Complete Dissertation

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Complete Dissertation VU Research Portal Matthew Henry (1662-1714) Murray, D.P. 2019 document version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Link to publication in VU Research Portal citation for published version (APA) Murray, D. P. (2019). Matthew Henry (1662-1714): The Reasonableness and Pleasantness of Christianity. General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal ? Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. E-mail address: [email protected] Download date: 29. Sep. 2021 VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT MATTHEW HENRY (1662-1714): The Reasonableness and Pleasantness of Christianity ACADEMISCH PROEFSCHRIFT ter verkrijging van de graad Doctor of Philosophy aan de Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, op gezag van de rector magnificus prof.dr. V. Subramaniam, in het openbaar te verdedigen ten overstaan van de promotiecommissie van de Faculteit Religie en Theologie op vrijdag 1 november 2019 om 9.45 uur in de aula van de universiteit, De Boelelaan 1105 door David Philip Murray geboren te Glasgow, Schotland promotor: prof.dr. W. van Vlastuin copromotor: dr. M. Reeves CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS SUMMARY INTRODUCTION 1 Status of Matthew Henry Scholarship 2 Statement of the question 9 Methodology 10 Apologetic criteria 11 CHAPTER 1: HENRY’S APOLOGETIC CONTEXT 19 Introduction 19 Section One: The cultural context 19 The political and ecclesiastical context 19 The philosophical context 21 The economic context 24 The religious context 26 The cultural questions 27 Section Two: The Christian response 28 The Latitudinarian response 28 The Non-Conformist response 34 Henry’s response 38 Conclusion 60 CHAPTER 2: HENRY’S APOLOGETIC OF REASONABLENESS 65 Introduction 65 Revealed religion and right reason 65 God’s reasonings 80 Man’s reason is his crown and glory 89 The reason of the glorious discoveries of the Redeemer’s love 92 A rational scheme revealed from heaven 95 The work of ministers is to reason with people 106 The reason of the state of rewards and punishments in the world to come 110 Conclusion 111 CHAPTER 3: HENRY’S APOLOGETIC OF PLEASANTNESS 121 Introduction 121 Summary of Pleasantness 121 Apologetic purpose 122 God’s mind to the children of men 123 There is a God 127 A man is born into the world 136 Precious Christ 140 All their salvation and all their desire 144 The fatness of God’s house on earth 159 The end of our way 163 Conclusion 168 CHAPTER 4: HENRY’S APOLOGETIC PROBLEMS 181 Introduction ` 181 The challenge of suffering 181 The challenge of self-interest 197 Conclusion 207 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND PROSPECT 211 Contribution of research 211 A re-presentation of Henry as an apologist 211 An assessment of Henry’s apologetics 213 Puritan identity 220 The history of emotions 223 Prospect 225 BIBLIOGRAPHY 231 Acknowledgments I am deeply grateful to Dr. Willem Van Vlastuin for his patient, gracious, and wise guidance, encouragement, and correction from the moment I submitted my proposal for this dissertation to its completion. I had much to learn, much more than I realized, and am thankful that God’s good providence gave me a supervisor who embodied everything that I wish to emulate in my own instruction of students. I am also indebted to Dr. Michael Reeves who, in his capacity as second reader, offered a number of vital suggestions for improvement in the midst of his numerous duties as a Seminary president. I want to thank Dr. Adriaan Neele for his initial prompt to commence this work, for his constant inspiration along the way, and for his priceless advice at various points. I am indebted to Dr. Joel Beeke, President of Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, Dr. Michael Barrett, Dean of Faculty, and also the Board of Trustees, who not only gave me permission to pursue these studies, but also granted me a sabbatical in the Spring 2018 semester to advance the project. I must also mention Dr. Greg Salazar whose advice at a critical point led to an important breakthrough in my methodology when I was drowning in data, and Dr. Jonathon Beeke who was an immense encouragement to me throughout. Thank you also to my dear wife, Shona, and my children, for their constant love and support throughout. Above all, I acknowledge God as my strength and song, who has given me many confirmations of the reasonableness and pleasantness of Christianity through many years. Abstract This dissertation answers the question, ‘Why and how did Matthew Henry develop and use the reasonableness of the Christian faith, especially the reason of its pleasantness, to defend and commend the Christian faith in the context of his culture?’ The study finds that a central aspect of Henry’s ministry and teaching may be understood as an apologetic response to the events, people, movements, and trends of his historical context and that this partly motivated the writing of his Exposition. It examines Henry’s apologetic use of the reasonableness and pleasantness of religion, demonstrates that the pleasantness of religion was one of Henry’s favorite and most frequent themes, and that it permeated his theology. The primary results of the research are, first, a historical contextualization of Henry and his oeuvre; second, a re- appraisal of Henry as more than a Bible commentator, as someone who was also a Christian apologist; third, an analysis of Henry’s apologetic using historically appropriate criteria; and, fourth, a contribution to understanding late-Puritan identity and religious experience. INTRODUCTION The Presbyterian minister Matthew Henry (1662-1714)—a representative of the Reformed high orthodoxy period,1 has been described as “a remarkable pastor and writer, whose written ministry has far exceeded the impact of his spoken ministry during his lifetime.”2 He has earned the reputation of being a practical Bible commentator due to the long and worldwide popularity of his six-volume exposition of the Bible,3 eliciting comments similar to Stephen Stein who observed, “Henry’s Exposition frequently underscored the pastoral or devotional side to the biblical text.”4 While that is true, this study will consider whether Henry was more than a commentator, whether he was also an apologist for the Christian religion, and if his Exposition can be viewed as a part of his apologetic work.5 This previously unnoticed side of Henry will be explored by examining how he responded to the religious and irreligious trends of his day by making the case for Christianity based upon its reasonableness, and especially the reason of its pleasantness—an aspect of Reformed theology of the high orthodoxy period that is often overlooked in scholarship.6 Henry addressed these subjects specifically in a lengthy series of sermons on ‘The reasonableness of being truly religious’ in his Chester congregation between May 1696 and Style Guide: Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 9th ed: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2018). Quotations from primary sources will retain original spelling and format in the titles of publications but, when possible, will modernize both in the quoted excerpts. 1. This study follows the suggested periodization of Reformed orthodoxy: the early orthodoxy of ca. 1565— ca. 1625, the high orthodoxy of ca. 1625— ca. 1725, and late orthodoxy of ca. 1725— ca. 1790. See Richard Muller, Post Reformation Reformed Dogmatics [hereafter PRRD] (Grand Rapids: Baker Academics, 2003), I: 30-32. 2. Allan M. Harman, Matthew Henry (1662-1714): His Life and Influence (Fearn, Ross-shire: Christian Focus, 2012), 7. 3. Henry started writing his Exposition of the Old and New Testament in 1704. The first four volumes on the Old Testament were published during his lifetime. He finished writing the text of Volume 5 (the Gospels and Acts) on 17 April, 1714, but did not live to see it published. The final volume, Volume 6 on Romans to Revelation, was put together by a number of his ministerial colleagues who edited and supplemented his notes and published it after his death. For more information on this process see J. B. Williams, Memoirs of the Life, Character, and Writings of the Rev. Matthew Henry (London: B. J. Holdsworth, 1828), 308-9. Various titles have been given to Henry’s commentary, including An Exposition of All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1721-1725), in which are the earliest extant editions of Volumes 5 and 6. This study will use the shorter form Exposition and the volume number to refer to these publications. This will usually be followed by the pericope of Scripture that Henry is expositing, because some of the original volumes do not have page numbers. This will also enable quotations to be found more easily in more modern editions of the Exposition. 4. Stephen Stein, Works of Jonathan Edwards (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006), 24.1:63. J. I. Packer’s description of the Exposition also highlights its simplicity, practicality, and popularity: “Simple and practical in style while thoroughly scholarly and well-informed for substance, the Commentary remains an all- time classic, standing head and shoulders above any other popular exposition produced either before or since.” J.
