar sincerity, faithfulness and constancy."
A dozen years later all this was changed, which argues a fatal ingenuity
of irritation on the part of Parliament and the then reigning representa-
tive of the "illustrious House of Hanover." The clergy generally were
all, and naturally, for the French and Indian War. They contrasted
British liberty and French tyranny in heated exhortations which sound,
with some significant changes, an arrestingly contemporaneous (1941)
note. "Election Sermons" thundered against King Louis and his slaves.
Liberty, property, religion, happiness were all at stake. "Better to die
than to be enslaved." The churches became recruiting stations and with
then unforeseen consequences "liberty" became an issue to live and die

18 Baldwin, The New England Clergy and the American Revolution, p. 61.

19 The complaints of the sufferers may be exaggerated but there is ample evidence
of injustice. Cows and household furnishings distrained, oxen taken out of their
teams, the heads of households imprisoned. So Solomon Paine of Canterbury in a
pamphlet (1752). Baldwin, The New England Clergy and the American Revolution,
P-75-

120 History of American Congregationalism

for; a temper hot with fiery zeal was engendered ready to turn against any
invasion of liberty.^"

The Excise Laws, the Stamp Act, and the inept attempts of Parlia-
ment to tax the colonies became for the colonists the head and front of
an invasion of their so cherished and dearly bought liberties. It was by
no means entirely a question of taxation. Presbyterians and Congrega-
tionalists had, they thought, a well grounded apprehension that the
establishment of Anglican Episcopacy was contemplated by the Crown.
At least the activities of the "Society for the Propagation of the Gospel"
—a particularly irritating assumption on the part of the Anglican au-
thorities that there was no "Gospel" in the colonies— lent weight to that
fear. They were, therefore, suspicious of the British policies and easily
moved to utterance. One must not say that the American Revolution
began in the colonist pulpits, but he would have a case. Boston ministers
worked hand in glove with Otis and Adams. Their technique, now
familiar, was then new. They rehearsed past heroisms and sacrifices,
evoked a patriotism as yet provincial but potentially national and fur-
nished the emotional appeals which have ever since been so apt in
stirring American public opinion.

They did more; they examined the fundamentals of constitutional
and representative government, the relation of law to liberty, the province
of checks and balances in government. So early as 1738 Jared Eliot, a
friend of Franklin, argued for something very much like Dominion
Status for British plantations. Parliament and the King might well have
studied the sermons of these unconsidered ranters. They might have
saved England her greatest colony; they would certainly have saved the
British government long and costly processes of trial and error in the
evolution of her colonial policies.

IX
"Stand armed, O ye Americans"

The "Stamp Act" set the pulpits on fire; its repeal furnished the sub-
stance of Thanksgiving sermons. "A deliverance from slavery; nothing
less than from vile, ignominious slavery." The fire once kindled could not
be put out; complete independence began to be talked of. Brown College
students debated it in 1769, and Harvard College, had there been a Dies
Committee,^^ would have been investigated for its political radicalism.
The spilled blood of the "Boston Massacre" found tongues and spoke
from the dust. Rebellion was in the air. "What right," said Isaac Skill-

20 The significance of this can not be exaggerated. These colonial preachers evoked
and released a timeless force in American life. Their sermons have for two hundred
years been repreached and have become our national passion.

21 See most American newspapers, 1939-1941.

Evangelical Revival and the Revolutionary War 1 2 1

man, "has the King of England to America?" "Only what the people
have by compact invested him with." "Stand armed, O ye Americans.""

Naturally the Loyalists did not take all this lying down. The clergy
of New England, a gentleman of New York wrote a London friend, were
wicked, malicious, and inflammatory; their pulpits were "converted into
Gutters of Sedition" and they substituted politics for the Gospel. Chief
Justice Oliver was deeply pained; the pulpits, he said, rang their peals
of malice against the Courts of Justice.

Directly the Revolution became inevitable, the clergy not only
blessed it, but became chaplains, were invaluable in recruiting, main-
tained the morale of their congregations, served as privates or officers,
gave sacrificially to the cause, remitted their salaries to relieve parishion-
ers, and when the war was over began to write its history. Finally after
the Declaration of Independence, when new constitutions were in order
for the new Commonwealths, the clergy contributed their knowledge and
their ideas. There were thirteen clergymen in the Massachusetts Con-
stitutional Convention (1779-1780). We owe to them and their con-
temporaries more than to any other single source those "Bills of Rights"
which in the federal and state constitutions are still the safeguards of
the essential liberty of the individual." In such ways as these the colonial
ministry made their invaluable contribution to the temper, tradition and
political corps of American life. No Congregationalist can justly claim
that New England Congregationalism was alone in this service. They
did take a part of which those who seek to retell their story may justly
be proud.

22 The growing use of "America" and "Americans" is extremely significant.

23 This probably claims too much for the New England clergy. In 1776 a convention
of delegates "from the counties and corporations of the colony of Virginia" gathered
at Williamsburg and made history. The convention anticipated the Declaration of
Independence and adopted a Declaration of Rights which could be exhibited as the
source of the Bill of Rights in the American Constitution. Actually these things were
in the colonial air. The clergy voiced them in New England with others; in Virginia,
Mason, Madison, Jefferson, and Patrick Henry.

CHAPTER IX

The Unitarian Departure

THE Revolutionary War supplied the New England clergy an
entirely sufficient field for their militant exercises, and a limited
moratorium in theological controversy was tacitly declared for
the duration. There was, however, no cessation of theological speculation
and divisive forces continued in action. That was inevitable. The general
lines along which Nineteenth Century thought was to move had their
genesis in the Eighteenth Century, though that of course is an arbitrary
dating. At least a central line of cleavage had become clearly recognizable.

The consequent division was never either precise or consistent; the
central lines were crossed and recrossed by the sheer complexities of
human nature. But, as one may trace a great watershed, it was there, and
what drained down from it in any region took opposite courses with far-
reaching consequences. There are names enough, since no one name is
ever enough, for these two opposing orders. We now name them in their
Nineteenth Century alignments "Liberal" and "Conservative." They in-
volved two radically opposed ways of approaching the meanings and
mysteries of life and conducting the human enterprise. They began, still
in the Eighteenth Century, as engaging abstractions suitable to a philos-
opher's closet or a theologian's study, but they refused to remain abstrac-
tions or confine themselves to closets.

They became American and French Revolutions, political processes,
laws and constitutions. They wrote liberty, fraternity, and equality
across the facades of the palaces of Bourbon kings, and altered the status
of religion and ecclesiastical orders. And between them on a somewhat
provincial terrain, though the issues involved were by no means provin-
cial, they provoked what is now irenically known as the Unitarian De-
parture. For New England theology reflected in its own limited geogiaph-
ical field the ferment of the age and was thereby eventually profoundly
affected. Puritan-Congregational doctrine had from the first held and
been held within the limits of a rigid Calvinism, even though early
Separatists had thought predestination an ungodly doctrine. The first
phases of the movement had not therefore been doctrinally controversial.
The focal interests of nascent Congregationalism were in another region:
the true nature and constitution of the Church and the right way to
worship God.

122

The Unitarian Departure 123

When Plymouth Pilgrims had won through suffering and exile the
liberty to have their own kind of church and say their prayers without
vestments, bell, or candle, they had for a little season nothing to contend
against save Indians and an inhospitable soil, and nothing to contend
for save a bare and lonely existence. They wanted only peace. Moreover,
the first independent churches, being "gathered," were organized on a
covenantal and not a creedal basis. Orthodoxy was not yet a burning
question and needed no creedal definitions.

Time and militant Puritanism changed all that. "Peace" and "Pur-
itanism" have, historically, had little in common save their initial letters.
The Cambridge Platform required "a personall and publick confession
and declaring of God's manner of working upon the soul" as "both law-
full, expedient and useful." "This profession of faith and repentance
. . . must be made by such at their admission, that were never in church-
society before."' The seeds of doctrinal controversy were in that require-
ment from the beginning and they developed, in time, an ample growth.
Since a man's salvation depended upon a sufficiency of theology, there
was never anywhere else, save in Scotland, a more fertile field for doc-
trinal controversy.

The effects of such discussions upon the Scotch and American minds
have been so often considered as to need no more than reemphasis here.
That so many students of formative forces in American life can leave
religion out is simply one more proof of that article in the creed to which
most disputants then subscribed: that our minds were hopelessly ruined
by the "Fall." The themes which engaged such seekers after salvation
were great enough to challenge the most disciplined minds; the argu-
ments they fed upon were as close-reasoned as they were subtly main-
tained or denied by master metaphysicians. Plain farming folk read by
firelight or candlelight books of which we speak awesomely, though never
having read them ourselves. Thus trained and being competent for the
sacred and eternal, they were more than competent for the secular and
the temporal. They came to town-meeting from a consideration of the
decrees of the Almighty and went to colonial legislatures with the per-
suasion of an "election" of which their earthly majorities were only a
validation.

I
The Influence of British Thought upon New England Theology

For all that, the colonies, still under administration of the British
crown, were not immune to the influence of British Eighteenth Century

iWilliston Walker's massive and authoritative Creeds and Platforms of Congregation-
alism is the source book for the creedal history of Congregationalism up to the date
of its publication (1893).

124 History of American Congregationalism

thought, which was increasingly skeptical and rationalistic. If one should
say that the Eighteenth Century supplied for the first time since the
dominance of Christianity a philosophic basis for religious skepticism, he
would not be too far wrong. For religion itself the significant thing was
the rise of what might be called secular systems of thought. Logically
they began, continued, and ended entirely outside the province of re-
ligion, but they could not as yet disentangle themselves from their re-
ligious inheritances nor ignore them. They would neither accept Chris-
tianity nor leave it alone.

The result was that Eighteenth Century thought, as Leslie Stephen
interprets it with a wealth of erudition and brilliancy of comment,^ is
seen playing in and out of religion along its entire front and always with
a dissolving influence upon inherited orthodoxies. Stephen needed two
massive volumes to tell his story, the point of which, for the purposes of
this chapter, is that so vast and contagious a body of thought, mobile in
literature, was sure to reach and influence New England which was,
after all, English and Eighteenth-Century. The question is, how much?
One cannot see that classic, conservative New England divines positively
reflect much of that influence, though consciously or unconsciously they
may have been "shadow-boxing" with it. They were, however, by no
means ignorant of it (Edwards had read Locke) but they moved upon a
clearly defined theoretical terrain. They were not fighting Hume and his
philosophy. They were fighting a holy war for their Calvinism, and car-
rying it to conclusions which might have surprised Calvin himself. For
his doctrine, he knew, was meant to live by in the face of great perils.

There is, on the other hand, adequate proof that the liberal wing
was not only familiar with English thought but influenced by it. Chauncy
of the First Church in Boston loved Tillotson and Baxter as ardently
as he disliked "Great Awakenings" and Edwards' theology. Jonathan
Mayhew of the West Church in Boston was steeped in Seventeenth and
Eighteenth Century theology and philosophy— anything but Calvinistic
sources. The safe conclusion seems to be that British thought penetrated
and modified Congregational theology unevenly. The seaboard went
liberal; the Berkshires kept the faith.

The influence of Harvard was disturbing, for that college had not,
from the first, fulfilled to the letter the pious expectations of the found-
ers. Its methods of free-inquiry favored theological laxity.^

^Stephen, History of English Thought in the Eighteenth Century.

3 The influence of Eighteenth Century British thought upon American theology would
be an admirable subject for a thesis. The influence of British literature is apparently
negligible— A Boston book store in 1700 had for sale 2,504 titles. Pilgrim's Progress
the only representation of literature; the rest religion and theology. The majority of
these titles must have been British.

The Unitarian Departure 1 25

It is difficult to follow the engagements of rival theologies and the
alignments of faction through the last half of the Eighteenth Century
without using "liberal" and "liberalism," either with or without capital
letters. Actually they were not then in use as we use them now. The word
"liberal" is not in Leslie Stephen's index, which means that there was in
the Eighteenth Century no English school, cabal, or party so named. Not
that the age lacked labels. It continued the time-honored classifications of
heresy such as "Arian" and "Socinian," though "Unitarian" was to dis-
place "Arian." "Calvinism," the hall-mark of sterling orthodoxy, and
"Arminian" were in general use. Calvinists were "New-lights" or "Old-
lights," only the "New-lights" were the conservatives. Cooke thinks "Ar-
minianism" to have then meant about what "liberalism" or "modernism"
has since meant.

It was as much a state of mind and frontage of faith as an articulate
creed. Theologically it maintained the freedom of the will as against
inexorable decrees and predestinations, and it magnified the Grace of
God as the Calvinist magnified his bleak sovereignty. For Edwards and
his school it was a particularly irritating form of theological dissent and
the head and front of pretty much all the cuiTent offenses against reli-
gion and morality which plagued Northampton and adjacent regions. In
short, they did not like it. At any rate Arminianism meant in New Eng-
land, say, in 1750 about what liberalism meant in and about Boston in,
say, 1900 and later. So the terms are fairly interchangeable.*

II
The Lines Begin to Form

To what extent individual churches began to frame their own creeds
in conformity with the Cambridge Platform could only be determined by
an examination of church records not possible here.* But the precedent
of authoritative doctrinal tests for church membership had been estab-
lished. Ten years after the meetings at Cambridge, Massachusetts, Eng-
lish independents, supported by Cromwell, made their own declaration of
faith. Their pastors and delegates met (September, 1658) in the old
Savoy Palace on the bank of the Thames. Their "Declaration of the
Faith and Order Owned and Practiced in the Congregational Churches in

^No historian of American Congregationalism during its first 175 years can escape
the charge of provincialism. He must write as if Massachusetts and Connecticut were
everything on this side of the Atlantic, be always referring to New England, and use
all his ingenuity to keep clear of Boston. The defense is simple. American Congre-
gationalism was thus geographically localized. Since English Congregationalism was
during the first part of this period dormant, about all the Congregational churches
there were anywhere were between the North Atlantic seaboard and the Hudson River.
Few religious dramas of equal significance have been played out upon so small a stage.
But there are other dimensions beside geography.

1 26 History of American Congregationalism

England: agreed upon and consented unto by their Elders and Messen-
gers—" was therefore called the "Savoy Declaration."

It was a most weighty document— a dozen fine-print pages of preface,
thirty-two chapters of doctrinal affirmation, and thirty articles dealing
with the pure institution and order of churches. It was fundamentally
trinitarian and inexorable about predestination for the glory of God.
"Some men and angels are predestinated into everlasting life and others
fore-ordained to everlasting death"; and nothing can be done about it.
"Their number is so certain and definite that it cannot be either in-
creased or diminished."^

Cromwell's death, almost on the day of the Savoy meeting, was also
apparently a death blow to English Congregationalism. When it revived
much later, the "Declaration" had passed out of the picture in England,
but it had become authoritative in America. Massachusetts made it
official in 1680. Delegates from the Connecticut churches met at Say-
brook in 1708 and recommended it in substance^ to the "Honorable Gen-
eral Assembly of Connecticut for adoption" as the faith of the churches
"of this colony"— which seems to have been done with ultimately decisive
consequences in Connecticut. So late as 1865 a National Council of Con-
gregational Churches declared it quite satisfactory for "substance of
doctrine." Considering its weary, wordy thirty-five pages, one may gravely
doubt how many of the 502 delegates gathered in Old South meeting
house in Boston had really read it, or with what mental reservations they
approved it.^

We have already noted the natural reluctance of Baptists and Angli-
cans when taxed for the support of Congregational worship, and the dis-
inclination of the non-communicant to be taxed for the support of any
kind of church; also the rigors of Puritanism were being relaxed, not
without protest. Whether or not to "sing by note" became a burning
question; so did an organ offered to Brattle Street (refused, but King's
Chapel accepted it). Chauncy prayed at Mayhew's funeral, said to be the
first prayer ever offered at a Boston funeral, and so on.*

5 It has been maintained that the long, stiff creeds of local Congregational churches
date largely from the period after the Unitarian controversy. The orthodox thus
meant to consolidate their position. The older churches were certainly organized upon
covenants.

6 Actually Massachusetts had adopted it in 1680.

7An insistent minority made their reservations vocal and started a hot debate. Result
(this belongs to a later chapter in this history), an irenic declaration was drawn and
read first on Burial Hill at Plymouth over the graves of the heroic dead and in sight
of the wideness of the sea. It was afterwards adopted by the Council in Boston— a
masterpiece of adroit and soothing terminology. At any rate it buried the Savoy
Declaration— on Burial Hill.

8 Also the Bible began to be read as a part of the order of worship, instead of a point
of departure for exposition— all this from Cooke, though the engaging studies of
Alice Morse Earle supply the facts.

The Unitarian Departure 127

Now all this was inevitable and much of it inconsequential, unless
magnified out of all proportion. But there was a select core of divinity at
the center of the inherited systems around which finally the really sig-
nificant controversies would come into action. As one follows the engage-
ment of opposed attitudes and tempers along a wide and very uneven
front, he must conclude that the logic of the doctrinaire had carried
Calvinism to extremes against which protest was inevitable and which
invited extreme reaction. It had come dangerously near being a denial of
any fundamental justice, let alone mercy, in God's way with men. By the
strangest of paradoxes a passion for the glory of God led to extraordinary
conceptions of his administrations. It is difficult calmly to characterize
them.

Very likely a perfectly natural human and more or less unreasoned
reaction against the dogmatic inhumanities of the current theology in-
dicated the first line of liberal cleavage. After that a supporting theology
was worked out for the more humane positions.^ A dominant theology
long worked over and out is like a gieat building whose strength is in
its perfect balance of interlocking supports and strains. Take away any
of its key supports and it begins to give way at other points. The liberal
Eighteenth Century mind, rejecting an unpalatable Calvinism, began to
question the whole of inherited orthodoxy. An Arminian could be a
Trinitarian— witness the Wesleys— but once started down that road Uni-
tarianism was reasonably inevitable for many of the liberal clergy and
laity.

Actually there were then as now, broadly speaking, two kinds of
mind— the seeking and the accepting, the critical and the conforming.
These begin their characteristic Pilgrim's Progresses with no great depth
or width of difference between them, but like navigators who use diver-
gent great circles the distance between them presently becomes too vast
for any reconciliation. "Fellowship" is and always has been one of the
focal points of Congregationalism. Thereby Independency is controlled,
saved from itself, though despite Cambridge platforms and everything
since, it was and remains a free fellowship. A church may be left entirely,
like Kipling's cat, to walk by itself, but it cannot be coerced, and the only
excommunication without "bell or candle," is to leave its name out of the
"Year Book" upon the recommendation of its ecclesiastical neighbors.
There is a clerical as well as a church fellowship. Ministers belong to
groups and associations, exchange pulpits, give each other right-hands-
of-fellowship and the like. These are precious and vital filaments, and
when they are broken they bleed.

^That is too easy a generalization. The complicated relationships of the ethical and
the doctrinal in any religion cannot be so easily summarized.

128 History of A merican Congregationalism

III

The Churches Cease to "Fellowship"

New England Congregationalism, divided by theologies and more
deeply by attitudes and tempers, began to lose its unities just along these
lines of association and exchanges. It was a slow process; the bonds which
held these relatively small groups of churches together would stretch be-
fore they broke. The first division of a church on doctrinal giounds, out-
side Boston, was in Worcester in 1785. The First Church there had been
"hearing" candidates and could not agree upon any one of them. The
majority wanted a Calvinist. "The more intelligent minority" ^° wanted a
very pronounced liberal, withdrew, organized another church (a too
familiar Congregational procedure) under Mr. Bancroft's ministry, and
enjoyed it, one trusts, for many years. Dates now become significant. The
American Revolution, as has been said, naturally furnished the reli-
giously militant an ample channel for their belligerencies, and the
colonies needed to hang together. Otherwise they faced the alternative
that Franklin indicated.

In 1780, however, the "New Divinity," being the old Calvinism whose
development under and after Edwards has been traced, had found in
Hopkins and others its strongest and most decisive formulations. It
possessed a tremendous driving power— has always possessed that power.
It generated missionary fervor, sought converts, kindled revivals. In 1790
another period of revivalism began whose history only a specialist could
trace. It followed always expanding western frontiers, created evangelists
of endless variety, multiplied churches of all evangelical Protestant de-
nominations, founded theological seminaries and colleges, created home
and foreign missionary boards, and wrote dramatic chapters in the his-
tory of religion in America. The movement, however, was sadly divisive
and accentuated theological and temperamental differences and his-
torical regroupings. In addition, the influences of the English Unitarians"
began to tell.

loSo George Willis Cooke, the Unitarian historian, naturally. Cooke calls the minor-
ity candidates an Arminian and Arian. No wonder the Conservatives jibbed.

11 Some implications ot this too spacious paragraph need correction. Methodism was
anything but Calvinistic. It was by its genesis nobly evangelical. It began and has
continued its evangelical mission along its own theological lines. American "revivalism"
therefore cannot be claimed by any one school of theology. It has been amongst other
things, the product of general American social and religious conditions.

It is difficult to locate the very first uses of "Unitarian" and "Trinitarianism." Thomas
Evealyn, Cooke says, was the first English preacher "who called himself a Unitarian."
He published a "Humble Inquiry Into the Scripture Account of Jesus Christ" in 1702.
It was republished in 1756 and appeared in Boston. He had established a Unitarian
congregation in England in 1705 (Cooke, Unitarianism in America, p. 67). Leslie
Stephen uses the terms as current and definitive in England in the last half of the
Eighteenth Centiuy. It was "the prevailing creed of the most intelligent of the old

The Unitarian Departure 129

The Revolution had naturally speeded up the independent temper
of the population and shifted centers of loyalty. Americanism began to
displace provincialism. A new economic era was beginning. There were
congressmen and presidents to elect. Politics of a pretty virulent type
came into action. The churches and the clergy lost in authority as they
were seen in a new perspective. Hell began, very slowly, to be less vividly
menacing at the terminals of village streets. Universalism became for a
while a kind of theological catch— all for escapists from creeds they had
come to hate, perhaps because they still feared them. There was in the
new "border states" a movement back to Biblical religion. The "Book"
was enough and a Christian was a Christian or a Disciple. The Nine-
teenth Century was in the making.

What became New England Unitarianism was the most intellectually
sophisticated of all these movements, and with one significant difference.
Other movements created new churches. "Unitarian" became a new
name for a group of very old (for America) churches.

The Tractarian Period

"Chairs" of theology are always strategic positions, since their learned
occupants exert a telling influence upon the future through the students
they train. Ecclesiastic authorities have always, therefore, taken great
care to have them properly and safely filled. In strong centralized com-
munions their appointments must be validated by the supreme denomina-
tional courts, and where strong factions are opposed an appointment may
precipitate a major engagement. Even where there is no denominational
control, a disputed appointment may still become a storm-center of con-
troversy.

They needed a "Hollis Professor of Divinity" at Harvard College in
1805. The appointment lay entirely within the power of the college au-
thorities, but the conservative and liberal parties in an already embattled
Congregationalism welcomed it as a cause of war. The conservatives

dissenters" and manifest within the borders of the Establishment. Joseph Priestly is
usually credited with being one of the great popularizers of Unitarianism. Stephen gives
pages to his brilliant and more or less self-contradictory contentions and positions. He
discovered oxygen, was mobbed for his political opinions, wrote 153 publications, and
died in the United States. (He began as a Presbyterian minister. English Presbyterian-
ism largely went Unitarian— one of the strangest little chapters in the history of English
Protestantism.) In general "Unitarianism" was a convenient covering term for ration-
alistic and critical religious movements, which still wanted to be religious. In England
it was the religious aspect of congenial "circles" and societies devoted to "culture" and
intellectual activity, and associated with a rapidly rising industrialism. One might call
them the "intellectuals" of their time.

Erasmus Darwin was cynical about their religious zeal. "Unitarianism," he said,
"is a feather-bed for a dying Christian," but they included eminent names. American
Unitarianism was later quite parallel to the English situation. '

1 30 History of American Congregationalism

claimed that by the conditions of the trust-fund which supported the
chair only a Calvinist could legally sit in it. This the liberals denied.
Hollis had not only made no such restrictions; he was by nature incapa-
ble of making them, then being both liberal and catholic.^^

The Overseers agreed with the liberals, and elected Henry Ware, who
forthwith left Hingham Meeting House (with its bell rope in the middle
of the building) and moved Hollis' chair considerably to the "left." This
accomplished fact did not end the controversy; it lasted a quarter of a
century, and the lines of division between the churches and the clergy
were thereby more definitely drawn. The next phase might be called
the Tractarian period. The belligerents took to print vigorously. They
published pamphlets with awesome titles and provoking contents. John
Sherman's One God in One Person Only was described as "one of the
first acts of direct hostility against the orthodox committed on these west-
ern shores! "^^

The conservatives naturally replied and counter-attacked. Theolog-
ical magazines were born and died and Andover Theological Seminary
was founded (1808) as a bulwark of orthodoxy. The founders, deter-
mined that there should be no repetition of the Hollis incident, made
subscription to a confession of faith, historically known as the "Andover
Creed," a rigid condition of sitting in any of its professional chairs. The
"Creed" was the quintessence of New England Calvinism and was so well
drawn that it held, heresy tight, for three long generations. Toward the
end of the century a certain elasticity of professorial conscience made
possible a working accommodation between a living scholarship and its
"dead-hand" provisions, and later still after long litigation a Supreme
Court of Massachusetts found an entirely legal way of annulling its
clearly-drawn provisions. But this is a detour.

It is difficult to condense any account of the giadual estrangement
between the two Congregational groups. "Groups" is an entirely accurate
term. Their very looseness of ecclesiastical organization kept the move-
ment from coming to a head anywhere. There were no heresy trials— no
one could try anyone else— nor any excommunications; simply a slow and
costly breaking of filaments more vital than any ecclesiastical bonds. In
a sense pathetically more realistic than its patterned uses, "communion"
between the liberal and the conservative faded out of the historic picture.
The issues involved were geographically and ecclesiastically vaster than
the little fields upon which the action took place. Profound readjust-
ments in the doctrinal inheritances not only of Protestantism but of his-

12 Cooke, Unitarianism in America, chap. 5.

13 Much like Emerson's description of the first shot in the Revohitionary War fired
by "embattled farmers."

The Unitarian Departure 131

toric Christianity were in their irreconcilable action. The whole of west-
ern Christianity would sooner or later face the same challenges, feel the
searching currents of the same rising tides drawing in from remote and
changing orders of thought, knowledge, and even human disposition.
Western Christendom in its various communions would deal with this
rising tide of a new age in various and characteristic fashions. Catholi-
cism with pontifical authority shut the gates of Rome against it, and they
seemed to hold. Anglicans managed to contain extremes as far apart as
any in Boston in its spacious organization. American Presbyterians
divided into two "schools." Congregationalism simply fell apart.

Its action, to repeat, was in fields paradoxically vast and provincial
—as though one could draw a circle of one hundred miles radius around
Boston and contain it all. Even then half the circle would have been in
the void of the Atlantic. It is demandingly difficult, moreover, to separate
the theological from the cultural on that same limited terrain. The word
"Unitarian" is not in the index of Van Wyck Brooks' brilliant Flowering
of New England, but the spirit and structure of the society which engen-
dered it is set out in his first five chapters far more illuminatingly than in
any church history. After Edwards and Hopkins and Emmons one comes
almost suddenly upon a spirit which no theological vessel could either
contain or retain.

Classic names, not only from a Boston but from a national point of
view, begin to appear in Cooke's narrative: Thatchers, Lowells, Emer-
sons, Everetts, Ticknor, Alliston, Chauncey, or Parkman. One must sadly
confess that orthodoxy could not supply their peers. The liberals thought
themselves misunderstood and misrepresented. Naturally they drew to-
gether for mutual aid and comfort. Their first meeting for organization
was held in May, 1820. There had long been meetings of the Massachu-
setts clergy in Boston in May. They began by meeting to see that the
"General Court" did no harm to the Commonwealth. They kept on com-
ing because Boston was quite a change after a winter in a country
parish. 1*

Channing addressed the gathering. They needed, he thought, "a bond
of union, a means of intercourse, and an opportunity of conference not
yet enjoyed." It would be well if they joined their prayers and counsels
toward such desirable ends. When a Separatist movement begins to be
accelerated with "prayers and counsels," the end is in sight. The leaders
of the movement seemed to have been reluctant to become a separate
denomination; partly, one may hope, through sentiment, partly because,

i^There are delightful stories of the general rehabilitation of country ministers and
their wives through the generosity of Boston relatives. A bonnet for the lady, broad-
cloth for the parson— and paint for the chaise.

132 History of American Congregationalism

being markedly independent, they feared any suggestion of denomina-
tional control, and partly (though this is mere surmise) they did not
know exactly what to become or how with entire agreement to designate
themselves.

V
The "Departure" is Accomplished

Unitarian denominational machinery was installed before there was
actually a Unitarian denomination. A publishing fund was established,
though its promoters denied any sectarian purpose. They sought, they
said, only the increase of practical goodness. They would furnish good
reading to youth, who certainly deserved consideration, and supply
adults with a more devotional literature which "yet did not omit to pro-
vide entertainment and instruction." Harvard Divinity School— distinct
from Harvard College— was founded in 1819'^ with a most competent and
well-balanced faculty. They were of the liberal wing, but the Divinity
School was by charter unsectarian, given "to . . . the impartial ... in-
vestigation of Christian truth," and requiring "no assent to the peculiari-
ties of any denomination."

Presently there was a Unitarian Book Society and Tract Society and
The Christian Register, destined to a long, honorable and, toward the
end, stormy career. All this before there was a Unitarian denomination.
What a lawyer would call the "enabling act" was the formation of the
American Unitarian Association in 1825. Now there was finally some-
thing to "join" and 125 churches went over to that "Association"— a
hundred in Massachusetts, twenty in the rest of New England, a few west
of the Hudson river.^® There was nothing to prevent their going. For
historic American Congregationalism it was a catastrophe. Its oldest
churches went— twenty out of the first twenty-five organized— including
Plymouth. Ten of the eleven Boston churches— and so on; continuities
were broken, long associations shattered, roots cut. All these, precious
as they should have been, were imponderables. On the other hand,
church properties were real estate. Under the medley of New England
laws dealing with the holding and administration of church property
one thing was clear: the poor communicants, the actual church mem-
bers, did not own anything, in the contemplation of the law. The titles
to their "meeting houses" were vested either in the "town" or in an
ecclesiastical corporation specifically organized to maintain public wor-
ship. Such a corporation must have trustees, directors, and voting mem-
bers. But the voting members need not be communicants and a church

i^Andover Theological Seminary and Harvard Divinity School were thus pioneers
in a method of theological education new not only to the United States but to Prot-
estantism.

16 All this narration is deeply in debt to Cooke, Unitarianism in America.

The Unitai'ian Departure 133

member might not be a voting member of the ecclesiastical body which,
again, was the only body existing in the contemplation of the law.

Unitarian historians touch all this lightly, or else fall back upon the
"parish theory"— the whole community the church. There were under
either system and authority, a body of laymen, supporting public worship
but not church members. These supplied the liberals an extensive and
most strategically placed following, since they could— still in contempla-
tion of an extremely myopic law— take the church property with them
into the Unitarian association and leave protesting church members
homeless, out of doors. And this happened. Properties representing the
generosity and sacrifice of generations were lost to the orthodox without
compensation, and their losing left wounds which were long in healing."

There should have been enough catholicity and elasticity (they mean
surprisingly the same thing) in the Congregational order to have con-
tained both wings. That order now includes theological attitudes rela-
tively as far apart as the liberals and orthodox were 125 years ago. The
position theologically of the first generation of Unitarian preachers
would now hardly provoke a Congregational examining council to argu-
ment. And the genius of historic Independency was hospitable to free
and inquiring thought. But the religious mind of the time was given to
theological debate, debate engendered bitterness, and bitterness made
community of thought and faith increasingly difficult and finally im-
possible.

Unitarianism continued a Congregational polity and the two denomi-
national mechanisms ran in rather parallel grooves: "causes," education,
literature. Associations, Conferences, Boards, and geography. The history
of American Unitarianism after 1825 belongs to its own specialists. Its
cultural distinction must be universally recognized, the contributions of
its teachers, preachers, poets, philanthropists, essayists and philosophers
are now our common inheritances. It flowered with liberalism and New
England, and in a measure has shared their Indian Summer.^* It should
have been one religious answer to the doubts and quests of the end of
the Nineteenth Century, and in a limited way it was and is. But not ac-
cording to the expectation of its leaders. The reason or reasons why be-
long to an examination of the nature of religion itself and definitely the

i^Such questions of church property always became crucial in secession or union.
E.g., the "Wee Frees" of Scotland or the problems of the United Church in Canada.
There were curious consequences in New England. The "Society" of the First Church
in Burlington, Vermont, went Unitarian— and found they had no church members.
The "communicants" remained orthodox but had no "Society." So the "First Society"
hunted around and got a "Second Church." The First Church went to the legislature
and got a "Second Society." In this case the First Church kept the real estate.

isits identification with a now-vanishing Boston is the local historian's delight. It
was both geography and a state of mind. "One does not," said a Boston woman not
so long ago, admonishing a young minister, "speak of Sin in Boston."

1 34 History of American Congregationalism

Christian religion. If one should maintain that religion lives by its emo-
tion and its mystery, rather than by its reason and its clarity, he might
be on the right line.

Beyond debate "orthodoxy" itself was leavened and emancipated di-
rectly and indirectly by the free inquiry and insistence upon human
values of the Unitarian movement. Many of our now best-loved hymns
are the gift of its poets to worship, and those who are alienated by its
name are nevertheless deeply in debt to its spirit. "Orthodox" Congi'ega-
tionalism was itself stimulated to new enterprise by the Unitarian defec-
tion. During these twenty-five years of controversy it initiated American
foreign missions, grew in denominational self-consciousness, followed the
frontier, and tried an interesting experiment with the Presbyterians.

CHAPTER X

Westward Ho

THE successful issue of the Revolutionary War dated, of course,
a new epoch of incalculable significance. Every aspect of colonial
life acknowledged the change. North Continental geography
took on a frontierless and prophetic significance. Great Britain held
Canada, actual and potential, north of an indefinite frontier, later to be
bitterly disputed from Maine to Oregon. But in substance Canada was
there. The peril of the French and Indians was long over; except for
boundary disputes, there was no threat from the North.^ Sullivan's ex-
pedition during the war had broken the power of the Five Tribes from
Lake Ontario to the northern Pennsylvania border and destroyed root
and branch the most highly developed Indian culture in northeast Amer-
ica. The crown lands in the Province of New York were ceded in the
treaty of peace with Great Britain and there was no longer any barrier
to settlement in that rich, spacious, beautiful, and strategic region (every
adjective justified). A gateway to the West was opened through which
the builders of an empire would pass.^

The creation of the Northwest Territory under the ordinance of 1788
made the then "West" both national and free, and the allure of its fabled
wealth in virgin land began to call from regions which already thought
themselves over-populated, the strong, the eager, and the adventurous.
American church and religious life was thereby profoundly affected.^
iThe fascinating history of Vermont during the Revolutionary period and its own
period of proud independency (ending 1791) is here highly significant. The fine art of
equivocation by which the Aliens kept Great Britain hoping, Congress expecting,
baffled New York and New Hampshire, saved their own necks and maintained an un-
harried little republic all their own, has rarely been equaled in the annals of diplomacy.
But they did prevent Great Britain getting and keeping a territorial wedge which
would have driven deep between New England and New York colonial territory.

2 One could become almost lyric in reviewing the movement and development of
transportation through the Mohawk Valley and along the southern shores of the Great
Lakes. The southern spurs of the Adirondacks, the northern slopes of the Alleghanies
determined its first course. Indian trails first threaded it, the pioneer followed on foot,
on horseback, with ox-cart (usually keeping to the hills, the lowlands being undrained
and marshy). The Erie Canal furnished a many-locked waterway, disdained the Monte-
zuma swamps, tied Albany and Buffalo together with a fluid ribbon. The Railway
followed the Canal (rebuilt to become the Barge Canal) and now the aeroplane flies
high above it all, following the same routes and always the roads, by land, water or
sky, which carried tides of migration toward setting suns and brought back the wealth
of the Continent to the eastern seaboard through regions haunted by immemorial
memories.

3 Professor William Warren Sweet has made an exhaustive and completely authorita-
tive study of all this in Religion on the American Frontier.

1 ^6 History of A merican Congregationalism

Our particular concern is what happened to Congregationalism and how

it happened.

I
The Effect of the American Revolution upon the Churches

The end of the Revolutionary War found the New England churches
materially enfeebled, doctrinally divided, religiously impoverished. The
war had taken its toll of ministers by death and sickness, of congregations
broken up, of properties damaged by neglect or ruined by the enemy.
The burden of rehabilitation bore heavily upon folk themselves impov-
erished by seven years of fighting. At the same time the devotion of the
Congregational clergy, already noted, to the Continental cause left them
in a favorable position. (Sweet.) They were able to maintain their highly
privileged condition. They were consulted and proved influential in state
constitutional conventions. They made strategic contributions to the new
political and civil orders. They threw a decisive and favorable weight in
the debates over adoption of the Federal Constitution. "It is fortunate,"
General Lincoln wrote to Washington, "for us, that the clergy are pretty
generally with us [in the Massachusetts debates]. They have in this state
a very great influence over the people."^

Religion had suffered through the preoccupation of the clergy and
the churches with war, politics, and constitution making. There were
other unfavorable influences. We have followed already (in the rise of
Unitarianism) the effect of English philosophy and deism upon inher-
ited orthodoxies. There were also the disturbing influences of the French
Revolution, the invasion of whose ideas no frontier could prohibit. They
were heady and unsettling ideas. Channing thought they diseased the
general imagination. Thomas Paine's Age of Reason became the Bible of
radical youth. Even Ethan Allen turned his restless and exhuberant mind
toward a defense of reason and a general condemnation of the established
religious order.

There was a consequent laxity in morals probably exaggerated as
against austere Puritan backgrounds. They had been complaining of
that since before Jonathan Edwards. Timothy Dwight and others rivaled
the Old Testament prophets in denunciation of contemporaneous man-
ners and morals. Connecticut and Massachusetts, were, in his opinion,
like Isaiah's Judea "from the sole of the foot to the head there is no
health in it." More sober historians acknowledge the situation and charge
it up generally to the "unfriendly" influence of war upon religion.

For all that the position of the Congregational churches in New Eng-
land was still outstanding. New England itself was the most compact,
populous, coherent and cultured territorial unit in the infant nation. It
4 Sweet, Religion on the American Frontier, vol. 3, p. 4.

Westward Ho! 137

had a population of slightly over a million. Congregationalists were three
times as numerous as all other denominations combined/ The general
region was already conspicuous for education and enterprise. Its stock
was still so fertile that Horace Bushnell could, much later, discourse upon
the "out-populating power of the Christian stock"; by which he meant
his own native Protestant stock. He did not foresee what would happen
when that population would itself be out-populated.

The hill farms of New England were competent to breed a vigorous
race, but their little rocky reaches could not hold them. Until the Civil
War finally ended the process of depletion. New England's migrant popu-
lation made an unparalleled contribution to the making of the West.
Then at last it was bled white of its Protestant stock. "Cellar-holes"
guarded by purple lilacs still mark the recession of the tide, and stone
walls lost in second and third growth timber are mute witnesses to one-
time meadows and the unbelievable labor of generations whose tired
hands had found rest in little burying grounds beginning to be forgotten:

"So fleet the works of men
Back to their earth again;
Ancient and holy things fade like a dream."

Normally the Congregationalists, at the beginning of the Nineteenth
Century "the most numerous as well as the most influential religious
body in America" (Sweet), should have maintained their primary across
the continent (especially due west of the Hudson River and the Great
Lakes) and secured for Congregationalism a statistical and institutional
priority it does not now possess. What happened?

Changes in the Home Base

Changes, to begin with, in the home bases. The inherited alliance
between minister and magistrate, always the Puritan ideal of the King-
dom of God on earth, was slowly being dissolved. Sturdily independent
laymen, Anglicans, Baptists, Methodists were all against it— and even
more potently the trends of the time and the policy to which the new
nation was committed, of the complete separation of Church and State.
New England orthodoxy was seamed with the doctrinal differences which
eventuated in the Unitarian "departure." The inherited system was by
no means dissolved, but its ligaments were yielding. All this tended to
give Congregationalism preoccupation with its own affairs, prevented a
united front in the missionary advancement,^ and left vulnerable sectors

5 Estimated population of New England at the close of the Revolution: 1,090,000;
Congregational Churches, 656.

6This section of this history is in debt to Dr. Oliver Wendell Elsbree's The Rise of
the Missionary Spirit in America. Compact, inclusive, fact-packed.

1 38 History of A merican Congregationalism

of which other religious forces were rather quick to take a blameless
advantage.

A second great revival period was momentous in consequences. The
religious coldness and moral laxity which followed the Revolution in-
vited a religious revival. And it came; the interests and responses of the
"Great Awakening" were repeated. This revival movement began in 1797
and continued for five years. Connecticut seems to have been its center,
but it spread north into Vermont and "down east" into Maine. The
churches were increased in zeal and membership; there was a rebirth of
evangelical fervor which turned naturally, inevitably, to missionary enter-
prises. The newly opened frontiers and the migratory movements across
them, soon to attain really vast proportions, sounded a Macedonian call
—and the unsaved heathen world was waiting.

By one of those contradictions which have so often saved theologians
from the consequences of their own logic, the rigidities of Hopkins' Cal-
vinism, widely accepted— in which there would seem neither room nor
need for benevolence of any kind, since all was predetermined— issued in
a doctrine of "disinterested benevolence." The Christian who must be
willing to be damned for the glory of God could also, at less cost to him-
self, glorify God by seeking and promoting the highest degree of good
(utilitarianism comes in here) to "all beings which exist, capable of good,
or that can be in any sense or degree, objects of good will." Hopkins him-
self grew lyric in anticipation of the results of such benevolence in full
action; "it will unite mankind into one happy society, teaching them to
love one another as brethren, each one seeking and rejoicing in the pub-
lic good and in the happiness of individuals; this will form the most
happy state of public society that can be enjoyed on earth." ^ Apparently
one of the roots of humanitarian liberalism, now under deep condemna-
tion, was in that rocky Calvinistic soil.

Ill
The Rebirth of the Missionary Spirit

The combined result of reborn evangelical fervor, Calvinistic benevo-
lence and a world then as now desperately in need of disinterested good
will was the inception and release of reforms, benevolences, and "causes"
which in their full development so finely characterized American church
and social life till the first World War. The first result was the organiza-
tion of propagandizing societies (in the best sense of the word) new to
Protestantism and, in many fields, to Christianity. There was no end to
them: Bible and Tract Societies; Sunday School and Orphanage Socie-
ties; Asylums for Deaf Mutes; for the colonization for Free Negroes; for
'Elsbree, The Rise of the Missionary Spirit in America, chap. 7.

Westward Ho! 1 39

the Suppression of Vice and Intemperance, and an always fluid list, too
long for enumeration, coming and going.* The national flair for organi-
zation and a general crusading zeal must be included as contributory.
Naturally there would be missionary societies, home and foreign. The
Connecticut Association (1798) formed the first Congregational state
missionary society in New England. Its published purpose was "to extend
the blessings of the gospel to the uttermost of their power" and "to be
instrumental in diffusing its glad tidings among the inhabitants of the
newly settled frontiers of our country, and among the heathen tribes."^

The "heathen tribes" had not, before that, been neglected. Both the
Pilgrims and the Puritans had justified their new world adventures by
the hope of extending the gospel "in these remote parts of the world"
and with lamentable lapses they had tried to do it. The story of Protes-
tant missionary work with and for the Indians is long to tell and sad to
follow. There were over and over again really promising beginnings but
they were always defeated by the greed, inhumanity, and land hunger
of the white man, by disease and death, by the inability of the red man
to adapt himself to a culture to which all his inheritances made him not
only alien but hostile. The whole conduct of their relationships darkens
the pages of American history.

The British Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign
Parts (1701) had labored earnestly for the "Propagation of the Gospel"
not only among the Indians but amongst followers of the "Congrega-
tional Way," who had, the Society must have sadly concluded, no gospel
because they had no bishops. There was a suspicion among its ungrateful
beneficiaries that its real object was the establishment of Anglicanism in
New England, which contributed to their wholehearted support of the
American Revolution.

The Puritan in his turn had sought to do something for the Anglican.
In the early 1640's Boston reported an appeal from Virginia. A cry "from
many well disposed people [there] ... to the elders here, bewailing their
sad condition for want of the means of salvation, and earnestly entreat-
ing a supply of faithful ministers, whom, upon experience of their gifts
and godliness, they might call to office." There was nothing Boston elders
would have liked better than to send their light and truth to Virginia.
So they had the letter read on a Lecture Day and set a day apart "to seek
God in it." They found guidance and chose for the mission three of
their number who "might most likely be spared"— an ambiguous phrase.
Among the three was William Tompson of Braintree whose congrega-

sElsbree, The Rise of the Missionary Spirit in America, chap. 7.

sSweet, Religion on the American Frontier, vol. 2, p. 40. This chapter is also so
deeply in debt to Sweet that a general acknowledgement should include all indebtedness.
Actually, however, the records of the Association do not contain these quoted phrases.

140 History of American Congregationalism

tion apparently were not at all unwilling to spare him. The chosen went
south by water and by slow stages in the late Autumn and at last mid-
winter. They suffered many discomforts and dangers, wind bound in Nar-
ragansett Bay and shipwrecked in Hell-Gate, where they barely reached
shore. Cotton Mather wrote a poem about that, praising Tompson—

"Upon a ledge of craggy rocks near stav'd
His Bible in his bosom thrusting sav'd;
The Bible, the best of cordial of his heart,
'Come floods, come flames,' cry'd he.
We'll never part.' "

These dangers and hindrances continuing they were led to doubt
"whether their call were of God or not." Virginia welcomed them with
characteristic hospitality and a benign climate. But the authorities would
have none of their preaching; in fact, "did in a sense drive them out."
They took back much experience and one convert— Daniel Gookins. He
made his mark in Boston and Mather summed up Thompson's mission-
ary journey:

"By Tompson's pains,
Christ and New England a dear Gookins gains." ^^

The especial and pioneer Connecticut interest in what would now
be called home missions was probably due to several causes: less doctrinal
divisions among the clergy than in Massachusetts, and more evangel-
ical fervor. Also Connecticut had a stake in the then West, since the state,
in the cessions which constituted the Northwest Territory, had reserved
for itself a considerable and extremely desirable section in northeastern
Ohio. The grounds upon which the state claimed any right in regions
so far beyond its own borders should be the concern of specialists in the
examination of colonial charters. At any rate, Connecticut got its Reserve
(now the "Western Reserve") and named it "New Commecticut." Natu-
rally the churches would be concerned for the religious estate of its citi-
zens in these distant parts."

There was also a considerable migration of Connecticut folk up the
noble Connecticut Valley into the then new state of Vermont. There
they settled other Hartfords and Windsors, and there the missionaries
followed them. Finally there was an unusual migration from Connecticut

10 Adams, Three Episodes of Massachusetts History, vol. 2, pp. 596-99.

11 In June, 1774, the Connecticut General Association voted: "This association taking
in consideration the state of settlements now forming in the wilderness to the west-
ward and northwestward of us, who are mostly destitute of a preacher Gospel, many
of which are of our Brethren emigrants. . . ." And so on to the familiar effect that
missionaries should be sent and money raised to send them, which was done. The
missionaries to begin with were settled pastors who would go on four months tours
at $4.50 a week and $4.00 to supply their own pulpits. Later new men were sent who
would keep at it. Of course the 1774 action antedated the ordinance of 1788. The "north-
ern boundaries of the Province of New York" were then the far Northwest.

Westward Ho! 141

into central and western New York. It is said there was a Connecticut
regiment under Sullivan and these, seeing how good the land was, re-
turned to settle it and took their neighbors with them. Five hundred
loaded sleighs and ox-sleds going west passed through Albany between
sunrise and sunset February 28, 1795. (Winter snows furnished the best
going.) And, finally, it was easy geographically for Connecticut folk to
go across into New York. The Connecticut churches renewed their pre-
Revolutionary zeal for home missions and their Association in 1793 had
eight workers in its pay. But now the task demanded a special agency.
So the Missionary Society of Connecticut was organized and obtained
permission of the Connecticut Assembly to solicit funds. The Society was
incorporated in 1802 (a representative of the Presbyterian General As-
sembly was a trustee), and could legally hold property (not in excess of
$10,000). It needed an organ and founded the Connecticut Evangelical
Magazine, the profits whereof "were turned over to the trustees for the
furtherance of missions."'^

This chapter focuses upon the Connecticut Society for reasons soon to
be apparent. Other societies followed, in Western Massachusetts, Boston,
Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont. Women began to form
their societies, e.g., the Cent Institution in Boston, a cent a day for Bibles
and Tracts; $500 the first year. In one form or another most of these
societies still function. Their records are voluminous and fascinating
sources; their work has been far flung. They and their like in other de-
nominations are nobly characteristic of American Protestantism.

One could easily get lost here in statistics, reports, and narrations of
heroisms and sacrifices which brighten old volumes only the research
scholar now consults. And they should be invaluable to the general his-
torian in their vivid portrayal of frontier conditions. These pioneers of
the gospel travelled by roads which were only little ribbons of mud,
through endless forests or across unploughed prairies. They forded bridge-
less rivers, they were pestered by insects, shaken by ague. They preached
from pulpits made by setting two posts in the ground and nailing a board
across them. They administered the sacrament from glass tumblers and
earthenware plates. And they possessed their souls, even when the Con-
necticut Society was accumulating a surplus.^'

12 In 1823 the Society's credit balance was $30,183,381/^.

"Bascom's Autobiography, cited by Sweet, vol. 3, pp. 234 ff., is a little epic of de-
scription and vivid narration. But the annual reports of the Connecticut Society from,
say, 1812-1827 are invaluable sources. They include Schermerhorn's and Mill's reports
of their tours south and west, reports of missionaries and a wealth of detailed though
yellow papers which need little help from the imagination to recreate a vanished past.
The total receipts of the Society in 1814 were $8000.001/^; total expenditures $6,152.16.
The thirty-eight missionaries were employed at the highest salary of $358.20 and the
lowest $40. The Society received $320 from the sale of Dwight's Psalms and Hymns,
and $150 from the Connecticut Evangelical Magazine. The Society distributed rela-

142 History of American Congregationalism

Inception of the Plan of Union

There was, of course, endless duplication and overlapping, for all de-
nominations were doing pretty much the same thing. The foundations
of American sectarian excesses and competitions were laid during this
period when fields ripe for harvest forbade any anticipation of a time
when there should be an excess of harvesters. The practical difficulty of
getting missionaries enough for the rapidly expanding work in New York
State led to the first effort at cooperation, and naturally between the de-
nominations which were geographically and in temper nearest together,
Congregationalists and Presbyterians." This eventuated in the "Plan of
Union" which, meant to be cooperative and fraternal, became after it
had ceased to be, a subject of rather embittered controversy between
church historians and a source of sad regret for representative Congrega-
tionalists—not that it ceased to be, but that it had ever been.

Sweet (following Gillett, Walker, and Baird) says the first suggestion
of the plan came from John Blair Smith, first president of Union College,
Schenectady. Since Union College was a joint enterprise of the Presby-
terians and Dutch Reformed, he naturally thought in terms of interde-
nominational cooperation. He had for a guest for a few days Eliphalet
Nott, a young Congregational missionary, then on his way West, and
labored with him. Was it either wise or Christian to divide a sparse popu-
lation holding the same faith, scattered over a vast new territory, into
two distinct ecclesiastical organizations and deprive them of the means
of grace they might otherwise enjoy?

lively great numbers of tracts and books. The titles are engaging: Dairyman's Daughter,
Beecher on Divine Government; Hall's Divine Songs, Hymns for Infant Minds, Guide
to Heaven, Porter on Intemperance, Baxter's Saint's Rest, Swear's Prayer (looo of
those in 1815). The Board thanks (1815) the several Female Societies for their liberalitv,
and so on and on. The manners and morals of frontier settlements are vividly pictured.
Intemperance is particularly deplored: "health and beauty, wit and genius fall before
it." Significantly during its earlier years the statements of receipts and expenditures
are made pursuant to resolutions of the General Assembly. That body apparently
wanted to know what Connecticut Congregational churches were doing with their
home missionary money.

14 Relations between Connecticut Congregationalists and the Presbyterian General
Assembly had been "becoming very friendly." So early as 1790 the General Association
voted a "further degree of union with the Presbyterians" desirable and the General
Assembly was more than willing. A Joint Committee of the Assembly and Association
recommended a plan for "united representation." Recommendation adopted. In 1792
three representatives of the Connecticut churches were sent to the General Assembly.
In 1793 three Presbyterian delegates sat with the General Association. In 1794 it was
agreed that the "representation of each body should have full right to vote in the
meetings of the other" which they did. All this was spade work for the Plan of Union.
Walker, op. cit., p. 528. "The question of a permanent adjustment of the relation of
the two polities on missionary ground was raised in the Connecticut General .Associa-
tion in 1800." Ibid.

Westward Ho! 1 43

Smith persuaded Eliphalet very much as Dr. Fuller was said to have
persuaded Governor Endicott, only, to so speak, in reverse. Nott be-
came pastor of the Albany Presbyterian church, and at the next session
(1801) of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church proposed the
adoption of a "Plan of Union" ^^ for the general cooperation of the two
churches (Presbyterian and Congregational) in the West. The "Plan
of Union" 1801 was relatively simple,^® and carried few intimations of
its actual consequences.^^ Missionaries are enjoined to promote mutual
forbearances and a spirit of accommodation between Presbyterians and
Congregationalists. If a Congregational church choose a Presbyterian
minister, they shall still proceed Congregationally. If congregation and
minister fall into difficulties he (the minister) has the right of appeal
to his Presbytery, both parties agreed; otherwise to a bi-denominational
council.

A Presbyterian church calling a Congregational minister shall pro-
ceed according to its own disciplines. In the event of disagreement be-
tween pastor and people he has the right of appeal to his Association or
else to a bi-denominational council. The paragraph on mixed congrega-
tions is more complicated and anticipates the technique of modern fed-
erated churches. Such a mixed congregation may settle a minister as they
please. A "standing committee" shall call to account every member of the
church who shall conduct himself inconsistently with the laws of Chris-
tianity.^^ A "condemned" Congregationalist could appeal to "the body
of the male communicants of the church" and no further. A condemned
Presbyterian could appeal to the Presbytery, and with the consent of the

15 Professor Robert Hastings Nichols, in an article in Church History further to be
cited, discredits the Smith-Nott episode.

16 Walker (Creeds and Platfonns of Congregationalism, pp. 328 ff.) holds that "there
is every reason to believe that the younger Edwards was the originator of the discus-
sions." He was an ideal "liaison" officer, formerly pastor of the Second Church in New
Haven, next president of Union College and a delegate from the General Assembly to
the Connecticut Association. In addition he was the son of his father who at one time
in his career had told the Presbyterians that he not only could sign their creed but
thought their polity the more desirable. The younger Edwards grew up in a household
which had suffered much from Northampton Congregationalists, which might explain
a good deal. To condense: the Connecticut Assembly was hospitable to the suggestion,
no matter from whom it came, appointed a committee (two of whom were Presby-
terian Delegates,) heard their report, approved their report and appointed their own
committee to confer with a similar committee from the General Assembly as to ways
and means, "to prevent alienation, promote harmony and to establish as far as possible,
an Uniform System of Church Government [italics the author's] * * between Presby-
terians and Congregationalists in the 'New Settlements.' " The proposition was hos-
pitably received by the Presbyterian General Assembly in May 1801. The Assembly
appointed its own committee and approved their report. Result: the historic document.
Apparently then the overtures came from Connecticut, the document emanates from
the General Assembly. Also, Sweet, Religion on the American Frontier, vol. 2, p. 41 ff.

17 The text is accessible in Presbyterian and Congregational Church histories.

18 An elusive and suggestive generality; no such provision for unmixed churches.
Evidently the fathers anticipated tensions.

144 History of American Congregationalism

church, to the Synod or General Assembly, which opened before a recal-
citrant Presbyterian a fascinating vista of appeal.

All this the General Assembly made authoritative for Presbyterianism
everywhere. The "Plan" was laid before the Connecticut General Asso-
ciation meeting in Litchfield June 16, 1801, by three Presbyterian dele-
gates and "promptly ratified without alteration" (Walker) for Connecti-
cut. The want of balance between the two contracting systems is here
and at once apparent; with no authorization from the whole of American
Congregationalism, the Connecticut Association committed with the best
of intentions the westward movement of Congregationalism to the con-
trol and consequence of the Plan, and for the simplest of reasons: it held
the keys by geography and precedence in missionary enterprise to the
gateways of the West for New England.

How THE Plan Worked

Connecticut Congregationalism was, as has been noted more than
once, semi-Presbyterian in its theory of polity and in close touch with
southeastern New York Presbyterianism and, curiously, with New Jersey.
For all that the Plan was generously conceived on both sides, the com-
promises and adjustments were fair, it proposed a statesmanlike solution
of a challenging situation. On the face of the 1801 Plan it was no more
than an attempt to furnish Christian ministers enough for the expanding
frontier and to meet the more evident situations likely to arise. In 1808
further steps were taken to secure the "uniform system of Church govern-
ment" which the first Connecticut overture contemplated. This is called
the "accommodation plan." (Dr. Robert Hastings Nichols documents
this in his illuminating article in the periodical "Church History," vol-
ume 5', no. 1, March 1936.) The burning question is: Which polity did
the most accommodating?

In the seven years beginning 1801 there had been in Northern, Cen-
tral, and Western New York a phenomenal growth of churches of all
denominations, but Presbyterians and Congregationalists were predomi-
nant for many reasons. Congregational churches had their Associations,
always a loose organism; the Presbyterians their Presbyteries, very tight
organizations. The churches of the two denominations could be and were
represented in both organizations by their accredited delegates. The
privilege of Congregational representation in the Presbyteries worked to
the advantage of the Presbyterians. Beyond debate a Presbytery was a
more effective organization than an Association and the Associations took
on an increasingly Presbyterial character.^^ Why then should the two

isThere is still in the present redactions of Congregational polity a difference be-
tween the function of Association and Presbytery. But it is back of behind.

Westward Ho! 145

systems either overlap or run so nearly together in separate channels?
The Synod of Albany and the "Middle Association" of Congregational
churches (now Onondaga and Cayuga Counties, New York) sought an-
swers to those questions.

The Association made the overture for "some form of Union and
Correspondence." 2" The Synod was receptive and "[stood] ready, with
the approbation of the General Assembly, to form as intimate a connec-
tion with you as the constitutions of our church will admit," whereupon
in substance, though with such gravity of language as seems necessary to
ecclesiastical pourparlers, the Synod invited the Association to become
Presbyterian. The half dozen sentences used here are of a sufficient am-
biguity to support either contention— that a plan of union was proposed
or that absorption was sought. The case seems to turn upon a single sen-
tence: "unless they shall choose to alter it themselves, the Synod will
cheerfully leave them the privilege of transacting their internal concerns
in their present mode of Congregational government."

Its Consequences for Congregationalism

The point is worth laboring, for it is one key to what followed and it
defines by implication "Congregational government" as both contracting
parties then understood it. It applied only to the "internal concerns" of
individual churches, a way of carrying on the business of a local church;
congregational voting by the "usual signe," choosing a minister, admin-
istering local finance, admitting, dismissing and disciplining members
and the like; also through its proper organization the congregation
owned and managed its own property. As long, then, as a church pos-
sessed these rights unimpaired, it was Congregational. It was possible,
therefore, for a Congregational church in respect to the really vast and
momentous issues of the corporate life of a fellowship of churches to be
Presbyterian and only within its own four walls Congregational, and this
was the real issue of the Second Plan of Union, the result of the quest
for "some form of Union and Correspondence." Technically such church-
es were "in affiliation" with a Presbytery. Actually, for all denomina-
tional purposes, they were Presbyterian.

It was an unbalanced situation and the stronger pull was toward the
Presbyterian side. After two anomalous years the Middle Association be-
came two Presbyteries. It had been overwhelmingly Congregational,
"composed," says Nichols, "almost entirely of Congregational ministers."

20The French have a "proverb, cynically Gallic, that there is always one who kisses
and one who turns the cheek. Throughout this whole movement the Congregational-
ists seem to have been the one who kissed.

1 46 History of A merican Congregationalism

Professor Nichols contends valiantly that after the "Association" had
become a Presbytery, the Congregational churches still retained their
rights and privileges as such, subject to the jurisdiction of the Presbytery.
But the jurisdiction of an "Association" was then far less authoritative
than the "jurisdiction" of a Presbytery. Essentially it was beside the point
that in their internal affairs they were governed by the body of com-
municants and were represented in the Presbytery by a delegate and not
an elder. For American Congregationalism had come to combine the in-
dependency of the individual church with the supporting and advising
fellowship of other churches. When that fellowship was gone, either a
lonely body was left or the substitution of a non-Congregational fellow-
ship, which was what happened in New York.

One by one the "Associations" became Presbyteries. Fourteen years
after the second Plan of Union, "there was no Congregational general
organization in Central and Western New York." Without regional As-
sociations there could be no State Conference. The organic dissolution
was complete. Congregationalism which, if it did not have the priority
in "up-state" New York, had at least the most brilliant prospects of emi-
nence along all the always-westward-advancing frontier, had for all
organic purposes faded out of the picture. The loss has never since been
recovered. Nichols makes his case that all those then concerned were mak-
ing an anticipatory experiment in a limited ecumenicity; in plain words,
they were trying for church union. There was no recorded coercion and
a maintenance of Congregational rights as the then fathers and brethren
of the two high contracting parties understood Congregationalism.

VII

Debated Statistics

It may have been that the more authoritative and tough-fibred Pres-
byterians' order was better suited to loose frontier conditions than the
Congregational order and, as Nichols notes, almost naively "an obvious
preference on the part of Congregationalists for Presbyterian polity runs
all through this history." And he seems to be right. It is equally true, as
we shall see, that the issues of the differences of statistical opinion about
the number of churches actually lost to Congregationalism are beside the
mark. Williston Walker accepted the conclusion of Ross that the ultimate
result of the plan was the transformation of over two thousand churches
which were in origin and usage Congregational into Presbyterian church-
es. This, Professor Nichols thinks, is a gross exaggeration "based on the
heated imagination of a denominational zealot." These are in turn quite
heated words and possibly not themselves entirely free from denomina-
tional bias. Nichols himself supports Thayer's conclusion that of the 525

WestiuardHo! 147

"New School" Presbyterian churches in the state of New York, living or
dead in 1850, only 145 were originally Congi-egational.

This leaves out too much, if only the state of New York be consid-
ered, and the consequences of the Plan reached far beyond the state. By
1830 or 1835 it was the most populous, prosperous, and strategic com-
monwealth in the United States, truly the "empire state." The popula-
tion of what a generation before had been the "New Settlements" was
over a million. Excelling in agriculture, it was also becoming a region
of cities whose names would literally and figuratively become classic. It
was beginning already to abound in large towns, destined to become the
most compact and economically adequate small cities in America— ideal
for a sound church life. All this Congregationalism lost and never recov-
ered. One can now (1941) count almost on the fingers of one hand Con-
gregational churches in the entire "upstate" region which can be com-
pared with the strong, historic, nobly equipped and vitally maintained
"First Presbyterian" churches of a score of cities and any number of
prosperous towns. And as a matter of fact, they can't be compared. Half
the 145 Congregational churches lost by the most conservative calculation
would, if they had run their expected course, have changed the whole
picture.

Actually Congregationalism lost the momentum of an always-western-
ing frontier from the Hudson River to Chicago. It lost that hinterland
of rural and village population by whose human contributions strategic
city churches are maintained and it lost the thing by which from its in-
ception it had been maintained and through which it had been extended
—regional continuity. Any congregational polity, whatever the denomi-
nation, is vitally dependent upon regional continuity, upon the living
filaments of near neighborliness with other churches of the same order.
When that is gone its lines are down.

Beyond much debate the "Plan of Union" facilitated missions in the
first period and prevented competitions. It combined with other influ-
ences to give the Presbyterianism of the general region a progressive and
open-minded quality not shared by that denomination in less favored
parts. It has certainly contributed to the concern for reform, anti-slavery
temper, and a general flair for causes and movements also characteristic
of the region, and for a period it issued in cooperative agencies: e.g. the
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, the American
Home Missionary Society, and similar agencies which served the interests
of religion and morality at home and abroad with creative wisdom.

For a time the possibilities of united religious action were better
illustrated by this movement, centrally and marginally, than by anything
else up to the inception of the Federal Council of Churches. There was

148 History of American Congregationalism

in it the making, not indeed of an American Church, but of a United
Church in New England and the North, which, combining the best quali-
ties of Congregationalism and Presbyterianism, would have had a cor-
porate power and distinction neither communion now alone possesses.
But the time was far from ripe for that and the fact remains that by
such tests as are usually and justly used to measure and characterize the
historical development of any denomination, the Plan of Union was
disastrous to Congregationalism. The internal dissentions of the Presby-
terians themselves, which resulted in the old school and new school Gen-
eral Assemblies, ended any cooperation between Congregationalism and
old school Presbyterianism. The new school was more cooperative. The
Congregational churches, as will be hereinafter noted, "denounced" the
treaty in 1852.-^

21 A paragraph from John Schermerhorn's report to the trustees of the Missionary
Society of Connecticut (Dec. 10, 1913) illumines concretely the denominational situa-
tion as then conceived. His statistics of ministers then in the service of frontier popu-
lations authoritatively tabulated, mention only Presbyterians, Methodists, Baptists,
which he thus explains, "The denominations generally noticed in the tables are Pres-
byterians, Baptists and Methodists. The Congregationalists, Associate Reformed Church,
Associate Synod Covenanters, and those churches in connection with the General As-
sembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States" are all classed under the title
of Presbyterians; for "those minor considerations concerning the externals of religion,
which now separate them, and which originated in causes not existing in this country,
do not appear of sufficient consequence, in a missionary point of view, to merit sepa-
rate notice." Which is the Plan of Union in action, luirelieved. Against this set a Pres-
byterian complaint 129 years later, voiced in a letter to Monday Morning: A Magazine
Exclusively for Pastors [Presbyterian] Feb. 23, 1942: "The Presbyterian Church in our
day is fast losing its distinctive Presbyterianism because we act like churches having a
Congregational form of government. The General Assembly hands down recommenda-
tions and we all do as we please!" There is no moral.

CHAPTER XI

Congregationalism Carries On

MEANWHILE there were the "home-fires." By a tacit "gentle-
men's agreement"^ under the Plan of Union the Presbyterians
sought no further extension in New England and New England,
with minor storms and stresses, was entering upon its most distinguished
period. There was a truce in theological controversy. Unitarian was com-
pletely and perfectly Unitarian. The Calvinism of the Saybrook platform
—as we have seen— had been officially validated in Connecticut and Mas-
sachusetts, though there was a growing theological dis-ease which would
presently and creatively find an epoch-making voice in Horace Bushnell.
The rise of competitive denominationalism in America naturally affected
the New England situation, but the "orthodox" Church still maintained
religious and social priority.

No study of American Congregationalism can easily overstate the
significance of its corporate relationship to its social, political, and eco-
nomic environment. This has been both its strength and its weakness.
Outside the nexus of social forces which, speaking historically, combined
to create it, it has always been more or less exotic. It requires for its sup-
port both socially and religiously more than the sympathetically minded.
One begs many questions in saying that Congregationalism has been the
religious and ecclesiastical aspect of coherent, democratic populations,
trained in self-government, strongly individualistic, capable of highly
efficient cooperative action and controlled, in the conduct of their vari-
ous affairs, by habit and tradition. It has not often found a congenial
soil otherwise.

In the early Nineteenth Century the incongruous state-church status
which the New England churches inherited from the Seventeenth and
Eighteenth Centuries was liquidated by legislation with no great loss
save to the unchristian superiority complexes of the clergy and a certain
amount of convenience in getting money for the support of public wor-
ship (and not always even that). The orthodox churches adjusted them-
selves to the losses due to Unitarianism. The number of the withdrawing
churches was not, proportionately, large. The property losses, especially
in eastern Massachusetts, were more serious than the losses in personnel.
It required a certain amount of grace for the dispossessed to build them-
iSuch is the tradition.

1 go History of American Congregationalism

selves new and often less distinguished meeting-houses while Unitarian
neighbors sat under high mahogany pulpits in churches built by their
quite orthodox ancestors. But that, perhaps, had its compensations. The
orthodox were at least saved from pious lethargy.

The migrations West had begun to drain the East, but there were folk
enough left and the population was still more homogeneous than in any
other national area. The rapid growth in manufacturing— especially tex-
tiles—had portentous possibilities but these were not yet apparent. The
young women in the Lowell and Lawrence weave-sheds were farmers'
daughters of native stock, who spent such leisure as their long hours left
them in the pursuit of culture. So the churches kept their home-fires
burning. Each state had its Home Missionary Society and allied organi-
zations. They established new churches as the growth or extension of the
population demanded, aided dependent churches, created and distributed
the literature they thought needed— in fact, about what they have been

doing ever since.

The Era of "Boards" Begins

The structure of Congregationalism made it necessary to create, by
acts of legislation, specific corporations for any specific missionary, edu-
cational, or philanthropic purpose. These were— and are— managed by
boards of directors, variously named and elected. There would be a presi-
dent and treasurer and salaried secretaries whose business it was to pro-
mote their particular organizations and secure needed financial support.
The history of these societies is a component part of the history of Con-
gregationalism. They became and have, in one form or another, con-
tinued to be the agents of widely cooperative Congregational action,^
needing a legal basis. The result was a considerable overlapping, since
the boundaries of any missionary or philanthropic enterprise cannot be
precisely drawn. There was also a pious but nonetheless competitive
solicitation for money. The second part of this history will deal with the
gradual modification of that system.^

The American Home Missionary Society was organized in 1826 with
four supporting denominations, though in support and direction mainly
carried on by Presbyterians and Congi^egationalists. There have been

2 Only a specialist in ecclesiastical organization could authoritatively compare the
various ways in which different denominations carry on their corporate affairs. A
church must, of course, exist in contemplation of the la^v and there is a vast body of
legislation dealing with ecclesiastical organizations. Highly centralized communions
work through a central corporation which includes and directs everything else. In the
rnost centralized the bishop may be the "Corporation Sole" for his diocese. Property
titles are, of course, the keystone in any corporate structure, sacred or secular.

3 Doubtless much has been gained but intelligent intimacies of givers and "causes"
have been lost.

Congregationalism Carries On 1 5 1

natural differences of opinion as to relative preeminence in gifts and
devotion. A. E. Dunning thought Congregationalists the more conspicu-
ous in both. Gardiner Spring (Presbyterian) maintained it was predomi-
nantly Presbyterian in origin and thereafter in management until 1833.
It was the principal agency through which the Plan of Union functioned
in the West. It prospered fabulously and the Domestic Missionary Socie-
ties in the New England states became one by one subsidiary to it, though
not surrendering their own organizations.

The reasons which persuaded them are documented by Sweet in a
quoted letter from Absalom Peters, secretary of A.H.M.S. (the era of
alphabetical designation had begun), to the Connecticut church authori-
ties, which proves that the fine art of promoting a cause was already
perfected. It was certainly effective. The Home Missionary Society of
Connecticut became auxiliary to the aforesaid A.H.M.S. for the purpose
of "building up the waste places of Connecticut, sending the gospel to
the destitute and assisting feeble congregations in other and more desti-
tute portions of the United States."

The Connecticut Society reserved, however, the control of the raising
and application of funds, the selection of missionaries and the designa-
tion of their field of labor upon mutual agreement between its directors
and the executive committee of the American Home Missionary Society.
There was as yet no national Congregational Home Missionary Society
and it is difficult to see how a state society could operate successfully in
the most distant "destitute portions of the United States." But the
A.H.M.S. did not confine itself to the West. So late as 1850 and 1851 the
Society had 311 missionaries in New England alone.

The ravages of the Revolutionary War had long since been repaired
but New England shipping suffered sadly in the War of 1812. The inter-
ests of the section were bitterly opposed to "Mr. Madison's War" and
even went so far as veiled threats of nullification (to the delight of Cal-
houn). In these and subsequent tensions between New England finance
and commerce and the agricultural West, the clergy were generally on
the side of their parishioners and indulged in a deal of intemperate
speech. The era of the tall clipper ships had come and the whalers ranged
far oceans. The churches shared the prosperity of the merchants.

The significant history of the period should really be written out of
the records of all the churches east and the churches going west. That
would be a fabric of innumerable strands engagingly various and yet
similar in pattern. In New England ecclesiastical architecture, still under
Georgian influence, was good, with a flair for Greek pillared porches,
and the graceful spires of white churches dominated village greens and
elm-shaded streets. There or westward, where there were no white spires

1^2 History of American Congregationalism

or elm-shaded streets, the devout assembled for prayer and praise and
preaching. The sermon was still the thing, getting shorter though not
alarmingly so. America was still predominantly Protestant, and there
seems to have been throughout the nation a general habit of church
going, where there were churches to go to.

The Westward Expansion of New England

Sweet has made a most suggestive adaptation of maps from Louis
Kimball Mathews' The ExpansioJi of New England, to graph the west-
ward migration and settlement of the people of New England into lands
north of the Ohio from 1820-1850. The St. Lawrence River in New
York State, the southern littorals of Lakes Ontario and Erie, and after
that almost straight lines across the middle of Michigan and Southern
Wisconsin to the Mississippi, furnish the northern boundary line.^ In a
general way the treks out of New England, like all migratory movements,
went as directly west as was geographically possible. This map should be
supplemented by the map (which prefaces Sweet's volume on the expan-
sion of Presbyterianism) of the "Scotch-Irish settlements in North Amer-
ica at the end of the Colonial period." These settlements dominate the
entire Appalachian region from Central Pennsylvania south and west.
The two maps between them are the keys to the distribution of the two
great British racial strains in the United States.

The Scotch-Irish, with a power to outpopulate the pure English ele-
ment, stood at the close of the Eighteenth Century at strategic gateways.
New England migration used the Mohawk Valley and routes the New
York Central now follows. Scotch-Irish migration westward spread fan-
wise from Philadelphia and Baltimore as ports of entry, using routes the
Pennsylvania, Baltimore and Ohio, Chesapeake and Ohio (and more
southern) railways now follow. The New England migrations should
have carried Congregationalism on their ample tides. That failed largely
through the Plan of Union. The Scotch-Irish migrations carried Presby-
terianism with them, and did not lose it enroute. Instead they made Con-
gregationalism tributary. There were minor migrations from the border
and deep South into southern Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. Congregation-
alism got no real foothold in those regions. So much for the "geo-politik"
(the geographical control) of Presbyterianism (in the North) and Con-
gregationalism. One must, of course, add the infiltration of the entire
central sections of both these maps by the Methodists, Baptists, and many
other denominations.

^This map in a loose way corresponds arrestingly with Professor Arthur Holt's maps
of the dominant industrial and financial regions in the United States.

Congregationalism Carries On 153

III

Congregationalism Begins to Be National

Independent Congregationalism began to repair its losses west of
New York State by 1829-30. Something was saved in the Western Re-
serve, though even there Presbyterian influence increased after 1806 and
"soon became dominant."^ The influence of Oberlin College in the
agreements and disagreements between Presbyterians and Congregation-
alists has been much debated. Sweet thinks neither denomination loved
Oberlin. It was eccentric in theology, anti-slavery in sentiment and "coun-
tenanced coeducation." Presbyteries would not even examine Oberlin
candidates for the ministry (a curious refusal of the generally eagerly
sought opportunity to heckle heresy). So late as 1842 Plan of Union
churches met in convention at Cleveland to find ways of curbing "this
fountain of evil and protect the saints from its pestiferous malaria,"
which proves amongst other things that the "Reserve" suff:ered from
chills and fever.

Indiana was from the first allergic to Congregationalism and has so
continued, though New England missionary societies sent missionaries
not only into Indiana but also into Kentucky and Tennessee, with the
result that more Presbyterian churches were established. In 1829-30 the
"Yale-band" made history. Seven graduates of the Divinity School Class
of 1829 engaged together to go to Illinois, establish a "Seminary of Learn-
ing" suited to the needs of the region, and either teach therein or preach
to the surrounding country. They were soon joined by five others, a shin-
ing list of brave young names. They founded Illinois College and formed
numerous Congregational or Presbyterian churches. Some of them crossed
the Mississippi and founded the First Congregational Church in Den-
mark, Iowa. By 1839-40 the slavery issue had become a burning question,
and in Illinois Congregational ministers and people took a more pro-
nounced position against slavery than the Presbyterians. This, says Sweet,
hastened and solidified the separation between the two denominations.
Congregationalism had most promising beginnings in Michigan terri-
tory. The interest of the Connecticut Missionary Society in Michigan
began almost with the creation of the territory. In 1800, while Detroit
was still partially stockaded, David Bacon walked over from Connecticut
to survey the field and report to the Connecticut Association. He was
hospitably received, found Detroit and its noble river most attractive, as
so many have since, and so reported when he returned East. A year later
he went back with his bride. For several months he taught a school for
boys, and his wife, then only seventeen years old, a school for girls. In
5 All this follows Sweet closely.

154 History of American Congregationalism

due time a son, Leonard, was born to them, who as Dr. Leonard Bacon,^
wrote

"O God, beneath Thy guiding hand
Our exiled fathers crossed the sea";

and was, with his father David, the first of a long, illustrious line.

Bacon's brief sojourn was followed twenty-four years later by Isaac
W. Ruggles who had been pastor of one of the few New York State
churches which kept the Congregational faith. This argues in Ruggles
a stiff denominational backbone, which he needed. He was tireless in
serving the rapidly increasing populations in the general Detroit region.
He was later joined by John D. Pierce, another "stiff-backed" New York
Congregationalist, who went on founding churches of his own order
against the warning "that it would not be either wise nor desirable to
organize any Congregational church." The agents of the A.H.M.S. seem
to have worked against Ruggles and Pierce, and Pierce complained of
such discrimination. Nothing apparently came of it. Instead one of the
agents complained in turn of Pierce's preference for his own denomina-
tion, and lamented that, since Pierce did not belong to a Presbytery, it
was impossible to "apply the corrective." Such freedom from Presbyterial
discipline probably saved a good deal of Michigan Congregationalism.

The Presbyterians, in addition, were having troubles of their own
and in 1837 divided themselves into two "schools" (New and Old) with
sufficiently different doctrinal bases to support two of everything neces-
sary to active Presbyterian national organizations. This naturally with-
drew their attention from Congregational missionaries and increased
the prestige of Congregationalists in the West. In 1839-40 three Congre-
gational associations were formed in Michigan and in 1842 a General
Association for the state. These activities in Michigan were unsympathet-
ically viewed from New England.^ Western Congregationalism, eastern
defenders of the faith held, lacked doctrinal stability and should not be
"countenanced."* In the main, however, the older Congregational church-
es in Michigan (and this holds of all the older churches clear across to
the Pacific coast) were made up of folk of New England stock who went
west directly from the New England states, or still further went from
New York State. The Erie Canal was opened in 1825, Buffalo became a

^Catlin, The Story of Detroit, (The Detroit News) p. 105.

^Sweet, Religion on the American Frontier, vol. 3, p. 29.

8 Congregational Calvinism was modified as it went West, but the matter goes deeper.
This study has noted more than once the unusually organic relation between Congre-
gationalism and its social environment. Detached from a natinally Congregational So-
ciety, it tends, also, natinally, to become selective and to appeal to the more doc-
trinally and religiously independent in any locality. This ^\■as still true of smaller Con-
gregational chnrches scattered through Michigan in 1910. A newcomer from New
England sensed the difference.

Congregationalism Carries On 155

port of entry into the interior, and boats could be taken directly to De-
troit. Consequently Michigan in the 1830's and 1840's seems to have
captured the New England imagination.^

Always Farther West

A detailed history of Congregational expansion across the continent
is here impossible. The Connecticut and Massachusetts Missionary Socie-
ties had been led to take an early interest in the always mobile frontier
through reports on religious conditions in the West by Samuel Mills and
Schermerhorn (1815). Thereafter the extension of Congregationalism
can be dated by the westerning areas of settlement decade by decade:
Michigan, 1824; Illinois, 1820; Wisconsin by 1840; Iowa, 1838. These are
merely threshold dates. The "Yale Band" had gone to Illinois. Eleven
Andover students agreed in 1842 to go as missionaries to Iowa.i°

Theirs is a bright detail in the whole adventure. Asa Turner, "the
agent for Iowa," had been begging for help for a dozen years and had
given up hoping. When his prayers began to be answered he advised the

8 The fortunes of Michigan Congregationalism are a fascinating study, though they
do not entirely reflect the romance of Michigan history. Economically the history of
the state may be told in four words: furs, lumber, copper, cars. The nefarious but
highly profitable business of trading French brandy and English rum for beaver pelts
came first, occasioned an epochal enmity between the French and English and entirely
ruined the Indians. Detroit Military Post was established by Cadillac on Frontenac's
order and under the direction of Louis the Fourteenth's Cabinet, and a little of the
romance of King Louis's Court brightened the poor settlement. (All this the murals
in the Detroit Public Library nobly picture.)

After the French and Indian Wars, Michigan was for a while part of Canada. The
territory was surrendered again to Great Britain in i8i2, recovered by the LInited
States in 1813. The immigrants' period followed, and the magnificent stands of pine
were exploited with a wastefulness beyond words, though the peak of this came much
later. The foundations of the earlier Michigan fortunes were thus laid. Meanwhile the
copper of the upper Peninsula made equally fabulous fortunes for absentee stockhold-
ers, mostly in and about Boston. Then, as though to mock foresight and reward waste-
fulness, some of the richest iron ore deposits in America were discovered in stump
lands which the lumbermen were willing to default for taxes. And finally, the motor
car.

All this gave the state generally an unstable economic history and the fortunes of
all denominations reflected it. When the timber was gone, there was nothing to sup-
port the Congregational churches which Home Missionaries like Puddefoot got built,
but piles of sawdust. The copper veins were worked out and stagnant towns and cities
mourned at their shaft-heads. The fabulous expansion of motormaking congested pop-
ulations and challenged all the denominations to extravagant programs of expansion.
And nothing stayed put in cities reaching out blindly. It was always a race bet\veen
burying dead churches and christening new ones. No state in the Union better illus-
trates the hectic course of American denominationalism than Michigan, because of the
swift, dramatic alternation of its phases.

lOTheir names are on record and their native states, sound English stock family
names and for given names Ebeneezer, Benjamin, Ephraim and, curiously, one Erastus.
One reads the list very much as one reads the roster of the Apostles whose names were
built into the foundations of the New Jerusalem. For such as tlxese, representing the
religious force of all American communities, laid the moral and religious foundations
of the Republic.

156 History of American Congregationalism

"Band" realistically, "The climate will permit men to live long enough
if they do their duty. If they do not, no matter how soon they die. They
will not be called the Reverend Mr. Alden or Adams, simply Ebeneezer
or Ephraim, and their wives will be Pegg or Polly or whatever her name
may be." Above all, they are not to be "ashamed of [their] Mother" as
soon as they had crossed the Alleghanies "as many of our good brethren
are" (the aforesaid Mother being the Congregational Way)." "May the
Lord direct your way." Nine of them were ordained in Denmark, Iowa,
Sunday, November 5, 1843. The whole region was thereby stirred, and
Congregationalism became well established beyond the Mississippi.

The American Home Missionary Society backed both Presbyterian
and Congregational churches in Wisconsin. Young men from the Eastern
Theological Seminaries were reluctant to go so far and the earlier mis-
sionaries were middle-aged men. The quite inadequate salaries may have
been a partial explanation. '^ The Plan of Union, although operative in
Wisconsin, was considerably modified and came to no more than "har-
monious cooperation" between the two denominations, which worked
happily till "Old School" Presbyterians became active in Wisconsin.

Home Missionaries then, and since, were men and women of courage,
force, and faith. They saw regions of fabulous possibility as they had
lain almost unchanged by any human action since the recession of the
last Ice Age. One may envy now the adventurers who saw the magnifi-
cent hard-wood of Ohio and Indiana still partly holding its own against
the axe, the Michigan Pine unviolated, the prairie grass still threaded
by buffalo trails, the abundant waters still unpolluted. Like St. Paul, they
have left us more vivid accounts of their hardships, though without com-
plaint, than of the beauty of an Iowa early June; but their reports are
social documents of the highest value," America in the making. These
missionaries were never exploiters, they sought the higher values of a
Christian civilization, and they had often a statesman's vision. They nat-
urally reported well of the regions into which they had gone and since
their reports were widely circulated, they certainly stimulated migration.

