What's New at Log College Press? — September 1, 2023

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Dear Friends,

As summer draws to a close, we wish to give an update on what’s been happening at Log College Press. Our virtual shelves are filling up with old Presbyterian books, articles, poetry and manuscripts. We recently reached a milestone of sorts - there are now over 20,000 works available to read at Log College Press.

In a year of celebration and remembrance, we have previously paid tribute to John Witherspoon’s 300th birthday (Feb. 5, 1723); Thomas Murphy’s 200th birthday (Feb. 6, 1823); the 100th anniversary of Robert P. Kerr’s passing (March 25, 1923); the 250th anniversary of Joseph Caldwell’s passing (April 21, 1773); the 150th anniversary of William H. McGuffey’s passing (May 4, 1873); A.A. Hodge’s 200th birthday (July 18, 1823); the 150th anniversary of Gardiner Spring’s passing (Aug. 18, 1873); the 150th anniversary of Thomas Smyth’s passing (Aug. 20, 1873); and we are looking ahead to the 300th birthday of Samuel Davies (Nov. 3, 1723). These anniversaries are reminders of the rich heritage of American Presbyterianism, and how these men have contributed in their own ways to shaping our history. As we like to say, there is no time like the present to study the past.

Meanwhile, to return to the here and now, members of the Dead Presbyterian Society have special access to certain features on this website, which include the Early Access and Recent Additions page, as well as the DPS quote blog, and the Log College Review. We wish to draw your attention to notable works of interest that have added recently.

Some highlights at the Early Access page:

  • Samuel Davies, Travel Diary (1753-1754) — A kind and helpful supporter of our work noticed that some handwritten manuscript journals have been digitized by the Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, Virginia, including Davies’ diary which covers a portion of his trip to Great Britain to raise funds for the College of New Jersey (Princeton).

  • William Henry Foote, Journal (3 volumes, 1794-1869) — This is a remarkable manuscript journal (written in beautiful penmanship) which covers almost the entirety of Foote’s life, and includes newspaper clippings, family history, ecclesiastical records (some pertinent to the founding of the Presbyterian Church, C.S.A.), and much more.

  • Francis Alison, Peace and Union Recommended (1758) — A notable sermon preached by an Old Side divine at the opening of the synod at which the Old and New Sides were reunited.

  • David Bostwick, Self Disclaimed and Christ Exalted (1758) — A powerful sermon on the words from John 3:30: “He must increase but I must decrease.”

  • Jonathan Dickinson, A Sermon, Preached at the Opening of the Synod at Philadelphia, September 19, 1722 (1723) and A Vindication of God’s Sovereign Free Grace (1746).

  • Samuel Finley, The Curse of Meroz; or, The Danger of Neutrality, in the Cause of God, and Our Country (1757) — A notable patriotic sermon preached during the French and Indian War.

Some highlights at the Recent Additions page:

On the Log College Review:

  • Reviews by Jonathan Peters: Review of Francis R. Flournoy, Benjamin Mosby Smith: 1811-1893 (1947) [2023], and Review of William E. Thompson, In Stonewall’s Long Shadow: James Power Smith, Aide de Camp (2020) [first appeared in The Confessional Presbyterian 18 (2022)].

Meanwhile, please feel free to browse the many resources available to our readers in print and in digital format. We appreciate hearing from our readers if they find matters needing correction, or if they have questions about authors or works on the site, or if they have suggestions for additions to the site. Your feedback helps the experience of other readers as well. Thank you, as always, for your interest and support. Stay tuned for more good things to come.

Calvin on the Edge of Eternity

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It was not the head but the heart which made him a theologian, and it is not the head but the heart which he primarily addresses in his theology. – B.B. Warfield, John Calvin: The Man and His Work (1909)

The great Reformer John Calvin died on this day in history, May 27, 1564, in Geneva, Switzerland. He was only 54 years old; although he had suffered many maladies, yet had he accomplished so much in his lifetime to effect Reformation in the areas of worship, theology and civil government; in Geneva, Europe and even across the Atlantic, in sending missionaries to Roman Catholic France and to the New World; and inspiring settlers who risked all to follow them.

Today, we recall his final days as told by some authors on Log College Press who admired this great man.

Thomas Cary Johnson, John Calvin and the Genevan Reformation (1900), p. 87:

He preached for the last time on the 6th of February, 1564; he was carried to church and partook of the communion for the last time on the 2d of April, in which he acknowledged his own unworthiness and his trust in God's free election of grace and the abounding merits of Christ; he was visited by the four syndics and the whole Little Council of the republic on the 27th of April, and addressed them as a father, thanking them for their devotion, begging pardon for his gusts of temper, and exhorting them to preserve in Geneva the pure doctrine and government of the gospel; he made a similar address to all the ministers of Geneva on the 28th and took an affectionate leave of them; he had these ministers to dine in his house on the 19th of May, was himself carried to the table, ate a little with them and tried to converse, but growing weary had to be taken to his chamber, leaving with the words, 'This wall will not hinder my being present with you in spirit, though absent in the body.' [William] Farel (in his eightieth year) walked all the way to Geneva from Neuchatel to take leave of the man whom he had compelled to work in Geneva, and whose glorious career he had watched without the least shadow of envy.

With the precious word of God, which he had done so much to make plain to his own and all subsequent ages, in his heart and on his tongue, he died on the 27th of May, 1564.

Thomas Smyth, Calvin and His Enemies: A Memoir of the Life, Character, and Principles of Calvin (1856), pp. 77-82, elaborates on the story of the “last act” in Calvin’s life:

Let us, then, before we take our leave, draw near, and contemplate the last act in the drama of this great and good man's life. Methinks I see that emaciated frame, that sunken cheek, and that bright, ethereal eye, as Calvin lay upon his study-couch. He heeds not the agonies of his frame, his vigorous mind rising in its power as the outward man perished in decay. The nearer he approached his end, the more energetically did he ply his unremitted studies. In his severest pains he would raise his eyes to heaven and say, How long, Lord! and then resume his efforts. When urged to allow himself repose, he would say, 'What! would you that when the Lord comes he should surprise me in idleness?' Some of his most important and laboured commentaries were therefore finished during this last year.

On the 10th of March, his brother ministers coming to him, with a kind and cheerful countenance he warmly thanked them for all their kindness, and hoped to meet them at their regular Assembly for the last time, when he thought the Lord would probably take him to himself. On the 27th, he caused himself to be carried to the senate-house, and being supported by his friends, he walked into the hall, when, uncovering his head, he returned thanks for all the kindness they had shown him, especially during his sickness. With a faltering voice, he then added, 'I think I have entered this house for the last time,' and, mid flowing tears, took his leave. On the 2d of April, he was carried to the church, where he received the sacrament at the hands of [Theodore] Beza, joining in the hymn with such an expression of joy in his countenance, as attracted the notice of the congregation. Having made his will on the 27th of this month, he sent to inform the syndics and the members of the senate that he desired once more to address them in their hall, whither he wished to be carried the next day. They sent him word that they would wait on him, which they accordingly did, the next day, coming to him from the senate-house. After mutual salutations, he proceeded to address them very solemnly for some time, and having prayed for them, shook hands with each of them, who were bathed in tears, and parted from him as from a common parent. The following day, April 28th, according to his desire, all the ministers in the jurisdiction of Geneva came to him, whom he also addressed: 'I avow,'' he said, 'that I have lived united with you, brethren, in the strictest bonds of true and sincere affection, and I take my leave of you with the same feelings. If you have at any time found me harsh or peevish under my affliction, I entreat your forgiveness.'  Having shook hands with them, we took leave of him, says Beza, 'with sad hearts and by no means with dry eyes.'

'The remainder of his days,' as Beza informs us, 'Calvin passed in almost perpetual prayer. His voice was interrupted by the difficulty of his respiration; but his eyes (which to the last retained their brilliancy,) uplifted to heaven, and the expression of his countenance, showed the fervour of his supplications. His doors,' Beza proceeds to say, 'must have stood open day and night, if all had been admitted who, from sentiments of duty and affection, wished to see him, but as he could not speak to them, he requested they would testify their regard by praying for him, rather than by troubling themselves about seeing him. Often, also, though he ever showed himself glad to receive me, he intimated a scruple respecting the interruption thus given to my employments; so thrifty was he of time which ought to be spent in the service of the Church.'

On the 19th of May, being the day the ministers assembled, and when they were accustomed to take a meal together, Calvin requested that they should sup in the hall of his house. Being seated, he was with much difficulty carried into the hall. 'I have come, my brethren,' said he, 'to sit with you, for the last time, at this table.' But before long, he said, 'I must be carried to my bed;' adding, as he looked around upon them with a serene and pleasant countenance, 'these walls will not prevent my union with you in spirit, although my body be absent.' He never afterwards left his bed. On the 27th of May, about eight o'clock in the evening, the symptoms of dissolution came suddenly on. In the full possession of his reason, he continued to speak, until, without a struggle or a gasp, his lungs ceased to play, and this great luminary of the Reformation set, with the setting sun, to rise again in the firmament of heaven. The dark shadows of mourning settled upon the city. It was with the whole people a night of lamentation and tears. All could bewail their loss; the city her best citizen, the church her renovator and guide, the college her founder, the cause of reform its ablest champion, and every family a friend and comforter. It was necessary to exclude the crowds of visitors who came to behold his remains, lest the occasion might be misrepresented. At two o'clock in the afternoon of Sabbath, his body, enclosed in a wooden coffin, and followed by the syndics, senators, pastors, professors, together with almost the whole city, weeping as they went, was carried to the common burying ground, without pomp. According to his request, no monument was erected to his memory; a plain stone, without any inscription, being all that covered the remains of Calvin.

Such was Calvin in his life and in his death. The place of his burial is unknown, but where is his fame unheard?

The actual precise location of John Calvin’s grave is unknown, but this spot in the Cimetière de Plainpalais in Geneva honors his memory.