Recommended publications
  • Robert Morrison (Missionary) - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia
    Robert Morrison (missionary) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Morrison_(missionary) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Robert Morrison (traditional Chinese: 馬禮遜; simplified Chinese: 马礼逊; pinyin: Mǎ Lǐxùn) (January 5, 1782 in Bullers Green, near Morpeth, Northumberland – August 1, 1834 in Guangzhou) was a Scottish missionary, the first Christian Protestant missionary in China.[1] After twenty-five years of work he translated the whole Bible into the Chinese language and baptized ten Chinese believers. Morrison pioneered the translation of the Bible into First Protestant Missionary to China Chinese and planned for the Born January 5, 1782 distribution of the Scriptures as broadly Bullers Green, Morpeth, Northumberland, as possible, unlike the previous Roman Catholic translation work that had England never been published.[2] Died August 1, 1834 (aged 52) Guangzhou, Guangdong, China Morrison cooperated with such contemporary missionaries as Walter Title D.D. Henry Medhurst and William Milne Parents James Morrison (the printers), Samuel Dyer (Hudson Hannah Nicholson Taylor's father-in-law), Karl Gutzlaff (the Prussian linguist), and Peter Parker (China's first medical missionary). He served for 27 years in China with one furlough home to England. The only missionary efforts in China were restricted to Guangzhou (Canton) and Macau at this time. They concentrated on literature distribution among members of the merchant class, gained a few converts, and laid the foundations for more educational and medical
    [Show full text]
  • The Puritan Use of Imagination
    A Quarterly Journal for Church Leadership Volume 10 • Number 1 • Winter 2001 THE PURITAN USE OF IMAGINATION 7Piety is the root of charity. JOHN CALVIN Wouldest thou see a Truth within a Fable? I I heir ministers, whom Wesley consulted about their con­ Then read my fancies, they will stick like Burs victions, were trained at Halle, which was the centre of the ... come hither, Lutheran movement that most affected Evangelical origins: And lay my Book thy head, and Heart together. Pietism. Philip Spener had written in 1675 the manifesto of the movement, Pia Desideria, urging the need for repen­ Co wrote John Bunyan in his "Apology" to The Pilgrim's tance, the new birth, putting faith into practice and close o Progress at its first appearance in 1678.1 Time has proven fellowship among true believers. His disciple August him right. Few books, even of the powerful Puritan era, Francke created at Halle a range of institutions for embody­ make as lasting an impression on head and heart as his. ing and propagating Spener's vision. Chief among them God's truth is conveyed effectively by Bunyan's fiction.2 was the orphan house, then the biggest building in Europe, with a medical dispensary attached. It was to inspire both TRUTH ALONGSIDE FICTION Wesley and Whitefield to erect their own orphan houses Bunyan was certainly aware of the seeming inconsisten­ and Howel Harris to establish a community as centre of cy between "truth" and "fable." He had even sought the Christian influence at Trevecca. advice of his contemporaries about such an enterprise: DAVID W.
    [Show full text]
  • University of Birmingham Delight in Good Books
    University of Birmingham Delight in good books Wright, Gillian DOI: 10.1353/bh.2015.0002 License: None: All rights reserved Document Version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Citation for published version (Harvard): Wright, G 2015, 'Delight in good books: Family, Devotional Practice, and Textual Circulation in Sarah Savage’s Diaries ', Book History, vol. 18, pp. 45-74. https://doi.org/10.1353/bh.2015.0002 Link to publication on Research at Birmingham portal Publisher Rights Statement: Published as above. Publication available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1353/bh.2015.0002 Checked Feb 2016 General rights Unless a licence is specified above, all rights (including copyright and moral rights) in this document are retained by the authors and/or the copyright holders. The express permission of the copyright holder must be obtained for any use of this material other than for purposes permitted by law. •Users may freely distribute the URL that is used to identify this publication. •Users may download and/or print one copy of the publication from the University of Birmingham research portal for the purpose of private study or non-commercial research. •User may use extracts from the document in line with the concept of ‘fair dealing’ under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (?) •Users may not further distribute the material nor use it for the purposes of commercial gain. Where a licence is displayed above, please note the terms and conditions of the licence govern your use of this document. When citing, please reference the published version. Take down policy While the University of Birmingham exercises care and attention in making items available there are rare occasions when an item has been uploaded in error or has been deemed to be commercially or otherwise sensitive.