The Continent Spanned

Home Missions in the further and far Northwest began as missions
to the Indians. (The charter of the American Board of Commissioners
for Foreign Missions permitted the Board to send missionaries to the

11 All this from Sweet, cited from Douglass, The Pilgrims of Iowa.

i2Sweet cites Noah Cook's budget (1840). His expenditures were $458.75, salary
$400.00 if he could get it. $125.00 moving expenses, however, are included.

13 The larger part of Sweet's volume on Congregationalism contains a collection of
reports and letters as impossible to condense as they are fascinating to read.

Congregationalism Carries On 1 57

American Indians.) Christianization of the Indians had been one of the
professed purposes of both the Pilgrims and the Puritans; but instead
they were exterminated or exiled, and thus began the conflict between
antagonistic cultures which hunted them across the continent. For all
that, the missions of the American churches to the American Indians is
the one bright chapter in an otherwise shameful history, and beginning
with Jonathan Edwards in Stockbridge the missionaries have been the
Indians' best friends and have done their best to safeguard their interests.
Indian missions opened the door for Home Missions in the remote
northwest. In 1831 five Oregon Indians came to St. Louis, a center of the
fur trade, asking for the "white man's Book of Heaven." The response
to such an appeal was immediate. The Methodists responded first, but in
1836 Dr. and Mrs. Marcus Whitman and the Reverend and Mrs. H. H.
Spalding were sent out by the American Board. The story of the Whit-
mans is an epic, bright and tragic. Whitman had a statesman's eye for
an imperial domain. He made his way back to Washington, so the epic
runs, with almost incredible hardships, reported there the spacious won-
der of the Pacific northwest, and so prevented its cession to Great Britain
in the strategic and somewhat heated negotiation ending in the Aberdeen-
Buchanan Treaty. The bright promise of the Oregon mission was trag-
ically eclipsed. The Indians lost half their number through an epidemic.
Whitman was accused of poisoning them for their lands and cattle, and
Dr. and Mrs. Whitman and twelve others were massacred and the Oregon
Mission was closed. But Congregationalism had reached the Pacific.

Samuel J. Mills— Statesman, Missionary-at-Large

American Missions, both home and foreign, owe more to Samuel J.

Mills than to any other one person in American religious history. He

furnishes an almost unmatched illustration of the far-reaching influence

of one entirely devoted life. He was born of a mentally and religiously

distinguished ancestry in Litchfield County, Connecticut, that lovely

though austere nursery of soldiers, preachers, educators, writers, and

theologians. 1* Samuel John Mills, Senior, was a ministerial Connecticut

institution, famous as "Father" Mills. He, the father, had been one of

the early four-dollar-a-week missionaries in Vermont. His mother was an

uncalendared saint, who bore her husband seven children and buried

four of them. Her son Samuel she dedicated to the Lord. How otherwise

could he have been Samuel?

i-iThe list is awe inspiring: Ethan Allen, Seth Warner, Day, Finney, Taylor, Porter,
Bushnell, Henry Ward and Harriet Beecher. The principal school for training young
men for the ministry in the late Eighteenth Century was in Litchfield County and the
first law school in America. Richards, Samuel J. Mills.

1^8 History of American Congregationalism

He also was "twice born," and his second birth was through the "dark
night of the soul." So much brighter the light, then, when it broke upon
him. He matriculated at Williams College, then "experiencing a revival,"
in 1806. There his influence paralleled John Wesley's at Christ Church,
Oxford. He was older than his classmates and of a most fervent spirit.
The most devout formed a prayer group which met Saturday afternoons
in a maple grove. An August thunderstorm drove them to the shelter of
a hay-stack and there, while the skies played an overture to an epochal
enterprise, Mills proposed that they should send the Gospel to Asia. "We
can do it, if we will." That meeting was, in event and purpose, the birth-
meeting of American Protestant Foreign Missions. Thereafter, these five
were the "Brethren" with one shared purpose: to evangelize the world.
Mills went from Williams to Yale with the purpose of leavening the
college with his own zeal. He found it unresponsive, though he did meet
Obookiah, a young Hawaiian who eventually directed missionary inter-
est toward those enchanted isles.

Andover Seminary was more promising. The "Brethren" there re-
newed their associations and mutually confirmed their purpose. They
added others like-minded, graduates of Harvard, Brown, and Union Col-
leges. Adoniram Judson was co-leader with Mills, easily his equal in zeal,
probably his superior in mental brilliance. The group kept the records
of their meetings in cipher, which was translated in 1818 and is now an
invaluable document.'^ They were ready to go. Who could or would send
them? Existing missionary societies contemplated only the United States,
though the Massachusetts Society had amended its constitution to include
the "more distant regions of the earth, as circumstances shall invite and
the ability of the Society shall admit." British Societies, notably the Bap-
tist Foreign Missionary Society and the London Missionary Society, had
been in action for about twenty years and had received American sup-
port. The Brethren— Judson seems to have taken the initiative in this—
asked the London Society whether they would accept "two or three young
unmarried men," liberally educated and "susceptible of a passion for
missions." The reply was unfavorable and Mills was against the proposal.
America, he thought, could and should support her own missionaries.

VII

The Organization of the American Board of Commissioners for For-
eign Missions

The "fathers" began to arise, first the Andover Faculty, and then men
of influence in the Massachusetts General Association to whom the young

i^These young men had an astonishingly mature understanding of the situations
with which they were dealing.

Congregationalism Carries On 159

men were advised to submit their hopes and plans. The Association met
at Bradford on June 27, 1810. Adoniram Judson, Jr., Samuel Nott, Jr.,
Samuel J. Mills, and Samuel Newell were introduced and respectfully re-
quested "the attention of their Reverend Fathers" to a momentous state-
ment and inquiries which came to this: Could they expect patronage and
support from a Missionary Society in this country or must [they] commit
themselves to the direction of a European Society; and what preparatory
measure ought they to take previous to actual engagement?^^ So, "feeling
their youth and inexperience" they looked up to their fathers in the
Church and respectfully solicited "their advice, direction and prayers."

The respectful request was referred to a committee of three who re-
ported the next day in favor of instituting a "Board of Commissioners for
Foreign Missions," a power which the amended charter gave to the Mas-
sachusetts Association. Hence an historic name. Nine Commissioners
were contemplated, five from Massachusetts and four from Connecticut,
with power. The Commissioners seem to have appointed a smaller execu-
tive committee, called the "Prudential Committee," another historic
name." The Prudential Committee lived up to its name. Faced with defi-
nite sailing dates and the great responsibility involved directly the young
men embarked, only one member of the committee was at first favorable
to the venture. Later they had an access of faith and courage, but even
so doubted if the funds of the Board warranted them in incurring the
expense involved in sending the wives of the "Missionary Brethren." The
Brethren themselves had once believed the celibate estate more favorable
to missionary efficiency. Human nature and the love of brave young
women persuaded them otherwise. The wives went— and to early deaths.

Money was, of course, a practical consideration. A providential legacy
of $30,000 (probably to the Massachusetts Association) met that need.
Five thousand dollars would cover all expenses for the first year. The
three married men were to have a salary of $666.66 a year, the unmarried
two $444.44. The five were ordained in Salem Tabernacle Church, Feb.
8, 1812. The day was bitterly cold, but the church was crowded and the
dramatic solemnity of the service kindled the imagination of the congre-
gation and moved them to deep emotion; "at times," said William Good-
ell, later to become himself a distinguished missionary, "the entire assem-
bly seemed moved as the trees are moved by a mighty wind."

There were delays in sailing, which tried the eager missionaries but
were thought providential by the Board, which received $6000 in three
weeks and was thus able not only completely to outfit the young people,

16 Richards, Samuel J. Mills.

17 An invaluable source is the Memorial Volume of the First Fifty Years of the Ameri-
can Board of Commissioners for Foreigyi Missions published by the Board in 1861.

1 6o History of A merican Congregationalism

but advance them a year's salary. They were sent out on two vessels. The
Caravan sailed from Salem on February 19th with the Judsons and
Newells. The Harmony cleared Delaware Cape February 24th, carry-
ing Mr. and Mrs. Nott and unmarried Hall and Rice. They had closed
their prayer-meeting under the haystack by singing, from Isaac Watts:

"Let all the heathen writers join
To form one perfect book;
Great God if once compared with thine
How mean their writings look!"

They had now begun to furnish matter for a library of books.

VIII
Incorporation of the Board

Patently here was an enterprise too momentous for a sub-committee
of the General Association of Massachusetts. It must be continental in
its support and international in its scope. Since it was likely to prove, in
addition, an enterprise demanding rare executive specialization, and
highly trained oversight, the movers sought incorporation from the
Great and General Court of Massachusetts. Therefore, on February 13,
1812 (Abraham Lincoln was then just three years old) Jedidiah Morse
and Samuel Worcester recited, in a petition to both bodies of the Gen-
eral Court (suitably denominated and capitalized) the so far brief his-
tory of their society and its purposes. They found it very inconvenient,
they continued, "to manage and transact their business without an in-
corporation. Wherefore they pray that they may be incorporated under
a suitable name, and invested with the powers and privileges usually
granted to similar institutions, and authorized to do and transact busi-
ness as a body politic and corporate; and as in duty bound will ever
pray."^*

This petition was read in the House of Representatives on Febnaary
15 (1812), referred to a committee of three, and read in the Senate the
same day; the Senate added two names to the House Committee, and the
joint committee of five which drew and asked leave (granted) to bring
in a bill. The bill limited the annual income of the proposed Society
from real and personal estate to 1 18,000, which was reduced by amend-
ment to $12,000. These limitations are significant; the money question
was the thing. The Amended Bill was first read to the House on Febru-
ary 25 and thereafter had stormy going in both Houses.

The times were difficult; war was about to be declared on Great

isAnderson, Memorial Volume of the First Fifty Years of the American Board of
Commissioners for Foreign Missions, chap. 3. Actually they were petitioning the
General Court to make them strangely like what the General Court itself had been
in its own beginnings: a chartered corporation to serve religious ends.

Congregationalism Carries On 161

Britain, the country thought itself poor, the seas were perilous, the
Napoleonic Wars were rocking the western world, trade was stagnant,
the proposal was strange and audacious, the home churches were doc-
trinally embroiled and the state was seamed by political rancors.'^ All
these things made passage of the bill, which in kinder times would have
met no opposition, highly controversial. Meanwhile the seven young
missionaries were on these same perilous high seas. The bill was laid on
the table in the winter session of the legislature (1812) by a vote of 139
to 130 in the House of Representatives.

An election was held before the next session of the General Court
(May 1812) with resultant changes in the political complexion of the
State. The House passed the bill June 6 and sent it to the Senate. Ben-
jamin Crowninshield (Secretary of the Navy under Madison) had opposed
the bill in the Chamber of Representatives in the previous session. He was
a Salem merchant whose ships went to the far East and he professed to
speak with authority of conditions there. The conduct of missionaries,
he said, was unworthy and their labors useless (all of which has a fa-
miliar sound). Perhaps some unacknowledged sense of the fundamental
and unescapable oppositions between the missionary and the trader
actuated Crowninshield. Also the enterprise would take money out of the
country while Crowninshield's life work was to get it in— at the expense
of India or China. The Salem shipmaster had been elected to the Senate
and there renewed his opposition.

A classic debate ensued with an often quoted passage. It was objected
on the floor of the Senate that the act of incorporation was designed to
afford "the means of exporting religion whereas there was none to spare
among ourselves." To which it was replied that "religion was a com-
modity of which the more we exported the more we had remaining."
Nevertheless the Senate voted against the bill. But the House still urged
it and after joint conferences it was finally passed by the House, June 19
and the Senate, June 20. That was, in more senses than one, Mid-Summer
Eve. The Charter of the Board has been acknowledged in every state
in the Union and in all lands in which the Board has operated. Its
credit has stood unimpaired around the world.

Thereafter the Board wrote its own strategic and distinguished his-
tory, which cannot here be followed save as its relation to the history of
Congregationalism is involved. It was not an ecclesiastical body. It was
meant to be the agent of the churches for foreign missions. It had, ap-
parently and to begin with, "no thought of becoming anything more
than a Congregational body." A year before its incorporation, however,

19 The New England clergy and the Massachusetts political party then in power were
bitterly opposed to the Federal administration.

i62 History of American Congregationalism

the Board suggested to the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church
the formation of a similar body with which they might cooperate. The
Assembly replied with a wisdom and grace which should go far to correct
any strictures passed heretofore in this history upon the Plan of Union.
The business of Foreign Missions, the Assembly said, "may properly be
best managed under the direction of a single Board" and its own numer-
ous and extensive engagements, the Assembly thought, forbade its taking
part in the business of foreign missions. Also, and this qualified the pre-
vious qualification, there were several societies within the bounds of the
Presbyterian Church which gave particular attention to foreign missions.

The Board Becomes Interdenominational

The American Board, therefore, extended its membership into the
Presbyterian Church and added eight commissioners "from among the
more prominent members of that Church." In succeeding years com-
missioners were elected from the Associated Reformed and Reformed
Dutch Churches. Until 1837 the Board was recognized by the high Pres-
byterian courts as a proper agency for the extension of Presbyterian
foreign missions, though not the sole agency. In 1837 the "old school"
Assembly made the Western Foreign Missionary Society the Church's
official board, though "old school" churches continued their support as
they desired. No Presbyterian missionaries withdrew and the churches of
the "new school" continued their relations and support.

The rise of denominationalism worked against the interdenomina-
tional support of the Board. Each denomination wanted its foreign con-
verts to become equally denominational in Asia, Africa, and the islands
of the seas. As a result the American Protestant denominational divisions
were projected into lands where they had no meaning at all. (Missionary-
statesmen finally saw the futility of this arid achieved unity in India and
China while churches at home talked about it, guardedly.) The American
Board in time was, so to speak, returned to the Congiegational churches
with thanks, but it has never been denominational and within its spacious
title there is still a vision unrealized.

This chapter noted, pages back, the stimulating influence of Mills'
Western Tours (1813-14) upon the Connecticut Home Missionary So-
ciety. He had been equally influential in promoting Foreign Missions.
This dual activity indicates his vocation— exploration and promotion.
The "Brethren" seem to have recognized that when, in secret session,
they decided he would be more useful on the Home Front and sailed
without him; but no single continent could contain his evangelical fervor.
He followed Jackson to New Orleans, a month after the battle, visited

Congregationalism Carries On 163

the miserably equipped military hospitals, in which disease took more
lives than British bullets had taken, and with incredible hardships trav-
ersed the lower Mississippi Valley which had recently been acquired
through the Louisiana Purchase.

His and Schermerhorn's report (published at Hartford in 1814) "shed
more light on the state of the destitute parts of the country than all
other documents then in existence" with far-reaching results. One of them
was the American Bible Society. He stimulated city missionary work; he
finished his short life, so unbelievably full, in the service of Africa. He
had always longed to serve the "poor Africans" and his contacts with
southern slavery in the raw increased that longing. He interested home
churches in the religious welfare of the Negroes, lent himself whole-
heartedly to the project of a free colony in Africa, and volunteered to
find a suitable site on the African west coast. His experiences there are a
little epic; his reports reveal his acuteness of observation. On June 15,
1818, aged thirty-five, he died of tuberculosis on his voyage home. His
body was committed to the deep, but his decade and a half of action and
influence transcend time.

CHAPTER XII

Recapitulation and Transition

THE last two chapters have not been well organized chronolog-
ically, but the historian can at least enter a plea of "confession
and avoidance." The geographical extension of Congregational-
ism in the United States was a complicated business whose lack of system
was fundamentally due to the want of a central directing authority.
There was no national Home Missionary Society nor any really support-
ing denominational consciousness until Congregational churches had
crossed the continent. The result was a sporadic and uncoordinated ex-
pansion. That so much was accomplished with so little overhead direc-
tion is a tribute to the vitality of the Congregational way. It grew ac-
cording to its own genius.

If one could make a map of it, there would be in its first phase, once
it had crossed the Hudson River, a Plan of Union expansion in the State
of New York, whose issue was a minimum of Congregationalism and a
rich deposit of Presbyterianism. But this was paralleled by a tenacious,
though numerically insignificant, extension of churches which began and
continued Congregational. Once beyond New York, the Plan of Union
became less monopolistic and Congregationalism more self-assertive, but
the two movements ran along together with crossing and recrossing lines,
though the Plan of Union never got beyond the Mississippi. To add to
the confusion, there was a multiplication of agencies. The New England
states maintained their own Home Missionary societies. These for the
most part delegated their activities, though not their powers, to the Amer-
ican Home Missionary Society which was, in turn, interdenominational
in a lopsided kind of way. An analytical touch, practically impossible, is
needed to dissect out the purely Congregational factors.

For all that, by about 1850 the frame was achieved within which
Congregationalism in America would live and move and have its being.
The second section of this history examines with great care what has been
done in organic development and growth of denominational self-con-
sciousness within that frame. Chronologically, the inception of foreign
missions is an interlude in the history of an expanding Congregationalism
(both movements are united in Samuel Mills). Neither interrupts the
other; rather they are mutually invigorating and, combined, they repre-
sent a dynamic evangelism which, considering the limitations of the

164

Recapitulation and Transition 1 65

home-base, is unmatched in the history of American Protestantism for
breadth of vision and essential catholicity. Since the combined enter-
prises were arrestingly free from denominational self-seeking, they sought
only the extension of Christianity in America and the evangelization of
the world.

If one takes 1850 for the terminus ad quern of the first and really
creative phase of Congregationalism, the period covered comes almost
exactly to 300 years. Those three centuries are epic. They began with a
formless religious ferment in England, feeling along forbidden frontiers
for a form of religious fellowship which should reproduce New Testa-
ment conditions. Little groups of "seekers" were led and misled. They
were always dissolving and reforming, always in danger of their liberty
or their lives.

By processes of selection through two generations, one group, dis-
ciplined by exile and wisely led, carried themselves and a yet termless
future to a New World and survived. Here again are complications. The
vaster current of Puritanism sought a new world, too, and claimed a
common seacoast with Separatism. In lonely settlements geographically
near though by transportation remote, each influenced the other. Ec-
clesiastically the issue was the "Congregational way" to which Puritanism
furnished the doctrinal content, ethical steadfastness, and organic fila-
ments. Plymouth independency had a Congregational core which out-
lasted all attempts to make the "way" Presbyterian. The ecclesiastical
system was, to begin with, only the religious aspect of colonial social and
political organization. More accurately the social and political forms
were a frame for religion, the secular phases of an essentially religious
order. Then followed a long and difficult process of disentanglement,
punctuated by religious "awakenings" and revivals, and finally a pro-
foundly devisive doctrinal realignment.

Meanwhile New England's stern and mostly rockbound coast nur-
tured the most unified, democratic, plain-living and high-thinking popu-
lation group on the North American continent. They dug into an ir-
responsive soil, they went down to the sea in ships, they multiplied,
prospered, shared their prosperity with the Lord to whom they gratefully
attributed it, were aggressively liberty-loving, and cut their eyeteeth on
flintlock muskets. They had always lived in peril of something— Indians,
French, "Red-Coats," hellfire, what you please— and so became amazingly
unafraid. They were colonists by inheritance and instinct, lovers of far
and wide horizons. They carried with them toward sunsets always further
west ploughs, firearms, schoolbooks, and the Bible. They met the unfore-
seen with a native ingenuity, cooperated masterfully with the inevitable
and left no land they took unchanged for the better. In such ways they

1 66 History oj American Congregationalism

wrought for 300 years until they saw the sunset over the Pacific, knowing
that it would rise upon their missions in Asia. They had girdled the

globe.

I
The New England Theology

There remains then, so far as the first section of this history is con-
cerned, only to fill the frame with such significant items in the life of a
Protestant Communion as seem to be needed to complete the picture.
All American nonliturgical Protestant denominations have much in com-
mon. There are differences, of course, but they are background dif-
ferences. A quite intelligent person would find in any one of the more
representative churches little actual difference in a Sunday morning
service. They use pretty much the same hymns, listen to the same lessons
from the Bible, hear or share prayers which present to the Throne of
Grace the same confessions and petitions, worship in churches which con-
form architecturally to widely-shared types, meet weekday neighbors who
are quite the same on Sunday as on week days though variously denom-
inated, hear sermons of the same general import. This is rather inevitable
because all the inheritances and conditions of American life since the"
colonial period have combined to shape the religious life first of the
colonies and then the nation.

Substantially every variant of Protestantism has been transplanted to
these shores, not to speak of variants native to the soil. By the Federal
Constitution all these were given the freedom of the continent and in
consequence a great area of religious action and contention simply ceased
to exist. The first and often heroic phase of any denominational history
had been a struggle first to exist at all, unpersecuted.^ Now in the United
States any denomination could be what it wanted to be. The only ques-
tion thereafter was what to do with its freedom. In the main, the activi-
ties of American Protestantism followed four lines. First, the organiza-
tion, operation, and manipulation of its various forms of denominational
machinery; second, efforts to maintain and increase the membership of
the churches and the faithful administration of all those services which
religion renders to life— what St. Paul called the edification of the saints;
third, home and foreign missionary extension; and fourth, theological
definition, assertion, speculation, discussion, controversy— all or singly.

Congregationalism, being free ever since the Revolutionary War

(which ended the threat of an American Established Church) to be as

Congregational as it pleased, spent relatively less of its force upon the

iThis phase began, for Protestantism, with the Reformation itself. Its terminations
are not easy to date for any study of it merges with a study of the growth or decline
of religious toleration. Intolerance is a tangled growth, has usually outlasted the re-
moval of legal disabilities and has a surprising power of re-emergence.

Recapitulation and Transition 1 67

operation of its denominational machinery than, for example, the Pres-
byterians. It had less to operate. It delegated home and foreign missions
to their proper boards and societies and was, therefore, free in an unusual
and almost unexpected way to specialize in theology, which it did with
great distinction from 1750 to 1850. The resultant theological systems
were not known as specifically Congregational. They are now called, in
the histories of American theology, "The New England Theology."^

This history has in previous chapters taken account of the concern of
the New England churches for the doctrinal bases of their faith and prac-
tice. That has been unavoidable: their history has been seamed with that
concern. It was implicit in the Cambridge Synod; it became militant
with Jonathan Edwards. It occasioned the Unitarian departure. It per-
sisted as a ruling concern, as we shall see, until the formulation of the
Kansas City Creed. After the Cambridge Synod, for full two hundred
years, the churches were far more concerned with their faith than their
polity. We have noted how the Congregational way was the issue here
of the confluence of a massive Puritanism and a leavening Independency,
which finally leavened the whole lump.

The concern for theology was the contribution of the Puritan stream
and took its rise in august conceptions of the mystery of life and human
destiny without which Puritanism cannot be understood. Perry Miller, in
his examination of the genesis of the Puritan mind, has traced these con-
ceptions to their sources with an insight for which the history of Pur-
itanism had long been waiting. For, he says, the creative impulse of the
Puritan was his piety, and his piety was never the rigid and negative
ascetism for which he has been maligned and misrepresented. It was
Augustine's hunger for God. It was St. Paul's persuasion of life as a
warfare with unseen and spiritual enmities. It was Pascal's sense (for
strangely enough Pascal is apposite here) of the essential misery of life,
as though one always saw a chasm at life's road-edge into which, save for
the grace of God, one is sure to fall. Life, therefore, for the Puritan, as
Haller also said, was wayfaring and warfaring and, save as the imperilled
were undergirded by the sovereign will of God, he was lost and beaten
before he started.

Generations of Puritan preachers sounded the same note, though they
may not ever have known that Augustine said it, "Thou hast made us
for thyself and we are restless until we rest in thee." Puritanism was that
restlessness in endless action, and all the Puritan's theology was carried
upon his quest for rest in God. His theology (this in Miller) dramatized
the needs of his soul. His religious emotion needed a framework of

2 Any detailed examination of the New England theology seems a life work for a
specialist. Reading Edwards, like reading Kant, apparently may become a vocation.

i68 History of American Congregationalism

dogma. The New England theology was the drama of the Puritan soul
played out here in America for two centuries.

The relation of Congregationalism to this theology is paradoxical.
The basal system under examination, interpretation, and "improvement"
was Calvinism— the common inheritance of all the Reformed churches.
The only contention between Princeton Presbyterianism and the New
England theology was: which is the most truly Calvinistic? American
Congregationalism accepted the Westminster Confession. It made the
Savoy Declaration (considered earlier in this history) official for Con-
necticut and Massachusetts churches. The National Council of 1865 de-
clared in substance its adherence "to those ancient symbols as being"
well and fully grounded upon the Holy Scriptures, "the only sufficient
and invariable rule of religion." The whole action of the New England
theology was within the frame of historic Calvinism.^

But the long succession of distinguished divines, teachers, and preach-
ers who fabricated the New England system were Congiegationalists
by inheritance and training. The theological schools entirely identified
with it were Congregational seminaries and the organization and
genius of Congregationalism made the free action of their acute and
powerful minds possible. Congregationalism has had a sufficiency of
theological controversies, intimations of heresy, much heckling of can-
didates for ordination or installation and some refusals to do either. But
it has never had a heresy trial on the grand scale, for the simplest and
most effective of reasons: its teachers and preachers are protected by an
encircling group which knows them best and, though not agreeing with
them, has refused to cast them out for reasons of opinion. (The whole
Unitarian Separation was accomplished without a real heresy trial.)
Rigid authoritative imposition of "standards" has therefore been im-
possible save in the local church, and even then it was most reluctantly
exercised. (It has for a long time now been far easier for a Congrega-
tional minister to be an economic rather than a theological heretic.)

It is difficult to overestimate the service of this intellectual freedom,
not only to Congregational thought but even to American theology. It
made possible what Foster calls the "genetic" process, the process of
slow, free, gradual, interlinked growth. Moreover, what was most prac-
tically effective in Congregationalism was tied up in one bundle with the
theology. Foster puts it all in a few arresting sentences: Congiegational-
ism, during the period of the supremacy of the Edwardian theolog)', took

swilliston Walker's The Creeds and Platforms of Congregationalism is the best source
book. It is indispensable. Frank Hugh Foster's A Genetic History of the Neiv Englaiid
Theology, and A History of New England Theology by George Nye Boardraan, are
authoritative and manageable. Foster is more inclusive and easier to read.

Recapitulation and Transition 1 69

an unquestioned lead among American churches in missions, evangelism,
education, and denominational cooperation.'*

An earlier chapter traced, loosely, the succession of the New England
theologians from Edwards, Senior, about to the time of Edwards, Junior.
Boardman supplies a meticulous chronological table from the birth of
Edwards, Senior, to about 1837. These 134 years made and unmade em-
pires, dissolved old and historic orders in social and political revolution,
and inaugurated new economic and political orders. But the Boardman
table makes little of these things. In the year Wolfe died victoriously
on the Plain of Abraham and New France in America ceased to be, Hop-
kins considered the Wisdom of God in the Permission of Sin. In 1765,
while the recently-passed Stamp Act agitated Faneuil Hall, he inquired
into the Promises of the Gospel. In 1770 the Red-Coats fired on Boston
citizens and Hopkins replied to Hart. In 1773, they threw tea into Boston
Harbor and Hopkins dealt with The Nature of True Holiness. While
Washington was trying to get his new Federal government going, the
younger Edwards was examining The Salvation of All Men and conclud-
ing that "endless misery" (for some) may, "upon the whole" be good for
the universe.

II
The Great Succession

The men who thus unfolded the ways of God with men are in many
ways more interesting than their theologies. The great succession be-
longed to Connecticut, partly because Yale College nurtured them, partly
because of the semi-Presbyterian nature of Connecticut Congregational-
ism, and partly just because.^ They were mostly country ministers
(though Hopkins had a pastorate in Newport, Rhode Island) with long
pastorates and probably patient parishioners. There was, during this
period, more "exchanging pulpits" than now^ which gave to the ministry
generally a kind of corporate character.

Thus interest in theology was native to their minds, the region, and
the time. It was of the texture and essence of their ministry. They thought
it out, preached it out, wrote it out, taught it out, and each one of these
four clauses is capable of most ample development. Their finally pub-
lished systems are, so to speak, the deposit of their whole lifework. Their
preaching power naturally varied. Joseph Bellamy, a Bethlehem, Con-
necticut, pastor for fifty years, was one of the greatest preachers of this
period, with every oratorical gift. Hopkins' power was more intellectual.

^Foster, A Genetic History of the Neiv England Theology, p. 3.

^Carlyle says there is no accounting for the leaves on the World-tree Ygdrasil.

6 A fine old custom which should not have been so completely lost. Long pastorates
and congregations which went to church fifty-two Sundays in the year made an "ex-
change" a relief to everybody concerned.

1*70 History of American Congregationalism

Channing, who heard him in Newport, said that "his delivery in the pul-
pit was the worst I ever met with."^

The outstanding New England theologians of the last half of the
Eighteenth Century taught candidates for the ministry, becoming, as it
were, theological seminaries quite on their own. Hopkins, as we have
seen, "studied" with Edwards and became in turn the most famous in-
structor of his time.* His house, says Boardman, became "a school of the
prophets." Asa Burton, minister in Thetford, Vermont, for more than a
half-century, instructed about sixty students for the ministry. Their sys-
tems were thus continued and widely preached and awkwardly named
"Hopkinsianism" or "Emmonsism." They were recognized and read in
Great Britain. The University of Aberdeen made Bellamy a Doctor of
Divinity. A succession of New England thinkers influenced English-
speaking religious thought.

Their fundamental effort was the reconciliation of the fundamental
paradox in Calvinism: the moral responsibility of the individual beneath
the complete sovereignty of God which foreordained every soul's eternal
destiny. The freedom of the will was the hinge on which the whole
divine economy turned. How they argued it and what conclusions they
reached and the validity of these conclusions belong to the highly spe-
cialized histories of theology. They worked within the framework of an
inerrant Bible and found their proof-texts as they pleased. They must
have a doctrine for everything. Sin, theologically, was a fatal and uni-
versal infection of the human personality dating from the Fall. Sin, prac-
tically, was unbelief and not going to church and profanity and licen-
tiousness and intemperances and worldliness. God's responsibility for
permitting sin was another burning question.

Virtue was benevolence in motion and expression. Toward the end
of their period the more clear-visioned came to see that sin was selfish-
ness and goodness was love. This was preeminently the contribution of
Emmons. Nathaniel Emmons (born 1745, died 1840) is perhaps the out-
standing transitional theologian in the long process. He was thirteen
years old when Jonathan Edwards died. Bushnell was nearing the peak
of his power when he (Emmons) died. He was therefore a notable medi-
ator between one age that was ending and a new epoch. He had an
unusual mind. He was fitted for college in ten months and was gradu-
ated from Yale in 1767, magna cum laude. His own account of "his early
religious history" is significant and deeply moving. He had "the awful
thought of dying unprepared" and resolved "some time or other" to
become truly pious; and he had a peculiar respect for ministers and

7 Boardman, A History of New England Theology, pp. 72-77.

8 This may be questioned; Emmons actually trained more ministers than Hopkins.

Recapitulation and Transition 1 7 1

would be, he thought, extremely happy if he could be qualified to be-
come one himself. The death of a sister renewed his "apprehensions of
the state of the damned." Then his fears abated for a season. Later he
had a renewed sense of the "great importance of being truly religious and
began to read the Bible and pray in secret."

But he lacked, he said, any sense of the corruption of his heart and
its perfect opposition to God. A thunder storm so terrified him that he
lay awake all night "crying for mercy." He continued his theological
studies (under Dr. Smalley), studies which served only to deepen his
despair. He knew he was a sinner and convinced at the same time that
the best desires and prayers of sinners were altogether selfish, criminal,
and displeasing to God. (This was the impasse of a rigid Calvinism.) He
was delivered by a sudden conversion which filled his mind with joy
and serenity; and a "peculiar spirit of benevolence to my fellowmen,
whether friends or foes; and I was transported with the thought of the
unspeakable blessedness of the day when universal benevolence should
prevail among all mankind."^ It is difficult in view of what followed to
overestimate the significance of the rapt vision of Emmons.

His examination for licensure was unsatisfactory to the older clergy-
men and occasioned controversies which were finally reconciled by a
"conciliatory creed." He was finally settled over the historic church in
Franklin, Massachusetts. He served a loyal people till he was seized
with a fainting fit in the pulpit (May, 1827) and had to be carried home.
But he finished that interrupted sermon the next Sunday, resigned, and
was thereafter pastor emeritus.

The list of his published sermons, addresses, and works fills almost
two pages in Sprague's Annals. In addition. Professor Park supplies an
acute digest of Emmons' theological positions, with some of which Park
said he himself did not "coincide," though he commended his power as
a preacher unreservedly and testified to his "vigorous and capacious
mind," his matured piety and his indefatigable toil. Park summarizes
Emmons' "peculiar positions" under ten heads. He was a consistent Cal-
vinist who believed that all true virtue, all real holiness consists in uni-
versal benevolence; hence all sin is selfishness. He allowed man a moral
freedom and responsibility under a divine pressure about which he is
rather vague. The introduction of sin, according to Emmons, was for the
general good, and the sinner must approve of the divine conduct even
though God should cast him off forever. He opposed, finally, the sov-
ereignty of God to man's moral responsibility, and left the paradox un-
resolved. But his emphasis upon benevolence endured; the rapture of

sSprague's Annals, vol. i, p. 693.

1*72 History of American Congregationalism

his conversion modified the austerity of his creed/" and he broke ground
for a kinder faith. This long succession of theologians developed their
doctrines of the Atonement, predominantly "governmental." God was
under bonds by his own nature to maintain the moral order. Sin must
be punished, not through divine vindictiveness, but by the impartial and
inescapable obligation of a judge to permit no unpunished infraction of
the law. The Atonement was therefore such a satisfaction of justice that
grace was thereafter possible.

They argued also how that was accomplished through the suffering
and death of Jesus Christ with such convincing of themselves and others
as they could effect. There were always heaven and hell. Also, the un-
regenerate must be reborn and they sought to explain how, before re-
generation, nothing good a person seemed to do was of any avail; it
rather involved him so much the more deeply in condemnation.

The whole system was essentially, though perhaps half unconsciously,
meant to supply a basis for evangelical revival preaching— the conversion
of sinners and the increase of the church. Edwards so directed it from
the first and so it continued to be directed and used. At the last the awe-
inspiring edifice they built was strangely interpenetrated by light and
shadow and whether those who lived within it saw darkness or light de-
pended upon their position. If through intellectual conviction or the
mystical certainty of rebirth they knew themselves the elect, the entire
structure was bright with a light the torments of the lost could not
darken, but rather enhanced. If they were not sure of election, the whole
structure was shadowed by dumb spiritual struggle or dark with despair.
Nevertheless as one guided by sound scholars follows the development of
the system, one sees it escaping its own limitations, freeing and humaniz-
ing its approaches and conclusions, and always seeking more light. This
was made possible in part by the elastic and diffusive structure of Con-
gregational polity and the genius of New England Congregationalism.

Ill

"The Old Order Changeth"; Horace Bushnell

The Nineteenth Century changed the picture, though gradually.

Theological education began to be professional, institutional, getting

lOThe bright account of his long life and ministry in the Annals humanizes his theol-
ogy and is far more interesting than the theology. The Rev. Elam Smalley's recollec-
tion of what Emmons said (he was, as noted, a famous teacher of preachers) are price-
less. He said to one preacher of a sermon just delivered: "It was well arranged, well
argued and well delivered. I have but one fault to find with it— it was not true." He
inquired of another preacher, his sermon finished, "Do you ever mean to preach an-
other sermon?" "Yes, sir." "What can you say? You have already preached the whole
system of theology." Again, commenting upon a preacher famous for fluency, "It is
a great blessing to be able to preach a half an hour about nothing. The great body
of extempore preachers are pre tempore preachers."

Recapitulation and Transition 173

itself slowly disentangled from general collegiate education of which it
had been an aspect rather than a department (there were then no uni-
versities in the United States). The first President Timothy Dwight of
Yale (1795) was a famous theologian and instructed in divinity students
contemplating the ministry, but Yale Divinity School was not opened
for service till 1822. The Hollis professorship of divinity was "the chief
position of theological influence in Massachusetts" and the oldest in
New England. It became the focus of Unitarianism. Andover Seminary
was opened in 1808 as a counter influence and quite as specifically to
furnish a more highly specialized education for the ministry. The time
was passing when a young man could be adequately trained by spending
a winter or two with an Asa Burton in Thetford, Vermont. The first
faculties were small and composed of ministers who had some special
aptitude for the "chair" which fitted them, but the era of specialization
had begun in theological education, the theological professor was above
the horizon, and the well-trained minister of the future would be the
product of a corporate rather than an individual training.

But the individual theology was still dominant even through the media
of theological schools. This is still true. Nathanial Taylor, for example,
exerted so powerful an influence upon New England theology during
its later transitional period that his "powerful and influential" mind
overshadowed the detail that he was the first professor of theology in the
Yale department of theology. In general, though this is to anticipate a
long process of development, each theological school (variously named
and successively founded) came to have a distinctive technique, tradi-
tion, and theology. One could therefore speak as Boardman does of "New
Haven," "Andover," "Oberlin" theology, although in the departments of
theology particularly, the institution never eclipsed the teacher.

All Congregational theological schools in America proudly chronicle
their long succession of scholars in any department, men of national and
of even international distinction, devout in spirit, free and inquiring in
mind, arresting in personality, each in his own orbit like Milton's sun
a source of light from which, as to a fountain returning, lesser luminaries
drew light. Edwards Amasa Park of Andover was, for more than fifty
years (1836-1881 and then Emeritus), perhaps the most dominating of
this distinguished fellowship. He was an indefatigable student, a mighty
teacher, an impressive preacher with the face of a scholar, prophet, and
saint. The noble bronze tablet in his memory, now transferred to the
Chapel Hall of Andover-Newton Seminary, commemorates one of the
most brilliant careers in the long history of American theology and the
culminating incarnation of the New England theology.

The man who finally released Congiegational theological thought

1 74 History of A merican Congregationalism

and great regions of American thinking from the confining bonds of a
Calvinism which had lost its creative significance, was never in any
theological chair at all. Horace Bushnell (1802-1876) was also bom in
Litchfield of a stock native to the region for eight generations. He was
a Yankee by all the implications of the word and yet his true citizenship
was in the timeless and the universal. He won his faith through a struggle
with much doubting (this does not seem to have been true of the men
so far considered) and his strong face, so different from Park's classic pro-
file, was deeply marked by struggling intensities of mind, spirit, and phy-
sical limitations.

In station he was pastor of a prosperous and loyal church in Hartford,
one of the most delightful of New England cities, and a preacher of
spacious and arresting power. In mental action he was the protagonist
in a liberation of Christian thought of momentous consequence. Blake's
noble verses from "Milton" cannot be forced into this context, but he
did not cease from "mental fight," nor did his sword "sleep in his hand."
If he did not establish Jerusalem in any green and pleasant land, he did
bequeath to succeeding generations of preachers and teachers a creative
and rarely abused freedom of Christian inquiry and expression, a freedom
which he won for himself at great price. He was accused of new heresies
under old names; he was the storm center of controversy in which he
gave as much as, or more than, he received. During all that mental war-
fare he was thrice sheltered: once by his own inner serenity and the
stability of his dearly-bought faith; once by his own church, generous and
loyal; once by the encircling line of his own ministerial association
through which heresy hunters could make no breach. This was Con-
gregational polity at its best.

Foster, in a discriminating appraisal, notes that he approached theol-
ogy through his preeminent preaching instead of approaching preaching
through theology." Foster goes on to say that he did not sufficiently con-
ceive the importance of the historic creeds (at least the Nicene), or the
importance either of the New England divines whom he criticized with
considerable vigor. This is probably true enough and at the same time
shows a faint repercussion in Foster's own mind of the attitude of the
professional theologian toward the amateur.

The reach of Bushnell's influence is for this history more important

than a precise examination of his positions. Perhaps his greatest service

was in the field of Christian nurture. So far in this narrative young people

have rarely appeared except in an unfavorable light; "night walking,"

11 Foster, A Genetic History of the New England Theology, chap. 14. Every theological
faculty should have one theological teacher who has tested and matured and mediated
his theology by preaching it. That is about the only way any theology can be vitalized.
(Atkins.)

Recapitulation and Transition 175

or reading forbidden romances, or disliking two-hour sermons strongly
tinctured with terror, or else candidates for a revivalistic regeneration. A
child could not be saved unless he were made from birth an alien to the
Kingdom of God. Very little children who needed to be baptized had in-
nocently occasioned, in part, the acrimonious controversies of the Half-
Way Covenant. All of which comes back to this: that Calvinistic Pur-
itanism had never quite known what to do with a little child.

Possibly his feeling that the "revival" method was being disastrously
overworked may have led Bushnell to correct it by calling attention to
other forms of entrance into the religious life. The churches, says Foster,
"had never entirely forgotten the duty of Christian nurture or denied the
possibility of child piety," but their emphasis upon conscious conversion
had more than obscured the possibilities of Christian nurture. Against the
excesses of revivalism Bushnell advanced a simple but entirely revolu-
tionary idea "that the child is to grow up a Christian and never know
himself as being otherwise." Bushnell's mind was far-ranging and always
of an exploring quality. Consequently, his development of the possibili-
ties of Christian nurture led him to examine the principles of education
generally. His book on Christian nurture was, therefore, epochal and it
would be difficult to overestimate its influence or follow in detail what
has grown out of it.

Bushnell's essay on language was equally significant. Theology, he
saw, had lost itself in words growing more and more impossible of any
clear definition, more and more remote from life, as though theologians
lived and moved and had their being in a structure of words. "Words,"
he said, "are the signs of thought to be expressed. They do not literally
convey or pass on a thought out of one mind into another." They only,
in substance, start another mind thinking along the same line.^^ This
contention emancipated theological thought. It did not break historical
continuity; it did maintain the right, and even urge the duty, of that
creative and critical originality in thinking which became the keystone
of later religious intellectual liberalism. Indeed one may date the genesis
of that movement more specifically from Bushnell than any other one
single source, though that statement is open to challenge."

His own theology now in many quarters would be thought conserva-
tive. He developed and, in a limited way, "popularized" the moral

12 Thus Bushnell was also a pioneer in Semantics. His own chief concern was with
what would now be called the "emotive" function of language or, at least, the sugges-
tive function of words. The real trouble for theology and philosophy is with the "refer-
ential" function of words, what reality supports them and by what objective tests can
the other person prove or disprove them. For a philosophy of the function of words,
opposed to Bushnell's, see Miller's The New England Mind.

13 From Unitarian historians, but Bushnell did supply theological liberalism, a philo-
sophical basis and a technique. He was an emancipator rather than a revolutionist.

lyG History of American Coyigre gationalism

theory of the Atonement, of which there had already been intimations in
the New England school. He conceived the Trinity as "modal," a three-
fold revelation of God in being and action. His systems were less sig-
nificant than his power as a preacher to touch the dry bones of theology
with life. There had been no doctrinal preaching comparable with his
for imagination, insight, nearness to life. His most famous sermon,
"Everyman's Life a Plan of God," was one of the first attempts ever made
in America to discover and illumine the processes of a divine administra-
tion in experience. Incidentally, he and the later New England school
furnished Princeton Theological Seminary generally, and Dr. Charles
Hodge specifically, their main occupation: an unceasing and unqualified
condemnation of the aforesaid school and all its works.

Inherited Theology Meets a New Mind-Order

Meanwhile not only theology but religious faith itself was beginning
to be challenged by fundamental changes in science and Biblical criticism.
"Evolution" was well above the horizon when Bushnell died (1876),
though theology in America had not begun to take much account of it,
being still entrenched behind the Genesis naiTative. But higher criticism,
mostly from German sources, had already begun to question the author-
ship and datings of the first five books of the Old Testament. That line of
defense was becoming vulnerable. These, we know now, were no super-
ficial thought movements. They were destined profoundly to affect both
religion and theology and release controversies which would essentially
embattle the churches.

The French have an untranslatable word, "fond." Its meanings are
fluid, but in the main it designates some fundamental content of thought
or body of fact upon which everything else is based, by which develop-
ments are controlled. The second half of the Nineteenth Century supplied
an almost entirely new "fond" for science and history. It revolutionized
the study of sociology and psychology; it compelled philosophers to re-
examine their assumptions; it profoundly modified literature. And in-
herited religious faith had to take account of it all. Theological leaders,
to repeat, were slow in recognizing the significance for them of this new
order.

Foster, in his final and penetrating pages, stresses this, though his

precise theological tenninology is like an engineer's description, in terms

of strains and structural weaknesses, of a building shaken by an eartli-

quake. No figure of speech is adequate. ^^ Here was a majestic structure of

1* Perhaps the noble account of getting new foundations under Winchester Cathe-
dral, England, might do. The wood-piles which had supported it for centuries decayed
as the waters around them had drained away. One man gave his heroic life, in dark-
ness and in danger, to replace them with stone and cement.

Recapitulation and Transition 177

Christian thought, built through the centuries by many craftsmen, whose
very foundations were threatened while the last of a great succession of
Christian thinkers still labored at its arches and towers in their studies
and their classrooms, believing it still unshakable. For all that one should
not for a moment undervalue the significance nor deny the majesty of
the body of Christian convictions, laboriously developed and bravely de-
fended, which maintained its august authority over American Congrega-
tionalism for almost 150 years.

The procession of theologians from Edwards to Park is an honor to
the denomination. Beneath and above all their dogmatisms they main-
tained an unfailing teachableness, hospitality to new truth, freedom of
inquiry, and a passion for intellectual integrity. These made it possible
for Congregationalism to pass through the period of theological transi-
tion without too much strain, and to lead American religious thought
into a new order of thought, faith, and practice.

Bushnell's influence now became clearly evident. A generation of
young men was entering the Congregational ministry who were to be de-
nominational leaders till the end of the century. Some of these, like
Washington Gladden and Theodore Munger, acknowledged their direct
indebtedness to Bushnell and mediated his emancipation through their
own ministry. Gladden was strongly influenced by Bushnellism while it
was still under the ban of the orthodox and the passages of his auto-
biography which portray Bushnell are still a little hot to the touch with
the fires of now-vanished controversies in whose recollection Gladden's
militant spirit relived a martial time. They are also tender with gratitude
and marvellously understanding. "I knew," he writes, "that for me there
never could be any other doctrine to preach than that which I learned
from this great teacher."^*

Religious Liberalism

It is impossible to condense and perilous to generalize the history of
the period of theological transition and adjustment which followed the
fading out of the "New England System" and the partial dethronement
of inherited orthodoxes. The whole vast process can hardly be called
theological. It was too many-sided; it moved along a too-spacious front.
The issue was the religious liberalism which was at its peak at the turn
of the last century. That liberalism (the name is too loose) since about
1935 has been under critical and unfavorable examination by a new gen-
eration of theologians to whom the rather ungiateful task of cataloging
its sins of omission and commission may be left.

15 Gladden, Recollections, chap. lo. This autobiography is invakiable for any study
of the making of the Congregational mind from the end of the Civil War until, cer-
tainly, 1908. Gladden's greatly loved hymn, "O Master, Let Me Walk with Thee," was
written out of the travail of the controversy which attended Munger's installation.

1*78 History of American Congregationalism

Such critics should at least recognize that Nineteenth Century liberal-
ism made them possible. They are free born because two heroic genera-
tions of teachers and preachers purchased, at a great price, the freedom
they bequeathed to their successors.'^ The history of what they did and
how they did it is one chapter and by no means the least important of
the general history of their time. Every theology had for centuries flowed
on and on in its own separate, deeply worn, majestic, or otherwise, chan-
nel. For a long period it carried philosophy with it and explained crea-
tion.

Now all this was changed. A new mind flooded in and upon an old
theology, and theology had no longer any channel of its own. It became
an aspect of the thought currents fed from almost numberless sources.
One does not mean to say that there was no longer any theology. Actually,
there were continuous reinterpretations, restatements of inherited doc-
trines. But the systematic definiteness of older schemes began to be lost.
There began to be instead a religious conservatism and religious liberal-
isms with variations difficult to follow.

The history of all this has never been adequately written. Perhaps
now it never will be, but if it could be rightly done it would be vivid,
colorful, in quiet ways dramatic and always multiple in content. In
Memoriarn would furnish the overture. There would be, as in a sym-
phony, a contest of motifs, with reconciliations and stormy developments
and intervals of quiet, then action again, always unfinished. Writing
more precisely, faith adjusted itself to evolution and found God in the
revelation of his eonian processes. Liberal religious faith was able to de-
tach itself from an infallibly inspired Bible and still find a divine and
sufficient revelation between its covers. The ethical content of the teach-
ings of Jesus was brought to bear with a new force upon economic and
social relationships. Religion was re-related to experience and the con-
duct of life in fresh and vital ways, and an almost entirely new religious
literature began to be created, whole library alcoves of it."

It is too much to claim for Congregationalism an intellectual mo-
nopoly of this creative period. It certainly must be conceded an out-
standing and far-reaching influence. To this the organic structure of its
polity and the free genius of the Congregational mind contributed.
There was within the denomination a sufficient and engrossing variety
of "tensions," but surprisingly few casualties. The action was confined
generally to ordaining or installing councils, some of which have become

16 In addition, these same critics, recognizing the rise and ecUpse of systems, might
be a httle less dogmatic and confess themselves subject to possible correction.

"The careful historian of the period would note, as a demanding detail, the changes
in an up-to-date minister's library from (say) i860 to 1900. An examination of the
sequence of titles would really organize his narrative.

Recapitulation and Transition 1 79

historic/* not for the magnitude of the forces engaged but for their
unexpectedly far-reaching influence. In action they were only a company
of ministers and delegates representing the churches of a neighborhood,
meeting for an afternoon and evening in the church seeking their advice
and approval. Almost uniformly after the candidate had been heard and
the Council had sufficiently questioned him and heartily agreed or dis-
agreed with one another, they voted to install, or ordain, and drove
home under the quieting influence of summer or winter stars, and there-
after, save with their consent, the pastor could not be reached nor dis-
possessed.

But, in substance, a vast deal more than that happened. Theologies
had been debated and precedents established. ("Precedents" have been
the common law of Congiegationalism just as they were the texture of
the common law of England.) The denominational press reported stra-
tegic councils and editorialized gravely upon them. In such ways a Con-
gregational public opinion was slowly created, always with freedom of
opinion and speech, and a momentous transition was achieved with a
minimum of strain, a surprising little persistence of odium theologicum,
no schism at all, and no historic heresy trials. ^^

The Andover Controversy

The "Andover Controversy" came nearest being a nation-wide issue
and that was begun, continued, and ended entirely outside the province
of the churches. The controversy grew out of the status of a missionary
who held the belief that "heathen" to whom the gospel had never been
preached would, after death, have an opportunity to repent during a
probationary period. The question involved had long troubled the sensi-
tive. Dante asked it of the Just Kings who conjointly formed the shining,
symbolic Eagle of Justice in the heaven of Jupiter.

"... A man will see the light on India's bank where
there is none to tell of Christ . , . ;

And all his deeds are good and all his will as far as human
reason sees, no breath of sin in life or in discourse may dwell;
He dies all unbaptized and lacking faith;
Where is the Justice that condemns? . . ."

18 For example, the Indian Orchard (Mass.) Council which refused installation to
James F. Merriam "who was unwilling to assert that all who die impenitent suffer
everlasting conscious torment." Also, the North Adams Council for T. S. Munger,
who was installed.

19 The significance of all this seems now to have been forgotten. For a long genera-
tion the handicaps of the loose organization of Congregationalism have been stressed.
The denomination has been asked to take lessons from Communions with highly cen-
tralized organization and tighten up its own machinery. It may sometime learn again
the really enormous value of its own finest historic inheritances.

1 8o History of A merican Con gre gationalism

The Eagle replied in substance that faith in Christ is the sole means
of access to heaven, but qualified his answer with the observation that
many heathen are more Christian than Christians.

The conservative members of the American Board of Commissioners
for Foreign Missions were less sympathetic than Dante's Eagle. Their
missionaries, they held, must believe that the heathen would be lost
irrevocably without the gospel, or else the nerve of missions would be
cut. The question of the Board's right to become an arbiter of doctrine
was also involved. The ensuing controversies lasted seven years (1886-
1893) and had wide repercussions. The state of the heathen seems to
have been forgotten in factional bitterness and a certain amount of pious
politics.^"

The controversy finally burned itself out, leaving the state of the
heathen who had not heard the gospel still undecided. But it established
the right of missionaries to the same freedom of theological opinion as
the ministers of "home" churches, and it indirectly reaffirmed the gen-
eral principles of Congregational freedom of religious thought. The
issue had actually been a kind of test case between an authoritarian
conservatism and the freer movement of the liberal mind. At any rate,
it exhausted the zeal of the denomination generally for theological con-
troversy and its leaders turned to other concerns, perhaps as much as
anything else to the cultivation of national denominational self-
consciousness.

What one may call the period of theological transition ended with
the century. Theology, precisely defined, had ceased to be the primai^
concern of the churches and their leaders. The United States was fabu-
lously prosperous, "at peace with the world," as a presidential message
once said, "and in amity with the rest of mankind." The period was
kind to generous idealisms; a bright, happy, fraternal world seemed so
easily possible, if only the Sermon on the Mount could and would be
put into general practice.

Such interpretations of evolution as John Fiske and Henry Drum-
mond popularized supported these idealisms. It was easy for a generation
of liberal-minded preachers and religious teachers to fit their warm, theis-
tic faith into these interpretations of evolution. What else was evolution
save the eonian method of an immanent God whose design was the King-

20 Dr. Quint of Connecticut, so Nehemiah Boynton said, once inadvertently entered
a room at a Board Meeting in which several members were in consultation. Dr. Plumb,
whose accents were always lugubrious and whose orthodoxy was of the stanchest, told
Quint that they had met to pray over the sad estate of the Board. Quint sniffed and
replied that the meeting looked to him more like a caucus than a prayer meetino-.

Recapitulation and Transition 1 8 1

dom of God here and now. Were there not signs of its immediate realiza-
tion against all horizons? ^^ Was there not

". . . . one God, one law, one element,
and one far-off divine event
toward which the whole creation moves?"

That quotation and the last sentences of John Fiske's Idea of God
furnished glowing conclusions for many sermons.

The then Congregational mind lent itself sympathetically to all this,
perhaps more sympathetically than any other denomination save the Uni-
tarian. Washington Gladden shared with Walter Rauschenbusch a widely
acknowledged leadership in the development of the "Social Gospel." Con-
gregational writers were outstanding in the field of American religious
literature and recognized in Great Britain.^^ In such regions as these then,
social, semi-theological and Christian ideology inclusively, the last decades
of the Nineteenth Century and the first decade of the Twentieth Century
were the golden age of Congregationalism, indeed for American Protes-
tantism. The first world war ended all this with a finality which slowly
became apparent, and is now (1942) tragically apparent.

There has been a gradual renaissance of theology precisely defined
and strongly influenced by European theologians. Younger men specif-
ically trained have assumed leadership in theological thinking. Some of
them postulate a neo-orthodoxy (a term useful through its vagueness);
others seek a metaphysical basis— as opposed to a scientific basis— for
theistic faith. The majority of them are working again in more specula-
tive regions. The disorders and crises of the last twenty-five years have
naturally strongly affected and somberly shadowed their thinking and
teaching. There is already (1942) a considerable and growing literature
which attempts to interpret and classify the main contemporaneous theo-
logical trends and schools. Since all this is still in action, it cannot here
be considered. This chapter closes (still 1942) in an unbelievable and
indescribable dissolution of inherited orders whose issue cannot now be
foreseen.

21 The darker aspects of struggle were for the time mercifully hidden though there
was even then a sinister or pessimistic philosophy which stressed them, fatal as we now
see (1942) in its effectiveness. But the idealists of the late Nineteenth Century should
be judged by the then order of which they were a part. Nor were they ever either so
uncritical as they are now held to have been. It is possible from their sermons and
works to quote passages of sad and searching insight to match their more glowing
periods. And we ought not now (1942) to grudge thera their bright periods. There
have been so few bright periods in human history.

22 This general statement should, of course, be documented, but must here be ac-
cepted for substance of accuracy. The American Congregational authors in Scribner's
International Theological Library might be cited.

CHAPTER XIII

The Growth of National Consciousness

THE council idea is inherent in democracy. The employment of a
council as a means to secure the common mind and to plan
united action is as old as human society. Through the ages, when-
ever democracy has flourished, it has come to self-consciousness and car-
ried foi-ward its work by means of councils.

The fifteenth chapter of the Book of the Acts gave the early Congre-
gationalists a pattern for a church council. In the famous Cambridge
Platform adopted by the Synod (i.e. council) of 1648, the province of a
synod was stated in this way:

It belongeth to synods and councils to debate and determine controversies
of faith, and cases of conscience ... to clear from the Word holy directions
for the holy worship of God and good government of the church; to bear witness
against mal-administration and corruption in doctrine or manners in any par-
ticular church, and to give directions for the reformation thereof; not to exercise
church-censures in way of discipline, nor any other act of church authority or
jurisdiction. . . . The Synod's directions and determinations, so far as consonant
to the word of God, are to be received with reverence and submission, not only
for their agreement therewith. Acts 15th, which is the principal ground thereof,
and without which they bind not at all; but also, secondarily, for the power,
whereby they are made, as being ordinance of God, appointed thereunto in
his Word.'

When the Massachusetts council of church representatives met in 1679,
it was discovered that some churches had failed to send lay delegates and
there was great dissatisfaction. The necessity of lay representation was
debated and it was voted:

That not only elders (ministers) , but messengers (lay delegates) also were
to be delegated by churches and have their suffrage in a Synod, representing
those churches; the primitive practice of the churches in the ages next following
the Apostles.2

The early American Congregational councils were called by legal au-
thority, usually on petition of ministers and interested lay people. The
Court, in response to such a petition, called the council into being and
in one at least, the Newtowne Synod of 1637, the expenses of travel and

^ Ratio Disciplinae; or the Constitution of the Congregational Churches, Upham
(editor), pp. 201-202.

^Ratio Disciplinae; or the Constitution of the Congregational Churches, Upham
(editor), p. 202.

182

The Growth oj National Consciousness 1 83

entertainment were cared for by the civil authority. The Court did not
undertake to supervise deliberations, to judge the actions of the council
or to revise or amend these actions; but served rather as the transmitting
agent by providing for the printing and distribution of the actions of the
council. A council was not altogether a new device in Congregational
history. The gathering of the Mayflower Pilgrims in the cabin of the ship
when they had reached Cape Cod might well be considered, if not the
first Congregational council in America, at least the forerunner of our
councils although no ministers were present. Whether or not it can be
called a council, it is interesting as an example of a method to secure the
common mind.

The Newtowne Synod, August 30, 1637— The First Church Council
This first Synod was called by the General Court of Massachusetts at
the request of the ministers of the churches then established, who pre-
sented a petition to the Court for such a council to consider "eighty-two
erroneous opinions and nine unwholesome expressions."^ The Synod
included "the teaching elders" and "messengers from the churches," and,
as Governor Winthrop wrote, "about twenty-five Godly ministers of
Christ besides many other graciously-eminent servants of his."* "The
diet of the assembly," Governor Winthrop continues, "was provided at
the country's charge, as also the fetching and sending back of those which
came from Connecticut,"^ then a part of Massachusetts Colony.

This Council was truly a church council as delegates, both clerical
and lay, were present from all the churches. When it assembled, they
elected Rev. Peter Bulkeley and Rev. Thomas Hooker as moderators,
and Rev. John Higginson as scribe. The Council proceeded in the order
that has been followed since: discussions, reference to committee, report,
discussion, and adoption of findings. "It marked the highest expression
yet attained of that sense of comity and responsibility, of fellowship in
churchly concerns, which had been growing in New England since the
days of Fuller's ministrations at Salem, and distinguished American Con-
gregationalism from English Independency."^

The Council considered the eighty-two opinions and nine expressions
and agreed that the Scriptures had been "perverted." Having attended
to these, the Council went further and recommended to the Court that
the civil government:

3 For a list of the "expressions" and "opinions," refer to John Winthrop (supposed
author), A Short History of the Rise, Reign ayid Ruin of the Antinomians, Familists
and Libertijies that Infected the Churches of New-England.

* Winthrop, History of New Englaiid, vol. i, p. 288

^Winthrop, History of New England, vol. i, p. 288

^Walker, The Creeds and Platforms of Congregationalism, p. 143.

1 84 History of A merican Congregationalism

(1) "should prohibit any meeting in or near the meeting house of church
people except under the regular call of the church." (Evidently in some of the
communities the church people were holding "rump" meetings for the discussion
of the pastor and his teachings.)

(2) "should instruct the churches not to issue letters of transfer to persons
who held views contrary to the teachings of the church,"

(3) and state that "meetings of women for the discussion of doctrine are not
expedient." (This had reference to the disturbance that was being caused by
meetings held by Mrs. Anne Hutchinson. Inasmuch as so many members of the
council were favorable to Mrs. Hutchinson's teachings, this last vote was not
passed without considerable debate. When John Cotton, Mrs. Hutchinson's
pastor, finally swung in favor of the prohibition, the matter was passed.)

The members had such a good time together, traveling and living at
community expense and discussing the church and its doctrine that, as
the meeting came to a close, they proposed a like meeting be held each
year. The Governor agreed with the delegates that such a meeting might
be in order regularly. The Governor adds, however, "This motion was
well liked by all, but it was thought not fit to conclude it."' While the
members of the Council wanted to make a Council meeting a regular oc-
currence, the General Court disliked the idea of a stated meeting of a
council of the churches. Consequently, while this first Council voted in
favor of regular, stated meetings, it was not until 224 years later, in 1871,
that the reluctance to establish regularly appointed church councils was
overcome by organization of the National Council under a constitution
of its own writing and adoption providing for regular meetings.

One other interesting feature of this first Council of 1637 should be
noted, lliere was great difference in the pay received by ministers in
Colonial churches, and the magistrates asked the Council to advise con-
cerning the equalization of salaries. Members of the Council looked at
this proposition from all angles. They found many difficult questions
they could not answer. So, with considerable dignity, the Council voted
that it would not deal with this subject, lest it should be said that the
assembly was gathered for the ministers' private advantage. This ques-
tion has been considered by many councils since and is still on the agenda.

The CAMBRmGE Synod, September, 1646— the Second Council

Although the magistrates did not approve the suggestion made by the
Synod of 1637 that it should meet yearly, yet nine years later, in 1646,
church questions of such urgency had arisen that another petition came
to the General Court asking for a General Council or synod, and the

^Winthrop, History of New England, vol. i, p. 287 ff.

The Groivth of National Consciousness 185

Court, in response, issued a call for a synod to meet in Cambridge on
September 1, 1646. The call for this Council stated as its purpose:

That there be a public assembly of the Elders and other messengers of the
several churches, within this jurisdiction, who may come together, and meet at
Cambridge, upon the first day of September, now next ensuing, there to discuss,
dispute, and clear up by the Word of God, such questions of church government
and discipline, in the things aforementioned or any other, as they shall think
needful and meet, and to continue so doing till they or the major part of them
shall have agreed and consented upon one form of government and discipline,
for the main and substantial parts thereof, as that which they judge agreeable
to the Holy Scriptures.*

In the great historic document, known as The Cambridge Platform,
the churches of New England declared their independence of all Euro-
pean churches and set up a plan of church organization which, with few
changes, was the guiding instrument of the churches for two hundred
years and, in general, controls our church life today. Here we take notice
of only that section which has reference to the nature and function of
church councils:

Synods, being spirituall &: ecclesiasticall assemblyes, are therefore made up of
spirituall and ecclesiasticall causes. The next efficient cause of them under Christ,
is the powr of churches, sending forth their Elders, (&) other messengers; who
being mett together in the name of Christ (Acts 15:2,3), are the matter of a
Synod; & they in argueing (vers. 6.) , debating & determining matters of religion
according to the word (vers. 7 to 23) , &: publishing the same to the churches
whom it concerneth, doe put forth the proper and formall acts of a Synod; to the
conviction of errours (vers. 31) , &: heresyes, & the establishment of truth & peace
in the Churches (Acts 16.4.15), which is the end of a Synod. (Cambridge Plat-
form c. XVI)

This doctrine as to the authority of a council or synod is the uniform
testimony of the authorities through the years.

"All Congregationalists," says Increase Mather, "deny that Synods have any
such ('judicial') power." "What is the power of a Council" says John Norton;
"To declare the truth, not to exercise authority." Hooker "denies a Synod that
hath a juridical power," but admits "one of counsel." "The sentence of a Coun-
cil," says Richard Mather, "is of itself only advice, not of itself authority nor
necessity." "It belongeth unto Synods . . . not to exercise . . . any act of Church
authority or jurisdiction," says Cambridge Platform. "When a Church wants
light," said Davenport, "she should send for counsel, but preserve the power
entirely in her own hands." Cotton Mather's Ratio (himself rather bending
towards Presbyterianism) says, "They pretend unto no judicial power, nor any
significancy, but what is merely instructive and suasory." "When they (Councils)
have done all, the Churches are still free," says Samuel Mather, in 1738, "To
accept or refuse their advice." President Stiles says, "Churches universally hold
a negative on the result of Council; the decision of a Council is of no force till

^Dunning, Congregationalists in America, pp. 145-6.

1 86 History of A merican Congregationalism

received and ratified by the inviting Church, nor does it render that Church
obnoxious to community, if she recedes from advice of Council." "It is an ac-
knowledged principle," says Upham's Ratio, "in respect to Councils, that they
possess only advisory powers." "Congregationalists, however, agree in asserting
that Councils have neither legislative nor executive authority over the Churches,"
says Punchard. Emmons is still more explicit.^

Ill
The Association and Consociation

The development of a national consciousness was preceded by the
development of a state consciousness, and before a state consciousness
there developed first a community consciousness, taking form in associa-
tions and consociations. The first type of association was that of ministers
meeting for informal fellowship. Ministers' associations on an entirely
voluntary basis were common throughout New England. Later they
began to have stated meetings. The next step for these associations was
to assume the duties of licensing, ordaining, and disciplining of ministers,
and there are a few early records of the meetings of associations for ordi-
nation. These associations were

voluntary bodies, and their only relation to the churches is that they license men
to preach, and in this way the churches have come to confide in them for the
disciplination of ministers. One whom they recommend is accepted without
further examination, and when they withdraw from a man their license, no
chmch would employ him. They thus have in their own hands the keeping of the
honor and integrity of their own profession. i"

In Connecticut, following the Saybrook Conference (1708), the Gen-
eral Association of Congiegational Ministers was organized, and is one
of the oldest continuing ministers' organizations. The State Conference
of Churches and Ministers of Connecticut was not organized until 1867.
Of these early ministerial associations, others continue as, for example,
the Essex North, of Boston. The oldest continuing ministers' association
is the Ministerial Convention of Massachusetts, including both the Uni-
tarian and Congregational ministers, which passed through the Unitarian
controversy and continues undivided. This body was sufficiently organ-
ized by 1680 to have a moderator, a dinner, and a sermon.'^ There were
no further movements toward colonial or state organization of ministers
until after the Revolutionary War; and it was not until 1795, eighty-six
years after the formation of the Connecticut General Association of Min-
isters, that the next state organization of ministers was formed, the Gen-
eral Association of Congregational Ministers in Vermont.

s Quint, "Councils," Congregational Year Book, 18^9.

^^ Boston Revieiv, Sept., 1864.

iiWalker, American Church History, vol. 3, p. 201.

The Growth of National Consciousness 1 87

The consociation was the outgrowth of an idea going back to the
early days of the Puritans in England and in New England and goes be-
yond the association in this particular: the consociation composed of
ministers only had the right to pass final judgment on questions of church
government, while associations composed of ministers and lay delegates
had only advisory power. Some Massachusetts pastors supported the con-
sociation form of government, as Richard Mather, who in 1639, nine
years before the adoption of the Cambridge Platform wrote: "The con-
sociation of churches in the synods we hold to be lawful and in some
cases necessary, as namely, in things that are not particular to one church
but common to them all."'^ It was in Connecticut, however, that the
consociation idea had its fullest development. Thomas Hooker, a week
before his death in 1648, said, "We must agree upon constant meetings
of ministers and settle the consociation of churches or else we are un-
done." ^^

The Cambridge Platform did not provide for either associations or
consociations. The Massachusetts Synod of 1680 had the matter up for
discussion, but the members were so engrossed with the subject of bap-
tism that consociations received scant attention, nor did the idea ever
make any headway in Massachusetts. As will be noted later, when this
form of local organization was adopted in Connecticut, Rev. John Wise,
pastor at Ipswich, wrote so strenuously against it, and his writings were
so widely read, that the Connecticut example was not followed. He con-
tended that associations led to consociations; consociations to Presby-
terianism; Presbyterianism to Episcopacy; and Episcopacy to Papacy.

IV
The Connecticut Discipline

In Connecticut growth of the consociation plan was stimulated by
the differences that arose in the church at Hartford after Hooker's death.
This long drawn-out controversy in the local church indicated the need
of some agency to settle the trouble. As it was said, "there is no way of
bringing troubles to a final issue."

The agitation for a college in the new settlement of New Haven
brought the ministers together to discuss the project. In England, due to
pressure put upon nonconformists after the Restoration, there had been
in process the bringing together of Congregational (independent) and
Presbyterian churches. The leaders of these two bodies had drawn up the
famous document, "Heads of Agreement," in 1691, which outlined a plan

^"^Congregational Order, 1843, p. 25.

isTrumbull, A Complete History of Connecticut, Civil and Ecclesiastical, vol 1
P- 479-

i88 History of American Congregationalism

of consociation of Congregational and Presbyterian churches in England.
This agreement had little influence in the church life of England, as the
nonconformists after the Restoration were under increasing pressure and
were soon suppressed. But when a copy came to America it was widely
read. As Cotton Mather says in his Magnalia, "The brethren of the Pres-
byterian way in England are lately come into such a happy union with
those of the Congregational that all formal names of distinction are lost
in that blessed one of United Brethren."'*

The New Haven ministers, having made a study of the "Heads of
Agreement" and having in mind also the unsolved problems of some of
the churches, petitioned the Court to assemble a synod to draft a form of
discipline for Connecticut. The matter was before the Colonial legisla-
tion for several years, and in May, 1708, the upper house passed a vote
requesting ministers and representatives of the churches to meet in the
county towns and elect representatives to a meeting to be held in Say-
brook to draw up a form of ecclesiastical discipline.

The following September, twelve ministers and four laymen met at
Saybrook and drew up the Saybrook Statement. As far as doctrine was
concerned, the Saybrook Synod followed the plan of the Cambridge
Synod and also that of the "Reforming Synod" of 1680 by approving for
"substance of doctrine" the statement adopted at the meeting at the
Savoy, in 1658 (the Westminster Confession), with a few minor modifi-
cations. This Savoy statement had been adopted by the Massachusetts
Synod in 1680. But in planning for the government of the churches, the
Saybrook Synod followed the "Heads of Agreement" which influenced
them to advise the formation of consociations. Thus the seed planted in
England grew in America. The consociation was a permanent council in-
cluding all the ministers in a certain district, usually the county. There
were men of different minds in the Saybrook Synod, but as Trumbull
writes, "they exercised great Christian condescension and amiableness
towards each other."'*

The Saybrook document provides "one or more consociations for
each county which should be a standing, known, and responsible tribunal
with final jurisdiction to which particular churches might refer cases too
difficult to be well adjusted by themselves. The object was to avoid picked
councils."'^

This plan was adopted by the Legislature in 1708 and continued as

the law of Connecticut until 1784 when it was dropped; the present State

Constitution, adopted in 1815, granted no privilege to the churches. The

'*C. Mather, Magnalia Christi Americana, book 5, p. 59.

15 Trumbull, A Complete History of Comiecticut, Civil and Ecclesiastical, vol. 1,
p. 487.

^^Congregational Order, p. 34.

The Growth of National Consciousness 1 89

consociation form of government continued in Connecticut; and today
the consociation is usually the committee on license and ministerial stand-
ing of the association. In 1841 all but 15 of the 246 churches in Connecti-
cut were consociated, but by 1892 only 71 out of 306 were so organized."

The consociation idea was not too effective in solving the problems
of the churches. Some found it too strict, as did the New Haven churches;
others found it too liberal, as did the Fairfield churches. With the growth
of associations of churches, the consociations of ministers declined. In the
course of years the local ministers' associations grew into state ministerial
associations, as will be noted later, but the next formal step towards a
national consciousness came with the formation of the state conference
of churches.

V
The State Conference

The formation of the first state conference of churches, that of Maine,
is of great historic interest. There had been considerable discussion in the
county association of ministers of the possibility of a state conference of
churches. An attempt was made in 1820 to form a state ministerial asso-
ciation comparable to those in existence in other states, but this was
feebly supported because of the "fear that such an association composed
of ministers only might somehow endanger the liberty of the churches."'*

The first move to form an association of churches was taken at the
meeting of the York County Association of Ministers which met at Alfred,
Maine, in September, 1822. Two of the ministers. Rev. Levi Loring of
Athens and Rev. Joseph Fessenden of Brighton were walking to the pub-
lic meeting of the Association with Rev. Nathan Douglas, pastor of the
church at York. As they walked, Mr. Douglas suggested that the idea of
a meeting of ministers and lay delegates of the churches would interest
the people and advance the interests of religion in the county. After the
public meeting was over, the three returned to Mr. Douglas' home and
this discussion resulted in presentation at the Association meeting the
next day of a plan for a county conference.

The ministerial ajssociation voted that the churches in connection
with members of the York County Association of Ministers be invited
to appoint one delegate to unite with their pastor in attending an annual
meeting to be held on every first Tuesday of October, and that the desti-
tute (pastorless) Congregational churches of the county be invited to
participate by appointing two delegates. The purpose of the meeting was
to be "the promotion of the union and prosperity of the churches in the
County and to this end a collection was to be taken to aid the destitute

1'^ Dunning, Congregationalists in America, p. 226.

18 Clark, History of the Congregational Churches in Maine, vol. 2, p. 401.

igo History of American Congregationalism

churches." The meeting was set to be called in Buxton at the home of
Rev. Levi Loring, pastor of that church.

The meeting was held and the Conference organized, taking the name
York County Conference. At this first meeting of a county conference
(local association) ever held in the United States ten churches were repre-
sented, each by the minister and a lay delegate, except the church at
Parsonfield which evidently was pastorless and was represented by a
deacon. Rev. Levi Loring was the moderator and Rev. Nathan Douglas,
the scribe. The sermon was delivered by Rev. Christopher March of Bux-
ton. The number of church members reported at that time was 570 for
the ten churches in the Conference. It was ordered that the Conference
meet annually on the first Thursday of October.

Shortly after the organization of the York Conference, a meeting of
representatives of the sixteen churches in Cumberland County was held
at Gorham, December 24, 1822, where they organized the Cumberland
Conference of Churches. Organization of the State Conference followed
very quickly, for in sending out the notice for the Cumberland Confer-
ence meeting which was to be held in December, 1822, the following
clause was inserted: "It may be proper to remark that representatives of
other conferences will be received either as delegates to this conference,
or as delegates meeting at the same time and place to form a general
conference, according as their appointments have been made."^^

Following this the York County Conference and the Cumberland
County Conference took action towards the formation of a state confer-
ence. On December 28, 1824 '^e delegates appointed by the County Con-
ferences met at Falmouth. A constitution was written and submitted to
the County Conferences and with some amendments went into effect.
The first meeting of the State Conference was held at Hallowell, June
26 to 28, 1827. The constitution as finally adopted contained one interest-
ing provision: "Article 3. Ordained ministers, who may be present at the
meetings of this body, may be invited to sit as honorary members, to take
part in the deliberations, but not to vote."^'' This constitution adopted by
the Maine churches was widely studied, and many of its provisions were
later written into the constitution of other state conferences as they were
formed.

VI
The Iowa Plan

A different method of procedure was employed in foraiing the State
Conference in Iowa. There were no associations in the state but a group
of Congregationalists who had gone into Iowa called a convention at

^^ Congregatio7ml Quarterly, vol. 6 (1864), p. 189.

20Clark, History of the Congregational Churches in Maine, vol. 2, p. 413.

The Growth of National Consciousness 1 9 1

Denmark, Iowa, November 5, 1840, and this group had the faith and
courage to organize the Congregational Association of Iowa. A few years
later the name was changed to State Conference.

The organization of this Association was a reversal of the policy pursued by
the Congregationalists from the beginning of the century. A large majority of
the people were from the West and South. Half of them had never heard of
Congregationalism and many who had heard of it were indebted for this infor-
mation to those who were opposed to its obtaining a foothold in Iowa. The strife
between New School and Old School Presbyterians was at its height. The former
claimed the Congregational element as their own; the latter, while charging
Congregationalists with disorder and heresy of every description, never refused
them admission into their churches. The custom so long prevalent among Con-
gregationalists of throwing church polity of their fathers into the Hudson as
they came to the West, encouraged all denominations to endeavor to draw them
into their churches and feel a common interest in preventing the growth of
distinctive Congregationalism. The organization of the Association settled the
question whether Congregationalists would adhere to the Puritan polity. One
result was that Congregationalists coming into the state, finding churches of their
own order, were not disposed to join others and another result was that other
denominations meeting little success in their attempts to proselyte, have gradually
abandoned them.^i

VII

Interstate Relationship of Ministers' Associations

With the growth of the state associations of ministers, there had been
in the early 1800's a development of interstate interest. An agreement be-
tween the General Association of Connecticut and the General Conven-
tion of Vermont in 1802 provided that there should be two or three dele-
gates sent by each of these organizations to the meetings of the other and
these delegates should have "the right to discuss, to act and to vote, that
union may be full and complete." ^^ The Connecticut General Associa-
tion later made similar arrangements with Massachusetts in 1809, New
Hampshire in 1810, Rhode Island in 1821, Maine in 1828, and New York
in 1835. Thus it came about that a meeting of the Connecticut Associa-
tion would have representatives with the right to vote from six other
states, making this Association meeting virtually a regional meeting. The
Connecticut Association also entered into communication by letters with
the Congregational Union of England and Wales in 1833 and later ex-
changed visitors and had correspondence with the Congregational church-
es in Switzerland. This was a significant move toward the development
of international relationships.

2iDouglass, The Pilgrims of Iowa, pp. 41-42.
^^Congregational Order, p. 64.

ig2 History of American Congregationalism

VIII

The Influence of the National Societies

Further development toward national consciousness came through
the organization of missionary societies, which brought together ministers
and lay people from the various states. In 1810, the American Board of
Commissioners for Foreign Missions was formed by the committee ap-
pointed by the Massachusetts State Ministers Association. This was ap-
proved shortly after by the Connecticut Ministers Association and soon
included in its membership lay and ministerial members from most of
the New England states. In 1816, the American Education Society was
formed, which united other church leaders in a common cause.

In 1846 a Convention of Western Congregational Churches was held
at Michigan City, Indiana, which was the antecedent of the Albany Con-
vention held six years later.

The first impulse emanating from an official source looking toward greater
recognition of the unity of Congiegationalism, East and West, the removal of
doctrinal prejudice, and a more aggressive assertion of Congregational claims,
appears to have come from the then newly formed General Association of Mich-
igan. In 1845, Rev. L. Smith Hobart, a Yale graduate of 1837, then pastor of
the church at Union City, Michigan, and secretary of the Michigan Association,
proposed a "General Convention of Western Congregationalists" to deliberate
concerning denominational advancement; and, as a result of an approval of this
recommendation by the body of which Hobart was secretary, such a "Conven-
tion" brought together representatives of the churches of the northwestern
states and a few men from the East at Michigan City, Indiana, in July, 1846.
The body declared the adherence of the western churches to the historic
theology of New England, and discussed the feasibility of abrogating the "Plan
of Union. "23

The Slow Growth of National Consciousness

The growth toward national consciousness was necessarily slow, be-
cause it went contrary to the plan of organization of the early churches,
which were local institutions. A good analogy might be drawn from the
present status of a local library. The town at town expense decides to
maintain a public library. At town expense it constructs a building, buys
books, organizes a library board, accepts gifts given toward this expense
and perhaps orders that the library board shall be selected not at town
meeting but by a group of interested citizens. The library is maintained
by the town for all who care to use it. In a similar way, the early New
England churches were established. The churches were built frequently
at town expense on land donated by the town and were controlled either
23Walker, American Church History, vol. 3, p. 381.

The Growth of National Consciousness 193

directly by the town meeting or by a committee selected at town meeting
of those particularly interested in the church. The town library would
not consider itself responsible for the establishment of a library in a town
ten or a thousand miles away. Although the librarians of the county
might have an association for mutual helpfulness, as did the ministers
of the town churches, yet no town library would be willing to accept
more than advice from any agency originating outside the town. So it
was with the early churches.

There was a growing need of churches in the West for persons coming
from the East, who would not accept the advice of New England church-
es to affiliate themselves with churches denominationally organized and
better fitted— so New England thought— to meet the necessities of a new
and scattered population. This was causing much discussion throughout
the country. As one New England writer stated, "the Congregational
communion is not one great, imposing consolidated church; but a band
of related Christian families bound together in a oneness of faith, affec-
tion, and aim, having the Bible for their direction and Christ for their
common head."-^ The rest agreed, but desired means of keeping up the
family connection.

At the same time, when western Congregationalists were planning
at their Michigan City meeting for an assembly of representatives of the
churches East and West, there was another and altogether independent
movement originating in the East. This was the proposal of the churches
of eastern Massachusetts in 1844 for a commemoratory council to meet in
Cambridge in 1848 in observance of the 200th anniversary of the adop-
tion of the Cambridge Platform. In the Report on Congregationalism,
including a Manual of Church Discipline, published in Boston in 1846,
there is an introduction written by Dr. Leonard Woods, the distinguished
president of Andover Seminary. From this we learn that a committee was
appointed May 29, 1844 charged to "take into consideration what meas-
ures are necessary for the reaffirmation and maintenance of the principles
and spirit of Congregationalism." A special subcommittee which included
Dr. Woods, Dr. Richard Salter Storrs and Rev. Parsons Cooke, appointed
to consider a communication from the Worcester Central Association,
stated that "a restoration of such harmony cannot be reasonably expected
except at a convention of pastors and delegates from the churches. Such
a convention or synod wisely called and not over-tasking itself might rea-
sonably be expected to agree on principles and rules of discipline that
would receive a cordial welcome in the bosom of the churches generally."

In commenting on this matter, Dr. Woods adds, "such a convention
as that above named, has been spoken of with favor by many Congrega-

24 Mitchell, The United States Churches, p. 43.

104 History of American Congregationalism

tionalists, both ministers and laymen. And it has been often suggested
that, with proper attention, the way might be prepared for such a con-
vention to meet in 1848, the second centennial from the time when the
Cambridge Platform was adopted. The idea of a convention or synod of
Congregational ministers and churches at that time has struck the minds
of all, so far as we know, with peculiar satisfaction." ^^

These suggestions for a general council, offered by some of the lead-
ers, were overborne by the fears of other church leaders who felt there
would be danger in building up an overhead organization that would
in some way restrict the freedom of the churches. Hence nothing came
of this proposal for a commemorative council. The church magazines of
the period reflect this spirit of fear in letters and editorial comment. It
was argued that a Congregational church is responsible for religious
leadership only in the community where it is situated; that to fulfill that
function it must be absolutely free and independent.

Community life during this period was on a parochial basis and the
range of interests of the people was severely limited by lack of news-
papers and the difficulties of travel. Rev. John Wise still had profound
influence through his writings, wherein he insisted on the need of the
local church to confine its activities to its own parish. His fear of the
consociation idea was still shared by many church leaders. In the years
before the Revolution, and for more than fifty years after, his books were
reprinted again and again, and his influence against general church or-
ganization was determinative. Even now a certain reluctance to partici-
pate in national church organizations can be attributed directly to John
Wise. As his writings were instrumental in keeping the churches strong
to safeguard their liberty, so was his influence powerful in building up
before the Revolutionary War, among the masses of the people the same
spirit of freedom and democracy which helped bring to that war the
support of vast numbers of thinking people.

