R~ ~(JI II F YI Rolu," BEIXG God'~ La T Message to Man, for the Ingathering • of Scattered Israel, in These the Last Days
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R~ ~(JI II _ F YI ROLu," BEIXG God'~ La t message to man, for the Ingathering • of Scattered Israel, in these the Last Days. The Time hal-ing now come, being the 6th Day, lIth Hour. The Third and Last Watch, poken of by Je us. (Lul.e xii. 38.) *\~d when ye e:ee these things begin to come to pass, theuliCtup your h"~~~ef~:n~:~~,R:::~<~y~~~ntl~:~:~~~I~~,~;ustOf Hemn hnving" The Everlasting Gospel to Preach unto thew thnt dwell on the earth." "Thenlturncdnndlillcduprninecyes,nndlookednndbelleldn FlyingRoll." (Z,c.,·.l.) The time i, COUle for the nv.crlhrow of this Great Babel of Confusion;nnd theenrlh he filled with the Knowledge of the Lord; f"r ,. The Law sball go forth from Zion, and lhe Word of the Lord rrolU.]erusnleUlj"nlllllhesysloUlluH.l.t.heoriesofuleno\Terturned. TheE1ll1 of this Dispeu.'l:ltion being at hnnd, it behoves nil lovers o[ "Li~ht and Truth" to H Prove nit thingR," and lcarn to" rightly dirido ~:::~~~ °r~lE~~r::ti~~~:. ~f2 1'i1Jwthy ii. 15) to senreh the Scriptures, for <, itl). gh}ilttl ~1,'H" IU"" Writt.rll 1>1] t1}C ~1t"vh, ...Holt of tl}c gmtltori,d ~vitit, THE DAYS OF VISITATION BEING COME. LIFE OF JOANNA SOUTHCOTT BIBLIOGRAPHY OF· JOANNA SOUTHCOTT. Communicated hy R. PEA-USE CHOPE, B.A.. [Rqritllai/romtJuTmJttaai07l,ottJulJcrvl,lAireAssociatl.'OItjorlheAdaulu_ WIIltifSejenu,LilLralurt,andArl. 191,e.-xliv.pp.7J!-S1J9.] LIFE OF JO~~A SOUTHCOTT. Communicated hy R. PEARSE CHOPE, B.A. [Rrpri1l1td from the TraluaetioTLI of 1M DtTonsJlire AG3OCiaJ.ion[QT Utt .ddt:aflu. "/Ilcnl oj Sciwu, LUn'oIUTt,Ol1dArl. 191t.-:rli\".pp.7S.!-756.] THE books usually known as Joanna Sou/hcoft's Prophecies consist of sixty-five pamphlets octavo, and contain about 4500 pages. It i said that Joanna left sufficient manu scripts to print a further 9500 pages.' Her own remarks concerning events then current, her history and character, occupy about one-fourth of. her printed works. Of the remainder a small part was contributed by friends, and there are many copi~s of letters addres ed to the clergy, but the major and prophetical portion will be found under the heading of The Ansu'er of the Spirit, having been written,Joanna tells us, by tbe direction of "a small still voice speaking within.'" The passages thus "Titten are called" commwlications," but the term is also used by ber followers to de cribe unpublished letters, "Titten or dictated by Joanna. Some of the latter were copied by the believers, and the copies formed into "books of correspondence,'" which were circulated among the members of the church. These copies are chiefly in private roUections. TheBritishllIuseumLibrarycontainsasmall ~~h':rr!:S:7~:of)~h:~;T~;rw~~~:l~e~:r~dr;:e:~p:~ ~:~~~~rd:'::~b:g~:ee:o~~e:t::~~~a~I;:~t~~u~~~~sIo~~~ k:~:~~:;;edI: I~~:e~:~~i~~~~~;~~~::e~h~~~~h~.;~ ongmal MSS., from which .he selected nearly one hnndred and pubJi8hed them in pamphlet form, subsequently ~uing LIFE OF JOA...~A SOUTHCOTT. LIFE OF JOANNA SOUTHCOTT.• them in two volumes,' containing approximately 4110 pages octavo (the pagination is not continuous, andt"" books vary as to contents). It is evident from sefera! sources of information that there exist a large number of ~~g~:~~;~;:~~~£~ MSS. which have neither been publi hed nor copied;' the.e are called the "sealed writings." They were placed in a regular manner to go on together.'" Her lo,e affairs the hands of Mr. Sharp in 1803 for safe custody, but appear to have been in the care of Miss Townley at the death of Joanna. In 1825 they were sent to the Rev. T. P. FaIry. ;::;;~::l~::~~:l~~~e~:~~::~:::~~:~~r.~~~~ who left them in the care of his son, the Rev. Richard appears to have entertained great affection for him, but Foley.' It is said that some of them have not been md preferred to remain single. The second one was John Thomas, when she was in the service of lli. Brown, who ~v~~~l;:H:~:J~:~:?~~:t#t£~~£~:te::~~:e: kept a shop a.t Honlton.' _-\bout this time her mother by contemporary writers are meagre and not alwaY' ~~::;~·:~~:~Ja::s:;~~'~tra;~;~~~~ett~~I.~~s~~'s~:f:~ ~::~I~a~~'tr:~~~~:r ~~: ~~;k~h~~~tza~n~e ;~;ac~~ ~~~';':~~:h~~a:h~l~v;~s~~~:~~~~~;~:r~ez~a~~~ g~~~rs~~~: related with such obvious sincerity as to leave no doubt of ~~~:Ci~:~~~~:' St~~~;::c~~ll~~:~,:f~~:a~:lo~~:ite~ ;;:¥j£ii£;,To~~~~~:~~~~~ the fourth daughter of William and Hannah Southcotl.' ~~;~:rsf~~(~~an:~~~;:d.Ta;:~~:th:~a~a?