    [Show full text]
  • Timeline of Great Missionaries
    Timeline of Great Missionaries (and a few other well-known historical and church figures and events) Prepared by Doug Nichols, Action International Ministries August 12, 2008 Dates Name Ministry/Place of Ministry 70-155/160 Polycarp Bishop of Smyrna 354-430 Aurelius Augustine Bishop of Hippo (Africa) 1235-1315 Raymon Lull Scholar and missionary (North Africa) 1320-1384 John Wyclif Morning Star of Reformation 1373-1475 John Hus Reformer 1483-1546 Martin Luther Reformation (Germany) 1494-1536 William Tyndale Bible Translator (England) 1509-1564 John Calvin Theologian/Reformation 1513-1573 John Knox Scottish Reformer 1517 Ninety-Five Theses (nailed) Martin Luther 1605-1690 John Eliot To North American Indians 1615-1691 Richard Baxter Puritan Pastor (England) 1628-1688 John Bunyan Pilgrim’s Progress (England) 1662-1714 Matthew Henry Pastor and Bible Commentator (England) 1700-1769 Nicholaus Ludwig Zinzendorf Moravian Church Founder 1703-1758 Jonathan Edwards Theologian (America) 1703-1791 John Wesley Methodist Founder (England) 1714-1770 George Whitefield Preacher of Great Awakening 1718-1747 David Brainerd To North American Indians 1725-1760 The Great Awakening 1759-1833 William Wilberforce Abolition (England) 1761-1834 William Carey Pioneer Missionary to India 1766-1838 Christmas Evans Wales 1768-1837 Joshua Marshman Bible Translation, founded boarding schools (India) 1769-1823 William Ward Leader of the British Baptist mission (India) 1773-1828 Rev. George Liele Jamaica – One of first American (African American) missionaries 1780-1845
    [Show full text]
  • The Bible in the Life and Work of Prominent Missionaries of the Far
    This material has been provided by Asbury Theological Seminary in good faith of following ethical procedures in its production and end use. The Copyright law of the united States (title 17, United States code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyright material. Under certain condition specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to finish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specific conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be “used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research.” If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of “fair use,” that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law. By using this material, you are consenting to abide by this copyright policy. Any duplication, reproduction, or modification of this material without express written consent from Asbury Theological Seminary and/or the original publisher is prohibited. Contact B.L. Fisher Library Asbury Theological Seminary 204 N. Lexington Ave. Wilmore, KY 40390 B.L. Fisher Library’s Digital Content place.asburyseminary.edu Asbury Theological Seminary 205 North Lexington Avenue 800.2ASBURY Wilmore, Kentucky 40390 asburyseminary.edu THE BIBLE IN Tm LIFE AND WORK OP PROMINENT MISSIONARIES OP THR PAR EAST A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of Asbury Seminary In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Bachelor of Divinity by Jerry V. Cols ten December 1955 A THESIS Submitted to Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • A Brief Survey of Missions
    2 A Brief Survey of Missions A BRIEF SURVEY OF MISSIONS Examining the Founding, Extension, and Continuing Work of Telling the Good News, Nurturing Converts, and Planting Churches Rev. Morris McDonald, D.D. Field Representative of the Presbyterian Missionary Union an agency of the Bible Presbyterian Church, USA P O Box 160070 Nashville, TN, 37216 Email: [email protected] Ph: 615-228-4465 Far Eastern Bible College Press Singapore, 1999 3 A Brief Survey of Missions © 1999 by Morris McDonald Photos and certain quotations from 18th and 19th century missionaries taken from JERUSALEM TO IRIAN JAYA by Ruth Tucker, copyright 1983, the Zondervan Corporation. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI Published by Far Eastern Bible College Press 9A Gilstead Road, Singapore 309063 Republic of Singapore ISBN: 981-04-1458-7 Cover Design by Charles Seet. 4 A Brief Survey of Missions Preface This brief yet comprehensive survey of Missions, from the day sin came into the world to its whirling now head on into the Third Millennium is a text book prepared specially by Dr Morris McDonald for Far Eastern Bible College. It is used for instruction of her students at the annual Vacation Bible College, 1999. Dr Morris McDonald, being the Director of the Presbyterian Missionary Union of the Bible Presbyterian Church, USA, is well qualified to write this book. It serves also as a ready handbook to pastors, teachers and missionaries, and all who have an interest in missions. May the reading of this book by the general Christian public stir up both old and young, man and woman, to play some part in hastening the preaching of the Gospel to the ends of the earth before the return of our Saviour (Matthew 24:14) Even so, come Lord Jesus Timothy Tow O Zion, Haste O Zion, haste, thy mission high fulfilling, to tell to all the world that God is Light; that He who made all nations is not willing one soul should perish, lost in shades of night.