And thus a great man lived and died, although unwilling to have his earthly remains become a shrine, yet leaving a legacy that many still cherish.

Note: This is an updated version of a post that was first published on May 27, 2018.

A Classic of English Literature Was Born on This Day in History: April 25, 1719

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“All our Discontents about what we want, appeared to me, to spring from the want of Thankfulness for what we have….‘Tis never too late to be wise.” — Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe (1719, 1868), pp. 131-132, 178

The classic tale of Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe was first published on April 25, 1719. Supposedly inspired by the real-life experiences of castaway Alexander Selkirk, Defoe’s novel pioneered the literary genre now known as the Robinsonade.

While the story of Crusoe’s adventures on the island and his later travels all around the world are legendary, the life of the author is in many ways just as intriguing, as James O. Murray tells us in The Author of Robinson Crusoe (1890). Daniel Defoe (1660-1731) lived through tumultuous times in English politics, and used his pen to craft some of the most memorable stories in English literature, often with a satirical wit biting enough to land him in prison. He was a Protestant dissenter who seems to have borrowed the last name of his protagonist from his friend and classmate, Puritan Timothy Cruso, author of God the Guide of Youth (1695), a sermon whose passages in some cases are mirrored in Robinson Crusoe.

I am monarch of all I survey,
My right there is none to dispute;
From the centre all round to the sea
I am lord of the fowl and the brute.
O Solitude! where are the charms
That sages have seen in thy face?
Better dwell in the midst of alarms
Than reign in this horrible place.
…
There's mercy in every place,
And mercy, encouraging thought!
Gives even affliction a grace,
And reconciles man to his lot. — William Cowper, Verses, Supposed to be Written by Alexander Selkirk, During His Solitary Abode in the Island of Juan Fernandez (1793)

An 1820 edition of Robinson Crusoe was published in Latin by Joseph P. Engles, author of the Catechism For Young Children. As a young man, Timothy Flint “was extravagantly fond of books of voyages and of travels. He disliked the cities and delighted to imagine himself in the position of Robinson Crusoe” (Timothy Flint: Pioneer, Missionary, Author, Editor, 1780-1840 [1911], p. 33). Robinson Crusoe was a favorite read of the future pastor of the Old Pine Street Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, Thomas Brainerd (Life of Rev. Thomas Brainerd, D.D., For Thirty Years Pastor of Old Pine Street Church, Philadelphia [1870], p. 21). Missionary William P. Alexander once visited “Juan Fernandez, the famous residence of Alexander Selkirk, alias Robinson Crusoe” in 1832 (Mission Life in Hawaii: Memoir of Rev. William P. Alexander [1888], p. 31). Southern Presbyterian minister and author F.R. Goulding was directly inspired by Defoe to write Robert and Harold: or, The Young Marooners on the Florida Coast (1852). W.G.T. Shedd’s edition of the works of Samuel Taylor Coleridge (Vol. 4 [1856]) includes Coleridge’s notes on Robinson Crusoe. Thomas Smyth wrote of the literature he enjoyed in his youth, remarking that “Robinson Crusoe was a great favourite” (Autobiographical Notes, p. 11, [1914]). Henry H. Jessup reports sharing an Arabic translation of Robinson Crusoe with a gentleman in Fifty-Three Years in Syria, Vol. 1 (1910). James F. and Harriet H. Holcomb wrote of the influence of Robinson Crusoe in their missionary experiences in In the Heart of India; or, Beginnings of Missionary Work in Bundela Land (1905), pp. 186-187.

These are but a fraction of the known references to this literary classic among Presbyterian authors at Log College Press. A book whose influence has spanned the globe and inspired millions is worthy of remembrance on this day in history. Happy birthday, Robinson Crusoe!

American Presbyterians and Freemasonry

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Anyone who has followed the National Treasure saga (two movies starring Nicolas Cage and a Disney+ show that has recently aired) will recall the Masonic background to the plot, and may recall an adventure that took place in the graveyard at the Old Pine Street Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia (where Archibald Alexander* (1772-1851) once served as pastor). The question of the relationship between American Presbyterians and Freemasonry is raised by such a story, and it turns out the connections are rather intriguing.

As a secret society, Freemasonry has fallen under the condemnation of such denominations as the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America and the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. The RPCNA specifically targeted “secret oath-bound societies and orders” in the Covenant of 1871, declaring that they were “ensnaring in their nature, pernicious in their tendency, and perilous to the liberties of both Church and State.” W.M. Glasgow, in History of the Reformed Presbyterian Church (1888), wrote that “The Reformed Presbyterian Church has always excluded members of oath-bound secret societies from her Communion” (p. 135). The OPC officially expressed its disapprobation of Freemasonry in a 1942 report by a committee chaired by R.B. Kuiper titled “Christ or the Lodge?”, concluding that “membership in the Masonic fraternity is inconsistent with Christianity.” Other denominations have addressed (or continue to address) the issue membership of Christian in the Masonic fraternity, but not as decisively (see the 1987 report of the Ad-Interim Committee to Study Freemasonry in the Presbyterian Church in America, for example).

Freemasonry in America dates back to colonial times. At least nine signers of the 1776 Declaration of Independence were Freemasons, including Benjamin Franklin and Richard Stockton (1730-1781). At least nine signers of the 1787 U.S. Constitution were Freemasons, including George Washington.

Washington occasionally worshiped and attended Masonic meetings at the Old Presbyterian Meetinghouse in Alexandria, Virginia, where James Muir (1757-1820) served as pastor from 1789 to 1820. Muir also served as chaplain of the Masonic Lodge, and participated in the Masonic ceremonies that attended the death of Washington. William B. McGroarty writes that "The Old Meeting House is often spoken of as the Masonic Westminster Abbey, because of the number of distinguished Masons buried in and near it" (The Old Presbyterian Meeting House at Alexandria, Virginia, 1774-1874, p. 58).

William McWhir (1759-1851), a friend of Washington who taught some of Washington’s nephews at McWhir’s Alexandria academy preached a sermon at the Masonic Lodge in Alexandria on December 27, 1785 (source: The Lodge of Washington: A History of the Alexandria Washington Lodge, No. 22, A.F. and A.M. of Alexandria, Va. 1783-1876 (1876), p. 75).

Alexander MacWhorter (1734-1807) was a Freemason, and preached at Washington’s funeral (source: Steven C. Bullock, Revolutionary Brotherhood: Freemasonry and the Transformation of the American Social Order, 1730-1840 (1996), p. 176).

John Rodgers (1727-1811), first moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, delivered a sermon at a Masonic Lodge in 1779: Holiness the Nature and Design of the Gospel of Christ: A Sermon, Preached at Stockbridge, June 24, 1779, Before the Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons, of Berkshire County, State of Massachusetts, and Published at Their Request [not yet available at LCP].

David Austin (1759-1831), who published four volumes of The American Preacher, also wrote Masonry in its Glory: or Solomon's Temple Illuminated: Discerned Through the Flashes of Prophetic Light, Now Darting Through the Region of the Blazing Star, to Lie at the Threshold of the Temple of God, During the Glory of the Latter Day: -- Waiting the Rays of the Seven Lamps, that the Light of its Existence Might Break Forth (1799) [not yet available on LCP, but it can be read here].

In 1794, David McClure (1748-1820), who also delivered a discourse at Washington’s funeral, preached two sermons at Masonic Lodges: A Sermon, Delivered at the Installation of the Morning-Star Lodge, of Free Masons: in East-Windsor, Connecticut, August 21, 1794; and A Sermon, Delivered at the Installation of Village Lodge, of Free Masons: in Simsbury, Connecticut, October 7th, 1794 [not yet available on LCP].

Samuel Miller (1769-1850), a Freemason, preached A Discourse Delivered in the New Presbyterian Church, New-York: Before the Grand Lodge of the State of New-York. And the Brethren of that Fraternity, Assembled in General Communication, on the Festival of St. John the Baptist, June 24th, 1795, a sermon that he sent to George Washington (Miller delivered a discourse upon Washington’s death as well). Miller’s son sheds valuable insight into Miller’s views on Freemasonry, which changed over time:

Before this date, probably soon after his settlement in New York, Mr. Miller joined the Masonic order; he seems to have taken, for years, an active part in its proceedings, and a deep interest in its prosperity: and he reached the dignity of a Royal Arch Mason. His discourse seems to prove, that his confidence had been already shaken, if not in some of the principles of the order, at least in its practical results. But whatever may be thus inferred as to his views of Masonry at this time, certain it is that subsequently — perhaps from the date of his removal to Princeton, where there was no Masonic lodge — he renounced all connexion with the order; at least he never attended their meetings; and that he distinctly, carefully, and emphatically advised his sons not to become Masons. Whether the abduction of Morgan, in 1826, which brought a reproach upon the institution from which it has never recovered, and probably sealed its doom in the United States, had any influence, even to deepen his disapprobation, cannot now, perhaps, be determined. But probably his more mature reflections satisfied him, that such a secret order was incompatible with the spirit of good civil government, and especially of free institutions; and that too easily it might be made a cloak for disorderly, seditious, and treasonable designs; might be abused to base party purposes: might become the active enemy of sound morals, pure Christianity, and the Church of Christ; while it must, naturally, ever prove, in some sort, and in a greater or less degree, a rival of that Church, by proposing its own principles as a sufficient religion, drawing men away from church intercourse and worship, and suggesting, by its very existence, that the institutions of Christianity were not adequate to the fulfilment of the grand philanthropic purposes, for which they were founded. If this order might interfere with the normal workings of the commonwealth, it might interfere much more with those of the Redeemer’s visible kingdom (Samuel Miller, Jr., The Life of Samuel Miller, D.D., LL.D., Vol. 1, p. 99).