One other event delayed development of a national organization of
the churches. When the proposal to form a foreign mission board was
taken to the Massachusetts General Association at Bradford in 1810, it
was indeed a challenge to the Association, then seven years old, whose
membership was cautious and conservative. After long debate, swayed by
Dr. Samuel Worcester of Salem, it was voted to authorize formation of
an organization under joint auspices of the churches of Massachusetts
and Connecticut. On September 5, 1810, the American Board of Com-
missioners for Foreign Missions came into being. It had nine members,
five representing the Massachusetts Association and four the Connecticut
Association.

"^^ Report on Congregationalism, Boston, iS^6, p. 13.

The Growth of National Consciousness 1 95

There was nothing in the constitution of the Massachusetts Associa-
tion to authorize this action, taken in spite of the lack of authority to
meet an emergency. There was considerable criticism of this assumption
of power by the state conference. Many years later, Dr. Alonzo H. Quint,
then secretary of the Massachusetts General Association and the out-
standing authority on Congregational procedures of his generation, char-
acterized the action as illegal. He wrote:

No church, or section of churches has a right to originate and determine a
movement concerning, or involving the whole body of churches. Such cases all
the churches are the parties to consider. Hence, the "Plan of Union" with
Presbyterians, into which the General Association of Connecticut entered in
1801, and which the General Association of Massachusetts subsequently ratified,
was wrongfully accomplished; whether advantageous or disadvantageous is not
the question; a measure necessarily introducing a decided change into an ecclesi-
astical polity, was not a subject to be settled by the churches of one or two states,
and far less by merely clerical bodies, in which the churches had no voice what-
ever. So, also, the method by which the churches were made morally tributary
to the A. B. C. F. M., was a stretch of power on the part of the Massachusetts
General Association; that it has accomplished vast good, renders it none the less
true that, Congregationally, the churches who were to support, should have had
a voice in forming and inaugurating its policy.^^

The influence of the opposition to this emergency legislation was
widespread, and the fact that a state conference had taken action without
constitutional provision was used again and again to thwart any move
toward development of a national organization, even though the mis-
sionary agency itself tended to become a common bond.

Another fact that worked against development of a national organi-
zation was the unfortunate results which had followed acceptance by
the Connecticut State Conference of Ministers of the Plan of Union with
the Presbyterians for the joint support of mission churches in the West.
Massachusetts formally approved it; yet, as time went on and adverse
criticism grew, the determination of the churches to confine their re-
sponsibilities to the local parish was greatly strengthened. Even though
collective efforts were needed to remedy the conditions resulting from the
Plan, the unfortunate outcome of this venture to mix in affairs outside
the Northeast was discouraging.

Another influence which delayed formation of a national council
was that the American Congregational Union (the first home missionary
society) served in part as a national organization. This Union, made up
of individuals who paid a membership fee, afforded many of the leading
ministers an opportunity for exercising whatever interest they had in
national church affairs.

26 Quint, Congregational Year Book, i8$^, p. 49.

196 History of American Congregationalism

What has been said in reference to the American Congregational
Union could be said also in reference to the Tract Societies and the Pub-
lishing Societies composed of individuals, supported by individual givers,
and governed by self-perpetuating boards. These free agencies, enjoying
complete freedom, sometimes passing on board memberships to relatives
and to friends, exerted a continuing and highly organized opposition to
the formation of a central agency by and for the churches.

To summarize briefly, the growth of a national consciousness was re-
tarded by:

1. The tradition that the duty of the local church was for the religious leader-
ship in a local community;

2. The fear that a national organization would interfere with the freedom
of the local church;

3. The continuing influence of the writings of Rev. John Wise in Massachu-
setts and other New England states;

4. The unconstitutional action of the Massachusetts General Association in
establishing the American Board; and

5. The unfortunate results that followed establishment by the Connecticut
Association of the Plan of Union.

The relationship of the early churches to local town government as often
noted in this history influenced the church to confine its interests to its local
community. This relationship is indicated in two instances, which can be mul-
tiplied many times. The Congregational Church received state subsidy in Con-
necticut until 1818 and in Massachusetts until 1834 2^. By a clause that was not
formally repealed until 1877 the Constitution of New Hampshire provided that
members of its legislature must be of the Protestant religion.

In spite of these hindrances the need of a national body representing
the churches continued to grow.

The Albany Convention

The calling of the first national convention at Albany, New York, in
1852 was a direct result of the plight of western Congregationalists who
wished to be relieved from the provisions of the Plan of Union. This
Plan of Union with the Presbyterians, entered into in all good faith in
1801, had been negotiated between the Presbyterian National Assembly
and the Connecticut Association. The plan provided that all home mis-
sionary funds collected from the New England churches were to be used
with funds from the Presbyterian churches to establish union churches
in the West. The Presbyterians repudiated the Plan in 1837 by action of
the General Assembly, which voted "that the act of the assembly in 1801
entitled 'The Plan of Union' be abrogated." Some of the middle west
presbyteries continued to hold to the Plan of Union, and were known as
the "new school." They were excluded from the General Assembly, This
27 "Congregationalism," Encyclopedia Americana, vol. 5.

The Growth of National Consciousness 1 97

action caused a split in the Presbyterian Church which was not healed
for many years. Under the best possible auspices the Plan was unsatisfac-
tory, especially to the Congregationalists. All ministers who served the
union churches (Congregational and Presbyterian) were required to be-
long to a presbytery and to the Congregational Association. But these
churches (we would now call them federated churches) were required to
acknowledge the presbytery even if the Congregationalists were in the
majority. Thus, in fact, ministers of the union churches, having joined
the presbytery, were to all intents and purposes Presbyterian.

The needs of Congregationalists, who were thus entangled in a system
which was rapidly causing many union churches to become Presbyterian,
eventually excited the interest of Congregational church people in New
England. They were gradually deciding that Congregational salt need
not lose its savor by being taken across the Hudson River, since some
churches in different parts of the West organized as Congregational
churches and not joining the Plan of Union had been able to maintain
themselves without mission aid.

Other questions were agitating the minds of people East and West.
The people in the West wanted to become better acquainted with the
churches in the East; and people in the East had a great curiosity con-
cerning the kind of Congregationalism that was growing up far from its
ancestral home. The outcome was the call for a convention of Congrega-
tionalists to meet in Albany, New York, in 1852.

The official call was sent out by the General Association of New York
inviting ministers and delegates of Congregational churches in the United
States to meet in Albany on October 5, 1852 as a convention. The New
York General Association asked a group of men to serve as a Business
Committee and of this group Rev. Leonard Bacon, eminent pastor of
Center Congregational Church, New Haven, was made chairman. This
Business Committee sent out circulars before the convention assembled,
announcing as main purposes of the assembly:

1. The discussion of the Plan of Union between Presbyterians and Congrega-
tionalists agreed upon by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church and
the General Association of Connecticut, in 1801.

2. The building of church edifices in the West.

3. The system and operation of the American Home Missionary Society.

4. The intercourse between the Congregationalists of New England and those
of other states.

5. The local work and responsibility of a Congregational church.

6. The bringing forward of candidates for the ministry.

7. The republication of the works of our standard theological writers.^^

28 Hood, The National Council of Congregational Churches of the United States,
pp. 41-42.

igS History of American Congregationalism

The new life which for years had been kindling found expression in
the Albany Convention. The Plan of Union was declared at an end.
"Congregationalists had discovered that their polity was adapted to the
entire country, that they had a divinely appointed mission to give the
gospel of Christ to the whole world, and in order to carry out this mis-
sion it was necessary that they should know one another and should be-
come affiliated in one body in such a manner that they could act intelli-
gently and unitedly in fulfilling their great work."^'

The Albany Convention met to consider a definite crisis due to the
breakdown of the Plan of Union and the need of the Western churches
for help. This help was quickly given. The convention adopted a resolu-
tion calling for fifty thousand dollars with which to provide a fund for
the assistance of churches in the West. In response to this resolution

$61,891 was raised.

The Council of 1865

There was no move at Albany looking toward another convention,
for the churches East and West were busy organizing the anti-slavery
movement. And many churches in the West were active in maintaining
the underground railroad, which deserves far more attention from the
student of American history than it has as yet received. [There is a volu-
minous and authoritative history of the underground by Professor Wil-
bur H. Siebert of Ohio State University.] When the war between the
states was drawing to a close, the churches again faced a crisis. This was
the challenge of several million liberated slaves in the South, a region
considered by Congregationalists, especially those of Connecticut and
Massachusetts, as a great missionary field. The American Missionary
Association had been active in the South before the war with its schools
and its churches. Now the New England churclies felt a great responsibil-
ity for religious and educational work among these people.

The Cambridge Platform, the basic document in the churches for
200 years, contained certain provisions which had become obsolete. This
is not surprising since the Cambridge Platform was written in 1648,
eighteen years after the arrival in this country of the Puritan migration
in 1630.

A problem of national importance was the lack of well-trained min-
isters, especially for the newly organized churches in the West. There
was also need for continued assistance in church building.

These and other questions of growing intensity were receiving the
consideration of conferences and associations throughout the country
and everywhere it was realized that they could not be settled on the basis
29Dunning, Congregationalists in America, p. 333.

The Growth of National Consciousness 1 99

of state or county meetings. There was a growing national consciousness
as a result of the Civil War, which had shaken people out of their narrow
provincialism and compelled them to think in terms of national well-
being.

Also a new sense of mission was being born in the thinking of the
Congregationalists. They had survived the Civil War struggle feeling that
the principles for which they had pioneered had been blessed of God;
and though they were a small people, yet their ideas had emerged vic-
torious in the strife. This sense of mission, crowned with victory, grew
mightily and the new life demanded new expression.

Hence many church members, confronted with questions of national
importance and thinking in terms of national concern, asked for a na-
tional gathering of representatives of the churches to take stock of the
situation and plan for the future.

The first definite action toward calling a national council was taken
at the Convention of the Congregational Churches of the Northwest at
its triennial meeting in Chicago in April, 1864. This Convention was an
association of churches from states within the Chicago area organized
to sponsor the Chicago Theological Seminary. It became evident during
the discussions of this Convention that if the scattered Congregational
churches of the Northwest were to meet their pressing needs, help must
come from the older churches of New England. The Western churches
also felt the overwhelming task of ministering to the freedmen of the
South. They voted that "the crisis demands general consultation, co-
operation, and concert among our churches, and to these ends, requires
extensive correspondence among our ecclesiastical associations, or the
assembling of a National Congregational Convention." ^^ The Convention
of the Northwest also specified certain topics considered of primary im-
portance.

The next month when the State Association of Illinois met at Quincy,
Rev. Julian M. Sturtevant, president of Illinois College at Jacksonville,
a national leader among Congregationalists (who was to be preacher for
the 1865 Council) proposed a resolution which was adopted by that Asso-
ciation recommending that every orthodox Congregational church in
the United States be invited to send as delegates "their acting pastor or
pastors and one other member and to provide if necessary for paying
their expenses to and from the convention." ^^

The Conference of Ohio, meeting in Springfield, June 10, 1864, en-
dorsed the invitation of the Cleveland churches that the national coun-

^"Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June 14-2^, 186^,
p. 1.

^^ Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., Jurie 14-24,
186$, p. 2.

200 History of American Congregationalism

cil be held there. Within the next month, nine other state conferences
voted similar approval of a national convention; but the General Asso-
ciation of New Hampshire voted that it had "failed to appreciate the
results for the call of such a convention especially in the present juncture
of affairs and respectfully declined further action with respect to it,"'^
However, one of the local associations did vote to approve the proposal
and when the council was held, the New Hampshire churches were rep-
resented by delegates from that association.

In July the trustees of the American Congregational Union, present
at the Yale commencement in New Haven, invited the state conferences
to send representatives to meet in New York at the Broadway Tabernacle
Church on November 16, 1864 to review the situation and to take such
action as appeared wise.

Fifteen states sent representatives to this preliminary meeting. It was
organized by electing Rev. Leonard Bacon of Connecticut, Moderator;
Charles G. Hammond of Illinois, Assistant Moderator; and Rev. Philo
Hurd of Michigan, Scribe. The roll of the meeting included many well-
known leaders of Congregationalism. From Maine came Rev. George E.
Adams and Rev. Alfred E. Ives; from Massachusetts, Rev. Alonzo H.
Quint and Rev. I. P. Langworthy; from Connecticut, Rev. Leonard
Bacon; from New York, Rev. Joseph Thompson, who served as tempo-
rary chairman. Rev. Ray Palmer, and Rev. William I. Budington; from
Illinois, President Sturtevant; and many others. Many of these men took
an active part in the Council and at least two of them— Quint and Bud-
ington—served later as National Council moderators.

The five men most influential in the development of plans for a na-
tional council were Messrs. Bacon, Sturtevant, Budington, Thompson,
and Quint, who were appointed a committee to select the topics for the
council and to nominate suitable persons to present matters for its con-
sideration. The seven topics selected by this committee were:

1. The work of evangelization, in the West and South and in foreign lands.

2. Church-building.

3. Education for the ministry— in colleges, theological seminaries, or other-
wise; and ministerial support.

4. Local and parochial evangelization.

5. The expediency of issuing a statement of Congregational church polity.

6. The expediency of setting forth a declaration of the Christian faith, as
held in common by the Congregational churches.

7. The classification of benevolent organizations to be recommended to the
patronage of the churches.^^

^^Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June 14-24, 186^,

P- 3-

^^Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., Ju7ie 14-24, iS6^,
pp. 7-8.

The Growth of National Consciousness 20i

A committee was named also to formulate the Call for the council,
sent to the various states in quantity for distribution throughout the
fellowship. This letter missive, known as "the invitation," stated that the
churches throughout the United States in fellowship with the associations,
conferences, and conventions were "respectfully and affectionately in-
vited."

It sought first of all to safeguard the autonomy of the local church
and provided:

Inasmuch as the Congregational churches acknowledge and hold that the
local church is the only ecclesiastical body established by Christ and his apostles—
a body complete in itself, and invested with an authority under Christ which
can not be delegated; and at the same time, that the churches thus constituted
are in relations of fellowship one with another, under which it is their duty and
their privilege to meet for mutual counsel in cases of general interest and com-
mon responsibility; it will be universally understood that the National Council
now proposed is destitute of all power or authority over individuals or churches,
or over other organizations, and that the churches complying with this invitation
will meet by their pastors and other messengers only for the purpose of con-
sidering the present crisis in the history of our country and of the Kingdom of
Christ, and the responsibilities which the crisis imposes upon us who have in-
herited the polity and the faith of our Pilgrim Fathers.^*

The invitation then mentioned the seven topics, emphasizing how
these topics fitted into this growing consciousness of national responsi-
bility. It also requested the churches to take a collection to be used for
the traveling expenses of members who otherwise could not attend. A
strong committee of Boston ministers, organized in January of 1865, sent
out a letter seconding the invitation, emphasizing the growing national
concern and renewing the pledge of autonomy to the local church. The
churches were facing the great problem which is inherent in the very
nature of democracy: how to maintain individual independence and
still have sufficient cooperation to accomplish results in common enter-
prises.

There was much heart-searching throughout New England when the
proposal for the calling of a national council came forth. As Rev. W. T.
Savage of Franklin, New Hampshire, said, their hesitancy was not due
to* a lack of need for "a new infusion of energy in the ecclesiastical life
of New England" nor was it because "the present grand period in the
history of the Republic is not an appropriate time for the rallying of
social and religious forces" ;^5 but the hesitation was whether or not there
was enough unity among churches in the different sections of the coun-

^^Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June 14-24, 186^,
p. 12.

35 Savage, "The National Congregational Council," Boston Review, May, 1865, vol.
27, p. 285

202 History of American Congregationalism

try to make a thoroughly worth-while meeting; whether "the denomina-
tion wished for a national council."^®

There had been an increasing realization of the lack of unity in the
churches. "As our ancestors, when they came to this country, brought
Congregationalism in the abstract, rather than in the concrete, we ought
not to be surprised if we should find many changes in their customs, as
the result of experience."" Many of the churches had outgrown the Cam-
bridge Platform and the earlier documents. They had gone through two
great evangelistic experiences, "the Great Awakening" and "the Second
Great Awakening." They had suffered the shock of the Unitarian de-
parture, but they had been united in support of the anti-slavery move-
ment. The rigid Calvinism of the past was losing its uniting power, and
it was argued that such a great national body could not function unless
it had at basis one commonly accepted creed or statement of faith, which
it did not have and which many of the churches did not want. Each
church had its own covenant and there was no disposition on the part of
the churches to change their instruments of belief. There was a certain
amount of dissatisfaction with the looseness of the Congregational order;
and the statement of Jonathan Edwards, made a hundred years before
(1750), that "I have long been perfectly out of conceit of our unsettled,
independent, confused way of church government in the land," was
shared by a considerable number.

The New England churches faced the fact that the population in
New England was increasing more rapidly than church membership.
This unchurched majority caused church leaders to feel that they had
work enough to do at home without getting too much involved in west-
ern affairs. On the other hand, the demoralized condition of Congrega-
tional policy was urged by many of the leaders in pursuading the eastern
churches to accept the plan for a national gadiering truly representative
of the churches, which should give evidence, if possible, of a national
consciousness. As one of the New England leaders phrased the need:

In what way will the Council best meet the demands of the world and of
Christ's kingdom? ... it behooves the National Council, when assembled, to
define to itself, and clearly symbolize to others, Avhat evangelical Congregational-
ism is, body and soul, organism and spirit, the earthly chalice and heavenly wine
contained in it. . . . This includes a statement of doctrine and polity— the
evangelic faith of the Fathers rendered with their full vigor, yet made clear to
the modes of thought of the present time. . . . But the most important work of
the Council will be to fling the power of the denomination, with greater direct-
ness and energy, on the field of action. . . . The preliminary Conference has

36 Savage, "The National Congregational Council," Boston Review, May, 1865, vol.
27, p. 285.

37 "Congregational Polity, Usages and Law," Boston Review, vol. 28, p. 329.

The Growth of National Consciousness 203

recommended many lines of effort to the consideration of the body. . . . The
opening home field is immense. The South will soon task all capacities of effort.
The world belongs to Christ, and must be conquered for him. May the Spirit
of the Lord Jesus rest on the great Council, and the wisdom of his servant, Paul,
that, with true and comprehensive Christian statesmanship, it may act aright for
the present emergency and for the welfare of the grand future.^*

When the council met in Boston, the roll included 502 delegates, 14
honorary members, and 16 delegates from foreign countries, a total of
532 persons. It proceeded in a businesslike way to deal with the topics
listed in the Call. The Preliminary Committee had selected a small com-
mittee to draft a report on each of the seven topics. These reports were
prepared with great care and were of considerable length; the report on
Ministerial Education covers eighteen pages of close print, and the report
on Parochial Evangelism, twelve pages. The committee that prepared the
advance report presented it to the council, which received the report and
assigned it without discussion to a new committee selected from the
council members. This new committee received such instruction as the
council saw fit to give and made a careful study of the report. In its own
words it presented what it considered should be placed before the coun-
cil, where general discussion on the topic took place.

These council committees took their responsibilities seriously, and in
the council records there are many references to the long hours spent in
drafting the final reports. For example, when the advance Committee
on Statement of Faith presented its preliminary report, containing a re-
cital and a declaration, it was referred under the rules to the new com-
mittee appointed by the council. This council committee worked several
days. Professor Park of Andover, a member of the committee, remarking
when its report came up for discussion, that he had been deprived of the
benefits of the council by being confined for three days in the cellar (the
basement room of the church used by the committee for its daily ses-
sions). The council committee set aside the advance committee's report
and brought in a new statement of belief and a declaration of faith.
Thereupon a vigorous debate ensued. In the course of this debate, the
leaders of the council moved one after the other into the discussion.
Prominent among the debaters were Professor Bacon of Yale, Professor
Park of Andover, President Sturtevant of Illinois, Dr. Barstow of New
Hampshire, and Dr. Wolcott of Ohio, but many others also took part.
The hour of adjournment was postponed twice, and debate continued.
The final point of difference was whether as Calvinists the delegates
should reaffirm their allegiance to Calvin or, on the other hand, the way
should be left open for a more liberal interpretation of religious doctrine.
38Savage, "The National Congregational Council," Boston Review, May, 1865.

204 History of American Congregationalism

It was in this debate that Professor Park spoke those words which were
given wide currency in the years that followed: "We are Calvinists,
mainly, essentially, in all the essentials of our faith: and the man who,
having pursued a three years' course of study— having studied the Bible
in the original languages— is not a Calvinist, is not a respectable man."^*

Dr. Leonard Bacon of New Haven spoke truly of the nature of Con-
gregational beliefs:

I must say here, and I hope that I may be found in error, that I have had
some apprehension that some of our brethren in some parts of the country have
an idea of Congregationalism that it consists in believing nothing in particular.
... I believe, furthermoxe— I am making something of a declaration of faith
myself— that it is the right and duty of any such body of representatives as those
representing the Congregational churches of the land, to stand up, and with one
heart and one voice to say what we believe— what we unitedly believe, and not
what this or that particular colleague believes or would like to have other people
believe; not what a few perhaps would like to impose by some sort of force or
coercion upon people that do not believe it, but what we ourselves believe;
because we who are assembled know that, one and all, there is a great body of
Christian doctrine upon which we are unanimous as to the substance of it, and
which we know our churches hold as the basis of their special fellowship and
communion, and cooperation in the advancement of the kingdom of Christ.*"

The next day they went to Plymouth for a celebration. Dr. Quint,
who had not taken too active a part in the discussion of the statement
of faith, had a partially drafted statement, which embraced the essential
teachings both documents previously presented. On the train to Ply-
mouth, using his tall silk hat as a table, Dr. Quint finished this statement
of common belief. He was asked by the Business Committee to read it to
the delegates as soon as they assembled on Burial Hill.

This was one of the most dramatic moments in Congregational his-
tory. As the simple statement of the great underlying teachings of Con-
gregationalism was read, the entire group was united in a deep experience
of finding a common mind. The proposal was made that this statement
be substituted for the two documents previously presented to the council.
Rev. George Allen, of Massachusetts, protested, saying, "In the name of
our fathers, I protest, from this consecrated hill, against that Declara-
tion. It is sectarian."" The Moderator asked that he protest in writing
and file it with the secretary. Dr. Leonard Bacon and Professor Porter,
together with Dr. Eddy and Dr. Dexter, each spoke briefly, urging im-
mediate adoption. It was adopted with two dissenting voices, and re-

^^Debates and Proceedings of the National Coimcil, Boston, Mass., June 14-24,
1865, p. 357.

^''Debates and Proceedijigs of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June 14-24, 186$,
PP- 350-351-

^^Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June 14-24,
I 86 5, p. 363.

The Growth of National Consciousness 205

ferred to a committee of revision "to perfect the diction without affect-
ing the sense."

The next morning the committee on revision presented its report.
A few questions were asked and answered. Then the council paused for
a period of prayer. The statement, now known as the Burial Hill State-
ment of Faith, was read, this being the fourth reading. "The vote was
then taken by rising upon the adoption of the above Declaration of
Faith, and it was adopted, nern. con. (Applause)" ^^

This admirable epitome of modem Congregationalism was unanimously ap-
proved ... a Mather or a Cotton would have looked with astonishment on the
statement that the duly established ministry implies "no power of government."
Yet, in this the Statement reflects the position of present Congregationalism,
that in matters of government the minister is at most but the moderator of the
deliberations of the membership. The development of Congregationalism has
carried its polity to its logical outcome in pure democracy, and this fact here
finds definite expression . . . owing perhaps to the willingness of our churches
to be a law unto themselves, and the distaste of the present age for minute pre-
scriptions and elaborate definitions, this document sometimes known as the
"Boston Platform" has never been widely known and has latterly been well-
nigh forgotten. It has hardly merited this fate, but the days of elaborate plat-
forms, like that of Cambridge, are as fully past as those of lengthy confessions.''^

Discussion of the contents of this Burial Hill Declaration and its
variation from the earlier statements of faith will be taken up elsewhere,
but this brief recital illustrates the Congregational method of finding the
common mind.

Another noteworthy session of this '65 council was that given to Min-
isterial Education. To the New Englander, college and seminary gradua-
tion were looked upon as essential prerequisites to entering the ministry.
The delegates from the East desired that the council go on record that
no candidate should be ordained who did not have this preparation.
This proposal was opposed by Western delegates. One Iowa delegate told
the council that in Iowa they had need of forty new ministers and there
was but one seminary graduate available. It was necessary, therefore, for
them to lay hands upon some of their own men and make ministers out
of them, even if they did not have this required training. "But," said he,
"what happens?" "Just as soon as one of these 'Iowa-made' ministers be-
gins to demonstrate his ability, the long arm of some New England
church reaches out and picks him up from his six-hundred-dollar church
and finds him a two-thousand-dollar church in Massachusetts and makes
him a Doctor of Divinity!" It was obvious that at this stage in the de-

*^Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June 14-24, 186^,
p. 404.

43 Walker, The Creeds and Platforms of Congregationalism, pp. 468-469.

2o6 History of American Congregationalism

velopment of Congregationalism uniform regulations were impossible.
There was great interest and sympathy for the freedmen. In the dis-
cussion on reconstruction of the South, however, there were wide dif-
ferences of opinion and the council ended without making headway to-
wards finding a common mind. One quotation indicates the difficulty of
reaching unanimity on this question. Senator Pomeroy, of Kansas, said:

It is not supposed that in a single resolution or two resolutions the com-
mittee could report what would be acceptable to everybody. Our only effort was
to hit upon some general topics on which we could all agree, and report them
to the council. The fact is, the report (of the Committee on the State of the
Country) would suit me better if we spoke out a little more plainly about hang-
ing somebody. (Applause) I am very willing to mingle our justice with mercy
to the common people of the South, as has been suggested by our friend Henry
Ward Beecher; but it does seem to me that it is time somebody was hung.
(Applause) Some wholesome hanging, I think, would have settled this question
in the minds of the American people long ago; and I do not believe that a con-
vention, even of this character, composed largely of clergymen— men who love
forgiveness and mercy— would be harmed if it adopted a little stiffer resolution
on this question.^^

Nowhere in the records of the council is there evidence that the mem-
bers had any idea of establishing an organization with stated meetings,
nor was there discussion of a constitution, although it did instruct certain
of its committees to complete their work and to publish a formal report
on the denominational publications. For example, it was ordered "That
the Committee on Church Polity be authorized, if they think best, to
issue an epitome or digest of their large report for use and circulation
among the churches, the copyright to be held in trust by the Directors
of the American Congregational Association."^^

There was, however, the statement of Dr. Wolcott, of Ohio, who said:
I thought it desirable, if we could, to come together as a National Council,
for this practical work, without discussing the faith and polity of the churches;
because, if that is understood to be the work of a National Council, we cannot
meet oftener than once in a century; or, perhaps, two centuries; while, upon
the other plan, we might secure the benefit of occasional, and, perhaps, stated
meetings of this kind.'*^

In the closing moments of the council, the Moderator, Governor Wil-
liam A. Buckingham of Connecticut, announced that the Cambridge
Synod in 1648 closed by singing "The Song of Moses and the Lamb";
and so, this council sang the old hymn:

^^Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June 14-2^, iS6y,
pp. 244-245.

^^Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June i4-2.f, iS6^,
p. 496.

^^Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June 14-24, iS6$,
P- 349-

The Groiuth of National Consciousness 207

Awake, and sing the song

Of Moses and the Lamb;
Wake, every heart, and every tongue.

To praise the Saviour's name!*^

Dr. Rufus Anderson, of Massachusetts, then offered prayer, after
which the Doxology was sung:

To God the Father, God the Son,
' And God the Spirit, Three in One,

Be honor, praise, and glory given.

By all on earth, and all in heaven !^^

The Moderator declared the council adjourned. The council, having
fulfilled its purpose as voiced in the original letter of invitation, ad-
journed sine die as had the Albany Convention, making no provision for
future meetings.

Professor Williston Walker thus summarized the Albany Convention,
and the '65 council:

The Albany Convention of 1852 had clearly manifested the real unity of
Congregationalism, East and West, and the abandonment of the Plan of Union
gave impetus to the growing consciousness of the denomination. . . . This
dawning sense of the continental mission of Congregationalism was strengthened
by the war of the rebellion— a crisis in which national spirit in all its forms was
aroused and in which the Congregational churches, unlike the Presbyterian,
found themselves substantially united in support of the triumphant cause. Ac-
cordingly, when the failure of the rebellion became probable, and it was evident
to far-sighted observers that the South and Southwest would be unbarred to Con-
gregationalism as never before, and that a new epoch in national history had
opened, movements began having for their aim the gathering of a representative
Convention wherein the churches might deliberate as to the best methods of im-
proving the opportunities of the hour ... at the council of 1865 there came
into being the only Declaration of Faith which a body representative of Amer-
ican Congregationalism as a whole had approved since 1648— a distinction it
still retains.*^ As compared with the Puritan symbols of two centuries before, it
shows great advance in simplicity and catholicity. ... In a statement of broad
principles, rather than specific beliefs, issued on a historic occasion as a me-
morial rather than as a formula for permanent local use, these characteristics
are not necessarily demerits; but they have operated to prevent the adoption of
the Burial Hill Declaration as the creed of individual churches, and have made
it to be comparatively little known and little used.^"

^''Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June 14-24, 186$,

P- 499-

*^Debates and Proceedings of the National Council, Boston, Mass., June 14-24, 186^,
p. 500.

49 This was written before the Kansas City meeting of the Council, in 1913, when
a new Statement of Faith was adopted by the National Council.

50 Walker, The Creeds and Platforms of Congregatiotialism, chap. 18, pp. 553-554,
564-565.

CHAPTER XIV

The Council: Its Formation and
Changes in Its Structure

THE National Council of the Congregational Churches, officially
organized at Oberlin in 1871, was the result of the normal growth
of national consciousness. It had as its antecedents the gathering
in the cabin of the Mayflower, the Newtowne (Cambridge) Synod of
1637, the Cambridge Synod of 1646-48, the Massachusetts Synod of 1662,
the Reforming Synod of 1679, the Saybrook Synod of 1708, the Michigan
City Convention of 1846, the Albany Convention of 1852, the Boston
Council of 1865, and the Pilgrim Memorial Convention of 1870.

The Pilgrim Memorial Convention

The Pilgrim Memorial Convention, which met in Chicago, April 27,
1870, was initiated by the Church of the Pilgrims of Plymouth, Massa-
chusetts, for observance of the 250th anniversary of the landing of the
Pilgrims. The original letter to the churches sent by the Church of the
Pilgrims said in part: "On the approach of the two hundred and fiftieth
anniversary of the landing of the Pilgrims, the Church of the Pilgrims
at Plymouth, Massachusetts, invites the churches to meet by delegates at
New York, to consider the appropriateness of particular action in cele-
brating this fifth jubilee." This meeting was held March 2, 1870 and a
general committee of arrangements for a Memorial Convention was ap-
pointed.

This committee issued the Call for the Pilgrim Memorial Convention
to meet in Chicago, April 27, 1870, stating that it would be open to
delegates from each Congregational church in the United States. The
Convention met, and while celebrating the landing of the Pilgiims with
speeches, banquets, and formal resolutions of conmiemoration, it adopted
the following resolution:

Resolved, That this Pilgrim Memorial Convention recommend to the Con-
gregational State Conferences and Associations, and to other local bodies, to unite
in measures for instituting on the principle of fellowship, excluding ecclesiastical
authority, a permanent National Conference.^

1 Walker, The Creeds and Platforms of Congregationalism, pp. 570-571.

208

The Council: Its Formation and Structure 209

When this resolution was broadcast over the country, a nationwide
discussion followed. The Congregational Review, of Boston, led in sup-
porting the proposal. In an editorial it said:

Shall we not have an annual or a triennial National Council of the Con-
gregational Churches in our land? The Pilgrim Memorial Convention, at Chi-
cago, in April last, proposed it. The General Association of Indiana has ap-
proved such a gathering of our churches. Dr. Bacon is reported to have said,
"that though there might have been, thirty years ago, some danger of an assump-
tion of authority by such conference, there was none now. Our churches need it,
and one ought to be held." The General Conference of Ohio, in giving its assent,
at its June meeting, at Oberlin, took an important step, it is hoped, toward the
organization of such a conference, by appointing a committee of correspondence,
to lay the matter before other State organizations and our denominational so-
cieties. . . . Maine, Vermont and Massachusetts have responded to the overtures
from Ohio, approving the formation of a stated National Conference. . . .
Massachusetts was especially emphatic in her action, suggesting the basis of
representation; "that the National Conference be held once in two years," and
directing her committee to "secure, if possible, the meeting of such a conference
in the early autumn of the ensuing year," but if this be found impracticable,
then to arrange "for the meeting of a General Convention of the Congrega-
tionalists in the United States, in the month of October next."

It was stated that a council composed of clergy and laity would safe-
guard rather than injure the liberties of the churches. As one writer
stated:

Associations of ministers alone have tried to encroach on the completeness
and independence of local congregations, but if conferences composed of pastors
and laymen have tried it, the record is unknown to us. The admission to them^
of usually two laymen to one minister, is both a guarantee against usurpation,
and a return to the apostolic and primitive model. For during the first centuries
they were admitted; but after the fourth century, the lower clergy and the laity
were entirely excluded from the councils, and bishops only admitted. Besides,
the positive exclusion of all idea of authority or jurisdiction over individuals or
churches from the conference by express provision, effectually secures the
churches in their Divine liberties.^

It is interesting that at this time, 1870, the possibility of an ecumenical
council, as now represented in the World Council of Churches, was pre-
sented as a goal toward which the churches would take a long step by
organizing a regular national council. As The Congregational Review
urged:

Has not a half century of successful experiment on a smaller scale, prepared
our churches for a National Conference? Is not such an organization the next
logical step in our progress towards the union of all believers? This taken, the
final step remains, to gather, through Ecumenical Councils, all our churches in
all lands into one body, a visible exhibition of universal Christian brotherhood,
in harmony with the perfect autonomy of each local church.^

^Congregational Review, vol. 55, Sept., 1870.
^Congregational Review, vol. 55, Sept., 1870.

2 1 o History of A merican Congregationalism

Those desiring a national council cited Pastor Robinson: "May not
the officers of one or many churches meet together to discuss and con-
sider matters for the good of the church or churches? I deny it not, so
they infringe no order of Christ or the liberty of the churches." It was
also felt that the churches should have the advantage of the resource of
leadership that would be available if the leaders, lay and clerical, could
be brought together to work in cooperation for common ends. As it was
said, "the matured wisdom of the few will thus become the accepted wis-
dom of the many ... at present we have no adequate way for making
use of the true statesmanship found in the denomination."

There were some practical problems, the most pressing of which was,
as one advocate of a national council phrased it, "The relation of our
denominational societies to our churches should be readjusted."

The English Union

The leaders of American churches were encouraged by the experience
of the English Congregationalists who had organized a national Union
and maintained it for forty years without endangering the liberty of
the churches. But there had been strong opposition to its formation.
One writer had said it was "a most illegal, as well as an insulting, viola-
tion of the British Constitution," while another writer, fearing that this
was the first move towards episcopacy, wrote, "It is wise to take precau-
tion while the wind whispers; it may be too late when it roars." ^ Another
wrote, "It is for us to profit by the past. Episcopacy arose out of the pres-
idency of the more influential men in the assemblies of presbyters holding
equal rand; and the churches lost their internal rights by appealing to
the wisdom of such assemblies. . . . The pastoral chair of a single church
became, in the end, a throne lifted high in supremacy over all the
churches. Hierarchies have sprung from the most inconsiderable begin-
ning."^ And it was urged that if they formed a Union, the Congregational
churches in England would become a sect.

In spite of these difficulties the Union was organized in the Congre-
gational Library in London, May 13, 1831, with eighty-two ministers
and nineteen laymen. The purposes of the new Union were to collect
information, to publish a Year Book, to cultivate brotherly affection, to
give advice as to the collecting of funds, to assist in maintaining the civil
rights of dissenters, and to promote other worthy objects. The first article
of the constitution contained a clause which in substance has been writ-
ten into all constitutions, British or American, adopted since; viz.:

''Dale, History of English Congregationalism, p. 688.

5 Dale, History of English Congregationalism, pp. 689-690.

The Council: Its Formation and Structure 2 1 1

I. That it is highly desirable and important to establish a Union of the Con-
gregational Churches and Ministers throughout England and Wales, founded on
a full recognition of their own distinctive principle, namely, the scriptural right
of every separate church to maintain perfect independence in the government
and administration of its own particular affairs; and, therefore, that the Union
shall not in any case assume legislative authority, or become a court of appeal.

The American leaders had studied both the constitution and the work
of the Union of English and Welsh Congregationalists and in the ex-
periences of the English churches during the forty years the Second Union
had been in existence, had found much to assist them in their plans for
an American National Council.

Ill

The Call for a National Council

In response to the resolution of the Pilgrim Memorial Convention,
mentioned above, the New York Conference voted to issue an invitation
to state conferences to send delegates to a preliminary meeting in Boston,
December 21, 1870. This was approved by the Massachusetts Association.
When the state representatives met in Boston in response to this invita-
tion, the following resolution was passed: "That it is expedient, and
appears to be clearly the voice of the churches, that a National Council
be organized." Only one state, having seventy churches, voted adversely
on sending delegates, and that by a majority of one.

The committee appointed a Provisional or Executive Committee® to
issue the Call, or invitation; to prepare the draft of a suitable constitu-
tion; to select the time and place of meeting; and to designate the proper
representation of the churches. The Call embodied the seed ideas which
grew into the constitution presented to the council when it met and is
worthy of careful attention. It states that it is expedient and appears
clearly to be the voice of the churches that such a council shall be or-
ganized. It provides for the allotment of delegates and for a committee
to prepare a proposed constitution; assumes the acceptance of the Burial
Hill Declaration, and made very clear the metes and bounds of the coun-
cil's work.

On the positive side it stated:

That a declaration be made of the two cardinal principles of Congregational-
ism, viz., the exclusive right and power of the individual churches to self-govern-
ment; and the fellowship of the churches one with another, with the duties grow-

6 The Committee, elected by ballot, included Reverend A. H. Quint, of New Bed-
ford, Massachusetts; President William E. Merriman, of Ripon College; Professor S. C.
Bartlett, Chicago Seminary; Deacon Samuel Holmes, Montclair, New Jersey; Major
General Oliver O. Howard, United States Army; Reverend William Ives Budington,
Brooklyn; and Honorable A. C. Barstow, of Providence. Other well-known men who
shared in these deliberations were Reverend James G. Vose, Reverend Leonard Bacon,
Reverend George Bicknell, President Israel W. Andrews, and Edward W. Gilman.

2 1 2 History of American Congregationalism

ing out of that fellowship and especially the duty of general consultation in all
matters of common concern to the whole body of churches.

That the objects of the organization be to express and foster the substantial
unity of our churches in doctrine, polity, and work, and to consult upon the
common interests of all our churches, their duties in the work of evangelization,
the united development of their resources, and their relations to all parts of the
kingdom of Christ.

On the other hand, it set limits:

That the churches withhold from the National Council all legislative or ju-
dicial power over churches or individuals, and all right to act as a council of
reference.

To provide as simple an organization, with as few officers, and with as limited
duties as may be consistent with the efficiency of the Council in advancing the
principles and securing the objects of the proposed organization.^

The First National Council

In response to this Call, a Council of the Congregational Churches
assembled in the Second Church, Oberlin, Ohio, Wednesday, November
15. 1871.

A temporary organization was effected by the election of Hon. Erastus
D. Hoi ton of Wisconsin, as Moderator. The 3,100 churches, 3,000 min-
isters, and 312,000 members in the Congregational fellowship were rep-
resented by 276 delegates.

Morning and afternoon sessions of the first day were given to forma-
tion of a temporary organization and presentation of the constitution as
drafted by the Preliminary Committee. In the evening. Rev. Leonard
Bacon, of New Haven, preached from the text, "And hath put all things
under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church"
(Eph. 1:22). During the meeting papers were read and discussed upon
the following subjects: "Vacant Churches and Unemployed Ministers";
"Congregational Literature"; "The Supply of the Ministry"; "The Unity
of the Church"; "The Relationship of the Boards to the Churches"; and
"The Need of Better Missionary Support." The main business of this
council, however, was the perfecting of a permanent organization.

Two days were given to discussion of the constitution presented by
the Committee. The one provision which caused prolonged debate was
the name for the national organization. Soine timid folk in the group
were afraid of the word "council." From earliest days the churches
had held councils for a variety of purposes. These people thought that if
the name "council" were adopted, the national body might assiune duties
and privileges in regard to national questions which local councils had
7 Barton, The Law of Congregational Usage, p. 402.

The Council: Its Formation and Structure 2 13

sometimes assumed as to local questions. The debate on the question of
name continued intermittently, when, in a thoroughly democratic way,
each delegate was asked to write the name he favored. While "council"
had the largest vote, the word "union" had many and there were enough
scattered votes on other names to prevent a clear majority. The delegates
then voted on the two names, and "council" had by far the majority of
votes. Upon motion from the floor, the title was adopted unanimously.
This was followed by a unanimous vote adopting the constitution. And
the National Council of the Congregational Churches in the United
States came into being.

The more important sections of the constitution were:

The Congregational churches of the United States, by elders and messengers
assembled, do now associate themselves in National Council:

To express and foster their substantial unity in doctrine, polity, and work;
and

To consult upon the common interests of all the churches, their duties in
the work of evangelization, the united development of their resources, and their
relations to all parts of the kingdom of Christ.

They agree in belief that the Holy Scriptures are the sufficient and only in-
fallible rule of religious faith and practice; their interpretation thereof being in
substantial accordance with the great doctrines of the Christian faith, commonly
called evangelical, held in our churches from the early times, and sufficiently set
forth by former General Councils.

They agree in the belief that the right of government resides in local
churches, or congregations of believers, who are responsible directly to the Lord
Jesus Christ, the One Head of the church universal and of all particular
churches; but that all churches, being in communion one with another as parts
of Christ's catholic church, have mutual duties subsisting in the obligations of
fellowship.

The churches, therefore, while establishing this National Council for the
furtherance of the common interests and work of all the churches, do maintain
the Scriptural and inalienable right of each church to self-government and ad-
ministration; and this National Council shall never exercise legislative or ju-
dicial authority, nor consent to act as a council of reference.

The Council proceeded to organize under this constitution, and
elected officers by ballot. Rev. William I. Budington, of Brooklyn, was
chosen Moderator. He remarked significantly in taking the chair, "We
stand on the grave of buried prejudice." General O. O. Howard and
Rev. George H. Atkinson were Assistant Moderators. Rev. A. H. Quint,
New Bedford, Mass., was made Secretary, Rev. William H. Moore, Ber-
lin, Conn., Registrar, and Hon. Charles G. Hammond, Chicago, Treas-
urer.

The Council completed its program and participated in laying the
cornerstone of "Council Hall," the new building for the theological
school. For sixty years this Hall, now replaced by new buildings, was

2 1 4 History of American Congregationalism

to be the home of successive generations of students preparing for the
ministry.

One of the significant actions of this first Council was the following
vote:

"Voted, That many requests having come that a manual of doctrine
and polity be prepared . . . ," a strong committee be appointed to this
work "whose sanction may give cuiTcnce to the manual, not as a book
of binding authority, but as a means of general instruction, commended
to the churches for its real merits." From meeting to meeting similar
votes have been taken and manuals written providing guidance for the
churches.

V
Structural Developments

The early constitution is, in its spirit, purposes, and prohibitions, to
a large extent embodied in our present constitution. With the continuing
growth of a national consciousness; the realization of the responsibility of
the churches to take a worthy part in the highly organized society in
which they exist; and the desire for mutual advice and counsel, the na-
tional organization has grown in its outreach and influence.

The changes that have been made in the constitution, and there has
not been a single Council which failed to add some amendment to the
constitution, have always been within the framework of the original
document. The votes of the Council have never been considered binding
on the local churches but only as advice which churches are free to ac-
cept, modify, or reject as they deem best. Nor have the votes of one Coun-
cil been considered as binding precedents for the next Council. Each
Council has felt itself free and able to observe, ignore, amend, or repeal
the actions of previous Councils.

The structural changes of the Council through the years may be con-
sidered under four heads: (i) the Executive Committee, (2) the Mod-
erator, (3) the Secretary, and (4) the standing committees and commis-
sions.

The Executive Committee

The Executive Committee is the Council ad interim. The gi'owth of
the place of the Executive Committee in the denomination registers
more clearly the outward manifestation of the growing national con-
sciousness and unity than any other denominational agency. The de-
velopment of its place and function in the denominational life is worthy
of careful study.

The constitution of 1871 did not provide for the appointment of an

The Council: Its Formation and Structure 215

Executive Committee but did provide for a Provisional Committee as
follows:

The Provisional Committee shall consist of seven persons by appointment,
with the addition of the Secretary, Registrar, and Treasurer, ex officiis. The com-
mittee shall specify the place, the precise time, at which sessions shall commence;
shall choose a preacher of the opening sermon; may select topics regarding the
Christian work of the churches, and persons to propose and present papers
thereon; shall do any work which shall have been referred to them by the Coun-
cil; and shall make a full report of all their doings— the consideration of which
shall be first in order of business after organization.

The Provisional Committee may fill any vacancies occurring in any com-
mittee or office in the intervals of sessions, the person so appointed to serve until
the next session.*

There was no printed report from this committee in the minutes of
the next regular meeting of the Council in 1874, although it is evident
from the minutes that the Provisional Committee had arranged the
Council meeting. In the period 1874 to 1877, however, the Provisional
Committee functioned as a continuing agency to the extent of appointing
fraternal delegates to other church bodies; filling vacancies on commit-
tees; conducting correspondence and, as originally provided, arranging
for the 1877 Council. Through the next twenty years the Provisional
Committee was assigned more and more duties by the Council. The Com-
mittee fixed the salaries of the Secretary and Treasurer, made appropria-
tions out of the limited Council funds to other bodies, supervised the
printing of the Year Book and had the responsibility for raising the de-
nomination's share toward expenses of the Federal Council of the Church-
es of Christ in America.

The Provisional Committee wrestled with the perennial difficulty of
councils: the relationship of business to the devotional and inspirational
features of the meeting which has not yet been adjusted to the satisfac-
tion of all concerned.

The constitution, as approved by the Kansas City Council, provided
that the name of the committee be changed from Provisional Committee
to Executive Committee and given the status of the Council ad interim.

VII

The Executive Commitfee and the Commissions

The development of the functions of the Executive Committee in re-
lationship to the commissions was of slow growth. In earlier years there
were various committees appointed, some being standing committees
from council to council without executive responsibilities. Each commit-
* "By-Laws," Minutes of the National Council, i8yi, pp. 66-67.

2 1 6 History of A merican Congregationalism

tee was expected to make a careful study of the particular field assigned
and to report its findings to the Council, but without any authority for
action. Beginning with 1913, some of the continuing committees were
given the name commissions. For the first few years these commissions
worked independently of one another and of the Executive Committee
and made their reports only to the National Council at its regular meet-
ings. The first step towards cooperation between the Executive Com-
mittee and the commissions was the vote of the Council in 1917 that the
Executive Committee be instructed to aid the commissions in "develop-
ing and coordinating their work," but that "the Executive Committee is
assigned no authority over the commissions." The same Council voted
that the Executive Committee be authorized to invite the chairmen of
the various commissions to be present at one meeting for a discussion
of their problems and programs. There was no requirement that the com-
missions should confide to the Executive Committee what their pro-
posals to the Council would be.

VIII
The Commission on Polity

One interesting development was the transfer to the Executive Com-
mittee of the responsibilities of the Committee, later on the Commis-
sion, on Polity. From the early days of the Council there had been a Com-
mittee on Polity which sought to bring some general system out of the
varied practices and usages of the churches. This Committee had pre-
pared a manual for the churches and had presented several learned re-
ports. Authority for the Committee was the vote of the Council of 1904,
which provided "that a committee of nine be appointed to do what may
be done, on its own initiative and in conference and cooperation with
local and state bodies, for the better adjustment of our Congregational
order to existing conditions." The phrase "on its own initiative" should
be noted. Later, this Committee was made a Commission and became a
sort of "supreme court," passing judgment on all questions relating to
procedure in the churches. The chairman of the Commission, usually a
man well learned in Congregational practice became the chief spokesman
on denominational procedure. The detachment of this agency from tlie
Executive Committee and also from the office of the Secretary caused
many complications. The constitution of 1913 had specifically provided
that the Secretary should conduct the correspondence of tlie Council and
the question was raised continually as to whether or not the letters writ-
ten by the chairman or other members of the Commission on Polity were
Council correspondence. To simplify matters, the Council in 1923 voted
that the Commission on Polity be discontinued and the interests pre-
viously committed to the care of this commission be transferred to the

The Council: Its Formation and Structure 217

Executive Committee. Since that time the Council office, with the as-
sistance of the state Superintendents, has served as a source of informa-
tion on matters concerning polity and procedure.

The Constitution of 1931

The new constitution adopted at the time of the merger with the
General Convention of the Christian Church contained most of the pro-
visions of the Congregational constitution relating to the function of
the Executive Committee: (a) to appoint any committee or commission
authorized by the Council but not otherwise appointed; (b) to arrange
for the next meeting of the Council and have charge of expenses; (c) to
continue as the Council ad interim; (d) to fill vacancies and "between
meetings of the Council . . . represent the Council in all matters not
otherwise provided for"; (e) to "determine questions of polity not clearly
defined by the Council." At that time, the Executive Committee mem-
bership was increased from twelve to fifteen and provided that the Sec-
retaries should be corresponding members without vote, but that the
Moderator should be a full voting member.

At the 1936 meeting of the Council at South Hadley it was voted that
"the Committee may submit to the Council for consideration any recom-
mendations it may deem useful for the development of the efficiency of
the organization, life, and work of the denomination."^ At this time, on
recommendation of the Strategy Committee which had made a study of
the denominational structure during the preceding two years, a forward
step was taken committing to the Executive Committee "the duty to
consider the work of the organizations named in By-Law Number 4 (the
national societies) to prevent duplication of activities and to effect all
possible economies of administration." To the Executive Committee was
committed by this vote the responsibility of correlating all publicity and
promotional activities so as to secure maximum efficiency with minimum
expense. The Committee was directly charged with recommending to the
Council adjustments in the work of the national societies. Further atten-
tion will be given to this particular extension of the duties of the Execu-
tive Committee in Chapter 8, in the treatment of the relationship of
the Council to the national societies.

The Executive Committee as the Business Committee

The Council of 1936 made one other change in the structure of the
Council for efficiency and cooperation. The Council of 1865, which met
without a constitution and no continuing responsibilities, found so many

^Minutes of the General Council, ip}6, p. 171.

2 1 8 History of A mericayi Congregationalism

different interests to be presented that a steering committee was needed.
Therefore one of the first committees to be elected was the Business Com-
mittee, with Rev. Alonzo H. Quint as chairman. The duties of this Com-
mittee were not defined by action of that early Council, but the Com-
mittee presented reports and recommendations to the Council concerning
action on resolutions and suggestions submitted to it, arranged reference
to special committees, and attended to various details concerning the
Council program.

The constitution provided that all proposals from the floor of the
Council should be referred to this Business Committee; and if in its judg-
ment they were worthy of the Council's consideration, the Business Com-
mittee reported them to the Council with or without recommendation.
The members of the Business Committee, not being members of the
Executive Committee, sometimes lacked information as to what was in-
volved in questions which came before them.

It was the judgment of the Strategy Committee, reporting to the
Mount Holyoke Council in 1936, that it was an unwise provision that one
group should provide the program for the Council and conduct the
Council business through the biennium, and then the responsibility for
the consideration of this business be turned over to an entirely new group
of persons assembled after the opening of the Council. To remedy this
situation, the Strategy Committee recommended that the Executive Com-
mittee should appoint out of its membership a subcommittee to serve as
the Business Committee of the Council. The provision making this change
was very carefully safeguarded by providing that this Business Commit-
tee (now a subcommittee of the Executive Committee) should have no
relationship to the following items: (1) the annual report of the Execu-
tive Committee; (2) the work of the Nominating Committee; (3) the
work of the Resolutions Committee; and (4) the appointment of any new
commission. It further provided that matters of business suggested on the
floor of the Council which were pigeon-holed by the Business Committee
could be brought to the floor by direct appeal to the Council. With these
provisions in working order, the Executive Committee has become in
reality what it had been in name for many years— the Council ad interim,
and its business as the central agency in the denomination has multiplied
many times.

That the Executive Committee may carry forward its work with full
knowledge, it has adopted the method of inviting persons responsible for
our various denominational interests to sit with the committee as cor-
responding members. This virtual enlargement of the Executive Commit-
tee has not yet been validated by Council action; but the Executive Com-
mittee is being helped in its work by the representatives of the Boards

The Council: Its Formation and Structure 2 1 9

and by five state superintendents representing the different sections of
the country.

The Executive Committee has three standing committees to facilitate
its work: the Finance Committee, which has care of the expenditures of
the Council and general responsibility for the raising of funds for its
modest budget; the Survey Committee, which has the responsibility for
the needs of the various Boards and for determining the apportionment
percentages; and the Advisory Committee, which meets between sessions
of the enlarged Executive Committee to transact routine business and
matters definitely referred to the Advisory Committee.

The Moderator

There was considerable discussion in the first Council over the office
of Moderator. Congregationalists had been accustomed to moderators
from the day when John Cotton and Thomas Hooker were joint Mod-
erators of the Newtowne Synod, in 1637. But it was a well-established
principle that Councils were called for a particular purpose and, having
completed that purpose, they adjourned sine die. The Moderator of the
Council was in office only during the life of the Council, which was the
period of its meeting. Under the constitution adopted in 1871, the Coun-
cil became a continuing body and the question arose as to whether or not
the Moderator was to be a continuing officer whose duties and responsi-
bilities extended beyond the meeting of the Council. The constitution
of 1871 provided: "At the beginning of every stated or special session
there shall be chosen, from those present as members, a moderator and
one or more assistant moderators, to preside over their deliberations."

For thirty years the Moderator laid aside all "honors, responsibilities,
and functions" with the pronouncement of the final adjournment, al-
though, of course, a man thus honored had achieved a certain distinction
among his brethren. But with the election of Rev. Amory H. Bradford
as Moderator of the Council in 1901, there came a change in procedure.

Dr. Bradford had long been a leader of the Congregationalists. He
had served as Assistant Moderator the previous triennium and was widely
known as a preacher and leader. When the Council of 1901 adjourned,
Dr. Bradford was importuned by the churches to visit them and to speak
before their associations and conferences. He accepted as many of these
appointments as his time and strength would permit, with the under-
standing, however, that the inviting body should always care for his ex-
penses so that it would not be a charge on the National Council treasury.

When the Council met in 1904 in Des Moines, Iowa, the Wichita
Association of Kansas presented the following memorial:

230 History of American Congregationalism

We humbly request the National Council of Congregational Churches to
make it plain that the Moderator of the Council is the presiding officer during
the meeting over which he is elected to preside, but that he has no advisory
powers over the Churches between the sessions of the Council. i"

The minutes of the Council state that this memorial was received and
"the same matter having been brought to the attention of the Council by
others," the Council voted to refer the memorial and suggestions to a
special committee. This committee brought in a well-considered report
which stated that there were two positions concerning the office of Mod-
erator: first, the historical one, which "identifies it with the presiding
functions holding that in these it exhausts its intent"; and the second,
or "advanced" position, which would admit the entire time and attention
of the Moderator. There was also a third, or intermediate, position which
"would make the position more flexible than the historical and less ex-
treme than the advanced, and would conceive this high office liberally
and entrust its interpretation to the wisdom and loyalty of its encum-
bent.""

The committee called attention to the fact that the Council had pre-
viously given slight intimations of the growing opportunity of the Moder-
ator and cited two instances: first, that in the period following some
Councils the Moderator had been ex officio member of the Provisional
Committee which had in charge the preparation of plans for the next
Council meeting; and second, that at a previous Council the Moderator
had been asked to prepare an address for the opening session of the Coun-
cil following the one over which he was the Moderator. Both of these
acts, taken perhaps without thought of the implication, had pointed the
way towards the Moderator's having some "semblance of office" during
the period immediately following the Council over which he presided.
The committee drew from these actions that "the idea of moderatorship
has more significance than merely that of a presiding officer having some
representative character and individual initiative." Having said this, the
committee stated clearly that "such representative privilege is absolutely
unattended by any ecclesiastical authority, and that any slightest de-
parture from our invariable principle in this respect would be impover-
ishment of the Spirit, and an infringement upon the rights of our free
churches." ^^

The committee proposed the following resolution:

Resolved: That, in view of the widening opportunities of Congregationalists
and the increasing desire for fellowship through denominational representation,

^^Minutes of the National Council, 190^, p. 412.
^^Minutes of the National Council, 1904, p. 412.

12 "Report of the Committee on Sphere of the Moderator," Minutes of the National
Council, 1904, p. 413.

The Council: Its Formation and Structure 22 1

it is the sense of this Council, that the Moderator interpret his position, gen-
erously, as having in addition to presiding duties, a representative function; that
visiting upon invitation, churches and associations, so far as he may be able and
disposed; addressing the churches, if in his judgment occasion requires it; and, in
general, serving the churches be regarded as his prerogative.

But it is understood, that all his acts and utterances shall be devoid of au-
thority and that for them shall be claimed and to them given only such weight
and force as there is weight and force in the reason of them.

The resolution was approved and became a by-law of the constitution.
This vote, adopted in 1904, continues with slight modification in the
present constitution. From time to time there have been different provi-
sions as to assistants and associates, and for the period 1925 to 1929 there
were co-moderators. The vote providing for this change specified that
there should be a minister and a layman elected Moderators who would
have equal standing in the denomination. But this did not work out too
happily and the next Council returned to the former plan of electing a
Moderator with assistant moderators to represent interests and agencies.

XII
The Moderator's Responsibilities

The Council at different times has added to and taken from the Mod-
erator's powers during the Council sessions over which he presides. For
the Council meetings prior to 1886 the Credentials, Business, and Nom-
inating Committees were always named by the Council after it had or-
ganized. But in 1886 the Provisional Committee went so far as to nom-
inate these three important committees in advance of the meeting. A
discussion arose in the Council as to whether the Provisional Committee
had exceeded its prerogatives and the general feeling was that it had. To
avoid this irregular practice, a by-law was adopted which provided that
the Moderator who had served as a presiding officer of one Council and
who, by the regulations of the day, called the next Council to order and
presided during the election of a new Moderator, should be given the
responsibility of appointing these three important committees. With
considerable satisfaction, no doubt, they voted that he should appoint
these committees as his last official act. The committees were not to serve
with him but with the new Moderator.

This plan was not effective. At the next meeting of the Council, at
Worcester in 1889, the duty of naming the Committees on Business and
Credentials was taken from the Moderator which left him only the ap-
pointment of the Committee on Nominations. At Syracuse, in 1895, the
right to appoint this Committee was taken from the Moderator, but he
was given the right to nominate the Nominating Committee subject to
approval by vote of the Council.

222 History of American Congregationalism

This continued to be the practice until the meeting of the General
Council at Beloit in 1938. Then, in response to a resolution presented by
the Superintendents at the opening of the Council, this last remaining
vestige of authority was taken from the Moderator. The present by-law
was adopted which provides that the Nominating Committee shall be
nominated by a committee composed of the Moderator, the Assistant
Moderator, the President of the Superintendents' Conference, and the
chairman of Women State Presidents.

The moderatorship, having all vestige of authority removed, con-
tinues to be an office of high dignity and great opportunity. The Moder-
ator's words are listened to by churches and denominational officials
everywhere, and as far as his judgment and recommendations are con-
sidered wise they are adopted by the churches. The Moderator is wel-
comed as a brother beloved by the churches and his advice and counsel
and inspiration and Christian faith enrich the life of the fellowship.

In 1923, the Council meeting in Springfield, Massachusetts, elected
President Calvin Coolidge as Honorary Moderator. President Coolidge
graciously accepted the honor. Dr. S. Parkes Cadman was so elected at the
Oberlin Council of 1934 and President Mary E. Woolley, of Mount Holy-
oke College, at the Mount Holyoke Council of 1936.

XIII

The Secretary

The first constitution adopted in 1871 provided that

At each triennial session there shall be chosen by ballot a secretary, a regis-
trar and a treasurer, to serve from the close of such session to the close of the
next triennial session.

The secretary shall receive communications for the Council, conduct cor-
respondence, and collect such facts, and superintend such pviblications, as may
from time to time be ordered.

The earlier councils and synods, including the Council of 1865 and
the Pilgrim Memorial Convention, had elected a scribe with assistants
who kept the records of the meeting and whose work was completed with
the publication of the minutes.

Dr. Quint, the church historian and editor, was elected the first Sec-
retary and served from 1871 to 1883; he was followed by the Rev. Henry
A. Hazen, who served until 1900. The Rev. Asher Anderson succeeded
Dr. Hazen and served until 1913. During this period the secretarial office
was looked upon as a part-time position and the Secretary carried on the
work of the Council in connection with other employment.

In the early years the annual statistics had been published under the
auspices of the American Congregational Union, which issued a general

The Council: Its Formation and Structure 223

Year Book. In 1854, the American Congregational Union appointed Rev.
T. Atkinson as editor of the Year Book and under his supervision Year
Books were published by the Union from 1854 to i860. In i860 the Con-
gregational Quarterly began publishing statistics of the churches, usually
in the January number, but adding to the January statistics other figures
received later in the year. This added much to the value of the Quarterly
and increased its circulation. In 1877, the National Council voted "that
the annual compilation of the statistics of our churches throughout the
country and especially an accurate and complete list of ministers in the
fellowship should be published under the sanction of this Council."

The Secretary of the Council, as elected under the constitution of
1871, was responsible for collecting the statistics of the churches, although
these were printed in the privately-owned Quarterly. By 1877 the Council
assumed the publication of the Year Book as a Council enterprise under
the Secretary's supervision. He also was responsible for the preparation of
the minutes of the Council meetings and their publication.

From time to time the Council voted that the Secretary should as-
sume other duties. In 1886, the Secretary was instructed by the Council
to prepare a list of ministers and was given suggestions as to cooperation
with the church clerks. Thus as the Council grew in influence as a con-
tinuing agency in the denomination, the office of the Secretary increased
in work and responsibility. The men who served as secretaries in those
years from 1871 to 1913 were consulted frequently by both churches and
ministers. They were men familiar with the life and work of the churches
and informed as to prevailing trends in religion.

By 1910 the Council was ready to take a forward step, for "the office
of Secretary had become mainly an editorial office . . . and it was de-
sirable that the Secretary of the National Council should be our recog-
nized leader in promoting the great issues of the denomination, the or-
ganizer of our national forces for world-wide enterprise." There had been
much discussion previous to 1910 as to whether or not the American
churches should follow the Congregational Unions in England in the
election of a salaried Moderator. But the Council of 1910 voted that "it
is better to have a salaried secretary than a salaried inoderator." This
Council of 1910 studied the structure of the Council and its relationship
to the mission boards and voted "that the committee appointed to pro-
vide for the developing life of the denomination should work under the
general instruction of the Secretary."

It further approves of a broader interpretation of the office of secretary
which shall provide not merely for existing editorial and office functions, but
include the active management of such interests as are placed in charge of the
Council and not otherwise provided for, and the general function of leadership

224 History of American Congregationalism

among the churches, counseling with conferences and associations, and promot-
ing the great issues which our churches are working out.i'

Upon motion, the committee appointed to study the relationship of
the Boards to the churches, the so-called Committee of Nineteen was in-
structed, "to be prepared to nominate a general secretary who would be
able to carry forward such a program for which the committee would
provide."

The Council meeting of 1913, in Kansas City, marked a high point
in the history of the denomination. The Committee of Nineteen, which
had worked diligently since the previous Council, presented a report con-
sisting of three sections. The two sections relating to polity and to the
Boards will be considered elsewhere. We are concerned here only with
that section pertaining to the structure of the Council and, in particular,
to the expansion of the secretaryship.

The presentation of the section on the secretaryship received imme-
diate and cordial acceptance. Dr. Hubert C. Herring, who was serving
effectively as the Secretary of the Home Missionary Society, was elected
the first General Secretary of the denomination. The duties of the office,
as provided in the action of the Council of 1913, were as follows:

The enlargement of the duties of the secretary now proposed is the direct
consequence of the enlargement of the duties of the Council whose representative
he is. Its aim is to secure the more effective performance of the tasks to which
the Council has set itself in its endeavors to achieve a "more efficient Congrega-
tionalism."

First, as Secretary of the Commission on Missions, he would serve it and,
through it, the churches in the two great tasks immediately confronting them:

(1) the work of coordinating and readjusting our missionary activities; and

(2) the more efficient financing of those activities, through the Apportionment
Plan and other plans which may be devised.

Second, as one widely acquainted with the interests of the churches, the
secretary woidd be in a position, when invited, to give helpful advice in their
problems and to make suggestions looking toward their greater efficiency. In
this work, as far as permitted by the churches themselves, the secretary would
be the representative of the Council.

Third, to enlarge his acquaintance with the churches and their needs, the
secretary should, as far as possible, respond to invitations to be present at state
conferences and other gatherings of the churches. Like the Moderator, he may
also represent the Congregational churches in interdenominational relations—
a matter of increasing importance in these days when cooperation between
Christians of various names is constantly coming into greater recognition. 1*

By-law IV concerning the Secretary, which was adopted at this meet-
ing, provided that:

^^Minuies of the National Council, ipio, p. 286.
^^Minutes of the National Council, 191}, pp. 337-339.

The Council: Its Formation and Structure 225

The Secretary shall keep the records and conduct the correspondence of the
Council and of the Executive Committee. He shall edit the Year Book and other
publications, and shall send out notices of all meetings of the Council and of
its Executive Committee. He shall aid the committees and commissions of the
Council and shall be Secretary of the Commission on Missions. He shall be
available for advice and help in matters of polity and constructive organization,
and render to the churches such services as shall be appropriate to his office.

On the death of Dr. Herring in 1920, Dr. Edward D. Eaton, former
President of Beloit College, served as Secretary ad interim until the meet-
ing of the Council of 1921 when Dr. Charles E. Burton, who had suc-
ceeded Dr. Herring as secretary of the Home Missionary Society, was
elected Secretary of the Council.

In the constitution adopted at the time of the merger with the Chris-
tian Churches, the office of Secretary was continued practically on the
same basis. On Dr. Burton's retirement in 1938, Rev. Douglas Horton,
pastor of the United Church of Hyde Park, Chicago, was elected General
Secretary. It was considered advisable to give constitutional recognition
to the changing status of the General Secretary, who had become not
only an administrator for the Council but also a leader of religious life
with increasing responsibilities. The constitution was amended in 1938
to provide an additional title that the General Secretary should also be
the Minister of the denomination and assume a pastoral relationship to
the churches and agencies of the fellowship.

Very early in the history of the Council, the Secretary appointed as-
sistants who served during the period of the Council meeting. Later the
Executive Committee was authorized to employ an Assistant Secretary.
In 1921, the position of Associate Secretary was created and Rev.
Frederick L. Fagley was chosen for this new position. In the con-
stitution of 1931 it was provided that the Council should elect the Asso-
ciate Secretary and an Assistant Secretary if there be need for such an
office. Rev. Warren H. Denison, who had been Secretary of the General
Convention of Christian Churches, was elected Assistant Secretary of the
General Council of the Congregational and Christian Churches following
the merger in 1931 and served until his retirement in 1938. Under the
present arrangement the Secretaries share responsibility for the work of
the commissions and other interests in the province of the Council.

The secretaryship may be interpreted as bringing to the Congrega-
tional churches effective administration without infringement upon either
the freedom of the local church or upon personal leadership.

The Congregational system or ideal is not a mere theory of Church politics
or government, but fundamentally a doctrine of religion, a way of apprehend-
ing and realizing the Christian faith. Its ecclesiastical polity is but its doctrine

226 History of American Congregationalism

applied to the exercise and cultivation of the religious life. Catholicism is a
splendid system, even- without the religious idea that fills it; but Independency,
apart from its religious basis and ideal, is at once mean and impotent, imprac-
ticable and visionary. Our fathers held that legislation, civil or ecclesiastical,
could not create a church; conversion and converted men alone could. All were
kings and priests unto God, and could exercise their functions only as they stood
in open and immediate relation with him. In his Church Christ did not reign,
while officials governed; he both governed and reigned.

This Council speaks of an independency that is ceasing to be an isolation
and learning to become a brotherhood. There is nothing that has so little soli-
darity as an autocracy. It may secure cohesion, but cannot realize unity; its
weapons are the mechanical forces and clamps that may aggregate and hold to-
gether atoms; they do not represent those vital principles and laws which can
build up a living and productive and complete organism. ^^

XIV
Other Officers of the Council

The constitution of the Council from the beginning provided for iJie
election of a Treasurer and the by-law concerning the Treasurer and his
responsibilities has continued practically unchanged through the history
of the Council.

It never was the purpose of the Congregational leaders to build up
a large permanent endowment for use of the Council. They had in mind
evidently the old French saying, "Men alone enjoy democracy; men plus
money, however, equals autocracy." The income and outgo of the Coun-
cil in its earlier years was a very modest sum of from ten to fifteen thou-
sand dollars a year, most of this expense being represented by the cost
of publishing the Year Book. In recent years the expenses of the Council
have been approximately $50,000 per year, $10,000 of which represents
the expense of the Year Book. No appeal has ever been made for endow-
ment of the Council, although it has received a few small bequests.

XV
The Corporation

When the Council was organized in 1871, no one would have favored
the organization of a corporate body and the first constitution was a
"limitation of power rather than a grant of power." ^^ But the responsi-
bility of the Council increased rapidly, especially in connection with the
Board of Ministerial Relief. When the Knowles legacy was received in
1883, it was necessary to form a legal body to receive the bequest. The
National Council petitioned the Assembly of Connecticut in 1885 for
authority to form a corporate body to be known as the "Trustees of the
National Council of die Congiegational Churches of the United States."

15 Barton, The Laiv of Congregational Usage, p. 405,
^^MtJiutes of the National Council, 1^23, p. 6i.

The Council: Its Formation and Structure 227

This body was organized as the law provided. By this law the trustees
were not permitted to hold property exceeding $60,000. In 1907 this
board of trustees which had been primarily organized for the purposes
of ministerial relief, became by legal authority the Congregational Board
of Ministerial Relief. With this change, the Council was again without a
corporate body.

At the 1907 Council meeting the question arose as to whether or not
provision should be made for the creation of a corporation which could
act as custodian of funds for the Council and other denominational
agencies. A special committee, of which Governor Simeon E. Baldwin of
Connecticut was chairman, studied this question. The committee advised
against incorporation of the Council but recommended that a Commit-
tee of Five, three of whom should be Connecticut lawyers, be appointed
to study the situation and prepare a draft of an organization to be known
as the Corporation for the Council, to be a separate corporation but
subject to the Council. This committee was duly appointed and at the
1910 Council the Committee on Incorporation reported a proposed bill
for presentation to the Connecticut Assembly which would authorize the
formation of a corporation as follows:

Resolved by this Assembly:

Section 1. That Charles A. Hopkins, Thomas C. MacMillan, Charles L. Kloss,
Dan F. Bradley, Charles L. Noyes, Francis L. Hayes, William H. Day, Charles
W. Osgood, Alexander Lewis, Asher Anderson, Joel S. Ives, and such other per-
sons as may be associated with them, and their successors, are hereby constituted
a body politic and corporate, by the name of the Corporation for the National
Council of the Congregational Churches of the United States.

Section 2. The object of said corporation is to do and promote charitable
and Christian work for the advancement of the general interests and purposes
of the Congregational churches of this country, and to receive, hold, and ad-
minister, in trust or otherwise, funds and property for the uses of said National
Council, or of churches of the Congregational order, or of any particular church
of said order, and all in accordance with resolutions and declarations made from
time to time by the National Council of the Congregational Churches of the
United States, or by any body which may succeed to the functions of said coun-
cil; and said corporation may cooperate with any other corporation or body
which is under the charge and control of churches of the Congregational order
in the United States, or churches at the time affiliated with said order. . . .

Section 4. Said council, or its successor as aforesaid, may, from time to time,
make and alter rules, orders, and regulations for the government of said corpo-
ration, and said corporation shall at all times be subject to its direction and
control. . . ."^^

This report was presented by a committee composed of Simeon E.
Baldwin, Charles E. Mitchell, Verrenice Munger, Joel S. Ives, and Asher
Anderson. The report was referred to the Committee of Nineteen.

The Committee of Nineteen, in its report of 1913, had to decide

^T Minutes of the National Council, ipio, pp. 234-236.

228 History of American Congregationalism

whether or not to accept the proposals of the Baldwin Committee. The
discussion narrowed down to the question: Should there be a Corpora-
tion of or for the Council? The lay members were strongly in favor of
the corporation for the Council, and it was so voted by the Committee
and later by the Council.

The Corporation was duly created by act of the Connecticut As-
sembly and has continued with slight changes. It is now the Corporation
for the General Council of Congregational Christian Churches and holds
in trust funds for the Council, for the Annuity Fund, and for other agen-
cies. Its record of careful investments is in every way praiseworthy.

CHAPTER XV

Concern for Education

INTEREST in education, from the beginning one of the foundations
of the whole free church movement, came to its high point in offi-
cial action at the Los Angeles Council in 1921. This interest is in-
herent in the very nature of Congregationalism. The founding fathers
not only went back to the New Testament for their doctrine but were
familiar with the development of early Christianity.

When Christianity first came into touch with Greek learning, there
were fortunately two leaders, Clement of Alexandria (150-217) and
Origen (185-253), who believed and taught that the system of philosophy
developed by the Greeks found its completion in the teachings of Chris-
tianity. The Christian church early in its history joined forces with the
cultural life of the world and drew from the contemplation of truth
wherever it could be found further confirmation of God's revelation of
himself to man.

The Reformation was primarily an educational movement in its in-
sistence on right goals and worthy educational materials and techniques
in harmony with the nature of man's intelligence. The Reformation "in
defiance of dogma, tradition, custom, and self-aiTogated authority of the
Church, stoutly defended the right of spiritual freedom and came to the
most definite expression in the type of thought and life known as Puri-
tanism, and signally and very logically in the most unique development
of Puritanism now designated as Congregationalism."

The concern of the New England colonies for education has been
repeatedly noted, as have the forces which combined to create and main-
tain that concern. Migration itself is always a selective process. It appeals
to the more vigorous and adventurous, and when a migratory body is
urged to its adventure by social and religious idealisms or when the peo-
ple choose exile for conscience' sake— they have been, by every test, out-
standing in force and quality. The first two or three generations of New
England immigrants were like that, unmatchedly like that. (The Hugue-
nots are their only peers, but they were sadly sown broadcast in their
exile.) By the English educational standards of the time there were the
literate at the bottom and university-bred at the top. Arthur Norton be-
lieves that the majority of the twenty-one thousand of the first immigrant
groups had some schooling before they left England, could read the

229

230 History of American Congregationalism

catechism and English Bible, write in one of the twenty-eight styles then
in vogue, and knew enough arithmetic to add and subtract. Three or
four hundred of them had probably attended a Latin grammar school in
England. There were no less than 135 university-trained men amongst
them (mostly Cambridge). These men read and spoke Latin fluently.
Their libraries were awesome with theological books in Latin. They
were vigorous thinkers, at home in the Hebrew Old Testament and the
Greek New. One man was equal to writing a treatise on church govern-
ment in Latin. These gave the colony, New Haven included, "a cultural
tone unique in the history of civilization." The first Bay churches had at
one time fifteen pastors and teachers; thirteen were graduates of the Uni-
versity of Cambridge, two of Oxford.

The Educational Purpose of the New England Settlers

The Pilgrims came by way of Leyden, one of the most cultured cities
in Europe. John Robinson and Elder Brewster had the freedom of the
faculty of Leyden University. The Puritan ministers were "men of gener-
ous education and intellectual tastes." They inherited the spirit of the
"New Learning" which leavened the English Reformation and continued
the humanistic impulse in their new world. One must not read back into
Seventeenth Century New England the perfected philosophy of a demo-
cratic society, but the leaders of the little commonwealth knew by sound
instinct that "if people were to follow the dictates of conscience, that
conscience must be enlightened. If people were to govern themselves in
church and state, opportunity for education must be provided."^

They laid the foundation of a public school system which was to con-
tinue in later years across the continent and become, perhaps, the finest
single aspect of American life. The vital and organic unity of the "Con-
gregational Way" and the New England Commonwealth has also been
sufficiently stressed— perhaps over-stressed— in this narrative. What New
England did for education was, therefore, done by Congregationalism.
The political assemblies founded public schools for the common good.
The clergy led the movement and urged the founding of colleges both
to secure a trained ministry and to provide for the education of leaders
and teachers. The intimate relation between the early New England col-
leges and the Congregational churches was organic rather than official.
The famous Massacliusetts Law of 1647 which applied to the settle-
ments around Boston is generally marked as the beginning of popular

1 There is an admirable resume of Congregationalism and Education in the pub-
lished Proceedings of the Fourth International Congregational Council, Boston, 1^20.
It is a group contribution and authoritative. This section is in its debt.

Concern for Education 231

education in America. This law directed that every town of fifty dwell-
ings should have, a primary school and every town of one hundred dwell-
ings should have a grammar school. The primary purpose of this Colonial
educational system was that there should be an educated citizenry, but
another important reason was that the Colonies needed learned minis-
ters. The ministers at first were practically all trained at Oxford or Cam-
bridge, and the people felt a great urgency to provide an educated minis-
try "when our present ministers lie in the dust." The churches officially
did not found the college or the school system, but no one could vote ex-
cept church members and the ministers were leaders in the discussions
and plans for all public measures. Governor Winthrop said that what
John Cotton preached in his pulpit soon found its way into the legisla-
tive acts of the General Court. The influence of the pulpit was nowhere
more determinative than in the establishment of schools. The church did
not dominate the school; rather, it insisted that the freedom which the
church demanded for itself should likewise be enjoyed by the school, and
the schools were in fact as well as in name, free schools.

Harvard

They needed a college. That, amongst other things, was what they
had crossed the ocean for. Winthrop had advanced the possibility of se-
curing an uncorrupted college as one of the defensible reasons for the
Plantation. "The fountains of learning and religion" (he meant Old
Cambridge and Oxford) were hopelessly polluted. The Puritan rod would
smite the rocks of New England and release a purer spring. Harvard
College was the answer to such faith, though not itself, as the issue would
prove, entirely free from earthstain.

The fascinating story of its founding need not be told in detail. Salem
wanted it; Newtowne (now Cambridge) got it; private benefactions and
grants from the General Court financed its beginnings. John Harvard,
lately come to the colony (1637) with his young wife, gave it his library
of four hundred weighty volumes, Latin, Greek and Hebrew, containing
writings of Ames and Calvin, then under suspicion or interdict in Eng-
land. He died in 1638 and besides his books, left the College half his
fortune. His was a prophetic vision, the first of the benefactions to educa-
tion which ennoble our history and a perpetuity of remembrance he
could not have anticipated. For six months after his death this entry, still
legible, was written into the orders of the General Court: "It is ordered
that the College agreed upon formerly to be built at Cambridge shall
be called Harvard College. The Committee appointed "to take order for
the College at Newtowne" became in 1642 the Board of Overseers. It has

232 History of American Congregationalism

continued as one of the two chief governing bodies of the University. A
printed account of the College (the earliest) appeared in London in 1643,
apparently written after the first Commencement (1642). It is a quaint
and flowery document rehearsing every detail of organization and the
Rules and Precepts. The discipline was stern, the courses and hours of
study precise. And one wonders what wisdom there was in the faculty to
teach them all they were expected to know.

Ill
Yale

The people of Connecticut also wanted a college. The founding of
Yale was a project close to the hearts of the ministers. Rev. John Daven-
port, first pastor at New Haven, agitated for a college so continuously
that dissatisfaction arose in his church. One of the reasons why he left
New Haven for Boston was that the people of New Haven could not or
would not proceed to the establishment of a college. His successor, Rev.
James Pierpont, was more successful. He enlisted the cooperation of other
ministers and a college was established first at Bramford, then at Say-
brook, and finally at New Haven in 1701. Here again it cannot be said
that the churches officially founded the college, although it is tnae that
the founding fathers were clergymen. Nine of the ten trustees of the col-
lege were Congregational ministers, delegates to the Saybrook Synod
which met, one might almost say, jointly with the trustees, for nine of
the thirteen members of the Saybrook Synod were trustees of the college.
"The meetings of these trustees at once became the most important min-
isterial gatherings in Connecticut."^

The Need of Educated Ministers

As the leaders, in founding both Harvard and Yale, felt the great
need of an educated ministry, so did the leaders two hundred years later
in the Council of 1865 put emphasis upon the need of an educated min-
istry to insure the permanence of the churches and the future of religion,
and the Council of 1865 adopted the following statements:

1. As it is an admitted fact that in the providence of God the high religious
character, the Christian energy, the sound and intelligent patriotism, and the
wide and salutary influence of New England in the past have depended to a
large extent upon the existence and continuous work of an educated and devoted
ministry, so it must be admitted, that in the future within New England the
perpetuation and enlargement of such character and influence, and beyond New
England the training of communities to a similar character and influence, de-
pend, and will ever depend, upon the existence and continuous work of a min-
ister in like manner devotedly pious, and generously educated.
2 Walker, The Creeds and Platforms of Congregatio7jaIism, p. 206.

Concern for Education 233

2. Inasmuch as the present emergency is pressing, and the condition of the
West and South imperatively demands immediate attention, it is eminently de-
sirable that our theological seminaries should provide for the education of
earnest-minded and vigorous young men whose hearts are in the Lord's work,
by arranging a course of instruction not requiring a previous collegiate train-
ing, in order that, with as little delay as practicable, they may engage in preach-
ing the gospel to the many thousands who wait for it in our land.^

Professor Park, from the Committee on Collegiate and Theological
Education, reported the following resolution:

Resolved: That in order to the raising up of an educated ministry for the
supply of the churches of the new States, now becoming filled by the advancing
tide of population, and to meet the large demands of those States which recent
events have opened to Christian influence, it is a fundamental necessity that
well-endowed and well-manned collegiate and theological institutions should be
established, and that, too, in the best positions.*

In the first regular meeting of the Council under the new constitution
at Oberlin in 1871, it was voted "that it was the duty of the pulpit sys-
tematically and thoroughly to instruct the whole people touching the
indispensable necessity of Christian education, and the consequent ne-
cessity of sustaining these institutions."^

The Council also declared that "the distinctively Christian college
still stands, as it ever has done in this land, in the front of the means
God has pointed out and blessed for the production of the choicest and
best Christian laborers."^

In harmony with this sentiment, the Council went on record as com-
mending the American College and Education Society, approving the
work and urging the churches to make regular contributions to it.

The next meeting in 1874 approved the merger of this Society with
the American Education Society for the more effective development of a
national plan of education.

The American Society for Educating Pious Youths for the Gospel
Ministry was organized in 1815. Later there had been organized in New
York City the Society for the Promotion of Collegiate and Theological
Education in the West. In 1874 these two united under the name of the
American College and Education Society. The Council of 1874, while
not assuming responsibility for the work done by these Societies, ap-
proved the merger. The minutes of the 1877 Council show that there was
considerable discussion of the granting of aid to poorly prepared students:

That, hereafter the American College and Education Society will, as a rule,

^Minutes of the National Council, iS6^, pp. 470-471.
^Minutes of the National Council, 186$, p. 484.
^Minutes of the National Council, i8ji, p. 50.
^Minutes of the National Council, i8yi, p. 50.

234 History of American Congregationalism

receive upon its lists only those who are pursuing the full collegiate and theo-
logical course of study. All others will be regarded as exceptions, and, if taken
upon the list at all, each case must be considered separately and decided upon
its own merits.''

This is one of the earliest evidences of the Council's concern with the
administration of a society. This action was taken at the suggestion of
the Society, which in its report to the Council stated:

The action of the Directors of this Society, making it a rule, with proper ex-
ceptions, "to receive upon the lists only those who are pursuing the full collegi-
ate and theological course of study," seems to be eminently wise and worthy
of the indorsement of this Council. The fact that there are exceptions must be
recognized; and we have confidence that the officers of the Society will not fail
to treat them fairly.^

Thus the Council, while approving the report, added its own inter-
pretation. Back of it was a discussion of whether or not the ministry was
to be closed to men without a full college training, and the action of the
Council was a liberal interpretation of the requirements.

