-Caveat Lector- The Pulpit And The War For Independence Steve Wilkins
Men do not fight against overwhelming odds for money (greed will only take you so far). Anger and frustration melt away when the foe is seen as virtually indomitable. Even fame and power have their limits when it comes to their power to motivate men to do what to all the world seems impossible. This being the case, what was it that motivated the patriots of the 18th century to take on the most powerful military force in the world of that day? This is a question that has not been asked frequently enough. If you have the opportunity to ask one of our modern secular experts, you normally get a blank stare. What was it that moved farmers, merchants, artisans, shopkeepers, teachers, and even pastors to take up arms (and sometimes farm implements) and engage the mightiest army in the world on the field of battle? Perry Miller has noted that the motivation did not come from the vain philosophies of the day: "a �pure rationalism� might have declared the independence of the American people, but it could never have inspired them to fight for it." To do what the men of this country did in 1775 we need far more than abstract philosophical concepts. This kind of action is motivated only by faith in a cause that is viewed as essential to life itself and which cannot fail. Such a cause was declared to the people of this country by the colonial pulpit. Historian J. Wingate Thornton, in his book, The Pulpit of the American Revolution (1860), draws this conclusion, "To the pulpit, the Puritan pulpit, we owe the moral force which won our independence." James Adams has observed, "The political leaders may have declared independence, but the minister turned the revolt into a holy war." (Yankee Doodle Went to Church, p. 152) What were these men like? The Pastors of the War of Independence. There are at least two things which are notable about these men: These were men who not only spoke well but lived well. Their lives mightily confirmed their words. They often backed up their preaching with astounding works. These were not men who called upon others to fight while hiding themselves in safety. These men did not hesitate to put their own lives on the line. During the battles of Lexington and Concord, Chelsea's minister, Philips Payson, captured two British supply wagons single-handedly. John Craighead raised a company of militia from his parish and himself led them off to join Washington in New Jersey, where it was recorded that he "fought and preached alternately." So numerous, in fact, were the fighting pastors that the Tories referred to them as "the black regiment," and blamed them for much of the resurgent zeal of the Colonial troops." (Marshall and Manuel, op. cit., p. 290) One of the most colorful examples comes from the Lutheran pastor Peter Muhlenberg. He was preaching on the text, "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven." (Eccl. 3:1). As he reached the end of his sermon he said, "In the language of the Holy Writ, there is a time for all things. There is a time to preach and a time to fight . . . And now is the time to fight! . . . Roll the drums for recruits!" That same afternoon, Peter Muhlenberg marched off at the head of a regiment of three-hundred men. (Ibid., p. 291) Muhlenberg�s brother Frederick (who was also a minister) once criticized him for actually taking up arms. Muhlenberg replied, "I am a clergyman, it is true, but I am a member of society as well as the poorest layman, and my liberty is as dear to me as any man. Shall I then sit still, and enjoy myself at home, when the best blood of the continent is spilling? Heaven forbid it!" (Adams, op. cit., pp. 162-163) James Hall of North Carolina (Presbyterian minister who would later be the pioneer missionary in the valley of the Mississippi) was selected as leader, and accepted the command of a company formed mainly from his own congregation. Such was his ability and reputation that he was offered the commission of brigadier-general. Dr. Ashbel Green, who would later become a leading figure and theologian in the Presbyterian Church (authoring one of the few commentaries on the Westminster Assembly�s Larger Catechism), obtained the distinction of orderly sergeant in the militia of the Revolutionary army. Another example is James Caldwell pastor of the Presbyterian church of Elizabethtown, New Jersey. Caldwell�s church was a hothouse of patriotic sentiment. The leading patriots of the colony were members of his church. When the news arrived on July 15, 1776, that the leaders of the colonies had declared Independence, the local militia celebrated the news with a "barrel of grog," with Chaplain Caldwell giving the opening toast. Caldwell always carried sidearms and boasted that no four men could take him alive. Often before beginning his sermon, he would unbuckle a his holster and place his pistols in front of him on the pulpit and then begin to preach! (Adams, op. cit., p. 