Another Presbyterian who once took an active role in Freemasonry but later took on role in opposition to the Masonic Order is William Wirt (1772-1834). He took the first two degrees in the Masonic Rite at a lodge in Richmond, Virginia, but after the 1826 Morgan affair alluded to above (William Morgan had announced his intention to publish a book exposing the secrets of Freemasonry and was soon after abducted and murdered), Wirt was persuaded to accept the 1831 nomination for U.S. President from the Anti-Masonic Party. He was a reluctant nominee, and his campaign was unsuccessful. He died just a few years later.

Aaron Whitney Leland (1787-1871) delivered A Discourse Delivered on the 27th, December, 1815, Before the Grand Lodge of South-Carolina.

Hooper Cumming (1788-1825) preached an Independence Day sermon before a Masonic Lodge: A Sermon, Delivered at Schoharie, Before the Grand Lodge, at the Installation of Hicks Lodge No. 305, July 4th, 1818.

One of the first publications by Robert Jefferson Breckinridge (1800-1871) was A Masonic Oration: Delivered Before the Grand Lodge of Kentucky at Its Annual Communication in Lexington, on the 26th of August, A.D. 1828. He achieved the rank of Grand Orator of the Grand Lodge of Kentucky (source: John Winston Coleman, Masonry in the Bluegrass: Being an Authentic Account of Masonry in Lexington and Fayette County, Kentucky, 1788-1933 (1933), p. 208).

William Stephen Potts (1802-1852) published A Masonic Discourse, Delivered Before the Missouri Lodge, No. 1, on St. John's Day, at St. Louis, 1828 [not yet available on LCP].

U.S. President Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) was a well-known Freemason. “Jackson was initiated into Harmony Lodge No. 1 in Tennessee. He would be instrumental in founding other lodges in the state. He was the only President to have been a Grand Master of the state until Harry S. Truman in 1945 (source).

A biographical sketch of Obadiah Jennings (1778-1832) published in the Masonic Voice Review (Jan. 1859) indicates that not only was Jennings a dedicated Mason, but also that “Through the unbounded influence of Rev. Bro. Jennings, the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, when the question of Masonry was presented to them, immediately postponed its consideration for two reasons: 1st. Because some of their own excellent Divines and members were Masons, and 2d. That they had not sufficient information upon the subject.”

John Matthews (1772-1848) delivered A Sermon Preached Before a Lodge of Freemasons [not yet available on LCP] (see William B. Sprague, Annals of the American Pulpit, Vol. 4, p. 294).

Colin McIver (1784-1850) was a member of and chaplain for the Masonic Order (source).

George Musgrave Giger (1822-1865, translator of Francis Turretin’s Institutes, was a Freemason while at Princeton. After his death a tribute was published: Proceedings of the Sorrow Lodge: and the Address Delivered in Honor of the Memory of Bro. George Musgrave Giger, D.D., December 20, 1865.

Thomas Rice Welch (1825-1886) was a prominent Mason in Arkansas (source).

Thomas Henry Amos (1826-1869) served as Deputy Grand Master of the Grand Masonic Lodge of Liberia, which he co-founded in 1867 (source: Cheryl R. Gooch, On Africa's Lands: The Forgotten Stories of Two Lincoln-Educated Missionaries in Liberia (2014), p. 119).

Jonathan Greenleaf (1785-1865) served as chaplain of the Grand Lodge of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (source: Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of the Most Ancient and Honorable Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons, of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (1856), p. 115).

James Henley Thornwell II (1846-1907) was a Grand Secretary of the Masonic Order of the Eastern Star in South Carolina (source).

Arista Hoge (1847-1923), businessman and historian of the First Presbyterian Church of Staunton, Virginia, was a “Knight Templar Mason” (source).

John Simonson Howk (1862-1942) was a prominent Indiana Presbyterian minister and a member of a Masonic Lodge (source: Lewis C. Baird, Baird’s History of Clark County, Indiana (1909), p. 792),

The Belk Brothers were both prominent Freemasons. John Montgomery Belk (1864-1928) was a thirty-second degree Scottish Rite Mason. He had also been active in Pythian ranks in former years (source). William Henry Belk (1862-1952) was a member of the Scottish and York Rite Masons  and the Order of the Mystic Shrine (source).

Lucien V. Rule (1871-1948), a Freemason, wrote Pioneering in Masonry: The Life and Times of Rob Morris, Masonic Poet Laureate; Together With the Story of Clara Barton and the Eastern Star (1920).

Ralph Earl Prime (1840-1920) was a Freemason from 1865 forward. In 1879, he served as District Deputy Grand Master of the Ninth Masonic District, comprised of Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess Counties in New York (source: Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the State of New York (1923), p. 19).

James Naismith (1861-1939), Presbyterian minister and inventor of basketball, was also a Freemason (source).

There were some notable opponents of Freemasonry within the early American Presbyterian Church. Lebbeus Armstrong (1775-1860) was very passionate on the subject and wrote The Man of Sin Revealed, or, The Total Overthrow of the Institution of Freemasonry: Predicted by St. Paul, and Now Fulfilling: Illustrated, and Proved, in a Sermon on II. Thessalonians, II. 8 (1829); Masonry Proved to be a Work of Darkness (1831), and William Morgan, Abducted and Murdered by Masons, in Conformity with Masonic Obligations: and Masonic Measures, to Conceal that Outrage Against the Laws: a Practical Comment on the Sin of Cain: Illustrated and Proved in a Sermon (1831) [Masonry Proved to be a Work of Darkness is available on LCP].

Charles G. Finney (1792-1875) published The Character, Claims and Practical Workings of Freemasonry (1869). In this book Finney aims to thwart the spread of Freemasonry and acknowledges having once been a Mason himself.

Several Presbyterian authors have written against secret societies generally, including Thomas Smyth (1808-1873), James McCosh (1811-1894), David MacDill (1826-1903), James Harper (1823-1913), Robert J. George (1844-1911) [see his Lectures on Pastoral Theology, Vol. 3] and H.H. George (1833-1914). Robert E. Thompson (1844-1924) has written on The Origin of Free Masonry (1871).

As we have already well exceeded the length of a normal LCP blog post, we will rest here having only highlighted some particular historical connections to Freemasonry within American Presbyterianism of special interest. Much more could be said and further avenues explored (for example, the note concerning Obadiah Jennings’ efforts to have the PCUSA General Assembly table the question of Masonry). It is both a mixed picture that we present and a controversial subject for many, but we have strived to represent individuals correctly and without going beyond what can be ascertained factually. We welcome any needful corrections as to the statements above. As to the merits or not of Freemasonry, we have not attempted to analyze its distinctive teachings in this article, but we would refer the reader to Kuiper’s Christ or the Lodge?, among the many resources already cited.

* We have not confirmed that Archibald Alexander was ever a Freemason. However, there is a hint that this may have been the case in James H. Moorhead, Princeton Seminary in American Religion and Culture (2012), p. 81: “Moreover, there was the example of Freemasonry — the secret society par excellence — which was growing dramatically at this time with its promise to promote benevolent ends for all. In any event, the secrecy of the Brotherhood was scarcely seen to be subversive by the faculty, who were sometimes party to it. As one student remarked, he was taken into the inner circle — ‘a wheel within a wheel’ — of the secret society — and on several occasions ‘Dr. Alexander…met with us in this inside organization, and we got from him a great deal of useful instruction and advice.’”

What's New at Log College Press? - October 18, 2022

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Here is an October report on what’s been going on lately at Log College Press.

In September 2022, we added 370 new works to the site. There are now over 16,000 free works available at LCP. Today we are putting the spotlight on some of the new free PDFs available as found on our Recent Additions and Early Access pages, two features provided to members of the Dead Presbyterians Society.

Some highlights at the Early Access page:

  • John Moorhead and Ebenezer Pemberton, Jr. were among several New England ministers who attested to the originality of the 1773 landmark volume of poetry by Phillis Wheatley titled Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral;

  • James Porter Smith, An Open Door in Brazil: Being a Brief Survey of the Mission Work Carried on in Brazil Since 1869 by the Presbyterian Church in the United States (1925);

  • Charles Stelzle’s autobiography, A Son of the Bowery: The Life Story of an East Side America (1926);

  • Some new discourses by William B. Sprague; and

  • several works by James Renwick Willson, including the complete run of The Evangelical Witness (1822-1826).

Some highlights at the Recent Addtiions page:

  • John Breckinridge, The Annual of the Board of Education of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States, Vol. 1 (1832), a remarkable compilation of valuable discourses;

  • Dozens of new works — including many biographical sketches — by Louis Meyer, the Jewish Reformed Presbyterian minister, who also served as an editor for The Fundamentals;

  • Dozens of articles and sermons by Thomas Smyth; and

  • Thomas Cary Johnson, God’s Answer to Evolution (1924).

Be sure also to check out the quotes we have been adding at our blog for DPS members: Though Dead They Still Speak, including A.A. Hodge on God’s moral law; C.W. Grafton on the design of the Christian Sabbath; and a set of quotes from the ecclesiastical catechisms of Alexander McLeod and Thomas Smyth on the divine right of Presbyterianism.

In general, we have also been seeking to add biographical information and photos to author pages that have been around for a while, giving many of them a fresh look and more usefulness to our readers.

Please feel free to browse the many resources available to our readers in print and in digital format. There is a lot to explore, and many Presbyterian voices from the past to hear. Thank you, as always, for your interest and support, dear friends.

A Reformation Day Remembrance

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To commemorate what is arguably the greatest event in church history since Pentecost, Log College Press wishes to highlight select works by early American Presbyterians which relate to the 504th anniversary of the Reformation:

  • Archibald Alexander (1772-1851) — The Doctrine of Original Sin as Held by the Church, Both Before and After the Reformation (1830) and Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms (1836) — These articles speak to important issues and moments related to the Protestant Reformation.

  • James Waddel Alexander (1804-1859) — Martin Luther Incognito (1836) and The Reformation in Hungary and Transylvania (1837) — The second article covers an important but less well-known aspect of the Reformation; the first is a translation from Philip Konrad Marheineke’s History of the German Reformation dealing with the period between Luther’s appearance at the Diet of Worms and his return to the Castle Wartburg.