    [Show full text]
  • 1901 Matthew Henry 0.Pdf
    ' . MATTHEW HENRY AND HIS CHAPEL H. D. ROBERTS LIVERPOOL THE LIVERPOOL BOOKSELLERS' COMPANY, LTD., 70, LORD STREET PREFACE 7%ALL CONCERNED:- c' The oldest NOnconfor?~iStChapel in Chester celebrates this year a two hundredth Anniversary ;for the foundation stone was laid in the i~zonthof September, 1699 . lC Those who wonhi$ in this Chafed hold it as a trust fj,, the men and women of two hundredyears ago. It is their dzcty to see to it that the House pf God, at all times, is seem& for His Worshe. " Is it too wuch to hope, at this epoch, for yet another Celztury of existence, for our old historic 'Meeting House ' .? " (Calendar, Jan. I 899.) " The present Congregation, wishing to reltew the Chapelfor another and vzkorous Century of dzye, called in Messrs. T. M. Lockwood, F.R.I.B.A., and Sons, to make a thoroagh examination of the old structure. They declared the roof dangerous, and instead of the amenities of a Bi-Centenary, we found ourselves confronted,flnaldy, with the raisingof L9oo. Towavds this we have raised L700 ;and on work actual& comjkted we are L100 in &bt. A new roof is on, and in place of the old ceiling-, lying $at on the arches, is a tu$le-coved ceiling. This, 4F iii in thorough keeping with the architecture, has greatly receipt of £70 tn donations. One hulzdved pounds iwoved the ChapeC, adding hezght and giving grace: would loose an earnest and worthy congregation fro?lz Dry rot was found in the vestry and gallevy ;both have Ziabilities creeping on towads A~,ooo.
    [Show full text]
  • Whitney, Donald S
    BENJAMIN KEACH’S DOCTRINE OF THE HUMAN WILL Introduction The nature and freedom of the human will has been deliberated and debated throughout the history of the Christian church by some of the church’s best and most gifted theologians, and it continues to be debated to this very day. It is one of those vital theological issues that serves as a touchstone of the rest of a theological system because it both shapes and is shaped by the whole body of doctrine articulated in a full-orbed and consistent biblical theology. Because it occupies such a prominent and central place in the matrix of any theology, the question of the nature and freedom of the will is never established or articulated in an historical or theological vacuum, but inevitably and always in light of the progress of the church’s historical discussion and understanding of the nature of the will and the interconnection and unity of truths that compose any particular theological system. Benjamin Keach’s theology of the will reflects this reality inasmuch as it was articulated in light of the church’s biblical theological understanding of his own time and was vitally related to the rest of his biblical theology. For his part, Keach stood squarely in the Reformed tradition, and held to the Calvinistic doctrine of the nature and freedom of the will. It was this Calvinistic perspective which he argued and defended so forcefully and consistently throughout his published material. For Keach, the doctrine of the will was not simply a matter of philosophical speculation or a secondary matter of theology, but instead, it was something integral and foundational to the gospel itself.
    [Show full text]
  • Matthew Henry Was Born Was a Momentous One for the Religious History of England
    CHAPTER 1 The Puritan Environment The year in which Matthew Henry was born was a momentous one for the religious history of England. In that year, 1662, over 2000 pastors were ejected from their parishes in the Church of England because they refused to conform to the requirements laid upon them by the Act of Uniformity. This meant that those pastors who were labelled as nonconformists, and who became Presbyterian, Baptist or Congregational, were deprived of oppor- tunities to minister publicly, and nonconformist students were ex- cluded from Oxford and Cambridge Universities. The fact that Matthew Henry’s father, Philip Henry, was one of those ejected brought the religious issues of the day right into the family circle. But the Great Ejection, as it was called, was only one of sev- eral important events in seventeenth-century England. It was marked by the overthrow of the monarchy and the Church of England, and then their subsequent re-establishment. The rift between Charles I and the Parliament became so great that two civil wars eventuated (1642-48), in which Royalists were pitted against Roundheads, the nickname for supporters of the Parlia- ment. The Parliament’s New Model Army was victorious and Charles I was executed in January 1649. Previously executed were Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, the Lord Lieuten- ant of Ireland (May 1641), and William Laud, the Archbishop of 11 MMatthewatthew HHenry-enry- AAllanllan HHarmanarman - CCopy.inddopy.indd 1111 009/01/20129/01/2012 115:14:335:14:33 Matthew Henry Canterbury (January 1645). Episcopal rule in the church was set aside, and use of the Book of Common Prayer outlawed.