The Council of 1892 considered the merger of another organization
with this Society. This time it was the New West Education Commis-
sion, formed some years previously to establish free Christian schools in
that section of the country dominated by the fast-growing Mormon
Church. Its purpose appealed strongly to the sympathies and interests
of the Councils of 1880 to 1889. The union of the New West Education
Commission with the American College and Education Society, approved
by the Council of 1892, resulted in formation of the Education Society,
This Society continues its beneficent work as the Christian .Education
Division of the Board of Home Missions.

During this period the denomination, through its educational agen-
cies, and after 1892 through the Education Society, developed a program
of education; and through the Publishing Society continued to supply
the churches with books, magazines and papers of a very high quality.
The Publishing Society was administered by a board chosen by the mem-
bers of that Society and, like other societies, was not subject to Council
supervision except that the Society presented a report of its work for the
commendation of the Council and recommendation to the churches.

The Educational Survey Commission

Interest in education, especially in Christian colleges and in minis-
terial education, continued; and, as mentioned above, the interest grew

T Minutes 0/ the National Council, iSyy, p. 96.
^Minutes of the National Council, iSjy, pp. 32-33.

Concern for Education 235

in the two years preceding the 1921 Council at Los Angeles. The cause
of the unusual revival of interest in education at the 1921 meeting of the
Council goes far back into history. Its immediate cause, however, was
the work of a Committee on Educational Institutions appointed two
years earlier by the Commission on Missions, at the request of the Con-
gregational World Movement, which in turn was influenced by the work
being done under the Interchurch World Movement. The title of this
Committee later was changed to the Educational Survey Commission, and
included in its membership President Henry Churchill King of Oberlin
College, Chairman; Dr. Luther A, Weigle of Yale; Dr. Marion Burton,
later president of Smith College and the University of Michigan; Presi-
dent Edward D. Eaton of Beloit College; President Donald J. Cowling
of Carleton College; Rev. J. T. Stocking; and Rev. Charles F. Carter.
Dr. Arthur Holt of the Education Society was appointed secretary of the
Commission. Its purpose was defined "to work out the denominational
policy to cover the relationship between the schools and the churches";'
and its duty, (1) to survey the educational situation, and (2) to work
out an inclusive policy.

The boards and various committees and commissions of all the de-
nominations were thinking in large terms at this time. The Interchurch
Movement had been launched for the purpose of unifying the missionary
and benevolent work of churches of many denominations and financing
this united work by the total benevolent giving of the millions of Protes-
tant church people in America, and planned to include a large sum for
colleges. The Budget Committee of that organization had made a pre-
liminary study of the relationship of colleges to the churches. "This had
proved to be a very knotted question," and no definite action was taken.
The Congregationalists then appointed their own commission and the
extended report made by this commission covers forty-six pages in the
minutes of the 1921 Council and is accompanied by many statistical
tables and graphs. This report clearly states what is the relationship in
Congregationalism between the colleges and the churches:

1. In almost every case the colleges were brought into existence by the or-
ganized activity of the churches.

2. The church groups were the largest organized source of financial support
for the colleges.

3. The churches were the recruiting centers for college students.

4. The churches were the chief consumers of the college products. Training
for the ministry was a major task in the plans of the colleges.

5. The churches furnished the greater part of the personnel on the boards
of control and ministers supplied a large part of the teaching force. i"

^Minutes of the National Council, 192 1, p. 126.
^^Minutes of the National Council, 1921, p. 275.

2^6 History of American Congregationalism

The Free Colleges

The colleges founded by Congregationalists were never church insti-
tutions as Oxford and Cambridge, England, were Anglican. The Ameri-
can denominational college was, and is, something else and dates from
a later period. The control of Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, Williams,
Bowdoin, Middlebury, and Amherst (these were the first seven New Eng-
land colleges in chronological order) was from the first "in the hands of
a self-perpetuating Board of Trustees." They could not be controlled or
reached by any ecclesiastic body nor, as the Dartmouth case finally deter-
mined, could their charters be modified without their consent or revoked
by the State. The significance of this for free thought and sound scholar-
ship cannot be overstated.

And yet these sovereign, self-governing and self-continuing corpora-
tions must have trustees, presidents, and a faculty; and all of them drew
upon the Congregational ministry for leadership. That was almost auto-
matic. Their principal concern in the early period was the training of
a ministry which was, just as automatically, Congregational. Both in
theory and practice they were non-sectarian; but they were rooted in
Congregational soil and they perpetuated the order which created them.
The result was, well into the Nineteenth Century, a predominant affilia-
tion of Congregationalism with higher education in the United States.
The older colleges trained the presidents of the newer colleges and these
presidents were, until the institutional promoter or the specially trained
educator displaced them (with results open to some question), ordained
clergymen. No one American denomination has furnished so many, dis-
tinguished college and university presidents as Congregationalism— and
shining constellations of educators in addition. A confessedly Congrega-
tional historian may seem a special pleader, and probably is to a degree,
when he suggests that the disciplined freedoms which have always char-
acterized the Congregational Way are also the vital breath of any right
education and that this historic relation between them is of their mutual
essence.

The early northern colleges— and this includes the first women's col-
leges—were fortunate in situation, priority, and resource. Their resources
grew with the resources of their alumni and their always mounting en-
dowments magnified their prestige as they made possible an always
widening range of educational efficiency. They proved with gieat satis-
faction to themselves that to him that hath, it shall be given. They be-
came, therefore, able more and more to detach themselves, not only from
anything which savored of denominationalism, but fxom any religious

Concern for Education 837

affiliation. As far as Congregationalism goes, they are attended in their
final phases by a tradition which begins to be only the ghost of a tradi-
tion."

College founding (already noted) attended the westward extension
of all denominations. All these (the colleges) were quite literally denomi-
national and so known. They sought support for denominational reasons,
appealed to denomination pride and loyalty, and in highly centralized
communions were under denominational control. Their contributions
to the nation have been immeasurable. They were clearings in the forests
to begin with, or lonely gioups of poor buildings on the prairies, but they
were indwelt by the heroic and the devoted, their pathetic campuses in-
herited the traditions of the humanist— and the Christian missionary
since Columba and lona. They were near enough for aspiring youth
everywhere to reach them; they reduced the cost of education to its bare
bones and where all were poor together, all were equally rich. Their low
towers were guide posts to opportunity, their doors opened upon the
boundless future of America. They lived or died as fortune favored and,
finally, there were too many of them. Those that won out have repeated
the history of the older institutions, created loyal alumni, multiplied
their resource, adorned their physical equipment and asserted in turn
their independence of sectarian control.

Congregationalists carried their colleges as stepping-stones to the
shores of the Pacific. The Minutes of the International Council (previ-
ously cited) lists forty-six colleges and universities whose early history was
closely related to the Congregational churches. The Year Book for 1940
catalogues forty-four institutions, some of which are now undenomina-
tional, but all of which have had some historic relation to Congregational
or Christian churches.

The Educational Survey Commission in its report to the Council of
1921 called attention to the fact that in the early years there had been
no need of formal relationship between the churches and colleges, for
the informal relationship was close and intimate. The college was the
child of the church, to be helped but never to be dominated. Now (1921)
the situation in the colleges had radically changed from the days when
the churches were the chief sources of students and funds and the chief
field of activity for college graduates. The colleges had become independ-
ent of the churches and had extended their w^ork over a wide field. The
same conditions which had developed years before at Harvard and Yale

"This is true of the older colleges which like Brown were more professedly and
organically denominational. President Benjamin Andrews of Brown is reported to have
said that his difficulty in getting money was to persuade Baptists that his University
was Baptist and non-Baptists that it wasn't. The Carnegie Pension Fund also led Boards
of Directors to plead and effectuate the non-sectarian character of their institutions.

238 History of American Congregationalism

were being reproduced at Oberlin, Grinnell, Carleton, and other colleges.

As time went on benevolent men and women other than Congrega-
tionalists began contributing largely to these institutions, which were
never sectarian; it was but natural that when vacancies occurred in the
boards, representatives of these non-Congregational givers should be in-
cluded in the management. In the course of time, the colleges with boards
of trustees on which the Congregationalists were sometimes in the minor-
ity did not consider themselves Congregational except in spirit and
tradition. The churches had only the same friendly interest in the colleges
that they had in other community agencies.

There were many reasons why the colleges went their own independ-
ent way. The churches were not the main recruiting grounds for the
colleges. High schools and private schools furnished the best fields. The
churches took but a small percentage of the graduates, and the number
of courses of instruction had been greatly increased from the days when
the chief work of the college was to prepare young men for the ministry.

Perhaps the most potent consideration that caused the Congregational
colleges to be wary of Congregational influence was the care taken by
college administrators to prove that the institution was thoroughly unde-
nominational in its appeal for students and support. To be able to qual-
ify for the benefits provided for the retirement of professors by annuities
from national educational foundations, it was required that the applying
school give evidence that it was undenominational.

Another influence was the indifference of many college teachers to
the religious life of their students. In some cases the religious life of the
professors themselves was not quite in harmony with the ideals of reli-
gion as held by the churches. So, while perhaps eighty per cent of the
students in colleges traditionally Congregational came from religious
homes, many found, in the college atmosphere and in the teachings they
received, attitudes towards the church that did not strengthen their home
church ties. These factors did not lead to a spirit of antagonism so much
as of indifference.

Neither did the church people have a strong feeling of responsibility
for the financial well-being of these institutions. The Foundation for
Education discovered, when it was formed by this Council of 1921, that
unless the giver felt somewhat responsible for the management of the in-
stitution his gift was apt to be only a nominal amount.

This Educational Survey Commission went into considerable detail
as to the state of religion in the colleges. From a questionnaire sent to the
colleges, the following results were received:

Twenty-three of our colleges were asked the question, "Do you require
Christian character and influence on the part of your teachers?" Twenty-two

Concern for Education 239

answered, "Yes," and one answered, "Desired, but not required." The same
colleges were asked the question, "Do you require, in addition, church member-
ship?" Seven replied, "No." One replied, "Ordinarily," and the rest replied,
"Yes." The same colleges were asked the question, "Do you give preference to
some particular church?" Two replied "Yes," and twenty-one replied, "No."!^

The answers to this survey indicate that the colleges were established
on a broad and liberal basis. At the same time it must be recognized that
support of these colleges by the churches was not strengthened by the
indifference on the part of some colleges to their relationship to the
churches. It was quite clear that, if the churches were to become more
interested in the colleges, the colleges would need to become more inter-
ested in the churches, .or at least in religion. The desired cooperation
could not be a one-sided affair.

The attitude of parents towards the colleges, according to this report,
was: "We do not send our children to a college just because it is Con-
gregational." It also showed that Methodist schools were graduating quite
as many young men who went to seminaries to prepare for the Congre-
gational ministry as were Congregational colleges.

The conclusions of this carefully studied report balanced cause and
effect very nicely by saying that the colleges, to win the support of the
churches, must demonstrate their value to these churches by providing
well-trained workers and leaders; and, on the other hand, that the
churches should make use of well-trained leaders and workers.

The extensive report of the Educational Survey Commission ended
with the following conclusions:

The hope of the church for a larger number of religious workers lies in the
cultivation of the colleges to which the masses of Congregational students go.
... It should be a first charge upon the church to guarantee favorable religious
conditions in the situations where the Congregational students are to be found.

The colleges should more and more find their place in the total educational
program of the church . . . and should be the source from which leadership and
the training staff can come.

. . . We should look upon our Christian colleges as training schools for re-
ligious education in the same way as the public school system now looks upon
the normal schools. ^^

This report was printed and sent to the delegates in advance of the
meeting of the 1921 Council. Dr. King, who had been chairman of this
Survey Commission, was also the retiring Moderator. In his moderatorial
address on the topic, "A National Educational Policy for the Denomina-
tion," he called attention to the underlying principles that govern the
relationship of religion to education. He quoted Dr. Robert Horton's

^^Minutes of the National Council, 1921, p. 291.
^^Minutes of the National Council, 1921, pp. 300-302.

240 History of American Congregationalism

warning, "It is the unhappy delusion of the church that it knows the
teaching of Jesus." Dr. King emphasized the need of church support for
an educational program in order that religion might have solid founda-
tions. He insisted that the obligation resting upon Congregationalists
was not for control of the institutions of learning, but that it was their
responsibility as it had been of the founders of Harvard and Yale, that
there should be well-educated leadership for church and state, and that
the permanence of these institutions rested not so much upon law which
is necessary but in the last analysis upon the determination of the people
that there should be effective, yet free, cooperation between church and
college. He presented the recommendation from the Educational Survey
Commission, which had been endorsed by the Commission on Missions,
for the establishment of a Foundation for Education.

VII

The Foundation for Education

Following presentation of the report of the Educational Commission,
the Council voted, after public hearings and a general discussion, to or-
ganize a new denominational agency, the Foundation for Education:

a. To promote the ideals of the churches of the Congregational fellowship
through institutions of secondary and higher education which possess those
ideals and share in that fellowship.

b. To make available the resources of our fellowship for the counsel and
encouragement of these institutions in the realization of our common purpose.

c. To establish a permanent fund, the income of which shall be used to aid
the upbuilding and maintenance of these institutions.

d. To provide an agency for the study of the educational problems of these
institutions and for the administration and distribution of these funds in such
ways as shall best further the common interests and ideals of these institutions
and our churches, by the maintenance in these institutions of high standards of
educational efficiency and moral and religious purpose.'*

The Council further instructed the Commission on Missions to set
aside seven per cent of the apportionment for the operating expenses of
the Foundation for 1922 and charged the Foundation with the duty of
organizing a campaign for a large stim of money to assist the colleges in
their present needs and to add to the endowment of colleges traditionally
of Congregational origin.

The Foundation established offices in Chicago and Dr. George W.
Nash was elected president. Dr. Nash had been Commissioner of Educa-
tion in South Dakota and had held other responsible positions as an
educator. When the campaign got under way to secure money for these
^^Minutes of the National Council, 1921, pp. 382-383.

Concern for Education 241

colleges, Dr. Nash discovered how true were the findings of the Education
Sui-vey Committee as to why the churches were not manifesting the old-
time interest in the financial well-being of the colleges. When the Com-
mission on Missions set aside seven per cent for the expenses of the Foun-
dation, it was necessary to take that percentage from the existing boards.
Many of the churches felt that the financial situation which affected the
colleges, while lessening their service and causing serious problems, was
not so serious as the financial situation which affected some of the Boards,
and that the colleges were in a better financial condition to do their work
than were many of the smaller churches. Dr. Nash and his associates and
later, when Dr. Nash resigned, his successor Dr. William R. Kedzie,
worked faithfully to carry out the instructions of the Council; but the
enthusiasm which had waxed strong at Los Angeles and had carried the
denomination to this high point was not sufficient to carry the proposals
into execution. Six years later the Foundation became a department of
the Education Society. Later it was discontinued as a separate depart-
ment, but the Education Society inherited the unfinished task for which
the Foundation for Education was set up.

VIII
Development of the Education Society

Although the Foundation for Education did not succeed in its task,
the interest created strengthened greatly the work of the Education Soci-
ety. Two promising features of that program as it is now being carried
forward are: First, the development of the Pilgrim Fellowship, which is
to some extent an outgrowth of the original Society for Christian En-
deavor and brings young people in the churches and in many educational
institutions into closer touch with the life and work of the churches.
Under this department of the Education Society a large number of sum-
mer conferences for young people are held throughout the country. Sec-
ond, the development of a program of adult learning. Here is a great
open field for the churches. Our own churches have been leaders in ana-
lyzing this problem and publications of the Education Society in this
field are accepted by other denominations as of unusual merit. The
churches have only begun to study the problem of interesting adults in
a program of continued learning which will bring enjoyment and profit
to multitudes of church people.

In the other departments of leadership training, the children's depart-
ment and missionary education, the Education Society is carrying for-
ward a useful work headed by consecrated individuals who are giving
splendid leadership.

242 History of American Congregationalism

Education in the Christian Churches

Concerning the interest of the Christian Churches in education, Dr.
Frank G. Coffin, long President of the General Convention of the Chris-
tian Churches, wrote:

The Christian Church was from the beginning sympathetic toward educa-
tion, yet feared dogma-producing institutions. Its ministry was a student min-
istry. The larger number were at some time school teachers who gave parttime
service to the church. Most of the theological schools were of a kind they did
not want; therefore, they established their own. Of these there were many. They
were too small and resourceless financially to survive. As early as 1811, Rev.
Barton Stone established a school at Lexington, Kentucky.

Some of the other institutions were: Rittenhouse Academy (Ky.) , Wake
Forest-Pleasant Grove (N.C.) , Junto (N.C.) , Christian Academy (N.H.) , New
England Manual Labor School (Mass.) , New England Christian College
(Mass.) , Christian College, (N.Y.) , Honeoye Falls School (N.Y.) , Wolfborough
Christian Institute, Starkey Seminary (N.Y.) , Graham Institute (N.C.) , Lafay-
ette University (Ind.) , Suffolk Collegiate Institute (Va.) , Elon College (N.C.) ,
Kansas Christian College, Union Christian College (Ind.) , Antioch College (O.)
(of which Horace Mann was president and which is said to be the first college
of high rank in the United States open to students of both sexes on conditions
of absolute equality) , LeGrand Christian Institute (la.) , Christian Biblical In-
stitute (N.Y.) , Weaubleau College (Mo.) , Palmer College (Mo.) , Defiance
College (O.) , Franklinton College (N.C.) for colored, Jireh College (Wyo.) ,
Bethlehem College (Ala.) , and Kirton Hall (Can.) .i^

Theological Seminaries

Theological Seminaries and Schools of Divinity have been more in-
timately associated with their denominational founders and sponsors,
being established to train the ministers of their supporting communities.
Ministerial training was not at first specialized in the United States. The
general college courses were sufficient for Greek, Hebrew, dialectics, and,
one hopes, though Edwards questions it, for professional piety. In addi-
tion a winter or two with a recognized theologian were indicated. In due
course regular professorships of divinity were added to the college facul-
ties. Andover was the first New England specifically theological school.
(The Seminary at Brunswick, New Jersey antedated it.) Bangor was char-
tered in 1814; Yale Divinity was opened in 1822. Twelve years later Hart-
ford Seminary was founded to correct, in the intention of its founders,
lapses in New Haven orthodoxy. Oberlin and Hartford are of an age.
Lane Seminary (Cincinnati) forbade its students to discuss slavery. Most
i^Fagley, The Congregational Churches, pp. 132-133.

Co7icern for Education 243

of them left that institution in a body and migrated to Oberlin on condi-
tion that Charles G. Finney be made theological instructor.

Chicago Theological Seminary was chartered in 1855, organized and
controlled by the churches of the six interior states whose interests con-
verged upon Chicago. It has shared the fortunes of that city and region
and, in its affiliations with the University of Chicago and allied institu-
tions, is now an honored member of an educational group second to
none. The Congregationalists of California organized the Pacific School
of Religion in 1866. Three years later it began its work. A prescient fore-
sight located it at Berkeley, destined also to be a strategic educational
center. Its buildings now crown a hill above the campus of the University
of California and its western windows open upon the Golden Gate.

The Fathers and Brethren who constituted the Council of 1865 enter-
tained bright hopes of Congregational extension in the South, but as
Massachusetts Bay had discovered two hundred years earlier, that region
was not hospitable to Congregational overtures. In 1901, however, condi-
tions seemed to warrant the establishment of a Congregational theolog-
ical school in the South, and Atlanta Theological Seminary was founded.
It carried on valiantly but could not overcome adverse conditions. It was
later moved to Nashville, Tennessee and associated with the Vanderbilt
University School of Religion.

Many forces and conditions began early in the Twentieth Century to
affect adversely the smaller detached theological schools which had
played, for a hundred years, so necessary a part in the training of Ameri-
can Protestant ministers. Old stations rich in memory were surrendered
and the seminaries moved in on outstanding educational centers. And-
over was finally consolidated with Newton Theological Seminary after
a pilgrim's progress via Hai-vard campus. The affiliation has met with
distinguished success. It is likely that the apparatus of theological educa-
tion for Congregationalism is now stabilized. The surviving institutions
have accumulated endowments, housed themselves generously, continue
their services, and proudly rehearse their pasts.

Education Through Religious Journalism

In 1896 The Congregationalist published an eightieth anniversary
number whose remaining copies are now historical documents of great
value. Contemporary religious journals recognized the significance of the
issue— and the anniversary— and extended their congratulations through
their editors. Denominational religious journalism was then at its peak,
and the congratulatory letters, with their headings and signatures, recall
a brilliant and vanished past.

244 History of American Congregationalism

There are in these letters engaging differences of opinion about the
value of denominational organs, depending upon the status of the editor.
William Hayes Ward generously thought that denominational journal-
ism "if not sectarian in spirit, offers a field for beneficent influence which
cannot be surpassed." Lyman Abbott, naturally, subtly qualified his ap-
praisal of the denominational journal but thought The Congregationalist
admirable in its catholic spirit; all of them saluted the then Congrega-
tionalist as, in direct succession, the senior publication.

A compact, authoritative paragraph in the 125th anniversary number
of Advance (Dec. 1, 1941) traces the main and continuing lines of Con-
gregational religious journalism down to date:

"When Nathaniel Willis in 1816 founded the Boston Recorder, he began a
stream that, with other main branches and many contributing rivulets, has
gone on uninterrupted to the present day, and is continued in Advance.

The main branches of that stream are easily distinguished. They consist of
The Recorder, the original source, and The Congregationalist, founded in 1849,
which came together, continuing the name The Congregationalist, in 1867. In
that same year The Advance was established in Chicago, continuing as a separate
stream until 1917, when it became merged with The Congregationalist. In 1930
The Herald of Gospel Liberty, which had begun in 1808, also flowed into this
main stream. The unwieldiness of the use of the dual name upon which there
had been insistence led to the adoption of the simple name Advance in 1934,
and the following year the paper became the present monthly. Up to that time,
however, from The Recorder to the Advance there had been a continuous flow
manifested in an issue every week."

XII

The Development of The Congre gationalist

The Congregationalist had been founded by Galen James and Edward
W. Jay in 1849. There had been a growing feeling that the Recorder
"had come to be somewhat nanow in its outlook, particularly antagonis-
tic to what was known as the new-school theology and consequently ob-
noxious (strong word) to a large and increasing element of ministers and
laymen." The younger men complained that the Recorder would not
accept their contributions. "There was a strong feeling, too, that the Re-
corder was not otitspoken enough against slavery." The movement for
another journal "crystallized" around prominent and influential "di-
vines," with every confidence that the denomination had "sufficient edi-
torial and literary ability" to sustain a paper. Deacon Galen James, a
retired ship-builder, underwrote the enterprise financially and the new
paper appeared May 25, 1849 with an imposing editorial staff. Two years
later (October 1851), Dr. H. M. Dexter's name appears as editorial con-
tributor. What became of the some-time Recorder'?, theological conserva-
tism is not on record. Dr. Dexter became editor-in-chief in 1867. The

Concern for Education . 245

paper had been shrewdly managed financially, and C. A. Richardson,
who would probably be called managing editor, had a flair for what the
average reader wanted of a Sunday afternoon. The Congregatiorialist
became a family paper. Dexter's incisive style and astounding erudition
made its editorial page famous. During the peak period. Dr. A. E. Dun-
ning who succeeded Dr. Dexter in 1889 maintained the high editorial
tradition. The list of contributors during these years is awe-inspiring.
Getting something accepted by The Congregationalist became an accolade
for young writers, and getting one's picture on the cover was a minis-
terial D.S.O. The editors were always present in the larger denomina-
tional gatherings, and their influence was acknowledged. Altogether,
those were happy days.

Dr. Howard A. Bridgeman (for thirty-five years associated with the
publication) succeeded Dr. E. A. Dunning as editor-in-chief in igii and
held that office for ten years. The paper was no longer self-supporting
and became the responsibility of the Congregational Publishing Society.
Dr. William E. Gilroy was made editor-in-chief after Bridgeman's resig-
nation and, since 1922, has filled a difficult and demanding duty with
wisdom and grace. A period of experimentation followed during which
the official title of the old paper was so often varied that it might have
been puzzled as to its own identity. In April 1934 it became the Advance,
surrendering (one must believe sadly) its time-honored denominational
designation. It is now (1942) a fifty-two-page monthly. It remains only
to add that a judicious digest, with the right touch, of the issues of The
Congregationalist from 1849 to 1934 would be a better history of Con-
gregationalism—and many other things— for almost ninety years than any

one will ever write.

XIII

The Society Magazines

The Denominational Boards, American Board of Commissioners for
Foreign Missions, Home Missionary Society, and American Missionary
Association had their own promotional literature. (Of these the Mission-
ary Herald was oldest and most honored.) They rendered a distinct mis-
sionary and educational service, and as they have faded out of the picture,
nothing since has quite taken their place. They were usually subsidized
in part by the specific Boards which maintained them, and reflected in
their various and somewhat uncorrelated way the want of unified control
in Congregational policy.

CHAPTER XVI

The Growth of Social Concern

"^HE Pilgrims were essentially religious. Religion was the flag
under which they marched. When they landed at Plymouth, they
established their community on the basis of First Century Chris-
tianity, where each one made his best contribution to the common store.
It was soon discovered, however, that the more industrious members
were being penalized because of the indifference of some to the pressing
needs of the new community, and in 1623 there was a division of prop-
erty among the settlers.

The temporary division of land in 1623 was, in 1624, continued until the
end of the Adventurers' contract (in 1627) . The plan of leaving each individual
to work as he pleased, and have the proceeds, but no more, had been highly
successful, even the women and children eagerly sharing the lighter field-work
—a thing before unknown. The result was an abundant crop.i

While this first experiment in applied socialism did not succeed as a
plan according to their expectations, it left the settlers with some under-
standing of the problems of providing for the common good.

Social Attitudes of the Colonists

Another evidence of social concern was the attitude of the settlers
towards the Indians. Many and grievous wrongs have been done through
the years to the Indians by the whites, but the Plymouth settlers came
with high ideals of helpfulness. Yet even in the Mayflower group there
were "adventurers" who did not share these ideals.

In November, 1621, just a year after the arrival of the first settlers, the
"Fortune" brought thirty-five new colonists— a welcome addition— among them
a son of Elder Brewster and a brother of Edward Winslow, but most of them
apparently picked up by the merchant-partners in England and, as Bradford
describes them, "wild enough."

In July, 1623, about sixty additions were brought to the colony by the
"Anne," "some of them being very useful! persons . . . and some were so bad,
as they were faine to be at charge to send them home againe ye next year." That
these less desirable elements came with the better was due to the somewhat dis-
cordant aims of the partners in the Plymouth undertaking. On the one hand,
the Leyden Pilgrims desired first of all the maintenance of Congregational in-
stitutions and the preservation of the moral tone of the community; on the
1 Goodwin, The Pilgrim Republic, p. 258.

246

The Growth of Social Concern 247

other hand, the merchants of London, who had furnished the chief part of the
money for the adventure, cared little save for a flourishing trading colony which
should yield satisfactory profits. A divergence of wishes speedily manifested itself.
The Pilgrims desired to bring over their Leyden associates as speedily as pos-
sible, but bound as they were to their partners, they could not well raise the
money for such an end. On the contrary, the merchant-partners preferred to
send active young men, picked up where they could get them, who might make
good hunters, fishers, and tillers of the soil. . . . They felt that if something could
be done to minimize the Separatist characteristics of the colony it would grow
more rapidly.^

Reference has been made to Morton who established headquarters
at Merrymount where liquor and firearms were sold to the Indians. The
Indians, thus wronged, wrought vengeance upon the whites indiscrimi-
nately, whereupon the Pilgrims defended themselves and inflicted heavy
discipline. This brought grief to the church leaders. John Robinson,
hearing of these troubles, wrote, "Oh, that you had converted some be-
fore you had killed any!" There were frequent wars between the Indians
and the whites, yet many of the settlers tried to adjust the difficulties with
the Indians. Efforts were also made to ameliorate the conditions of the
Indians at Plymouth. The first festive Thanksgiving had the Indians as
guests of honor. Roger Williams, Elliot— "The apostle to the Indians,"
—the Mayhews, father and son, and in later years Jonathan Edwards and
many others were active in bettering relations with the Indians. But the
record as a whole does not bring credit to the colonists. Later on the
imprisonment of Indians and the greater wrong of selling Indian captives
into slavery are among the darkest pages of Colonial history. The Puri-
tans took the Bible as their guide and in the record of the Israelites tak-
ing the land in Palestine, killing and enslaving the natives, some of the
colonists found justification of their attitude towards the Indians.

Of the colonists' relationship to the Indians, Rev. John Cotton said,
"Let us be mindful in our dealing with the Indians that as we share
their temporalities we share with them our spiritualities, and as we share
their bread, let us share the Bread of Life with them."

The scattered settlements, forced to depend upon themselves, with
means of communication so difficult, became individualistic. The Revolu-
tionary War forced a certain amount of cooperation between the colo-
nists, but it was gi'udgingly given and was withdrawn as soon as the
emergency passed. The adoption of the Constitution in 1787-1789 was
a hard-fought victory against individualistic attitudes. Vermont with-
held its approval and was a separate republic for some years, so strong
was the individualism of the people and the towns of that state. The New
Englanders, however, contributed one great doctrine to social well-being
2 Walker, Americaii Church History, vol. 3, pp. 69-70.

248 History of American Congregationalism

—the essential nature of democracy, the foundation of social reconstruc-
tion. While this principle of democracy was hedged about by many re-
strictions and limited in its applications, still the idea grew by the con-
tinued "searching of the word of God" for fuller directions for fashioning
the community under the will of God into a political state.

The town organization with its annual meeting where all citizens met
to decide questions of public concern was the foundation of their social
life. The town looked upon the church as part of itself, for in many cases
the town had set aside land, built the meetinghouse, and provided the
stipend for the minister. The church naturally felt its responsibility for
the well-being of the town. There have scarcely ever been communities
where the poor and needy were more carefully, though frugally, looked
after, or where prices were better regulated and fair business conditions
established than obtained in the New England towns under the rule of
the democratic town meetings. In these town meetings church people
have always taken an active part in behalf of justice and social well-being.

"It is quite certain that they copied largely in their formation of the
scheme of town government from the form of church government. . . . One
example is that the title 'Moderator' applied alike to the presiding offi-
cers of both town and church meeting."^ Out of this cooperation between
New England town and church giew many of our ideas of civic freedom,
education, wise laws, and benevolent institutions. Hence, with this back-
ground and with perfect freedom to follow the light, the democratic
polity of the Congregational churches encouraged the growth in social
concern. A second fact of perhaps equal weight is that the church in New
England was not an end in itself but existed for what was considered to
be community well-being. It followed that the fellowship of the churches,
when established, did not exist for the promotion of denominational
prestige but did have for its mission the cure of injustice and the lifting
of the level of the whole of life.

Social Pioneers

The modern development of social concern of the churches, which
was climaxed at the Oberlin Council by the establishment of the Council
for Social Action, had its primary source in the life and work of Rev.
Horace Bushnell (1802-1876). "Bushnell's Christian Nurture did more
than any single factor to break down the extreme individualism of tlie
old Puritanism."^ He redeemed the theology of the time from a nanow,

^Proceedirigs of the Fourth International Congregational Council, Boston, i92o, p.

324-
^McGiffert, The Rise of Modern Religious Ideas, p. 277.

The Growth of Social Concern 249

legalistic expression and broadened the concept of the place of religion
in modern life. This made possible the development within Christianity
of a clearer meaning of Christ's definite teachings. He criticized the indi-
vidualism of the churches, emphasized the shortcomings of revivalism,
and opened the field for the whole modem development of religious
education. Rev. Theodore Munger, in his Life of Bushnell, says that
Bushnell's influence "was sure to reach all forms of thought, as in time
to come it will reach all forms of social life." While his lasting reputation
rests on his proclamation of the need of Christian nurture, he also
preached on such topics as "How to be a Christian in Trade," "The
Christian Church," "The Pattern of Society," "Amusements," etc. Dr.
Bushnell opened the door and there entered a young poet-pastor-
preacher. Rev. Washington Gladden, whose ministry to the churches and
whose moderatorship of the National Council in 1904 brought the social
gospel to its first high peak and laid the foundation of the movement
which made possible the formation of the Council for Social Action
thirty years later.

As individualistic as the New England churches were in many aspects
of their life and work, they were most active in the anti-slavery move-
ment. Since 1790, the date of the founding of the Connecticut Anti-
Slavery Society by President Stiles, through 1832, when Dr. Lyman Beech-
er and Dr. Leonard Bacon formed an American Anti-Slavery Society,
there had been a continuous growth of sentiment against slavery. The
organization of the American Missionary Association "for the propaga-
tion of a pure and free Christianity from which the sins of caste, polyg-
amy, slave-holding, and the like shall be excluded" marked a great for-
ward movement in behalf of freedom for the Negroes. For years the
interest of many churches was centered in this anti-slavery movement.
Lincoln said it was the reading of Dr. Bacon's book against slavery which
gave him his foundation ideas concerning the iniquity of human slavery.
The success of the anti-slavery movement gave the churches a feeling of
great confidence in their power to lead in righting civil wrongs.^

Rev. Horace Bushnell's writings and the stirring of the "New England
conscience" in connection with the successful anti-slavery movement
slowly led to concern about social injustice in other fields. Dr. Gladden
and his associates knew of the privations and abuse heaped upon early
leaders of the anti-slavery movement, and they knew the price they would
have to pay as pioneers in the field of social justice. Dr. Gladden was
opposed, ridiculed, threatened, driven out of more than one position,
but to the end of his life he remained deeply Christian and a lovable per-

5 See "The Congregational Conscience and Slavery," Proceedings of the Fourth Inter-
national Congregational Council, Boston, i920, pp. 328-330.

250 History of America?! Congregationalism

son, surrounded by an ever-increasing group of loyal men and women
dedicated to the high interpretation of true Christian teachings. Dr. Glad-
den and his associates were called "rampageous preachers," as if such a
characterization answered their cry. Dr. Gladden was conscious that the
social movement bom in the anti-slavery agitation must go foi^'ard. He
said "now that slavery is out of the way, the questions that concern our
free laborers are coming forward; and no intelligent man needs to be
admonished of their urgency. They are not only questions of economy,
they are in a large sense moral questions; nay, they touch the very mar-
row of that religion of good-will of which Christ was the founder. It is
plain that the pulpit must have something to say about them."^

Dr. Gladden, the pioneer in this field of social concern, was strongly
supported by Rev. Theodore Munger, pastor of the Center Church, New
Haven, who emphasized that the new theology "holds that every man
must live a life of his own . . . and give an account of himself to God;
but it also turns our attention to the corporate life of man here in the
world. . . . Hence, its ethical emphasis . . . holding that human society
itself is to be redeemed."^ Munger asserted that you cannot isolate the
individual from society but that the state, family, commerce and all other
phases of man's activity were "areas wherein God manifests himself."*

Another supporter of this gospel was Rev. Richard S. Storrs, for many
years pastor of the Church of the Pilgiims, Brooklyn. Storrs attributed
the abolition of slavery to the influence of the Sermon on the Mount, the
ideals of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of disciples, and the
Christian conceptions of mutual duty and common immortality. These
were the beginnings of a true social gospel. Christianity had always at-
tacked the problem of reform from within the individual. This gospel,
if preached in its fullness, would nevertheless in time produce a far bet-
ter society which would be just and harmonious.^

Another influential worker for the social gospel was Rev. Amory
Bradford, pastor of the First Church of Montclair, New Jersey, and Mod-
erator of the Council of 1901. He urged that "whatever the inheritance,
it may be changed by good environment; Christianity must, therefore,
provide helpful surroundings as well as correct doctrines for those it
would aid." Dr. Bradford conducted a survey to discover how close was
the relationship between the working man and the church. The results
of this inquiry were published in The Christ imi Union and may be
summarized:

To the first question, "How large a pioportion of the artisan classes in your

6 Gladden, Working People and Their Employers, p. 3.

7 Munger, The Freedom of Faith, p. 25.

8 Munger, The Freedom of Faith, p. 25

9 Storrs, The Divine Origin of Christianity, p. 151.

The Groiuth of Social Concern 251

region are regular attendants at any church?", the answer was for Protestants,
a range of one-half per cent to ten per cent. Answers to the second query con-
cerning church attendance indicated that such attendance was decreasing in all
cases but one. The third question as to whether non-attendance was caused
chiefly by "unbelief in Christianity as taught by Christ," the response was a
unanimous "No." But "unbelief in Christianity as practiced by the churches"
was given as a significant cause, along with the statement that "ministers of
the gospel do not practice what they preach," and "Christians do not possess
what they profess, or at least manifest it in their lives and conduct."^"

About this time. Rev. Lyman Abbott who had succeeded Rev. Henry
Ward Beecher as pastor of the Plymouth Church, Brooklyn, and who was
a widely known editor, brought his great power to bear in behalf of a
better understanding of the working man's problems, saying that if he
were a working man, most assuredly he would be a member of a union.
His attitude may be summed up in these words: "The object of Chris-
tianity is human welfare; its method is character-building; its process is
evolution; and the secret of its power is God.""

Dr. George A. Gordon, pastor of the Old South Church, Boston,
added his voice to the discussion of this problein, asserting that "above
and beyond history, God dwells in the processes of human society, giving
inan his ideals and sending the race to its highest achievements."^^

Dr. Newman Smyth, pastor of the Center Church, New Haven, was
defining Christianity as "the unfolding and application to human life in
all its spheres and relations of the divinely human ideal which has been
historically given to Christ." ^^

The development in social responsibility was largely outside official
church organization. It is surprising how little emerges in the records of
the early Councils. Those meetings were concerned primarily with the
inner life of the church, its polity and its extension. While it is true that
temi^erance and prison reform both received a fair amount of attention
in the early Councils, it was not until the Council of 1889, at Worcester.
Massachusetts, that the theme of social concern appears on the Council
program. This was in an address by Dr. Washington Gladden on the
topic, "Christian Socialism." He opened his address with the question:
"Is Christianity in any sense socialistic?" He answered in part by saying:
"It begins to be clear that Christianity is not individualism. The Chris-
tian religion has encountered no deadlier foe during the last century
than that individualistic philosophy which underlies the competitive

10 Bradford, "Why the Artisan Classes Neglect the Church," The Christian Union,
7/2-9/85.

"Abbott, "What Is Christianity?" Arena, 1891, 3:46.

12 Gordon, "The Theological Problem for Today," chap. 4 in The New Puritanism,
pp. 156-157.

13 Smyth, Christian Ethics, p. 57.

252 History of American Congregationalism

system."" This address surveyed the whole field of the church's responsi-
bility for community life and for the welfare of the state. He was insistent
that in social rebuilding "we must not only mean well, we must know
how. It is not enough that our hearts are right; our heads must be clear
and our methods wise."^^

During the next biennium little attention was given to the specific
problems that were perplexing the people. There were, however, certain
ventures by individual churches and pastors. The churches became in-
terested in the immigrant problem, which was intensified by the rapidly
increasing number of foreigners in America. This was partly due to the
influence of Rev. Henry A. Schauffler, whose name and influence is per-
petuated in Schauffler College in Cleveland.

When the committee was preparing for the Council meeting in Min-
neapolis in 1892 it ignored all public questions, and the report is signifi-
cant for its brevity: "No papers appointed to be read." It was not because
there were no social questions pressing for answer, but rather that the
leaders hesitated to enter so com_plicated a situation. The country at large
was deeply concerned about the growing tensions in industry and the
church was reluctantly coming to the conclusion that religious interests
were involved. Everyone had been shocked by the Homestead (Illinois)
strikes which terminated while the Council was in session at Minneapolis.
The first official action in the field of social concern by the Council was
taken at this meeting— the appointment of a Committee of Five on Capi-
tal and Labor to report in 1895.

This first committee was composed of Rev. Washington Gladden, of
Ohio, chairman; Rev. Henry Hopkins of Missouri, Rev. John L. Scudder
of New Jersey, President David Starr Jordan of California, Rev. Robert
Newell of North Dakota. When the Council of 1895 met at Syracuse, Dr.
Gladden presented the report, a document of great historic value which
could be read today with profit by church people. The Committee af-
firmed that:

A society which cannot settle rates of wages and terms of work between em-
ployers and employed without constant resort to the sword is in a perilous con-
dition. . . . The Christian Church is not required to take either side of this
quarrel. Manifestly, the right is not all on one side. . . . The Church is called
to bear one clear word of testimony. It must declare and proclaim that all this
bitter strife, which constantly tends to break out in acts of violence, is needless
and wicked; and that some way must be found of putting an end to it. The
Church may lack the power to solve economic problems, but it knows that the
kingdom which it is here to establish is a kingdom of peace and good-will. . . .
It will be seen that the solution of the labor problem here suggested consists,

^*Minutes of the National Council, iSSp, p. 338.
^^Minutes of the National Council, i8Sg, p. 351.

The Growth of Social Concern 253

fundamentally, in the recognition of the Christian law as the law of business,
and the regulation of all our industrial life by Christian principles. It is, there-
fore, a solution which begins with the motives and purposes of men; which must
spring from new ideas of business and new standards of conduct. 1^

The report was well received, but as the country was enjoying a lull
in labor controversy, no action was taken except the reappointment of
the Committee on Capital and Labor. At this Council Rev. Joseph H.
Twichell of Hartford presented a paper on "The National Council and
Civil Liberty," which introduced this subject into the discussions of the
Council. In the course of his remarks. Dr. Twichell was asked to be more
specific, whereupon he replied in a phrase which has since been widely
quoted: "I am referring to those to whom I allude."

By the time the next Council met in 1898, business conditions had
become so critical because of the depression that employers could hardly
keep factories and mills going, and working men accepted employment
under any conditions. There was not even a report by the Committee on
Capital and Labor, which may have been due to Dr. Gladden's absence.
But this silence was not to continue, for by the next Council in 1901 at
Portland, Maine, the Massachusetts Conference sent a memorial that a
Committee on Labor be appointed, and Rev. Frank W. Merrick of Mas-
sachusetts, Rev. Washington Gladden of Ohio, Rev. William J. Tucker
of New Hampshire, Rev. David N. Beach of Colorado, Rev. William A.
Knight, of Massachusetts, were appointed by the Council as the Labor
Committee.

The Council meeting in 1904 in Des Moines witnessed a significant
upsurge in social concern. Following are excerpts from the report of the
Labor Committee: "Apparently unionism is something more than that
valuable phase of present-day industry, collective bargaining, for union-
ism stands for the introduction of democracy into industry, the right of
representation in the conduct of business." ^^

Your committee has a two-fold conviction out of which issues an inference
vital to the spiritual problem of our churches: First, that this question has come
to stay; that it cannot be blinked or waved aside, that no amount of religious
activity or of practical religious helpfulness can solve it; that nothing short of
justice— justice by and justice to capital and labor alike— can reach the case.
But on the other hand, and second, that only by the principles of the Gospel-
its ethics, its love, its law of respect for every human soul as a son of God, and
a brother of Jesus Christ, and its foundation stone of sacrifice— can the ends
properly sought by all true employers and workers be attained. In these cir-
cumstances, since hearts must be reached and the inmost man changed in order
to supply any adequate motive for all this, one crowning inference follows,

^^Minutes of the National Council, i8g^, pp. 147, 148, 159.
^"^ Minutes of the National Council, 190^, p. 417,

254 History of Ameri can Congregationalism

namely, that the present industrial-economic crisis constitutes a supreme motive
for that fundamental revival of religion in all our churches for which the hearts
of our people are looking, and longing, and praying. ^^

The Council adopted the recommendations of this Committee:

Whereas, the industrial problem has been given fitting place on the program
of this Council, and deep interest therein shown by the public response to the
sectional meetings provided, and

Whereas, the local Trades and Labor Assembly courteously invited the mem-
bers of this Council to its meeting on Stmday afternoon last, and provided a
rare occasion in inviting Professor Graham Taylor to address it, and also in
giving free opportunity for question and conference.

Resolved, that this Council thank the local Trades and Labor Assembly for
its courtesy, and recognize in this mutual interchange of opinion and purpose,
and in the formal proceedings of these meetings, evidence of the existence of
a social, religious spirit prophetic of a better day both for labor and the church. ^^

At this Council the plan of presenting controversial questions through
speakers representing different points of view was introduced. Dr. Graham
Taylor of Chicago, Mr. E. E. Clark of the Railroad Brotherhood, Mr.
A. L. Ulrich, and Judge Henry M. Beardsley of Kansas City, later Mod-
erator of the Council, presented various aspects of the labor problem.

In the opening years of the Twentieth Century a whole group of new
leaders came forward. Among these was Dr. Graham Taylor whose ad-
dress, "The Church in Social Reforms," given before the International
Council in Boston in 1920, was an analysis of the present and a chart for
the future in social building. About this time there came a second Uiicle
Tom's Cabin in the world-circulating In His Steps, written by Dr. Charles
M. Sheldon, pastor of the Central Congregational Church in Topeka.
This book has been criticized because it did not carry an adequate scho-
lastic philosophy, but the readers of the more than thirteen million copies
were aroused by the injustices in the industrial world in the same way
that the emotions of mankind had been aroused by the injustices of
human slavery. The conditions against which Dr. Sheldon wrote were
complicated and he did not pose as a social engineer, but he saw clearly
and felt deeply the social wrongs and shared this concern with his readers.

Other activities which evidence the rising social interest of the church-
es was the establishment by Chicago Theological Seminary of a chair in
Christian Sociology in 1892. Before this there had been a course in Social
Ethics and Sociology in Andover Seminary since 1887; and a course in
Sociology had been a requirement at Hartford Seminary since 1880. The
Chicago Seminary established a Department of Social Training in 1890
under the direction of Dr. Graham Taylor, who had been a pastor at

^^Minutes of the National Council, 190^, p. 420.

^^ Minutes of the National Council, 190^, pp. 540-541.

The Growth of Social Concern 255

Hartford, Connecticut and a professor in Hartford Seminary. Yale Divin-
ity School at the same time established a distinct professorship in Social
Ethics.20

Another evidence of growing interest was the establishment by Con-
gregational agencies of three social centers. St. George's Church in New
York (Episcopal) had established a social center on the East Side of New
York City. The second social center founded in the United States, how-
ever, was the South End House of Boston (first known as Andover House)
which began its work under Congregational auspices in 1892. Following
this was the organization of the Chicago Commons by Dr. Graham
Taylor.

The American Missionary Association, the Home Missionai^ Society,
and the American Board were continually sending out literature and
speakers preaching the Christian's responsibility for social conditions at
home and abroad. These agencies placed great emphasis on the need of
changing the social conditions of the masses. As the churches became
interested in providing right living conditions in the foreign mission field
and for Negroes, Indians, and immigrants at home, they naturally be-
came interested in social conditions in their local communities. It was
often easier, however, to interest a church in a slum condition in Bom-
bay than in its own city.

The schools and colleges also aided in the development of better
understanding. Of the leaders of this group no one was more influential
than Dr. Henry Churchill King, whose interest in social welfare paral-
leled his interest in education, already noted in Chapter III. Dr. King's
books. The Ethics of Jesus and The Moral and Religious Challenge of
Our Times were supported by the writings and work of Dr. Edward S.
Parsons, long president of Colorado College.

The move toward social concern, although originating in the church-
es, extended far and was taken up so enthusiastically by many secular
organizations that it appeared to some that social rebuilding had out-
grown its original religious impulse and was becoming theoretical, and
that the leaders in social planning were becoming technical. This tend-
ency was noticed and the workers were called to order sharply by Dr.
Graham Taylor in his epoch-making book. Religion in Social Action.
Its thesis is that social action, to be soundly established, must be a true
manifestation of religion. Dr. Taylor rightly calls attention to the lack
of permanent results when social action is based only on humanitarian
impulses and emphasizes the place of religion in all social planning.^^

20 "The New Theology and Social Ethics," Proceedings of the Fourth International
Congregational Council, Boston, 1920, p. 332.
^^ Minutes of the National Council, 190^, Dr. Taylor's address, pp. 87-99.

256 History of American Congregationalism

III

The Social Crisis

The Council of 1907 at Cleveland was made memorable by the mod-
eratorial address by Dr. Gladden on "The Church and the Social Crisis."
Dr. Gladden referred to the "swift and tumultuous" times in which "our
faiths, our philosophies, our social conventions, our political and indus-
trial institutions, are tossed upon its plunging flood." He continued:

It is idle, it is fatuous, to hide from ourselves the fact that we are facing,
here in the United States of America, a social crisis. . . . The tendencies which
have been gathering strength since the Civil War— the tendencies to the accumu-
lation of power in the hands of a few; the tendencies to use this power pre-
daceously; the tendencies to boundless luxury and extravagance; the tendencies
to the separation and the antagonism of social classes— must be arrested and
that speedily, or we shall soon be in chaos. . . . These swollen fortunes that
many are gloating over are symptoms of disease; the bigger they are, the dead-
lier. They are not the reward of social service; they are the fruit of plunder.
We have made them possible only by permitting the gate of opportunity to be
made narrower and the burden of toil more unrequiting for millions of the
poor. They exist only because by our acts we approve or by our indifference we
consent to monumental injustice.

A society which tolerates such conditions cannot live. . . . Ever since we got
rid of absolutism and feudalism and paternalism we have been trying to build
our civilization on the basis of moral individualism . . . self-interest has been
recognized as the regulative principle of the social organism. . . . Instead of its
being true that democracy will transfigure egoism, we have found that no form
of society can march hellward faster than a democracy under the banner of un-
bridled individualism. . . . Such was the challenge of Jesus Christ to the social
order which he fovmd existing, which was, in its fundamental principles, the
same social order that exists today. . . . He condemned it as radically Avrong; he
called for its reconstruction upon a ruling idea which would change the direc-
tion of human conduct . . . the Church of Jesus Christ is called to replace this
principle of selfishness and strife with the principle of good-will and service. It
is called to organize industrial and civil society on Christian principles. This is
its business in the world, a business too long neglected. . . . The thing which
we have most to fear is . . . disintegration of life. The sentiment which we most
need to cultivate is not suspicion of encroachments on our liberty, it is rather a
sense of our solidarity, an enthusiasm for the interests that are common to all. 22

Dr. Gladden's address has been frequently quoted in the church and
in secular books and papers as embodying a sound basis for Christian
rebuilding. Dr. Gladden said, speaking of workers' societies, "They have
a perfect right to deliberate together concerning the wages they are re-
ceiving, and to unite in refusing to work unless their wages are increased.
The law gives to capital an immense advantage in pemiitting its con-
solidation in great centralized corporations and neither law nor justice
can forbid laborers to combine." ^^

'^'^Minutes of the National Council, igoy, pp. 1-21.

23 Gladden, Working People and Their Employers, pp. 137-138.

The Growth of Social Concern ^5^

This Council of 1907 voted for the appointment of an industrial sec-
retary on the recommendation of the Industrial Committee. The vote
was "that we approve the recommendation of the Industrial Committee
that an Industrial Secretary be appointed, and that the necessary steps,
appointee, support, etc., be left to the Executive Committee of the Con-
gregational Home Missionary Society in cooperation with the Provisional
Committee of the National Council."^*

In January, 1909, the board of directors of the Home Missionary So-
ciety voted that it was "an utter impossibility under present conditions
to contemplate the engagement of an industrial secretary." The Indus-
trial Committee then requested the Provisional Committee to appropri-
ate money to secure a secretary, but the "Provisional Committee by vote
declined to comply with this request, both on account of lack of funds
to appropriate for such a purpose, and on account of setting the precedent
other committees of the Council would demand to have followed.""

While this proposal was not carried into effect in the way the Indus-
trial Committee had proposed, its main object was accomplished by the
development of the Brotherhood Movement, initiated in the Congrega-
tional churches by a group of business men and ministers in Chicago.

The Council was requested to recognize this Movement and to pro-
vide it with a secretary. The Council approved the project and left it to
its promoters to secure the necessary funds. The Brotherhood Movement,
thus approved, had difficulty in securing finances. When the Council met
in 1910, a report was made that the proposal for a labor secretary had
been referred to the Home Missionary Society with a suggestion that the
Society accept this responsibility for the welfare of the churches and that
the Society found this "utterly impossible." The Brotherhood Commit-
tee had a secretary but no funds for promoting its program, while the
Industrial Committee marked time because of its inability to finance a
labor secretary. Dr. Henry A. Atkinson, now secretary of the Church
Peace Union, was elected as the Brotherhood secretary. He had great
interest in social concern. Hence, at the 1913 Council the Brotherhood
Movement virtually absorbed the progiam of the Social Service Com-
mittee, and the two movements were merged with Dr. Atkinson as the
general secretary.

The Brotherhood Committee gave a report of its activities since the
Council of 1910. This report is significant as the first venture of the
Congregational Churches to carry into action the social ideals that had
been slowly developing:

The Brotherhood has become the instrument for the development of the

^^Minutes of the National Council, igo'j, p. 407.
^^Minutes of the National Council, 1910, p. 230.

258 History of American Congregationalism

service of our churches, both in their direct relation to the claims of the social
forces of the day, and in their cooperative relation to the kindred agencies of
other Christian bodies. The rising tide of the social consciousness, the truer con-
ception of the church's obligation, the abounding opportunities for social serv-
ice and the reflex influence of social evangelism upon the life of the church it-
self, all combine to give largest significance to this department of the Brother-
hood service. In social service the field of the Brotherhood's activity is growing
continually. Its objective here is:

1. To know the principles of social Christianity.

2. To arouse the spirit of social service in our churches.

3. To secure the cooperation of our churches with all other agencies doing
social service work.

4. To outline programs for our churches in their work for community better-
ment.

5. To interpret the gospel of Jesus Christ and the new purpose of the church
to industrial workers.

6. To represent the denomination in official capacity at all meetings where
labor and social service subjects are discussed. ^^

The Brotherhood Committee, led by Dr. Atkinson, established an
office in Chicago and wrestled with the perennial question of finance. It
was proposed that the National Council raise one half of the budget of
$6,000, and that the boards be asked to contribute the other half; one half
of the membership of the Commission to be appointed by the Council
and the other half by the boards. The boards vetoed the proposition and
the Council was left to finance the Social Service and Men's Work Com-
mission.

Dr. Hubert C. Herring, who had been elected Secretary at this (1913)
Council meeting and who had received encouragement by the Council
for an enlarging denominational program, proposed that one-half the
cost of the project be borne by the Council budget, provided tlie other
half be raised by subscription. Dr. Atkinson's office was moved to the
National Council office at Boston and again the difficulty of financing
denominational activities outside of the regular missionary giving of the
churches proved too difficult. Dr. Atkinson assisted for a year in various
denominational activities of the Council. For the year 1914 he supervised
the editing of the Year Book.

Meanwhile, the interest of the churches in their relationship to prob-
lems of community and national life was growing, although most of the
denominational leaders and board officials felt these problems were too
controversial for the established agencies to become too closely related
to them. The plan to organize the Social Service Department under the
National Council office having proved impossible, tlie Education Society,
after considerable hesitancy, organized a special Department of Social

"^^Minutes of tlie National Council, 1913, pp. 235, 241, 242.

The Groiuth oj Social Concern 259

Service and in 1915 Dr. Atkinson was transferred to the staff of the Edu-
cation Society to develop a social program within that structure and
under the official sanction of an organized denominational board.

This historic move was made possible because the World War was
placing new and unexpected social responsibilities upon the churches,
requiring an agency through which they could cooperate. The national
Fosdick Commission was relating camp communities to army life and
was concerned with other aspects of social and religious work for the
soldiers. Dr. Atkinson was loaned to this Commission and became the
connecting link between the Congregational churches, the Fosdick Com-
mission, and other agencies dealing with national issues.

The war and its problems shook the churches out of their compla-
cency. Action by the churches in social concern usually follows a period
of confusion. They are seldom ready to initiate a program of social
amelioration until the community, local or national, reaches a critical
condition. Then the churches are aroused sufficiently to overcome their
traditional individualistic temperament. Through the years before the
World War the churches had gradually opened their doors to such men
as Washington Gladden, Graham Taylor, and Judge Henry M. Beards-
ley; but the problem of how to wield mass influence in behalf of meas-
ures and ideals that are universally approved by prophetic individuals
has not yet been solved by the democratically organized churches.

At the close of the war Dr. Atkinson was elected General Secretary
of the Church Peace Union and of the World Alliance for International
Friendship through the Churches. Dr. Arthur E. Holt, who had had a
distinguished career as pastor and leader in social concern, was elected
social service secretary of the Education Society. Under Dr. Holt the
department proposed to the churches an educational progiam of social
emphasis. The churches' next high peak of corporate activity in social
concern was adoption by the 1921 Council of a statement in regard to
social and industrial questions, which contained these principles:

We believe in the application of the gospel to all the affairs of men. We
realize both the need and difficulty of clearly defining the principles of Christ
in terms applicable to the vexed and complicated conditions of today. There-
fore, we urge upon the ministers and churches of our order the careful and
earnest study of social and industrial questions that the church may attain effec-
tive leadership in teaching through its clergy and in action through its laymen.

To this end we commend the suggestions and provisions made by our Social
Service Commission.

We record our conviction that in the contest between labor and capital,
wherever either party is striving for a position from which to dictate terms to
the other, such effort is contrary to the spirit of Christ. A victory for either side
carries defeat for humanity and a perpetuation of strife. An industrial order
pervaded by the sense of brotherhood must be achieved.

26o History of American Congregationalism

We look with favor and hope to those instances happily increasing in
number where the principle of representation is being introduced into the
conduct of business affairs, whether by the method of dealing with unions, by
shop councils or other systems of organization. We believe that the human
status must be recognized as the essential factor in the problem. Our confidence
of progress is based on God working in our midst and in the integrity of human
nature ever responding increasingly to his spirit.^^

Dr. Holt resigned in 1924 to become professor of Social Ethics in
Chicago Theological Seminary, and Rev. Hubert C. Herring, Jr., who
had been pastor of the United Congregational Church in Wichita, Kan-
sas, and like his father had a broad interest in all phases of social con-
cern, was elected social service secretary. Through Mr. Herring's pioneer-
ing work, the social ser\'ice department enlarged its education program to
include not only interest in industrial affairs, but also gradually devel-
oped a program of social activity which included interracial as well as
international relations.

The 1925 Council meeting in Washington adopted on recommenda-
tion of the Commission on Social Service, a Statement of Social Ideals.
There was considerable debate and several amendments made to the
original report. But with the exception of the vote of Section H of the
report, there were no negative votes registered. The preamble of the
Statement is:

We believe in making the social and spiritual ideals of Jesus our test for
community as well as for individual life; in strengthening and deepening the
inner personal relationship of the individual with God, and recognizing his
obligation and duty to society. This is crystallized in the two commandments of
Jesus: "Love thy God and love thy neighbor." We believe this pattern ideal for
a Christian social order involves the recognition of the sacredness of life, the
supreme worth of each single personality and our common membership in one
another— the brotherhood of all. In short, it means creative activity in coopera-
tion with our fellow human beings, and with God, in the everyday life of society
and in the development of a new and better world social order.

Then followed sections on Education, Industry and Economic Rela-
tions, Agiiculture, Racial Relations and International Relations.

The Council for Social Action

In the years previous to the Oberlin Council in 1934, interest in social
subjects continued to increase rapidly. The movement began officially
with Dr. Gladden's address at the Worcester Council in 1889 and reached
a high point of interest in the Council of 1901. It had progressed in 1913
with the calling of the first secretary; in 1921 and in 1925 with the adop-
tion of the two statements of social ideals. Now it came to its peak in the
establishment of the Council for Social Action at Oberlin in 1934.
^''Minutes of the Natio7ial Council, ii)2i, pp. 393-394.

The Growth of Social Concern 261

Preceding the Obeilin Council, much attention had been given to the
churches' relationship to various social problems. It was the general
opinion that while the four commissions working in the social field under
the Council evidenced and stimulated an interest they did not create a
unified program. Also, the department of social service, functioning as a
part of the Education Society, felt that its activity was unduly restricted
and that the program should include more than the educational aspect
since it should also provide the churches with active leadership in social
amelioration. The board of the Education Society was selected not on
the basis of special interest in social concern, but rather for the knowledge
of and interest in the religious educational program of the churches. It
was urged that the interest in social concern had become so keen that to
give the progi~am the attention it deserved required the full time and
thought of a group free from other responsibilities.

The plan to set up a Council for Social Action was presented to the
General Council at its Oberlin meeting, the members to be elected by
the General Council on the nomination of its nominating committee and
the Council for Social Action to take its place as one of the denomina-
tional agencies supported by the apportionment. Dr. Carl Patton, the
retiring Moderator, in his address at the opening session of the Council,
gave a masterly analysis of the ills of society, saying that the "question is,
from top to bottom, a religious question. The trouble with war, and cut-
throat competition, and long hours, and low wages, and child labor, and
privileges and exploitation and widespread poverty is not merely that
they leave people hungry and cold, but that they leave them angry, dis-
illusioned, and bitter. They make it easy to hate mankind and hard to
believe in the goodness of God."^^

Some of the more conservative members of the General Council were
fearful lest the enthusiasm of the leaders of the Council for Social Action
would embarrass the churches in their own communities. The Council
proposed to pioneer in the study and analysis of the points of social ten-
sion. It was granted that these points of tension existed in church groups
as well as outside the church; and that equally sincere men, while hold-
ing fast to the purpose of religion to lift the whole level of life, yet dif-
fered radically as to means and methods to be used to reach these ends.

There was no disposition to urge the General Council to take hasty
action. Hearings were held day after day. All realized that the Council
was making history. Not since 1810, when the Massachusetts Association
of Ministers voted to approve the organization of a Board of Foreign
Missions and thus give denominational standing to the agency which was
to become the American Board of Commissioners for Foieign Missions,
^^Minutes of the General Council, 1934, p. 136.

262 History of American Congregationalism

had the churches been asked to give official sanction to the organization
of a denominational agency of such importance.

One act of the Council, not sponsored by the group working for the
Council for Social Action but a natural result of the discussions held at
Oberlin, was the introduction by a delegate of a "non-profit motive"
resolution. Most of those who had worked for the formation of the
Council for Social Action had taken no public position on the "profit
motive" in industry and were no little embarrassed by the passage of this
resolution. The Oberlin Council had 764 voting delegates. The resolu-
tion was introduced during a "thin house" and came to a vote when most
of the leaders in the formation of the Council for Social Action were
absent from the hall. It was adopted by a vote of 130 to 17. Not more
than one-fourth of the voting membership of the Council expressed them-
selves on the subject. The vote was taken in the midst of routine business
and other resolutions and its implications were not immediately grasped.
It was the one thing seized upon by the newspapers for publicity and as
it was passed by the same Council which had set up the Council for
Social Action, it was taken by the public as evidence that the new Coun-
cil for Social Action was prepared to pontificate on controversial sub-
jects and to work for the revolutionary resolution.

The full weight of the burden placed upon those advocating social
education by the passage of the "non-profit motive" resolution was not
fully sensed until the Council had adjourned. In spite of all that could
be done for the next three years to explain the origin of this resolution,
and the conditions under which it had been passed, it injured not only
the standing of the Council for Social Action but prejudiced many sin-
cere laymen towards the denominational agencies as a whole, and the
work of the Council for Social Action was greatly handicapped.

The historic vote at Oberlin, establishing the Council for Social
Action, stated:

Stirred by the deep need of humanity for justice, security, and spiritual free-
dom and growth, aware of the urgent demand within our churches for action
to match our gospel, and clearly persuaded that the Gospel of Jesus can be the
solvent of social as of all other problems, we hereby vote:

"That the General Council create the Council for Social Action of the Con-
gregational and Christian Churches of the United States of America.

"That the purposes of this Council for Social Action shall be to help the
churches to make the Christian gospel more effective in society, national and
world-wide, through research, education, and action, in cooperation with the
Home and Foreign Boards, Conferences and Associations, and local churches.
It is proposed that the Council shall increasingly cooperate with the Federal
Council of Churches in the creation of a program which shall be genuinely in-
terdenominational. In its research, the Council will aim to be impartial, its
only bias being that of the Christian view of life; its educational efforts will be

The Growth of Social Coricern 263

directed primarily toward the local churches but will also envisage the cultiva-
tion of public opinion; in action, the Council may, on occasion, intercede di-
rectly in specific situations. . . .

"That in launching this Council for Social Action we envisage a new kind
of churchmanship which, enlisting the volunteer services of a group of eighteen
outstanding men and women of social vision, wisdom, and Christian purpose,
and commanding the services of five or six strong leaders in the fields of inter-
national relations, race relations and economic statesmanship, will carry the
campaign of education and action based on careful research out among our
entire constituency at home and abroad. Believing that the church will find it-
self as it loses itself in the struggle to achieve a warless, just, and brotherly
world, we launch this venture, dedicating ourselves to unremitting work for a
day in which all men find peace, security and abundant life."

Oberlin, which had seen the formation of a National Council in 1871,
and had been a center of social interest from the days of its founding,
witnessed also this outstanding development of social interest in the
churches.

The General Council, in setting up the Council for Social Action,
went beyond the churches' existing interest in social problems. It was
not so much the outcome of a unanimous demand from the churches as
of the keen interest and deep concern of a very devoted minority. The
General Council voted that it should be included in the apportionment
at a figure which would yield a sum sufficient for a modest budget. Here
again the unfortunate "non-profit motive" resolution and the fact that the
churches had not reached a level of social concern equal to its program
led to discrimination against the Council for Social Action by many
churches and by individual givers. The financing of the organization was
a difficult problem from the start. As the churches have awakened to the
necessity for the kind of work the Council for Social Action is doing, the
financial problems tend to become less acute, being no more serious,
relatively speaking, than those of the older boards, all under the pressure
of lowered income.

In the 1934 Council, it was provided that the Council for Social Ac-
tion should have a quasi-administrative relationship to the Board of
Home Missions and that the apportionment percentage assigned to the
Council for Social Action should be listed in the Year Book under the
total receipts of the Home Board work.

Since 1934 the structural relationship of the Council for Social Action
to the total denominational program has been that of an autonomous
agency functioning as an integral part of the Missions Council. In the
seven years since the founding of the Council, it has developed its pro-
gram, overcome many objections, and won many friends.

What happened in this group has been demonstrated again and again
—that opposition has been changed to tolerance, and, in many instances,

264 History of American Congregationalism

tolerance has given place to cooperation. The change in attitude towards
the Council is traceable in part to a widespread use of Social Action, a
very effective magazine published monthly and dealing in a broad Chris-
tian way with many aspects of social concern, thus enlarging the Coun-
cil's sphere of usefulness.

In 1939 Mr. Herring resigned as director of the Council and Rev.
Dwight J. Bradley, professor of Social Ethics at Andover Newton Theolog-
ical Seminary and pastor of Union Church in Boston, was elected direc-
tor. At the 1940 Council meeting in Berkeley, the Council for Social
Action was given the added responsibility of sharing in the denomina-
tion's effort in the aid of war victims.

The purpose and program of the Council for Social Action as it faces
the world today may be summed up in the words of Rev. Alfred Wilson
Swan, president of the Council:

"The central imagery of the Church is of special assistance in illuminating
the pattern of our economic life. The Body broken and the Blood shed, that we
might have life— that is the eternal symbol. But now, what is money, if it is not
a negotiable symbol of personality? The dollar in my hand is someone's sweat
and blood. The shirt I wear was stitched by someone's patience; the food I eat
produced for me by someone's body bent. In every exchange of goods and serv-
ices a sacrament takes place.

'The exchange counter is the realistic communion table of our common
life. On it our bodies are broken and our blood is shed for one another. If this
exchange be forced by violence, it is no better than any other form of paganism.
But if in this daily transaction a mutual and voluntary sacrifice be recognized
and acknowledged, all life becomes illuminated with a sacrament, as it here
speaks to us with the eloquence of a universal tongue. And it is to apply the
sacramental grace at precisely that point where the mind of the age is most con-
fused and the hearts of men are most sore.

"It is the faith of the Church that sacrament saves, in its recognition of a
common bond, and that it does so by realistically transforming life, in either its
individual or its corporate appearances. In this confidence the Church holds this
imagery before itself and before the world as a true representation of the nature
of the economic process. When it is so seen, men may sit at the Table of Life,
where each shall eat and all be filled, and none go hungry away."29

29Fagley (editor), The Gospel, the Church and Society: Congregationalism Today,
p. 167.

CHAPTER XVII

Evangelism and Worship

THE Congregational churches grew out of a movement at heart
evangelistic. The early leaders broke away from institutional re-
ligion as represented in the established church and conditioned
full participation in the life and work of this fellowship on the indi-
vidual's personal relationship to God. To the early Separatists and Puri-
tans this relationship was so all-engrossing, so satisfying, that it did not
need the support of any national institution or the authority of another
human being.

It was no easy matter for a person to maintain a place in the fellow-
ship. From day to day the "elect" went their way towards God through
all discouragements and bafflements and had ever in mind Bunyan's
pilgrim, whose chief purpose in life was to win his soul's salvation.

They believed there were great spiritual values in fellowship and that
Christ was present in their meetings, imparting to each one the measure
of help needed. The basis of their fellowship was the covenant and those
so covenanted formed the church. They were convinced that the way to
salvation, while based on the individual's personal relationship to God,
was to be found in the fellowship of covenanted believers. They were
ever mindful that their lives should be under severe discipline and, as
they disciplined themselves, so they disciplined their children. Seldom in
history has family life been so filled with religious teaching and practice
as was that of the early Congregationalists.

When it came to reaching those outside the church, they suffered
from the difficulties of their theological assumptions. They were Cal-
vinists and believed that God in his own time and in his own way would
speak to the unconverted. It was the responsibility of Christians to show
the fruit of their religion in their lives, but they were reticent in inviting
those outside the covenanted group to participate in their religious serv-
ices or to share in their religious understandings until God in his own
way had spoken.

They early provided that "they that carry themselves holilie and re-
ligiouslie" would be received in the fellowship. So strict were the require-
ments for church membership that not more than twenty per cent of the
people of the early New England colonies were in communion with the
church. While there is not much evidence that the church sought to in-

265

266 History of American Congregationalism

crease its membership by bringing outsiders into its communion, still
there is considerable evidence that the early settlers wished to extend
the privilege of the gospel to the Indians, provided they were "good
Indians" and would accept the whites as superiors entitled to rule.

This missionary motive was written into the original documents. After
the colonists had been in America a few years, they wrote of their labors
on behalf of the Indians in the famous book, The Day-Breaking, if not
the Sun-Rising, of the Gospel with the Indians in New England, pub-
lished in 1647; ^^^ ^Iso in Some Helps for the Indians Showing That
They Improved Their Natural Reason to Know the True God and the
True Christian Religion, published in 1658. These efforts to evangelize
the Indians unfortunately had no enduring effect.

Reception into church membership was a solemn rite. We are told
in Plain-Dealing and its Vindication Defended something of the process:

Persons wishing to join such a Church made known that desire to the Ruling
Elders and were examined— sometimes in presence of members of the Church-
by them as to "the worke of grace upon their soules, or how God hath beene
dealing with them about their conversion." The Elders being satisfied, one of
them on some convenient occasion would give notice that the applicant wished
to unite with them, desiring any who might be aware of objection from any
cause to notify the Presbytery. If objection were made, it was duly considered.

Then, usually on a Sunday after afternoon service, but sometimes on a
week-day (all the Church having notice to be there) , the candidate being pres-
ent, a Ruling Elder would give notice that nothing (or nothing which had not
been fairly explained) had been alleged against the party thus duly pro-
pounded, and call once more upon any person present knowing anything in the
way of the proposed admission, to give testimony thereof. No response being
made to such appeal, the Elder would then desire any parties who have "any-
thing to speak for his receiving" to testify as briefly as they may. The way being
thus prepared, the candidate, if a man, "in a solemn speech, sometimes a quarter
of an houre long, shorter or longer, declareth the work of grace in his soule, to
the same purpose, as that before the Elders formerly mentioned"; and "by ques-
tions and answers, if the party be weake, or else in a solemn speech," made pro-
fession of his doctrinal faith and personal experience of God's grace. If a woman,
this confession was usually read by the Pastor, although sometimes she was re-
ceived on the testimony of the Elders of their satisfaction before gained "without
any more adoe."

This being finished, the Elder asked any who might remain dissatisfied to
use their liberty and declare their minds, and, none doing so, requested those
who were ready to receive the candidate to manifest it by the "usuall signe,
which is erection and extension of the right hand." The covenant was then pro-
posed to the neophyte, "the summe of which" was "to this effect":

"To give up ourselves to the Lord in all duties of holinesse; then to the
Church, and the Officers, in all love and submission, according to the will of
God; and this they doe not trusting in their owne strength, but in the name and
by the grace of Christ himselfe."

"Then the Elder in the name of the Church responded, covenanting also

Evangelism and Worship 267

with the new confessor to perform the like duties back again. Prayer followed,
after which 'they depart away with a blessing'."'

When the civil government was established with suffrage limited to
church members it gave them added dignity, as the civil state was main-
tained by their votes. These colonists came to America to set up the kind
of church they believed offered the true way of salvation and not primar-
ily to set up a new kind of civil government. The civil state was a neces-
sary development but not the primary objective, and to guard the
church's interest there was a strict supervision of the admission of church
members from outside the families of the church people. Again and again
in the early writings we find words of caution uttered by ministers and
laymen that great care be taken lest unworthy people be granted suffrage
by being admitted to church membership.

There was much discussion, even from the beginning of the Half- Way
Covenant period, as to whether or not the churches were weakened by
the great number of people who lived under this Covenant— people who
were baptized and attended church but could not take the sacrament—
or whether the church should hold to its strict standards and thus pre- .
serve the purity of religion. The greatest difficulty was that often the most
conscientious persons who gave evidence of Christian living could not
testify "the day and the way" when the glories of the mercy of God had
been revealed to them. Those who advocated the value of the Half- Way
Covenant were known as the advocates of "Large Congregationalism."
The churches were vexed with this discussion for several generations.

There were those who considered participation in the Lord's Supper
not as a testimony to a conversion already achieved, but rather as a re-
generating experience. Rev. Solomon Stoddard, pastor at Northampton,
was the leading advocate of this doctrine. When Jonathan Edwards came
forward with his interpretation of "Calvinism at its best," the Half- Way
Covenant was forever abolished, for he eliminated the family relation-
ship as a prerequisite for church membership as shown above. He insisted
that converted persons, regardless of relationship to present members,
should be admitted to church membership.

The legalistic pattern which controlled church life for generations '
was broken by the evangelistic emphasis of the Great Awakening. The
early pattern mentioned above required that a child presented for baptism
must have been bom into a family of baptized church members. Limita-
tion of church membership to those families within the church was re-
laxed to permit the baptism of grandchildren of church members, and
this continued until the Great Awakening when all regulations were
swept away and any person professing the Christian experience was wel-

^ Plain-Dealing and its Vindicatio7i Defended.

268 History of American Congregationalism

corned into church fellowship regardless of the standing of parents or
grandparents.

The Great Awakening turned their thought to the problem of con-
version of unbelievers who were, by this time, in a vast majority. The
church was disestablished and church membership was no longer a pre-
requisite for voting. Without tax support the church had to depend upon
its own members and realized it must recruit new members or suffer a
decline and possible extinction.

Rev. Charles G. Finney, pastor of the Broadway Tabernacle Church
of New York and later president of Oberlin College, and others during
the first half of the Nineteenth Century led in a renewed emphasis on
evangelistic services. His method was used by many evangelists through
the years following but lacking Finney's deep religious understanding
and his respect for personality, they violated many of the principles of
good taste and sound psychology and brought the revival meeting into
disrepute. With the development of revivalism under Dr. Finney there
was a corrective movement led by Rev. Horace Bushnell of Hartford,
whose writings on Christian Nurture have profoundly influenced reli-
gious thought through the years. In the main the churches followed the
lead of Dr. Bushnell rather than of Dr. Finney.

Parochial Evangelism

From denominational records it is evident that in the early synods
little thought was given to evangelism and none whatever to worship.
Not until the National Council met in Boston in 1865 did worship and
evangelism receive official attention. This Council, called because the
churches, having pursued a more or less individualistic course, were now
shocked into a realization of the need for national planning which was
everywhere recognized, was most carefully prepared for. A coramiittee was
appointed well in advance to present a report on Parochial Evangelism,
composed of Rev. Daniel P. Noyes and Rev. Henry M. Dexter, editor of
The Congregationalist.

When the Council assembled, this committee presented a report which
covers fourteen pages of the Council records, and from its wording it is
evident that the report was written by Dr. Dexter. This report, covering
all phases of the progiam of evangelism and worship is so clear, penetrat-
ing, and comprehensive that it should be in the required reading of eveiy
person preparing for the ministry. The report outlined a progiam for the
local church to meet the needs of the parish. It stated as a first principle
that each church is responsible for the evangelization of its own com-
munity and that the responsibility for this program rests with the pastor

Evangelism and Worship 269

of the church as the authorized leader. As to method, this report states:
"The first great duty of the church is worship" and the second is "the
edification of its members in Divine Love."

The instructions for worship in gaining religious understanding in-
clude the use of music, Scripture reading, and prayer. The place of wor-
ship in evangelism is "to bring all souls into communion with God; and
the Church maintains these public acts of communion, in part, from the
hope that the spirit of devotion may spread, like leaven, from soul to
soul, till all be leavened. But, that the leaven may spread, it must be real,
and real at the time which is its opportunity." ^

The second method is by instruction. This instruction ought "to un-
veil eternity; to unfold the mind of God; to take divine things, and show
them unto men; to make plain the ways of a heavenly life here on earth;
and to breathe something of the dignity native to souls regenerate and
sanctified— the dignity of a love like Christ's. While considering the
methods of parochial evangelization, neither the ministry nor the
churches may forget this."^

The committee put great emphasis on the necessity of organizing
church work so that those quickened into new understandings might be
given an opportunity to practice their religion, and advised the church
to plan definitely that each member should engage in some form of
Christian service in the community.

The third section emphasizes the importance of maintaining fellow-
ship and being faithful in observance of the sacraments and is followed,
significantly enough, by the section on conversion. This is important, as
it indicates the progress of the churches since the early days when all
emphasis was placed upon a definite miraculous experience which the
recipient recognized and the church acknowledged to be conversion.
This prerequisite to acceptance into the fellowship of the church was
held so rigidly by the early churches that some persons with a deep re-
ligious life and whole-hearted devotion to the Christian cause, but with-
out the experience of definite conversion, were denied membership. This
was true of Mrs. Jonathan Edwards, who could not tell the exact way
and day of her conversion, and so was never considered a full member of
the church. With meek resignation, she said "if it was God's will that she
be damned she was willing for the glory of God so to be."

The section of the report of the 1865 Council on conversion is worth
quoting in full:

The third great end of the church remains, namely, the bringing into a
state of reconciliation the souls that are alienated from God.

^Minutes of the National Council, i86$, p. 212.
^Minutes of the National Council, 186$, p. 213.

270 History of American Congregationalism

We have, it is pre-supposed, a church composed of believers— persons who
have begun to love with a love like Christ's; organized a brotherhood; worship-
ping God; instructing and edifying its members in the wisdom, the power, and
joy, of divine love; entering into sacred bonds of communion in the sacraments.

But the chief labor of Christ's militant church on earth has ever been the
reconciliation of alienated souls, the saving of the lost. Not only do our churches
find their principal work here, but they cannot even be faithful toward their
own members unless they engage them in efforts for the spiritual benefit of
those who are still out of personal covenant with God. Very properly, therefore,
is the inquiry urged home upon us: How can a church be faithful and success-
ful in this momentous work?"*

This is followed by sections on lay evangelism, the home prayer meet-
ing, and membership recruiting. The churches are urged to plan their
work so as to reach these groups in the community:

(1) the members of the church; (2) members of the congregation and regu-
lar attendants who are not members of the church; (3) those in some sense
connected with the congregation, but not regular or frequent attendants at the
sanctuary; (4) families and individuals having no real connection with any
Christian congregation, and who come under no stated religious influence.^

The report also gives attention to the need for better Scripture in-
struction, saying:

"In respect to the religious training of our youth, it is a question for those
competent to decide, whether more pains may not wisely be taken to exhibit
the gospel in its glory, so that the young, who are easily kindled with enthusi-
asm, may not be led to feel that nothing else can possibly be so glorious as the
truths and realities contained in this 'gospel of the blessed God.' Also, whether,
in addition to general instruction, special teachings for the purpose of guard-
ing against prevalent errors might not be of use. Whether succinct catechisms
might not be formed for this purpose; and whether lectures upon portions of
church history, and the history of opinions, could not be turned to advantage.
Whether the influences of 'society' may not be made more uniformly benignant
and wholesome? Whether pastors are really faithful in following up with per-
sonal labors the effects of their preaching." ^

The report concludes with definite proposals:

That, when possible, every church, taking counsel if necessary with neigh-
boring churches, define for itself the territory embraced in its parish, and rec-
ognize a special responsibility to labor for the spiritual benefit of all Congrega-
tional and all neglected families and individuals within those bounds.

We recommend to all churches to devote one prayer-meeting every month
(or, perhaps, in the case of the feeblest country churches, one in each quarter) ,
to the special object of the church and its work, giving to this meeting the name
of The Home Prayer Meeting.

That all ministers of churches (1) take special pains to instruct their people
in the true doctrine of the church; bringing into special prominence (a) the

^Minutes of the National Council, iS6$, pp. 214-215.
^Minutes of the National Council, 186^, p. 217.
^Minutes of the National Council, 1865, pp. 217-218.

Evangelism and Worship 271

character of its material— believers; (b) the form of its organization— a brother-
hood; (c) the dignity of its threefold end— God's glory in conversion, holiness
and worship; (d) the several methods whereby it accomplishes its end, making
especially prominent the duty of each church to be, within itself, a veritable
family of God, and, for those without, a band of loving missionaries, and sedu-
lously inculcating the doctrine of church responsibility for communities. (2)
That the ministers systematize the work of their churches, apportioning it so
that none of it shall be overlooked and none unnecessarily neglected; and aim-
ing to secure the effective employment of as many church-members as possible
in some form of Christian effort.

We suggest whether it may not be wise to test, by trial, whether a State min-
isterial association cannot be of service as a professional body for professional
ends, a college for the promotion of Christian fellowship and of the knowledge,
wisdom, and skill requisite for the inculcation of the truth, the sagacious con-
duct of necessary controversies, and the successful administration of the pas-
torate, thus rounding out, in full symmetry, our Congregational organization.''

This report was adopted and referred, as was the rule at that time,
to a new committee appointed by the Council from its membership. This
new committee was instructed to study the report and to submit the re-
sults to the Council for action. This review committee, in making its
report, stated: "Your committee is more and more impressed with the im-
portance of this work. They have carefully examined and considered the
report submitted to their inspection. They indorse substantially the
recommendations appended at the close, and commend the report as a
whole to the earnest and prayerful consideration of the churches repre-
sented in the Council."*

One unusual feature about the Congregational fellowship is that the
representatives of the churches at national gatherings often register de-
cisions which are not carried beyond the door of the Council. In the
chapter on missionary relationships there will be found many illustra-
tions of this fact, but in all Congregational history there is no better
illustration than the work of the Council of 1865. This Council gave
much time and thought to the report on parochial evangelism, which
provided the churches with a modern, comprehensive, and truly religious
progiam, but there is no evidence that the report was carried to the
churches or that it affected their manner of work. It was not until more
than fifty years later, with the organization of the present Commission on
Evangelism and Devotional Life, that the idea of parochial evangelism,
re-phrased as "parish evangelism," became the accepted plan which has
been carried forward during the last twenty years.

Following the 1865 Council, the churches attempted to join in the
emotional revival movement being promoted in some denominations,

"! Minutes of the National Council, i86^, pp. 221-222.
^Minutes of the National Council, 186$, p. 487.

^^J2 History of American Congregationalism

without realizing that such emotionalism was contrary and foreign to
the spirit, the traditions, and the temperament of the Congregational
churches.

Following the constitutional organization of the National Council in
1871, the leaders were so concerned with its structure and its relationship
to the churches and to the missionary organizations that evangelism does
not appear in the Council discussions until thirty-six years later.