  • Henry Martyn Baird (1832-1906) — Theodore Beza: The Counsellor of the French Reformation, 1519-1605 (1899) – The classic biography of the French Reformer Theodore Beza, who became Geneva’s spiritual leader after the death of John Calvin.

  • William Maxwell Blackburn (1828-1898) — Aonio Paleario and His Friends, With a Revised Edition of "The Benefits of Christ's Death" (1866) — This is an interesting work which contains both a biography of the Italian Reformer, Paleario, and an edited version of the great Italian spiritual classic that was long attributed to him (modern scholarship now attributes authorship of “The Benefit of Christ” to Benedetto Fontanini, also known as Benedetto da Mantova (1495-1556)). — William Farel, and the Story of the Swiss Reform (1867) — A fascinating look at the life of the Swiss Reformer, William Farel, who with his friend John Calvin, so influenced Geneva and the world. —Ulrich Zwingli (1868) — The life of another great Swiss Reformer, Ulrich Zwingli.

  • Ezra Hall Gillett (1823-1875) —The Life and Times of John Huss (1864) — This is a good introduction to the Bohemian (Czech) proto-Reformer, John Huss.

  • Joel Tyler Headley (1813-1897) — Luther and Cromwell (1850) — Two famous Reformers and the parallels in their stories.

  • Thomas Cary Johnson (1859-1936) — John Calvin and the Genevan Reformation (1900) — An important biography of the great French Reformer and spiritual leader of Geneva, John Calvin. — Martin Luther: Who Was He, That the World Should Remember Him From Time to Time With Praise to God? (1909-1910) - A valuable sketch of the great Reformer.

  • Frederick William Loetscher, Sr. (1875-1966) — Luther and the Problem of Authority in Religion Parts 1-2 (1917) — Loetscher addresses (on the 400th anniversary of the Reformation) a fundamental issue with which the Reformers wrestled.

  • William Carlos Martyn (1841-1917) — The Life and Times of Martin Luther (1866) — A great 19th century biography of the German Reformer. —The Dutch Reformation (1868) – A good overview of the Reformation in the Netherlands.

  • John William Mears (1825-1881) — The Beggars of Holland and the Grandees of Spain: A History of the Reformation in the Netherlands, From A.D. 1200 to 1578 (1867) — This is another comprehensive look at the Dutch Reformation, and in particular, what lead up to it.

  • Samuel Miller (1769-1850) — Introductory Essay to Charles de Viller's An Essay on the Spirit and Influence of the Reformation (1833) — As Miller writes, “The Reformation from Popery is a theme which can never grow old.”

  • Thomas Ephraim Peck (1822-1893) — Martin Luther (1895) — This biographical lecture about the great Reformer was originally delivered in 1872, and is here found in Vol. 1 of Peck’s Miscellanies.

  • Richard Clark Reed (1851-1925) — Calvin’s Contribution to the Reformation (1909) — This was Reed’s part in the Southern Presbyterian Church’s celebration of the 400th anniversary of John Calvin’s birth.

  • William Childs Robinson (1897-1982) — The Reformation: A Rediscovery of Grace (1962) — Valuable alumni lectures delivered at Columbia Theological Seminary on various aspects of the Reformation.

  • Robert Fleming Sample (1829-1905) — Beacon-Lights of the Reformation; or, Romanism and the Reformers (1889) — The story of the long combat against Romanism.

  • David Schley Schaff (1852-1941) — Martin Luther and John Calvin, Church Reformers (1917) — Written for the 400th anniversary of the Reformation, the younger Schaff highlights the two great Reformers.

  • Philip Schaff (1819-1893) — Calvin’s Life and Labors (1875) — The elder Schaff looks at the life and legacy of the French Reformer. — History of the Christian Church, Vol. 6 (1888, 1904) and History of the Christian Church, Vol. 7 (1892) — These volumes cover the history of the German and Swiss Reformation.

  • Thomas Smyth (1808-1873) - Calvin and His Enemies: A Memoir of the Life, Character, and Principles of Calvin (1856) — An important memoir of one the greatest Reformers, which covers challenging aspects of his life and career, including the case of Servetus.

  • Joseph Ross Stevenson (1866-1939) — The Reformation: A Revival of Religion (1917) — A reminder of what reformation means.

  • Cornelius Van Til (1895-1987) — Review of Martin Luther, The Bondage of the Will (1931) — A fresh look at a classic of Christian literature.

  • B.B. Warfield (1851-1921) — John Calvin: The Man and His Work (1909) — Warfield’s homage to the French Reformer on the occasion of the 400th anniversary of Calvin’s birth. — The Ninety-Five Theses in Their Theological Significance  (1917) — Originally published in The Princeton Theological Review in honor of the 400th anniversary of the Reformation, this is a fascinating study of the document by Martin Luther that launched the Reformation on October 31, 1517. — The Theology of the Reformation (1917) — Warfield looks at the key doctrines that figured in the thinking of Martin Luther. — Review of four works by D. Hay Fleming: The Story of the Scottish Covenants (1905); The Scottish Reformation (1905); The Reformation in Scotland (1910); and The Last Days of John Knox (1914) — An appreciation of the writings of a great Reformation scholar.

  • Robert Alexander Webb (1856-1919) — The Reformation and the Lord’s Supper (1917) — Webb looks at a crucial aspect of worship that was important to the Reformation.

  • Julia McNair Wright (1840-1903) — Her series of biographies for young people published in 1870 includes sketches of George Wishart, John Knox, Martin Luther, Queen Margaret, John Calvin, Renée, William Tyndale, Richard Baxter, John Huss and Gaspard de Coligni.

We have much reason to be thankful for the men and women both of the 16th centuries and those more recent who all contributed to the cause of Reformation in their own ways. From Log College Press, we wish you a Happy Reformation Day, and happy reading!

Note: This blog post was originally published on October 31, 2017, and has been edited and expanded.

Log College Press Remembers Thomas Chalmers

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Who is Thomas Chalmers, and what was his significance to 19th century American Presbyterianism?

Thomas Chalmers (1780-1847) was a Scottish Presbyterian churchman and a leader of the Free Church of Scotland, founded after the 1843 “Disruption.” A man of many interests and gifts, he contributed much to the church and the community in which he served. He is known for his eloquent sermons, his voluminous and edifying theological writings, and for his “West Port Experiment” in Edinburgh (1844-1847). He died on May 31, 1847.

J.W. Alexander highly commended the sermons of Thomas Chalmers and Samuel Davies (Letters, Vol. 1, p. 74).

Charles A. Aiken, in his 1879 Tribute to Charles Hodge, wrote that

It was my high privilege to spend with Dr. Chalmers the last evening but one of his life, Saturday, May 28, 1847. At sunrise on the ensuing Monday, the cry rang through Edinburgh, Dr. Chalmers is dead! Not to go into the details of that memorable interview, let it suffice to say, as bearing upon the passage in the text, that I have never received a more cordial and hearty greeting than that with which, taking both my hands in his own, he welcomed me to Morning-side. He had returned from London only the day before, and spoke of himself as being in unusually good health. All the benevolence of his character came out in his genial smile. His courtesy, his affability, the tones of his voice, the graciousness and even warmth of his whole manner, as he talked with me of grave questions with which the Free Church Assembly, then in session, was likely to be agitated, and the kindliness with which, on my rising to leave, he pressed an invitation for us (the ladies of my party had remained at the hotel that evening) to breakfast with him, first on Tuesday and then on Monday morning — all this made a lasting impression upon me so grateful and so vivid that I cannot at all take in that disparaging estimate of his own social nature which I have quoted from his "Sabbath Readings."

While Chalmers lived, and after his death, American Presbyterians wrote often to him and of him. Below are just some of the writings available on Log College Press that concern Chalmers directly.

  • Archibald Alexander, The Works of Doctor Chalmers (1841) and Chalmers’ Mental and Moral Philosophy (1848);

  • J.W. Alexander, The Works of Doctor Chalmers (1841) and Chalmers on Education and Ecclesiastical Economy (1842) [“Chalmers’s experiential preaching and active social philanthropy were of special interest to Alexander in the urban ministry settings where he labored.” — James M. Garretson, Thoughts on Preaching & Pastoral Ministry: Lessons From the Life and Writings of James W. Alexander, p. 296, note 46];

  • Charles Hodge, An Earnest Appeal to the Free Church of Scotland, on the Subject of Economics (1847);

  • Clarence E.N. Macartney, Thomas Chalmers (1919);

  • James McCosh, A Tribute to the Memory of Dr. Chalmers, By a Former Pupil (1847);

  • Alexander McLeod, Review of Thomas Chalmers on Astronomy (1817) and Review of Two Sermons by Thomas Chalmers (1818);

  • James C. Moffat, Life of Thomas Chalmers (1853)';

  • John Holt Rice, August 14, 1819 Letter to Thomas Chalmers (1819, 1835);

  • Thomas Smyth, The Character of the Late Thomas Chalmers, D.D., LL.D. and the Lessons of His Life From Personal Recollections (1847-1848) in Vol. 3 of Smyth’s Works (1908); and

  • William B. Sprague, On the Life and Death of Thomas Chalmers (1847).

Some notable American Presbyterians were, presumably, named for the great Scottish churchman, such as John Thomas Chalmers and Thomas Chalmers Vinson.

Respect was directed both ways across the Atlantic. According to William B. Sprague, Chalmers thought of Samuel Miller’s 1831 essay on The Warrant, Nature, and Duties of the Office of the Ruling Elder as “the very best work that has been given to the church on that subject.” (A Discourse Commemorative of the Rev. Samuel Miller, D.D. (1850), p. 29). (An extract from Miller’s February 28, 1831 letter to Chalmers may be read in The Life of Samuel Miller, Vol. 2, p. 167.)