    [Show full text]
  • A Nonconformist Missionary Journey to Lancashire and Cheshire in July 1672 B
    A NONCONFORMIST MISSIONARY JOURNEY TO LANCASHIRE AND CHESHIRE IN JULY 1672 B. Cattle, M.A., Ph.D., F.S.A. and M.J. Crossley Evans, B.A., F.G.S. The Revd Henry Maurice (c. 1636-1682)' was born at Methlan in the Llyn peninsula, into a Caernarvonshire family of some substance, bound up with Church and State. He was successively at Jesus College, Oxford (1652), Puri­ tan curate of Llannor and Deneio (1658), in which parish lay the town of Pwllheli, and incumbent of Meyllteyrn (1661). When he took to preaching, popular applause made him, on his own admission, 'a vain-glorious fellow', and for some time he led a loose, immoral life, and was heavily in debt. On 20 March, 1662, he conformed to the Act of Uniformity as Vicar of Bromfield, Salop, and on 3 June, 1668, moved to a far richer living as Rector of Church Stretton; but whilst here, having spent his childhood and youth in 'vanity', he was suddenly roused 'to a great solicitude about his everlas­ ting state' by the ravages of malignant fever in the parish. He felt that he could not rest content until he had aban­ doned his living and had ceased to conform. He tried to keep this to himself, but his wife sensed his worry and, catching him alone, insisted on hearing everything; after which, since only his concern for his family restrained him, she urged him to go ahead, saying that she utterly trusted in God. Thus encouraged, he confided in 'Brother' Thomas Quarrell, an itinerant Congregational preacher in Whit- church (Salop), Glamorgan and Monmouth, who advised him to 'count the cost before he entered upon a suffering state'; but Maurice answered that if he remained Rector 'his conscience would fly in his face'.
    [Show full text]
  • Church and People in Interregnum Britain
    Downloaded from the Humanities Digital Library http://www.humanities-digital-library.org Open Access books made available by the School of Advanced Study, University of London Press ***** Publication details: Church and People in Interregnum Britain Edited by Fiona McCall https://humanities-digital-library.org/index.php/hdl/catalog/book/ church-and-people-in-interregnum-britain DOI: 10.14296/2106.9781912702664 ***** This edition published in 2021 by UNIVERSITY OF LONDON PRESS SCHOOL OF ADVANCED STUDY INSTITUTE OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH Senate House, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU, United Kingdom ISBN 978-1-912702-66-4 (PDF edition) This work is published under a Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. More information regarding CC licenses is available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses Church and people in interregnum Britain New Historical Perspectives is a book series for early career scholars within the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Books in the series are overseen by an expert editorial board to ensure the highest standards of peer-reviewed scholarship. Commissioning and editing is undertaken by the Royal Historical Society, and the series is published under the imprint of the Institute of Historical Research by the University of London Press. The series is supported by the Economic History Society and the Past and Present Society. Series co-editors: Heather Shore (Manchester Metropolitan University) and Elizabeth Hurren (University of Leicester) Founding co-editors: Simon Newman (University
    [Show full text]
  • The Beginnings of the Library in Charles Town, South Carolina by Edgae Legake Pennington
    1934.] The Library in Charles Town, So. Carolina 159 THE BEGINNINGS OF THE LIBRARY IN CHARLES TOWN, SOUTH CAROLINA BY EDGAE LEGAKE PENNINGTON HE lending library of colonial America owes most to T the industry and example of an English clergy- man, the Reverend Doctor Thomas Bray. Bray was born at Marton in Shropshire in 1656; after studying divinity at Oxford, he entered holy orders. He early attracted attention by his indefatigable zeal and great industry, and his interest in various reform movements. His energies led to his selection as a proper person to model the infant Church of England in the province of Maryland and establish it on a solid foundation. There had been a petition from that province for the assist- ance of a "superintendent, commissary, or suffragan"; 80, in April, 1696, Thomas Bray was appointed com- missary, or official representative of the Bishop of London who acted as diocesan of the Church in the American colonies. Bray was not able to go promptly. As he was impressed by the fact that it was difficult to secure the best ministers for the colonial field, he began to direct his efforts towards remedying such difficulties as might stand in the way. He found that the clergymen were usually too poor to buy books; and across the sea, shut off from educational opportunities, they must needs deteriorate. He laid the results of his enquiries before the bishops ; and declared that without a compe- tent provision of reading matter, the ministers could not prove useful to the design of their mission, and that a library would be the best encouragement to studious and sober men to enter the service.
    [Show full text]