164) Historian J. T. Headley wrote that Caldwell believed himself "engaged in . . . the cause of God and that cause he did not consider would be advanced by yielding himself unresistingly into the hands of a skulking Tory to be dragged to the scaffold." (Ibid.) The British, vexed over his influence and outspoken patriotism, offered large rewards for his capture. When Caldwell was gone from home on one of his frequent forays with the colonial forces, the British forces under the command of the Hessian mercenary, General Wilhelm von Knyphausen entered the town to capture him and began to sack it. One of the redcoats jumped the fence surrounding his house and fired through the front window, killing his wife who was in the house with her nine children. The soldiers then set the house on fire. Neighbors collected the children and dragged Mrs. Caldwell�s body out of the house but had to flee for their own safety. Caldwell received the news in camp, secured a flag of truce and returned back to his home only to find the village in ruins. He found his wife�s body outside the house and his terrified children at a neighbor's house nearby. Caldwell buried his wife, placed his children under the care of one of his neighbors and returned to the a rmy i n Springfield. Two weeks later when the forces of Knyphausen returned, the colonial forces engaged them with fierce tenacity. "At the height of the shooting, the Patriots, taking cover behind a fence that was adjacent to [the Presbyterian] church, ran out of the paper wadding needed for their muskets. Caldwell [ran into the church house] gathered up all the copies of Watts Psalms and Hymns he could carry, and rushed out to the crouching riflemen. Tearing pages out of the hymnals, he passed them out shouting, �Put Watts into �em, boys! Give �em Watts!" (Ibid., p. 291) Of course we cannot overlook the influence of John Witherspoon. Witherspoon was especially prominent in the independence movement. One crown official in the colonies wrote back to England that, the labors of such clergymen as John Witherspoon so influenced the shape of the conflict that it had become "at the bottom, very much a religious War." (quoted in Mark Noll, op. cit., p. 65) Witherspoon�s influence was truly enormous. He was elected as a delegate from New Jersey to the Continental Congress and served for five years. He was the only minister to sign the Declaration of Independence. During his period of service in Congress he served on over 120 committees. It was his leadership and influence during his years at Princeton which had even more impact on this nation: "Witherspoon�s labors as president of Princeton were perhaps as important for the Patriot cause as his public office-holding and his public defense of Whiggery. One historian of colonial Presbyterianism has written that the British should have called Princeton �Witherspoon�s seminary of sedition� in light of its Revolutionary influence on a generation of American ministers an public servants. James Madison was the most well known of the many prominent leaders of the early United States who learned statecraft as well as theology from Witherspoon." (Mark Noll, Christians in the American Revolution, pp. 65,66) Nine of the fifty-five delegates at the Constitutional Convention were former students of Witherspoon. His other students included a Vice-President, ten cabinet officers, twenty-one senators, thirty-nine congressmen, twelve governors, and numerous ministers, lawyers, judges, and other public officials. Witherspoon was especially prominent in the debate over the Declaration of Independence. There was strenuous opposition to the formal declaration by some of the most respected members of the Assembly. John Dickenson of Pennsylvania was most prominent and outspoken in his opposition. Dickenson felt that the Declaration would not help them in the struggle and might possibly hurt them severely. It might serve to unite the various parties in Britain against the colonial cause. Foreign powers might be reluctant to support the colonial cause with such a Declaration made public. There ought to be some agreement, argued Dickenson, on the nature of the confederacy that will exist between the colonies before any such Declaration by made. These were strong arguments in themselves but they carried peculiar weight coming from Dickenson. In this crucial moment, John Witherspoon arose to respond, "There is a tide in the affairs of men, a nick of time. We perceive it now before us. To hesitate is to consent to our own slavery. That noble instrument upon your table, . . . should be subscribed this very morning by every pen in this house . . . For my own part, of property I have some, of reputation more. That reputation is staked, that property is pledged on the issue of this contest; and although these gray hairs must soon descend into the sepulchre, I would infinitely rather that they descend thither by the hand of the executioner than desert at this crisis the sacred cause of my country." (Breed, op. cit., p. 166) These men did not fear other men. Their boldness is amazing. The boldness and courage of American pastors is illustrated by Samuel Davies (called "the Apostle of Virginia" and the pastor of Patrick Henry�s boyhood). Once, when Davies was President of Princeton College, he went to London to solicit funds for the University: "King George III was attracted by his reputation and went to hear him preach. Greatly impressed by his eloquence, the King arose [during the sermon] saying, �This is a worthy cause presented by a worthy man . . .