Chalmers was beloved by both Scottish and American Presbyterians, and many others. We remember him today as we recall his entrance into glory nearly two centuries ago. Read more about him, starting with Moffat’s Life of Chalmers, and the tributes to him by James McCosh, Thomas Smyth and William B. Sprague.

How They Kept the Faith: A Huguenot Tale by Annie R. Stillman

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A descendant of French Huguenots herself, Annie Raymond Stillman (1855-1922), niece of Charles A. Stillman (see below), and parishioner of Thomas Smyth (also see below), was the author of a noted work of historical fiction titled How They Kept the Faith: A Tale of the Huguenots of Languedoc (1889, 1899), a book which was republished by Inheritance Publications in the 1990s as part of their Huguenot Inheritance Series.

Biographical sketches of Miss Annie (she never married, and wrote under the pseudonym “Grace Raymond”) appear in Mary D. Irvine and Alice L. Eastwood, Pioneer Women of the Presbyterian Church, United States (1923) and Margaret A. Gist, Presbyterian Women of South Carolina (1929). The latter work is not yet available at Log College Press, but we can quote a portion concerning Miss Annie.

ANNIE RAYMOND STILLMAN OR “GRACE RAYMOND”

Any history of the outstanding women of Charleston Presbyterial is incomplete without some mention, however brief, of the author of “How They Kept the Faith.” The daughter of Alfred Raymond Stillman and Amelia H. Badeau, Anne Raymond Stillman was born on January 25, 1855, in Charleston and in the congregation of the Second Presbyterian Church, of which her father was an elder. During the latter part of the Confederate War the family refugeed in Summerville, but Miss Stillman received her education at the Memminger Normal School of Charleston, from which she was graduated in 1870.

Miss Stillman had begun to write before that time, but her first published work was a memorial poem to her pastor, Dr. Thomas Smyth, in 1873. After that many of her poems and children’s stories were written for the “Southern Presbyterian", always under the name “Grace Raymond”, while she wrote the Charleston “News and Courier” a story of the Confederate War called “Palm and Pine.” Her mother, through whom came Miss Stillman’s Huguenot blood and spirit, suggested the book which brought her into prominence as an author. “How They Kept the Faith” is an important contribution to the history of the martyred Huguenots and of Christianity. Mrs. Stillman also instilled in her daughter an enthusiasm for Foreign Missions.

The gradual failure of Miss Stillman’s sight delayed the completion of her book and prevented all reading, but it never was allowed to cloud her cheerful spirit or her heavenly vision. No photograph of her is available, but none who knew her in youth may forget that exquisite regular profile, the blond hair brought down, madonna-wise, on each side of the delicate face, the eyes veiled against the light, and the intent interest in sermon or talk.

Miss Stillman later resided in Tuscaloosa, near the institute founded by her distinguished uncle, Dr. Charles Stillman, but as with all good Charlestonians, her heart lived in Charleston and Charleston was the better for it. She lies with her people in the old burying-ground in the shadow of Second Church.

If you are seeking edifying and inspirational historical fiction to read, which begins with a poetic tribute to the author’s mother and the heroic Christians from whom she was descended, the story of two Huguenot families in 17th century France, is a good choice for readers young and old and can be read online here.

The Protestant Reformation in the Writings of 19th Century American Presbyterians

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To commemorate what is arguably the greatest event in church history since Pentecost, Log College Press wishes to highlight select works by early American Presbyterians which relate to the 503rd anniversary of the Reformation:

  • Archibald Alexander (1772-1851) — The Doctrine of Original Sin as Held by the Church, Both Before and After the Reformation (1830) and Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms (1836) — These articles speak to important issues and moments related to the Protestant Reformation.

  • James Waddel Alexander (1804-1859) — Martin Luther Incognito (1836) and The Reformation in Hungary and Transylvania (1837) — The second article covers an important but less well-known aspect of the Reformation; the first is a translation from Philip Konrad Marheineke’s History of the German Reformation dealing with the period between Luther’s appearance at the Diet of Worms and his return to the Castle Wartburg.

  • Henry Martyn Baird (1832-1906) — Theodore Beza: The Counsellor of the French Reformation, 1519-1605 (1899) – The classic biography of the French Reformer Theodore Beza, who became Geneva’s spiritual leader after the death of John Calvin.

  • William Maxwell Blackburn (1828-1898) — Aonio Paleario and His Friends, With a Revised Edition of "The Benefits of Christ's Death" (1866) — This is an interesting work which contains both a biography of the Italian Reformer, Paleario, and an edited version of the great Italian spiritual classic that was long attributed to him (modern scholarship now attributes authorship of “The Benefit of Christ” to Benedetto Fontanini, also known as Benedetto da Mantova (1495-1556)). — William Farel, and the Story of the Swiss Reform (1867) — A fascinating look at the life of the Swiss Reformer, William Farel, who with his friend John Calvin, so influenced Geneva and the world. —Ulrich Zwingli (1868) — The life of another great Swiss Reformer, Ulrich Zwingli.

  • Ezra Hall Gillett (1823-1875) —The Life and Times of John Huss (1864) — This is a good introduction to the Bohemian (Czech) proto-Reformer, John Huss.

  • Thomas Cary Johnson (1859-1936) — John Calvin and the Genevan Reformation (1900) — An important biography of the great French Reformer and spiritual leader of Geneva, John Calvin. — Martin Luther: Who Was He, That the World Should Remember Him From Time to Time With Praise to God? (1909-1910) - A valuable sketch of the great Reformer.

  • Frederick William Loetscher, Sr. (1875-1966) — Luther and the Problem of Authority in Religion Parts 1-2 (1917) — Loetscher addresses (on the 400th anniversary of the Reformation) a fundamental issue with which the Reformers wrestled.

  • William Carlos Martyn (1841-1917) — The Life and Times of Martin Luther (1866) — A great 19th century biography of the German Reformer. —The Dutch Reformation (1868) – A good overview of the Reformation in the Netherlands.

  • John William Mears (1825-1881) — The Beggars of Holland and the Grandees of Spain: A History of the Reformation in the Netherlands, From A.D. 1200 to 1578 (1867) — This is another comprehensive look at the Dutch Reformation, and in particular, what lead up to it.

  • Samuel Miller (1769-1850) — Introductory Essay to Charles de Viller's An Essay on the Spirit and Influence of the Reformation (1833) — As Miller writes, “The Reformation from Popery is a theme which can never grow old.”

  • Thomas Ephraim Peck (1822-1893) — Martin Luther (1895) — This biographical lecture about the great Reformer was originally delivered in 1872, and is here found in Vol. 1 of Peck’s Miscellanies.

  • Richard Clark Reed (1851-1925) — Calvin’s Contribution to the Reformation (1909) — This was Reed’s part in the Southern Presbyterian Church’s celebration of the 400th anniversary of John Calvin’s birth.

  • David Schley Schaff (1852-1941) — Martin Luther and John Calvin, Church Reformers (1917) — Written for the 400th anniversary of the Reformation, the younger Schaff highlights the two great Reformers.

  • Philip Schaff (1819-1893) — Calvin’s Life and Labors (1875) — The elder Schaff looks at the life and legacy of the French Reformer. — History of the Christian Church, Vol. 6 (1888, 1904) and History of the Christian Church, Vol. 7 (1892) — These volumes cover the history of the German and Swiss Reformation.

  • Thomas Smyth (1808-1873) - Calvin and His Enemies: A Memoir of the Life, Character, and Principles of Calvin (1856) — An important memoir of one the greatest Reformers, which covers challenging aspects of his life and career, including the case of Servetus.

  • Joseph Ross Stevenson (1866-1939) — The Reformation: A Revival of Religion (1917) — A reminder of what reformation means.

  • B.B. Warfield (1851-1921) — John Calvin: The Man and His Work (1909) — Warfield’s homage to the French Reformer on the occasion of the 400th anniversary of Calvin’s birth. — The Ninety-Five Theses in Their Theological Significance  (1917) — Originally published in The Princeton Theological Review in honor of the 400th anniversary of the Reformation, this is a fascinating study of the document by Martin Luther that launched the Reformation on October 31, 1517. — The Theology of the Reformation (1917) — Warfield looks at the key doctrines that figured in the thinking of Martin Luther.

  • Robert Alexander Webb (1856-1919) — The Reformation and the Lord’s Supper (1917) — Webb looks at a crucial aspect of worship that was important to the Reformation.

  • Julia McNair Wright (1840-1903) — Her series of biographies for young people published in 1870 includes sketches of George Wishart, John Knox, Martin Luther, Queen Margaret, John Calvin, Renée, William Tyndale, Richard Baxter, John Huss and Gaspard de Coligni.

We have much reason to be thankful for the men and women both of the 16th centuries and those more recent who all contributed to the cause of Reformation in their own ways. From Log College Press, we wish you a Happy Reformation Day, and happy reading!

Note: This blog post was originally published on October 31, 2017, and has been edited and expanded.

No God in the Constitution

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The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God (Ps. 9:17).

A concern of many 19th century Presbyterians regarding the American Constitution is that it omits any reverent acknowledgement of God Almighty. The failure to honor the God of nations in our national charter was noted in a previous post highlighting the remarks of George Duffield IV and George Junkin. Today’s post highlights a remark attributed to Vice-President Alexander Hamilton. The omission of God in the U.S. Constitution was noticed by Presbyterians even outside of the Covenanter Church (which from the beginning of America’s founding as a nation until the 1960’s held to the position of political dissent) very early in American history as we shall see.

Appended to Thomas Smyth’s 1860 sermon The Sin and the Curse are comments regarding this defect of the U.S. Constitution.

No God in the Constitution

“The name of God does not occur in the Constitution which they framed, nor any recognition of Divine Providence.”

As a fitting accompaniment to an article in last week’s Observer, of which the closing period forms an appropriate title to still another item of history, connected with the same subject, some of your readers wil be, perhaps, interested in an extract or two from one of the many Congratulatory Addresses presented to President Washington on his election as First President under the new Constitution, with his reply.