II
Beginnings of Present Program

At the 1907 Council meeting Dr. Edward I. Bosworth, dean of the
Oberlin Graduate School of Theology, an acknowledged leader in in-
terpreting the New Testament to meet the needs of the Twentieth Cen-
tury, gave an address on "The New Day for Congregationalism in Evan-
gelism." Dr. Bosworth defined evangelism as follows:

Such publishing of the good word from God brought to all men in Jesus
Christ's personal experience with and revelation of the Heavenly Father, as
will make them conscious disciples of Jesus Christ. . . . The evangelistic message
has Jesus Christ as its central feature. It reports the possibility of a personal
connection with Jesus Christ and the results in character and social relationships
that will follow. In this message Jesus Christ stands out as a great personality,
having an unparalleled revelation of the Heavenly Father. . . . Two great propo-
sitions, therefore, underlie the evangelistic message: (1) Jesus Christ is such an
adequate, enduring, ever-present revelation of God in terms of human life,
death, and deathless spiritual presence as make it possible and right for every
man to yield to Jesus Christ the absolute control of his life— to accept his lord-
ship; (2) A life so controlled by Jesus Christ will be lifted by him into an in-
creasing share of his own vital fellowship with God and men. . . .

The Church, in so far as it is an evangelizing agency, must do several things.
First, it must find a method of securing the somewhat prolonged attention of
the non-churchgoing adults in the community to the character and teaching of
Jesus. He must be made to live before them as he lived before the Jews of Jerus-
alem and Capernaum. Second, it must find a method of following up this pro-
longed attention to the life and character of Jesus Christ with a suitable appeal
for action, with the opportunity for a definite acceptance of Jesus Christ as
Lord. ... In the third place, the evangelistic method must be one that will make
large use of capable laymen.

The new evangelism is a simplified, rational, and incisive message with
Jesus Christ as its central feature. An evangelistic spirit is being developed that
is respectfully tolerant, but enthusiastically confident of the supreme value of
the discovery made in its own Christian experience, and is eager to share it
with all men.^

When the present Commission on Evangelism and Devotional Life
was organized ten years later. Dr. Bosworth was a member and gieatly
assisted in formulating its program. He was instrumental in setting the
^Minutes of the National Council, ipoj, pp. 120-132.

Evangelism and Worship 273

pattern both for the method and for the message of modern evangelism.
In 1917, considering how best to observe, in 1920, the Tercentenary
of the landing of the Pilgrims, the council appointed the Tercentenary
Commission to aixange for a fitting observance. This Commission recom-
mended to the churches a five-point program. One recommendation was
that there should be established a functioning department on evangelism
and worship to assist the churches in a workable program. A committee
on evangelism was appointed by the Tercentenary Commission to co-
operate with the Commission on Evangelism of the National Council, a
nominal commission in existence for a number of years.

Ill

The Commission on Evangelism and the Devotional Life

The Tercentenary Commission, with the assistance of a grant from
the Congregational Home Missionary Society and with approval of the
Council's Commission, provided for establishment of the work of evan-
gelism and worship and the calling of Rev. Frederick L. Fagley to be the
executive secretary of the new Commission on Evangelism. The action
of the Board of the Home Missionary Society in making the original
grant of $12,000 per year to a commission of the National Council was
due largely to the efforts of Dr. Charles E. Burton, then secretary of the
Society. He urged the grant to the Commission on the same basis as a
grant made to an aided church. This grant was continued annually until
the Springfield Council Meeting in 1923, when the per capita denomina-
tional dues were increased by vote of the Council to finance the work of
the Commission from the National Council treasury.

The Commission on Evangelism was enlarged by the 1919 Council
to include members of the Tercentenary Commission. The new Commis-
sion was made up of some of the strongest leaders of the denomination;
Dr. William Horace Day, who had just finished his term as Moderator
of the Council, was selected as chairman; other members were Dr. Bos-
worth, Dr. Charles E. Jefferson, Dr. Ozora S. Davis, Dr. Ernest Bourner
Allen, Dr. Robert E. Brown, Dr. Charles E. Burton, Rev. Dwight M.
Goddard, Professor Eugene W. Lyman, Rev. George M. Miller, Dr. J.
Edgar Park, Rev. Harry E. Peabody, Rev. E. S. Rothrock, and Dr. Jay 1'.
Stocking. The laity was represented on the Commission by Charles K.
Calhoun of White Plains, New York; H. W. Darling of Wichita, Kansas;
Judge A. C. Shattuck of Cincinnati, Ohio; and Maurice E. Preisch of
Buffalo, New York.

From the beginning the Commission emphasized parish evangelism.
It sought to discover where in the denomination the most effective work
was being done in building a truly Christian church as the center of com-

274 History of American Congregationalism

munity life; to study methods and materials being used to achieve this
result; and to make known to ministers everywhere both the materials and
the methods that had been found most effective.

The Christian Year

In the program announced by the Commission, tentative recognition
was given the Christian year. It was suggested to the churches that there
were certain values in the January-to-Easter period. The first year the
word Lent ot Lenten was not used, but the program was organized to be-
gin the first of January and come to a climax at Easter. The second year
the Commission went a step farther and used the words "Lenten season"
and certain publications were made available for that period. There were
mild protests over the use of Ash Wednesday. The Fellowship of Prayer
was issued in 1919 for use in Lent as an aid in building the devotional
spirit during these significant weeks. To avoid controversy the first issue
of this booklet began with the first Sunday in Lent, not with Ash Wednes-
day. The Commission felt that it was making a rather bold step forward
when in 1920 The Felloivship of Prayer began with Ash Wednesday. But
step by step the churches, with few exceptions, realized the unusual op-
portunities for a devotional program in Lent.

The Fellowship of Prayer

The Felloivship of Prayer was the first daily guide for devotions pub-
lished by a religious denomination. It soon reached a large circulation
being used in churches of many denominations. Separate editions were
provided for such organizations as the Federal Council of the Churches of
Christ in America, the National Council of the Y.M.C.A., the United
Church of Canada and others. Since then different denominations have
issued their own guides, but The Felloivship of Prayer, which has always
been non-denominational and broadly Christian, continues its wide cir-
culation year after year.

Along with the publication of The Fellowship of Prayer for the Lenten
season, the Commission on Evangelism developed a program for the cul-
ture of the prayer life. Its literature for private devotions and for public
church worship has had an increasingly nationwide circulation. Through
conferences and writings by leaders in this field, tlie whole denomination
has become worship-conscious. This growing interest in worship has led to
extension of the study of worship in the seminaries, to assist those prepar-
ing for the ministry to a better understanding of the principles and pur-
poses of worship. When the Commission began its study of worship there

Evangelism and Worship 275

were only a few books available in this field and these were more or less
concerned with details of the worship service rather than with principles
and purposes. So great has been the rising tide of interest in worship in
all denominations that in recent years there has been a steady stream of
books on worship.

VI
The Pastor's Class

The pastor's class for the preparation of young people for church
membership is another field in which this Commission pioneered. In
1919 the office of the Commission conducted a nationwide survey by
questionnaire to discover how many pastors in the denomination were
giving special attention to the preparation of their young people for
church membership in instruction classes. From this survey it was ap-
parent that there were very few. These pastors were pioneering in this
work unknown to one another, each man following his own method and
using material he himself had prepared. Dr. William Horace Day, chair-
man of the Commission, and Dr. Robert Elliott Brown, then pastor of
the Second Church, Waterbury, Connecticut, were among those who con-
ducted a pastor's class. They were asked to collaborate in an outline for
the instruction of young people in church membership in a pastor's
class, and A Brief Text Book for the Pastor's Class, written in catechetical
form, was the first publication of the Commission. From this small be-
ginning the pastor's class spread rapidly as a recognized part of the work
of the church, and was heartily endorsed by the Education Society. As
new text books develop in quality, more attention is being given to this
important feature of the church program. The movement is towards
more definite instruction— not that the church wishes to force an au-
thoritarian doctrine upon young people, but rather to present with some
fullness those truths of religion which are commonly accepted. A few
churches practice a regular confirmation service.

The Commission on Evangelism and Devotional Life has conducted
many institutes for pastors and published much material to aid in re-
cruiting new members, using as a basis those assurances of faith that have
come down through the ages and have been attested by acceptance and
value in the daily life. The purpose of its work is, as Dr. Bosworth early
stated, "Building men and women into an everlasting fellowship with
Jesus Christ, the leader and saviour of those who put their trust in him."

VII

The Advent Season

In 1935 the Commission's program was expanded by introduction of
the observance of the Advent Season. Lent as a time when the church

276 History of American Congregationalism

emphasized the development of faith and worship had proved so helpful
that now it seemed wise to put a like emphasis on the Advent Season that
people's hearts and minds could be prepared for a truly Christian ob-
servance of the coming of Christ into the world and that Christmas might
be protected from commercialism. Foundation for this observance was
laid by publishing "A Devotional Guide for Advent" and other material.

The latest feature of the program recommended by the Commission
on Evangelism and Devotional Life is participation with other denomina-
tions in the observance of World-Wide Communion Sunday, the first
Sunday of October. This observance began in 1938 and has become a
regular part of local church programs. Thus Christians of all denomina-
tions in all lands testify to their oneness in faith and discipleship, signal
testimony of the unity of Christians. This observance also serves in a very
fine way to emphasize the opening of the church year with a service
which is vital in the life of the church.

The work of evangelism and worship in churches today shows many
significant changes from practices of the earliest days. Those early
churches had a carefully restricted membership of highly moral and in-
trospective people who were strict disciplinarians. They were much given
to church trials, with resultant excommunication of those not meeting
their standards. They were in the grip of a Calvinistic theology and this
theology, although modified, was the dominating ideology for 200 years
and made the churches first of all custodians of Calvinism. Both their
theology and their discipline "softened" as years passed and changes
came rapidly in the period from 1840 to 1865. The churches were then
becoming conscious of their national responsibility to assist in making a
Christian nation, and they set themselves to meet the problems of a gieat
and expanding people. Religion was interpreted in terms of Christian
missions and the modified Calvinism of the past became practically a
tradition.

In the period from 1865 to 1910 changes in basic thought continued.
The publication of Dr. Henry Churchill King's Reconstruction in Theol-
ogy signalized the extent of the change. During these formative years a
thoroughly evangelistic mood became evident. This has made possible
the program of parish evangelism which follows the natural sequence of
the Christian year and gives great promise for development of more
effective work in the years to come.

VIII
Evangelism in the Council

Evangelism reached one peak in 1865. It came to a second peak in
the Council of 1919 with the organization of the Commission on Evan-

Evangelism and Worship 277

gelism and Devotional Life and the publication of A Program of Parish
Evangelism. It came to its fullest expression at the Council meeting held
in Berkeley in 1940, for that Council gave itself primarily to the deepen-
ing of the religious life through prayer and worship, led by the Minister
of the General Council, Rev. Douglas Horton.

At the Berkeley Council meeting in 1940, in addition to the services
of worship conducted by the chaplain, Rev. Theodore K. Vogler, pastor
of the Bryn Mawr Church of Chicago, there were communion services
for men and for women, evening prayers and morning prayers. The eve-
ning session of addresses on various themes were dispensed with, and
under a Board of Preachers" a service of worship and a sermon were pre-
sented each evening. The Council felt a deepening religious conscious-
ness. Thus the careful work that has been going on through the years
came to this high peak in Berkeley in 1940.

The changing attitude towards evangelism and worship in these years
can well be illustrated by the growth of the chaplaincy of the Council
and the introduction of the Council lectureship. From the very begin-
ning Council meetings have opened with a prayer and a hymn. Beginning
with the Council at Omaha in 1927, the devotional services were com-
mitted to the Commission on Evangelism and Devotional Life. A series
of devotional services was planned under the direction of a chaplain, and
Dr. Oscar E. Maurer, pastor of the Center Church, New Haven, served
as the first chaplain of the Council. Following introduction of the chap-
laincy by the Council, the state conferences, the local associations, and the
Mission Board meetings now appoint chaplains who are given adequate
opportunity for true worship services. The plan for the worship of the
Council under the leadership of a chaplain has been continued and ad-
ditional features have been added, making the Council meeting truly
worshipful.

These three distinct peaks in evangelism and worship are thus climac-
tic: the peak of 1865, with the acceptance of the plan of parochial
evangelism; that of 1919, with establishment of the Commission on
Evangelism and Devotional Life and adoption of the plan of parish
evangelism; and the high peak of 1940, when true and vital religion dom-
inated the Council from the opening session until the final closing hymn.

Worship and Hymnology

The final creation by the National Council of the Commission on
Evangelism and Devotional Life with which this chapter has so far con-
cluded is significant. Two great concerns of the religious life which have,
during long periods of church history, taken their independent ways

278 History of American Congregationalism

have thus finally in Congregationalist procedure been reassociated to the
manifest gain of both. Interpretations are always hazardous but this at-
tempt, officially, to recover for worship in Evangelical Protestantism the
values which it had largely lost in the Reformation is at least a recogni-
tion of the winning and converting power of worship and an endeavor to
secure for Congregational churthes a broader basis for the culture of the
spiritual life.

There has been, naturally, a considerable examination of worship
forms in the earlier narrative chapters of this history, but the authors
after consultation have felt that a relatively brief summary might be
added here even at the risk of some repetition, with a brief notation of
the historic sources of Calvinistic worship, with a particular though
equally brief consideration of the place of music and hymnology in
colonial and later worship. '°

There are many ways of classifying and describing religions, but they
come in the end to almost this: What do the worshippers of any religion
see, hear, do, and think about when "they go to church." The entire
action of the Protestant Reformation may be better understood by this
deceptively simple test than by the entire literature it created. The pro-
foundest differences between Catholicism and Protestantism are just this
for anyone to see and feel directly he goes through a church door— Sun-
day or week days. All the variants within Protestantism itself are equally
there to be seen and felt, Sundays and week days. If an historic cathedral
like Canterbury or Notre Dame or St. Peters could write its own auto-
biography, the sequent movements of the Christian centuries would all
be there.

For the purposes of this history, in any examination of Congrega-
tional worship the autobiography of the old Cathedral of Geneva, on its
hill above the lake and reached by narrow, winding streets, would be the
most significant. For there within its walls and in one long generation
Christian worship suffered its most far-reaching and dramatic recasting
and redirection. The Calvinistic Reformation decentralized inherited
worship and focused it upon a new center. A single sentence says it all:
The Pulpit displaced the altar, though that sentence needs a library to
interpret it. For Catholicism the sacraments had been— and continue to
be— the means of that communion with God, which is the essence of all
worship. Protestantism found its means of communion wath God in the
Word." The sermon, therefore, supplanted the mass.

JOThis resume as originally written by one of the authors was intended as a serai-
detached section of another chapter. 1 his explains a somewhat abrupt and retroactive
transition.

^^Christian Worship, edited by Nathaniel Micklem. Particularly chaps. 10 and 11, by
J. S. Whale and A. G. Matthews. '

Evangelism and Worship 279

The mass itself had almost a thousand creative years behind it and
for its support, seen and unseen, the whole structure of medieval society
—indeed of the whole medieval mind. Its administration had evoked
philosophies and theologies. It was maintained by an interlocking system
of sacerdotal authority. Its conduct was attended by majestic liturgical
sonorities of chanted Latinity in a multicolored and jewelled drama of
visible action in which every movement, every gesture had a symbolic
meaning. Cathedrals and churches had become the efflorescence in stone
and pictured glass of the worship they sheltered. Their walls echoed cease-
lessly prayer and praise. They were star-lit with candles, dim with in-
cense, and all this for so long that it seemed beyond the power of time to
reach or change. Then almost in a day it was gone in Geneva and there
was left only a preacher in a black gown, a pulpit— and the Bible.

To go to church in reformed Geneva was only to go to the sermon.
Farel called his Genevan liturgy, in a free translation, "how to behave
when the people are assembled to hear the Word of God." Participation
in public worship, Calvin said himself, was "to frequent the sermons."
Actually, he never reduced his services to any such bare-bones (he never
preached over a half hour either), and worked out a liturgy which even
now would be thought rather high church. ^^

Early English Congregationalism simplified even the Calvinistic

liturgy, would have nothing but the Word itself. For them the "written

Word of the Everlasting God" was the only rule of and for worship and the

devout must be on their guard against "the imaginations and devices of

men or the suggestions of Satan." Both their temper and their situation

thus constrained them. They had not even the barest of churches in

which to worship, nor a pulpit for the preacher to stand in. They were

compelled to elemental simplicities; they could worship only in spirit

and in a truth for which they pledged their very lives. Time and growth

brought fuller and patterned forms of worship. In the final New England

fusion of Puritanism and Congregationalism there were five main ele-

12 Calvin's position has of late been more carefully and justly examined, not only for
its form but for its historical sources. Farel, who laid the burden of Geneva upon
Calvin, had reduced reformed Genevan worship to a lesson and a sermon. Calvin had,
therefore, bare foundations upon which to build. It is now known that his liturgy goes
back to Bucer and Strasbourg. There was a thorough and carefully documented study
of this. L. R. Hill, in the Revue d'Histoire et de Philosophie Religieuses, published by
the Protestant Faculty of the University of Strasbourg, November-December, 1938.
Bucer translated and simplified the mass. It was to be followed by communion and
was, therefore, liturgically, a pre-communion service. (The worship offices. Whale main-
tains, were conducted by the minister from the table, the sermon from the pulpit.
Calvin, himself, wanted weekly communions but had to compromise on four observ-
ances a year, and said that "par regard pour les rigoristes genevois" he renounced the
absolution. Puritanism took all this over and modified it variously in its controversies
with Anglicanism, holding fast to one principle: there should be nothing in public
worship not enjoined and supported by the Word of God. The full development of all
this belongs specifically to the histories of Protestant worship.

28o History of American Congregationalism

ments in public worship.^' Prayer with thanksgiving, the reading of the
Scriptures, sound preaching, singing of Psalms, and receiving of the
sacraments. Solemn fastings and thanksgivings were marginal. Prayer of
course must be free, with no books. There would be no fixed lessons,
exposition was allowed and expected, the sermon must be unfettered,
and being unfettered, tended to usurp the whole service. The administra-
tion of the sacrament was occasional and marginal. All this has already
been seen in actual operation in the general course of this history, and its
variants are studies in themselves.

New England singing has furnished the specialist an inexhaustible
and fascinating field. Since only the Psalms could be sung, something
must be done to make them singable in verse and tune. Result: succes-
sive metrical versions of the Psalms of various and sometimes astonish-
ingly uncouth literary values. Sternhold and Hopkin's really noble ver-
sion served the English Church after the Refonnation, but the Separatist
and Puritans wanted Psalm books of their own. The Plymouth Pilgrims
took Henry Ainsworth's version with them. Massachusetts Bay doubted
whether the Psalms were veraciously translated in Sternhold and Hop-
kin's and achieved (the word is quite right) the Bay Psalm Book (now
a collector's treasure). There was no closed season, however, for Psalm
books and other versions followed, consequential or unconsequential.^^

Getting the Psalms sung was another matter. There would be few
books and the worshippers were not all able to read. Therefore, line
them out— let a leader announce a line and the Congregation sing it.
The final deliverance of the congregation from "lining" is a little epic
in itself. And tunes? There were only a few to begin with of a primitive
though moving quality, and most confusingly scored; and the more rigid
found, even in the use of such musical notation as there was, the menace
of popery. It would be difficult at best to carry any tune with a consistent
pitch when it all had to be begun over with every line. There was also
the important matter of getting the tune rightly pitched to begin with.
Pitch pipes began to be su'-reptitiously used— accompanied by alarums
and excursions.

The situation grew distressful and the ministers began to take it in
hand with decisive consequences. The first aid was to get those who could
sing together in one place in the sanctuary. This was done with extreme
caution, the singers were experimentally given the back pews. In 1756

13 For a compact and scholarly examination of the whole subject, see an address on
the "Congregational Idea of Worship" by VVilliston Walker before the Connecticut
Congregational Club, December 18, 1894.

"Alice Morse Earle, in The Sabbath in Puritan New Englarid, covers a wide field
here with a scholarship her bright touch adorns. As the strain between the colonies
and the crown increased the colonial divines began to dislike the deference to the King
in the British versions. Therefore, they made their own.

Evangelism and Worship 281

the Visible Saints in the Kittery (Maine) Church voted "that the peti-
tioners for a singing pew have liberty to sit in the hind seat but one, and
to move the hind seat three inches at their own cost." (Sprague's Annals.)
Occasionally the singers were given a front pew. Instrumental support
was gradually introduced against much opposition. The bass viol was
allowed when the violin was forbidden. Puritanism had destroyed most
of the organs in the old English churches. There would be none in New
England churches. The first "pair of organs" were sent to America in
1713. Thomas Brattle gave them to the Boston Brattle Street Church.
The church voted to refuse the gift. King's Chapel accepted them, but
hesitated to unpack them. Organs came slowly into use during the first
quarter of the Nineteenth Century.

Meanwhile English Protestant hymnology began its great course, and
the Psalms were supplemented by "Pious Songs derived from the Scrip-
tures by Dr. Watts and others." Colonial architecture made it difficult
to place the organ in buildings where there was no means of egress for
the minister in any extremity save by the front doors. The back gallery
was most convenient and beginning to be empty, so the organ and the
choir went up the back stairs. ^^ Later highly experimental church archi-
tecture put the organ and the choir in the front corners, on shelves above
the pulpit— anywhere the architect fancied. A period of paid quartettes
followed. The more prosperous churches made generous appropriations
for their music, spoke proudly of it, began to depend upon it to attract
congregations, especially to their evening services. Occasionally the "quar-
tette" was more famous— locally— than the minister. The anthem began to
be cultivated and a noble development of church music put a wealth of
material at the services of the churches. For all that, Protestant worship
toward 1900 was too easily "assembled." There was no controlling prin-
ciple of integration and the service was "enriched" rather than unified.

The last phase of Congiegational worship contemporary with the
date of this history is too familiar to need detailed treatment. Vested
choirs and gowned ministers are the rule rather than the exception.
Prayers are increasingly "read" and litanies begin to be said. Hymn books
are creatively edited and draw their content, both of hymn and music,
from wide sources. The Communion table begins to simulate an altar;
Candles are lighted again and the Cross reflects their light. For all that,
the ancient freedoms are maintained. Congregationalism still worships
in spirit and in truth.

No study of Congregational worship would be complete without some
consideration of the distinctive contributions of Congregationalists them-
selves to hymnology, and when an important contribution to a little
i^So late as 1892 the congregation in Jaffrey, New Hampshire, turned around to sing.

282 History of American Congregationalism

considered aspect of American Congregationalism is made by a highly
accredited authority— himself a musician— in a compact form, it is both
courtesy and economy of effort to let that authority speak directly. We
are, therefore, incorporating here a study of Congregational contribu-
tions to hymns and hymnology made by Professor Henry Hallam Tweedy
of Yale Divinity School at the request of the authors. It is only skeletal—
that was the request— but its compactness is part of its virtue and Dr.
Tweedy's sources are included for the benefit of any who might care to
make their own studies.

"Here," Dr. Tweedy wrote, "are the results of my search thus far;
and as you plan to give only a page or two to the subject, I wonder
whether these are not sufficient for your purpose. I need hardly say that
this is miles away from an exhaustive study— exhaustive for the investi-
gator as well as for the investigations— nor have you asked for it. I have,
however, used the following books: Ninde, The Story of the American
Hymn; Brown and Butterworth, The Story of the Hymns and Tunes;
Robinson, Annotations Upon Popular Hymns; Hatfield, The Poets of
the Church; Louis F. Benson; Stories of the Hymns. (2 Vol.); Our
Hymnody— Companion Volume to the New Methodist Hymnal; Hand-
book to the Hymnal— Companion Volume to the Presbyterian Hymnal;
John B. Pratt, Present Day Hymns; Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology.
There were also several other lesser volumes from which I gathered
either a scant harvest or none at all.

"As for hymnals I consulted the following: The Pilgrim Hymnal;
The Hymnal— Presbyterian; Hymns of the Christian Life; the Methodist
Hymnal; The Student Hymnary; The New Church Hymnal; Christian
Worship and Praise.

"I have found very few names during the early years of our histoi-y.
Our forefathers were entirely content to sing only 'inspired words,' even
though those metrical versions of the Psalms were for the most part ut-
terly devoid of any poetic inspiration and it was a long time before they
were heretical and daring enough to attempt any compositions of their
own. However, the editions by Englishmen— Tate and Brady, for example
—wrought into their translations such direct reference to the British
Empire and the King that some of our good Congregationalists brought
out editions from which these offensive passages were omitted. As for
collections of hymns, Ninde recounts the story of several:

Hartford Collection of Hymns, by Nathan Strong, minister of The
First Church in Hartford; page 107.

Dr. Samuel Worcester edited another collection in 1815; page 111.

Village Hymns, by Asahel Nettleton, in 1824; P^ge ii4-

"I have found no hymns written by these men themselves, though I

Evangelism and Worship 283

must confess that I have not searched very hard for them. Before their
time Joel Barlow, another good Congregationalist, brought out a version
of Watt's "Hymns and Spiritual Songs" in 1785 (see Ninde, page 31 ff.),
while Timothy Dwight gave the churches another. In recalling these it
may be interesting to mention some modern Congregational editors who
brought out the Pilgrim Hymnal and others:

Edward Dwight Eaton: The Hymnal of Praise; The Student Hymnary.

Milton S. Littlefield: Hymns of the Christian Life.

Henry H. Tweedy: Christian Worship and Praise.

Dr. Dawson's American Hymnal— he was a Congregationalist— must
be credited to an Englishman, I suppose."

LIST OF HYMNS i«

(Where no abbreviations are cited the Pilgrim Hymnal is indicated)

Hymnals consulted, with abbreviations

C. W. P. Christian Worship and Praise.

H. The Hymnal (Pres.).

H. C. L. Hymns of the Christian Life.

M. H. Methodist Hymnal.

P. Pilgrim Hymnal.

S. H. The Student Hymnary.

N. C. H. The New Church Hymnal.

Leonard Bacon

O God, Beneath Thy Guiding Hand. Page 347.

William G. Ballantine

God Save America. Page 360.

Katharine Lee Bates

Dear God, Our Father, at Thy Knee Confessing. M. H. 361.
O Beautiful for Spacious Skies. Page 350.
The Kings of the East are Riding. M. H. 101.

Ferdinand Q. Blanchard

Before the Cross of Jesus. Page 194.

O Child of Lowly Manger Birth. C. W. P. 299.

John W. Buckham

O God Above the Drifting Years. Page 342.

William M. Crane

Dear Lord, Who Dwellest with Us Now. H. C. L. 365.
Lord Jesus, Son of Mary. C. W. P. 298.

16 All the readers of this history will join with the authors in their gratitude to Pro-
fessor Tweedy.

284 History of American Congregationalism

Allen Eastman Cross

As Stars Come With the Night They Come. S. H. 309.

What Doth the Lord Require of Thee. N. C. H. 326.

Jesus, Kneel Beside Me. C. W. P. 345.

America, America, the Shouts of War Shall Cease. Page 453.

Though Fatherland Be Vast and Fair. C. W. P. 568.

Mount Up with Wings as Eagles. C. W. P. 670.

More Light Shall Break from out Thy Word. H. C. L. 395.

Guide of My Spirit. S. H. 222.

OzoRA Stearns Davis

At Length There Dawns the Glorious Day. Page 390.
We Bear the Strain of Earthly Care. Page 312.

Henry M. Dexter

Shepherd of Eager Youth. Page 471.

(He translated hymn, probably by Clement of Alexandria, abbreviating
and altering it) .

Charles A. Dickinson

Blessed Master, I Have Promised. M. H. 244.

William E. Dudley

Dear God of Life, the Truth, the Way. Page 290.
The City, Lord, Where Thy Dear Life. Page 341.

Timothy Dwight

How Pleasing Is Thy Voice. S. H. 384.
I Love Thy Kingdom, Lord. Page 404.

James G. Gilkey

Outside the Holy City. C. W. P. 311.

O God, in Whose Great Purpose. S. H. 317. •

Washington Gladden

Behold a Sower, from Afar. Page 422.

O Lord of Life, to Thee We Lift. N. C. H. 192.

O Master, Let Me Walk with Thee. Page 291.

S. Ralph Harlow

O Young and Fearless Prophet. C. W. P. 516.

Hugh Hartshorne

Come, Ye Thankful People Come. Page 454.

(Merely made alterations and arranged. Hymn is by Henry Alford) .

William DeWitt Hyde

Creation's Lord, We Give Thee Thanks. Page 316.

Shepherd Knapp

Dear God, the Sun Whose Light is Sweet. S. H. 333.
Lord God of Hosts, Whose Purpose. Page 365.

Evangelism afid Worship 285

William Allan Knight

Come, My Heart, Can'st Thou Not Hear It. Page 77.

Theodore B. Lathrop

On This Glad Day We Dedicate. Page 443.

Ernest F. McGregor

Before the Cross of Jesus I Bow In Reverent Awe. Page 135.
O Blessed Day of Motherhood. C. W. P. 614.
Lift High the Triumph Song Today. M. H. 131.

Daniel March

Hark, the Voice of Jesus Calling. Page 504.

(Ninde, Story of the American Hymn. Page 363) .

Lowell Mason, Composer

For list of tunes see Methodist Hymnal, Index. Page 680.

Irving Maurer

Father, In Need of Thee I Pray. Page 414.

O God, Hear Thou the Nation's Prayer. Page 344.

O God, We Pray for Faithful Wills. S. H. 238.

Oscar E. Maurer

Brother Man, Awake. Page 311.
The Son of God, the Prince of Peace. S. H. 252.
(Mrs. Maurer shared in this) .

Charles S. Mills

Lord, Thou Hast Known Our Joy. Page 440.

Harriet O. Munger

O My Father, I Would Know Thee. H. 395.

Alice Freeman Palmer

How Sweet and Silent Is the Place. Page 416.

Ray Palmer

Come, Holy Ghost, in Love. M. H. 176.

(Founded on Veni, Sancte Spiritus) .
Jesus, These Eyes Have Never Seen. Page 217.
Take Me, O My Father Take Me. C. W. P. 350.
My Faith Looks Up to Thee. Page 498.
Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts. Page 415.

(Translated and Arranged from Latin Hymn) .

J. Edgar Park

O, Jesus, Thou Wast Tempted. Page 107.
We Would See Jesus. C. W. P. 305.

286 History of American Congregationalism

Edwin P. Parker

Come to Jesus, Ye Who Labor. C. W. P. 346.
Hail, Holy Light! The World Rejoices. Page 40.
Lord, As We Thy Name Profess. Page 269.
Master, No Offering. Page 334.

RossiTER W. Raymond

Far Out on the Desolate Billow. Page 208.

Margaret E. Sangster

O Christ, Forget Not Them Who Stand. H. 387.

Ernest W. Shurtleff

Lead On, O King Eternal. Page 251.

Jay T. Stocking

O Master Workman of the Race. Page 328.

Harriet Beecher Stowe

Abide in Me, O Lord. H. C. L. 236.

Still, Still with Thee. Page 50.

When Winds Are Raging. C. W. P. 390.

William B. Tappan

'Tis Midnight; and on Olive's Brow. M. H. 133.
(Ninde, page 143) .

Lucius H. Thayer

The Church of God Is Stablished. Page 392.

Henry H. Tweedy

All Ye Who Love the Lord Draw Near. C. W. P. 173.

Eternal God, Whose Power Upholds. Page 368.

O Gracious Father of Mankind. Page 229.

O Holy Spirit, Making Whole. C. W. P. 264.

O Spirit of the Living God. M. H. 182.

Lord of Starry Vasts Unknown. C. W. P. 354.

True Lovers of Mankind. C. W. P. 520.

Samuel Wolcott

Christ for the World We Sing. Page 369.

Very early writers

Mather Byles, born 1706. (See Ninde, page 49) .
Samuel Occam, born 1723. (See Ninde, page 52) .

For a bibliography, see "Our Hymnody," the companion volume to the new
Presbyterian Hymnal, page 585.

CHAPTER XVIII

Later Development of Congregationalism

There are two principles in our polity. One is the entire completeness
of each local church for its own government; and the other is the
principle which relates to all those duties and privileges which grow
out of the relation of one church to another. Everything that conforms
to those two principles, everything consistent with them, is good
Congregationalism; everything opposed to either of them is bad Con-
gregationalism.

Alonzo H. Quint

CONGREGATIONALISTS from the beginning have looked upon
the Bible as the source not only of belief but also of the basic
principles of the organization and work of the churches. It was
early stated and emphasized that neither the local church nor any
group of churches was ever given any right to legislate. Basic legisla-
tion was to be found in the Scriptures and the church's task was that of
administration.

The relationship of the Lollards and Wycliffe and the Waldensians
to the beginnings of Congregationalism has been presented in earlier
chapters. It should be mentioned that "Francis Lambert had, indeed, as
early as 1526, proposed a Congregational system for the Hessian churches,
and a synod, called by his patron, Philip the Landgrave, to consider the
plan, had heartily endorsed it. But upon the advice of Luther, who seems
to have thought it right in theory but, for the time being, impracticable,
it was postponed till a more convenient season, and never revived."^

Although the leaders of the early New England churches profited by
the writings of Richard Hooker, Barrowe, Greenwood and many others,
they were pioneers and their main purpose was to develop a church or-
ganization which would have all the advantages of Separatism with none
of its disadvantages and would have in it some of the elements of stability
which characterized Presbyterianism without the danger of an aristocracy,
which to their minds Presbyterians tended to support. Hence Cotton and
Hooker developed what was then called the "middle way" between In-
dependency and Presbyterianism and their writings were published in
England and extensively read (in both England and New England).

^Huntington, Oulluies of Congregational History, p. 43.

287

288 History of American Congregationalism

The Way of the Churches

Congiegationalism was spoken of in old England as the "way of the
New England brethren." Many of the records of those early years are
lost and we are not able to discover whether the word "Congregational"
was first used in America or in England, but it is quite evident that the
Congregational system originated in America and that the English
churches, first as Separatist and then Independent, did not acquire a de-
nominational plan of organization until long after such a plan was work-
ing in America. The slowness of the development of English Congrega-
tionalism will be noted later in the section on ordination.

The foundation principles of Congiegationalism which dominated the
thought of the great majority of churches were clearly stated in the de-
bate held in the Council of 1865. The Cambridge Platforai adopted in
1648 was the result of only a few years of practice in America, where the
churches had been free to develop their own systems of church govern-
ment. The men participating in that Synod, as far as we know, were all
English-educated, and there were only a handful of them. Yet the Church
which they planned was far different from the Separatist churches they
had known in England. Although certain sections of the Platform never
came into universal use (for example, the section on ruling elders), yet
the principles of a fellowship of autonomous churches were there and
were so clear that they guided the churches for two hundred years. Two
principles, the autonomy of the local church and the necessity of fellow-
ship of the churches, did not receive equal attention in Massachusetts
and in Connecticut. In Massachusetts emphasis was placed on the first
principle, autonomy, and this has continued through the years; while
the Connecticut churches, especially after the Saybrook Synod of 1708
with the introduction of the consociation idea, placed more and more
emphasis upon the second principle, that of fellowship, and sought to
implement that principle in their group activities through the consocia-
tion of ministers.

II
The 1865 Statement

In preparation for the 1865 Council, the presentation of a statement
on church polity was assigned to a committee of three: Rev. Leonard
Bacon, pastor of the Center Church, New Haven; Rev. Alonzo Quint,
pastor of the church at New Bedford and later a recognized authority on
Congregational usage; and Rev. Richard S. Storrs, pastor of the church in
Cincinnati, later of Brooklyn. Dr. Storrs was absent and the report on
polity was written by the venerable Leonard Bacon. It covers thirty-one

Later Development of Congregationalism 289

closely printed pages, and was printed in advance. When the time came
for presentation of the report, a delegate suggested that they proceed to
discussion of it as printed and in the hands of the delegates. Thereupon
Dr. Bacon said, "My impression upon that subject is that the report
ought to be heard by the hearing of the ear, and then it should be dis-
tributed so that every member of the Council could read it through at
his ease and get access to it through another medium." This notable re-
port covers a study of the origin and development of Congregational
polity from its very beginning. It emphasized that the difference between
church polities (as Episcopalianism, etc.) could be noticed not so much
from the study of the principles as by tracing the application of those
principles in the organization of society. If they were to come to an under-
standing of Congregational polity, it was necessary that the application of
these principles should be traced in the expanding life of the churches.
The committee argued that a statement of polity in Congregationalism
was altogether different from the canons established by other religious
bodies. It insisted that all a Council could do was "to inquire, to de-
liberate and to testify," but that the testimony of such a group of Con-
gregationalists as were then assembled, representing "all those Congrega-
tional churches in the United States which are in recognized fellowship
and cooperation through the General Associations, Conferences and
Conventions in the several states," would have both interest and value
to the churches as testimony but in no sense as law.

The report defined the church as "that Association of believers for
united worship and spiritual communion, in order to the visibility, the
purity, the advancement, and the perpetuity of Christ's kingdom, which
God has prescribed by the teaching of the Holy Spirit in the Scrip-
tures. . . . Under the Gospel, the organized church is a congregation of
faithful or believing men, dwelling together in one city, town, or con-
venient neighborhood."^

This is perhaps the best statement of the fundamental ideas of a Con-
gregational church to be found in our literature. Dr. Bacon said that the
study of the Cambridge Platform was of interest primarily because it
showed how little the churches had departed from the principles of their
fathers in the 200 years that had elapsed since its adoption. It should be
noted that the churches have changed very little in principles and
methods in the years since 1865.

There have been changes. Congregationalism is not a static order but
a live and growing thing. It roots deep in the past, but its growth is af-
fected by the atmosphere and environment of the times and by the chang-
ing emphases on various aspects of the Gospel. As the understanding of

^Minutes of the National Council, i86$, p. 105.

2 go History of American Congregationalism

theological truths broadens and deepens, so does the polity of the church-
es reflect this growth.

On the doctrine of the Church, this report states:

1. Church power, under Christ, resides primarily not in the officers of the
church, nor in any priesthood or clergy, but in the Church;

2. Church power is not legislative, but only administrative. It extends no
further than to declare and apply the law of Christ. As no church may lawfully
add anything to the sum of Christian doctrine, or take anything therefrom; so
no church may lawfully add anything to, or take anything from, the rules of
Christian living, and the conditions of Christian fellowship, which the Scrip-
tures prescribe." 3

After the report had been presented to the Council by the committee
on organization, it was referred to a new committee for study and report
at a later session. Eleven of the twelve on this committee reported that
the task assigned was too much to accomplish in the short period at their
disposal. They did not disagree with the fundamental principles; they
found the Quint-Bacon report "a generally correct statement of the prin-
ciples of Congregational polity . . . well correlated for use in our churches
and for insertion in our church manuals." They realized that whatever
might be adopted by the Council in the langtxage of Richard Mather of
the first generation, "hath so much force as there is force in the reason
of it,"^ but they did not want this statement adopted by the Council as
presented by Bacon and Quint. They proposed that a general committee
of twenty-five be appointed by this Council, of which Quint and Bacon
would be members, to expand the report and include explanatory mate-
rial to clarify some questions now in the minds of this special committee.

A very illuminating minority report was also presented by Rev. Joshua
Leavitt of New York, who insisted that the report of Bacon and Quint
looked too much to the past, described what had been and was then the
practice of the churches, while the present need was a chart for the future.
Dr. Leavitt urged the Congregational ists to adopt a platform which
would draw all Christian churches into a fellowship as one great ecumen-
ical brotherhood. He said, "Let us now realize our opportunity, raise our-
selves up to the height of our privilege, look beyond the narrow field of
denominational aggrandizement, and see what we can do in giving to the
great fundamental principles of Congregationalism the influence they de-
serve, and which the interests both of religion and of the country so
perilously need."^ He also felt that churches should be propagandists for
the polity they believed and should abandon the traditional church atti-

^Minutes of the National Council, iS6^, p. io8.

4R. Mather, Church-Government and Church-Covenant Discussed, p. 62.

^Minutes of the National Council, 186^, p. 435.

Later Development of Congregationalism 291

tude, "We have something that we enjoy; you are welcome to it, if you
want it, but we will not urge it upon you." He urged that "it is our duty
now to assume the sufficiency of our ecclesiastical system by boldly com-
mending it to others as tried and trustworthy; to commend our way to
the confidence of others by writing as if we believed it ourselves; to spend
as little time or strength as possible in the indulgence of cavils and fears;
and, in the assurance that we are right, to go forward in the most unre-
served manner to give the widest influence to our principles, and aim to
secure at the earliest period the universal adoption of our ecclesiastical
order by all churches of every name and diversity that have a right to be
called Christians."^

A debate ensued which enlisted the authors of the original report and
many other men of independent mind and of great individual power and
leadership. In the annals of our church there is nothing more illuminat-
ing than the twenty-five pages of verbatim report of this debate. Surely
nothing more could be said as to the origin of Congregational order— its
strength and its weaknesses, its handicaps and its freedoms. They went
back to the very beginnings for, as Dr. Quint said, "a little spice of an-
tiquity will not hurt us." The purpose of the Council was summarized:

Why then, we must still ask, do we need a platform of discipline, emanating
from this National Council, and the product of its combined wisdom? It is
that the polity which now exists may be distinctly enunciated, with all the modi-
fications which an experience of more than two centuries can give. More than
all, it is that the polity which is so abhorrent of the letter which killeth, and so
instinct with the spirit which giveth life; the polity which is so tolerant of
minute variation, and so flexible in its practical details, may yet live in its great
principles. ''

Under the various heads, the report may be summarized as follows:

1. Ecclesiastical polity, or church government, is that form and order which
is to be observed in the Church of Christ.

2. The Holy Scriptures are the sufficient, exclusive, and obligatory rule of
ecclesiastical polity. Church powers, therefore, are only administrative, not
legislative.

3. For government, there is no one visible, universal church; nor are there
national, provincial, diocesan or classical churches; but only local churches, or
congregations of believers, and responsible directly to the Lord Jesus Christ,
the one head of the Church universal, and of every particular church.

4. Each local church is complete in itself, and has all powers requisite for
its own government and discipline. But all churches, being in communion one
with another, have such mutual duties as grow out of the obligations of fellow-
ship.

5. Although churches are distinct and equal, yet they ought to preserve
fellowship one with another, being all united to Christ, their head.

^Minutes of the National Council, i86^, p. 436.
''Minutes of the National Council, 186^, p. 441,

202 History of American Congregationalism

6. When a company of believers propose to unite in a distinct church, it is
requisite that they ask the advice and help of neighboring churches; particularly
that those churches, being satisfied with their faith and order, may extend to
them the hand of fellowship.

7. Fellowship should be withdrawn from any church which is untrue to
sound doctrine, either by renouncing the faith or continuing to hear a teacher
declared by council to be heretical; or which gives pubhc scandal to the cause
of Christ, or which wilfully persists in acts which break fellowship. When one
church finds such acts in another, it should admonish, and, if that fail, invite
a council to examine the alleged offense.

8. When ordination of a pastor is to be performed, the Church in which he
is to bear office invites a council to examine as to faith, grace, and ability, that,
if he be approved, they may extend the hand of fellowship. If the ordination
be in view of any other sphere of labor, the request for a council ought to come
from the church of which he is a member.

9. In case a pastor offend in such a way that he should no longer be recog-
nized as a minister, the church should request a council to examine the charges,
and if it find cause, to withdraw all fellowship from him, so that his ministerial
standing shall cease to be recognized.

10. Associations of ministers are useful for mutual sympathy and improve-
ment. They can exercise no sort of authority over churches or persons, save to
prescribe the rights and duties of their own membership. But common consent
has recognized that their examination of candidates for introduction to the
churches is a wise safeguard.*

Ill

The Proposed Manual

The committee of twenty-five was composed of one representative
from each of seven seminaries, pastors and laymen representing different
sections of the country. The plan was that this committee by correspond-
ence and otherwise would complete the report and print it, not as a state-
ment adopted by the Council but as a statement approved by those
signing it. When the National Council was formally organized with a
constitution six years later, in 1871, the question arose as to what had
happened to this report and it was announced that it was still in prepara-
tion, and it was voted: "That the committee appointed by the Council
of 1865, on a declaration of church polity, be urged to complete their
work as speedily as possible."^ This 1871 Council also voted for prepa-
ration of a manual for the churches based on the statement of this com-
mittee. But neither statement nor manual was prepared and it was not
until 1892, twenty-one years later, that question of the need of a manual
again arose. At that time the Council appointed a committee of seven to
prepare a manual and to report at the next meeting. In 1895 the com-
mittee presented a manual following the pattern set by the 1865 Council.

^Minutes of the National Council, iS6^, pp. 129-133.
^Minutes of the National Council, i8yi, p. 41.

Later Development of Congregationalism 293

The Council did not adopt this manual but authorized the committee
to have it printed, with an introduction signed by the members of the
committee, and to offer it to the churches as the testimony of these indi-
viduals. Interestingly enough, the chairman of this committee was Dr.
Quint who, as a young man thirty years before, had assisted the Rev.
Leonard Bacon in preparing the report on polity, which, in final form,
never saw the light of day.

The development of Congregational polity may be traced from the
Cambridge Synod, with its Platform in 1648, the Reforming Synod sup-
plementing this in 1668, and the Saybrook Synod emphasizing its interest
in the consociation idea in 1708, to a peak in the Council of 1865. We
have only the records of the proposals and the debate, but from these
records the development is seen.

The vote of the Council of 1895, authorizing publication of a manual,
was framed in these words: "The manual is to be signed by the members
of the committee and by such other persons as may be joined in consulta-
tion and will carry, it is hoped, such weight as may be found in character,
learning and practical wisdom of the brethren whose names should be
thus appended."^'' By this vote the Council dissociated itself from the
publication of a manual lest the churches feel that this joint "testimony"
was legislation being imposed upon them.

This fear of legislation grew out of the problems of the earliest col-
onists, who were faced with the question whether or not they should use
English laws. They had left England to escape some of these harsher laws
and so they took what appeared to them as a higher law, namely, the law
of the Scriptures. In so doing, they felt in good conscience that they were
not rebelling against the laws of England but were placing themselves
under the fundamental laws of the Bible.

The Manual Published

The publication of the manual prepared by the Quint committee,
which had been submitted to the Council of 1895, received tacit approval,
in spite of a desire of the members to dissociate themselves, for it was
printed in full in the minutes of that Council. It was published the next
year and continued as the standard guide until 1907.

The Polity Committee

When the Council again turned its attention to polity it was to formu-
late answers to questions which had been received by the Polity Com-

^^Minutes of the National Cou?icil, i8p$, p. 27.

294 History of American Congregationalism

mittee. The Kansas City Council of 1913 which adopted the revised con-
stitution included in its vote the acceptance of the following brief
statement of polity: "We believe in the freedom and responsibility of the
individual soul, and the right of private judgment. We hold to the au-
tonomy of the local church and its independence of all ecclesiastical con-
trol. We cherish the fellowship of the churches, united in district, state,
and national bodies, for counsel and cooperation in matters of common
concern.""

In 1931, the year of the merger between the Congregational National
Council and the Christian General Convention, notice was taken of di-
vergent practices in the Christian churches, and in the Council of 1940
further attention was given to the status of ministers.

VI
Summary of Polity Development

In viewing the development of polity in our churches over a long
range of years, we find that interest manifested in the Cambridge Synod,
the two Massachusetts Synods of 1662 and 1680, and the Saybrook Synod
in 1708 continued within the main lines stated by these bodies until the
Council of 1865. While polity was one of the most interesting topics
under discussion, no statement resulted. A widening interest was created,
however, and the search for a common statement continued until twenty-
five years later, so long was the period of incubation.

John Robinson in his writings had said:

And for the gathering o£ a church I do tell you that in what plan soever,
whether by preaching the Gospel by a true minister, by a false minister, by no
minister, or by reading and conference, or by any other means of publishing it,
two or three faithful people do arise, separating themselves from the world,
into the fellowship of the Gospel, they are a church truly gathered, though never
so weak.

When it came to organizing the churches in the colonies there were
always more than "two or three." They had observed "that a rule of
church discipline in the eighteenth chapter of Matthew cannot well be
reduced into practice by any number under seven." '^

VII
The Organization of a Church

One of the earliest records of the organization of a church is that of
the church at New Haven where seven men were selected as the founders
of the colony by vote of those who wished to become covenanted mem-

^^ Minutes of the National Council, 191^, p. 341.

12c. Mather, Ratio Disciplinae Fratrutn Nov-Anglorum.

Later Development of Congregationalism 295

ben of the church when established. These seven having covenanted to-
gether chose John Davenport to be pastor and Thomas Hooker to be
teacher.

Then, by vote, this original group of seven admitted others to the
covenant. John Davenport was a man of great character and distinction.
The ill-fated ship which sailed from New Haven in January, 1637, in a
first commercial venture with old England, carried the manuscript of
Davenport's book. The Power of Congregational Churches. This ship
was lost. This was one of the earliest known uses of the term "Con-
gregational." The ship also carried Hooker's A Survey of the Summe of
Church-Discipline. Both manuscripts were rewritten and published later.
The spirit of Davenport is illustrated by the oft-quoted sentences: "If we
build God's house, God will build our house. While we are attending to
our duty, God will be providing for our safety." ^^

The covenant of the early churches was usually brief. For example,
the covenant of the second church founded in New England, the church
at Salem, contained only one sentence: "We Covenant with the Lord
and one with another; and doe bynd our selves in the presence of God,
to walke together in all his waies, according as he is pleased to reveale
himself unto us in his blessed word of truth."

The "Congregational Way" came into being providing for establish-
ment of a church with the cooperation of a council representing neigh-
boring churches. "Not that they claim an entire independency with re-
gard to other churches; for they agree that in all cases of offence, the
offending is to submit to an open examination by other neighbor church-
es; and, on their persisting in their error or miscarriage, then they are to
renounce all Christian communion with them, till they repent; which is
all the authority or ecclesiastical power which one church has over an-
other. This they call a middle way between Browneism and Presbytery." ^^
This spirit of fellowship grew and was evidenced in the founding of new
churches. The method can be illustrated by quoting a "letter missive,"
dated January 22, 1829, from a group desiring to form a Congregational
church. This letter was sent out signed by the moderator and scribe of
the group desiring to be organized as a church. The main part of the

letter reads: "To the Congregational Church in L . Greeting.

The undersigned, being, some of them, members of separate and distant
churches, and all of them hoping to live as the renewed and humble fol-
lowers of our Lord Jesus Christ, ask leave respectfully to represent, that

there is no Congregational church in the town of N , where

they reside. . . . Accordingly, after much consideration and prayer, they

i^Bacon, Thirteen Historical Discourses, p. 150.
i^Neal, History of the Puritans, p. 492.

296 History of American Congregationalism

esteem it to be a duty, and are desirous to be gathered into a new church,
according to authorized and scriptural order. . . ."'^ This was followed
by information as to time and place.

In the 1865 Council there seemed to be perfect agreement as to the
method of founding a church and the nature of the church. As stated by
Leonard Bacon, the prevailing ideas were: "A church is made simply by
the members of it agreeing— expressly or impliedly agreeing— to walk to-
gether in one assembly, under the rules of the New Testament, trusting
in Christ, doing his work together, helping one another, administering
the Word and the sacraments. We hold that. Do we also hold the com-
munion of churches? ... if a church, falling back on its reserved rights,
its extreme powers, says: 'We will have nothing to do with other churches,
we will elect whom we please to be our minister and we will turn him
away when we please,' we say, 'Very well, only you don't ride in our troop,
that's all.' "^^

The churches were not averse to pronouncing this polite form of ban-
ishment. The ancient records of the old associations and conference meet-
ings show that more than half the sessions was given to a discussion of
discipline and the dis-fellowshipping of churches and individuals. No
noteworthy change has taken place in this usage except the abandonment
by an increasing number of churches of the so-called dual organization
of Church and Society.

In colonial days the church was a part of the town organization and
its field of service was the town. When a second church became necessary,
it was located at a distance from the first church in order to serve people
in its vicinity and the town was divided into two sections as parishes. In
many of the early towns the title to church property rested with the town
and the voters determined its financial policy. When the church was dis-
established, or no longer part of the town organization but a free and
independent group in the community, it was not given the right of in-
corporation. Therefore, not being a "body corporate" but being a "body
religious," it had no legal or financial standing. Those who had been
supporters of the church under the old parish or town system usually
organized as the "Society." This could be legally incorporated, and could
hold property. Many persons belonged to both the church and the soci-
ety. There were often leading citizens without too active a part in the
religious work who had a benevolent attitude towards the church, and
who insisted that the society maintain its separate identity. The relation-
ship between the two bodies was usually on a cordial, cooperative basis
and each group knew the metes and bounds of its own jurisdiction.

isUpham (editor), Ratio Disciplinae, or the Covslilulioii of the Cojigregational
Churches, pp. 63-64.

^'^Minutcs of the Nalioiial Council, iS6^, pp. 452, 455.

Later Development of Congregationalism 297

As the number of "friendly citizens" decreased, the churches found
that the society was almost exclusively made up of members of the church
acting in a dual role. To avoid such duplication, the society united with
the church which, under modern laws, is competent to become incor-
porated and thus hold title to property and funds. There are, however,
throughout the East a few churches still maintaining a dual organization
both for sentiment and for practical reasons. In this way they bring into
relationship with the church those who, because of reticence or reluctance
to assume church vows, would, if the society were abandoned, lose offi-
cial touch with the church.

VIII
Church Officers

From the first, church members had the duty of electing officers, which
were usually the pastor, the teacher, the elders, and the deacons. The
elders had somewhat the responsibility of the present trustees, although
the deacons in the early churches were responsible for collection of funds
and one usually served as treasurer. Soon the election of elders fell into
disuse. Later the churches discovered that the election of two men, the
pastor and the teacher, with practically the same requirements and duties,
was unnecessary. "The pastor's special work is to attend to exhortation,
and therein to administer a word of wisdom; the teacher is to attend to
doctrine, and therein to administer a word of knowledge; and either of
them to administer the seals of that covenant unto the dispensation
whereof they are alike called; and also to execute the censures, being but
a kind of application of the word: the preaching of which, together with
the application thereof, they are alike charged withall."^^

Once a month, as now, the Lord's supper was celebrated at the close of the
morning service, in precisely the same forms which we observe, the pastor,
teacher and ruling elder sitting together at the communion table. One of the
ministers performed the first part of the service, and the other the last, the order
in which they officiated being reversed at each communion.

The assembly convened again for the exercises of the afternoon at about
two o'clock; and the pastor, having commenced as in the morning with prayer,
and a psalm having been sung as before, another prayer was offered by the
teacher, who then preached, as the pastor did in the morning, and prayed
again. ^*

The usual custom was that the teacher would conduct the service one
Sunday and offer the prayer, and the pastor would preach. At the next
service the duties would be reversed. The ordinary officers in the church
today are pastor, deacons, clerk, treasurer, and trustees. The one change

^''Cambridge Platform.

18 Bacon, Thirteen Historical Discourses, p. 45.

298 History of American Congregationalism

made in recent years has been in electing deacons for a term of years
rather than for life, as was the custom in the early churches.

Church Membership

The early churches maintained a high quality of church membership,
and the examination was a serious transaction from which no one was
excused. When the eminent John Cotton came to Boston and wzis to be
received into the membership of the First Church, the church ofi&cials
proceeded to examine him as to his religious faith and practice, exactly
as they would any other person. The earliest churches, as stated in Cot-
ton's and Hooker's writings, looked upon the members of the church as
"saints, by calling." For example. Cotton in his Holiness of Church Mem-
bers says: "The church . . . cannot lawfully receive members . . . but such
as are, in a charitable discretion, esteemed saints by calling." The church
considered that those received into membership had reached a high state
in personal experience in religion. The examination of women, however,
was not usually held in public but one of the officers of the church was
delegated to present the testimony of the woman who applied for mem-
bership or it was submitted in writing.

After the first few years very few people coming to the corajnunity
could satisfy the requirements, and the custom grew that the "weakest
measure of faith was to be accepted." In his great convention sermon
President Stiles said, "There was never an instance of admission to the
churches without the votes of the brethren." In the years since, this cus-
tomary practice has continued in form.

The most pressing unsettled question concerning church membership
is grounds on which and whereby names can be removed from the roll.
Some state laws provide that members of the church are joint owners of
property and as such they cannot be deprived of that right except by
"due process." The Council of 1877 recommended a uniform system to
deal with the following classes of persons:

1. Those who have been long regarded as nonresidents, and concerning
whose whereabouts the church has no knowledge.

2. Those who have requested and received letters of admission, and yet as
to their connection with any other church the church has no knowledge.

3. Those who have been for a long time absent, and refuse to request letters
of dismission. 1^

The report of this committee laid down the principles which under-
lie the usage in the Congregational churches in a statement quoted wide-
ly through the years and which remains standard:
^^Minutes of the National Council, i8yj, p. 51.

Later Development of Congregationalism 299

, . . The New Testament idea of the local church is that of a local congrega-
tion of believers, able by residence to meet together for worship, sacraments,
and discipline. A permanent resident in one city where there is a church, with
nominal membership in a city far off, seems entirely abnormal. A church now
should consist of residents, with, of course, some exceptions; such exceptions as a
case where the absent member does not find a church such as he can properly
apply to, or where certain ties of a tender and affectionate nature may be indulged.
Such exceptional cases are, of course, to be within the scope of church indulgence.
But the church cannot be bound forever to continue its responsibility for persons
over whom it cannot exercise watch and care.

Those who have been long regarded as non-residents, and concerning whose
whereabouts the church has no knowledge; it is unfortunate that any church
should allow such a lack of loving oversight as to allow any considerable num-
ber to disappear without notice. A common and good course is to place such
names upon a separate list, cease enumerating them as members, but being able
thus by a simple vote to replace the name on the common list, if occasion should
enable it to be done.

A person receiving a letter is still a member of the church voting the letter,
until he is received by the church to which he is dismissed.

The church has the right, we have seen, to relieve itself of the watch and
care of persons who are not resident within its convenient territory. It can do
this, not summarily, but first by a rule requiring such absentees to remove their
connection in an orderly manner, or by special vote suggesting it in given cases.

But it should be remembered that the object of church discipline is to save,
not to cut off and get rid of. Pastoral and other care should be a loving, gentle,
and faithful helpfulness. It is related of Cotton Mather that he kept a perfect
list of the members of his church and of his congregation, and that he used, at
regular times, to pray to God in behalf of each member in turn, calling his
name aloud to the Lord who calleth his sheep by name; and with this asked
God and himself. "What good can I do to this soul?" Great results were his
constant reward. Had any one asked Cotton Mather how many were his church
members, and how many resided in Boston; if the questioner had gone further
and asked how many had confessed Christ before the world in the preceding
twelve months, or had come from other parts to his fold, or how many had gone
to other flocks, or from the church militant to the church triumphant; or how
many children he had commended to him who took the Judean babes in his
loving arms, doubtless Cotton Mather would not have shuddered at a spectre
of "statistics," for he had counted these souls upon his knees.^"

As stated by Dr. William E. Barton, long the leading authority on
Congregational polity, "You are not required to become a Congregation-
alist in order to unite with a Congregational church. A Congregational
church is not a church of Congregationalists, but a church of Christians
in which the congregation governs. It has absolutely no sectarian tests.
To belong to a Baptist church one must be a Baptist, submitting to a
particular rite administered in a particular form. To belong to an Epis-
copal church one must be an Episcopalian. Congregationalism has no
such divisive tests."

^^Miniites of the National Council, 1880, pp. 131-133.

CHAPTER XIX

The Council and the Boards

Before 1871

THE relationship between the National Council and the Benevo-
lent and Mission Boards has had a slow but continuous growth.
The Boards with few exceptions were organized by groups of
individuals, and in the earlier years were supported almost entirely by
individual gifts. They have exemplified in their organization and work
all the attributes of Congregational independency. The American Board,
the Education Society, the original Home Board, and the American Mis-
sionary Association all were well established and doing a most significant
work before the urgent need of a national representative body became
evident.

I
The Boards Before 1865

The Boards were organized to meet certain definite needs. As the
Boards were located in different centers (for example, the American
Board in Boston, the Congregational Union in New York, and the New
West Educational Society in Chicago), they tended to become localized
in their management and in their support.

By 1865 there were also agencies interdenominational or nondenomi-
national in nature which appealed then as now to the church people for
support. These included the two Tract Societies, one in Boston and one
in New York, the Bible Society, and the Sabbath School Society.

There was competition for support and as there was no intersociety
planning agency, there was overlapping in the different fields of work.
The societies depended on their own representatives for raising funds,
so that the stronger churches especially were embarrassed by more ap-
peals for personal presentation than they could grant. These problems
emphasized the need of an agency which would serve as a clearing house
for discussion of the work and support of these agencies.

It was the pressing need for more active support of missionary work
by the churches that led to the calling of the first truly national Congre-
gational convention in Albany in 1852. The need among the scattered
western communities for aid in church building was especially urgent.
The eastern churches felt also a growing need for some organized agency

300

The Council and the Boards 301

that would administer their gifts to the churches in the West. The Plan
of Union which had provided the channel for the gifts of New England,
especially of Connecticut, to the western churches, had been officially ab-
rogated by the Presbyterian General Assembly (1837); and though some
western Presbyteries served as agents for New England Congregational
churches, yet the situation had become quite unsatisfactory.

The Albany Convention gave careful thought to the needs of western
communities for help in church-building, and after passing strong resolu-
tions endorsing the missionary and benevolent societies which appealed
to Congregational churches for support the Convention adjourned, leav-
ing no continuation committee, and providing for no future meetings of
a similar body. The results of this Convention were so favorable that the
way was prepared for future meetings, and the net result of the Albany
Convention for the existing Boards was that they were given endorsement
for their work by the representatives of the churches and funds had been
raised for the specific work of church building.

At the 1865 Council

The next national meeting of representatives of the churches was the
Council of 1865. The immediate occasion for this Council was the crisis
faced by the churches due to the Civil War. Another reason was that
there were so many agencies appealing to the churches for support. Some
of these were denominational in origin, some were interdenomina-
tional, and others were non-denominational. From all these agencies the
Council selected those which seemed to be closest to the churches in or-
ganization and purpose, and indicated their relationships to the churches
by a brief statement of the history of each organization. The early his-
tory of these Boards, as presented to the '65 Council, may be summarized
briefly as follows:

A. The American Board

The Massachusetts General Association of Ministers at its meeting
at Bradford in i8io received a petition from "the Brethren," five young
men who had participated in the famous Hay Stack meeting at Williams
College and now, having completed the course at Andover, desired to
become foreign missionaries and needed the backing of an organized
agency. The Massachusetts Association granted their request and ap-
pointed a committee of nine, five from Massachusetts and four from Con-
necticut, to sei"ve as an organizing committee for a foreign missionary
society. The next year the Connecticut Association appointed its own
representatives. In 1811 this group which had been organized by the state

302 History of American Congregationalism

associations received a notable bequest, and asked the Massachusetts
General Court for incorporation as a Board.

After long discussion in the legislature a charter was granted in 1812
to "the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions as an in-
dependent, self-perpetuating corporation." This was the first foreign
missionary society in North America; and as was natural it appealed to
a wide constituency, including among its early supporters members of
Presbyterian and Dutch Reformed churches.

After some years the Old School Presbyterians withdrew and formed
their own board; the Dutch Reformed withdrew in 1857, and the New
School Presbyterians in 1870. When the 1865 Council was held, the Amer-
ican Board was still receiving funds from the members of other churches,
although it was no longer officially recognized by other denominations
as their agency. The Council in its report stated that the "American
Board is the child of the Congregational ists of New England, and al-
though instituted in the comprehensive spirit of catholic Christianity,
and common to us with the Presbyterians ... it has all along been the
favored of our people." The report continued: "Your Committee, there-
fore, recommends that the Council, as representative of the churches, do
testify their deep sense of the importance of Foreign Missions, and their
unabated devotion to the prosecution of the enterprise. We need it for
ourselves. The work will die at home, if it languish abroad. It is the sign
of our fellowship v/ith Christ. It is the condition of his blessing. We need
it in every sense, and for every reason."^

B. The Education Society

The 1865 Council also reviewed the development of educational pro-
grams and gave special attention to the education of ministers. It noted
the formation of the American Society for the Education of Pious Youth
for the Gospel Ministry, organized in Boston in 1815 and incorporated
in 1816, which later became the American Education Society; also the
organization of the Society for the Promotion of Collegiate and Theo-
logical Education in the West. It urged that these two societies should
work in close harmony, and forecast their merger into the American
College and Education Society, which took place later (1874).

c. Home Missions

In its review of home missions die '65 Council stated in brief: For
many years there had been state missionary societies in the states of Con-
necticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. In 1822 there was foiTned
in New York a United Domestic Mission Society. The students at And-
^Minutes of the National Council, i86j, p. 232.

The Council ajid the Boards 303

over and some Massachusetts ministers desired that this United Society
should become national and petitioned the Society to organize on a na-
tional basis. In response to that petition a meeting was held in the Brick
Presbyterian Church in New York on May 10, 1826, of representatives
from four denominations (Congregational, Presbyterian, Reformed Dutch
and Associated Reformed) who organized a national, interdenomina-
tional home missionary society.

This society had the same experience as the American Board. The
other denominations withdrew to form strictly denominational bodies,
until only Congregationalists were left. The society then changed its
name and purpose in order to serve the Congregational churches, adopt-
ing the name Congregational Home Missionary Society in 1893.

D. American Missionary Association

The Civil War had just come to an end so the American Missionary
Association and its work received special attention in discussions of the
Council. This Association had been formed in 1846 from three parent
organizations "to conduct Christian missionary and educational opera-
tions, and to diffuse a knowledge of the Holy Scriptures in our own and
other countries." The American Missionary Association represented the
anti-slavery sentiment in the churches, which required an agency whole-
heartedly devoted to it, since the backers of the older societies had not
taken so firm a stand against slavery as the American Missionary Asso-
ciation supporters had desired. Because of the critical need of the great
multitude of newly freed Negroes, the 1865 Council placed added re-
sponsibility upon this society.

The remote genesis of the A. M. A. is a now almost forgotten drama,
unless it be sought in the first ship which brought a slave to these shores.
In 1839 a United States brig took in charge a Spanish slave ship off the
coast of Long Island. There were then on board the Amistad forty-two
Africans who had mutinied, killed the Captain, imprisoned the crew, and
ordered the ship back to Africa— all this off the coast of Cuba. They were
betrayed by their navigators and the Amistad, after her capture, was
taken into New Haven harbor and there the Africans were imprisoned
on the charge of mutiny. Difficult questions of international law were in-
volved, but mutiny was mutiny. A distinguished group of citizens organ-
ized together "for the purpose of protecting the legal interests of the
accused and making provision for their care during the trial." John
Quincy Adams, onetime President of the United States, acted as one
of their lawyers. After two years' litigation the Supreme Court pro-
nounced them free. They were returned to Africa in 1841 under the care
of three missionaries.

304 History of American Congregationalism

The Amistad committee had found a cause and it merged with the
"Union Missionary Society of Connecticut," pronouncedly anti-slavery.
There were also other societies conceived for the Indians and emanci-
pated Negroes. All these finally merged and became the American Mis-
sionary Association. The charter of the Association was unusually inclu-
sive. It permitted almost any form of missionary or education work
anywhere and for anybody. Its founders believed in human equality
without racial bias, and the injustice of human slavery. There was only
one limitation to membership. Its members must "not be holders of
slaves or engaged in the practice of any other immoralities." It was non-
sectarian. It aided John G. Fee in the founding of Berea College which
admitted white and colored students and "taught them in the same
classes without contamination and reproach."

The Association found its really appointed work at the end of the
Civil War. It began the "Contraband School" for Negroes freed by the
northern armies at Hampton, Virginia— which became Hampton Insti-
tute. Its missionaries followed the Union forces along war-rutted roads.
They were fearless, dreamers of a new human order, accepting social
ostracism as the dust of the day's task. Their schools were pathetically
poor, their students were men and women for whom "Massa" Lincoln
had broken down bolted doors. The romance and the pathos of it all
are beyond words, but it was washed with a great and prophetic light.
In 1865 the National Council, from which American Congixgational
history began to be redated, made the Association its agent for the mis-
sionai'y activity of the denomination in the South. Thereafter the rela-
tions between the American Missionary Association and the Congiega-
tional churches of America were increasingly intimate.

E. Publishing and Other Interests

The Council of 1865 gave considerable attention also to the two Tract
Societies which were pouring out books and pamphlets for use in the
churches; and to the American Bible Society, "too well-known to need
any special mention." The American Seamen's Friend Society was highly
commended, as was the American Congiegational Association with its
plans to raise money for a Congregational House, and to provide a home
for the Congregational library.

F. In General

After passing these agencies in review the Council stated: "We see
no necessity for any new organization, and it is not new machinery which
we want, but to give greatly increased efficiency to the machinery which

The Council and the Boards 305

we have by supplying a vastly greater moving power." ^ The Council sug-
gested that this need be considered under three questions:

1. How can the requisite spirit of earnestness and self-consecration be im-
parted to the churches?

2. How can our young men be induced, by thousands, to consecrate their
lives to this holy cause?

3. How can we raise the requisite pecuniary resources for a religious enter-
prise so vast, and so imperatively demanding immediate action?'

The Council recognized that there should be a more systematized
plan of benevolent giving, saying:

To what causes shall our churches contribute? To what organizations shall
they intrust the expenditure of their money? These are questions always im-
portant, always pertinent. Is there anything in the peculiar circumstances of
our country, or the world, that makes them specially important and appropriate
at the present time? Has there been any change in the relative importance of
different organizations? Even if nothing be said of the honesty, fidelity, and
ability with which these organizations have been conducted, has not the progress
of events, or rather the providence of God, rendered the claims of some more
imperative, of others less so, than formerly? Has not this Council been con-
vened to consider anew the fields of Christian labor, and to inquire how the
work of Christian benevolences can be most successfully carried forward?*

This statement might well have been adopted by the three reorgani-
zation committees appointed in the seventy years that were to follow, for
each committee has faced these identical questions. It was realized that
the churches and the societies were laboring toward a common end, and
that the societies were agencies of the churches. The churches frequently
faced great problems that did not fall specifically within the program of
any of the existing societies. They felt that no new society should be
established without the most careful planning, but to meet the new needs
as they arose there should be some agency to aid the societies in planning
their work with neither overlapping nor overlooking.

In planning for better support for the Boards, the Council adopted
a statement which has been honored perhaps more in the breach than
in the observance. "It is our conviction that a clear, businesslike state-
ment of the condition and operations of a society, occupying ten or fif-
teen minutes, would be more potent with the men who give the money
than an impassioned appeal of an hour."^

The Council closed its consideration with these words:

If Congregationalism has no mission except to add one to the number of
religious sects, which divide and distract the household of faith, then far bet-

^Minutes of the National Council, 1865, p. 145.
^Minutes of the National Council, 186^, p. 147.
^Minutes of the National Council, 186^, p. 224.
^Minutes of the National Council, i86y, p. 230.

3o6 History of American Congregationalism

ter confine itself within the limits of New England, and consign at once all its
emigrant population to the care of those centralized church governments which
always stand ready to receive and assimilate them. But if the Congregational
conception of the church is true and precious— if it is as well fitted to all latitudes
and longitudes as to New England, and is really an important element of Amer-
ican civilization, and of the brighter and better ages of the promised future-
then these Congregational churches are bound to be true to their fundamental
principles.^

From 1871 to 1913

Constitutional Provisions and Changes

The general effect of the Council of 1865 on the missionary giving
of the churches was so helpful that the movement for a regular national
meeting of elected representatives of the churches developed rapidly.
When the Council met at Oberlin in 1871 it adopted a constitution pro-
viding that the voting members should be delegates from associations
and conferences, but that "Congregational general societies for Christian
work, as may be recognized by this Council, may be represented by one
delegate each, such representatives having the right of discussion only.'"'
The phrase, "such representatives having the right of discussion only,"
was stricken out by the Portland Council in 1901, thus giving the dele-
gate of each society regular voting privileges.

By-law III of the Council defined the meaning of "Congregational"
to be:

The term "Congregational," as applied to the general benevolent societies,
in connection with representation in this body, is understood in the broad sense
of societies whose constituency and control are substantially Congregational.*

In 1883 the by-laws were amended by insertion of the clause, "A com-
mittee shall be appointed on each of the national Congregational socie-
ties, to which severally may be referred any statements from, and any
communications relating to, said societies,"^ but the amendment was re-
pealed in 1892. The 1883 Council also provided, by a revision of the
by-laws, that "the afternoon and evening of Saturday and the evening
of the Sabbath shall be assigned to hearing from such Congregational
general societies as may be recognized by this Council, the time to be
equitably divided between them and no other portion of the time of the
Council is to be occupied by them."'" This provision was eliminated
three years later, in 1886.

^Minutes of the National Council, i86^, p. 136.
"^Minutes of the National Council, i8yi, p. 148.
^Minutes of the National Council, iSyi, p. 66.
^National Council Digest, ip^o, p. 123.
^'>Natio7ial Council Digest, 1930, p. 123.

The Council and the Boards 307

In i88g an amendment was made to the by-laws that the statements
from the general benevolent societies should be in print, and copies
placed in the hands of the delegates two weeks before the meeting of the
Council. This was modified in 1892, by giving the Provisional Committee
of the Council the right to decide whether or not any statement should
be printed from the societies, and how much; and the representative of
each society was to be given twenty minutes for a statement by the dele-
gate. The 1892 Council added the provision which has been continued,
admitting to the Council as corresponding members the missionaries in
the service of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions
present in this country on furlough.

Development of Relationships

It was not alone through constitutional provision or legal enactment
that the members of the Council showed their interest in the work and
support of the Boards. At the first regular Council of 1871 after adoption
of the constitution, much time and discussion were given to the project
of the American Congregational Association to erect a Congregational
House in Boston. It voted that this should be built as a home for the
benevolent societies and the library. It refrained from any discussion of
relationship of the Boston Tract Society or the New York Tract Society
to the churches, which had occupied so large a place in the 1865 Council;
but did urge increased support for the Congregational Publishing Soci-
ety and commended it heartily to the churches. The first appearance of
the movement which led later on to the Apportionment Plan is noted
in the acts of the Council recommending "systematic and regular contri-
butions to the societies."

The troubles resulting from the Civil War and the freeing of the
Negroes received special attention at the 1871 Oberlin meeting of the
Council, as had been the case in the 1865 Council. The Congregational
churches had always been active in behalf of the anti-slavery movement.
The great majority of the officers and workers of the American Mission-
ary Association had come from Oberlin College. It was but natural that
the Oberlin Council should give special attention to the condition of the
freedmen, and should seek greatly increased funds for the Association.

The consolidation of societies was considered at this 1871 Council
meeting, and the vote was as follows:

In view of the number of existing organizations for benevolence that claim
contributions from our churches, some of which organizations are so closely
affiliated in purpose and method that they contemplate essentially the same
work; therefore.

3o8 History of America?! Congregationalism

Resolved, That a committee of seven be appointed to consider and report
at the next session of this Council whether any consolidation of such organiza-
tions is practicable, with a view to the promotion of great unity and efficiency
of operation, and the reduction of expenses that are felt to be needless and
therefore burdensome.

Resolved, That this committee be requested, when desired to do so, to in-
vestigate the merits of such special objects and institutions as are to be generally
presented to the churches for aid, and give the churches the advantage of their
judgment on their merits and importance. '^

In the 1874 Council occurred the first vote directly affecting the af-
fairs of a missionary agency. The Council voted that the churches be
advised that the funds they were accustomed to give to the American
and Foreign Christian Union (an interdenominational missionary society)
"be added to the contributions ordinarily made to the American Board."

The report of the Committee on Consolidation, appointed in 1871,
was very carefully prepared. The Committee had invited the secretaries of
all the Boards to their meetings, and had conducted an extended cor-
respondence. In their report they stated that independent benevolent
organizations had been formed to meet certain specific needs; and that
the wisdom of the organizers and directors had been vindicated by suc-
cessful work accomplished. The report pointed out the difficulty arising
from differences in incorporation and from legacies and made this ob-
servation: "Consolidation is easily reached in resolution, but, practically,
presents problems which are not so readily solved."

Furthermore, the report stated: "It is difficult and maybe dangerous
business to lay the hand of change upon any of tliem." The Committee
advised the Boards as to spheres of influence and work. It approved the
consolidation worked out by some of the societies; advised that the Con-
gregational Publishing Society should be organized "as a strictly business
enterprise"; and recommended that the missions of the American Board
among the North American Indians be transferred to the care of the
American Missionary Association, and the foreign missions of the Ameri-
can Missionary Association be transferred to the American Board. These
foreign missions of the American Missionary Association had grown out
of the necessity to provide for religious and educational facilities for the
freed Negroes who had returned to Africa.

Perhaps the most historic vote of the Council of 1874 was that relating
to the consolidation of the magazines. The vote was:

Resolved, That, in the judgment of this Council, the consolidation of our
various misisonary and benevolent magazines into one, is desirable; and that the
officers of the different societies are respectfully requested to consider the prac-
ticability of such a consolidation. 12

^^Minutes of the National Council, iSyi, pp. 46-47.
^^Minutes of the National Council, iSy^, p. 28.

The Council and the Boards 309

This recommendation which was passed in 1874 and renewed again
and again through the years accompanied by hours of discussion, was not
finally accepted until sixty-four years later at the meeting of the Council
in 1938 in Beloit.

In 1877 the first move was made to organize a ministerial board; and
in 1883 the New West Education Commission was approved.

In 1889 there was also presented a memorial from the General Con-
ference of the Congregational churches of Connecticut on the relations
of the national benevolent societies to the churches. The memorial called
attention to the fact that the mission boards, "though vitally related to
the Congregational churches in every point of fact, are nevertheless
wholly independent of them in law and management; and that these
facts not only discredit our polity, but threaten our peace." While the
Connecticut Conference was not ready to recommend any solution, it
petitioned the National Council to give this matter careful study. It also
stated that the American Board had appointed a Committee of Fifteen
on better relations with the churches "holding out its olive branch in the
face of the churches" and that this venture on the part of the Board
should receive due consideration by the Council.

Another significant vote was that instructing the secretary of the Coun-
cil "to enter into correspondence with each mission of the Board, with
view to having some person appointed to act as a medium between this
body (the Council) and the mission to which he belongs, who shall re-
ceive, translate, and distribute the papers and doings of this Council as
having a bearing upon Christ's Kingdom." This provision did not come
into effect, for the American Board advised that all correspondence with
missionaries should originate with the Board and not with the churches
or the Council.

The Council also authorized appointment of a committee to study
relationships of Boards to the churches; another committee to consider
the relationship of missionary societies one to the other; and a Commit-
tee of Five to attempt a merger of the missionary magazines.

Having made all these moves toward closer relationship, the Council
passed a strongly-worded resolution in behalf of increased support to
Mission Boards; and commended the observance of Children's Day in
the churches by a general offering to the Sunday School Society.

In 1892 the Council reviewed the development of systematic benevo-
lences, and laid the groundwork for what developed later into the Every
Member Canvass in the following vote:

That this Council suggest and urge that this subject of proportional giving
be made a special order of the day for consideration in every local association
and conference at the next meeting; and that such action be taken as may

3 1 o History of American Congregationalism

secure this year a contribution from every church to each one of our several
national benevolent societies; and, so far as possible, something from every
individual member proportionate to his ability.i^

Meanwhile, the societies were beginning to take the churches more
closely into their plan of organization, and the American Board had
greatly expanded its list of corporate members, so that the Council could
vote:

That this Council, appreciating the importance of the unanimous action of
the American Board at its last meeting in adopting measures looking towards
the representation of the churches in the Board, expresses its gratification at
such action; and the Council further expresses the earnest hope that the Board,
through its committee already appointed, will devise such measures as will
secure such desired representation; and that these measures may be such as will
show the confidence of the Board in the churches, and result in increased con-
fidence of the churches in the Board.^*

Ill

The Committee of 1892

The committee appointed in 1892 to study the relationship of the
societies to the churches recoiximended that any measures looking toward
accomplishment of this purpose should "originate in the societies them-
selves, and be such as commend themselves to those who have had long
experience in the management of our affairs"; it commended the efforts
made by the societies to draw closer together and to interrelate their work,
and to open the management to the representatives of the churches. The
Council of 1892 asked the churches to contribute in the largest possible
measure to the work the societies were doing.

By the 1898 Council meeting, however, discussions of Board and
church relationships were again under way, and continued through the
next fifteen years. They eventuated in the report of the Commission of
Nineteen and adoption of the Kansas City di'aft of the constitution of
the Council, defining the relationship of the Boards to the churches and
to their representatives in the National Council. To better the relation-
ship between the Boards and the elected representatives of the churches
in the Council, a plan was made for union meetings of the Boards at
the same time and place selected for the Council meeting.

This plan had been urged by resolutions received from various asso-
ciations and ministerial bodies. After carefully studying the situation,
the Committee on the Relation of Benevolent Societies to Churches sum-
marized the arguments against union meetings of Boards and Council
under four heads: (1) the meeting would be too large for accommoda-

^^Minutes of the National Council, iSp2, p. 22.
^*Minutes of the National Council, 18^2, p. 26.

The Coujicil and the Boards 3 1 1

tions; (2) there would be a confusion of thought and interest; (3) each
society would lose by joining the others; and (4) their own constitutional
provisions.

On the other hand, there were four arguments for such a meeting:
(1) the reduction of expense; (2) a broader and more consistent view of
the work; (3) deeper spiritual power; and (4) the opportunity offered to
the smaller societies to present their work before the larger group. The
Committee concluded by saying: "There are evident reasons that any
proposition on the part of your present committee would be indelicate
and presuming." Having heard the report, the Council voted to request
the societies to study further what was known as the "Council plan" for
holding the meetings of the societies in connection with the meeting of
the Council.

When the Council met in Portland in 1901, its Committee of Fifteen
presented a brief report that the question of the relationship of mission-
ary societies to each other and to the churches had been continually
before the churches, and that there was a desire on the part of the
churches that a better understanding be reached. The committee placed
its greatest emphasis upon the duty of each church "by personal canvass
[to] reach as far as possible every one of its members with a direct per-
sonal appeal for some gift to each of our six missionary societies." They
again urged the five homeland societies to constitute "an advisory com-
mittee of their own choosing, which would consider questions affecting
the work of the societies"; and requested the homeland societies "to try
the experiment of a united annual meeting." Once more they resolved
that there should be one missionary publication.

It was at this Council that announcement was made by the Publish-
ing Society of the purchase of The Congregationalist, thus putting under
denominational auspices the paper which up to this time had been
privately owned.

IV
The First Secretary for Promotion

During the next three years (1901-04), the Boards established the
Advisory Committee, with one member from each of the seven Home
Boards and two from the American Board. This committee employed
Rev. Charles A. Northrup, pastor at Norwich, Connecticut, as "secretary
for the promotion of systematic benevolence," his salary and expenses
being secured not from the Boards but from private sources. The Com-
mittee expressed the hope that so successful would be his work as a gen-
eral promotional agent that missionary giving would become "systematic
beneficence." The Committee, defining the work of the new secretary,
said he was not to raise money for any one society, but was to cultivate

3 1 2 History of American Congregationalism

the field in the interest of all, "to secure a definite pledge from each
member of our Congregational churches, to support each one of our
societies." Mr. Northrup, in a brief address, presented the first joint ap-
peal for missionary giving.

The principle on which he was to work, he said, was "that every Con-
gregational church should recognize our six-sided, six-fold work of mis-
sionary enterprise as practically one organic whole, and make a place
for every one of the six societies in its scheme of benevolence."'^

This 1904 meeting of the Council at Chicago followed the meeting
of the American Board which had just been held in Des Moines, and
many persons who had attended the American Board meeting came also
to the Council meeting. The meetings of the Home Boards were to be
held in connection with the Council, different organizations being given
special sections for their own meetings. This was so helpful that it was
proposed that the Council change its constitution to provide for a bien-
nial instead of a triennial meeting; and to provide for the appointment
of a new committee to formulate a plan which would bring the churches
and the societies into closer relationship. This proposal was not carried
into effect.

At the next Council meeting in Cleveland in 1907, the American
Board held its meeting in connection with the meeting of the Council.
Here appeared the first report of what might be called the predecessor
of the Commission on Missions, for the Advisory Committee, reappointed
by the Boards, had been functioning for five years and had begun to
develop a program. The secretary of promotion, Mr. Northrup, had
served two years when the office was discontinued in 1906, as the private
funds provided for his salary were no longer available and the Boards
were not ready to finance a joint undertaking. The main reason for
failure of the plan was that the agencies which were to benefit from the
work of a joint secretary preferred the former method of promotion
whereby each Board was entirely independent.