� But Mr. Davies fixed his eyes on His Majesty and said: �When the lion roareth, the beasts of the forest tremble; when the Lord speaketh, let the Kings of the earth keep silence.�" Time would fail us to speak of pastors like Patrick Alison of Baltimore, William Tennent in Charlestown, George Duffield in Philadelphia, John Miller in Dover, James Waddell and John Blair Smith in Virginia, John Carmichael in Lancaster, and Robert Davidson of the First Presbyterian Church of Philadelphia. Or chaplains like Alexander McWhorter, chaplain of Knox�s brigade; James F. Armstrong, chaplain of the second brigade of the Maryland forces; Adam Boyd, chaplain of the North Carolina brigade; and Dr. John Rodgers, chaplain of Heath�s brigade. On the 19th of April, 1776, the people of Lexington had been awakened in the middle of the night by the ringing of the bell of the Presbyterian Church. That bell was pulled by the pastor, the Rev. Jonas Clark. His wife was the cousin of John Hancock and the two men had spent many hours discussing the great principles of liberty and freedom. Rev. Clark had not withheld the fruit of his discussions and study from his people but had instructed them carefully from the pulpit and in town meetings on what God�s Word required of men. On the morning of April 19, he roused them from their sleep to put into action what they had been taught. One hundred fifty men responded and took their place in the dim starlight in front of the church waiting for the advancing British troops. Once John Hancock and John Adams had asked Rev. Clark if his men would fight? "Yes," Clark replied, "not only would they fight, but die right there, under the shadow of the house of God, and in the presence of their pastor." When the British arrived the order was given to these men to throw down their arms and disperse. They refused and the muskets fired. When the British retreated, Pastor Clark walked up to the line and found seven men of his congregation dead. His only response was, "From this day will be dated the liberty of the world." One realizes after seeing the character of these men why it is said that the colonists treated them "with the kind of reverential regard that [they] refused to give kings and Anglican bishops." (James L. Adams, Yankee Doodle Went to Church, p. 30) The men whom God used to stir the fires of independence were men of uncommon insight, foresight, courage and uncompromising faithfulness. -- They believed their obligation was to proclaim the whole counsel of God and they sought diligently to do that. -- They believed that Christ was the rightful King and ruler of this (and all other) nations. His word was Law and so it was proclaimed. -- Their preaching settled the country in the conviction that the Bible was the sole rule of faith and life. It contained not only the law for the individual but was also the great political textbook. -- Their lives confirmed their words. Their instruction and their example were mightily used of God to confirm men in the value of standing firmly for the cause of God and truth. It is in the light of the examples of these men that we begin to see one of the chief causes for the pitiable weakness of the modern church. If the watchmen refuse to sound a loud and certain note, who will prepare themselves for the day of battle? We are in desperate need of faithful "watchmen." Men who care more for the truth of God than for the opinions of "experts." Men who desire the good of their flocks more than their own ease. Men who have more zeal for God�s glory than they do for their own. Men who long to see God�s name honored more than their reputations inflated. This is the great need of the hour. We crave bold, courageous, sacrificial, zealous, faithful men. We stand in desperate need of men who will be shepherds, guardians, captains, leaders, and examples to the flock. Pray the Lord of the harvest that He might again raise up such laborers who will again go forth and build up His Church in the grace and knowledge of Christ! ------------------------ -iNFoWaRZ "But hereof be assured, that all is not lawful nor just that is statute by civil laws; neither yet is everything sin before God, which ungodly persons allege to be treason." -John Knox www.ctrl.org DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. 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