“The First Presbytery of the Eastward,” in their “Address to George Washington, President of the United States, after many pious congratulations, &c., proceed thus:

“Whatever any have supposed wanting in the original plan” [of the Constitution], “we are happy to see so wisely provided in its amendments; and it is with peculiar satisfaction that we behold how easily the entire confidence of the people, in the man who sits at the helm of government, has eradicated every remaing objection to its form.

“Among these we never considered the want of a religious test, that grand engine of persecution in every tyrant’s hand: but we should not have been alone in rejoicing, to have some explicit acknowledgment of the only true God and Jesus Christ whom He hath sent, inserted somewhere in the Magna Charta of our country, &c., &c.

“October 28, 1789.”
…
The venerable Dr. [John] Rodgers once met Alexander Hamilton, soon after the adoption of the Constitution of the United States and said to him, “Mr. Hamilton, I am grieved to see that you have neglected to acknowledge God in the Constitution.” Hamilton replied, “My dear sir, we forgot to do it.”

George Duffield V also took note of the reported conversation between John Rodgers and Alexander Hamilton in The God of Our Fathers: An Historical Sermon (1861).

Hamilton said to Dr. Rodgers, “Indeed, Dr., we forgot it!”

In the same sermon Duffield quotes the words of John Mitchell Mason:

“That no notice whatever should be taken of that God who planteth a nation, and plucketh it up at his pleasure, is an omission which no pretext whatever can palliate. Had such a momentous business been transacted by Mohammedans, they would have begun, “In the name of God.” Even the savages, whom we despise, setting a better example, would have paid some homage to the Great Spirit. But from the Constitution of the United States, it is impossible to ascertain what God we worship; or whether we own a God at all. * * Should the citizens of America be as irreligious as her Constitution, we will have reason to tremble, lest the Governor of the Universe, who will not be treated with indignity by a people, any more than by individuals, overturn, from its foundation, the fabric we have been rearing, and crush us to atoms in the wreck.” — Works of J.M. Mason, D.D., Vol. i., p. 50.

Hamilton’s biographer Ron Chernow, when speaking of the story of Hamilton’s quip about forgetting God, says: “One is tempted to reply that Alexander Hamilton never forgot anything important” (Alexander Hamilton, p. 235). James Renwick Willson would concur.

There is no acknowledgment of Almighty God, nor any, even the most remote, token of national subjection to Jehovah, the Creator. It is believed, that there never existed, previous to this constitution, any national deed like this, since the creation of the world. A nation having no God! In vain shall we search the annals of pagan Greece and Rome, of modern Asia, Africa, pagan America, and the isles of the sea — they have all worshipped some God. The United States have none — But here let us pause over this astounding fact. Was it a mere omission? Did the convention that framed the constitution forget to name the living God? Was this an omission in some moment of national phrenzy, when the nation forgot God? That, indeed, were a great sin. God says, “the nations that forget God, shall be turned into hell.” It was not, however, a thoughtless act, an undesigned omission. It was a deliberate deed, whereby God was rejected; and in the true atheistical spirit of the whole instrument, and of course, done with intent to declare national independence of the Lord of hosts (Prince Messiah's Claims to Dominion Over All Governments; and the Disregard of His Authority by the United States, in the Federal Constitution (1832), p. 25).

Happy birthday to John Calvin!

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If you are Reformed, you probably know something about John Calvin. He is widely recognized as the author of the Institutes of Christian Religion (1536, 1559), and as the leader of the Reformed wing of the Reformation (in contrast to Martin Luther’s Lutheran wing). He was born in Noyon, France on July 10, 1509. Today is his birthday, and thus, Log College Press is celebrating with select resources about the man and his theology. Consider these works for an in-depth study of the man and his legacy.

John Calvin.jpg

As Calvin would say,

I have always been exceedingly delighted with the words of Chrysostom, “The foundation of our philosophy is humility;” and still more with those of Augustine, “As the orator, when asked, What is the first precept in eloquence? answered, Delivery: What is the second? Delivery: What the third? Delivery: so, if you ask me in regard to the precepts of the Christian Religion, I will answer, first, second, and third, Humility (Institutes 2.2.11).

As Reformed Christians, we do not exalt Calvin beyond measure, but we are thankful for the grace of God that accomplished so much good in his life. He was a very humble man, and that is seen in the writings referenced above which explore his life and many contributions to the world, and to the kingdom of God. We remember a good man today who was born over 500 years ago.

Pre-Eminent American Presbyterians of the 18th and 19th Centuries: A List

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The question is sometimes asked, “Who are the important or significant early American Presbyterians to know historically?” Another question that is often posed to Log College Press is ”Where should someone unfamiliar with this time period start?” These are difficult question to answer because the period of which we are speaking — primarily the 18th and 19th centuries — was so diverse and there are so many representative authors. But in an attempt to respond helpfully, as well as to introduce readers of Log College Press to some of the pre-eminent authors on our site, we have developed a list - or actually a set of lists. Lists are both subject to scrutiny and often have a subjective element, and this one can certainly be modified or adjusted as needed. But lists provide a starting point for discussion. Consider the following as our contribution in response to some excellent questions that challenge with their simplicity.

17th Century American Presbyterian Worthies

  • Francis Makemie (1658-1708) - Although Makemie was not the first Presbyterian minister to serve in the American colonies, because of his pioneering labors along the Eastern Seaboard, particularly in the establishment of the first Presbytery in America, he is often credited as “the Father of American Presbyterianism.”

18th Century American Presbyterian Worthies

  • David Brainerd (1718-1747) - A pioneer Presbyterian missionary who died young, his diary was reprinted by Jonathan Edwards and remains a spiritual classic.

  • Samuel Davies (1723-1761) - Davies accomplished much in a short life, contributing significantly to the Great Awakening as a pioneer minister in Virginia and as President of the College of New Jersey (Princeton).

  • Jonathan Dickinson (1688-1747) - Dickinson was the first President of the College of New Jersey and an important voice in American colonial Presbyterianism.

  • John Mitchell Mason (1770-1829) - Mason was a leading figure in the Associate Reformed Church.

  • David Rice (1733-1816) - An early Presbyterian opponent of slavery, “Father Rice” helped to build the Presbyterian Church in Virginia and Kentucky.

  • John Rodgers (1727-1811) - An early colleague of Samuel Davies, Rodgers went on to play a very influential role in the establishment of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America.

  • Archibald Stobo (c. 1670-1741) - Stobo helped to found the first Presbytery in the New World (Panama) and the first Presbytery in the Southern United States (South Carolina).

  • Gilbert Tennent (1703-1764) - The son of the founder of the original Log College, Gilbert Tennent was also known as the “Son of Thunder.” A New-Side adherent, he was involved in both the 1741 split of the Presbyterian church and the 1758 reunion.

  • William Tennent, Sr. (1673-1746) - The Founder of the original Log College seminary was a major force in the early American Presbyterian Church who left a legacy of well-educated ministers and many academies and schools which trace their roots to his labors.

  • John Thomson (1690-1753) - The architect of the Adopting Act of 1729, which influenced the course of the American Presbyterian Church tremendously, Thomson was an Old Side minister who served different pastorates throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.

  • John Knox Witherspoon (1723-1794) - President of the College of New Jersey, Witherspoon was also the only clergyman to sign the Declaration of Independence, and he signed the Articles of Confederation as well.

19th Century American Presbyterian Worthies

  • John Bailey Adger (1810-1899) - Adger served the church as a widely-respected and influential pastor, missionary, seminary professor and author.

  • Archibald Alexander (1772-1851) - Pastor, author and first professor of the Princeton Theological Seminary, Alexander was a major force in American Presbyterianism in the first half of the 19th century. He also served as President of Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia for 9 years.

  • James Waddel Alexander, Sr. (1804-1859) - Son of Archibald Alexander, J.W. was, like his father, an eminent pastor, professor and author.

  • Daniel Baker (1791-1857) - The founder of Austin College was a pioneer missionary and noted preacher who did much to bring Presbyterianism to the Western United States.

  • Robert Lewis Dabney (1820-1898) - A leading voice of Southern Presbyterianism, Dabney was a noted preacher, seminary professor, author and architect. His 5 volumes of Discussions remain in print today.

  • John Lafayette Girardeau (1825-1898) - A pastor with a heart for ministering to former slaves, as well as author and seminary professor, Girardeau became one of America’s greatest theologians.

  • Ashbel Green (1762-1848) - President of the College of New Jersey, Green authored lectures on the Westminster Shorter Catechism and was an influential voice within the Presbyterian Church in the first half of the 19th century.

  • Francis James Grimké (1850-1937) - A former slave of French Huguenot descent, Grimké was a leading African-American Presbyterian during his lengthy ministry, mostly based in Washington, D.C.

  • Archibald Alexander Hodge (1823-1886) - Son of Charles Hodge, A.A. Hodge was the author of a well-respected commentary on the Westminister Confession of Faith, and followed in his father’s footsteps as a leader at Princeton.

  • Charles Hodge (1797-1878) - One of the most important leaders of the Presbyterian Church in the 19th century, Hodge authored a 3-volume Systematic Theology, served as principal of Princeton Theological Seminary, and wrote numerous articles as editor various theological journals.

  • Moses Drury Hoge (1818-1899) - Hoge served as a minister of the Second Presbyterian Church of Richmond, Virginia for almost 54 years, during which time he was a widely-respected leader throughout the Presbyterian Church.

  • Jacob Jones Janeway (1774-1858) - Janeway served the Second Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1799 to 1828, and also authored sermons, articles and other works for the advancement of missions, both foreign and domestic.

  • Alexander McLeod (1774-1833) - McLeod was an important leader both in the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, influencing its institutional opposition to slavery, and within the broader Presbyterian Church, by means of his evangelistic efforts and concerns for the welfare of society.

  • Samuel Miller (1769-1850) - The second professor at Princeton Theological Seminary, Miller was a prolific writer, and diligent minster of the gospel, who was widely recognized as a leader in 19th century American Presbyterianism. Many of his works remain in print today.