The Apportionment Plan

At this meeting of the Council, Dr. Hubert C. Herring, then secre-
tary of the Home Missionary Society, gave a report stating the need
for an apportionment plan:

The churches have too long laid upon the societies the burden of collect-
ing funds at great labor and expense. In so doing they have also forced the
societies into at least the appearance of competition with one another. Let the
churches now, by joint and thoughtful effort, gather from their ranks whatever
^'^ Minutes of the National Council, 190^, p. 444.

The Council and the Boards 3 1 3

amounts they are able to contribute to these causes, setting their representatives
free to give undivided attention to the doing of the work for which they exist.
The attainment of this ideal may be long postponed, but none the less it is an
ideal toward which we all should work.i^

This is a significant statement and ten years later, when Dr. Herring
had become secretary of the National Council, he considered his major
responsibility the development of the Every Member Canvass as a great
joint enterprise of Council, Boards, and churches.

So happy had been the results of the combined meetings of Council
and Boards, bringing together more than a thousand members, that the
Council voted "that we invite and urge the affiliated societies to unite
with the National Council of 1910." Later it voted a strong endorsement
of the apportionment as recommended by the Advisory Committee, and
urged the state and local bodies to do their utmost to secure the full
amount, as indicated by the Advisory Committee.

Two other significant actions of this Council relating to the organiza-
tion of Congregationalism were: first, the Council accepted the statement:

The functions of the local, state, and national bodies may safely be defined
and enlarged so long as they remain advisory and directive and involve no
authority save as the wisdom of their action secures the assent of the churches.^^

and second, it advised the development of the state conference system:

That the state organizations become legally incorporated bodies; and that
under a general superintendent and such boards as they may create, and acting
in cooperation with committees of local associations and churches, they pro-
vide for and direct the extension of church work, the planting of churches, the
mutual oversight and care of all self-sustaining as well as missionary churches,
and other missionary and church activities, to the end that closer union may
insure greater efficiency without curtailing local independence.'*

This transference of responsibility for missionary work within the
state from the Home Boards to regularly established state conferences
marked a long step forward in bringing responsibility for home mission-
ary work closer to the churches. Thus far the steps towards closer rela-
tionship had been restricted by fidelity of the Boards to their original
constitutions and to the wishes of donors making certain specifications
concerning funds put in trust for the Boards. The Boards had to preserve
their identity in order to keep faith with these donors. At the same time
the expanding work of the Boards required continually increasing funds.
If the churches were to respond to these appeals, they needed to be as-
sured that there was no money being used unnecessarily for administra-

^^Minutes of the National Council, 190J, p. 205.
^'^ Minutes of the National Council, igoj, p. 344.
^^ Minutes of the National Council, i^oy, p. 346.

314 History of American Congregationalism

tion and promotion. They were inclined to react unfavorably to the
appeals of so many independently organized agencies for the support of
different enterprises which the churches looked upon as one missionary
enterprise. This caused increasing pressure from the churches on the
National Council, a representative body all of whose members were
elected by the churches, and none of them appointed by any central
agency. While some members of the Boards were nominated or suggested
by state conferences or associations, yet these Boards reserved the right
to nominate the larger part of their membership. This was considered
wise because the agencies had become custodians of large funds which
required a continuing body.

The "Together Campaign"

The work of the Boards had so outgrown their resources that by
1907-8 debts were accumulating. In 1909 the societies agreed on what
came to be known as the "Together Campaign" which was so successful
that the accumulated indebtedness of the missionary societies was greatly
reduced. The success of this first great missionary effort was due, accord-
ing to the report of the Moderator, Hon. Thomas C. MacMillan, to the
fact that

the entire group of our Missionary Societies entered into the canvass of the
church membership upon an agreed and equitable basis. Thus united, they
carried through a piogram marked by entire freedom from rivalry, and in a
spirit of cooperation as fine as it was successful.

Gratifying and helpful as were its financial results, it produced at least three
important effects:

1. The "Together Campaign" gave an impressive exhibition of the essential
unity of all the mission work in the denomination.

2. It did much to promote and establish unity and cooperation between the
missionary societies.

3. It resulted in the bringing into existence of a larger consciousness of the
importance and of the claims of the missionary cause than had been had in
many years, if ever.^^

In the report of the Advisory Committee again appears the discussion
of the need for one magazine rather than several. The Committee stated
it had conducted a country-wide survey, and of the replies seventy per
cent favored the publication of one magazine; but the Committee voted
"that as it is not now feasible to have a single missionary magazine for
all the societies, the Advisory Committee recommends that the home so-
cieties unite in publishing one Homeland Magazine to be issued on and
after January, 1909."^"

^^Minules of the Natiorial Council, 1910, p. 21.
"^^ Minutes of the Natioyml Coimcil, 1910, p. 378.

The Council and the Boards 3 1 5

The Council itself was becoming something more than a convention.
It had up to this time maintained a small office with a secretary, whose
chief task was to edit and to publish the Year Book, with a budget for
his salary and office expenses of about $3,000 a year. In addition to this
budget the Council raised a fund for the printing and mailing of the
annual Year Book, which amounted to considerably over $6,000 per year.
But with this small budget, the Council was more and more serving as
the central clearing house for the state conferences and for the churches.

The report of the Committee of Twenty-five, appointed to study these
questions, contained the following statements:

We find that the National Council is already an administrative as well as
an advisory body. This is seen in the organization and administration of the
Board of Ministerial Relief, in the organization of the National Brotherhood
through the Council's Committee of Twenty-Nine, and in the creation of the
Advisory Committee which has given us the Apportionment Plan.

. . . the Council acts as counsellor and servant of the Boards so far as they
are willing to avail themselves of such aid. We find that there is a large and
growing sentiment favorable to administrative relations between the Council
as our national representative body and the benevolent societies. . . .^^

These statements were followed by this vote:

Resolved, that this Council is in favor of developing administration relations
between the Council and the National Societies, that it believes the next step in
such development consists in constituting the delegates of the Council the
voting membership of the several societies with the addition of such members-at-
large as may prove to be necessary, and that it refers the practical working out
of these new relations to the Commission of Fifteen on Polity, hereinafter men-
tioned, report to be made to the next regular or special or adjourned session
of this Council.22

VII

The Commission of Nineteen

The appointment of the Commission of Nineteen by the Council of
1910 is one of the historic acts in Congregational history. The field of
study for the Commission is indicated, in part, by this section of the vote:

The movement for more efficient and more economical administration of
home missionary work suggests that the missionary department of this (the
Sunday-School and Publishing) Society might be wisely merged with the Con-
gregational Home Missionary Society as a special department of the latter's
work. The splendid traditions of the work under its present auspices arguing
against this change, as also the difficulties involved in such a readjustment are
fully recognized, and it is easily possible that the merger would be undesirable,
but it is recommended that the Sunday-School and Publishing Society and the

^^Minutes of the National Council, 1910, p. 387.
^^Minutes of the National Council, J910, p. 388.

3 1 6 History of American Congregationalism

Home Missionary Society take the question under careful consideration with
a view to such readjustment if that shall seem wise.^'

Anticipating the adoption of articles of agreement by the Council
and Boards at the next Council meeting (to be held in 1913) the Council
set up the National Council Apportionment Commission composed of
one representative from each of the Boards and six members at large.
Thus for the first time public interest was to be represented by the six
members appointed by the Council. The duty of this Commission was:

(1) to adopt a general budget containing the amounts to be asked for the
several Benevolent Societies;

(2) to employ such means as may seem desirable in administering the
Apportionment Plan so as to secure from the churches adequate support for
Congregational Missionary and benevolent enterprises.^^

In the appointment of the Commission of Nineteen and in the as-
signment of its duties the Council went beyond an advisory relationship
to the Boards and became to this extent administrative. Great care was
taken that the selection of the Commission of Nineteen should represent
all sections of the country, all shades of opinion, and each of the various
Boards. The Commission included President Frank K. Sanders, Kansas;
Rev. Henry A. Stimson, New York; President Charles S. Nash, Cali-
fornia; Rev. William E. Barton, Illinois; Rev. Oliver Huckel, Maryland;
Lucien C. Warner, New York; Rev. Charles S. Mills, Missouri; Rev.
Rockwell H. Potter, Connecticut; John M. Whitehead, Wisconsin; Frank
Kimball, Illinois; Professor Williston Walker, Connecticut; Henry M.
Beardsley, Missouri; Rev. Henry H. Kelsey, Ohio; President Edward D.
Eaton, Wisconsin; William W. Mills, Ohio; Samuel B. Capen, Massa-
chusetts; Arthur H. Wellman, Massachusetts; Rev. Nehemiah Boynton,
New York and Rev. Raymond Calkins, Maine.

Between the Council of 1910 and that of 1913 the Commission of
Nineteen held many meetings, conducted wide correspondence and pub-
lished in 1911 a tentative report. Before the meeting of the Council in
Kansas City it published also a revised report, that the churches and their
representatives might become familiar with the problems and the meas-
ures proposed for meeting them.

One proposal on the early drafts of the report was for a united Home
Board of Missions. This met with a storm of protest. Each of the Home
Boards had a loyal constituency which felt particular responsibility for
the welfare of that Board. Also, the churches generally were not prepared
to consider the work of the six homeland societies as a united national
enterprise. Therefore, the Commission withdrew that recommendation.

"^^Minutes of the National Council, 1910, p. 395.
^^Minutes of the National Council, 1910, p. 404.

The Council and the Boards 317

The report as adopted by the Kansas City Council included two
major reforms affecting the societies. One provision made the voting
members of the Council voting members of each of the societies by virtue
of their office as official delegates to the Council. This had been approved
in principle by the Council of 1910. Each of the societies however was to
continue the practice of having a group of corporate members appointed
by itself thus giving the society in its business session a group well in-
formed as to the work of the particular Board and alive to its needs and
interests. The corporate members elected by the Boards had no special
rights and duties, for all the members of the Council were also elected
corporate members by each of the Boards. This plan has worked out
most satisfactorily. The elected representatives of the churches function
for the days when the Council is in session as voting members of the
Council; and on days when the various Boards hold their meetings, as
voting members of those Boards. This arrangement does not "bring the
Boards under the domination of the Council" any more than it brings
the Council under the domination of the Boards. It usually happens,
however, that votes relating to the work of the Boards are first consid-
ered by the members sitting as a Council and then the same persons vote
as members of the Board, having previously voted as members of the
Council. Or the order may be reversed. By this provision unity of action
has been achieved without placing one body under the direction of an-
other.

The other major reform recommended by the Commission of Nine-
teen, while adopted with unanimity, did not work so harmoniously. It
provided for a Commission on Missions having "advisory supervision"
over the work of the societies. The report provided that:

On nomination by the standing Committee on Nominations, the National
Council shall elect fourteen persons, and on nomination by the several national
societies, home and foreign, shall also elect one person from each society, and
on similar nomination one each from the whole body of Woman's Boards of
Foreign Missions and from the Woman's Home Missionary Federation, who,
together with the Secretary of the National Council ex officio, shall constitute a
Commission of Missions.^^

The duties of this Commission, as outlined in the report may be sum-
marized as follows:

1. To prevent duplication of missionary activities.

2. To effect all possible economies in administration.

3. To seek to correlate the work of the several societies for maximum effi-
ciency and minimum expense.^^

^^ Minutes of the National Council, ipi^, p. 351.
^^Minutes of the National Council, i^ij, p. 338.

3 1 8 History of A merican Congregationalism

To accomplish these purposes, it was given the following rights:

1. To examine the annual budgets of the several societies and have access
to their books and records.

2. To give advice to the societies regarding problems involved in the work.

3. To make recommendations to the societies when their work can be made
more efficient or more economical.

4. To examine present conditions and recommend to the National Council
such simplification and consolidation of the home societies as shall seem most
expedient."

It also provided that all the expenses of this Commission should be
paid by the treasury of the National Council, and that the new secre-
tary of the Council should be the secretary of the Commission on Mis-
sions. The provision of the report relating to the secretary has been
treated elsewhere; but it should be mentioned here that the secretary of
the Council as secretary of the Commission on Missions should "serve
it and through it the churches in the two great tasks immediately con-
fronting them: (1) the work of coordinating and readjusting our mis-
sionary activities; and (2) the more efficient financing of those activities,
through the Apportionment Plan and other plans which may be de-
vised."^*

Each Board had a representative on this Commission of Nineteen
and when the report was presented to the Council it was a unanimous
report; that is, the representatives of the various societies concurred in
the recommendations. There was much questioning on the part both
of the members of the churches and also of the societies as to whether
or not the plan proposed would meet the objectives in mind. The fol-
lowing statement was presented to the Council by the American Board,
in advance of the consideration of the report of the Commission of
Nineteen:

Your committee rejoices in this attention which is being given to the admin-
istration of our denominational missionary work, feeling that the more churches
can concern themselves in what all must regard as their leading interest, the
better will they be able to perform their part in establishing Christ's kingdom
in the earth. As in the past, the Board on its own account has from time to
time sought to bring itself into closer relations to the churches, so now that the
matter has, in a measure, been taken out of our hands and thrown into the
arena of general denominational debate, the members of the Prudential Com-
mittee and the officers of the Board, speaking for themselves, stand ready to
favor such further changes as the churches may desire, in so far as these changes
are found to be legal and practicable. ^^

'^''Minutes of the National Council, 191^, p. 338.
^^ Minutes of the National Council, 191 3, p. 338.
^^Minutes of the National Council, 191^, pp. 102-103.

The Council and the Boards 319

Not since the meeting o£ the Council in Boston in 1865 had there
been a Council having such an array of responsible leaders of the de-
nomination as was present at Kansas City. Dr. Nehemiah Boynton was
the retiring Moderator, Dr. Charles E. Jefferson was the Preacher, Dean
Charles R. Brown was the new Moderator, and Dr. Carl S. Patton, Dr.
Newman Smyth, Governor Simeon E. Baldwin and many others came to
this Council meeting aware that the denomination, which had come to
self-consciousness in the Council of 1865 and had organized in the Coun-
cil of 1871, now was to work in real earnest on a main task long deferred.

Anticipating the discussion which would occur over the report of the
Commission of Nineteen, Dr. Boynton in his moderatorial address pre-
pared the delegates for serious consideration of the task before them.
This masterly address should be considered in part:

Permit me to affirm that putting our denomination in effective play through
the readjusted institutions is just as much a spiritual task as prayer and
preaching. . . .

Nor are we to be deterred because of the fear that such adjustment will throw
our denominational interests into the hands of ecclesiastical politicians. The
pohtician in Congregationalism is usually a short-lived individual. He is like
the grass; in the morning flourishing and growing up; in the evening, cut down
and withering. . . .

The autonomy of the local church is, and will always be, the slogan of our
American Congregationalism. Every local church, free and independent in its
pulpit and in its pew, a law unto itself; cordially conceding all this, it still re-
mains true that there is no reason why the autonomy of the local church should
destroy the Congregationalism denomination. The principle of the fellowship
of the churches is just as truly Congregational as the other. They are the foci
of our Congregational ellipse . . .

Congregationalism never hesitated to match a necessity with an efficiency.
In this way we have provided ourselves with conferences, associations and national
councils. In this way we have established societies for the prosecution of home
and foreign missions. In this way we have approved an apportionment plan for
raising our benevolent funds; in this way, it is to be hoped, we shall at this
Council find ourselves inclined to meet new occasions with new efficiencies . . .
The adjustment of a principle, so far from being an abandonment, is the
accentuation of it. It is efficiency or exit, for Congregationalism.^''

Dr. Jefferson in his sermon said:

What is the mission of Congregationalism? To keep alive a theory of church
government? No; to keep the soul alive to God. It is often said that Congrega-
tionalism is a theory of church government; that it is foundationed on two prin-
ciples—the independence of the local church and the equal sisterhood of these
local churches. But these principles are not foundations. They rest on some-
thing deeper. The fundamental thing in Congregationalism is a doctrine of
God . . .

^Minutes of the National Council, ipi^, pp. n-iS-

320 History of American Congregationalism

Our doctrine of independence grows out of our faith. Our polity is founda-
tioned on our conception of God . . .

We are free men in Christ. We are not bound by the traditions of the second
century, or the dogmas of the fourth, or the doctrines of the sixteenth, or the
customs of the seventeenth, or the practices of the eighteenth, or the methods of
the nineteenth, but are at liberty to build the church along the lines indicated
by the Eternal Spirit speaking in the intelligence and conscience of our day, so
it shall become more and more an effective instrument in the hands of God for
the promulgation of his gospel and the extension of his kingdom. ^^

From the opening day of the Council interest centered around the
report of the Commission of Nineteen. The great day came on Saturday,
October 25, when Dr. Raymond Calkins and Dr. Rockwell H. Potter
conducted the devotional service. At 9:30 Dean Brown took the chair,
and the report was presented as a whole by the chairman, Dr. Frank K.
Sanders of Washburn College, Topeka. Dr. William E. Barton, secretary
of the Commission, presented the section on the revision of the constitu-
tion for the Council; Rev. Charles S. Nash the section on the secretary-
ship; and Prof. Williston Walker the section relating to missionary soci-
eties. After a full discussion approval was given on the various sections,
and the report as a whole was adopted. The Council then sang, 'Traise
God from whom all blessings flow." Dr. Albert J. Lyman led in prayer.
The hymn, "I love Thy kingdom. Lord," was sung. The benediction was
pronounced by Rev. Sidney L. Gulick, eminent missionary from Japan.

This is reminiscent of the closing session of the Cambridge Synod in
1648 which in the words of the MagnaUa was on this wise:

They went on comfortably, and after many "filing thoughts upon it," settled
down substantially upon Mr. Mather's draught of a Platform; after which they
broke up with singing the Song of Moses and the Lamb, in the fifteenth chapter
of the Revelation, "adding another sacred Song from the nineteenth Chapter
of that Book; which is to be found metrically paraphrased in the New England
Psalm-Book." ^^

From 1913 to 1925

Tracing the progress of other interests through the denominational
life from 1865 to the present shows that each interest appears to come
to a peak in certain years and to predominate in certain Council meet-
ings. The main interest of the Council of 1913 was the adoption of the
new constitution with its proposals for closer relationship of the boards
and Council. The Council of 1925 registered high interest in this same
subject, and also the Council at Mount Holyoke College in 1936.

The task was to determine if the new constitution was workable.
When the Council of 1915 met in New Haven the Commission on Mis-

^^ Minutes of the National Council, 191 j, pp. 36-37.
32Dexter, Congregationalism as Seen in Its Literature, p. 438.

The Council and the Boards 52 1

sions was able to report that "The American Board, the American Mis-
sionary Association, the Congregational Home Missionary Society, and
the Congregational Church Building Society have made the necessary
changes in their constitutions, and that the other societies have not yet
completed action but are in process." ^^

The report of the American Board by Rev. William E. Strong, the
editorial secretary, states:

As the American Board makes report once more to the National Council, it
is to be recognized that it now does so as clearly and organically one of the
agencies of the Council. When it was founded, 105 years ago, the American
Board was not formally linked with the Congregational Church machinery. It
was not uniformly approved of by those churches or supported by them. It was
left to find its own constituency and to create its own membership. It had to
devise methods for its continuance and its upkeep. It kept close to the churches;
its friends belonged to them; but it was not itself within the fold.^"*

This Board has been set up by a committee appointed by the General
Association of Massachusetts; but later when it was incorporated by the
State, it became a self-perpetuating, closed corporation. This cut its offi-
cial connection with the Association first sponsoring it. "It should be
noted that at that time neither the ministers or the churches of Massa-
chusetts wished to assume responsibility for it, though the Association
was willing to give the venture its blessing." ^^

The report on the Home Boards written by Dr. Charles E. Burton,
then general secretary of the Home Missionary Society says, "The Home
Missionary Society has been listening carefully for the voice of the church-
es on the question of the realignment of our missionary forces in the
homeland. . . . Finally, its Committee felt no reluctance in voicing its
opinion that the entire home missionary constituency could be depended
upon heartily to cooperate under any plans which the churches formulate
through the wisdom of their National Council." ^^

The Commission on Missions

The Commission on Missions under Dr. Herring's leadership began
publishing material for the Every Member Canvass. Dr. HeiTing be-
came national protagonist in the next Council for the Canvass, in which
he was ably supported by Mr. E. C. Capen.

Dr. Donald J. Cowling, chairman of a subcommittee on organization,

^^Miniites of the National Council, 191 5, p. 268.
^^Minutes of the National Council, 1915, p. 163.

35Letter from Dr. Fred Field Goodsell to the writer, dated Nov. 10, 1941. In Con-
gregational Library.

^^Minutes of the National Council, 191^, pp. 174-175.

333 History of American Congregationalism

presented a report on the relationship of agencies working for the local
churches. He advised closer affiliations of three Boards, the Home Mis-
sionary Society, Church Building Society, and Sunday School Extension
Society, to lead naturally in time to the formation of one board; or to
operation under a common board of directors.

The churches were approaching the three hundredth Anniversary
of the landing of the Pilgrims and the matter of greatest interest at this
1915 Council was planning for the proper commemoration of this Ter-
centenary. Dr. Herring and his committee saw a great opportunity here
for strengthening the loyalty of the churches to the Boards and to the
Council.

As a first step in planning a great national program, Dr. Hening
desired to have the united support of Council officials. Board officials,
state conference officials, pastors, and church members. Replying to ques-
tions many people were asking, Dr. Herring said that in the beginning
of Congregational history there were no Boards; John Eliot constituted
himself a missionary board and got church support. John Harvard set
up a private organization as a college and the churches accepted it. In
the early days when the churches felt a great missionary impulse, they
had left such enterprises to interested individuals.

The Tercentenary

The Council of 1915 approved the plans for the Tercentenary and
the Commission on Missions was charged with their development and
with the promotion of the apportionment for the Boards. One portion
of the plan for the Tercentenary was the project to raise an adequate
sum for a ministerial pension fund. This was carried forward with great
vigor in the years between the Council meeting of 1915 and that of 1919.

The Council at Columbus, Ohio in 1917 gave most of its attention to
war service and the relationship of the churches to problems raised by
the war. The Commission on Missions had been studying the necessary
readjustments of the Boards, transfer of work, and study of the field. At
this Council a noteworthy report was presented on Congregationalism in
the South, prepared by a small committee composed of Dr. Hastings H.
Hart of the Russell Sage Foundation, Professor E. C. Norton of Pomona
College, Mr. Charles W. Davison of Newtonville, Massachusetts and Dr.
Herring. The report has for its objectives:

1. To convey to our fellow Congregationalists in the South the greetings of
the denomination and to assure them of its sense of the significance of the work
they have done and are doing.

2. To gather imjDressions concerning local situations, general tendencies.

The Council and the Boards 323

unmet needs, questions of policy, et cetera, and so far as these impressions should
be deemed relevant to the work of our mission agencies to report them to the
officers and directors of those organizations.

3. To communicate to our constituency at large the committee's judgment
concerning the progress of our Southern work with some appraisal of its im-
portance and estimate of its possibilities."

This report presented a plan for the church agencies working in the
South which has become the basis of their program through the years.
This study served to emphasize the usefulness of tlie Commission on
Missions as an agency to reduce possible overlooking and overlapping.

The Commission on Missions had a second report on the national
plan of benevolence based on stewardship, proposing a Pilgrim Covenant
of Stewardship as a basis for nationwide enrollment in proportionate
giving.^^

Ill

The Care of the Ministry

The Council of 1917 was made historic by adoption of the plan for
the Annuity Fund. The plan had been inaugurated at New Haven in
1915, had been well organized, and a vigorous campaign was in progress
to raise the endowment fund for ministerial annuities.

The Council for many years had placed the care of aged ministers in
the forefront of the churches' interest. The National Council from the
meeting in 1886, when the need for relief for aged or incapacitated min-
isters had been made in an overture from Ohio, had continued to give
attention to this cause. Some states had state relief societies, but were with-
out sufficient funds to meet their needs.

A Committee on Relief had been appointed in i88g, which admin-
istered funds held by the trustees of the National Council. In 1907 the
trustees of the National Council organized the Congregational Board of
Ministerial Relief, the members being elected by the Council. This be-
came a permanent Board.

In 1910 Ohio proposed a pension system for ministers which would so
safeguard the ministry that there would be fewer calls for relief. Results
followed. Other states joined in this memorial, notably Southern Cali-
fornia and Wisconsin. The campaign for an endowment had been ap-
proved by the Council of 1915 and at the meeting in 1917, Dr. Charles
S. Mills presented a plan for the Annuity Fund which with the endow-
ment in hand was adopted and put into effect. The Annuity Fund under
the statesmanlike leadership of Dr. Charles S. Mills, ably assisted by Dr.

^T Minutes of the National Council, i^ij, pp. 160-161.
^^Minutes of the National Council, igi"], p. 205.

■
324 History of American Congregationalism

Lewis T. Reed, who succeeded Dr. Mills as general secretary in 1928,
soon became the highly efficient Pension Board.

The Interchurch World Movement

The 1919 Council meeting at Grand Rapids, coming at the close of
the war when there had been enormous outpourings of funds for char-
itable and welfare interests, had before it a proposal from an influential
interdenominational group in New York for the formation of an Inter-
church World Movement. The proposals were breathtaking in their
sweep and range. The Movement proposed the enlisting of 50,000,000
Protestants in America to support the united world-wide religious and
educational program of all the churches. This interdenominational com-
mittee solicited the cooperation of the Congregational agencies.

To allay the fears that this Movement would involve too great ex-
pense to the Boards, the Commission on Missions stated that it was pro-
posed that the expense of the Movement would not rest on the boards
but would be raised from friendly citizens who were not regular con-
tributors to the mission boards.

With much questioning and some misgivings, the Council finally de-
cided to cooperate. Dr. Herman F. Swartz was appointed secretary of the
Congregational World Movement, with Rev. Lloyd Douglas of Ohio and
Rev. Frederick L. Fagley, associate secretary of the- National Council, as
assistants; and with the service of all promotional secretaries of the
boards at the disposal of this Movement, the denomination went for-
ward in a great educational program which, it was confidently expected,
would be of great service to the boards and all other religious agencies.

While these great plans were going forward, a discussion claimed the
immediate attention of denominational leaders, concerning the relation-
ship between the state conferences and the boards. The Commission on
Missions had already asked the state organizations to take a larger share
in the raising of funds for the Boards, and to raise funds for their own
work along with those raised for the national agencies. There were al-
most as many different plans in operation as there were state conferences,
a plain illustration of Congregational independence. The superintendents
had been meeting annually the last of January in Chicago in what had
become known as the Midwinter Meeting. Here they discussed all phases
of their work. Through processes of group thinking they defined their
problems and found certain solutions. The questions relating to state
work and its support came before the Council of 1915 for discussion and
were assigned to the Commission on Missions for study during the next
biennium, for report at the next meeting of the Council.

The Council and the Boards 325

In all these activities Dr. Herring, the Council's secretary, was busily
engaged. His advice was being received more and more by the boards,
the churches, and the state conferences. His untimely death by drowning
at Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, August 6, 1920, brought an ir-
reparable loss to the whole national fellowship.

When the Council met in Los Angeles in 1921, one of the first tasks
was election of a successor to Dr. Herring; and again the Council looked
to the Home Missionary Society and selected Dr. Charles E. Burton for
Council secretary. Dr. Burton had succeeded Dr. Herring as Home Mis-
sionary secretary when Dr. Herring had become secretary of the Council
in 1913, and had been Dr. Herring's close associate through the years.

By this time the Interchurch World Movement had passed into his-
tory. After carrying forward a great nationwide program of education, it
was not able to finance itself and came to a sudden end, leaving the par-
ticipating denominations with considerable debt. The denominational
organization known as the Congregational World Movement, which was
related to the Interchurch World Movement, was successful beyond all
expectations. The table of apportionment giving shows, in 1910, the
average giving per member to the apportionment in the denomination
was $1.70 per year. This had been raised to I3.98 by 1920, in part as a
result of the educational work of the Congregational World Movement.

The time had come to return to normal after the venture into great
interdenominational plans, and the Council voted:

That the Commission on the Congregational World Movement be instructed
to transfer to the Commission on Missions the executive organization now main-
tained by the Commission on the Congregational World Movement, together
with its property, and also the undistributed funds in the hands of the Commis-
sion on the Congregational World Movement, at the date on which the transfer
is made; and further that the Commission on Missions assume the obligations
standing against the Commission on the Congregational World Movement at
the date of the transfer.^^

The Foundation for Education

This Council of 1921 also established the Foundation for Education
and voted that it should receive seven percent of the apportionment to
provide for its first year's activities. This seven percent out of the total
apportionment virtually made the Foundation a charge against the re-
ceipts of all the societies. As it was expected that this arrangement should
last only for one year, objection did not go beyond a discussion stage.

The next year the Foundation not receiving sufficient funds for its
expenses and likely to become a permanent charge on the apportion-

^^Mijiutes of the National Council, 1921, p. 378.

326 History of American Congregationalism

ment, objection developed. The Foundation's activities were reduced
and in 1927 it was made a department of the Congregational Educational
Society and its work integrated with the work of that society.

The Development of Joint Promotion

The Congregational World Movement had raised thousands of dol-
lars. It had received grants for expenses in the sixteen months from De-
cember 23, 1919 to April 30, 1921, of $166,658; had spent $62,000 for
administration, $58,000 on a field department, and $32,000 on a pub-
licity department, a total of more than $150,000; but had received directly
from donors gifts of approximately $1,100,000, in addition to what the
boards had received in their treasuries. When the World Movement was
concluded and its work and personnel turned over to the Commission on
Missions, serious questions arose as to the future. The Commission on
Missions had been financed by the National Council, but this expense
seldom went beyond $600 a year, usually for expenses of Commission
meetings.

The Apportionment Committee, financed by the boards and related
to the Commission on Missions, seldom spent more than $2,000 a year
on Every Member Canvass material. The Commission on Missions now
raised the question whether (1) there should be joint promotion by the
Commission on Missions which would function somewhat after the plan
of the Interchurch World Movement— that is, be organized under the
Council but financed by the boards, to raise money from the churches
and individuals for the work of the boards; or (2) the boards should
continue their independent promotion and develop this feature of their
work, now somewhat disorganized following the raising of the Pilgrim
Memorial Fund and the joint efforts of the Congregational World Move-
ment.

Dr. Herman F. Swartz, who had been most successful in management
of the Congregational World Movement, resigned as promotional sec-
retary. Dr. Burton assumed the major portion of the responsibility for
a part of the year; when Rev. William S. Beard, who had distinguished
himself first as a leader in raising the Pilgrim Memorial Fund, and later
as promotional secretary for the Church Extension Boards, became the
secretary of the Commission on Missions.

In his report to the Council at Springfield in 1923, Dr. Burton called
attention to this unexpected development of the progi'am of the Com-
mission on Missions of which he was, by constitutional provision, the
secretary. The Kansas City plan made the Commission on Missions a
consultative and advisory body under the National Council. Its work was

The Council and the Boards 327

limited to holding a few meetings each year with expenses seldom over
$600 per year. When the Commission on Missions became the chief pro-
motional agency succeeding the Congregational World Movement with
a budget three times that of the National Council and a staff of em-
ployees, a different situation arose. Dr. Burton in his report to the Coun-
cil of 1923, said:

In addition to the work of promotion, the Commission on Missions, as the
agency of the denomination for coordinating the work of the various boards has
called for much more of the secretary's time and energy than any other depart-
ment and possibly more than all the others. Perhaps this is as it should be in
view of the fact that our missionary and educational work constitute the bulk of
the things we do together. Nevertheless it is doubtful whether the secretary
would have been made secretary of the Commission had the present plan of mak-
ing it a promotional agency been contemplated in its original organization. So
soon as and if the present or similar plans are determined as permanent the
Council should face the question as to whether the Commission on Missions
should not have its own secretary in the person of another than the secretary
of the Council.^o

The Commission on Missions in its report stated what it considered
to be its tasks under the new arrangement:

It is the judgment of your Commission that under the constitution of the
National Council it is the duty of the Commission on Missions in the field of
promotion to initiate and to direct the common appeal of the Congregational
Missionary Societies to the Congregational Churches and their members for the
support of the missionary work of these societies, and to correlate and coordinate
the special individual promotional work of the several societies one with another
and each with the common appeal and all with the appeals of the several states
for the particular missionary work within their borders and under their charge.^^

It gave the difficulties of the situation in these words:

These centered in the fact that the Council had commissioned an organiza-
tion of its own to raise money for corporations which already have boards legally
appointed for that purpose, and in the further fact that under the apportion-
ment plan and the desire of the churches to subscribe their benevolences in a
single budget the national organization retains a system of competitive pro-
motion directed by six general boards and two woman's organizations besides
the Commission on Missions.^^

The question arose as to whether the concentration of the promo-
tional activities for missions under the control of an agency primarily
directed by the National Council was not dividing the responsibility
which naturally belonged to board and members, thus making for con-
fusion.

^^Minutes of the National Council, 192J, p. 24.
*^Minutes of the National Council, 192^, p. 30.
^^Minutes of the National Council, 192^, p. 28.

328 History of American Congregationalism

Another question arose, whether it was possible for an agency like
the Commission on Missions, without responsibility for the administra-
tion of the Boards, to promote their interests and raise funds as effec-
tively as the Boards themselves. Many insisted that if the Commission on
Missions raised the money, (it) would soon concern itself with problems
of administration, and imperil the Boards' traditional independence.

Other problems needed solution. The first was in the field of promo-
tion, where an adequate plan for bringing the states into the promo-
tional picture had been developed. The Council had advised the Church
Extension Boards to turn over to the state conferences as much of the
work in the various states as was possible, and for this work the state
conferences needed funds. The conferences depended very largely on
promotional literature and leadership of the boards' secretaries for rais-
ing these funds.

The second problem concerned the closer affiliation of the boards;
and the third was the desire of many for more simplified promotion.
Not only was the Commission on Missions appealing to the churches
for the support of the Every Member Canvass, but it was also developing
its program on the year-round basis for individual gifts. Separate appeals
were being made by the seven societies. Thus eight agencies were asking
the churches for funds. The apportionment to the churches contained
eleven items, and this multiplicity of demands created general confusion.

A collateral problem concerned the denominational publications.
The request that had been made from time to time for fifty years that
there be a combining of the various magazines was renewed.

VII

The Committee of Twelve

The Commission on Missions was instructed to set up a Committee
of Twelve to study these multiplied problems. This Committee consisted
of Rev. William Horace Day, Bridgeport, Connecticut, Chairman; Mr.
Henry M. Beardsley, Kansas City, Missouri; Rev. Hugh Elmer Brown,
Evanston, Illinois; Rev. Harry P. Dewey, Minneapolis, Minnesota; Mrs.
Ernest A. Evans, New York, New York; Mr. Elbert A. Harvey, Boston,
Massachusetts; Rev. Horace C. Mason, Seattle, Washington; Mrs. E. A.
Osbornson, Oak Park, Illinois; Mr. Dell A. Schweitzer, Los Angeles,
California; Mrs. Lucius H. Thayer, Portsmouth, New Hampshire and
Mrs. Charles R. Wilson, Detroit, Michigan.'*'

The committee was given instructions, including these items:

1. The simplest and most efficient machinery for raising the necessary funds
for the state work and the work of the Boards.

^^Minutes 0/ the National Council, 192^, p. 131.

The Council and the Boards 329

2. Economy.

3. Efficiency. "On the foreign field in some missions there are two sources
of atdministrative authority; in some three; and in some even four; involving
separate sets of books, inflexibility of budgets and complications in administra-
tion. There is also real overlapping in the work of the home societies."^*

4. Simpler relationships.

5. The continuing of unification. Consolidation was to take into considera-
tion the legal restrictions, efficiency and service, and nothing to be done in any
way to prejudice any society's vested interests.

In general, the committee was to plan for such a change in status that the
result would be "A row of friendly but unrelated societies become departments
of a single enterprise, resulting in no loss of efficient detailed attention to the
departmental program but in a new unity of outlook in the accomplishment of
the entire task."**

When the Council met in Washington in 1925 the Committee of
Twelve presented its proposals. Again, as in 1913, the Council was truly
a meeting of "many men of many minds."

The Committee of Twelve realized it was dealing with a delicate
situation: "Your Committee is aware that the desire of the churches for
changes in organization often grows out of impatience with the multi-
plicity of appeal, which is a purely promotional problem."*^

The Committee stated that if there was to be simplicity in promotion
and unity in the appeal to the churches, it was necessary that there
should be unity in leadership. It stated that in foreign missions there
were four separate boards, the American Board and the three women's
boards; that each board worked in the closest cooperation, yet each had
its own budget and its own administrative and promotional problems,
also its own missionaries. In some extreme situations abroad, there would
be in the same station missionaries appointed by and responsible to three
different American Congregational agencies.

The Committee realized that each Board had its loyal supporters who
would resent changes in the status of their particular interest, and if
changes were made this might immediately be followed by loss of con-
tributions.

The discussion of the Committee of Twelve's report occupied prac-
tically half of the Council's sessions. Practically every proposal was the
result of a compromise. Because of its very multiplicity of detail, all of
which was perhaps necessary, the report was most difficult to compre-
hend. Some members expressed the opinion that this was a case where
"tinkering with the machinery" had gone beyond reasonable limits.

**Minutes of the National Council, 192^, p. 69.
^Minutes of the National Council, 192^, p. 70.
*^Minutes of the National Council, 1925, p. 57.

330 History of American Congregationalism

After the final report was adopted by the Council the various boards met
seriatim, according to the constitution, which provides that the voting
members of the Council shall also be voting members of the various
societies; and each board adopted the report.

When the Prudential Committee of the American Board met in
Boston following the Council meeting and the minutes of this special
meeting were read, the question was raised whether the Washington
meeting, held on the closing day of the Council, was a legal meeting.
It was ruled not legal, as the meeting had not been called according to
constitutional provision. Therefore, the vote of approval in Washington
was not a legal vote. The matter thus being open, the Board felt that
much more time was necessary for the study of the report of the Com-
mittee of Twelve, which was now before the American Board simply
as proposals. This situation in the American Board brought great con-
fusion into the whole plan. Whether or not the plan of the Committee
of Twelve could have been carried into successful operation is a moot
question; but with this handicap the confusion that had existed was not
lessened but increased.

The Home Boards adopted the report, and proceeded to put into
operation measures to carry out the various consolidations, leaving the
home work divided into four separate agencies. The states were given
more control of their own work. The Board of Ministerial Relief became
one of the Home Boards. The new Commission on Missions was or-
ganized to include the entire membership of the Prudential Committee
of the American Board, the entire membership of the Board of Directors
of the Home Boards, plus nine members at large elected by the National
Council. This enlarged commission was directed to set up a Promotional
Council of sixteen, five from each Board, three state superintendents and
the secretaries of the Council, the Commission on Missions and the Lay-
man's Advisory Committee. It was thought the Boards would have con-
fidence in the plan now that promotion had been unified under an
agency which the Boards controlled. The public interest was represented
by the nine persons elected at large. As the Boards each had thirty-six
members in the Commission, the nine at large were a very small minority.

One unusual provision was that the Board secretaries on the Promo-
tional Council were to be elected also as promotional secretaries for all
the Boards, the purpose being that each secretary thus elected should be
as responsible for securing funds for the other Boards as for his own
Board. It was understood that each man would have more infoniiation
about his own Board, but unitedly the secretaries would have responsi-
bility for support of all the Boards. Also, the secretaries were to feel

The Council and the Boards 33 1

responsible for raising money for the states and the states for raising
money for the Boards. This put a tremendous burden on the secretaries,
many of whom had spent long years familiarizing themselves with the
need of one particular phase of the whole program. Now the total work
of the churches at home and abroad, carried forward by the eight ad-
ministrative agencies and by the states covered so wide a range that each
secretary faced an almost impossible problem of presentation. The plan
was based on the idea that administration and promotion could be
separated and thrive, when in reality they are the "two legs that carry
the body." These provisions affected only the promotional secretaries.
The Boards classified some secretaries as "educational," and these were
not under the immediate direction of the Commission on Missions.

The Commission on Missions in its report to the Council for 1923
had reported total receipts of $725,173, and total expenses of $122,867,
or 19 percent. The total receipts on the apportionment for the same
year were $3,186,803, indicating that only one-sixth of the money con-
tributed to the apportionment was passing through the Commission on
Missions' receiving treasury.

The anticipated value of the whole plan as adopted may be summed
up in the words of the Commission on Missions under two heads:

1. Simplification. "We conceive that with a single promotional agency em-
bracing all the contacts it will be possible to deal personally with any church
which desires it and to establish contacts with many times the number of indi-
viduals now interested. Where any one society on a limited budget and for a
limited contribution could not afford such relationships, and where now they
would not be possible because of the forbidding number of approaches, one body
with a large appeal and correspondingly large resources can establish these con-
nections effectively."*^

2. Democracy. "The proposals contemplate an organization in which the
representatives of the churches would have direct voice in a feasible way for
the control of the entire missionary activity. As it is, the representatives of the
churches face an organization which is so complex that expression of opinion
is not attempted, and if it is expressed, the number of organizations involved is
so great that it becomes lost before it reaches the final authoritative group."**

This marks the second peak in the relationship between the Council,
the churches, and the Boards. Of the two proposals adopted at Kansas
City in 1913, the first, common voting membership, continued un-
changed. The second, joint or unified promotion, had been the field in
which the experiments had taken place, and which it was hoped would
be regularized by adoption of the report of the Committee of Twelve.

^T Minutes of the National Council, 192^, p. 127.
^Minutes of the National Council, 192$, p. 127.

332 History of American Congregationalism

VIII

The Strategy Committee

These hopes were doomed to disappointment. Through the next ten
years the whole denomination and the Boards continued somewhat in a
state of ferment, with much discussion, many resolutions by conferences
and Boards and committees. There were valiant efforts to work the plan,
but there were too many intangibles. This situation caused a nationwide
demand for a thoroughgoing restudy of the problems, and resulted in
the appointment of a third committee, the Strategy Committee. This
Committee made its report after long and careful study, to the Mount
Holyoke meeting of the Council in 1936. In the intervening years there
were developments worthy of note.

In 1927 it became necessary for the states to increase their share
of the apportionment by three and one-half percent to take care of the
work taken over from the Home Boards, and also because of the increase
of work and demands within the states. This meant that an equal per-
centage must be deducted from the income of the Boards, which raised
new problems. The Commission on Missions reported it had not been
possible to commit all the promotional work of the Boards to the Com-
mission on Missions, as ordered.

It was during this period that Mr. Beard resigned, and Associate
Secretary Fagley was assigned to the Missions Council ad interim. During
this interval Mr. Fagley led in the organization of regional committees
which were first composed of small groups of responsible officials, clergy-
men, and lay people meeting in different sections. So helpful was this
plan of acquaintance between board representatives and church officials
that it became a regular feature of denominational work. The regional
meetings have become great consultative conventions for the whole field
of missionary work.

At the meeting of the Council in 1927 the Commission on Missions
reported eight "departures" from the Washington action, made seventeen
recommendations for action by the Council, and then listed in a para-
graph "matters to be considered later on." Dr. Lucius Thayer, chairman,
who had so wisely guided the Commission through this turbulent year,
closed his report by saying: "In conclusion, the Commission records with
gratification the fact that in these years of reorganization the treasuries
of the societies have not suffered from decreases, such as many of the
other denominations have suffered from. This is genuine cause for grati-
tude to the Giver of all good gifts." ^'

By the time of the meeting of the next Council in 1929 in Detroit,
^^Minutes of the Natio7ial Council, 192J, p. 45.

The Council and the Boards 333

Dr. Burton, in his report on the development during the four years since
the Committee of Twelve reported, said: "Without doubt some momen-
tum was lost in turning aside for a little to repair the machinery. It is
for us now with the improved organization to more than regain the lost
momentum."^"

The American Board was able to say in its report:

The particular point of emphasis in the present biennium of the American
Board has been the increased cooperation within the denomination with the
other missionary societies. Under the leadership of the Promotional Council
and Secretary Merrill, the denomination has attained the highest degree of part-
nership and the spirit of sharing that we have ever known. The text might
almost be used: "looking also on the things of others."

This biennium has also seen a number of interesting developments in the
reorganization of the Board's work, due to the merger of the three Woman's
Boards with the American Board.^i

But the report continued with the statement that this cooperation
and reorganization had affected adversely the income of the Boards. "The
merger has laid an extra burden upon the treasury of the American
Board, and the effect of this is still revealed in the treasurer's report." ^^

The 1931 Council meeting at Seattle was made memorable by the
merger of the General Convention of the Christian Church with the
National Council of the Congregational Churches to form the General
Council of the Congregational and Christian Churches, with the merger
of the denominational organizations and Missions Boards. No insur-
mountable problems were found in merging the two churches, including
the various missionary boards. The secretaries of the Christian Boards
found employment in the merged organizations. Dr. Warren H. Denison,
the secretary of the General Convention, became one of the secretaries
of the General Council. Rev. Wilson P. Minton, secretary of the foreign
board of the Christian Church, became one of the assistant secretaries of
the Commission on Missions. Rev. A. W. Sparks, secretary of the Christian
Home Missionary Society, joined the staff of the Town and Country De-
partment of the Board of Home Missions. Mr. Herman Eldredge of the
Christian Education and Publishing Society became connected with the
Pilgrim Press and the new denominational paper; and Miss Lucy
Eldredge, young people's secretary of the Christian Church, became a
secretary of the Young People's Department of the Education Society.

Discussion continued as to the function of the Commission on Mis-
sions as instituted by the report of the Committee of Twelve at Wash-

50Minut« of the National Council, 1929, p. i8.
^"^ Minutes of the National Council, 1929, p. 96.
^"^Minutes of the National Council, 1929, p. 96.

»
334 History of American Congregationalism

ington in 1925. It was found that this all-inclusive agency was assembled
with great difficulty and at great expense. It included all members of the
Home Board (thirty-six); of the Prudential Committee (thirty-six); ten
members at large, and the moderator and secretary of the Council, a
total of eighty-four members. The report of the Commission states what
was considered its task and its staff:

The chief function of the Commission is the promotion of income for our
missionary and educational activities. Associated with this is the general work of
education in missions and the furnishing of information concerning all depart-
ments of work.

The Commission maintains a staff of six fulltime Secretaries and two on part-
time, the chief dependence for the total work being upon the Secretaries of the
several societies and the officers of the state conferences. The General Secretary
of the National Council serves as General Secretary of the Commission without
salary from the Commission. ^^

While this was going forward in connection with the Commission on
Missions, the Boards were strengthening their own educational depart-
ments. The question was continually arising as to how far the Commis-
sion on Missions was responsible for the missionary education work
cared for by the Boards, and where the line was drawn between mission-
ary education and promotion. It became generally accepted that what
the Boards wished to do in their own name was education, through the
work of the Education Secretaries.

The situation that developed was quite adequately described in the
report of the Home Boards:

It may not be generally recognized that the Home Boards, despite their inde-
pendent origin and the retention of their individual names, are very closely
unified both in administration and in promotion. Among the factors which tend
to produce this unity are: substantially common corporate membership, similar
by-laws, common Board of Directors and general officers, interlocking Admin-
istrative Committees, joint Cabinet and receiving treasury. The work of the
Project Secretary, operating on behalf of all the Boards, further tends to bring
their interests into conjunction, while the unified Annual Meetings, which have
been held ever since 1924, more and more emphasize aspects of the common task
rather than division of work as carried on by separate societies. In promotion,
too, the Home Boards are directly unified under common leadership, the issuance
of a joint magazine and the preparation of joint advertisements. Consolidation
of practically all our New York denominational offices on the eighth and ninth
floors of the United Charities Building, effected May 1, will make for coopera-
tive efficiency. Underlying and enveloping all this joint activity on the part of
the Home Boards is a spirit of cordial, mutual interest and good fellowship both
among the Directors and general officers as well as among the employed official
staff. It is doubtful whether any business or industrial organization could show
a better spirit of mutual understanding and fraternal regard than is evidenced
^^Minutes of the General Council, ip^i, p. 27.

The Council and the Boards 335

in the frequent personal contacts of those who are charged with the carrying on
of both administrative and promotional activities.^^

It will be noted from this paragraph that so far as the Home Boards
were concerned, the Commission on Missions and its office were not in
the thought of the officials who wrote that biennial report. They were
trying to bring the various Home Boards into a closer relationship, and
to build up an educational agency with literature and magazine, to
parallel the corresponding department of the American Board, which
included educational and editorial secretaries.

The Commission on Missions had been charged with responsibility
for promotion but was finding a restricted field of activity. The Boards
now having seventy-two out of eighty-four members of the Commission
on Missions, followed their own best judgment, which was to strengthen
their individual educational and editorial departments rather than to
build up a joint agency for which they had not asked, and which they
felt was costing increasingly large sums of money. Dr. Charles C. Merrill,
secretary of the Commission on Missions, resigned, and other staff officials
withdrew. When the Council met in Oberlin in 1934 the Commission on
Missions made a proposal for reorganization; presented the results of an
appraisal committee set up some years before, and made the following
statement: "The Commission is eager to be the faithful servant of the
churches and solicits the freest discussion of these questions and others
and covets the leading of the divine mind through our common thoughts
and aspirations."^^

IX
The Appraisal Committee

The Council, acting upon the recommendation of the Commission,
set itself to restudy the whole problem under the guidance of an enlarged
committee. The following were named as the committee: Dean L. A.
Weigle, Connecticut; Rev. H. Paul Douglass, New York; Rev. Oscar E.
Maurer, Connecticut; Mrs. Helen V. Morse, Ohio; Rev. Frank M.
Sheldon, Oklahoma; Mr. Walter Gilpatric, New York; Rev. John C.
Schroeder, Maine; Mr. Elbert A. Harvey, Massachusetts; and Professor
W. A. Harper, Tennessee.^^

X
The Council for Social Action

At the meeting in 1934 the General Council created a new agency,
known as the Council for Social Action as has been noted in the chapter
on "Social Concern." It should be mentioned here that when a new

^*Minutes of the General Council, 19^1, p. 85.
^^Miniites of the General Council, 1934, p. 45.
^^Minutes of the General Council, 1934, p. 103.

336 History of American Congregationalism

need was recognized the Council, without question of its authority or
its capability, provided for the establishment of this denominational
agency, elected a board of control, and voted it a share in the denomina-
tional apportionment.

This vote of the Council was passed the more easily because of the
support of Rev. Fred Field Goodsell, executive vice president of the
American Board, and Rev. William F. Frazier, who later became execu-
tive vice president of the Home Boards, and many state superintendents.

The new Strategy Committee began its work immediately following
adjournment of the 1934 Council. It followed the plan of two previous
committees, the Commission of Nineteen and the Committee of Twelve,
in seeking the advice of Board officials, pastors, and lay people from all
sections of the country. As a result, it could report "these studies have
made it clear that our denominational agencies have been and are doing
the important work with which they are charged with a high degree of
efficiency, so that the task of the Strategy Committee has not been that
of designing a plan of rescue from failure, but rather that of adding
efficiency to efficiency by any improvements it might be able to suggest.""

Dr. Burton summed up the situation in these words:

The Commission on Missions is a creature of the General Council, which
draws together the membership of the responsible Boards for the purpose of
unifying promotion. The members of the Boards have constituted nearly 90
percent of the Commission on Missions membership. Its meetings are there-
fore practically joint meetings of the Boards, nevertheless the Commission on
Missions is technically an outside agency, and the Secretary of the General Coun-
cil is its General Secretary. This set-up has dulled somewhat the sense of re-
sponsibility of the Boards for the Commission and their feeling of dependence
upon it for promotional effectiveness.^*

That the Boards might have a keener sense of responsibility for the
Commission on Missions the Committee proposed, in the South Hadley
Council in 1936, a new arrangement whereby the boards would have a
one hundred percent membership rather than the previous ninety per-
cent by eliminating Council appointees. This proposal was adopted.

Our suggestion means that the members of the Boards continue to meet in
joint session, without additional representatives named by the General Council,
to do just such things as they have been doing in the field of promotion and
education, but doing these things in the name of the responsible Boards under
the executive leadership of the officers of the Boards.

We recommend that the General Council amend its by-laws to the effect
that it shall relinquish direct responsibility for the promotion of income and
leave that responsibility with the Boards themselves.^^

^''Minutes of the General Cou?icil, 19^6, p. 30.
^Minutes of the General Council, 19^6, p. 33.
^^Minutes of the General Council, 1936, p. 33.

The Council and the Boards 337

The Net Result

By this action the denomination had virtually completed a circle in
the field of promotion, where differences of opinion had caused a con-
fused situation for more than sixty years. It should be emphasized again
that the Strategy Committee, like the Committee of Twelve, made no
proposals for a change of the first of the two principles adopted at Kan-
sas City in 1913, namely, that the relationships between the Council and
the Boards should be on the basis of practically identical voting mem-
bership, and secondly, that the churches, through their representatives
in the Council should have more responsibility in determining the pro-
motional and educational work of the Boards.

Now adopting the report of the Strategy Committee the Council was
divesting itself of all responsibility for the Every Member Canvass, and
missionary promotion and education, and was committing these various
interests to a joint committee of the two Boards, plus a representation of
the state superintendents. The state conferences called for increasing
consideration in relation to the national set-up, as the missionary and
administrative work in the states required practically one-third of all the
benevolent giving. As a matter of fact the chief responsibility for main-
taining the financial health of the Boards was placed on the two execu-
tive vice presidents, Dr. Fred Field Goodsell, executive vice president of
the American Board, and Dr. William F. Frazier, newly elected executive
vice president of the Board of Home Missions.

The Council, however, in its approval of the report made the net
gain that missionary promotion and missionary education of the Boards
and of the states were to be carried on in cooperation, and that the
total needs were to be presented to the churches in a unified program.
In 1913 there were many societies with separate appeals, and as late as
1925 there were eleven items in the apportionment. After 1936 there
was to be one joint appeal and the apportionment was to carry three
items: the Board of Home Missions, the American Board, and state work.
The basic percentage of the apportionment assigned to the American
Board was thirty-two percent, to the states thirty-two percent, and to the
Board of Home Missions thirty-six percent, of which four percent was
voted to the Council for Social Action. The evident purpose of the
Council in adopting the detailed plan as proposed by the Committee
was to insure, as far as possible, that the executive secretai^ for promotion
was to have a unique place in the denominational set-up. He was to be
promotional secretary in charge of each Board's promotional unit, and
also chief executive of the joint promotional program. It was intended

338 History of American Congregationalism

that this should result in complete unification of the approach of the
Boards to the churches.

The Committee attempted to do the impossible. The promotional
staff of each Board is chosen by that Board on recommendation of the
executive vice-president of that Board, and the secretaries on that staff
look to him for primary instructions. It was planned, however, to place
these promotional secretaries under the direction of an executive sec-
retary for promotion, not responsible to the chief executive officer of
either Board. Such divided responsibility, even with the best of inten-
tions on all sides, caused endless discussions and hampered the work.

The most revolutionary recommendation of the Strategy Committee
was that section relating to the Executive Committee of the Council.
This recommendation was adopted, and provided:

That under amendment o£ the By-Laws the Executive Committee be en-
larged from fifteen to eighteen; be elected in three classes for term^ of six years
each, members being ineligible for re-election for a two-year period. The Sec-
retaries of the Council should be non-voting members in attendance at all
meetings.

That the By-Laws of the General Council be amended so as to transfer to
the Executive Committee of the Council the functions therein committed to the
Commission on Missions other than promotion, those now carried temporarily
by the Strategy Committee and also the functions of the Survey Committee and
approval of apportionment percentages.^"

Following the precedent of the Committee of Twelve, the Strategy
Committee ended its report with a list of questions for further study,
thus laying the groundwork for the appointment of a fourth committee.

It should be noted that through all these changes the great corpora-
tions have come into closer relationship to the Council, guided by two
principles: (1) the maintenance of the work they are doing and (2)
closer coordination of their work with that of the churches generally.
While there have been many discussions as to methods, both Board mem-
bers and church representatives have been united in the purpose to
strengthen the work at home and abroad.

The two Councils at Beloit in 1938 and at Berkeley in 1940, reg-
istered a growing spirit of cooperation between the old established
Boards and the state conferences in the development of cooperative ac-
tivities.

The Council for Social Action, set up by the Council at Oberlin, de-
veloped its program as an independent agency. Since the work of tlie
Council for Social Action was related to the work of the Board of Home
Missions in many ways, especially to the Educational Division, a closer
official relationship seemed desirable. It was therefore decided at the
^''Minutes of the General Council, 1936, p. 42.

The Council and the Boards 339

Beloit meeting that the General Council divest itself of the responsibility
of electing the members of the Council of Social Action, and that the
board of directors of the Home Boards assume this responsibility with
the understanding that the largest possible measure of freedom should
be retained by the Council for Social Action in its administration and
program. That change has not proved satisfactory and further adjust-
ments are in prospect.

XII

The Debt of Honor

Adequate provision had not been made to pay in full the $500 an-
nuity to ministers who had qualified under the "original plan." It was
hoped that contributions from the churches would make good the deficit
necessary to pay these annuities, but in order that these annuities might
be paid in full, an increasing amount had to be taken from the benevo-
lent contributions of the churches. Hence, at the 1938 Council meeting
in Beloit, a Debt of Honor Commission was authorized on the recom-
mendation of the Executive Committee which, in its report, said:

In April, 1937, the Missions Council, supported by the Prudential Committee
of the American Board and the Directors of the Board of Home Missions, asked
the approval of the Executive Committee to a plan for raising a fund to care
for the portion of annuities under the Original Plan of the Annuity Fund which
is not already provided for.^i

Then followed the recommendations for the organization of the Debt
of Honor Commission under the General Council to raise funds to meet
this deficit. This Commission, under the chairmanship of Dean Charles
R. Brown, with the effective leadership of Dr. Lewis T. Reed and after
his retirement of Dr. Frank J. Scribner, the general secretary of the Pension
Boards, is caiTying forward the campaign for funds sufficient to make
full payment to the original fund members.

^^Minutes of the General Council, 1938, p. 13.

CHAPTER XX

Church Union

THE Congregational pioneers did not accept the term "Separatists"
or the term "schismatics" often applied to them, their contention
being that it was the Anglican Church that had departed from
true Christianity and that they were the upholders and restorers of it.
They hoped to effect a reformation within the church. Robinson said,
"Study union with the Godly people of England where you can have it
without sin rather than in the least measure to effect a division or separa-
tion from them." Some of the writers of the Established Church also
sought to unite Christians of different beliefs in worship in the church.
For example, Edward Polhill, a layman in that church in the late i6oo's
said, "The unity of the church is a divine thing and does not consist in
human rights, liturgy, episcopacy, nor the civil law; in the first golden
age of the church there was little of ceremony but much of unity." Neal
describes meetings of the ministers of various bodies in England during
the Protectorate where, by agreement, "they abstained from discussion of
political questions but where the fellowship was very helpful and the
general effect was most happy." ^

The Congregational churches have never been hampered by loyalty
to creedal statements in their efforts towards union. What creed they have
has been accepted for "substance of doctrine." Professor Bartlett, who
had much to do in the framing and adoption of the declaration on unity
in the Council meeting in 1871 said of the Congregational attitude to-
wards creeds and the implications of the phrase, "for substance of doc-
trine":

True, our denomination has never done more than to accept for substance,
any Confession; but that awkward word "substantially," is a very hard word to
make people understand, particularly if they do not want to understand it.
Doubtless a man, in any church of any denomination, who accepts literally, just
as a plain man would understand it, every phrase in the Westminster, would
be a rare specimen. The churches have never proposed to do it. They have
never, in any synod, imposed a creed on any man's conscience. But every troubler
has felt at liberty to insist that our laborers shall defend every sentence of Con-
fessions which were never adopted by sentences. For ourselves, we can continue
to believe and teach that "no mere man since the fall is able in this life per-
fectly to keep the commandments of God,"— and to hold to this "substantially,"
that is, just as it means.

iNeal, The History of the Puritans, vol. 2, p. 137.

340

Church Union 341

The history of the ventures towards union by the Congregational
churches makes clear certain principles which have controlled and di-
rected the movement.

I
Congregational Principles

The first principle is that the only official Congregational church is
a local congiegation which enjoys complete autonomy; whatever or-
ganizations there are beyond the congregation, as the association, the
state conference, or the National Council, are only advisory organiza-
tions. Most of these have written into their constitutions words similar
in effect to those of the first national constitution: "The churches, there-
fore, while establishing this National Council for the furtherance of the
common interests and work of all the churches, do maintain the Scrip-
tural and inalienable right of each church to self-government and ad-
ministration; and this National Council shall never exercise legislative or
judicial authority, nor consent to act as a council of reference."^ This,
with minor changes, has continued to be the official statement of the
Council.

Hence, as the agencies outside the local church are neither legislative
nor judicial, but only administrative, any proposal for church union
affects only the agency taking action. For example, when the National
Council has voted to merge with the national organization of another
religious body, it has not followed that the local units of either body were
merged but that the cooperative agency of the Congregational churches—
that is, its National Council— united with a similar agency in some other
body for coordination and mutual enrichment of both.

This principle is illustrated by the fact that when mergers have been
proposed in the National Council there has never been any move to
refer these proposals to the associations, conferences, and local congrega-
tions for official consideration previous to the vote by the Council. The
Council has always considered itself competent to decide by its own vote
whether or not it would affiliate with a corresponding body in some
other denomination. This principle is illustrated by the latest merger
between the National Council of Congregational Churches and the Gen-
eral Convention of the Christian Church, which was the corresponding
body in that denomination. The action was taken by the National Coun-
cil without reference to the churches. The state conferences and local
associations, however, have accepted the Council vote and have welcomed
into their fellowship uniting groups.

The second principle concerning church union is that members of
Congregational churches have never looked upon tliemselves as sectarian.
^Minutes of the National Council, iSji, p. 30.

342 History of American Congregationalism

From the beginning it has been the idea that a Congregational church
is not made up of Congregationalists as a Quaker congregation is made
up of Quakers, but that a Congregational church is a group of Christians
associated together for a definite purpose, not because of peculiarities of
belief. Concerning this phase of the life of the churches of New England,
Cotton Mather stated, "The Churches of New England make only vital
piety the terms of communion among them and they all with delight see
Godly Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Antipedo-Baptists,
the Lutherans all members of the same churches." These nondenomina-
tional community churches in New England opposed the establishment
of other churches, saying they feared "the coming of sects lest they them-
selves should become sectarian." Today as in Cotton Mather's day a
church with perhaps a thousand members may have but a small per-
centage of its membership who grew up in a Congregational church.
Thus the local church is in truth a union of Christians who are not
asked to renounce dieir previous denominational teachings but are asked
to join in a simple covenant pledging cooperation and fellowship.

Perhaps no other religious body in America has made as many ges-
tures toward union with other religious bodies as have the various Na-
tional Councils. The members of these Councils have always felt per-
fectly free, acting in their own name, to make a proposal to any par-
ticular group that appeared willing to receive it. They have never felt
any restriction as to what might be the attitude of the local church, as-
sociation, or state conference, because it was always clearly iinderstood
that these bodies would accept the proposed merger if it were consum-
mated only as far as it was to their interest to do so.

The attitude making possible independent and immediate action is
based on two ideas. First, the basic idea of union with all Christians
which works out so happily in most Congregational churches could be
worked out just as well on a national scale. And secondly, local churches
have never felt any particular responsibility for the actions of the Na-
tional Council.

For almost a century Congiegational churches in increasing numbers
have been inviting ministers of other denominations to sei-ve as pastors.
Some of these "guest" pastors transfer their standing to the Congrega-
tional association, but often as many as five hundred churches have con-
tinued under the pastoral care of ministers who belong to other denom-
inations, with the natural result that these churches consider themselves
quite interdenominational. A few Congregational churches feel as closely
allied to the Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America, an
interdenominational agency, as to the General Council. That affiliation
may mean more to them than their membership in an association or a

Church Union 343

state conference which in turn is a member of the General Council. In
the interdenominational organizations the local church has individual
though associate membership, while in the Congregational Council it has
a representative membership through delegates elected by the conferences.

The Effect of the Plan of Union

The experience of the churches with the Presbyterians in the Plan of
Union in the first half of the nineteenth century is quite illustrative of
the attitude and method of Congregationalists towards church union.
The churches of Connecticut entered into the Plan of Union with the
Presbyterian General Assembly and on both sides there was good purpose
and fellowship in service.

The opposition to the Plan of Union which came to expression in the
Albany convention did not arise because the New England churches were
dissatisfied that Presbyterian churches were absorbing so many Congre-
gationalists who went from New England to the West. It arose rather
in the West when those western Congregationalists wanted the support
of the eastern churches in establishing Congregational churches. The
New England people felt that having their own Congregational church
for free worship, in their own community, they had no particular re-
sponsibility for the kind of church the residents of a town a thousand
miles away should have. If they cared enough for a Congregational
church they should organize and maintain it themselves. Here and there
throughout the western country were groups of former members of Con-
gregational churches in New England who persisted in their attachment
and did not become members of the Presbyterian order. By the time of
the Albany Convention there were enough of these independent western
churches to make a strong appeal. They aroused enough sympathy and
understanding to create a consciousness of national Congregationalism,
and then the eastern churches assumed responsibility for the fostering
of Congregational churches through the West.

At the Boston Council of 1865, thirteen years after the Albany con-
vention, there were debates on the need of granting help for cliurch
building, and the need of supplying western churches with a trained and
educated ministry. This Council gave a great deal of attention to the
Tract Society, the Bible Society, the Sunday School Union, and other
nondenominational agencies working in their midst. They put the
financial needs of these interdenominational agencies on practically the
same basis as those more nearly related to the life of the Congregational
churches. This spirit of broad interest was greatly strengthened by the
attitude of the missionary boards. These boards sought to maintain an
interdenominational membership and to have an interdenominational

344 History of American Congregationalism

relationship to the National Council. Thus the Boards would have the

maximum of endorsement and support from the churches, but would

not be functioning as agencies of the Council. This interdenominational

attitude of the Boards was a helpful influence towards Christian unity

in the churches.

The Declaration of Unity

When the National Council met at Oberlin in 1871, the constitution
presented by the Provisional Committee included a declaration on the
unity of the church. No part of the Committee's proposals received more
hearty commendation than did this declaration, which for almost fifty
years was printed in the Year Book between the Constitution and by-
laws. The declaration read:

The members of the National Council, representing the Congregational
churches of the United States, avail themselves of this opportunity to renew
their previous declarations of faith in the unity of the church of God.

While affirming the liberty of our churches, as taught in the New Testament,
and inherited by us from our fathers, and from martyrs and confessors of fore-
going ages, we adhere to this liberty all the more as affording the ground and
hope of a more visible unity in time to come. We desire and purpose to cooper-
ate with all the churches of our Lord Jesus Christ.

In the expression of the same catholic sentiments solemnly avowed by the
Council of 1865, on the Burial Hill at Plymouth, we wish, at this new epoch of
our history, to remove, so far as in us lies, all causes of suspicion and alienation,
and to promote the growing unity of counsel and of effort among the followers
of Christ. To us, as to our brethren, 'There is one body and one spirit, even as
we are called in one hope of our calling."

As little as did our fathers in their day, do we in ours, make a pretension to
be the only churches of Christ. We find ourselves consulting and acting to-
gether under the distinctive name of Congregationalists, because, in the pres-
ent condition of our common Christianity, we have felt ourselves called to
ascertain and do our own appropriate part of the work of Christ's church among
men.

We especially desire, in prosecuting the common work of evangelizing our
own land and the world, to observe the common and sacred law, that in the
wide fields of the world's evangelization, we do our work in friendly coopera-
tion with all those who love and serve our common Lord.

We believe in "the holy catholic church." It is our prayer and endeavor,
that the unity of the church may be more and more apparent, and that the
prayer of our Lord for his disciples may be speedily and completely answered,
and all be one; that by consequence of this Christian unity in love, the world
may believe in Christ as sent of the Father to save the world.^

The learned Professor Bartlett in his report analyzing this declara-
tion, said:

"Instead of throwing away the substance of any Confession, we really recog-
nize the essential faith of the Christian church which is in all Confessions. We
^Minutes of the National Council, iSyi, pp. 31-32.

Church Union 345

refuse to be a sect, and we are loyal to the common faith. This is a great step,
therefore, towards Christian union. It tells all Christian people that we will
not make our peculiarities a bar to the union of the separated parts of Christ's
divided church. We can welcome them on the simple basis of the common faith.
Whatever the immediate result may be, an act like this of a powerful denomina-
tion must eventually bear fruit, and in the meantime we have the satisfaction
of knowing that our churches have done the right thing for Christian union."*

On the basis of this declaration, church leaders were on the alert for
any opportunity to carry these principles into effect.

Ill

The Free Baptist Proposals

The first definite Council action concerning church union was at Chi-
cago, October 13-20, 1886. A proposal was before that Council regarding
cooperation with the Free Baptist churches. It had been referred to a
special committee of which Dr. Alonzo H. Quint was chairman. This com-
mittee presented a report which sketched briefly the history of the Free
Baptists, saying: "No denomination is nearer to us than that of the Free
Baptists, perhaps none so near. That denomination began its existence
in New Hampshire, by the organization of its first church in the year
1780. It seems strange that two bodies so near alike could not be one,
and thus remove one of the confusions of our Christendom. The prin-
ciple is, at least, worth commending, and we do commend it."^

The Council accepted this report and seven resolutions were adopted
bearing upon the proposed merger. These resolutions representing the
mind and temper of the Congregational churches more than fifty years
ago are of unusual interest. They emphasize the desirability of such a
union as "an evidence to the world of the oneness of the church of
Christ" and especially desirable would be the union of separate and weak
local churches into one. The Council provided for delegates from the
Fiee Baptists to the National Council and instructed the committee not
only to advance this proposed union but "that it also be made the duty
of this committee to seek and promote fellowship or union with any
kindred bodies of Christians, and to report thereon at the next meeting
of the National Council; and that we rejoice to acknowledge the fact
that all Christians are members of the 07ie church of Christ, whatever be
the form of their organization, and that we will gladly cooperate in every
effort to make this fact visible to the world." ^

The Free Baptists had originally separated from the Congregational
churches following the George Whitefield revival. They accepted prac-

*The Congregational Quarterly, 1872.

^Minutes of the National Council, 1886, pp. 351, 352.

^Minutes of the National Council, 1886, p. 35.

346 History of American Congregationalism

tically all the current teachings of the Congregationalists with the excep-
tion of baptism of infants, which they rejected on doctrinal grounds.
According to the report of Dr. Quint's committee, the first minister and
founder of the Free Baptists had been a lay member of the Congrega-
tional order; that he left "Standing Order," as the Congregational fellow-
ship was called in New Hampshire, in protest against the relationship of
the church to the civil society. The reason for this protest against condi-
tions in the early churches had passed away long before the merger was
proposed, for all the churches in New England had become free churches.
Both denominations practiced what was known as "open communion."
This report contained one sentence of great insight: "Denominations are
not made, they grow; if they unite it is because they grow towards each
other and together. Formal attempts may mutually repel." ^

The committee at the next meeting of the Council could only express
its appreciation of the work of the Free Baptist Churches, a cordial sym-
pathy with doctrine and policy, and express regret that churches so closely
allied could not form one body. Evidently objection had developed
among the Baptist group to the proposed merger.

Three years later, no progress having been made to bring this pro-
posed merger into effect, the Council in 1892 adopted a general resolution
which has become one of the historic actions of the Council. This brief
resolution reads as follows:

"Resolved, That affiliation with our denomination of churches not now upon
our roll, should be welcomed upon the basis of the common evangelical faith,
substantial Congregational polity, and free communion of Christians, without
regard to forms or minor differences.

"Resolved, That this Council heartily agrees with the unanimous declaration
of the International Congregational Council, held in London, in 1891, in favor
of a federation without authority, of all bodies of Christian churches, as soon
as the providence of God shall permit, for the manifestation of the unity of the
church of Christ upon the earth, and for harmonious action in advancing the
kingdom of Jesus Christ."

In commenting on this resolution Rev. Charles M. Lamson of St.
Johnsbury, Vermont, said in his Council sermon: "That church is most
profoundly religious today and will receive and deserve extension and
honor that learns from its Lord that true living is now a movement from
'freedom to unity,' from Christ in the individual to Christ in society.
This is Congregationalism in its idea, self-control as a church by means
of the divine control, submission to the control of its Lord, autonomy
for the sake of service, the fellowship of the churches for the sake of the
Church, independency for the sake of unity."*

''Minutes of the National Council, i88g, p. 254.
^Minutes of the National Council, 1892, p. 64.

Church Union 347

As the years went by however the Free Baptists found their fellow-
ship growing stronger with the Regular and General Baptist churches,
many of which were looking with kindly favor on open communion, one
of the chief teachings of the Free Baptists. Nothing further developed from
the discussion of this proposed merger, but the attention of many church
leaders was focused on the problems involved in church union. One of
the leaders said, "the smaller the denomination, the bigger the prob-
lems." It was just as difficult, if not more so, to discuss church mergers
with small groups as with large ones.

The Congregational MethOdist

The Council of 1892 welcomed into the fellowship a group of Con-
gregational Methodists from Georgia and Alabama.

"The Congregational Methodist Church was organized at Forsyth,
Georgia, in May, 1852, as a protest against certain features of the epis-
copacy and itinerancy. The organization was formed for the purpose of
securing a more democratic form of church government. The congrega-
tional form of government was adopted, although modified by a degree
of connectionalism. The movement extended into Georgia, Alabama,
Florida, and Mississippi. In 1887 and 1888 nearly one third of the
churches of this body joined the Congregationalists. ... Its polity is
congregational, constituting the chief distinction between it and other
Methodists."^

The union of these churches was not a merger of national denomina-
tional bodies, but rather the Congregational Methodist churches in a few
states united with the Congregational associations and became to all in-
tents and purposes Congregational churches in good standing. In later
years some of these churches have withdrawn from the CongiTgational
associations and established connections with other bodies, but some of
these Congregational Methodists remain in our fellowship.

V
The Chicago Lambeth Quadrilateral

When the Council met in 1895 at Syracuse, New York, the whole
Christian world had been stirred by a statement of four principles pro-
posed by the Episcopalians meeting in Chicago and stating the basis on
which they would be willing to discuss the union of Protestantism. These
statements were later adopted by the Bishops meeting at Lambeth Palace
and became known as the Chicago Lambeth Quadrilateral.

This world-wide interest in church union is reflected in the records
9 Watson, Year Book of the Churches, 1^21-22, p. 146.

348 History of American Congregationalism

of the Syracuse Council in 1895. The reports of the two committees, one
on church union and the other on Christian unity, cover twenty-seven
pages in the minutes of that Council and were widely discussed in the
Council meeting. The address by the retiring Moderator, Dr. Alonzo H.
Quint, who had been a directing genius of the National Council in 1871,
also dealt with this subject. In it he developed the basic ideas for Chris-
tian unity. Dr. Quint, in his address, said:

Congregationalism is almost ashamed to be distinctive, and gladly it would
be merged in the undivided Church, if it found the undivided catholic Church
in which to lose its name. . . . What Congregationalism signifies to us is the
absolute supremacy of the Lord Jesus Christ; the equality of all Christians in
their relation to him; the responsibility and discipline of brotherhood in govern-
ment. . . . The Pilgrim principle of a spiritual kingdom, free and unshackled,
carried forward by spiritual forces, and dependent upon the divine power vouch-
safed to a willing church is the hope and prophecy of victory.^"

The "longing for the unity of Christendom," which dominated that
Council, found in current developments much to discourage it. There
is nowhere in our records a better presentation of the whole problem of
church union and its relationship to Christian unity than is contained
in reports to this Council. Not only was the committee on church union
compelled to report that negotiations with the Free Baptists had reached
a standstill, but they also reported that the Chicago Lambeth Quadri-
lateral which had been before the churches for a number of years and
which, on its face, seemed to be a possible basis for church union, had
now been so interpreted by the Bishops that the committee reported "it
is clear that these Chicago Lambeth proposals may now be considered
as withdrawn by the Bishops.""

The Episcopal bishops had so interpreted the term "historic episco-
pate" so that it "would require all other denominations to accept the
order of bishops as officially superior to that of the ministry to receive
ordination through bishops who claim uninterrupted apostolic succes-
sion. It became equally clear that the Protestant Episcopal Church would
refuse to allow its clergy to recognize the clergy of other denominations
either fraternally or officially as possessing a valid ministry." ^^

In accepting the bishops' interpretation and considering the Chicago
Lambeth Quadrilateral as outside the range of possibility, the Congre-
gationalists were following the lead of the Presbyterian Assembly, which
"after some ten years of courteous and laborious correspondence and con-

10 Watson, Year Book of the Churches, 1921-22, p. 81.
^^ Minutes of the Natiojial Council, iSg^, p. 284.
^^Mi7iutes of the National Coiuicil, iSp^, p. 284.

Church Union 349

sideration, had excused its committee from further considering the sub-
ject." ^^

The Cleveland Proposal

There had been close relations between Presbyterian and Congrega-
tional churches in the Western Reserve dating back to the Plan of Union
in the early 1800's, which had survived the troubles in the Presbyterian
Church when it was split into two groups over some implications in the
Plan of Union. In 1923 this good relationship found expression in pro-
posals for organic union between the Cleveland Presbytery and the Cleve-
land Union of Congregational churches. This proposal was presented to
the Synod of the Presbyterian Church of Ohio where it was "looked upon
with favor." On the basis of this tentative action a Plan of Union was
worked out and addressed to the General Assembly of the Presbyterian
Church of the United States and to the Congregational National Coun-
cil. The Congregational Council in 1927 viewed the proposal "with sin-
cere approval" and authorized its commission to work toward its fulfil-
ment. No further actions were taken by either the Presbyterian or the
Congregational group and this venture ended in failure.

VII

The Concordat

Another gesture towards closer relations with the Episcopalians came
to nought. This is the famous Concordat proposal. A group of Congrega-
tional ministers under the leadership of Dr. Newman Smyth and Dr.
William E. Barton, some twenty years after the adjournment of the dis-
cussion over the Quadrilateral, started negotiations to make it possible in
small communities where the Episcopalians had a church and the Con-
gregationalists did not or vice versa, for the minister of the existing
church to minister "legally" to the members of the other fellowship. The
proposal aroused much discussion but was abandoned because Episco-
palian law required anyone administering communion to an Episcopalian
to have Episcopal ordination.

Congregational ministers believe that their ordination is valid as
ministers of the whole Church of Christ. They would not accept re-ordi-
nation if it brought into question their Congregational ordination. Many
were prepared to take a second ordination if in so doing their previous
ordination would be accepted as valid, and the second ordination con-
sidered simply as a means of conforming to an old-time law. The Episco-
palians would not accept this interpretation. They insisted that if a Con-
^^Miniites of the National Council, i8p$, p. 284.

350 History of American Congregationalism

gregational minister submitted himself to the bishop it would not be for
re-ordination or a supplemental ordination but for a "valid" ordination.
This, of course, implied that Congregational ordinations were not valid.
The Council of 1923 laid the whole proposition on the table, the motion
being made by Dr. Smyth, seconded by Dr. Barton, and unanimously
carried.

VIII
The Disciples of Christ

The committee also reported on a proposal from the Disciples of
Christ. This has historic interest, as negotiations are still being continued.
The Disciples, meeting in Alleghany City in 1891 and having before them
the Lambeth Quadrilateral, were moved to issue a "Triennial" as a basis
upon which they proposed organic union. The three items in this "Tri-
ennial" were (1) The original creed of Christ's Church, that Jesus is "the
Christ, the Son of the living God," as first formulated by Peter, then ap-
proved by Christ, as the basis of his Church; (2) the ordinances of Bap-
tism and the Lord's Supper, the former defined as "the immersion of
penitent believers in the name of the Lord Jesus, and into the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit"; and (3) "the life
which has the sinless Son of Man as its perfect exemplification."^*

Thereupon the Congregational committee adopted a statement which
has become historic because it presents so clearly the fundamental atti-
tude of Congregationalists toward church union:

It may be sufficient to say that a plan which makes the imposition of the
form of a rite essential can no more be the basis for the union of the Christian
world, than one which makes the particular form of church organization essen-
tial. Unity can never be achieved on the basis of any sort of formalism, for the
insistence on formalism, whatever it may be, is of the same essence as that strict
Judaism which our Lord came to replace by a spiritual faith and life. No union
is possible based on submission of the intelligence of one party to that of another.
Union can take place only on a spiritual basis which allows liberty for con-
scientious differences.!^

IX
First Proposals for Merger with the Christians

Still greater interest is aroused by the fact that the larger portion of
this historic report of 1895 is concerned with proposals for merger with
what the committee called the "Christian connection." This venture did
not come to completion until thirty-six years later at Seattle, when the
Christian General Convention and Congregational National Council
united to form a General Council of the Congregational and Christian
Churches. The report gives a brief history of "the Christians" and their

^^Minutes of the Natiorial Council, iSp^, p. 285.
^^Alinutes of the National Council, iSp^, p. 285.

Church Union 351

origin; also of their religious journal, The Herald of Gospel Liberty,
which was first issued at Portsmouth, New Hampshire and "claims to be
the oldest religious paper in the United States."

The summary of the characteristics of this body of Christians, whom
the Congregationalists were to know much more intimately later on, con-
tains this paragraph:

They are a very earnest body of believers, passionately devoted to the Bible
only, earnestly rejecting all doctrinal creeds and statements, proclaiming Gospel
liberty against all imposition of dogma, and protesting against all sectarianism
which divides Christians into followers of this or that human leader, they hav-
ing no leader but Christ. Their rejection of all man-made formulas and creeds
has sometimes led to the idea that they are Unitarians, because they will not
adopt the word Trinity which they do not find in the Bible. They prefer to
express their dependence on the Holy Spirit and their faith in our and their
Lord and Saviour in npthing but Biblical terms. At one time the Unitarians
made an agreement with them to help their college at Antioch; but the results
were such that the Christians broke away from the alliance believing that it en-
dangered the faith of their people in the Word of God. In their worship of our
Lord they do not differ from us, even although some of them still protest against
being called Trinitarians.'^

The report gives the history of the movement for the union of these
two bodies, which had originated in the New Jersey Christian Associa-
tion with a proposal that such a merger be arranged. On the invitation
of the Convention of the Christian Church which met in Haverhill, Mas-
sachusetts, in October, 1894, the Congregational committee was repre-
sented by a delegation and held a two-day discussion of all phases of the
possible merger. It was voted by the Christian General Convention that
"the ultimate ideal of Christian union is the union of all the followers
of Christ in one body, in an organic union, inspired with the spirit of
the Master, existing and acting with single reference to carrying on his
work, building up his kingdom, and bringing the world to Christ; and
we would encourage and cooperate with any and all measures looking
to this end."'^

Following this the Christian Convention appointed a Commission of
Twelve to deal with the Congregational committee and voted also

"that the Church of Christ is one; that it consists of all those who are the
disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, accepted of him into his fellowship, regard-
less of personal beliefs or denominational relations; and that no conditions of
fellowship should be held that will not include all and exclude none of those
who stand in vital fellowship with Christ. Here we stand. We cannot reject
overtures that come to us in harmony with this position. We cannot turn a cold
shoulder on any Christian or body of Christians who propose to join us in work

^^Minutes of the National Council, i8p^, p. 291.

^"^ Minutes of the National Council, i8p^, pp. 292-293.

352 History of American Congregationalism

for Christ and the building up of his kingdom on ground of our own choosing.
To do so would be to repudiate our own professions and turn our back on all
for which we have all these years contended. On the other hand, we have
nothing to yield of the fundamentals of our position." ^^

No further action was taken by either denomination until August,
1897 when Dr. Summerbell invited Dr. Ward, editor of the Independent,
and the leader of the Congregational committee, two other Congrega-
tional representatives, and four representatives of the Christian Churches
to meet at his cottage in Craigville, Massachusetts. There this joint com-
mittee worked out what came to be known as the Craigville proposal.
This was as follows:

Resolved, that a union of the two bodies be recommended on the follow-
ing basis:

1. Mutual recognition of the Christian standing of each other's churches
and ministers, with no doctrinal test beyond the acceptance of the Bible as the
only standard of faith and practice.