~~7rm~~, ~: ~~:~ ,*::;;:f~ ~~:i:~~~:~;:~~o~~;~;:t ~~~~r,;~~dw~i~;~ family, for several generations, appear to have been lsnded proprietors at Wotton, Hertfordshire, although he was born in Devon hire.' He moved to Glthsham shortly after the birth of Joanna. Her early character and youth fnl impressions· are recorded with simplicity, and glimJl6'" of her history may be found in most of her book " but they are difficnlt to connect. Speaking of her early character. ~~J~Y:~d"l~":e~:a~:.1~ ~:1e ~a~ti~::~n ,,~~ ~:.; a~rount of his wife\ immoral conduct with a man named ~Ef~2;~l;l:~~~~Dr~ lilliiill.tl;caunders. l4 She endea,oured to heal thebreaeh betwl'en age that many that I lived with said, • I had not my fe ~~~~ :t~fu~nf::::i~;~;~~.~~:..:"!~~~~~t~~~:~ I mall StiJl ~'oiu in London. great turmoil, and obtained a situation in the house of a ~fusbury, : ~~O:~d5~'m~rtant Letters, Hudson. Copy lett.t>r from"" minister named Marshall, at twenty·/i'e mile 182r~0J';" A. Seymour, ,v~~. ~l' 25 (sbOwing,p~t~oI ~ '24.27. '54.4. 7 115.206. : g:/~~,; 22~~ ;I~:'; 1i :8;;5;2. ~ ~~/~¥ /:: 59, etc. 1'05.209. JO.u.~A LIFE OF SOUTHCOTT. LIFE OF JOA..~1I'A SOUTHCOTT.• distant. Wills visited 1I1arshall and gave false information concerning Joanna, who brought an action against him for defamation of character, at the Guildhall, Exeter, in 1783.' In the following year Joanna appears to have been living with her friend ~Irs. Woolland, and returning to E.et" entered the service of ~1rs. Taylor as domestic, where he remained about a year, and aft~r being" upper serrant" to lIIrs. Burrows for two year", she rejoined Mrs. Taylor. ~:;~i~~e :~i~r~1~t:~!!!~a~~~~:t;:~~I=,i and here began to write by the dictates of the Spirit. She states that the Spirit visited her in great power at l'lA~iclose of the summer of 1795 Joanna wrote for the third time ~~iSt~::~:~~~r~; ~:;e~s~1Jh:e~h~~~ ::c:~e~~'~I~:: senses, and that none of her prophecies would come tm•.' ~~ ~t: r:~:::~o~~~~:!a::a~~~:;'~i~~::~~t~~~~~1~;,; On her return to 1I1rs. Taylor towards the end of the year upon the conditIon that the seals on the writings were not she divulged to her the events which had been m,ade known t<> be broke.n unless those who sealed them were present; by the Spirit, and according to l\1r ..Taylor s eVldenl'f but they disregarded the condition, broke the scals and " scarcely anything happened to the natIOn or to particular families or individuals that she did not inform me before it happened.'" At Christmas (1792)' she joincd the Metbll' ~::~i::~;:~titn;~:;::;~~:~::::~l:;~:~:;:; The circumstance seems to have affected her health, and she went again to her sister at Plymtree' Here, abo ~~;.:hO~a~e: r:~~dt~YE~~ir°:e;;g~ ~:ek::;;r..: ~~~~~:~p~~~;:~~: :':.h~i¥~n~~~ i~l~re;a:: ~~~~~~t~~~~ ,~ r2L: Recwr ~l:::~::e:~' Bj~~!DeoU8IY~· DttJOtl4Aire Charadn. as a Methodist. 119.3;1.7. 6 . LIFE OF JOANNA SOUTHCOTT. LIFE OF JOANNA SOUTHCOTT. • 7 all through Lent for six days in the week, taking notbin dral, and the Rev. l\fr. Denny, of Exeter,' requesting them but a basin of broth with bread in it.' t<l meet l\fr. Pomeroy, with whom she had entrusted some In the following year, 1798, Joanna visited her brother' of her sealed writings, and undertaking that, if they could at Mu bury, returning to Exeter at Christmas.' Her prove upon examination the ."Titings were not from God, brother in the meantime married and went to live at she w~uld refram from publishing. She was ordered by Bristol, about a mile from the town. He was emplo)"ed the Spmtt{) give them seven days t{) consider the matter, in the Cust{)ms office, and did not at tllis time believe in his si ter's visitation. Joanna followed soon afterwaro. ~~~ ~ ;~~;~~i~~~g:rot:e~~y~~~Vp~~~~ ~e;~~~:o~ek~ to make known her prophecies there, as they had been replies were forthcoming, and on 1 January (Old tyle), rejected at Exeter;' not knowing her brother lived near 1801, the first part of Strange Effects of Faith was issued. the town, she took lodgings.' Here she wrote to }In. Taylor concerning the harvest, and in March, 1799, ",nt :~:dF~:~;&~ren~r:L~~:::~~:~::!~~~~~o;t~~~ copies of the letter to Pomeroy and Archdeacon }Ioore.' Copie of the same letter made by }fr. Jones, of Exeter. :~e;~e will be made from time to time, by surname were forwarded to five other clergymen in May.' Tilt harvest had every appearance of heing a good one. The Rev. Thomas P. Foley, Church of England clergyman, Rev. Basil Woodd, of Lisson Grove,s is reported to han made a long prayer thanking the Almighty for the bleMing! ofagoodharvest; the rain, however, fell on the following !:=~:~~1~~;:;~lie~~~;~;n:f~~~t~:~:~f~a~t~ day and continued until the harvest was spoiled, as Joanna of Lord Foley.