  • Benjamin Morgan Palmer (1818-1902) - Palmer was a leader in the Southern Presbyterian Church because of his pastoral ministry, and his role as a seminary professor and author.

  • Thomas Ephraim Peck (1822-1893) - Peck was an important Southern Presbyterian minister, author and seminary professor whose 3 volumes of Miscellanies remain in print today.

  • William Swan Plumer (1802-1880) - Plumer was an Old School minister, seminary professor and prolific writer with a heart for teaching God’s Word to as many as possible, young and old.

  • John Holt Rice (1777-1831) - Rice did much to preach the gospel and promote education in the South as a minister, seminary professor and editor.

  • Stuart Robinson (1814-1881) - Robinson’s advocacy of the spiritual independence of the church during a time of civil conflict made him a controversial but respected figure in the Presbyterian Church.

  • Thomas Smyth (1808-1873) - Minister, scholar, seminary professor, author - Smyth’s 10 volumes of Works reveal his prolific output and influential voice within the 19th century Presbyterian Church.

  • William Buell Sprague (1795-1876) - A prolific preacher and author, Sprague is also known as the “Patriarch of American Collectors,” for his collection of autographs, including those of every signer of the Declaration of Independence, pamphlets and other materials. He authored the Annals of the American Pulpit, an important collection of biographical sketches.

  • James Henley Thornwell (1812-1862) - Thornwell wrote and accomplished much in a short lifetime, helping to found The Southern Presbyterian Review, and representing the Southern Presbyterian perspective on matters of ecclesiology in debates with Charles Hodge.

  • Cortlandt Van Rensselaer, Sr. (1808-1860) - Van Rensselaer served the church as a pastor, missionary, editor and as the first President of the Presbyterian Historical Society.

  • Moses Waddel (1770-1840) - Founder of the “American Eton,” Waddel pioneered education in the South.

  • Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield (1851-1921) - An eminent Biblical scholar and seminary professor, Warfield was a prolific author. His Works were collected into 10 volumes.

  • James Renwick Willson (1780-1853) - A leader in the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Willson was known as an opponent of slavery, and for his call to reform the United States Constitution.

  • John Leighton Wilson (1809-1886) - Wilson was a pioneer Southern Presbyterian missionary to West Africa, and the first to bring a skeleton of a gorilla back to the United States.

Early 20th Century American Presbyterian Worthies

  • John Gresham Machen (1881-1937) - A conservative minister and Princeton professor, Machen led a split from the increasingly liberal mainline Presbyterian Church to help form what became known as the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.

  • John McNaugher (1857-1847) - "Mister United Presbyterian," McNaugher served the United Presbyterian Church of North America as a pastor, professor of New Testament literature, seminary president and as a writer and teacher.

  • Geerhardus Vos (1862-1949) - A Dutch-American minister and seminary professor, Vos is known as a pioneer of Biblical Theology, and as an eminent expositor of Scripture. He was a also a poet.

Other Early American Presbyterian Worthies to Know

  • John Boyd (1679-1708) - Boyd was the first Presbyterian minister ordained in America (1706).

  • David Stewart Caldwell, Sr. (1725-1824) - Caldwell is known for many contributions to church and society, but especially as the founder of the “Southern Log College,” near Greensboro, North Carolina.

  • James Caldwell (1734-1781) - “The Fighting Parson” was a noted supporter of the colonists in the civil conflict with Great Britain.

  • John Chavis (1763-1838) - Chavis was the first African-American Presbyterian to be ordained as a minister (in 1801).

  • Alexander Craighead (1707-1766) - Craighead was the first Reformed Presbyterian minister in America, a member of Hanover Presbytery, and the Mecklenburg Declaration of Indpendence, although written after his death, may be his greatest legacy.

  • John Cuthbertson (1718-1791) - Cuthbertson was a pioneer Reformed Presbyterian (Covenanter) missionary in America, and helped to found the first RP Presbytery in America, and the Associate Reformed Church as well. He estimated that during his missionary labors he rode over 70,000 miles on horseback.

  • Theodore Ledyard Cuyler (1822-1909) - Pastor of the largest Presbyterian congregation in the United States in New York City, Cuyler was a leading minister and prolific writer, as well as a friend to many American Presidents.

  • Henry Highland Garnet (1815-1882) - Garnet was the first African-American to address Congress (in 1865), and later served as a diplomat to Liberia, where he died, as well as a minister of the gospel.

  • John Gloucester, Sr. (1776-1822) - An early African-American Presbyterian minister (ordained in 1811), he was a former slave who helped to found the First African Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

  • William Graham (1745-1799) - As principal of Liberty Hall Academy in Lexington, Virginia, Graham trained Archibald Alexander and John Chavis, among others.

  • Jacob Green (1722-1790) - Father of Ashbel Green, Jacob was a chaplain in the American War of Independence, and an early opponent of slavery.

  • John McMillan (1752-1833) - “The Apostle of Presbyterianism to the West,” McMillan’s great legacy was the pioneering educational institutions which he founded.

  • Samson Occom (1723-1792) - Occom was one of first Native American Presbyterian ministers whose writings were published in English.

  • James W.C. Pennington (1807-1870) - The former “Fugitive Slave”-turned-Presbyterian minister and author became the first African-American to receive a doctorate of divinity at a European university.

  • Thomas De Witt Talmage (1832-1902) - “The Spurgeon of America” was one of the most popular ministers in America during the last half of the 19th century with an estimated 30 million readers of his sermons in the newspapers, and elsewhere.

  • Marcus Whitman (1802-1847) - Whitman was a pioneer ruling elder and medical missionary whose tragic death in Oregon inspired others to travel westward and continue to spread the gospel.

  • Julia McNair Wright (1840-1903) - An important Presbyterian author, she wrote widely on various topics, but is known especially for her Christian biographies for young readers.

  • Theodore Sedgwick Wright (1797-1847) - Wright was the first African-American to attend a theological seminary in the United States (Princeton). He was a leader in the Underground Railroad, as well as a well-respected minister of the gospel.

This list, it is hoped, will help to introduce readers to important figures in early American Presbyterianism. While not definitive or all-encompassing (it was difficult to leave off certain names from the approximately 900 authors that we have on Log College Press alone), it highlights some people very much worth getting to know. Their contributions to the Presbyterian Church, America and the world endure, and their memory is cherished.

The Southern Presbyterian Review at Log College Press

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As our friends at the PCA Historical Center, who have done much to aid students of history by indexing a valuable theological journal, have noted about The Southern Presbyterian Journal:

Published from June of 1847 through October of 1885, the Southern Presbyterian Review remains a significant publication for the study of the history, doctrine and polity of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S., a denomination more commonly known as the Southern Presbyterian Church. As one of its authors, John B. Adger noted, "Running from 1847 to 1885, its thirty-six volumes cover a very interesting term of years. Political, educational, moral, ecclesiastical, theological discussions were rife in those times. The war was coming on, and the ideas that led to it stirred men's minds and hearts."

At Log College Press, we have recently add all 36 volumes to the site for your reading pleasure. This journal included writings by Southern Presbyterian giants such as John B. Adger, Samuel J. Baird, Robert J. Breckinridge, Robert L. Dabney, John L. Girardeau, George Howe, Benjamin M. Palmer, Thomas E. Peck, William S. Plumer, Stuart Robinson, Benjamin M. Smith, Thomas Smyth, James H. Thornwell, B.B. Warfield, John L. Wilson, and others. Some additional contributors found within these pages include the Irish Presbyterian Thomas Witherow, the Scottish Presbyterian William Garden Blaikie and the German-born, New Orleans-based Jewish Rabbi Isaac L. Leucht. There is a wealth of discussion, and sometimes a diversity of views, on matters such as the office of the diaconate, church-state relations, baptism, Roman Catholicism, dancing, missions, church history, musical instruments in worship, poetry, preaching, the Christian Sabbath, evolution, eschatology, and much more.

Begin your reading here, and remember that some individual articles are found on the author pages at LCP, and some are not (or not yet). Thanks to Dr. Wayne Sparkman, author and subject indices are available at the PCA Historical Center. There is a veritable treasure trove of material here to download, digest and reference at your leisure. Enjoy!

Ten-Year-Old A.A. Hodge's Letter to the Unsaved

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On June 23, 1833, as Princeton Seminary graduate James R. Eckard prepared to leave for a mission trip to Ceylon (Sri Lanka), he was handed a letter written by ten-year-old Archibald Alexander Hodge and his sister Mary Elizabeth to take to his destination. This letter has recently been added to Log College Press. It is important for 21st century readers to grasp the meaning of the word “heathen” as used in this letter. Easton’s Bible Dictionary says it well: “strangers to revealed religion.”

Dear Heathen: The Lord Jesus Christ hath promised that the time shall come when all the ends of the earth shall be His Kingdom. And God is not a man that He should lie nor the son of man that He should repent. And if this was promised by a Being who cannot lie, why do you not help it to come sooner by reading the Bible, and attending to the words of your teachers, and loving God, and, renouncing your idols, take Christianity into your temples? And soon there will not be a Nation, no, not a space of ground as large as a footstep, that will want a missionary. My sister and myself have, by small self-denials, procured two dollars which are enclosed in this letter to buy tracts and Bibles to teach you.

Archibald Alexander Hodge
Mary Eliz. Hodge,
Friends of the Heathen

The same boy who wrote this letter would go on to serve in Allahabad, India from 1847-1850 before illness forced him to return to the States, where A.A. Hodge served as pastor, professor and author, always seeking in his various capacities to serve the kingdom of God.

For more on the subject of raising children who love and support missions, see Thomas Smyth’s The Mission of Parenting: Raising Children Who Love the Mission of God at the link below.

A Visit to the South Carolina Lowcountry

Charleston, South Carolina is a city famous, among other things, for its historic churches. A walking tour of the city, especially along Meeting Street, offers the opportunity to travel through time as it were and explore places of worship and graveyards that continue to testify to the faith of our forefathers.