2. One name for the highest representative body, such as the General Council
of Christian Churches.

3. Present organizations, institutions and usages not to be disturbed by this
action.

4. That there be maintained between the churches and ministers of the two
denominations such a fellowship and mutual understanding that when mem-
bers of a church of one body remove to a place where there is no church of their
own, but is one of the other, they be encouraged to take letters to such church
of the other body; and that if a minister of one body accepts a call to the church
of the other he shall not thereby impair his membership or good standing in
his own body.

The Committee recommends the local or state associations or conferences
in which delegates to the National Council or American Christian Convention
are chosen, to authorize such delegates to act in a General Conference of
Christian Churches, in case such a conference be advised by the National Coun-
cil and by the American Christian Convention. ^^

When the proposal came before the Christian Convention meeting
at Newmarket, Pennsylvania, in 1898, it was vigorously opposed by south-
ern and western delegates who asserted that New England representatives
of the Christian Churches were "selling out to the Congregationalists."
The proposal was not approved. Although Dr. Ward and Dr. Washing-
ton Gladden for the Congregationalists and Dr. Martyn Summerbell and
Dr. J. B. Weston for the Christians continued to work for a merger, there
was so much opposition in the Christian churches that the matter was
dropped. It was the contention of representatives of the Christian church-
es that any merger with a church bearing a denominational name was

^^ Minutes of the National Council, iSp^, pp. 300-301.
^^The Christian Annual, 1899, p. 65.

Church Union 353

departing from their principles, as they considered the name "Christian"
the one name under which all churches could unite. They contended that
their churches ought not to become affiliated with a "sect" which they
considered the Congregationalists to be and which by its very sectarian-
ism was less than wholly Christian. Here the matter rested.

When the proposals to unite the two churches were made in 1923 no
reference was made to the previous attempt and few if any of the par-
ticipants of the 1923-31 negotiations seem to have known of the long
discussions of twenty-five years earlier.

The Congregational Quadrilateral

After all the discussion of various aspects of church union the most
significant action taken by the Council of 1895 was adoption of "the Con-
gregational Quadrilateral." This was an acknowledged summarization of
the declaration on the unity of the church which had been adopted in
1871 and was still published annually as the official declaration of the
Congregational churches. The Congregational Quadrilateral included
these four principles:

1. The acceptance of the Scripture of the Old and New Testaments inspired
by the Holy Ghost to be the only authoritative revelation of God to man.

2. Discipleship of Jesus Christ, the divine Saviour and Teacher of the world.

3. The Church of Christ, which is his body, whose great mission it is to
preach his Gospel to the world.

4. Liberty of conscience in the interpretation of the Scriptures and in the
administration of the church.^o

The Act of Union with the Methodist Protestants
AND THE United Brethren

Discussions concerning a merger with the Methodist Protestant
churches began as early as 1898 and were continued through the next
three Councils. In the Council of 1898 it was voted "Whereas, in various
ways there has been expressed a desire for a closer fellowship of these
churches with our own. . . ." This would indicate that various feel-
ers had been put out but without definite proposals. The Council
appointed a committee for conferences with the Methodist Protestants.
These conferences went on for the next six years. Then the United
Brethren churches were invited into the discussions. This led to appoint-
ment by the three denominations of delegates who met in Chicago in
March, 1907 and after much preliminai-y correspondence and discussion
drafted an "Act of Union," an historic document in the history of Ameri-
^^Minutes of the National Council, i8^$, p. 294.

354 History of American Congregationalism

can Christianity. Although not approved, it serves as a statement of the
essential basis of church unity. It included a declaration of purpose, a
declaration of faith, and the articles of agreement which were in effect
a constitution for a new body to be known as "The United Churches."
The "Act of Union" did not propose an immediate union of churches
in the local communities but a union of the national organizations rep-
resenting these churches. The United Churches would be a joint agency,
a limited interdenominational holding body, to be supported by the local
churches of the three denominations, which in time would merge in the
communities as provided in the Act of Union:

We recognize in the Act of Union adopted by the General Council of The
United Churches at Chicago the fundamental principles by which such union
must be accomplished. The aim of that act is the desire of our churches, com-
bines their benevolent activities, and conserves their vested interests. It makes
provision for the gradual amalgamation of their state and local organizations,
leaving the people of each locality free to choose their own times and methods
for the completion of such unions. It contemplates, as the result of a continued
fellowship of worship and work, a blending of the three denominations into one.
This is the end to which the Act of Union looks forward, and these are essen-
tial means of its accomplishment.^i

When the Act of Union came before the Congregational Council, the
committee in charge including Dr. Washington Gladden, Dr. Henry
Churchill King, Dr. William Horace Day, and others, approved most
highly its purpose. They proposed however that the section on the au-
tonomy of the local church should be strengthened; that it should be
made very clear that this national organization was made up of delegates
from the local churches of the Congregational, United Brethren and
Methodist Protestant groups; and that the local churches should main-
tain their autonomy unchanged; and that the local associations continue
without any interference whatsoever as to their autonomy or their work.
The Committee asked the other church bodies to restudy the "Act of
Union" and to grant this added security to the autonomy of the local
church. It soon became apparent that the idea of autonomy of the local
church among the Congregationalists was considerably different from
that of the other bodies. When the request of the Congregational group
was received the other denominations declined to restudy the "Act of
Union" and this venture, which had extended over many years, came

to an end.

XII

The Evangelical Protestant Churches

At the meeting of the National Council at Springfield in 1923, there

were present, on invitation of the Committee on Comity, Federation, and

'^'^Naiional Council Digest, 1930, p. 196; Minutes of the National Council, ipio, p. 397.

Church Union 355

Unity, a delegation of the Evangelical Protestant Church headed by Rev.
Carl August Voss. Two years later the negotiations which had preceded
the Springfield Council meeting were consummated at the Council at
Washington in 1925. On recommendation by the Commission on Inter-
church Relations the Evangelical Protestant Churches of North America
were received as a conference on parity with state conferences and with
the relationship to the National Council of state conference. The Year
Book for that year lists the Evangelical Protestant Conference with
twenty-three churches. These churches have continued their Congrega-
tional affiliation, many of them since uniting with the state conference in
which they are located.

The history of the Evangelical Protestant churches is a dramatic chap-
ter of American Protestantism. In the early years of the nineteenth cen-
tury, great numbers of Germans and German Swiss came to America,
many were from the Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Swiss Re-
formed Church. The oldest church of this group was the church now
known as "the German Evangelical Protestant (Smithfield) Church, Con-
gregational" at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The formation of this church
is typical of most of the Evangelical Protestant churches. It was founded
by German settlers from the Lutheran and the Reformed churches unit-
ing under the name "Evangelical Protestant."

There was no fixed organization of the more than one thousand Ger-
man churches established between 1800 and 1850. Gradually they be-
came grouped around certain centers. The Lutherans and the Reformed
churches each drew some congregations into those denominations while
the Evangelical Protestant remained outside these two major groups. As
time went on they were handicapped by the lack of training schools for
young ministers of religious literature and of fellowship. Eventually the
churches in the Ohio Valley from Pittsburgh to St. Louis, including
churches in Cincinnati and Southern Indiana, formed a General Associa-
tion under the leadership of Dr. Carl August Voss.

The Evangelical Protestant churches have always been noted for their
liberal views and theology and for their consciousness of need for social
amelioration. Their teaching may be summed up in the words of Pastor
Gustav Schmidt who served for forty-two years as pastor at McKeesport:
"Dear children, love one another. The Christian teaching is love to God,
love to neighbor, the duty of right living and charity— these are the sim-
ple tenets of faith in the Evangelical Protestant Church." They estab-
lished and maintain such charitable institutions as the Pittsburgh Or-
phanage and the Altenheim, one of the finest institutions for elderly
persons under church auspices in America.

356 History of American Congregationalism

XIII

The German Congregational Churches

In addition to the Evangelical Protestant Conference, there is also
a General Association of German Congregational Churches. This was
organized by the descendants of Germans who came to America by way
of Russia as early as 1846. These Germans had migrated to Russia in the
days of Catherine. Conditions became difficult and in 1870 they were
ordered to become Russians. Desiring to maintain their traditional Ger-
man life many of them escaped to America and found homes in Colorado,
Nebraska, the Dakotas and the Pacific states.

They were free, independent church people and naturally adopted
the Congregational polity. They have their own association, a publishing
house, a theological school in connection with Yankton College and ex-
tensive foreign mission work among the Germans in South America. In
the United States they now number 250 congregations with more than
23,000 members served by 110 pastors. In addition to their German
Church Associations, they also have a close relationship with the Congre-
gational churches in the states where they are located and form a large
body of free Christians, loyal to Congregational ideals.^^

XIV

The Universalist Churches

Preceding the Council meeting at Washington, D. C. in 1925, the
Universalist State Convention meeting at Bangor expressed a desire for
union with the Congregationalists. Committees were appointed and held
meetings during the next two years. A joint statement was drawn up
which was considered by the Council in 1927. When the Universalist
Convention met at Hartford on October 20, 1927, the statement was
approved as providing closer fellowship with the Congregational church-
es, but it was stated "that nothing in this joint statement commits us to
organic union." More meetings were held but as the Universalist mem-
bers of the joint committee felt bound by the action of their Convention
to work for closer relationships but not for organic union. The proposal
was laid on the table, where it still remains.

XV
The Second Proposal for Merger with the Christians

The negotiations with the Christian Churches begun in the 1890's had

come to a close in 1898. In 1923 the matter was taken up de novo, with

no reference to past negotiations in the correspondence between Dr.

22Eisenach, A History of the German Congregational Churches in the United States.

Church Union 357

W. G. Sargent of Rhode Island and Dr. Burton of the Congregational
National Council. Dr. Burton, secretary of the Council, at a meeting of
the Congregational Commission on Interchurch Relations held in New
York December 15, 1923, presented their correspondence saying, "This
indicates that the Christian denomination is evidently quite ready for
federation if not for merger."

At the same time Dr. Sargent, president of the New England Chris-
tian Convention, wrote an article for the Herald of Gospel Liberty indi-
cating that the New England Christian churches were ready to unite with
the Congregationalists. The matter having thus been reopened corre-
spondence continued and joint meetings of official representation were
held during the next two or three years. After an extended discussion, at
a joint meeting of the two churches' representatives in Toledo in June,
1926, findings were drawn up for a complete merger of the two denomina-
tions. These findings were approved by the General Convention of the
Christian Church meeting in Urbana, Illinois, in October, 1926 and by the
National Council of the Congregational Churches meeting in Omaha, in
May, 1927. The Toledo statement was printed in the reports of both
conventions and the two committees were encouraged to explore the
matter further.

There were many questions requiring careful analysis. Rev. Seldon
B. Humphrey, member of the Christian fellowship sums up some of the
problems that these committees faced:

The two denominations were strikingly different in both their origin and
the character of their constituencies. Congregationalism, although it first be-
came definitely organized in this country, was formed from Puritan and Pilgrim
groups from England. Its leaders were founders of the New England Colonies;
its membership was from the educated, dominant groups at first in New England
and later also in urban centers throughout the states; it was characterized by a
trained ministry, substantial financial support, and a growing emphasis upon
educational rather than revivalist methods of evangelism. The Christian Church,
on the other hand, was indigenous to America and had its beginnings after the
Revolutionary War. It was made up of three like-minded groups, one from the
South, one from New England, and one from the newly opened Mid-West.
Many of its early leaders were itinerant evangelists of slight education; its mem-
bership was largely rural and from the less favored economic groups; and re-
vivals were widely used in forwarding the work of the church.

Nevertheless there were compelling likenesses in their polities and beliefs.
Both believed in the principle of the local autonomy of churches; both em-
phasized the freedom of individuals in matters of belief; both expressed their
desire for fellowship through regional and national organizations; and in both
denominations there was a strong spirit favoring church union. It was this
dominating spirit which led these two Churches to overcome obstacles implied
in geographical distribution, property evaluation, size of ch^lrches, average an-
nual expenditures of churches, and size of membership of the two denomina-

358 History of American Congregationalism

tions. It was this spirit which caused their leaders, in spite of a long series of
unsuccessful negotiations in the 1890's to try again in the 1920's to solve many
problems, and finally to bring about a successful union. ^^

Other items required attention before the merger could be consum-
mated. For example, the National Council "amended the Committee's
report to strike out all reference to the 'Kansas City Declaration' that
there might not be even the suggestion of a creedal statement to stand
in the way of union. The other gesture was the unanimous vote on arti-
cle VI of the recommendations that the name 'Congregational' should
be given up if that would further the cause of church union." ^*

The Christian representatives expressed appreciation of the "humble
spirit" of the Congregational representatives who were willing to drop
the historic name "Congregational" from the title of the merged national
organization. The representatives of the Christian Church proposed that
the basis of union

be conditioned upon the acceptance of Christianity as primarily a way of life,
and not upon uniformity of theological opinion or any uniform practice of
ordinances. The autonomy of the local congregation and the right of each indi-
vidual member to follow Christ according to his own conscience should remain
undisturbed. The name 'Congregational Christian' should be used for the time
being, allowing each local church to continue to use its present name if it so
desires."

When the Congregational Council met in 1929, the Commission on
Interchurch Relations proposed an enabling act authorizing the Congre-
gational representatives to join with representatives of the Christian
churches in drawing up a constitution for the united churches. This au-
thorization was voted. During the two years following, the representatives
of the two churches were busy drafting a constitution and a plan for
the mergers of the various boards and other denominational agencies.
The National Council and the General Convention of the Christian
Churches arranged to hold meetings at Seattle at the same time.

The Congregational National Council heard the reports of its com-
mittee on the merger. The proposed constitution was presented, and a
full discussion followed. Some amendments were proposed by the Con-
gregational National Council. These were accepted by the General Con-
vention of the Christian Church, meeting in separate session. Then
each body, acting separately, adopted the constitution. The doors of
Plymouth Church, where the Congregational National Council was in
session, were opened and the members of the General Convention en-

23 Humphrey, The Union of the Congregational and Christian Churches, p. iii.
^*The Herald of Gospel Liberty June 23, 1927. p. 579. Humphrey, The Union of the
Congregational and Christian Churches, p. 235.

Church Union 359

tered. In a united session, the new constitution was adopted and the
merger was completed. All joined in singing "Blest Be the Tie That
Binds." The President of the General Convention, Rev. Frank G. Coffin
of Ohio, and the Moderator of the Congregational National Council,
Rev. Carl S. Patton of Los Angeles, became joint moderators. Rev. War-
ren H. Denison, secretary of the General Convention of the Christian
Churches became a secretary of the General Council of the Congrega-
tional and Christian Churches.

Following this merger of the two national bodies, the Christian For-
eign Missionary Society merged with the American Board of Commis-
sioners for Foreign Missions; the Home Boards were merged; and states
where there were both Christian and Congregational churches merged
into state Congregational Christian conferences. Some local churches have
since merged as Congregational Christian churches.

CHAPTER XXI
The Ministry in Congregationalism

THE Pilgrims came to America without their pastor, Rev. John
Robinson, and were under the spiritual direction of Elder Brew-
ster whose duties were similar to those of a lay preacher. They
continued under his leadership during the early years at Plymouth.
When the Puritans came to Salem and organized a church, their problem
was how to select and install a minister. The Salem Puritans did not be-
long to Separatists in England, but when they reached America they
decided to organize their own independent church.

Early Ordinations

There were two men in the Salem group who had been Anglican
clergymen. The story of how they organized their church and inducted
into office the minister and the teacher appears in practically every history
of early New England. The plan they originated became the pattern fol-
lowed by many colonial churches.

On that day, July 20, all places of business being closed, Messrs. Higginson
and Skelton gave their views as to the church and answered questions as to the
ministerial calling; and their statements being satisfactory, a ballot was taken,
"every fit member voting," and Mr. Skelton was chosen pastor and Mr. Higgin-
son, teacher. This is the first instance on record of the use of the printed ballot
in America. These two men accepted the call thus extended, and at once were
formally set apart for their work. First Mr. Higginson, with three or four of
the gravest members, laid hands on Mr. Skelton with prayer. Then, in like
manner, hands were laid on Mr. Higginson. ^

There were variations in their method. For example, when the church
was established at Taunton, the minister, a Mr. Hooker, was ordained
by the schoolmaster and one other member. Another interesting example
of their method was an ordination held in Woburn in 1642. A number of
ministers were present at this event, but "the people were tenacious of
their right to ordain, supposing that yielding it might lead to dependency
and so to presbytery." And so the chosen members of the Congregation
ordained the new minister while the visiting ministers were witnesses to
the ceremony.

In his Biographical Dictionary Elliot tells of the ordination of Israel
1 Dunning, Congregationalists in America, p. 104.

360

The Ministry in Congregationalism 36 1

Chauncy in Stratford where "by forgetfulness (I rather think in contempt
of habits and ceremonies) the elder imposed his hand with a leather mit-
ten upon it." There are many records in the first years where the ordina-
tion was by members of the church. In later years, when the practice of
ordination by ministers came into effect, Increase Mather wrote, "Where
elders cannot be had, ordination may be performed by those not elders."

The doctrine back of this form of ordination by members of the
church lay at the foundation of their polity. The local church was inde-
pendent and complete within itself and could neither give authority to
those outside the church nor receive by authority anything from outside.
They rejected the idea that some other body or some other church could
ordain a man whose ordination would be valid as pastor of a church
which had not itself ordained him. Later on, when the practice grew to
invite ministers from surrounding churches to the ordination for a new
minister, it was clearly stated that these visiting ministers were perform-
ing this service by direct and specific invitation and authority of the
church electing the new minister. These visiting ministers represented
the members of the church in performing the simple act of ordination.
One incident illustrates their attitude: When Benjamin Colman was or-
dained by a free church in London before coming to America in 1699 to
be pastor of the Brattle Street Church, there was much opposition led by
Increase Mather who applied a meaningful epithet to the church by call-
ing it "a Presbyterian brat."^

The early churches did not license men for the ministry. This practice
came into use after ministerial associations were formed. A young man of
promise in a congregation would be encouraged to exercise his gifts in
public speaking. If he proved acceptable and his life was in harmony with
the calling, a church without a pastor desiring him to become its pastor,
would first invite him to become a member of that church. This was the
first and necessary step toward becoming a minister of a church, for no
one but a member would be elected its minister.

The young aspirant to the ministry would be received as a new mem-
ber into the pastorless church and having become a member of that
church the way was then cleared, should the church so desire, to elect him
minister. This insistence on membership in the church as a prerequisite to
calling a person to be minister should be noted as one of the doctrines in
early Congregationalism, which has changed with the years. The candidate
having thus been called or elected, usually by ballot, he became minister
immediately thereupon.

The controversy that split the First Church in Boston after the death
of Rev. John Cotton was caused by the calling of Rev. John Davenport
2 Elliot, Biographical Dictionary, p. 125.

362 History of American Congregationalism

of New Haven to be its new pastor when he was not a member of the
First Church, nor would the church in New Haven grant him a letter of
transfer of membership since it did not approve his going to Boston.

The story of the way Davenport became a member of the First Church
by a forged letter is told in the historic documents in the History of the
Old South Church, Boston. This church was formed by those who with-
drew when a forgery was revealed and the First Church in Boston refused
to dismiss Mr. Davenport. The First Church was determined to have Mr.
Davenport and the New Haven church was just as determined not to give
him a valid letter of transfer of church membership, therefore the advo-
cates of Mr. Davenport resorted to a scheme by which Davenport could
become a member of the church in Boston, a necessary prerequisite to his
being called a pastor. The forgery created a scandal, dividing the church
and causing a division in the town which lasted many years.

In the early years, as soon as the minister was elected the officers con-
ferred upon him the office of minister by the laying on of hands and the
saying of a prayer. This, in their practice, was all the ordination that was
necessary. It was not long, however, before neighboring ministers were
invited as guests and witnesses to the election and ordination, which was
also an installation. The practice grew of requesting the visiting ministers
to perform the ceremony of ordination in the name of the local church.
During these early years it was evei7where asserted that election as minis-
ter of a church was the official act in the making of a minister and that
the ordination and installation service was but a public recognition of
what had been completed in the election.

The Cambridge Platform says, "This ordination we account as
nothing else but the solemn putting a man into his place and office
in the church."^ This was not a new doctrine originating in the colonies,
for in 1574 there had been published the Declaration of Discipline which
asserted that ordination was a "solemn investing or installing into office"
and Hall, the Puritan writer, had written even before that "to ordain
elders means simply to establish them." Hooker in his Survey says, "Ordi-
nation is the installing of an officer into an office to which he was pre-
viously called." Installation, therefore, was but another name for ordina-
tion and this was true in actual practice for many years.

There were several corollaries to this relationship of the minister to
his church. When a man was no longer minister of a local church, either by
his own resignation or by discharge, he lost his standing as a minister and
became a layman. Should he later be elected minister of another church
his ordination and installation would proceed all over again exactly as if
he had never been a minister. Furtheraiore, a visiting minister had no
^Cambridge Platform, chap. 9, sec. 2.

The Ministry in Congregationalism 363

right to exercise the office of minister in any other church. He was not
authorized to conduct a service or administer baptism. Rev. John Cotton
refused to baptize his own child, bom at sea and given the name of Sea-
born, for it was his contention that a minister was only a minister when
he officiated in the congregation which had elected him. The minister
was by right of office usually the moderator of any church meeting, but
his vote counted no more than that of any other member. He was in
charge of the pulpit and his duties were briefly to "rule over" the church
in these three things: "To declare to them the mysteries of the kingdom
of God; so that, whether they exhort, teach, or admonish, they do it with
authority; to call the church assemblies together, and to dismiss them,
and moderate matters in the assembly"; and "they are the mouth and
hands of the church, by which they execute the power of the censures."

During the two hundred years preceding the Council of 1865 the
usage had developed which included permanent ordination, preceded
at times by a period "under license," and there had arisen the ordaining
council which also acted as an installation council if the church so de-
sired. Ministerial standing by membership in a ministers' association or
an association of churches and ministers had come into general use, as
will be explained below.

Dr. Leonard Bacon, in speaking on church polity before the Council
of 1865, said:

A man may be a minister of the gospel who has received the right hand of
fellowship of the ministers. He may be employed in the work of the ministry
in foreign missions. Eliot, the apostle to the Indians, was pastor of a church
over here in Roxbury as long as he hved. The churches at that time had no
idea that a man could really be an ordained missionary, a missionary having
the powers of a minister of the church, unless he was an officer in the church.
We have outgrown that, and it is an inevitable necessity for us to outgrow it.
We have none of the fear which they had, that a ministry would be a hierarchy.
Our churches have grown to age, and can take care of themselves. There is no
danger of a hierarchy.*

The usage of ordaining a minister for general service was inaugurated
when the need arose to send missionaries to the Indians. Then the
churches were confronted with a very perplexing problem, for certainly
the group of Indians whom the missionary would serve were in no sense
a church. They solved this difficulty at first by providing that Eliot who
was to be the first missionary to the Indians, was also to be minister of
the church at Roxbury.

Soon it became necessary to commission men who would minister to
the small, poverty-stricken groups in new settlements who had not yet
established a church and could not afford a settled minister. The services
^Minutes of the National Council, i86$, p. 454.

364 History of American Congregationalism

of a visiting minister who could legally administer the sacrament and
baptism were necessary. Nathaniel Mather in his Disquisition suggested
that "if they are too poor to furnish themselves with pastors, the sister
churches should give them pecuniary help, not officious." This did not
solve the problem.

Another situation developed demanding a change in their practice.
In the absence of the regular minister, was the church to invite a neigh-
boring minister to serve? Samuel Mather in Ratio Disciplinae maintained
that the only legal thing to do in this situation was by vote to confer the
right to administer the sacrament or baptism on a lay member. The
churches were reluctant to do this. Force of circumstance and new situa-
tions slowly changed their early practices.

First, they began to license young men to preach. As the learned
ministers from England gave up their churches because of age or death,
young men of the Colonies had to be trained for the ministry. It seemed
right and proper that these men should be given credentials that would
enable them to accept the invitations of the churches as lay speakers. It
had always been the rule that any lay member could speak in the pulpit
on religion by invitation of the church, but these men needed more offi-
cial credentials for churches of which they were not members. They were
given at first a recommendation signed by a minister with whom they
had been studying, which was accepted rather as a letter of introduction
than as an official license. The ministers had begun to meet informally
and to discuss matters relating to the work of the church. They would
sometimes include these young men in their discussions. So the young
candidate would ask more than one man to give him a recommendation.

The next step came naturally and logically when the ministers' meet-
ing became organized as an association. This body began issuing licenses
to those qualified to speak in the churches. As the association had issued
the credentials, it naturally assumed oversight and hence grew the prac-
tice which has become common— that licensees should continue their
studies and work under care of the association granting the license. A
hundred years later when churches began to form associations, many
ministerial associations united with the church associations and carried
into that body the right and duty of licensing. Today this is the function
of the association in most parts of the country, although there are min-
isters' associations in New England separate from the Associations of
Ministers and Churches in which licensed standing is held. In some situa-
tions the old ministers' association is continued as the Committee on
Licensure by the Association of Churches and Ministers.

The granting of standing to ministers who had left the pastorate
came about in this way: teaching of the Cambridge Platform that the sin-

The Ministry in Congregationalism 365

gle act of removal from the ministry made the minister a layman did not
long prevail. It was not formally rejected until the Council of 1865 which
declared that the ministry included all who had been ordained and who
had not been deposed.^ While ordination had come to be recognized as
permanent the minister was not given any right in a church over which
he was not settled as minister. He ranked in the church simply as a lay
member. His standing, however, was no longer with the church that or-
dained him but in an association into whose fellowship he had been
formally received by vote. This association, not a local church, had the
right to depose from the ministry should charges be made and sustained
against a minister.

II
Installation

Installation, which in the early years was synonymous with election
and ordination, came to be a separate act having reference to a particular
pastorate and was in effect only as long as that pastorate continued.
When the practice grew of calling men previously ordained to the pas-
torate of a church they often entered upon their duties without a formal
service. This informal method of beginning a pastorate has become the
practice of many churches of our fellowship, greatly to the loss of the
dignity and influence of the minister and often to the peace and pros-
perity of the church. Where the minister serves only by election of the
local church without any public recognition of this relationship by the
churches of the fellowship, he is often under the necessity of constant re-
elections for a year or a period of time and there is bound to be a feeling
of instability and opportunity for friction. On the other hand, some
churches became burdened by the obligations implied in installation.
Installation is a relationship of indeterminate length and is protected
by the dismissal council. Where the minister is installed it is required,
unless the call for the installation council expressly states that dismission
may be without a council's advice, that a dismissal council shall convene
which examines into the facts and reasons for termination of the pastoral
relationship; and if it finds that full justice has not been done it can
create an embarrassing situation for the church or the pastor. For this
reason many churches avoid installation.

Ill

Recognition /

As a method of stabilizing the relationship between pastor and church,
a secondary plan known as recognition is widely used. This method was
inaugurated in Michigan in 1882 by the following vote:
^Minutes of the National Council, i86^, pp. 55, 56.

366 History of American Congregationalism

a. Whenever a minister accepts a call to the pastoral charge of any church,
whether for a definite or indefinite term, a council of neighboring churches of
our order should be called by such church and pastor, at their earliest con-
venience, for his recognition as pastor of said church— it being understood that
the action of said council shall have no bearing whatever upon the legal or
ecclesiastical tenure, as to the fact, name, salary, or time of the pastorate thus
recognized.

b. The duties of this Council shall be:

(1) The examination of the pastor's qualifications for his position, especially
in ministerial standing, in doctrinal views, and in religious experience.

(2) The approval or disapproval of these by formal vote.

(3) The recognition, if the vote is one of approval, in public services, as
sermon, prayer, and right hand of fellowship.^

The early books on Congregationalism (those of Cotton, Hooker, the
Mathers and Wise) devote extended space to the discussion of the min-
ister. The same is true of books published in more recent times. The
statement in the Bacon-Quint report to the Council of 1865 has a section
which reads:

The office of elder, or bishop, in the church is two-fold: to labor in word and
doctrine, and to rule. As laboring in word and doctrine, elders are pastors and
teachers, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the
edifying of the body of Christ; and in order to do this, they are rightly to divide
the word of truth, and to administer those sacramental ordinances in which the
grace of the gospel is visibly set forth and sealed. Like all whom God has put
into the ministry of his gospel, they are to preach the word, and are to be instant
in season and out of season, reproving, rebuking, exhorting, with all long-suffer-
ing and patience, holding forth the faithful word, that they may be able by
sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayer. As ruling in the
church, they are to be not lords over God's heritage; but being the servants of
all, for Jesus' sake, they are to watch for souls as they that must give account.
They are to open and shut the doors of God's house by the admission of mem-
bers approved by the church, by ordination of officers approved by the church,
by excommunication of obstinate offenders denounced by the church, and by
restoring penitents forgiven by the church. They are to call the church together
when there is occasion, and seasonably to dismiss them again. They are to pre-
pare matters for the hearing of the church, that in public they may be carried
to an end with less trouble and more speedy dispatch. They are to preside in
the meetings of the church, whether for public worship or for the transaction
of church business. They are to be guides and leaders in all matters pertaining
to church administration and church actions; but they have no power to per-
form any church act save with the concurrence and by the vote of the brother-
hood. They are to care for the spiritual health and growth of individual mem-
bers, and to prevent and heal such offenses in life or doctrine as might corrupt
the church; and they are to visit and pray over their brethren in sickness when
sent for, and at such other times as opportunity shall serve.'^

This report shows the progress the church has made since the early

^Minutes of the General Association for 1882, p. 45.
"^Minutes of the National Council, 186$, p. 109.

The Ministry in Congregationalism 367

days in New England, but the churches reserved the right, if need be, of
lay ordination and insisted that in Councils "when convened there is no
distinction between the pastor and other delegates."^

This was the first time in two hundred years that there had been an
opportunity to define Congregational polity in a council. The rule in
the early churches that the minister's ordination was in effect only as
long as he was serving as pastor of that particular church had been long
outgrown. From the first it had been generally accepted that a man who
had served as minister acquired thereby "an odor of sanctity" which
could not be dissipated should he be without ministerial employment.
Gradually ordination had come to be considered a permanent status.

When the Bacon-Quint Committee faced the question of whether ordi-
nation was temporary or permanent it stated that "necessity for a recog-
nized class of ministers not holding office in any church is manifold," and
listed the employments of ordained ministers outside the pastorates. First,
there were the missionaries; second, those who supplied an occasional or
temporary ministry; third, those who taught and trained men for the
ministry; fourth, accredited men who because of their natural endow-
ments, learning, and study were called to general service; fifth, retired
ministers who ought not to be deprived of their standing because of age,
having "discharged with commendation as a good and faithful servant
of Christ the duties of the ministry."

The Nature of the Pastoral Office

When the report came before the Council, various questions were
raised and since many of these questions are still unanswered, it is worth
listing them as they indicate that the Bacon-Quint report, extensive as it
was, failed to answer all the questions relating to the ministry. "Sundry
questions concerning ministers and the pastoral office such as these:
Should a minister be a member of the church of which he is pastor?
What should be the office of the pastor in inaugurating and administer-
ing discipline in the church? Is a pastor, ex officio, the moderator of all
the meetings of the church? Are the rights and powers of a pastor cor-
rectly stated? Should the pastor have entire control of the service of teach-
ing or preaching in his own pulpit? Should a church ordain and depose
from the ministry, or only a council?"

In commenting upon these questions and defending his committee
for not giving a definite teaching. Dr. Quint said:

It is questioned whether a minister should be a member of his own church.
That question should not be settled. There are things that we want to remain

^Minutes of the National Council, 1865, p. 119.

368 History of American Congregationalism

in doubt. We don't want to be tied down in reference to all these petty details.
While I think a minister better be and ought to be a member of his own
church, I am not going to complain of any man who thinks it is not best, and
say he has got to be, or not be a minister. There is one thing that might offend ■
somebody, and that is to say that a Congregationalist minister ought to be and
must be a member of a Congregationalist church, not of some other church.
Such a declaration, I can well imagine, might stir up some people. (Laughter) *

Professor Edwards Park called attention to the way in which Congre-
gational usage in this particular as well as in others was most flexible:

Should a minister belong to his own church? There are some councils which
will not ordain a minister unless he will promise to belong to the church over
which he is pastor; and there are some councils which will not ordain a min-
ister if he does belong to the church over which he is pastor. Now, this is an
apparent difference of opinion! (Laughter) It appears to the committee, Mr.
Moderator, that where such great diversities of usage exist, they should be
stated, and the reasons for one usage and the reasons for another usage be
stated, and preference be given to one over another, provided there be any such
preference found in the minds of the able men who may be appointed to present
this document to the world. They think, sir, that there are many instances in
which there are the greatest diversities among the churches, and that those
instances may very properly be specified in the document that this Council may
issue.'''

Dr. Leonard Bacon requested the Council not to go too far afield,
saying, "For a long time we have been trying to tinker up Congiegation-
alism by borrowing, and the process is not ended yet; borrowing a usage
or a principle from Presbyterianism; borrowing some little bit of ritual,
perhaps, from Episcopalianism; borrowing in this direction and borrow-
ing in that, instead of developing our system from its original ideas, in
which it has its whole being, as the chicken is in the eg'g and the oak in
the acorn.""

Dr. Bacon called attention to the fact that English Congiegational
churches ordained ministers by their own officials without any reference
to a consultation with neighboring churches. He contended "the church
under American usage that ordains him is responsible to all the churches
to give an account whom it is that they elect to that office, what he is,
what qualifications he has, because now ordination gives a man standing
in the churches at large. Although the ordination is by the authority of
a local church the churches at large should have the opportunity of ad-
vising with that church whether or not the man they wish to ordain has
the gifts and graces and the character worthy of ordination."

Every phase of the minister's relationship to the church was canvassed

^Minutes of the National Council, 186^, p. 442.
^^Minutes of the National Council, 1S65, pp. 444-445.
^^ Minutes of the National Council, 1865, p. 446.

The Ministry in Congregationalism 369

in the debate and it was shown that "there is recognized among us a pro-
fessional ministry consisting of men devoted and consecrated by ordina-
tion to the work of preaching the gospel. The fact that churches had
feared to allow an ordained man to have some standing outside his own
church was grounded in that deeper fear that if ministers became a class
and began to organize it would not be long until the church would fall
into the grip of the Presbyterian order, but by 1865 the democratic prin-
ciple of the local church and association was so well grounded that this
fear no longer dominated the thoughts and minds of men." To reaffirm
the historic doctrine the Council thought well to vote that the ministry
conferred a standing, but "with no powers, no prerogatives, no jurisdic-
tions, no authority over the churches."

To trace the development of the practice and note the variations in
usage since 1865, reference is made to the minutes of the National Coun-
cil, especially to those of the Councils of 1886, 1889, 1892, 1895, 1904,
1915, 1929 and 1940. To each of these Councils came recommendations
from a stated committee, sometimes known as the Committee on Polity.
The Commission on Recruiting for the Ministry, and later on, the Com-
mission on the Ministry have had the same purpose and purport. The
Council of 1886 adopted a report on the status of the ministry including
this summary: "Resolved: (1) That standing in the Congregational min-
istry is acquired by the fulfillment of these three conditions, namely: (1)
membership in a Congregational church; (2) ordination to the Christian
ministry; and (3) reception as an ordained minister into the fellowship
of the Congregational churches in accordance with the usage of the state
or territorial organization of churches in which the applicant may reside;
and such standing is to be continued in accordance with these usages, it
being understood that a pro re nata council is the resort in all cases in
question."

In 1904, tlie Committee on Polity was authorized to prepare a mini-
mum required course of study for men seeking ordination and at the
next Council such a plan was proposed. But outside of a few states hav-
ing a state reading course recommended to those seeking ordination,
there has been, as far as the records go, no church or ordaining body that
has conditioned ordination of a candidate on his having completed such
a course of study. There are, however, a few associations which require
the completion of a college and a seminary course as a prerequisite, nota-
bly the New York City Association and the Chicago Association.

At the Council meeting of 1938 at Beloit, the Commission on the Min-
istry presented a careful study of the various aspects of the ministry and
concluded the report with two pages of important recommendations re-
lating to improvement of quality. Advice was given to seminaries as to

370 History of American Congregationalism

more careful methods of selecting students and the strengthening of their
courses. Written and oral examination was recommended for ordination.
It was urged that men now in the ministry be given some opportunity
for a period of absence from their church for a seminary "refreshment
course." The committee appointed by the 1938 Council took the list of
recommendations adopted by the Council seriously and elected to the
Commission a strong group of ministers and laymen. The Commission
divided the recommendations into three groups, each assigned to a sub-
committee, and set itself for a thoroughgoing and exhaustive study,

Changes Proposed at the Berkeley Council

The report of that Commission to the Berkeley Council in 1940 is
worthy of consideration by all churches. The Commission advised that
licensure should be available only to those who were planning for ordi-
nation in the immediate future. This would make the status of licensee
open to students or others who had completed their course of training
and were looking for a church, but who would not be ordained until a
call was received. The Commission in recommending this provision
realized that the practice had grown for Christian workers, both men and
women, in various types of religious and administrative work, some as
home missionaries and teachers, to secure licenses which had continued
by renewal year after year. The recommendations also advised that those
who desired to exercise a limited ministry, as supply preacher, teacher,
etc., but who were not prepared or did not desire regular ordination,
should be admitted to the status of "local minister," by being ordained
by a local association for service within the bounds of that association
only.

This Commission is continuing its study, in particular on such mat-
ters as current practice of recognition and installation and sources of the
ministry. Its motive is that the denomination through its accustomed
agencies has no greater responsibility than tliat of providing the churches
with a reasonable and workable polity that will maintain an effective
ministry under proper denominational safeguards.

The place of the minister in the church and of the church in the
community is well stated by Dr. Perry Miller in these words:

The Congregational idea was undoubtedly inspired in part by a similar
spirit; the surge of religious conviction carried the sober theologians and solid
magistrates of New England to the very brink of frenzy, but their strong sense
of social responsibility, their profound communal instinct, counterbalanced the
intoxication of piety. They were eager to fashion the natural order upon the
spiritual, but they were uncertain that it must be an order, a regulated, a dis-
ciplined and a steady commonwealth. New England piety was intense, but in

The Ministry in Congregationalism 37 ^

the seventeenth century it did not often become delirious, and the ecclesiastical
system expressed both the religious inspiration and the corporate solidarity.
Except for some rather desultory efforts at converting a few Indians— to be cited
in justifying the colonies at home— the New England brand of Christianity was
not a missionary creed; it did not drive men into the trackless wilderness, but
called them to their places within settled associations. Its first aim was sorting
out the elect from the mass, and its second providing a method whereby both
could live in stable concord under the rule of the elect. The church was the
center of a communal system, and the process of conversion was always to take
place within a rigid frame of public observance. Grace like love was to grow
and be consummated within legal forms. Although men ought to be saints before
being received as members, said Cotton, "yet we believe this Saintship and
Regeneration is wrought ordinarily not without the Church, but within the
Church; that is to say, wrought in such, as in the assembly of the Church doe
attend upon the meanes of grace dispensed by the Ministery of the Church."
If the New England system be considered by purely sociological criteria, it be-
comes a fascinating scheme for securing rectitude in a community without sac-
rificing cohesion. Within the church the fraternity was made one by their mutual
and irrevocable pledge; the members entered "all of them together (as one man)
into an holy covenant with himselfe. To take the Lord (as the head of his
church) for their God, and to give up themselves to him, to be his Church and
people"; by the power of their oath they must cleave one to another "as fellow-
members of the same body in brotherly love and holy watchfulnesse unto mutuall
edification in Christ Jesus." The children of the fraternity, growing up under
the seal of baptism, by which they were taken into covenant with God at their
birth, were also incorporated into the visible institution; when their baptism
became, as was believed it always would become, the "means" of their regenera-
tion, they automatically became active participants in the federation. And finally,
those outside the church, the environing ring of inhabitants, were not left at
loose ends, but were mobilized into an audience, bound to the church as the
center both of their expectation and their township, whence alone they could
hope to receive the vital current of regeneration. The theory of church covenant
fused the saints into one conventicle, while the theory of the means tied the
unregenerate to it no less firmly. The keys to the kingdom of heaven were the
ordinances; the sermon and the Lord's Supper for the visible elect, the sermon
and baptism for their children, and the sermon alone for the non-members.
"By the opening and applying of these, both the gates of the Church here, and of
heaven hereafter, are opened or shut to the sons of men." Whoever received
grace obtained it through the agency of ordinances; those not yet converted
should therefore attend upon them and not slight ordained ministers and pub-
lic forms. 12

VI
Concerning Congregational Preaching and Preachers

The nobly written passage on the interlocking religious essentials of
the integrated Puritan-Congregational system in America, with which the
last section closes, closes itself with an illuminating paragraph. There

12 Miller, The New England Mind, p. 442. (Used by permission of The Macmillan
Company, publishers.)

372 History of American Congregationalism

might be for the elect other keys to the Kingdom of Heaven than the
sermon. But for the church folk as a whole the sermon was their key by
which "the gates of the church and [possibly] of heaven hereafter were
opened or shut." This therefore has made preaching an aspect of Con-
gregational life and history which deserves at least some specialized atten-
tion. Preaching has always been crucial in Evangelical Protestantism.
The spoken word is the first resource of any new cause and often— until
it is forbidden— the last defense of any dying cause. Orders thus estab-
lished must, during their first periods, maintain and extend themselves
by the spoken word. Protestant history documents these generalities. As
religious orders become assured and institutionalized the preaching tends
to become only one aspect of an inclusive churchlife.

When worship becomes definitely liturgical, the sermon is no longer
focal, though it continues to be important. The history of Protestantism
also documents these generalities. All American denominational histo-
rians, therefore, summarizing the homiletic constants and variants in
their own denominations would take rather parallel lines. They would
note the changing attitudes of congregations from period to period to-
ward preaching generally. They would point with pride to their own
outstanding preachers and challenge the claims of other communions to
consistent sermonic superiority. All this goes without saying, and yet the
centrality of preaching in the Puritan-Congregational tradition is not
easy to match. It has deep and long historical rootings. Puritanism was,
amongst so many other things, a quest for good and right preaching—
and a good and right clergy. The Puritan's quarrel (an ignoble word for
a righteous contention) with the Establishment was occasioned in part
by the now almost unbelievable ignorance, sloth and loose living of the
Anglican clergy in the Elizabethan period. The Anglican authorities
themselves acknowledged the situation and sought to correct it. The
Puritans saw to it that they had a sufficiency of convincing and depressing
data.^^ "A supplication of the cittie of London to the Parliament" de-
scribes half the churches "unfurnished with preaching ministers" "pes-
tered with candlesticks not of gold but of claie" and "unworthie to have
the Lorde's lights set in them," "clouds that have not water," and much
else of a Biblically condemnatory sort. The gravamen of most of the
charges is that the then Anglican could not preach. John Robinson later
doubted their apostolic succession on much the same ground. The Puri-

13 For a bill of particulars running to over one hundred particularized pages see the
second volume of a collection of documents edited by Dr. Albert Peel, called the
Seconde Parte of a Register, Cambridge (England) University Press, 1915. These docu-
ments may be said to implement the Puritan indictment of the Established Church
about 1593, and allowing for their ex parte character, their cumulative testimony is
crushing.

The Ministry in Congregationalism 373

tan was therefore under bond, when his turn came to prove that he was
sermonically a candle of the Lord, to offer his own preaching as exhibits
of what preaching ought to be, which he did at voluminous length. The
religious leaders of the New England colonies brought this concern for
a competent preaching ministry to Boston and New Haven and be-
queathed it to their successors who have held it in trust across the cen-
turies.

This insistence upon the importance of preaching gained rather than
lost by the fusion of the Puritan and the Independent. For Separatism
had to begin with no resource at all save the spoken word. It was, in a
sentence of misleading brevity, preacher-made. The relative simplicity
of Congregational worship, but slowly changed, made the sermon focal
and has so continued it. The self-contained nature of any Congregational
Church made it— and still makes it— usually dependent upon the force
of its minister and in general the minister stands— or falls— by his preach-
ing.i* The centrality of preaching in Congregationalism has therefore
been persistent.

The unusual and not altogether healthful authority possessed— and
exercised— by the clergy in the Puritan Commonwealth has already been
sufficiently noted. During the first period of New England Colonial his-
tory the ministers directed not only religion but politics, conduct, and
social life through their sermons. When their undue authority was re-
strained, though their influence continued and the respect accorded them
was but little diminished, they became increasingly dependent upon
preaching power to maintain their stations. A tradition was thus created,
which held in the older communities until the last quarter of the 19th
Century. For their parishioners, of a Sunday, the sermon was the thing.
They also inherited and continued a highly disciplined preaching tech-
nique. The Puritan contribution, which combined with Plymouth Inde-
pendency, to make the "New England Way," magnified and sought to
adorn the sermon as both a means of salvation and a work of art.^^

The English public of the Seventeenth Century had an inexhaustible
passion for listening to sermons. They crowded the churches and
hung on the preachers' words. No sermon could be too long and pub-
lished sermons had a market which would now delight any religious
editor. Consequently, the art of preaching was exhaustively studied and
a surprising number of books, variously named, came from the presses

14 The late Dr. Carl Patton once said that though a minister must do many things
beside preaching, he is not likely to get a chance to do them unless he can preach.

15 For an exhaustive examination of the contribution of Puritanism to New England
thinking and preaching, see The New England Mind, Perry Miller. The importance of
this study in tracing the background sources of Seventeenth Century New England
Puritanism cannot easily be over-stated.

374 History of American Congregationalism

in England, Holland and Germany. They seem to have said everything
that could be said about "Homiletics" before or since with a scholastic
superabundance of analysis, and a pedantic technique. The Puritan
preacher was, therefore, soundly trained in his art. He favored what
Miller calls the "plain style" as opposed to the ornate and highly rhet-
orical style which the Anglicans favored, of which John Donne is the
classic example. ^^ At the same time he inherited the humanistic tradition
—a sermon should be right in all its literary qualities, but rhetoric should
be its servant and not its master. Preaching was to save sinful men and
not glorify the preacher. Rhetoric had its uses, but logic and grammar
came first. A bitter pill (and a deal of Puritan preaching was a bitter
pill) might be sugar coated, but the pill must not become entirely sugar.
So the protagonists of the two styles of preaching fought it out.

The plain style naturally went to Massachusetts Bay with Winthrop's
fleet and was there continued. Preaching was Biblical, textual, soundly
evangelical, and meant above all to set out and maintain a body of doc-
trine. This must be scripturally derived and scripturally defended, though
once it was proved from the Bible, other considerations might be urged
in its support. A preacher, therefore, must be a man well rounded in
physics and medicine and whatever else there was to know. Within this
control New England Congregational preaching lived and moved and
had its being, and in a general way, Congregational preaching has so
continued.

VII

Some "Commemorative Notices"

There is no specific history of American Congregational preaching,
nor indeed any adequate history of American preaching, though there is
an almost impossible abundance of material waiting to be digested. The
best biographical sources up to 1850 are in Sprague's Annals of the
American Pulpit: or Commemorative Notices of Distinguished American
Clergymen of Various Denominations, from the Early Settlement of the
Country to the Close of the Year Eighteen Hundred and Fifty-five. The
first and second volumes are devoted to Trinitarian Congregationalism.
This monumental work lives up to its awe-inspiring title. The Commemo-
rative Notices were written by friends, associates, and sometimes mem-
bers of the family. This naturally makes them more laudatory than
critical. It seems unlikely that so great a body of clergy through such a
long period could have been admirable in every faculty and so unspotted
from the world.

In 1855 there were (Sprague) 1,365 Congiegational churches in New

16 This has already been noted in an earlier chapter, but some repetition may be
pardoned.

The Ministry in Congregationalism 375

England, and 1,154 in the rest of the United States— 2,519 in all, served
by 1,643 settled ministers. (Four hundred and seventy-nine ministers were
without charges.) The Annals commemorate about 350 Congrega-
tional clergymen (all deceased) beginning with John Robinson in Ley-
den and ending with John King Lord, who died of cholera in Cincinnati
in 1849. There is a fascinating and unexpected vitality in these Annals.
They may not be pure, crude fact but they are

"Secreted from man's life when hearts beat hard
and brains, high-blooded, ticked ..."

and, one might add, for 250 years. For they are woven through with all
the organic filaments of American life for two and one-half centuries.
Some of these men crossed and recrossed stormy seas; others shared the
perils of embattled frontiers; a few were prisoners of war. The Annals
reveal vanished truths and social orders, but certain dominants emerge.

The Congregational ministry have been soundly educated. The first
generation were English born and university bred. Emmanuel College
Cambridge trained most of them. The first immigrant ministers were
Episcopally ordained, clergymen of the Church of England, and though
there are instances of their reordination, that was rather a local recogni-
tion of office than the bestowal of sacerdotal authority. Increase Mather
(1657-1723)^^ seems the first Congregational minister bom in America.
He was called Increase "from the circumstances of the great increase of
every sort with which the country was found about the time of his birth."
The native sons in due course were trained at Harvard and Yale.^* They
were sound scholars by all the standards of their times. Their Latinity
was always competent for theological controversy with their peers.
Thomas Parker (1643-1677) was quite blind toward the end of his life,
but was still able to teach Latin, Greek and Hebrew with ease. Certain
ministers dissatisfied with his opinions came to reason with him. They
addressed him in English; he replied in Latin. They took to Latin; "he
retired to Greek." They pursued him in Greek; he consolidated his posi-
tion in Hebrew. They counterattacked in Hebrew; he entrenched him-
self in Arabic and held the terrain. He endured his blindness com-
posedly. "My eyes," he said, "will be restored shortly, at the resurrection."

Thomas Thatcher (1643-1678) composed a Hebrew Lexicon. He was
much celebrated for his beautiful hand-writing (he could write in
Syrian) and was the author of the first medical tract ever published in
Massachusetts, "A Brief Guide to the Common People in the Smallpox

17 The dates in the Annals cover the periods of active ministry and do not connote
birth and death.

18 We have not checked all the 350 names but opening the volumes at random, there is
again and again "entered Harvard" "entered Yale"— and usually at an early age. Later
the Theological Schools and other colleges are cited.

376 History of American Congregationalism

and Measles" (1677). The Boston clergy were advocating inoculation for
small-pox when the medical faculty was opposing it though they, the
clergy, might believe in witchcraft at the same time. Dr. Mather Byles
(1733-1788) corresponded with Pope and Watts. He was noted for his
wit. Thomas Prince, then pastor of the Old South Church, Boston, had
engaged to preach for him. They were to meet in the Hollis Street
Church pulpit and Prince failed to come, whereupon Byles said he had
no sermon but would for a little comment upon the third verse of the
146th Psalm; "Put not your trust in princes." He lost his charge through
his Tory sympathies and his house was under guard because he prayed
for the king. For all that he refused to preach politics— which was, per-
haps, under the circumstances just as well. His daughters remembered
that they had walked arm-in-arm with General Howe and Lord Percy
on Boston Common, and refused to be reconstructed.

The clergy generally served rural and semi-rural churches, but they
maintained a dignified estate upon most modest salaries, too often iiTegu-
larly paid, which they supplemented by farming and tutoring. Moses
Parsons (1744-1783) with $333.33 a year, and a good farm attached, edu-
cated three sons at Harvard University unassisted, lived liberally and
entertained generously. They married well, their social station was good,
and their wives bore them many children. This and the care of the tem-
poral affairs of their unworldly husbands wore the wives down and they
often died too soon. In due time the bereaved ministers were likely to seek
another helpmate and sometimes a third. They were not accustomed to
soft-pedal their prejudices. Samuel Eaton (1764-1822) shared the feeling
of the Federalists toward President Madison. In the long prayer on one
occasion he addressed the Lord; "Thou hast commanded us to pray for
our enemies. We would, therefore, pray for the President and the Vice-
President of these United States."

They were as forthright with their own congregation. Matthias Bur-
nett (1744-1816) was a piously discreet Tory which fact saved his Long
Island Church from destruction. For all that, his congregation ungrate-
fully requested his resignation. He ended his farewell address by asking
the congregation to sing a paraphrase of the 120th Psalm containing
this verse:

"O! Might I fly to change my place.
How would I choose to dwell
In some wild lonesome wilderness.
And leave these gates of Hell."

They were men of marked individuality and unexpectedly various
experiences, of masterful dispositions and engaging eccentricities.^^ The
i9Samuel Moody, known as "Father" Moody, deserves a monograph.

The Ministry in Congregationalism 377

Annals, incidentally, reveal the changing fortunes of the New England
country districts. Josiah Stearns (1758-1788) was for thirty years minister
at Epping, New Hampshire. He owned a slave, knew his Bible by heart,
and wrote his sermon notes in so fine a hand "as to be nearly illegible
without a microscope." From these he preached with "ease and fluency."
His church was packed of a Sabbath; a hundred years later the meeting
house was in ruins, the church nearly extinct, and fifty persons were a
full congregation. Samuel Eaton (Harpswell, Maine, 1764-1822) was
remembered for the variety of his pastoral services, his emotional earnest-
ness, the fervor and eloquence of his prayers, and that his wig was almost
the last in the ministry.

VIII
Concerning Old Sermons

Most of these men published occasionally, many of them copiously.
The sermon titles are long and most various. For example and without
specific citation: "A Sermon on the Means to be Used for the Conversion
of Carnal Relations"; "Contemplations on Mortality"; "A Discourse of
Secret and Preventing Mercies"; "The Triumph of Mercy"; "Jesus Christ,
the Physician of Sin-Sick Souls Opened and Applied." There are ordina-
tion and funeral sermons beyond citing, "election" sermons and dis-
courses delivered on a great variety of special occasions. Many of the
sermons had controversial backgrounds, theological or otherwise. Quite
generally these old pulpits, high or low, seem to have been entrenchments
from which the clergy engaged each other with verbal bombardments
over tire heads of their congregations. Other controversial themes appear.
Samuel Hopkins, as early as 1776, thought it "the duty and interest of
the American States to emancipate all their African slaves."

The basis of all preaching in American Congregational and Presby-
terian churches until well into the Nineteenth Century was theological
and its motif was the salvation of sinners. It was somberly but earnestly
evangelical. The cuirent theologies were organized and mobilized to save
the lost, if they were predestined to be saved. One notes changes through
the changing years, but the motif does not change. Nathaniel Emmons'
first volume of sermons was "On Some of the First Principles and Doc-
trines of True Religion." His titles are illuminating: "On The Being
and Perfection of God"; "The Plenary Inspiration of the Scriptures";
"Love, the Essence of Obedience"; "The Primitive Rectitude of Adam";
"On Original Sin"; "The Divine Conduct in the Reprobation of Incor-
rigible Sinners, Both Illustrated and Justified"; "On the Unpardonable
Sin," and so on and on to five hundred and ten yellow pages. The Ser-
mon on Reprobation was intended, so the preacher said, to lead sinners
to discover "the plague of their own hearts," though its peroration is

^^S History of American Congregationalism

depressing; "while the decree of reprobation [spelling modernized] is
eternally executing on the vessels of wrath, the smoke of their torments
will be eternally ascending in the view of the vessels of mercy, who, in-
stead of taking the part of those miserable objects, will say. Amen Alle-
luia, Praise Ye the Lord." Homiletically these sermons are admirably or-
ganized, leavened with scripture quotations uncritically used, clear and
nervous in style with the Eighteenth Century faculty for a good use of
language; and solid as jade. They bear re-reading unexpectedly. These
preachers had vigorous and disciplined minds.

Timothy Dwight's sermons (1828) were in more spacious regions
since they were for the larger part Baccalaureate sermons (he was presi-
dent of Yale), and bore titles such as these: "Secret Things Belong to
God"; "On Revelation"; "The Sovereignty of God"; "Life and Immortal-
ity Brought to Light in the Gospel"; "The Danger of Opposing Reli-
gion"; "Life a Race"; "On the Parental Character of God"; "On Inde-
pendence of Mind"; "On Doing Good." These sermons are well argued,
elevated, occasionally noble in range, and monumental. For example,
sermon xvi, "God Loves His Children Unto the End," has passages which
match Newman. The sermon "On The Duties Connected with a Profes-
sional Life" might still be read with profit by any young minister, lawyer,
or doctor. On the other hand the Baccalaureate sermon in 1810 must have
had a solemnizing but certainly not a cheering effect upon those who
heard it:

"The time is hastening when you will come to the bed of death . . . against
some or other of your names the melancholy asterisk may make its appearance
in the next triennial catalogue."

Samuel Worcester's sermons (1823) continue the evangelical appeal
with a brighter note and kinder thoughts about God, who by this time
seems to have "More pleasure in the conversion and salvation of sinners
than in their condemnation" and has begun to escape the bonds of a
hyper-Calvinism.^"

The Unitarian "departure" diminished the prestige of the Trinitarian
orthodox pulpit in New England, and the American pulpit generally
lacked distinction toward the middle of the Nineteenth Century. So
much of the country was still new, and while the always fluid frontier
called for courage, missionary spirit, evangelistic zeal, and adaptability,
it did not mature the qualities usually associated with outstanding
preaching. The Methodists had had Francis Asbury, to whom American
Methodism owes an almost immeasurable debt, and were nurturing
Matthew Simpson, one of the greatest American preachers of any period.

20 A little volume of sermons to young women by Dr. James Fordyce (Boston, 1796)
is an exhibit of ideal feminine virtues up to date.

The Ministry in Congregationalism 379

Peter Cartwright had been the typical circuit rider of the frontier states.^^
Finney had exercised his almost hypnotic power in Northern Ohio and
New York; Henry Ward Beecher, clothed with his tongue of fire, had
come to Brooklyn from Indiana; Albert Barnes of Philadelphia had
adorned the Presbyterian pulpit; but in general the American could not
compare with the British pulpit.

New Times; New Voices

The National Congi^egational Council of 1865, which is chronolog-
ically and for other reasons the point of departure for the second section
of this history, was suggested to the churches by a series of resolutions
adopted by the Congregational churches of the Northwest in convention
assembled in 1864. The first "whereas" declared structural society and
ecclesiastical organization to be either dissolved or greatly changed
throughout a large section of the United States. The convention seemed
to contemplate a new opportunity for free speech, free thought, and free
missions in "vast regions heretofore sealed against them" (evidently the
then "South"), and thought it likely that "ideas and emigration from
the Free States [would] follow the triumph of the Union cause south-
ward." Those general and fraternal hopes were rather premature, but
a new epoch for Congregationalism dates from the 1865 Council.

For one thing there appeared a new galaxy of names, not always of
the first magnitude. The Congregational Church had changed since John
Lord (his is the last name in Sprague's Annals) had died of Cholera in
Cincinnati in 1849, only sixteen years before. There is no room here for
the lists of delegates, but they belong historically to a transition period.
The Council sermon was preached by Dr. Julian M. Sturtevant, pres-
ident of Illinois College. The occasion demanded a consideration of the
policy, principle, and the historic mission of Congregationalism, but even
so a great gulf is fixed between it and such sermons as we have been con-
sidering. Those delegates were no longer "colonists of Heaven"; they
were citizens of a Republic which had come through a baptism of fire.
Liberty for them was no academic speculation about the freedom of the
will. It was the heritage and mandate of America. They naturally charged
the Congregational churches with a unique responsibility for its preserva-
tion more than sufficient for its actual existence. The preacher himself
could not conceive how free men "would ever have invented any other
church policy than independency." The debates discussed new subjects
in a new spirit. All this was seen profoundly to influence Congregational
preaching.
21 Hoy t. The Pulpit and American Life, p. 204.

380 History of American Congregationalism

The next forty years were a kind of golden age for Congregational
preaching, though one must be careful here. American preaching gen-
erally was then of a higher quality, an aspect of American culture which
secular historians have not often noted. The processes of the melting pot
had begun— at least the then alien racial element which was later to be-
come so significant had begun— under manifold stimulation to pour in
through all the northern ports of entry. But the country was still out-
standingly homogenous racially, save for the Negro, and predominantly
Protestant. The period of urbanization had begun. Old cities were mul-
tiplying their populations, new cities growing magically. Consequently
the rural pulpits became less attractive, the city pulpit offered the com-
petent minister a most desirable station. The outstanding city churches
were able to command the best preachers. The men who finally won
them were products of a pretty competitive process of natural homiletic
selection. They became recognized, were acclaimed and possibly envied.
The ministry began to begin to be a career.

There were, naturally, regional and denominational distributions
of available clerical talent. The war between the states had tragically
divided the churches into North and South, and for an indefinite period
there would be little Christian commerce between them. Northern Pres-
byterianism shared the stronger churches of the middle states with the
Episcopalians and Methodists (the Baptists would ask to be included),
but New England was still Protestant and Congregational, and the
churches of New England cities were eminently desirable stations and
thus able to command distinguished preaching. Boston and its suburbs
were a preachers' paradise. Brooklyn was a second Congregational strong-
hold, with the largest churches, numerically, in the denomination. There
was usually one strong Congregational church in most of the mid-western
cities whose pulpit was nationally known. Chicago Congregationalism
was strong, and so on and on.

A Renaissance of Published Sermons

The very individualism of Congregational churches magnified the
clerical office and fostered a holy local pride in the distinction of their
respective ministers, whom they rewarded generously. They did not con-
fine themselves to purely Congregational sources of supply in their quest
for the best. The allure of a free pulpit in historic churches with good
salaries appealed to unusually capable men in other denominations.
Transfer was facile, and a "call" to Boston, Brooklyn, Springfield or
what you please was recognized as the call of the Lord. Preaching was
cultivated as a fine art and the sermon began to be an end in itself. The

The Ministry in Congregationalism 38 1

result was preaching of a marked literary quality, almost a sermonic
essay. (Theodore Munger excelled in this.) It was not difficult for preach-
ers with this gift to contribute acceptably to the Century or Atlantic
Monthly, or to publish volumes from time to time.

Beecher's sermons were always in demand, and, in time, Phillips
Brooks'. Lesser luminaries began to get their sermons published through
the "eighties" and "nineties." Ministers generally did not over-publish
and what they did publish had a quality both of thoughtfulness and
literary distinction which would later be lost in the multitude of books
issuing from the religious presses. An examination of titles not possible
here would place Congregational ministers from 1880 to 1900 in the top
group in these fields. In addition, the presidents of the older New Eng-
land colleges and strong colleges and state universities outside New Eng-
land were Congregational ministers. Their writings and public addresses
went in part to the intellectual credit of the denomination. After a long
tradition. Congregational ministers are called to be "pastors and teach-
ers" and have generally sought to honor both offices. This has given Con-
gregational preaching a marked teaching quality. Its liberal leaders ren-
dered a great service in the reconciliation of the critical interpretations
of the Bible and the more tested conclusions of biology and geology with
an entirely adequate Christian faith. Congregational teachers and preach-
ers widened and precised the social leanings of the teachings of the
prophets and the gospels. The result was a noble vitality of message.

Congregational preaching has also moved along a wide cultural front
with insight and imagination. It can hardly be called characteristically
emotional,^^ though it has never entirely lost a somewhat restrained evan-
gelical fervour. It has, with exceptions of course, been more notable for
its consistent elevation than for oratorical and dramatic peaks, and it
has, in part, always had to create the mind which responded to it. In
the International Councils which brought British and American Congre-
gationalists to the same platforms, toward the turn of the century, there
was usually a timbre to the English addresses which the Americans lacked.
Possibly this was because the English Free churches maintained them-
selves only by the exercise of militant conviction; possibly because many
of the English preachers had been mentally suppled by political activi-
ties outside the pulpit; and possibly it was because of their rich cultural
inheritance. Too much shelter has never been good for preaching. One
may conclude a section of this history which might easily become a vol-
ume in itself by saying that throughout its entire history Congregation-
alism has exerted its really far-reaching influence predominantly through
the writing and preaching of its ministers.

22Hoyt, The Pulpit and American Life.

382 History of American Congregationalism

A writer who would undertake to catalogue and classify the Congre-
gational preachers of the last seventy-five years as major and minor
prophets would be seeming "to discriminate between the Lord's an-
nointed." At any rate the evaluation of preaching is an affair of subtle
and subjective difficulties. There is a "rule of the thumb" test. Any de-
nomination assigns its most distinguished clergymen to stellar roles in its
stellar meetings. Here are the National Council preachers from 1865 to
1940: Julian M. Sturtevant, Leonard Bacon, Richard S. Storrs, Zachary
Eddy, Samuel E. Herrick, Frederick A. Noble, Professor George P. Fisher,
Israel E. Dwinell, Charles M. Lamson, F. W. Gunsaulus, Albert J. Lyman,
William J. Tucker, Alexander McKenzie, George A. Gordon, President
W. D. Mackenzie, Charles E. Jefferson, Ozora S. Davis, Charles S. Mills,
Raymond Calkins, Gaius Glenn Atkins, S. Parkes Cadman, Carl S. Patton,
Albert W. Palmer, Heni^ K. Booth, Harry P. Dewey, Ashley Day Leavitt,
Ferdinand Q. Blanchard, Oscar E. Maurer, Mcllyar H. Lichliter.

Congregationalism has also honored its outstanding clergymen with
the office of Moderator, alternating with distinguished laymen. Omitting
duplicated names (as preachers) the Clergymen moderators have been.^^
William I. Budington, Henry M.Dexter, Arthur Little, A, H. Quint, Amory
H. Bradford, Washington Gladden, Nehemiah Boynton, Charles R.
Brown, William Horace Day, Henry C. King, William E. Barton, Rock-
well H. Potter, Dan F. Bradley, Fred B. Smith, Jay T. Stocking. Other
names may be added with general agreement: Henry Ward Beecher,
Newell Dwight Hillis, Frederick K. Shannon. The delegates and speakers
in the National Council of 1865 would be representative for that period.
Discrimination is difficult, but Noah Porter, Edward Beecher, Samuel
Harris, Josiah T. Hanis, Henry M. Dexter, Edward N. Kirk, Edwards A.
Park, Ray Palmer, James P. Thompson, James H. Fairchild, Samuel Wol-
cott, and Leonard Swan may be taken as representative. American Con-
gregationalists speaking on the Lyman Beecher Foundation supplies an-
other check, as well as the preachers at the annual meetings of the Amer-
ican Board. There were no sermons at the first three annual meetings of
the American Board, but since then (1813) more than 125 sermons have
been delivered at the Annual Meetings, and the Board has always been
able to command the most distinguished preachers. (During the Plan of
Union period Presbyterians would be heard.) Timothy Dwight of Yale
preached the first sermon, and though the entire list cannot be repro-
duced here notably among his successors are: Lyman Beecher, Edward
Griffin, Albert Barnes, Joel Hanes, Richard S. Storrs, Leonard Bacon,
23 For complete list of moderators, see table "Meetings of Councils," pp. 406-407.

The Ministry in Congregationalism 383

Mark Hopkins, George W. Betheine, Julius Seelye, A. J. F. Behrends,
George Leon Walker, Arthur Little, A. J. Lyman, George A. Gordon,
Edward C. Moore, Willard L. Sperry, Reuen Thomas, Joseph H. Twich-
ell. Jay T. Stocking, Albert W. Palmer, Ashley Day Leavitt, Russell H.
Stafford.

There is naturally in the various program-makings of National and
International Councils, American Boards and other honorific bodies, an
inevitable duplication of names and a considerable repetition of the
same names. Denominational stars are never of perpetual apparition, but
once established in the forensic firmament, no meeting seems complete
without them, and they keep on and on. For the main part, the names
of American Congregational lecturers on the Lyman Beecher Founda-
tion have already been noted. Nathaniel Judson Burton belongs, not
only for the unusual quality of his own preaching, but for a series of
lectures unmatched in the long series for beauty of style and the scintil-
lating play of his mind.

An appraisal of Congi^egational preaching for the last decade is not
here indicated, and besides time is the only final appraiser of anything.
An earlier chapter recognized the confusion into which theology has
fallen. Confused theological thinking and differences in social and ethical
positions are sure to affect preaching. The preaching of our age of dis-
solutions will move along a wide front, but it will lack authority, and
the trumpets will too often give forth an uncertain sound. The American
Protestant pulpit has reflected such conditions since the first world war.
Great preachers, moreover, like their fellow artists in literature, music
and the fine arts, do not come by command. The concern for worship,
noted in another section, has eased the burdens which, by inheritance,
the sermon carried. Preaching may not now have the strategic sig-
nificance it once had and this, too, may be affecting the American
Protestant pulpit generally. One can only say in conclusion that the
contemporaneous Congregational pulpit holds its own with other de-
nominations.

CHAPTER XXII

An Adventure in Liberty

NEITHER Protestantism itself nor the majority of its communions
is felicitously designated. Some of the names have been self-
assumed; some perpetuate the names of historic leaders. One
of the greatest of the Protestant denominations has given high distinc-
tion to a title bestowed half in derision upon a group of praying students.
A fellowship which has demonstrated the way of Jesus in quiet heroisms
was named for its apparent fears, and not its courage. Many of the names
over-emphasize a particular polity; few of them are neat and compact.
They all tend, under consideration, to become "isms": Methodism,
Lutheranism, Presbyterianism, Congregationalism— even the Latin Cath-
olic Church has not been able to escape that. The Baptists have been
more fortunate; they have never been called Baptismists.

For all that, the issues thus christened have been vaster and more
significant than their denominations. They represent in their entirety the
prolific possibilities of Christianity under the impulse, historically, of
the Renaissance and Reformation; that is, under the relatively free im-
pulse of the exploring religious mind in Western Europe, then more
specifically in England and Scotland, then finally and most specifically
in America. We have noted already in these pages the crucial distinction
between the "continuing" and the "gathered" churches in the theory
and practice of the Reformation, but even in the "gathered" churches the
break with the past was more apparent than real. The historic creeds
still controlled the faith of the Protestant mind. The vei"y language of
Christianity continued unchanged; the old literatures maintained their
authority. The central currents of inherited theology flowed on, though
in changed channels. The pristine devotions of the Christian spirit con-
tinued in habits of prayer and praise and ordered worship, however much
the forms were changed.

All this was inevitable and entirely consistent, for the power of Chris-
tianity always has been in its central steadfastness and its marginal elas-
ticities. Its wide range of accommodation, its many-gated openness to
ever-varying minds, temperaments, and situations has secured and main-
tained its sovereignty. It has never stibmitted to long-held and rigidly-
enforced patterns without impulses to escape, as though otherwise it
would lose its soul, as it has again and again been in peril of doing.

384

An Adventure in Liberty 385

These creative escapes have not been schisms, as the pattern-makers and
keepers have called them, any more than the branches of a tree are schis-
matic. They have been the lift and spread of Christian faith and the
Christian way, the achievement of its native amplitude. The entire
Christian order has thereby been enriched.

Protestantism— An Adventure in Liberty

Protestantism, though it did get its name from a protesting document,
was never negative nor merely a protest.^ Its affirmatives have always been
central; its negatives marginal and corollaries of its affirmatives. For ex-
ample, if a believer is justified by faith he does not need a priestly justifi-
cation, a sacerdotal church, or any of its hoarded and accumulated fur-
nishings. But beyond all this, Protestantism was and continues to be an
adventure in Christian liberty, though it has not always so recognized
itself. Its Magna Charta was Luther's "liberty of a Christian man."
Luther's Magna Charta was St. Paul's letter to the Galatians and St,
Paul's Magna Charta was his vision on the Damascus road.

Luther did not, however, accept the issues of his own emancipation
proclamation and see them through to the end. Neither, on the whole,
has Protestantism ever been consistently true to its own genius, nor has
it ever completely trusted its right and reason to be: that the Spirit-
guided life could safely be left to itself as competent to manage its own
affairs. The reasons are plain enough. Right liberty has always been hard
to get, hard to keep, and harder still to demonstrate in order and splendor
of soul and state. Self-government is the costly issue of being taught wis-
dom by many mistakes, the priceless survival of success after many fail-
ures. It needs selected material and very great courage, a rare faith in
human nature and, where it has hitherto held its own against inner cor-
rosion and outer challenge, the undergirding of an heroic Christian
faith and a high sense that God himself is for it.

If one stands far enough away from the massive and entangled action
of the Reformation, he sees throughout its course a growing quest for
realization of the independence of the Spirit-guided Christian life, both
in theory and practice. Protestantism was bound by the very genius of it,
when the right time came, to try the experiment of the liberty of a
Christian man with all its implications and issues, completely and at all
costs. No historian of the Congregational way dares to say that there, at
last, in Leyden or New England Plymouth or Massachusetts Bay was

1 After all there is nothing to be ashamed of in protest. It has been over and over a
splendor, a heroism, and a prophecy. For the most part the orders against which the
great historic protests have been made are on the defensive.

386 History oj American Congregationalism

the predestined issue of the Protestant Reformation, or the heirs "of all
the ages, in the foremost files of time." He can say that an opportunity
was there afforded for an experiment in the liberty of a Christian man
in a very complete way. Any final appraisal of Congregationalism, there-
fore, must be an examination of how it administered its trust, what it
made of its opportunity and what was thereby contributed to the re-
ligious, social, and political order in America. Such an appraisal has
become, as this final chapter is written,^ both difficult and timely, though
headlines of world news would seem to make it no more than a foot-
note in an era of transition whose issues are being fought out along
battle lines which girdle the globe. All the inherited liberties are in des-
perate peril and the idealisms and philosophies which have hitherto
supported the free self-government of the church, state, and society are
mortally challenged by opposing idealisms and philosophies which are as
strongly drawn as the forces which seek to make them dominant are
massively armed.

Protestantism itself has long been examining its own idealisms and
situations, as though, with a half-unconscious premonition, it was mo-
bilizing its forces for its own part and place in an epochal recasting of
all its historic inheritances. There is a widely-shared persuasion that the
processes of sectarian division, with their minor but significant emphases,
have more than served their purpose, and that a working unity of many-
branched Protestantisms is vital to its very survival and must be accom-
plished. This is being supported by a theory of the church to which Con-
gregationalism with all its implications seems alien. In the current and
somewhat heated criticism of Protestantism by those who owe to it every-
thing they are and have, including their liberty to criticize it, Congre-
gationalism is called "the ne plus ultra of sectarianism" 2— the final and
complete negative of catholicity. The only answer to all this is the record.

Congregationalism— A Historic Development of This
Adventure in Liberty

One may not accurately maintain that in America the case rests with
the American Congregational churches so denominated. It is true that
historically they have made the Congregational way of exercising the
liberty of the Christian more consistently central than any other of tlie
denominations whose polity is Congregational.* The polity itself, as one

2April, 1942.

3 Morrison, What is Christianity?, pp. 240-41 fF. Morrison is here writing of Con-
gregationalism as an ideology and not as a specific denomination.

4 "If one adds up all the communions of a Congregational polity, almost half Amer-
ican Protestantism is thus administered." This confessedly ex parte claim certainly

An Adventure in Liberty 387

sees it in its entirety, has always been a means to an end: the right and
duty of the church member to administer his own church business with
a direct control; a minimum of ecclesiastical machinery; willing obedience
to majority discussions; a disciplined respect for the right of the minority.
Congregationalism believes this to be necessary to the liberty of a Chris-
tian man, and whatever else is built must be upon this foundation.

This liberty may be surrendered, but only for the sake of a larger and
more inclusive liberty, since freedom is always cooperative and must
always extend its corporate frontiers to maintain its central sanctities.
But in every aspect of this always widening process, it must trust itself
and its agents. Fundamentally this involves the rights and acknowledges
the sovereignty of the laity of the church. A vast deal of the Reformation
continued a diminished clerical administration of the reformed churches
from the top, the somewhat frayed remnants of a millennium and a half
of ecclesiasticism. They did not trust the Christian folk of Christian
churches. Congregationalism began and continued with a new conception
of authority, the authority of the Christian fellowship, in essence a
spiritual democracy, and beneath this the conviction that the sources of
this authority are the enduements and directions of the Holy Spirit, and
that thus God comes into action through human mediation. This is to
establish the church upon foundations which no tumult can overthrow
and whose august sovereignties make hierarchies only incidents in a
vaster process. The significance of this cannot be over-stressed. Protestant-
ism, as a whole, shifted in varying degrees the seat of authority. Con-
gregationalism made the church-meeting a throne room.

The covenant came next; the instrument of Congregational com-
munion—"/jomonm." Here also was, and is, a conception of "communion"
immediate, cooperative, vital, tenacious, and elastic. It is a direct sharing
of undertakings and responsibilities, friendships and the fruits of the
Spirit. Nothing in religious history is more moving than the covenants
by which members of the early Congregational churches bound them-
selves together in the face of manifold perils, for the conduct of enter-
prises whose simplicity masked their splendor. The result, at its best,
has been an immediacy of Christian fellowship whose tender beauty can-
not be put into words.

needs qualification. The Baptists may meet it quite conclusively with Roger Williams'
slogan of "Soul Liberty," when there was apparently very little "soul liberty" around
Massachusetts Bay. They may also claim priority in advocating the separation of
Church and State while the Congregational way was tax-supported and enforced by
the magistrates. The Friends may also prove that there was complete toleration in
William Penn's colony when there was none in New England. American religious
liberty is the joint creation of many forces and influences, some of them entirely un-
ecclesiastical. For all that, using the above word "central," the claim— in view of the
whole history of Congregationalism in England and America— may be allowed to stand,
at least in this history.

388 History of American Congregationalism

Necessity and a sound sense both for order and fellowship— and some
Presbyterian influence— led the New England Colonial churches within
thirty years to associate themselves together for mutual advice, support,
and edification. In a precise way it was an extension of the covenant con-
ception, the communion of members of one church, to all the churches.
This history has traced the genesis and development of this association
principle. It has been modified and improved, but it has held true to
its primary inspiration. The compulsions of Congregationalism have
always been rooted in free consent. They represent shared visions and
shared undertakings. The result has been a fellowship of churches which,
though they have never called themselves a Church, have secured a com-
munity woven together of strong and countless filaments— no more sec-
tarian than truth, goodness, and Christian discipleship are sectarian,
and never making any monopolistic claims. Here is a conception and
accomplishment whose values may gain new recognition from what im-
perils them.^

Such a system needs a disciplined constituency and a capable, trained
leadership. This also the founders of Congregationalism saw clearly and
sought to secure. The result waS' a concern for education in all its forms
and grades, whose creative impact upon American life cannot easily be
over-estimated. Just as Congregationalism has trusted the free operation
of the spirit in religion, it has to an unusual degree trusted the free
operation of truth upon the mind. Its dogmatisms have never been
rigid; it has held its convictions open to coiTection and sought so to in-
form the societies of which it has been a part. It has had, therefore, a
faculty for adjustment to changing minds and times which has brought
it through many crisis periods with no dissolution of the bonds which
hold its fellowship together and no surrender of the central Christian
beliefs.^

Ill
Liberty Becomes Service

The minimum of concern for ecclesiastical machinery which long
characterized Congregationalism, to its own institutional loss, left it free
to find for its relatively great force missionary, benevolent, and human-
betterment channels which have made it tributary to something much
greater than its own denominational life. Its first home-missionary so-
cieties were never sectarian; its foreign missionary society was the "Amer-
ican" Board. Its concern for the freedom of the slave had no sectarian
bias, and its long and distinguished contribution to the second, and far

5 The institutional limits and weaknesses of the Congregational way have been
frankly acknowledged in this study. They are in a way incident to all self-government
established on communal basis.

6 The Unitarian "departure" apparently contradicts this rather spacious statement.

An Adventure in Liberty 389

more difficult, emancipation of the Negro has been a contribution for
which it asked and received no denominational returns. Once more the
very genius of its relatively simple ecclesiastical machinery has made this
possible. Its halo has flickered often enough and those who care for it
must recognize its limitations, but it has sought and served, far beyond
its own immediate and particular interests, the realization of the Chris-
tian way in strategic human enterprises.

The particular relation of Congregationalism to the society of which
it was long the predominantly religious aspect has also been sufficiently
noted in these pages. Here one must acknowledge its limitations as a
system. It has been and probably still is unusually dependent upon its
cultural environment. But it has in turn made its own environment ger-
mane to its needs. There has thus been between religious and political
democracy a process of creative interaction in which each has supported
the other; the result is one of the bright strands of the history of the
Republic.

It is very significant that while American Protestantism is increasingly
critical of its own liberties in theory, churches of all denominations are
growing more independent in practice. Actually all this is implicit in
the growth of a free society. Church polities cannot be kept in water-
tight compartments. The voice of the layman is bound to make itself
heard. Those who administer their own affairs in every other life region
will carry a measure of that administration through any church door.
Laymen and women increasingly control their own local church affairs.
Even under the most episcopal of bishops they generally get rectors of
their own choosing.

One may be cynically practical and say that those who pay the piper
set the tune, but it goes deeper than that. There is a force in the funda-
mental affirmation of Congregationalism which will not be denied ex-
pression. Creed subscription has been diluted in the most strongly in-
doctrinated denominations. What remains of hierarchical authority is
only the ghost of former authoritarianisms sitting vestured upon the
grave thereof. Thought is as free as it wants to be. Ecclesiastical ma-
chineries may have no place for a "church meeting," but not even the
most absolute can indefinitely run counter to the matured opinions of
their communicants.

IV
The Vitality of the Principles Involved

One must not say that these aspects of present-day American Protes-
tantism are due entirely to an acknowledged or unacknowledged dif-
fusion of Congregational influence. They simply demonstrate that the
Congregational way possessed a power and principle which will always

ggo History of American Congregationalism.

be asserted and realized in a free society. They are of the nature of such
a society, whether in church or state. Unless the possible ecumenical
Church of the future recognizes them and provides for their exercise, it
will carry within itself a force to undo it as long as there shall be free
men in a free society.

Some early "Independent Puritans" had, as we have seen, the con-
ception of an English church whose unit members could exercise local
autonomy under national control. That was then impossible,^ though the
Independent Puritan definitely influenced the early development of
New England Congregationalism, but it was prophetic. The United
Church of Canada, leaving the state out, has achieved just that.'' There
Congregationalism has already fulfilled what may be seen, in a future
yet unknown, to have been its destiny in the United States. It has lost
its name, but saved its soul in perpetuating the near-to-life and vital
breath of the liberty of Christian men.

A single close-printed page in the Year Book of the Congregational
Christian Churches for 1940 summarizes their principles of Christian
Fellowship, the form of their government, their historical sources, their
religious and spiritual confidences, their practices and achievements— a
luminous page written by at least four centuries of heroic quest and
realization, and not uncolored by the martyr's blood.

There are two key words in the recital: "fellowship" and "free."
"Fellowship" makes it Christian. "Free" makes it great, for it catalogues
as its bequests to the well-being of all "the free state, the free school, the
free society life of our Country." Against the dark denials of such free-
doms or their imperiled existence in every inherited civilization, they
take on a stellar brightness. They are more precious than life, for with-
out them life has lost its meaning and Christianity its mandate.

This history in its entirety is no more than the telling of how one
communion among the gieat fellowship of Christian communions has
conceived and served these freedoms and helped to make them, after its
power and fashion, a priceless part of our inheritance. They cany with
them their own validations. Their forms may be modified; but their
spirit, timeless and treasured in the Mayflower compact and the Gettys-
burg dedication, is its own prophecy of victorious continuance.

7 There the local church is autonomous for its own local affairs, including its creedal
bases.

Appendixes

APPENDIX I

Creeds and Covenants

THE FIRST CONGREGATIONAL COVENANT

By Richard Fitz

Adopted by the First Congregational Church in the Bridewell. 1567.

The Order of the Priuye Church in London, which by the malice of Satan
is falsely slandered, and euill spoken of.

The myndes of them, that by the strengthe and workinge of the almight, our
Lorde lesus Christ, haue set their hands and hartes, to the pure, unmingled and
sincere worshipinge of God, accordinge to his blessed and glorious worde in al
things, onely abolishinge and abhorringe all tradicions and inuentions of man,
whatsoever in the same Religion and Seruice of oure Lord God, knowinge this
alwayes, that the Christe, eyther hathe or else euer more continually under the
crosse striueth for to have. Fyrste and formoste, the Glorious worde and Euangel
preached, not in bondage and subjection, but freely, and purely, onleye and all
together accordinge to the institution and good worde of the Lorde lesus, without
any tradicion of man. And laste of all to haue, not the filthye Cannon Lawe, but
dissiplyne onelye, and all together to the heavenlye and allmighty worde of
our good Lorde, Isus Chryste.

(Signed) Richard Fytz (Fitz) , minister.

SELECTIONS FROM ROBERT BROWNE

"A Booke WHICH SHEWETH THE life and manners of all
true Christians^ and howe unlike they are unto Turkes and
Papistes and Heathen folke. By me, ROBERT BROWNE,
Middleburgh, Imprinted by Richarde Painter. 1582."

1. Wherefore are we called the people of God and Christians? Because
that by a willing Couenaunt made with our God, we are under the gouerne-
ment of God and Christe, and thereby do leade a godly and christian life.
Christians are a corapanie or number of beleeuers, which by a willing coue-
naunt made with their God, are under the gouernement of God and Christ, and
keepe his Lawes in one holie communion: Because they are redeemed by Christe
unto holines &: happines for euer, from whiche they were fallen by the sinne of
Adam.

36. Howe must the churche be first planted and gathered under one kinde
of gouernement?

First by a couenant and condicion, made on Gods behalfe.

Secondlie by a couenant and condicion made on our behalfe.

Thirdlie by using the sacrament of Baptisme to scale those condicions, and
couenantes.

393

394 Appendix

The couenant on God's behalf is his agreement or partaking of condicions
with us that if we keepe his lawes, not forsaking his gouernment, hee will take
us for his people, & blesse us accordingly.

37. What is the couenant, or condicion on Gods behalfe? His promise to be
our God and sauiour, if we forsake not his gouernement by disobedience.

Also his promise to be the God of our seede, while we are his people. Also
the gifte of his spirit to his children as an inwarde calling and furtheraunce
of godlines.

His promise to his church, is his sure couenant, remembred, taught, and held
by the church, and the seede thereof: whereby it onely hath assurance of salua-
tion in Christ.

38. What is the couenant or condicion on our behalfe?

We must offer and geue up our selues to be of the church and people of God.

We must likewise offer and geue up our children and others, being under
age, if they be of our households and we haue full power ouer them. We must
make profession, that we are his people, by submitting our selues to his lawes
and gouernement.

The couenaunt on our behalfe, is our agreement and partaking of condi-
tions with God, That he shal be our God so long as wee keepe under his gou-
ernement, and obey his lawes, and no longer.

39. How must Baptisme be used as a scale of this couenaunt?

They must be duelie presented, and offered to God and the church, which
are to be Baptised.

They must be duelie received unto grace and fellowship.
Baptisme is a Sacrament or marke of the outwarde church, sealing unto us by
the wasshing of our bodies in water, and the word accordingly preached, our
suffering with Christ to die unto sinne by repentance, and our rising with him
to Hue unto righteousness, and also sealing our calling, profession, and happines
gotten by our faith in our victorie of the same lesus Christ.

Baptising into the bodie and gouernement of Christ, is when the parties
Baptised are receyued unto grace and fellowshippe, by partaking with the
church in one Christian communion.

THE SEVEN ARTICLES OF THE LEYDEN CHURCH,

1617, LEYDEN

THE LEYDEN PILGRIMS applied to the London-Virginia
Company, in 1617, for permission to settle somewhere on the
wide stretch of American coast then known by the name of
Virginia, and the agents of the church. Deacon John Carver
and Robert Cushman, carried with them to London the seven
articles of belief which are here presented, designing them to
serve as an assurance to the company or the king should doubt
be cast upon their orthodoxy or loyalty.

THE SEVEN ARTICLES

Seven Artikes which ye Church of Leyden sent to ye Counsell of England
to bee considered of in respeckt of their judgments occationed about theer go-
ing to Virginia Anno 1618.

Creeds and Covenants 395

1. To ye confession of fayth published in ye name of ye Church of England
& to every artikell thereof wee do wth ye reformed churches wheer wee live &
also els where assent wholy.

2. As wee do acknolidg ye docktryne of fayth theer tawght so do wee ye
fruites and effeckts of ye same docktryne to ye begetting of saving fayth in
thousands in ye land (conformistes & reformistes) as ye ar called wth whom also
as wth our bretheren wee do desyer to keepe sperituall communion in peace
and will pracktis in our parts all lawfull thinges.

3. The King's Majesty wee acknolidg for Supreame Governer in his Domin-
ion in all causes and over all parsons, and ye none maye decklyne or apeale
from his authority or judgment in any cause whatsoever, but y in all thinges
obedience is dewe unto him, ether active, if ye thing commanded be not agaynst
God's woord, or passive yf itt bee, except pardon can bee obtayned.

4. Wee judg itt lawfull for his Majesty to apoynt bishops, civill overseers,
or officers in awthoryty onder hime, in ye severall provinces, dioses, congrega-
tions or parrishes to oversee ye Churches and governe them civilly according to
ye Lawes of ye Land, untto whom ye ar in all thinges to geve an account & by
them to bee ordered according to Godlynes.

5. The authoryty of ye present bishops in ye Land wee do acknolidg so far
forth as ye same is indeed derived from his Majesty untto them and as ye pro-
seed in his name, whom wee will also theerein honor in all things and hime in
them.

6. Wee beleeve yt no sinod, classes, convocation or assembly of Ecclesiasti-
call Officers hath any power or awthoryty att all but as ye same by ye Majestraet
geven unto them.

7. Lastly, wee desyer to geve untto all Superiors dew honnor to preserve ye
unity of ye speritt wth all y feare God, to have peace wth all men what in us
lyeth & wheerein wee err to bee instructed by any.

Subscribed by
John Robinson,
and
William Bruster (Brewster)

THE MAYFLOWER COMPACT

On Board "Mayflower," Cape Cod, Nov. 11, 1620

Before leaving the Mayflower, forty-one persons signed the following com-
pact:—

In y^ name of God Amen. We whole names are underwriten, the loyall fub-
jects of our dread foveraigne lord King James, by y^ grace of God, of great Brit-
aine. Franc, & Ireland king, defender of y^ faith, &c.

Haveing undertaken, for y^ glorie of God, and advancemente of y^ chriftian
faith and honour of our king & countrie, a voyage to plant y^ lirft colonic in y^
Northerne parts of Virginia. Doe by thefe prefents folemnly & mutualy in y«
prefence of God, and one of another; covenant, & combine our felves togeather
into a civill body politick; for our better ordering, & prefervation & furtherance
of ye ends aforefaid; and by vertue hearof to enacte, conftitute, and frame fhuch
juft & equall lawes, ordinances. Acts, conftitutions, & offices, from time to time,
as fhall be thought moft meete &: convenient for y^ generall good of y^ Colonic:

396

Appendix

unto which we promife all due submiffion and obedience. In witness whereof we
have hereunder fubfcribed our names at Cap-Codd y^ .11. of November, in y« year
of y^ raigne of our foveraigne lord king James of England, France, & Ireland y^
eighteenth and of Scotland y« fiftie fourth. An° Dom. 1620.

Degory Prieft
Thomas Williams
Gilbert Winflow

John Carver
William Bradford
Edward Winflow
William Brewfter
Ifaac Allerton
Myles Standifh
John Alden
John Turner
Francis Eaton
James Chilton
John Crackfton
John Billington
Mofes Fletcher
John Goodman
Samuel Fuller
Chriftopher Martin
William Mullins
William White
Richard Warren
John Rowland
Stephen Hopkins

Edmund Margefon
Peter Brown
Richard Britteridge
George Soule
Edward Tilley
John Tilley
Francis Cooke
Thomas Rogers
Thomas Tinker
John Ridgdale
Edward Fuller
Richard Clark
Richard Gardiner
John Allerton
Thomas Englifh
Edward Doty
Edward Leifter

THE CAMBRIDGE SYNOD

THE CAMBRIDGE PLATFORM

Cambridge, Mass., Sept., 1646—14 days. June 8, 1647; adjourned. Oct. 27, 1647;
adjourned. Aug. 15, 1648 to Aug. 25, 1648.

Ministers in England sent a Letter of Inquiry to New England, requesting the
judgment of their brethren concerning "nine positions." At about the same time
the Puritan churches in England sent a communication to the churches in New
England, in which thirty-two questions were asked, covering the whole field of
church government. The General Court of Massachusetts was petitioned in May,
1646, to convene the churches in a synod.

The text of the call is as follows:—

"That there be a public assembly of the Elders and other messengers of the
several churches, within this jurisdiction, who may come together, and meet at
Cambridge, upon the first day of September, now next ensuing, then to discuss,
dispute, and clear up by the Word of God, svich questions of church government
and discipline, in the things aforementioned or any other, as they shall thiiik
needful and meet, and to continue so doing till they or the major part of them
shall have agreed and consented upon one form of government and discipline,
for the main and substantial parts thereof, as that which they judge agreeable
to the Holy Scriptures."

Creeds and Covenants 397

The work of this synod dealt with subjects as follows:—

Chapters 1-4. Church government.

Chapter 5. Brethren elect Elders: Elders have power.

Chapter 6. The two orders: Elders and Deacons.

Chapter 7. Duties of Elders and Deacons.

Chapters. How officers are chosen.

Chapter 9. Manner and meaning of ordination.

Chapter 10. Relation and powers of Elders and brethren.

Chapter 11. Financial support of church officers.

Chapters 12-14. Reception, dismission, and discipline of members.

Chapter 15. Fellowship of the churches.

Chapter 16. Nature of synods: how to call synods.

Chapter 17. Relation of church officers to civil government.

This platform obtained with the churches as the standard until 1780.

HOOKER'S SUMMARY OF CONGREGATIONAL
PRINCIPLES, 1645

(From Preface of A Survey of the Summe of Church Discipline)

THE PRINCIPLES OF 1645

"// the Reader shall demand how far this way of Church-proceeding receives
approbation by any common concurrence amongst us: / shall plainly and punc-
tually expresse my self in a loord of truth, in these following points, viz.

Visible Saints are the only true and meet matter, whereof a visible Church
should be gathered, and confoederation is the form.

The Church as Totum essentiale, is, and may be, before Officers.

There is no Presbyteriall Church (i e. A Church made up of the Elders of
many Congregations appointed Classickwise, to rule all those Congregations) in
the N. T.

A Church Congregationall is the first subject of the keys.

Each Congregation compleatly constituted of all Officers, hath sufficient power
in her self, to exercise the power of the keyes, and all Church discipline, in all
the censures thereof.

Ordination is not before election.

There ought to be no ordination of a Minister at large, Namely, such as
should make him Pastour without a People.

The election of the people hath an instrumentall causall vertue under Christ,
to give an outward call unto an Officer.

Ordination is only a solemn installing of an Officer into the Office, unto
which he was formerly called.

Children of such, who are members of Congregations, ought only to be bap-
tized.

The consent of the people gives a causall vertue to the compleating of the
sentence of excommunication.

Whilst the Church remains a true Church of Christ, it doth not loose this
power, nor can it lawfully be taken away.

Consociation of Churches should be used, as occasion doth require.

398 ^ Appendix

Such consociations and Synods have allowance to counsell and admonish
other Churches, as the case may require.

And if they grow obstinate in errour or sinfull miscarriages, they should re-
nounce the right hand of fellowship with them.

But they have no power to excommunicate.

Nor do their constitutions binde formalit^r and juridicfe.

In all these I have leave to professe the joint judgement of all the Elders
upon the river: Of New-haven, Guilford, Milford, Stratford, Fairfield: and of
most of the Elders of the Churches in the Bay, to whom I did send in particular,
and did receive approbation from them, under their hands: Of the rest (to whom
I could not send) I cannot so affirm; hut this I can say. That at a common meet-
ing, / was desired by them all, to publish what now I do.

THE HALF-WAY COVENANT

THE HALF-WAY COVENANT AS ADOPTED AT SALEM (After 1665)

I do heartily take and avouch this one God who is made known to us in the
Scripture, by the Name of God the Father, and God the Son even Jesus Christ,
and God the Holy Ghost to be my God, according to the tenour of the Covenant
of Grace; wherein he hath promised to be a God to the Faithfull and their seed
after them in their Generations, and taketh them to be his People, and therefore
unfeignedly repenting of all my sins, I do give up myself wholly unto this God
to believe in love, serve & Obey him sincerely and faithfully according to his
written word, against all the temptations of the Devil, the World, and my own
flesh and this unto the death.

I do also consent to be a Member of this particular Church, promising to con-
tinue steadfastly in fellowship with it, in the publick Worship of God, to submit
to the Order, Discipline and Government of Christ in it, and to the Ministerial
teaching, guidance and oversight of the Elders of it, and to the brotherly watch
of Fellow Members: and all this according to God's Word, and by the grace of
our Lord Jesus Christ enabling me thereunto. Amen.

THE HALF-WAY COVENANT AS ADOPTED AT HARTFORD (1696)

We do solemnly in ye presence of God and this Congregation avouch God in
Jesus Christ to be our God one God in three persons ye Father ye Son & ye Holy
Ghost and yt we are by nature childrn of wrath & yt our hope of Mercy with God
is only thro' ye righteousnesse of Jesus Christ apprehnded by faith & we do
freely give up ourselves to ye Lord to walke in communion with him in ye ordi-
nances appointed in his holy word & to yield obedience to all his commands &
submit to his governmt k whereas to ye great dishonr of God, Scandall of Reli-
gion & hazard of ye damnation of Souls, ye Sins of drunkenness & fornication are
Prevailing amongst us we do Solemnly engage before God this day thro his grace
faithfully and conscientiously to strive against those Evills and ye temptations
that May lead thereto.

Creeds arid Covenants 399

PLAN OF UNION AS ADOPTED IN 1801

"Regulations adopted by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in
America, and by the General Association of the State of Connecticut (provided
said Association agree to them) , with a view to prevent alienation, and to pro-
mote union and harmony in those new settlements which are composed of in-
habitants from these bodies.

1. It is strictly enjoined on all their missionaries to the new settlements, to
endeavour, by all proper means, to promote mutual forbearance, and a spirit of
accommodation between those inhabitants of the new settlements who hold the
Presbyterian, and those who hold the Congregational form of church government.

2. If in the new settlements any church of the Congregational order shall
settle a minister of the Presbyterian order, that church may, if they choose, still
conduct their discipline according to Congregational principles, settling their
difficulties among themselves, or by a council mutually agreed upon for that pur-
pose. But if any difficulty shall exist between the minister and the church, or any
member of it, it shall be referred to the Presbytery to which the minister shall
belong, provided both parties agree to it; if not, to a council consisting of an equal
number of Presbyterians and Congregationalists, agreed upon by both parties.

3. If a Presbyterian church shall settle a minister of Congregational princi-
ples, that church may still conduct their discipline according to Presbyterian
principles, excepting that if a difficulty arise between him and his church, or
any member of it, the cause shall be tried by the Association to which the said
minister shall belong, provided both parties agree to it; otherwise by a council,
one-half Congregationalists and the other Presbyterians, mutually agreed upon
by the parties.

4. If any congregation consist partly of those who hold the Congregational
form of discipline, and partly of those who hold the Presbyterian form, we recom-
mend to both parties that this be no obstruction to their uniting in one church
and settling a minister; and that in this case the church choose a standing com-
mittee from the communicants of said church, whose business it shall be to call
to account every member of the church who shall conduct himself inconsistently
with the laws of Christianity, and to give judgment on such conduct. That if the
person condemned by their judgment be a Presbyterian, he shall have liberty to
appeal to the Presbytery; if he be a Congregationalist, he shall have liberty to
appeal to the body of the male communicants of the church. In the former case,
the determination of the Presbytery shall be final, unless the church shall consent
to a farther appeal to the Synod, or to the General Assembly; and in the latter
case, if the party condemned shall wish for a trial by a mutual council, the cause
shall be referred to such a council. And provided the said standing committee of
any church shall depute one of themselves to attend the Presbytery, he may have
the same right to sit and act in the Presbytery as a ruling elder of the Presbyterian
Church.

On motion,

Resolved, That an attested copy of the above plan be made by the Stated
Clerk, and put into the hands of the delegates from this Assembly to the General
Association, to be by them laid before that body, for their consideration; and
that if it should be approved by them, it go into immediate operation."

400 Appendix

THE END OF THE PLAN OF UNION,
ALBANY CONVENTION, 1852

"Whereas, the Plan of Union formed in 1801, by the General Assembly of the
Presbyterian Church and the General Association of Connecticut, is understood
to have been repudiated by the said Assembly before the schism in that body of
1838, though this year acknowledged as still in force by the General Assembly
which met last at Washington, D. C; and

"Whereas, many of our Presbyterian brethren, though adhering to this Plan in
some of its provisions, do not, it is believed, maintain it in its integrity; espe-
cially in virtually requiring Congregational Ministers settled over Presbyterian
Churches and Congregational Churches having Presbyterian Ministers, to be con-
nected with Presbyteries; and

"Whereas, whatever mutual advantage has formerly resulted from this Plan to
the two denominations, and whatever might yet result from it if acted upon im-
partially, its operation is now unfavorable to the spread and permanence of the
Congregational polity, and even to the real harmony of these Christian com-
munities:—

"Resolved, 1st. That in the judgment of this Convention it is not deemed ex-
pedient that new Congregational Churches, or Churches heretofore independent,
become connected with Presbyteries.

"2nd. That in the evident disuse of the said Plan, according to its original de-
sign, we deem it important, and for the purposes of union sufficient, that Congre-
gationalists and Presbyterians exercise toward each other that spirit of love which
the Gospel requires, and which their common faith is fitted to cherish; that they
accord to each other the right of pre-occupancy, where but one Church can be
maintained; and that, in the formation of such a Church, its ecclesiastical char-
acter and relations be determined by a majority of its members.

"3rd. That in respect to those Congregational Churches which are now con-
nected with Presbyteries,— either on the above-mentioned Plan, or on those of
1808 and 1913, between Congregational and Presbyterian bodies in the State of
New York,— while we would not have them violently sever their existing relations,
we counsel them to maintain vigilantly the Congregational privileges which have
been guaranteed them by the Plans above mentioned, and to see to it that while
they remain connected with Presbyteries, the true intent of those original arrange-
ments be impartially carried out."

BURIAL HILL DECLARATION

Adopted 1865

Standing by the rock where the Pilgrims set foot upon these shores, upon the
spot where they worshiped God, and among the graves of the early generations,
we, elders and messengers of the Congregational churches of the United States
in National Council assembled— like them acknowledging no rule of faith but
the Word of God— do now declare our adherence to the faith and order of the
apostolic and primitive churches held by our fathers, and substantially as em-
bodied in the confessions and platforms which our synods of 1648 and 1680 set
forth or reaffirmed. We declare that the experience of the nearly two and a half

Creeds and Covenants 401

centuries which have elapsed since the memorable day when our sires founded
here a Christian commonwealth, with all the development of new forms of error
since their times, has only deepened our confidence in the faith and polity of
those fathers. We bless God for the inheritance of these doctrines. We invoke
the help of the Divine Redeemer that, through the presence of the promised
Comforter, he will enable us to transmit them in purity to our children.

In the times that are before us as a nation, times at once of duty and of dan-
ger, we rest all our hope in the gospel of the Son of God. It was the grand peculi-
arity of our Puritan fathers that they held this gospel, not merely as the ground
of their personal salvation, but as declaring the worth of man by the incarnation
and sacrifice of the Son of God; and therefore applied its principles to elevate
society, to regulate education, to civilize humanity, to purify law, to reform the
church and the state, and to assert and defend liberty; in short, to mold and
redeem, by its all-transforming energy, everything that belongs to man in his
individual and social relations.

It was the faith of our fathers that gave us this free land in which we dwell.
It is by this faith only that we can transmit to our children a free and happy,
because a Christian, commonwealth.

We hold it to be a distinctive excellence of our Congregational system that it
exalts that which is more above that which is less important, and, by the sim-
plicity of its organization, facilitates, in communities where the population is
limited, the union of all true believers in one Christian church; and that the
division of such communities into several weak and jealous societies, holding the
same common faith, is a sin against the unity of the body of Christ, and at once
the shame and scandal of Christendom.

We rejoice that, through the influence of our free system of apostolic order,
we can hold fellowship with all who acknowledge Christ, and act efficiently in the
work of restoring unity to the divided church, and of bringing back harmony and
peace among all "who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity."

Thus recognizing the unity of the church of Christ in all the world, and
knowing that we are but one branch of Christ's people, while adhering to our
peculiar faith and order, we extend to all believers the hand of Christian fellow-
ship upon the basis of those great fundamental truths in which all Christians
should agree. With them we confess our faith in God, the Father, the Son and
the Holy Ghost, the only living and true God; in Jesus Christ, the incarnate
Word, who is exalted to be our Redeemer and King; and in the Holy Comforter,
who is present in the church to regenerate and sanctify the soul.

With the whole church we confess the common sinfulness and ruin of our
race, and acknowledge that it is only through the work accomplished by the life
and expiatory death of Christ that believers in Him are justified before God,
receive the remission of sins, and through the presence and grace of the Holy
Comforter are delivered from the power of sin and perfected in holiness.

We believe also in the organized and visible church, in the ministry of the
Word, in the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper, in the resurrection of
the body and in the final judgment, the issues of which are eternal life and ever-
lasting punishment.

We receive these truths on the testimony of God, given through prophets and
apostles, and in the life, the miracles, the death, the resurrection, of His Son,
our Divine Redeemer— a testimony preserved for the church in the Scriptures
of the Old and New Testaments.

402 Appendix

Affirming now our belief that those who thus hold "one faith, one Lord, one
baptism," together constitute the one catholic church, the several households of
which, though called by different names, are the one body of Christ, and that
these members of His body are sacredly bound to keep "the unity of the spirit
in the bond of peace," we declare that we will co-operate with all who hold these
truths. With them we will carry the gospel into every part of this land, and with
them we will go into all the world and "preach the gospel to every creature."
May He to whom "all power is given in heaven and earth" fulfill the promise
which is all our hope: "Lo, I am with you alway, even to the end of the world.
Amen."

DECLARATION ON THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH

Adopted 1871

The members of the National Council, representing the Congregational
churches of the United States, avail themselves of this opportunity to renew their
previous declarations of faith in the unity of the church of God.

While affirming the liberty of our churches, as taught in the New Testament,
and inherited by us from our fathers and from martyrs and confessors of fore-
going ages, we adhere to this liberty all the more as affording the ground and
hope of a more visible unity in time to come. We desire and purpose to co-operate
with all the churches of our Lord Jesus Christ.

In the expression of the same catholic sentiments solemnly avowed by the
Council of 1865, on the Burial Hill at Plyrriouth, we wish, at this new epoch of
our history, to remove, so far as in us lies, all causes of suspicion and alienation,
and to promote the growing unity of counsel and of effort among the followers
of Christ. To us, as to our brethren, "there is one body and one spirit, even as
we are called in one hope of our calling."

As little as did our fathers in their day, do we in ours make a pretension to
be the only churches of Christ. We find ourselves consulting and acting together
under the distinctive name of Congregationalists, because, in the present condi-
tion of our common Christianity, we have felt ourselves called to ascertain and
do our own appropriate part of the work of Christ's church among men.

We especially desire, in prosecuting the common work of evangelizing our
own land and the world, to observe the common and sacred law, that in the wide
field of the world's evangelization we do our work in friendly co-operation with
all those who love and serve our common Lord.

We believe in "the holy catholic church." It is our prayer and endeavor that
the unity of the church may be more and more apparent, and that the prayer
of our Lord for his disciples may be speedily and completely answered, and all
be one; that by consequence of this Christian unity in love the world may be-
lieve in Christ as sent of the Father to save the world.

THE CREED OF 1883

I. We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth,
and of all things visible and invisible;

And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who is of one substance with the
Father; by whom all things were made;

Creeds and Covenants 403

And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life, who is sent from the
Father and Son, and who together with the Father and Son is worshiped and
glorified.

II. We believe that the providence of God, by which he executes his eternal
purposes in the government of the world, is in and over all events; yet so that
the freedom and responsibility of man are not impaired, and sin in the act of
the creature alone.

III. We believe that man was made in the image of God, that he might know
love, and obey God, and enjoy him forever; that our first parents by disobedience
fell under the righteous condemnation of God; and that all men are so alienated
from God that there is no salvation from the guilt and power of sin except
through God's redeeming grace.

IV. We believe that God would have all men return to him; that to this end
he has made himself known, not only through the works of nature, the course of
his providence, and the consciences of men, but also through supernatural revela-
tions made especially to a chosen people, and above all, when the fullness of
time was come, through Jesus Christ his Son.

V. We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the
record of God's revelation of himself in the work of redemption; that they were
written by men under the special guidance of the Holy Spirit; that they are able
to make wise unto salvation; and that they constitute the authoritative standard
by which religious teaching and human conduct are to be regulated and judged.

VI. We believe that the love of God to sinful men has found its highest ex-
pression in the redemptive work of his Son; who became man, uniting his divine
nature with our human nature in one person; who was tempted like other men,
yet without sin; who by his humiliation, his holy obedience, his sufferings, his
death on the cross, and his resurrection, became a perfect Redeemer; whose sacri-
fice of himself for the sins of the world declares the righteousness of God, and is
the sole and sufficient ground of forgiveness and of reconciliation with him.

VII. We believe that Jesus Christ, after he had risen from the dead, ascended
into heaven, where, as the one meditator between God and man, he carries for-
ward his work of saving men; that he sends the Holy Spirit to convict them of
sin, and to lead them to repentance and faith, and that those who through re-
newing grace turn to righteousness, and trust in Jesus Christ as their Redeemer,
receive for his sake the forgiveness of their sins, and are made the children of God.

VIII. We believe that those who are thus regenerated and justified, grow in
sanctified character through fellowship with Christ, the indwelling of the Holy
Spirit, and obedience to the truth; that a holy life is the fruit and evidence of
saving faith; and that the believer's hope of continuance in such a life is in the
preserving grace of God.

IX. We believe that Jesus Christ came to establish among men the kingdom
of God, the reign of truth and love, righteousness and peace; that to Jesus Christ,
the head of this kingdom. Christians are directly responsible in faith and con-
duct; and that to him all have immediate access without mediatorial or priestly
intervention.

X. We believe that the Church of Christ, invisible and spiritual, comprises
all true believers, whose duty it is to associate themselves in churches for the
maintenance of worship, for the promotion of spiritual growth and fellowship,
and for the conversion of men; that these churches, under the guidance of the
Holy Scriptures and in fellowship with one another, may determine— each for

404 Appendix

itself— their organization, statements of belief, and forms of worship, may appoint
and set apart their own ministers, and should cooperate in the work which Christ
has committed to them for the furtherance of the Gospel throughout the world.

XI. We believe in the observance of the Lord's Day, as a day of holy rest and
worship; in the ministry of the word; and in the two sacraments, which Christ
has appointed for his church: Baptism, to be administered to believers and their
children, as the sign of clearness from sin, of union to Christ, and of the imparta-
tion of the Holy Spirit; and the Lord's Supper, as a symbol of his atoning death,
a seal of its efficacy, and a means whereby he confirms and strengthens the spir-
itual union and communion of believers with himself.

XII. We believe in the ultimate prevalence of the kingdom of Christ over
all the earth; in the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus
Christ; in the resurrection of the dead; and in a final judgment the issues of
which are everlasting punishment and everlasting life.

THE KANSAS CITY STATEMENT

Adopted 1913

The Congregational Churches of the United States, by delegates in National
Council assembled, reserving all the rights and cherished memories belonging to
this organization under its former constitution, and declaring the steadfast al-
legiance of the churches composing the Council to the faith which our fathers
confessed, which from age to age has found its expression in the historic creeds
of the Church universal and of this communion, and affirming our loyalty to the
basic principles of our representative democracy, hereby set forth the things most
surely believed among us concerning faith, polity, and fellowship:

FAITH

We believe in God the Father, infinite in wisdom, goodness and love; and in
Jesus Christ, his Son, our Lord and Saviour, who for us and our salvation lived
and died and rose again and liveth evermore; and in the Holy Spirit, who taketh
of the things of Christ and revealeth them to us, renewing, comforting, and in-
spiring the souls of men. We are united in striving to know the will of God as
taught in the Holy Scriptures, and to our purpose to walk in the ways of the
Lord, made known or to be made known to us. We hold it to be the mission of
the Church of Christ to proclaim the gospel to all mankind, exalting the worship
of the one true God and laboring for the progress of knowledge, the promotion
of justice, the reign of peace, and the realization of human brotherhood. Depend-
ing, as did our fathers, upon the continued guidance of the Holy Spirit to lead
us into all truth, we work and pray for the transformation of the world into the
kingdom of God; and we look with faith for the triumph of righteousness and
the life everlasting.

POLITY

We believe in the freedom and responsibility of the individual soul, and the
right of private judgment. We hold to the autonomy of the local church and its
independence of all ecclesiastical control. We cherish the fellowship of the

Creeds and Covenants 405

churches, united in district, state, and national bodies, for council and co-opera-
tion in matters of common concern.

THE WIDER FELLOWSHIP

While affirming the liberty of our churches, and the validity of our ministry,
we hold to the unity and catholicity of the Church of Christ, and will unite with
all its branches in hearty co-operation, and will earnestly seek, so far as in us
lies, that the prayer of our Lord for his disciples may be answered, that they all
may be one.

4o6

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PERIODICALS

Advance The Christian Union

The Arena The Congregational Quarterly

Boston Review (also called Congregational The Congregationalist

Review) The Herald of Gospel Liberty
The Christian Annual

Index

Abbott, Lyman, 244, 251

Act of Union with Methodist Protestants
and United Brethren, 353-354

Adams, Brooks, quoted, 79

Adams, Charles Francis, quoted, 140

Adams, George C, 406

Adams, George E., 200

Adams, John Quincy, 303

Advance, 244-45

Advent Season, 275-76

Advisory Committee, 311-15

Ainsworth, Henry, 45; version of the
Psalms, 280

Albany Convention, 196-98, 207, 300-01,
400

Allen, Alexander Viets Griswold, quoted,
11 1

Allen, Ernest Bourner, 273

Allen, Ethan, 136

Allen, George, 204

American Anti-Slavery Society, 249

American Bible Society, 304

American Board of Commissioners for
Foreign Missions, 192, 245, 300, 307, 309,
310, 318, 337; becomes interdenomina-
tional, 162; incorporated, 160-61, 302;
meets with Council of 1907, 312; or-
ganized, 158-62, 194-95, 301-02; Pru-
dential Committee, 300, 339; and social
welfare, 255; work with American Indi-
ans, 156-57, 308

American College and Education Society,
233. 234

American Congregational Association, 200,
304, 307

American Congregational Union, 200,
222-23

American Congregationalism, see Congre-
gationalism

American Education Society, 192, 233

American and Foreign Christian Union,
308

American Home Missionary Society, 197;
organized, 150-51

American Missionary Association, 198,
245. 249, 300, 303-04, 307; foreign mis-
sions of, 308; and social welfare, 255

American Seamen's Friend Society, 304

American Society for the Education of
Pious Youths for the Gospel Ministry,
233, 302

American Unitarian Association, 132

Amherst College, 236

Amistad, 303-04

Anabaptist movement, 21-3

Ancient Church in Amsterdam, 45-6

Anderson, Asher, 222, 227, 407, 408

Anderson, Joshua, quoted, 160

Anderson, Rufus, 207

Andover Seminary, 159, 242, 254; Contro-
versy, 179-80; Creed, 130; founded, 130,
173; students to Iowa as missionaries,
155-56; students ordained in Denmark,
Iowa, 156

Andrews, Israel W., 211 n.

Angell, James B., 408

Anglican Church, 12 ff., 340, 372; in
America, 104; Bishops, 12; in New Eng-
land, 96; objects to taxation for Con-
gregational worship, 126; place of
preacher, 69; Reformation, "Middle
Way," 42; Thirty-nine Articles, 13;
treatment of independency, 43

Annuity Fund, 228, 323-24

Anti-slavery movement, 198, 249

Apportionment Committee, 326

Apportionment Plan, 312-14, 318

Appraisal Committee, 335

Arber, Edward, quoted, 41, 49 n., 52 n.,
60 n.

Asbury, Francis, 378

Association and Agreement of Pilgrims,
see Mayflower Compact

Association, ministers', 102, 186-87, 292

Atkins, Gaius Glenn, 382, 407

Atkinson, George H., 213, 406

Atkinson, Henry A., 257-59

Atkinson, T., 223

Atlanta Theological Seminary, 243

Autonomy of local church, 319, 341; safe-
guarded, 201

Babson, Roger, 407

Bacon, David, 153

Bacon, Leonard, 153, 197, 200, 203, 204,
209, 211 n., 212, 249, 283, 288-90, 293,
295-97, 368' 382, 406; on church polity,

363

Bacon-Quint Report, 366-67

Baldwin, Alice Mary, 115 n.

Baldwin Committee, 228

Baldwin, Simeon E., 227, 319

Ballantine, William G., 283

Bangor Theological Seminary, 242

Baptism, 93; of infants, 100

Baptists, churches in America, 104;
churches in Mass., 96; object to taxation
for Congregational worship, 126; perse-
cuted in Va., 90 n.; position on baptism,
93; Puritan treatment of, 86-8

419

420

Index

Barlow, Joel, 283

Barnes, Albert, 379, 382

Barrowe, Henry, 38-40, 44, 45, 287

Barstow, Amos C, 211 n.

Barstow, Zedekiah Smith, 203

Bartlett, Samuel Colcord, 211 n., 340, 344-

Barton, James L., 408

Barton, William E., 316, 320, 349-50, 382,
406, quoted, 225-26, 299

Bates, Katharine Lee, 283

Bay Psalm Book, 79, 280

Beach, David N., 253

Beard, William S., 326, 332

Beardsley, Henry M., 254, 259, 316, 328,
406

Beecher, Edward, 382

Beecher, Henry Ward, 251, 379, 382

Beecher, Lyman, 118 n., 249, 382

Beecher, Lyman, Foundation, 382-83

Beghards, 18

Beguines, 18

Bellamy, Joseph, 169

Beloit, Council of, see Council of 1938

Berea College, 304

Berkeley, Council of, see Council of 1940

Berkeley, George, 107

Bernard, Richard, 48

Berry, Sidney M., 408

Betheine, George W., 382

Bethrends, A. j. F., 382

Bible Society, 300, 343

Bicknell, George, 211 n.

Bill of Rights, 121

Billings, Frederick, 406

Blanchard, Ferdinand Q., 283, 382, 407

Board of Home Missions, see Congrega-
tional Board of Home Missions

Boardman, George Nye, quoted, 170

Boards, the, 300-39; before 1865, 300-01;
era of, 150-51

Book of Common Prayer, written, 10

Booth, Henry Kendall, 382, 407

Boston Massacre, 120

Boston, Old Soiuh Church, 362

Boston Platform, 205

Boston Tract Society, 307

Bosworth, Edward Increase, 273; quoted,
272

Boult, William T., 407

Bowdoin College, 236

Boynton, Nehemiah, 316, 319, 382, 406

Bradford, Amory H., 219, 250-51, 382, 406

Bradford, William, quoted, 60

Bradley, Dan F., 227, 382

Bradley, Dwight J., 264

Branch, Mary E., 407

Brattle, Thomas, 281

"Brethren," the, 158, 301

Brethren of the Common Life, 18

Brewster, William, 48-9, 58, 230, 395; and

Brewer, first publishers of Pilgrim
books, 55; deals with the "Gentlemen
Adventurers," 59; elder of Scrooby
Church, 49; to Holland, 52; sheltered in
Leyden University, 55
Bridewell Jail, Richard Fitz's church in,

15. 393
Bridgeman, Howard A., 245
Bridges, John, 37-8
British Society for the Propagation of the

Gospel in Foreign Parts, 139
Broadway Tabernacle, New York, 200
Brooks, Phillips, 381
Brotherhood Committee, 257-58
Brotherhood Movement, 257-58
Brown, Charles O., 406
Brown, Charles Reynolds, 319, 339, 382,

406
Brown College, 120
Brown, Hugh Elmer, 328
Brown, Robert Elliott, 273
Browne, Robert, 32-7; church at Norwich,

33, 41 n.; goes to Holland, 36; quoted,

393-99; in Scotland, 36; "True and

Short Declaration," 35
Browneists, Puritans called, 6, 17; tribula-
tions, 35-7
Buckham, John W., 283
Buckingham, William A., 206, 406
Budington, William Ives, 200, 211 n., 213,

382, 406
Bulkeley, Peter, 183, 406
Burgess, Walter H., quoted, 66
Burial Hill Declaration, 204, 211, 400-02
Burlington, Vt., First Church, 99 n.
Burnett, Matthias, 376
Burrage, Champlin, quoted, 22, 28, 35, 42
Burton, Asa, 170
Burton, Charles Emerson, 225, 273, 321,

325, 326-27, 333, 357, 407, 408
Burton, Charles W., 407
Burton, Marion LeRoy, 235
Burton, Nathaniel Judson, 383
Bushnell, Horace, 137, 172-77, 248-49, 268
Business Committee of the Council, 217-

18
Butten, William, 61
Byles, Mather, 286, 376

Cadman, S. Parkes, 222, 382, 407

Calhoun, Charles K., 273

Calkins, Raymond, 316, 320, 382, 406

Calvin, John, church of, 20-1; influence
on English religious leaders, 12

Calvinism, 125, 203, 204; in Andover
Creed, 130; the basal system of Congre-
gationalism, 168; Boston clergy break
with, 114; carried to extremes, 127; in-
fluence on Puritans, 29; keystone of
Ed-ivards' doctrine, 108; loses its power.

Index

421

202; modified in West, 154 n.; of New
England clergy, 124; in Puritan-Congie-
gational doctrine, 122; of Samuel Hop-
kins, 138; of Saybrook Platform vali-
dated in Conn, and Mass., 149

Calvinistic theology, softened, 276

Calvinistic worship, 278-79

Cambridge Platform, 82, 123, 125, 185,
198, 396-97; adopted, 85; quoted, 362,
on nature of Councils, 182, 185

Cambridge Synod, 82-5, 167, 184-85, 288,
293, 294, 320, 396-97; called by Mass.
General Court, 82

Campbell, Douglas, quoted, 23

Canada, 135, 390

Cape Cod, Pilgrims on, 61-3

Capen, E. C, 321

Capen, Samuel B., 316

Capital and labor, 353-54; Committee of
Five on, 252-53

Capitalistic system, beginnings of, 19

Carleton College, 238

Carter, Charles F., 235

Cartwright, Peter, 379

Cartwright, Thomas, 31-2; church in
Middlebury, 36

Carver, John, 57

Cash, William L., 407

Catholic Church, 33-4

Channing, William EUery, 131

Chapin, A. L., 406

Charles I, 67-8; grants Mass. Bay Com-
pany charter, 72; Independence under,
70; more tolerant of Separatists than
Puritans, 75, 76; Puritans under, 70 ff.;
Separatists under, 70

Charles II, 96; and Baptists, 88; and
Quakers, 88

Chauncy, Charles, no, 124

Chauncy, Israel, 360-61

Chicago Commons, 255

Chicago Lambeth Quadrilateral, 347-49

Chicago Theological Seminary, 199, 243,

254

Children's Day, 309

Christian Church, education in, 242

Christian Church, General Convention of:
merger with National Council of Con-
gregational Churches, 128, 333: first
proposal, 350-53; second proposal, 357-
59; completed, 358-59

Christian Education Division, 234

Christian Register, The, 132

Christian Year, the, 274

Church, defined in 1865 Statement, 289;
defined in 1596, 5-6; doctrine of in 1865
Statement, 290; an evangelizing agency,
272; local, autonomy of, 201, 288, 319,
341; New Testament idea of, 299;
officers, 297-98; organization of, 294 ff.;
place of in Mass. Bay Colony, 79-80;

Puritan ideal of, 74-6; relationship with
colleges, 235

Church Building Society, 322

Church membership, 298-99; reception in
early churches, 266

Church Peace Union, 259

Church Polity, Committee on, 206

Church and State, in Colonies, 267; early
relationship, 196; relationship in Refor-
mation, 19 ff.

Church union, 340-59

Clark, Calvin Montague, quoted, 189, 190

Clark, E. E., 254

Clement of Alexandria, 229

Clergy, alliance with magistrate dissolved,
137; power of in early New England, 90;
subject to the Crown, 8

Cleveland Proposal, 349

Clyfton, Richard, 48, 49

Coffin, Frank G., 359, 407; quoted, 242

Coffin, O. Vincent, 406

Colleges, free, 236 ff; religion in, 238

Collegiate and Theological Education,
Committee on, 233

Colman, Benjamin, 361

Commission on Evangelism and Devo-
tional Life, see Evangelism and Devo-
tional Life, Commission on

Commission on Missions, see Missions,
Commission on

Commissions, 215-17

Conant, Roger, 72

Concordat, 349-50

Conference, State, 189-91

Congregation as distinct from parish, 34

Congregational Board of Home Missions,
337; and Council for Social Action, 263;
Education Division of, 338-39

Congregational Board of Ministerial Re-
lief, 226-27, 315, 323, 330

Congregational churches, adjusted to Uni-
tarian losses, 149-50; become Presby-
terian under Plan of Union, 146; early
support of, 99; extension of, 95-6; first
church, Robert Browne's at Norwich, 41
71.; first constitution of, 213; first desig-
nation. Separatists, 28 n.; locality of in
18th century, 104; number of in 1760,
115-16; slow growth of in America, 77-8

Congregational evangelism, 265 ff.

Congregational Home Missionary Society,
245, 257, 273, 303, 321, 322; and social
welfare, 255

Congregational House, 304, 307

Congregational hymns, 282-86

Congregational journalism, 243-44

Congregational martyrs, first, 39-40

Congregational Methodist Church, 347

Congregational, name used by John Cot-
ton, 80

Congregational polity, 288 ff.

422

Index

Congregational preaching, characterized,

381
Congregational Publishing Society, 245,

307
Congregational-Puritan clergy as chief

agitators for Revolution, 115
Congregational Quadrilateral, 353
Congregational Quarterly, 223
Congregational, second designation given

denomination, 28 n.
Congregational state missionary society,

first, formed by Conn. Association, 139
Congregational Way, 295; to be saved

from Presbyterian Way, 83; preserves

both liberty and authority, 118; at

Salem, 77
Congregational World Movement, 235,

325-27

Congregational worship, 265 ff., 277 ff.

Congregationalism, Calvinism basal sys-
tem of, 168; begins to be national, 153
ff.; and Colonial society, 91 ff.; com-
pared with Presbyterianism, 82; corpo-
rate relationship to environment, 149;
creative phase, 165; defined, 306; fellow-
ship in, 127; finds itself, 90; first phase
struggle between Independency and
Presbyterianism, 92; genesis of, 67; geo-
graphically localized in America, 125 71.;
a growing thing, 289; historic develop-
ment of liberty, 386-89; ministry in,
360-83; mission of, 319-20; nature of
beliefs, 204; non-sectarianism of, 341-42;
principles, 341-43; relation to neigh-
bors, 102-03; relation to society, 389;
unity of, 192

Congregatioyialist, The, 243-45, 311; de-
velopment of, 244-45

Connecticut, 288, 309; Congregationalism
in, friendly with Presbyterian General
Assembly, 142 n., semi-Presbyterian in
polity, 144; discipline, 187-89; interest
in home missions, 140-41; migrations
from, 140-41

Connecticut Anti-Slavery Society, 249

Connecticut General Association, 139, 191,
192, 194, 195; organized, 186; ratifies
Plan of Union, 144

Connecticut Missionary Society, 153

Connecticut State Conference of Ministers,

195
Consociation, 186-89, 293; idea of, 288
Consolidation, Committee on, 308
Constitution, first of Congregational

Church, 213; the first written, 86; of

1931, 217
"Contraband School," 304
Conversion, Council of 1865 on, 269-70
Cooke, George Willis, quoted, 128 n.
Cooke, Lorrin A., 406
Cooke, Parsons, 193

Coolidge, Calvin, 222

Corporation, 226-28; for the General
Council of Congregational Christian
Churches, 228

Cotton, John, 83, 231, 287, 298, 361, 363,
406; and Indians, 247; The Keyes to the
Kingdom of Heaven, 83; uses name
Congregational, 80; The Way of the
Churches, 83

Council, authority of, 185; first church,
183-84; influence of one Council meet-
ing on the following, 342; Manual, 292-
93; meetings, 1637-1942, 406-07; mod-
erators, 382; nature of, in Cambridge
Platform, 182; preachers, 382; relation-
ship to Boards, 300-39

Council Hall, Oberlin, 213

Council Meetings:

1865: 168, 198 ff., 207, 217, 218, 222, 232,

243, 268-71, 288-94, 301-07, 343, 363,

365-69, 379, 382, 406; statement of

polity, 288-92

1871: 212-14, 233, 292, 306-08, 340, 344,

345. 353. 406

1874: 215, 233, 308, 309,406

1877: 213, 233-34, 298, 299, 309, 406

1880: 406

1883: 306, 309, 406

1886: 221, 306, 323, 345, 346, 369, 406

1889: 221, 251-52, 260, 307, 309, 323, 346,

369, 406
1892: 234, 252, 292, 306, 307, 309, 310,

346. 347. 369. 406

1895: 221, 252-53, 292, 293, 347-48, 353,

369, 406
1898: 253,310-11, 353, 406
1901: 219, 260, 306, 311, 406
1904: 219-20, 249, 253-54, 312, 369, 406
1907: 227, 256, 272, 312-13, 323, 406
1910: 223, 227, 257, 315-17, 323, 406
1913: 215-16, 224, 258, 260, 316-20, 329,

331. 337. 406
1915: 320-23, 369, 406
1917: 322, 323, 406
1919: 273, 276-77, 323, 406
1921: 225, 229, 235, 239, 259-60, 325, 407
1923: 222, 326, 327, 350, 407
1925: 260, 320, 329-31, 334, 355, 407
1927: 332, 349. 356, 407
1929: 333. 358, 369. 407
1931: 333. 334. 358, 407
1934: 222, 260-63, 335, 336, 407
1936: 217, 218, 222, 320, 332, 336-38, 407
1938: 222, 309, 338, 339, 369-70, 407
1940: 264, 277, 338, 369, 370, 407
1942: 407

Council for Social Action, see Social Ac-
tion, Council for

Covenant, basis of Congregational fellow-
ship, 265; basis of New England
churches, 34 n.; first Congregational, 393

Index

423

Covenants, Congregational, 393-405

Cowling, Donald J., 235, 321-22

Craigville Proposal, 352

Crane, William M., 283

Cranmer, Thomas, 10

Creed of 1883, 402-04

Creeds, Congregational, 393-405

Cromwell, Oliver, 12, 72, 83, 96; effect of

death on English Congregationalism,

126
Cromwell, Thomas, 9
Cross, Allen EaStman, 284
Crowninshield, Benjamin W., 161
Cumberland County (Me.) Conference of

Churches, 190
Cushman, Robert, 57
Cutcheon, B. M., 406

Dale, Robert William, 408; quoted, 3, 27,

31, 49 n., 210
Darling, H. W., 273
Dartmouth College, 236
Darwin, Erasmus, quoted, 129 n.
Davenport, John, 85, 232, 295, 361-62;

The Power of the Congregational

Churches, 295
Davis, Josiah Gardner, 206
Davis, Ozora Stearns, 273, 284, 382, 406,

407
Davison, Charles W., 322
Day, William Horace, 227, 273, 275, 328,

354, 382, 406, 407
DeBerry, W. N., 406
Debt of Honor Commission, 339
Declaration of Discipline, 362
Declaration of Independence, 121
Declaration on the Unity of the Church,

344-45

Democracy in Colonial New England, 95;
not found in early New England his-
tory, 90; in town meeting, 95

Demond, Charles, 407

Denison, Warren H., 225, 333, 359, 407

Denmark, Iowa, First Church founded,

154
Dewey, Harry P., 328, 382, 407
Dexter, Henry Martyn, 4 n., 204, 244-

45, 268, 284, 382, 406, 407; quoted, 40,

81
Dickinson, Charles A., 284
Dingley, Nelson, 406
Disciples of Christ, 350
"Dorchester Adventure," 71-2
Dorchester, settled, 72
Douglas, Lloyd, 324
Douglas, Nathan, 189, 190
Douglass, H. Paul, 335
Douglass, Truman Orville, quoted, 191
Drummond, Henry, 180
Dudley, William E., 284

Dunne, John, 374

Dunning, Albert Elijah, 245; quoted, 185,

188-89, 198. 360
Dunster, Henry, removed from presidency

of Harvard, 87
Dutch Reformed Church, 104, 302
Duxbury, settled, 66
Dwight, T. W., 406

Dwight, Timothy, 136, 173, 283, 284, 378
Dwinell, Israel E., 382, 406

Eaton, Edward Dwight, 225, 235, 283, 316

Eaton, Samuel, 376, 377

Eddy, Nathaniel, 204

Eddy, Zachary, 382, 406

Education, concern for, 229-45; of New
England settlers, 230-31; through re-
ligious journalism, 243-44

Education Division of the Congregational
Board of Home Missions, 338-39

Education, the Foundation for, 238, 240-

41
Education Society, 234, 241, 258-59, 261,

300, 302, 326
Educational Survey Commission, 234-35,

237-41

Edward VI, 9-10

Edwards, Jonathan, 105, 167, 170, 267;
called to Northampton, 105; Calvinism
keystone of doctrine, 108; defends Cal-
vinism, 112; Enfield sermon, 110; in
exile, 111-12; first American theologian,
113; impatient with the Congregational
system, 111; influenced by John Locke,
107; missionary to Indians at Stock-
bridge, 111; president of Princeton, 113;
quoted, 202; Treatise on the Will, 113,
at Yale, 106

Edwards, Jonathan, the younger, 143, n.

Edwards, Mrs. Jonathan, 270

Eells, Cushing, 406

Eighty-two opinions of Newtowne Synod,
183

Eldridge, Herman, 333

Eldridge, Lucy, 333

Election Sermons, 116, 119

Eliot, Jared, 118

Eliot, John, 322, 363

Elsbree, Oliver Wendell, 137 n.

Elizabeth, Queen, 10-14, 40> 41. 47 ".> 49
n.; attitude toward Anglicans, Catholics,
Puritans, and Separatists, 11; ejects non-
conforming clergy from Establishment,

13
Elizabethan Settlement, the, 10 ff.
Emmons, Nathaniel, 113, 170-72, 377-78;

theological position of, 171-72
Emmonsism, 170

Endicott, John, 72; settled at Salem, 76-7
England, religious influence of Holland

424

Index

on, 23-4; separated from Papal author-
ity, 8-9

English Congregational Union, 210-11

English Congregationalism, 288

English literature and American theology,
124 n.

English Non-Conformity, difficult estate

of, 43 ff-

English Reformation, formative forces in,
7 ff.; not idyllic, 13

Episcopalians, Chicago Lambeth Quadri-
lateral, 347-49; Concordat with, pro-
posed, 349-50

Evangelical Churches, 354-55

Evangelism and Devotional Life, Commis-
sion on, 271-78

Evangelism, lay, 270; the new, 272; paro-
chial, 268-72

Evans, Mrs. Ernest A., 328

Evans, Ira H., 406

Evealyn, Thomas, 128 n.

Every Member Canvass, 309, 326, 337

Executive Committee, 214-19, 338, 339;
Advisory Committee of, 219; as Business
Committee of the Council, 217-18; and
the Commissions, 215-16; Finance Com-
mittee of, 219; Survey Committee of, 219

Exeter, N. H., settled, 89

Fagley, Frederick Louis, 225, 273, 324, 332,

407, 408
Fairbairn, Andrew M., 408
Fairchild, James H., 382
Federal Council of the Churches of Christ

in America, 215, 392
Fee, John G., 304
Fellowship, of autonomous churches, 288,

of churches, 291, in Congregationalism,

127
Fellowship of Prayer, The, 274
Fessenden, Joseph, 189
Fifteen, Committee of. Council of 1901,

211
Finney, Charles G., 243, 268
Fisher, George P., 382, 406
Fisher, John, 9, 88
Fiske, John, 180
Fitch, Franklin S., 406
Fitz, Richard, 30-1; church of, 15; earliest

Separatist church, 31; "Privy Church"

of, 31; quoted, 393
Five, Committee of, on Capital and La-
bor, 252-53
Forbes, Samuel B., 407
Ford, James, 100
Forefathers' Day, 63
Forty-two Articles, under Cranmer, 10
Fosdick, Commission, 259
Foster, Frank Hugh, quoted 168-169, 174
Foster, L. S., 406

Foundation for Education, 238, 240-41,

325-26
Frazier, William F., 336, 337
Free Baptists, proposed merger with, 345-

48
French and Indian War, 114-15
Friends of God, 18
Fuller, Samuel, at Salem, 76-7

Gainsborough, church migrates to Am-
sterdam, 47; John Smyth's congregation
at, 47

Garner, A. C, 406

Gathered church, 5, 75, 92, 123

General Council of Congregational and
Christian Churches, formed, 333; meet-
ings of, 407

General Court, established by Mass. Bay
Company charter, 73; regulates new
church, 80

Geneva, influence on Puritans, 29

Genevan liturgy, 279

"Gentleman Adventurers," finance Pil-
grims, 57-9

German Congregational Churches, 356

Gilkey, James G., 289

Gilman, Edward W., 211 n.

Gilpatric, Walter, 335

Gilroy, William E., 245

Gladden, Washington, 177, 181, 249-53,
259, 260, 284, 352, 354, 382, 406; lays
the foundation for social action, 249;
quoted, 256

Goddard, Dwight M., 273

Goodsell, Fred Field, 336, 337

Goodspeed, F. L., 406

Goodwill Pilgrimage to England, 408

Goodwin, E. P., 408

Goodwin, John Abbott, quoted, 246

Gookins, Daniel, 140

Gordon, George A., 251, 382, 383, 406,
408

Great Awakening, 103, 105, 267-68; Ameri-
can theology outgrowth of, 110; effect on
Presbyterians, 109; second stage, 110

Greenfield, Second Church, 99

Greenwood, John, 39-40, 44-5, 287; one
of first Congregational martyrs, 39

Griffin, Edward, 382

Grinnell College, 238

Gulick, Sidney L., 320

Gunsaulus, Frank W., 382, 406

Half- Way Covenant, 92-4; 113-14, 267,
398; adopted at Hartford, 398; adopted
at Old North Church, Boston, 93-4;
adopted at Salem, 398

Haller, William, quoted, 69

Hammond, Charles G., 200, 213, 406, 407

Index

425

Hampton Court Conference, 3, 68

Hampton Institute, 304

Hampton, N. H., settled, 89

Hancock, John, 117

Hanley, Joseph, 109

Harlow, S. Ralph, 284

Harper, William Allen, 335

Harris, E. C, 407

Harris, Josiah T., 382

Harris, Samuel, 382

Harrison, Richard, 36

Hart, Albert Bushnell, 71 n.

Hart, Hastings H., 322

Hartford Seminary, 242-54

Hartford, settled, 86

Hartshorne, Hugh, 284

Harvard College, 114, 231-32, 236, 237;
Divinity School founded, 132; Henry
Dunster removed from presidency, 87;
Hollis Professor of Divinity, 129; influ-
ence of, 124

Harvard, John, 231, 322

Harvey, Elbert A., 328, 335

Harwood, Frank J., 407

Hawes, Joel, 382

Hay Stack meeting, 301

Hayes, Francis L., 227

Hazen, Henry Z., 222, 407, 408

"Heads of Agreement," 187-88

"Heads of Differences," 5

Henderson, G. W., 406

Henry VIH, break with Rome, 8-g; mar-
riage with Katharine of Aragon an-
nulled, 8

Herald of Gospel Liberty, The, 244, 351

Herrick, Samuel E., 382, 406

Herring, Hubert C, Jr., 260, 264

Herring, Hubert C, Sr., 224-25, 258, 312-
13, 321, 322, 325, 407

Higginson, Francis, 76-7, 360; quoted, 74

Higginson, John, 183, 407

Hillis, Newell DAvight, 382

Hobart. L. Smith, 192

Holland, Pilgrims depart from, 60; Puri-
tans in, 4, 7; refuge in, 44-6

Hollis Professor of Divinity at Harvard,
129; focus of Unitarianism, 173

Hollis, Thomas, 129-30

Holmes, Samuel, 211 n.

Holt, Arthur E., 235, 259

Helton, Erastus D., 212

Home Boards, 300, 330

Home Missionary Society, see Congrega-
tional Home Missionary Society

Home Missions, 302-04

Home-land Magazine proposed, 314

Homestead (111.) strikes, 252

Hooker, Richard, 287

Hooker, Thomas, 83, 183, 295, 406; at
Hartford, 83, 86; at odds with Boston,
86; quoted, 187, 362; quoted on Coun-

cils, 86; settled in Cambridge, 83; Sum-
mary of Congregational Principles, 397-
98; A Survey of the Summe of Church-
Discipline, 295

Hopkins, Charles A., 227

Hopkins, Henry, 252

Hopkins, Mark, 382

Hopkins, Oceanus, 61

Hopkins, Samuel, 113, 169, 170, 377; Cal-
vinism of, 138

Hopkinsianism, 170

Horton, Douglas, 225, 277, 407

Horton, Robert, quoted, 239-40

Howard, Oliver O., 211 ?;., 213, 406

Huckel, Oliver, 316

"Humble Petition" to James I, 2

Hume, R. A., 406

Humphrey, Seldon B., quoted, 357-58

Hurd, Philo, 200

Hutchinson, Anne, 89, 184

Hyde, William DeWitt, 284

Hymnology, 280-86

Illinois College, 153, 199

Illinois, State Association of, 199

Imes, Benjamin A., 406

Imitation of Christ, 17 n.

In His Steps, 254

Independency, under Charles I, 70; as a
denominational designation, 28 n.; na-
tive to England, 42; Plymouth, 165

Indians, attitude of the Colonists toward,
346-47, 266

Industrial Committee, 257

Industrial Secretary proposed, 257

Infant baptism upheld by Mass. General
Court, 87

Inge, William Ralph, quoted, 8

Installation, 365

Interchurch Relations, Commission on,

357-58
Interchurch World Movement, 235, 324-

26
International Council, Boston, 1920, 254;

meetings of, 408
Intolerances in Colonies, 86-g
Iowa, Congregational Association of, 191
Iowa, State Conference of, 190-91
Ives, Alfred E., 200
Ives, Joel S., 227, 407

Jacob, Henry, influence on Robinson in
Leyden, 54-5; quoted, 28 n.

James I, 1-7; at Hampton Court Confer-
ence, 3; and "Heads of Differences," 5;
and Leyden group, 57-8; and Millenary
Petition, 68

James, Galen, 244

James II, 96

426 Index

Jay, Edward W., 244

Jefferson, Charles E., 273, 319, 382, 406

Johnson, Francis, 45-7

Joint Promotion, development of, 326

Jones, J. D., 408

Jordan, David Starr, 252

Judson, Adoniram, Jr., 159

Luther, Martin, 287, 385; influence on

English religious leaders, 12
Lyford, John, 65

Lyman, Albert J., 320, 382, 383, 406
Lyman, Eugene W., 273

Kansas City Council, see Council of 1913

Kansas City Statement, 404-05

Kedzie, William R., 241

Kelsey, Henry H., 316

Kimball, Frank, 316

King, Henry Churchill, 235, 255, 276, 354,

382, 406; moderatorial address quoted,

239-40
Kingsley, H. M., 406
Kirk, Edward N., 382
Kirkland, Sally, 104
Kloss, Charles L., 227
Knapp, Shepherd, 284
Knight, William Allan, 253, 285
Knowles, legacy, 226
Koinonia, 387
Krumbine, Miles H., 407

Labor and capital, 259

Labor unions, 253

Lambert, Francis, 287

Lamson, Charles M., 346, 382, 406

Lane Seminary, 242

Langworthy, I. P., 200

Lathrop, Theodore B., 285

Laud, William, 76

Lawless, Alfred, 406

Lay evangelism, 270

Laymen's Advisory Commtitee, 330

Leavitt, Ashley Day, 382, 383, 407

Leavitt, Joshua, 290-91

Lewis, Alexander, 227

Leyden, church becomes Pilgrim, 54-5;
church seeks support and a destination,
57-9; Church, Seven Articles of, 394-95;
departure from, 59-61; a refuge, 53-5

Leyden-Plymouth Church first in New
England, 66

Liberal clergy, first meeting of, 131

Liberty, adventure in, 384-90; in the Colo-
nies, 117, 119

Licensure, 364-65

Licensure, Committee on, 364

Lichliter, Mcllyar H., 382, 407

Lincoln, Abraham, 249

Little, Arthur, 382, 383, 406

Locke, John, influence on Edwards, 107

Long, David, 98

Loring, Levi, 189-90

Louis XV, 119

Loyalists, 121

McGiffert, Arthur Cushman, quoted, 248

McGregor, Ernest F., 285

Mackennal, Alexander, 408

McKenzie, Alexander, 382, 406

Mackenzie, William Douglass, 382, 406

McLean, John K., 406

MacMillan, Thomas C, 227, 314, 406

Magoun, G. F., 406

Manual, Council, authorized by Council
of 1871, 292-93; presented to Council of
1895, 292-93; published, 293

March, Christopher, 190

March, Daniel, 286

Marshfield Church, history of, 97-8

Marshfield, settled, 66

Martin Mar-Prelate Tracts, 37-9

Martyrs, the first Separatist, 39-40

Mason, Howard C, 328

Mason, Lowell, 285

Massachusetts, 288; General Court calls
Cambridge Synod, 82; General Court
upholds infant baptism, 87; law of 1647
on the schools, 230—31; synod of 1679-
80; 187, 294; synod of 1662, 294

Massachusetts Bay Colony, chartered,
70-2; place of church in, 79-80; pros-
perous, 79; town meeting in, 80

Massachusetts Bay Company, charter es-
tablishes General Court, 73; charter
granted by Charles \, 72; provisions of
charter, 73

Massachusetts Constitutional Convention,
121

Massachusetts General Association, 194-95:
organizes American Board, 301-02

Massachusetts, Ministerial Convention of,
186

Massachusetts Ministers' Association, 192

Mather, Cotton, Magnolia Christi Ameri-
cana, 188; quoted, 93-4, 188, 294, 342;
quoted on witchcraft, 90

Mather, Increase, 375; quoted, 361; and
witchcraft, 90

Mather, Nathaniel, 364

Mather, Richard, 187, 290; on covenants,
34 n.

Mather, Samuel, 364

Maiirer, Irving, 285

Maurer, Oscar E., 277, 285, 335, 382, 407

Mayflower Compact, 62-3, 395-96

Mayflower, first record of name, 1623, 60

Mayhew, Jonathan, 124

Meeker, Arthur Y., 407

Index

427

Meetings of Councils, 1637-1942, 406-07

Merrick, Frank W., 253

Merrill, Charles C, 335

Merrill, J. G., 406

Merriraan, William E., 211 n.

Methodist Protestants, Act of Union with
Congregationalists, 353-54

Methodists, 104-05

Michigan, Congregationalists in, 154

Michigan, General Association of, 192

"Middle Way" of the Anglican Reforma-
tion, 42; of Cotton and Hooker, 287

Middlebury College, 236

Milford, Mass., history of First Church,

98-9
Millenary Petition to James I, 2, 68
Miller, George Mahlon, 273
Miller, Perry, 167-68; quoted, 70, 75, 370-

Mills, Charles S., 285, 316, 323-24, 382,
406

Mills, Samuel J., 157-59, 162-64; at Wil-
liams College, 158

Mills, William W., 316

Minister of the General Council, 225

Minister, place in the church, 370-71;
duties of, 270, 271

Ministerial Declaration, 205

Ministerial education, 203

Ministerial Relief, Congregational Board
of, see Congregational Board of Minis-
terial Relief

Ministers' Association, 102; international
relationship of, 191; interstate relation-
ship of, 191 ff.; validates ministerial
standing, 102

Ministry, care of, 323-24; Commission on,
369-70; Congregational, 360-83

Minton, Wilson P., 333

Missionary Herald, The, 245

Missionary Society of Connecticut, or-
ganized and incorporated, 141

Missionary Spirit, rebirth of, 138-41

Missions, Commission on, 235, 240-41, 317,
318, 320-28, 330, 331, 334-36

Missions Council, 329

Mitchell, Charles E., 227

Moderator of the Council, 219-225 respon-
sibilities of, 221-22

Moderators of Councils, 382, 406-07

Moody, Samuel, 376 n.

Moore, Edward Caldwell, 383

Moore, Frank F., 407

Moore, Sir Thomas, 9

Moore, William H., 213

Morrison, Charles Clayton, quoted, 386

Morse, Mrs. Helen V., 335

Morse, Jedidiah, 160

Munger, Harriet O., 285

Munger, Theodore, 249-50, 381

Munger, Verrenice, 227

Nash, Charles S., 316, 320, 406

Nash, George W., 241

National consciousness, growth of, 182-
207; influence of national societies, 192

National Council of the Congregational
Churches, 206, 208 ff.; authority of, 341;
comes into being, 213; constitutional
provisions, 306-07; first, call for, 211-12;
first, at Oberlin, 212-14; Manual, 292-
93; meetings of, 406-07; merger with
the General Convention of the Christian
Churches, 128; relationship to the
Boards, 300 ff.

Neal, Daniel, quoted, 3, 295

Negroes, American Missionary Association,
303-04; interest in at Council of 1871,

307

Nettleton, Asahel, 282

"New Divinity," the, 128

New England Churches, 202-03, 388; cease
to fellowship, 128-29; covenant basis of,
34 n.; discipline, 100; general state of,
96-9; members of, 99-100; ordinations,
360-61; political preaching, 116; preach-
ing in, 373-74; Sacrament of the Lord's
Supper in, 101; and State, analogies be-
tween, 117-19

New England clergy, 166 ff.; fight for
Calvinism, 124; and Revolution, 114-16

New England Colonies, church and town
organization, 296-97; education in, 230-
31; intolerances and hysteria in, 86-9;
liberty in, 117; number of Congrega-
tionalists in, 136-37; social attitudes,
246-48; taxation, 115

New England hymnology, 280-81

New England orthodoxy, doctrinal differ-
ences in, 137

New England theology, 167 ff.; influence
of British thought, 123-24

New England way, 80

New England, westward expansion, 137,

152
New Hampshire, General Association of,

200
New Haven, organization of church at,

294-95; settled, 85
"New Lights," 113-14, 125
New West Education Commission, 234,

309

New York General Association sends call
for Albany Convention, 197

New York Tract Society, 307

Newell, Robert, 252

Newell, Samuel, 159

Newton Theological Seminary, 243

Newtowne (now Cambridge), 231

Newtowne Synod, 183-84; eighty-two
opinions of, 183; equalization of pas-
tors' salaries discussed at, 184; nine
expressions of, 183

428

Index

Nine expressions of Newtowne Synod, 183
"Nine positions" sent from English clergy

to New England, 83
Nineteen, Commission of, 315-20, 336
Nineteen, Committee of, 224, 227-28
Nichols, L. Nelson, 407
Noble, Frederick A., 382, 406
Nominating Committee of the Council,

222
"Non-Profit Motive Resolution," 262
Non-Separatist Congregationalists, 75
Northampton, 107
Northrop, Cyrus, 406
Northrup, Charles A., 311
Northwest, Convention of the Churches of

the, 199
Northwest Territory created, 135
Norton, Edwin Clarence, 322
Norwich Church, examined, 33-5; first

Congregational church, 33, 41 n.
Norwich Covenant, 35
Nott, Eliphalet, 142-43
Nott, Samuel, 159
Noyes, Charles L., 227
Noyes, Daniel P., 268

Oakes, Urian, 118

Oberlin College, 153, 238; attitude of Pres-
byterians toward, 133

Oberlin Council, see Council of 1934

Oberlin, First Council at, 212-14

Oberlin Theological Seminary, 242-43;
Council Hall, 213

Occam, Samuel, 286

Ohio, Conference of, 199-200

"Old Lights" 113, 125

Old North Church, Boston, Half-way
Covenant of, 93-4

Oldham, John, 85-6

Ordination, 292, 360-65

Ordinations, First New England, 360-61

Oregon, Congregational beginnings in,

157
Origen, 229
"Orthodox" Congregationalism, effect of

Unitarian Departure on, 134
Osbornson, Mrs. E. A., 328, 407
Osgood, Charles W., 227

Pacific School of Religion, 243

Paine, Thomas, 136

Palmer, Albert W., 382, 383, 407

Palmer, Alice Freeman, 285

Palmer, Ray, 200, 285, 382

Parish Evangelism, 271

"Parish Theory" in Unitarianism, 133

Park, Edwards Amasa, 71-3, 203, 204, 233,

368, 382
Park, John Edgar, 273, 285
Parker, Edwin P., 285
Parker, Thomas, 375

Parliament, citadel of English liberty, 76

Parochial Evangelism, 203, 268-72

Parsons, Edward S., 255

Parsons, Moses, 376

Pastor, duties of, 297; ordination of, 292;
and teacher, relationship, 297

Pastoral office, nature of, 367-70

Pastor's Class, 275

Patton, Carl S., 261, 319, 359, 382, 407

Peabody, Harry E., 273

Peasants' War, 21

Pedley, Hilton, 407

Peel, Albert, 3072.; quoted, ^n., im. 31/1.

Penrose, S. B. L., 406

Penry, John, 44; one of first Congrega-
tional martyrs, 39; printer of Martin's
tracts, 38-40

Pension system proposed, 323

Perrin, Lavelette, 407

Perry, J. H., 406

Peters, Absalom, 151

Peteis, Samuel, 85

Pew rental system, 99

Philip and Mary, 10; one congregation in
time of, 28-9

Pierce, John D., 154

Pierpont, James, 232

Pierpont, Sarah, 107

Pilgrim Covenant of Stewardship, 323

Pilgrim Fellowship, 241

Pilgrim Memorial Convention, 208-10,
222

Pilgrim Memorial Fund, 326

Pilgrims, on Cape Cod, 61-3; departure
from Holland, 60; financed by "Gentle-
men Adventurers," 57-9; financial es-
tate of, 64-7; ideal colonists, 56-7; lead-
ers, 46-7; at Plymouth, 63 ff.; and Puri-
tans, attempt to harmonize, 84; Puri-
tans make trouble, 65; religious estate,
64-7; in substance Calvinistic, 80; three
hundredth anniversary, 322; town meet-
ing, 92; worship at Plymouth, 66

Plaiti Dealing and Its Vindication De-
fended, quoted, 266-67

Plan of union, 142-48, 195-98, 301, 399;
consequences for Congregationalism,
145-48; effect of, 343-44; effect on
Presbyterians, 147; end of at Albany
Convention, 400; provisions, 143-44;
ratified by Connecticut General Asso-
ciation, 144

Plumbers' Hall, 15; Society of, 30

Plymouth, independency, 165; Pilgrims at,
63 ff-; worship at, 66

Polhill, Edward, 340

Polity, Commission on, 216-17

Polity Committee, 293-94

Polity, Committee on, 369

Polity, development of, 288-94

Pomerov, Samuel C, 206

Index

429

Porter, Noah, 204, 382, 406

Potter, Rockwell Harmon, 316, 320, 382,
407

Powicke, F. J., 28n.

Preacher, at Council meetings, 382, 406-07

Preaching, characteristics of Congrega-
tional, 381; and Preachers, 371 Q.

Preisch, Maurice E., 273

Pre-Reformation groups, 18, 19

Presbyterians, 161-62, 195, 348, 349;
affected by Great Awakening, 109; at-
tempted fusion with Congregationalists,
82; join American Board, 162; "New
School," 154, 302; "Old School," 154,
302; Plan of Union, 196-97

Priestly, Joseph, 129??.

Prince, Thomas, 376

Privy Church of Richard Fitz, 31

Proctor, H. H., 406

Program of Parish Evangelism, A, 277

Promotion, first secretary for, 311-12

Propagandizing societies, rise of, 138-39

Protestant Reformation, see Reformation

Protestantism, 385-86

Providence Plantation founded, 88

Provisional Committee, 213-57

Prudential Committee of American Board,

159

Public school system, beginning of, 230

Publishing Society, 234

Puritan— Congregational doctrine, from
the first rigid Calvinism, 122

Puritan— Congregational tradition, 372

Puritans, 67 ff., 372-73; beginnings of,
2 ff., called Browneists, 6, 17; the case
for, 12 ff.; under Charles I, 70 ff.; first
appear in English literature, 29; and
Hampton Court Conference, 3; in Hol-
land, 4-7; ideal of the Church, 74-6;
influence of Calvinism on, 29; make
trouble for Pilgrims, 65; Millenary Peti-
tion, 23; Petitions and supplications of
denied by James I, 6-7; and Pilgrim,
attempt to harmonize, 84; place of
preacher, 68-9; position of, 2 ff.; re-
strict suffrage to communicants, 92;
ruled by an iron creed, 87; treatment of
Quakers, 86-9; treatment of witches, 86

Quakers, churches in America, 104; Puri-
tan treatment of, 86-9

Quint, Alonzo H., 200, 204, 21 m., 213, 218,
222, 288, 290, 291, 293, 345, 382, 406,
407; quoted, 195, 287, 348

Rauschenbusch, Walter, 181
Raymond, Rossiter W., 286
Recognition, 365-67
Recorder, The, 244-45

Recruiting for the Ministry, Commission
on, 369

Reed, Lewis T., 323-24, 339

Reformation, 385-86; an educational
movement, 229; relationship between
church and state, 19 ff.; revolutionary
character, 22

Reformed Church, 20-1

Reforming Synod, 293

Relation of Benevolent Societies to the
Churches, Committee on, 310-11

Religious Liberalism, 177 ff.

Report on Congregationalism, 193

Revival, second great, of 1797, 138

Revival of 1740, 100-110

Revolutionary War, 247; effect on
churches, 136; and New England clergy,
114-16; theological controversy ad-
journed during, 122

Rhode Island Plantation founded, 89

Richardson, C. A., 245

Robinson, John, 48, 50 §., 100, 230, 294,
372. 395; attitude toward Anglican
church, 55; at Cambridge, 50-1; church
in Leyden, 53-5; Counsel to departing
Pilgrims, 60; deals with the "Gentle-
men Adventurers," 59; death of, 55-6;
exhorts union with Puritanism, 60;
gives to Leyden Church true catholicity,
55; to Holland, 52; inclined toward
Separatism, 51; leader of Scrooby
Church, 49; quoted, 210; 247, 340; with
the Scrooby group, 51-2; suspended by
Anglican Church, 51; takes orders in
Anglican Church, 51; unable to follow
Pilgrims to America, 65

Rogers, Ezekiel, 406

Rome, break with, 8

Rothrock, E. S., 271

Rowe, George C, 406

Ruggles, Isaac W., 154

Sabbath customs, 100-101

Sabbath School Society, 300

St. George's Church (N. Y.) Social Cen-
ter, 255

Salem Church, Covenant, 295; formed, 77

Salem settled, 76-7

Salem, Tabernacle Church, ordination of
American Board Missionaries, 159

Salem witchcraft, 89-90

Sanders, Frank K., 316

Sangster, Margaret E., 286

Sargent, W. G., 356-57

Savage, W. T., quoted, 201

Savoy Declaration, 125-126, 168, 188

Saybrook Platform, 188; Calvinism of, val-
idated in Conn, and Mass., 149

Saybrook Synod, 126, 186, 232, 288, 293,
294

430

Index

Schauffler, Henry A., 252

Schmidt, Gustav, 355

Schroeder, John C, 335

Schweitzer, Dell A., 328

Scribner, Frank J., 339

Scrooby Church, 47 ff.; migrates to Am-
sterdam; organized, 49

Scrooby group, meets with John Smyth's
church at Gainsborough, 47

Scrooby Manor, 47-9

Scudder, John L., 252

Seattle, Council of, see Council of 1931

Secretary of the Council, 221-25

Seelye, Julius, 382

Sees, John V., 407

Separatists, 21 ff., 340, 373; under Charles
I, 70; first denominational designation
of Congregational Church, 28n.; first
church, Richard Fitz's, 31; martyrs, 39-
40; supplication of, 4 ff.

Sermons, 377-79

Sermons, published, renaissance of, 380-81

Seven Articles, of the Leyden Church, 58,

394-95
Seven Years' War, 114-15
Shannon, Frederick K., 382
Shattuck, A. C, 273
Sheldon, Charles M., 254
Sheldon, Frank N., 335
Sherman, John, 130
Shurtleff, Ernest Warburton, 286
Simpson, Matthew, 378
Six Articles of 1539, 9
Skelton, Samuel, 76-7, 360
Skillman, Isaac, quoted, i2C^-2i
Sleep, A. G., 408
Smalley, Elam, 171, 172 n.
Smith, Arthur H., 406
Smith, Fred B., 382, 407, 408
Smith, John, Captain, 61; quoted, 58
Smith, John, of Plumbers' Hall, 28 7i.
Smith, John Blair, proposes Plan of Union,

142
Smith, John D., 406
Smyth, John, 46-7

Smyth, Newman, 319, 349-50; quoted, 251
Social Action, 264
Social Action, Council for, 248-49, 260-64,

335-39; and Board of Home Missions,

263
Social Crisis, the, 256 ff.
Social Concern, growth of, 246-64
Social Ideals, Statement of, 260
Social Pioneers, 248-55
Social Service Commission, 258-60
Social Service Department of the Educa-
tion Society, 258-59
"Society," the, 296-97
Society for the Promotion of Collegiate

and Theological Education in the West,

233

Society for the Propagation of the Gospel,

120
South End House, Boston, 255
South Hadley, Council of, see Council of

1936
Spalding, Rev. and Mrs. H. H., 157
Sparks, Abram W., 333
Speedwell, 60; unseaworthiness of, 60-1
Sperry, Willard L., 383
Spicer, Sir Albert, Bart., 408
Sprague, William Buell, Annals of the

American Pulpit, 374-75 quoted, 280-81
Stafford, Russell H., 383
Stamp Act, 120
"Standing order," 346
Standish, Miles, 66
State Conference, 189-91
Stearns, Josiah, 377
Stebbins, Thomas, 109
Stephen, Leslie, III; quoted, i28n., i29n.
Sternhold and Hopkins, version of the

Psalms, 280
Stewardship, Pilgrim Covenant of, 323
Stiles, Ezra, 115-16, 119, 249
Stimson, Henry A., 316
Stocking, Jay Thomas, 235, 273, 286, 382,

383, 407, 408
Stoddard, Samuel, 105, 106, 117, 267
Storrs, Richard Salter, 193, 250, 288, 382,

406, 407
Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 286
Strategy Committee, 217, 232, 236-38
Strong, Nathan, 282
Strong, William E., 321
Strong, William H., 406
Sturdevant, Julian M., 199, 200. 203, 379,

382, 406
Sturdevant, Julian M., Jr., 406
"Substance of doctrine," 340
Summerbell, Martyn, 352
Sunday School Extension Society, 322
Sunday School Union, 343
Swan, Alfred Wilson, 264
Swan, Leonard, 382
Swartz, Herman F., 324, 326
Sweet, William E., 407
Sweet, William Warren, quoted, 139

Tappan, William Bingham, 286

Taxation without representation, 119-20;
to support Congregational ministers,
opposed by other denominations, 98

Taylor, Graham, 254, 255, 259; Religion iti
Social Action, 255

Taylor, Henry Osborn, quoted, 8, 9, 42

Taylor, Nathaniel, 73

Teacher, duties of, 112; and pastor, dis-
tinction between fades out, 102

Ten Articles of 1536, 9

Index

431

Tennant, Gilbert, 110
Tercentenary, the, 322-23
Tercentenary Commission, 273
Thanksgiving, the first, 247
Thatcher, Thomas, 375-6
Thayer, Lucius H., 286, 332
Thayer, Mrs. Lucius H., 328
Theologia Germanica, I'jn.
Theological seminaries, 242-43
Thirty-nine Articles of Anglican Church,

Thirty-nine Articles of 1562, 57, 58
Thirty-two questions sent from English

clergy to New England, 83
Thomas, Reuen, 383
Thompson, James P., 382, 406
Thompson, Joseph, 200
Thompson, William, 139-40
"To-Gether Campaign," 314
Toledo Statement, 357
Town and church theory, complications

of, 98-9
Town meeting, 248; democracy in, 95
Tract Society, New York, 300; Boston, 300
Tract Societies, 304, 343
Tractarian Period, 129 ff.
Tracy, Joseph, 104
Treasurer of the Council, 226
"True Christians," 28 n.; confession of,

4-7; in Holland, 4-7
"True and Short Declaration," of Robert

Browne, 35
Trumbull, Benjamin, quoted, 188
Trustees of the National Council, 226-27
Tucker, William J., 253, 382, 406
Turner, Asa, 155-56, 406
Tweedy, Henry Hallam, 282-83, 286
Twelve, Committee of, under Commission

on Missions, 328-30
Twichell, Joseph H., 253, 383

Ulrich, A. L., 254

Union Missionary Society of Connecticut,

304

Unitarians, 125, 129; 133; first use of
name, 12872., 12971.; new name for old
group, 129

Unitarian Departure, 34, 122 ff., 167; ac-
complished, 132-34

United Brethren, act of union with Con-
gregational Church, 353-54

United Church of Canada, 390

United Domestic Mission Society, 302-03

Unity of the Church, Declaration of, 344-
45, 402

Universalist Church, 356

Upham, Thomas Cogswell, quoted, 295-96

Vanderbilt University School of Religion,
243

Vermont, General Association of Congre-
gational Ministers in, 186

Vermont, General Convention of, 191

Virginia Company, London, 58; second,
or Plymouth, 58

Vogler, Theodore K., 277

Vose, James G., 2iin.

Voss, Carl August, 355

Waddington, John, quoted, 15

Waldensian Church, 17

Waldo, Peter, 17

Walker, George Leon, 383

Walker, John J., 407

Walker, Williston, v, 316, 320; quoted,
93, 113, 14377., 183, 186, 192, 205. 207,
232, 246-47

War of 1812, 151

Ward, William Hayes, 244, 352

Ware, Henry, 130

Warner, Edwin G., 407

Warner, Franklin H., 407

Warner, Lucian C, 316

Warwick, Earl of, 72

Washburn, W. B., 406

Watts, Isaac, 281, 283

"Way of the New England Brethren," 288

Webster, Daniel, 97, 98

W'eigle, Luther Allan, 235, 335

Wellman, Arthur H., 316

Wells, Richard J., 408

Wesley, John, 104, 110

Wesleyan Evangelism, 103

Western Congregational Church, Conven-
tion of, at Michigan City, Ind., 192

"Western Reserve," 140

Westminster Confession, 83, 168

Weston, J. B., 352

Weston, Thomas, 57

Westward expansion, 152 ff., 135-48

Wethersfield settled, 31

W^hite, John, 72

White, Peregrine, 61

White, Roger, letter to William Bradford,
67

Whitefield, George, 107, 110, 345

Whitehead, John M., 316

Whitgift, John, 2, 31

Whitman, Dr. and Mrs. Marcus, 157

Williams, Charles, quoted, 87

Williams College, 236; birthplace of Amer-
ican Protestant foreign missions, 158

Williams, Elisha, 117

Williams, Roger, case of, 88; founds Provi-
dence Plantation, 88; influence with
Narragansetts, 85; at Plymouth, 66

Wilson, Mrs. Charles R., 328

Windsor, Edward, 87

Windsor, settled, 31

432

Index

Winslow, Ola Elizabeth, quoted, no

Winthrop, John, 72-4, 231; company, 74,
fleet, 72-4; favors restriction of suffrage,
86; quoted, 79, 183, 184

Wisconsin, Congregational beginnings in,
156

Wise, John, 187, 194

Witchcraft, Salem, 89-90

Wolcott, Samuel, 203, 286, 382; quoted,
206

Woods, Leonard, 193-94

Woods, William J., 408

Woolley, Mary E., 222, 407

Worcester, First Church, 128

Worcester, Samuel, 160, 194, 282, 378

World Alliance for International Friend-
ship through the Churches, 259

World War, 259

World Wide Communion Sunday, 276
Worship, 265 ff., 277 ff.; in Evangelical

Protestantism, 278
Wycliffe, John, 8

"Yale-band," 153

Yale College, 118, 232, 236, 237; in Ed-
wards' time, 106, 107
Yale Divinity School, 173, 242, 255
Year Book, 213, 222-223; budget for, 315
York County (Me.) Association of Minis-
ters, 189; Conference, 190
Youth, religious training of, 270

Zwingli, Huldreich, influence on English
religious leaders, 12

ERRATA
Sally Kirkland, in text, page 104 and index should be Sophia Hopkey.

CaUJEGE LIBRAE-

P'^ •- Due

History of American Congregati main
285 8A873hC2

3 lEbE D3173 bTD2

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