This writer had such an opportunity recently and was privileged to visit such churches in Charleston and the surrounding vicinity. A trip to Elmwood Cemetery, Columbia, SC, was part of the experience as well, where John Lafayette Girardeau, James Henley Thornwell and George Andrew Blackburn were laid to rest between 100 and 150 years ago.

Having consulted several resources beforehand — Erskine Clarke, Our Southern Zion: A History of Calvinism in the South Carolina Low Country, 1690-1990; Charles E. Raynal, Johns Island Presbyterian Church: Its People and Its Community From Colonial Beginnings to the Twenty-First Century; George Howe, History of the Presbyterian Church in South Carolina; and Joanne Calhoun, The Circular Church: Three Centuries of Charleston History — I made my way first to the Johns Island Presbyterian Church (founded in 1710, its building dates to 1719 — three hundred years ago now). As with many of the churches I toured, the graveyard is an ever-present Memento mori. Next on the tour was the James Island Presbyterian Church (founded in 1706). Both of these churches were established by Archibald Stobo, a Presbyterian pioneer who also founded the first presbytery in the Western Hemisphere, as well as in the southern United States. He established other churches in the area which I do hope to visit on a future tour.

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In Charleston proper, my walking tour began with a visit to the Unitarian Church, which began its existence in 1774 as the Archdale Street Meeting House, founded by Dissenters who branched off from what we know now as the Circular Congregational Church, originally a mixed Independent and Presbyterian Church, itself founded in 1685. William Tennent III (grandson of the founder of the original Log College) is buried on the grounds of the Unitarian Church, though he was no Unitarian. The fan vault ceiling is modeled after the one at King’s College Chapel, Cambridge.

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Next, was the First Scots Presbyterian Church on Meeting Street (founded in 1731). It was another breakaway from the Circular Congregational Church, by a decidedly Presbyterian group. George Buist is buried in the church graveyard.

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Further along Meeting Street is the Circular Congregational Church, a remarkable architectural and spiritual landmark, where I paid my respects at the graves of David Ramsay and Benjamin Morgan Palmer (1781-1847).

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After this, I visited the Second Presbyterian Church of Charleston (founded in 1811), where I was given a tour of the sanctuary and the graveyard (Thomas Smyth and John Bailey Adger are laid to rest there).

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Also on my tour I worshiped at the Independent Presbyterian Church of Savannah, Georgia (founded in 1755). At each stop along the way, I was reminded that the past is not dead, and American Presbyterians are not irrelevant. The old Presbyterian history of the South Carolina lowcountry is very much alive for those with eyes to see.

The Ecclesiastical Catechisms of Alexander McLeod and Thomas Smyth

Most Presbyterians are familiar with the Westminster Shorter/Larger Catechisms, or the Heidelberg Catechism. But have you heard of Ecclesiastical Catechisms? At least two were written by Presbyterians in America in the 19th century: one by Alexander McLeod (1806) and one by Thomas Smyth (1843). (Another was written by Luther Halsey Wilson titled The Pattern of the House; or, A Catechism upon the Constitution, Government, Discipline and Worship of the Presbyterian church, which we hope to add to the site in the future.) These books present the doctrine of the church in question and answer format, so that God's people might more easily understand what the Scriptures teach about the institution that Jesus is building. McLeod and Smyth won't agree on everything (for instance, the number of offices Jesus has appointed in His church), so comparing and contrasting these two documents, written 40 years apart, will undoubtedly be an edifying and rewarding use of your time. 

Note: This blog post was originally published on November 8, 2017 and has been slightly edited.

Thomas Smyth on the Duty of Interesting Children in the Missionary Cause

Parents today are quick to involve their children in all manner of opportunities and activities, in to develop the body and mind, to let them see what desires and aptitudes they might have, and to build a resume that will be smiled upon by some university admissions officer in future years. But are we deliberately inculcating a heart for missions and the practice of missions in our children? Thomas Smyth, pastor of Second Presbyterian Church in Charleston, South Carolina, writes powerfully about this duty:

"It is evident that parents are laid under obligation not only to ‘train their children in the way that they should go, that when they are old they may not depart from it,’ but also to ‘bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord,’ that is, (as the words certainly mean, and should be rendered in order to make them more intelligible,) ‘bring them up in the education and discipline of Christians,’ that is, of those who ‘are the Lord's.’ We are thus taught that our children by their baptism are devoted to the Lord, and become members of his church and kingdom, and that we are under obligation to bring them up as such, not merely by instructing them, and thoroughly imbuing their minds with Christian truth, but also by accustoming them to, and interesting them in, every part of Christian activity, devotedness, and zeal.

"It follows, therefore, as an undeniable inference, that it is incumbent upon every Christian, parent, teacher, and church, to see to it that the children of their charge are brought up as the Lord's, — as Christians, — as members of his visible church, — and therefore not only as those who ought to believe in him, and to know the doctrines that are of God, but as those who are bound also to love him, to serve him, to honor him, and to co-operate, according to their measure of ability and their sphere of influence, in the promotion of his glory, and the advancement of his cause. And as the term ‘Missionary’ is employed to designate the work of making known ‘the glorious gospel of the blessed God’ to those that know it not, — which is the great work and duty of the church, and of every Christian — it is therefore our manifest duty to bring up our children in a missionary spirit, and in a missionary practice.

"A missionary is one who is sent to preach the gospel to those that are ‘sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death,’ whether abroad, or in our own country. To have a missionary spirit, is to be anxiously desirous that such missionaries should be sent, and the gospel made known to all that are ‘perishing for lack of knowledge.’ And a missionary practice or habit, is the habit of carrying out this desire, first, by praying that such missionaries may be raised up ‘and sent forth by the Lord of the harvest, into every part of his vineyard; secondly, by contributing as far as we can towards meeting the necessary expense of sending and supporting these missionaries, and supplying what is necessary to establish schools and print bibles, and other needful books; and, thirdly, by uniting with zeal in such efforts as will promote this spirit, and secure this habit…

"[It] is utterly impossible to have a missionary spirit, unless the heart is full of love and devotion to the cause of Christ; unless we can with pleasure give up everything however much it might add to our present comfort or happiness if it interferes with our duty; and unless we can bear all sorts of privations and trials that we may meet with in that narrow path. In short, to be able in all things to give up self, and think only how we can best serve God, promote his glory, and do his will, this alone is a real Missionary spirit. But this is the very spirit which must be shown, if we would see God's glory promoted, in every situation of life in which it may please him to place us. And hence we have seen some people who never went ten miles from home, do as much good in winning souls to Christ, as if they had left their country and travelled thousands of miles to reach the heathen. Missionaries, therefore, in the true sense of the word, but above all, a Missionary spirit, are needed everywhere! and in every condition of life."

-- from Thomas Smyth, "The Duty of Interesting Children in the Missionary Cause," in Complete Works of Thomas Smyth, Volume 7, pages 332, 345.

Should Christians raise children who love missions? Thomas Smyth says, "Absolutely. And here's what that means."

"It is evident that parents are laid under obligation not only to “train their children in the way that they should go, that when they are old they may not depart from it,” but also to “bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord,” that is, (as the words certainly mean, and should be rendered in order to make them more intelligible,) “bring them up in the education and discipline of Christians,” that is, of those who “are the Lord's.” We are thus taught that our children by their baptism are devoted to the Lord, and become members of his church and kingdom, and that we are under obligation to bring them up as such, not merely by instructing them, and thoroughly imbuing their minds with Christian truth, but also by accustoming them to, and interesting them in, every part of Christian activity, devotedness, and zeal.

"It follows, therefore, as an undeniable inference, that it is incumbent upon every Christian, parent, teacher, and church, to see to it that the children of their charge are brought up as the Lord's,—as Christians,—as members of his visible church,—and therefore not only as those who ought to believe in him, and to know the doctrines that are of God, but as those who are bound also to love him, to serve him, to honor him, and to co-operate, according to their measure of ability and their sphere of influence, in the promotion of his glory, and the advancement of his cause. And as the term “Missionary” is employed to designate the work of making known “the glorious gospel of the blessed God” to those that know it not,—which is the great work and duty of the church, and of every Christian—it is therefore our manifest duty to bring up our children in a missionary spirit, and in a missionary practice.

"A missionary is one who is sent to preach the gospel to those that are “sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death,” whether abroad, or in our own country. To have a missionary spirit, is to be anxiously desirous that such missionaries should be sent, and the gospel made known to all that are “perishing for lack of knowledge.” And a missionary practice or habit, is the habit of carrying out this desire, first, by praying that such missionaries may be raised up “and sent forth by the Lord of the harvest, into every part of his vineyard ; secondly, by contributing as far as we can towards meeting the necessary expense of sending and supporting these missionaries, and supplying what is necessary to establish schools and print bibles, and other needful books; and, thirdly, by uniting with zeal in such efforts as will promote this spirit, and secure this habit…

"[It] is utterly impossible to have a missionary spirit, unless the heart is full of love and devotion to the cause of Christ; unless we can with pleasure give up everything however much it might add to our present comfort or happiness if it interferes with our duty; and unless we can bear all sorts of privations and trials that we may meet with in that narrow path. In short, to be able in all things to give up self, and think only how we can best serve God, promote his glory, and do his will, this alone is a real Missionary spirit. But this is the very spirit which must be shown, if we would see God's glory promoted, in every situation of life in which it may please him to place us. And hence we have seen some people who never went ten miles from home, do as much good in winning souls to Christ, as if they had left their country and travelled thousands of miles to reach the heathen. Missionaries, therefore, in the true sense of the word, but above all, a Missionary spirit, are needed everywhere! and in every condition of life."

-- from Thomas Smyth, "The Duty of Interesting Children in the Missionary Cause," in Complete Works of Thomas Smyth , Volume 7, pages 332, 345.