The Connecticut courant and Hartford weekly intelligencer — Hartford, Conn., 1774-11-28 00:00:00, page 1

[7G/? Sermon, concluded from our 7^.]
^■T^HUS fir I have endeavoured faithfully to re
| late, and explain this piece of antiant Jewifli
history. I Aral! now attempt to apply it to the pre
sent circumstances of our country.
When these words were spoken it was a time of
great public calamity, the Jews being sorely oppres
sed by their enemies, and having reason to fear yet
greater troubles. So are we at this day sorely op
prefled by the parliament of Great-Britain, and. have
reason to fear, if we quietly submit, that since they
have now begun, they will,'’ it it be in their
power, “ also make an end.”—ln their distress the
Jews applied themselves to falling, and other reli
gious ferviccs, in that way seeking help of God.
^So we in this day of our calamity are applying our
selves to the fame duties. While they failed and
fought deliverance from oppression and violence,
they were guilty of the very fame things themselves.
They faded for ftrife and debate, and to smite with
the fid of wickedness. This alio, brethren, I beg
leave to fay is the very case with us; we are guilty
of praftifing the fame, or rather far greater iniquity
towards our poor African saves, than we have yet
fuffered, or indeed are ever likely to fufter p’orn the
Britilh Parliament. For while we complain in the
bitterefl terms, that we are obliged to part with a
little of our property, we ourselves deprive a large
people of all their property, of all the fruits of the r
labour, except so much as we infovercign goodness, fee
fit to give them, and allo entirely deprivethem of
their liberty, holding them in every refpeft, in a
Bate of moll abject ilavery.—Again, the Jews in all
their fading and humiliation,obtained no acceptance
■with God. And what reason have we to expert
any? We, as they did, fall for ftrife and debate, and
to finite with the lift of wickedness ; yea I believe,
in a much worse sense, and in a far greater degree
than ever they did. For I presume no such inllance
of open, bare-faced general iniquity and oppression
can be produced from all their history, as the slavery
of the Africans. '1 hey had Haves, it is true, of the
nations round about them. But this was according
• to the express permificn of God, who hath a right to
condemn whom he will to slavery, and to make whom,
he pleases the executor of his will; and therefore this
is never imputed to them as fin.—And as to other
instances of injustice, I know not that they were
greater or more frequent among them, than they are
among us, or among many other nations. I i.e sla
very of Negroes therefore among us, seems to be
over and above all the violence and oppreflion, which
were practifed among the Jews.
Nor is this iniquity pradtifed in a corner; it is
general, it is publicly countenanced and encourag
ed ; and as a people, as a body corporate we are
guilty of it. Nor can any individual wafn his hands
of the guilt of this black affair, but by teftifying
against it to the utmost, in his proper character; and
this brethren, is what I am to day attempting to do,
in the chara<sterl sustain.
Now, since this is the case, what reason imaginable
have we to expedl that God will appear for our de
liverance from oppreflion and slavery I We are this
day celebrating a fail, to afßifl our fouls and to seek
of God salvation from that oppreflion and slavery,
with which we are threatened by the Britilh parlia- .
ment. But with what face can we look to God for
deliverance from these things, when we ourselves
are pra&iiing the very fame in a much higher degree.
Brethren, let me speak to you upon this occaiion,
with fuchboldnefs and flmpiicity, as becomes a mi
nister of thegofpel pleading the caulc of equity and
mercy. Let me tell you plainly, all those of you,
who keep this dav, as a day of falling and prayer,
to seek of God deliverance from parliamentary ty
ranny, and yet either keep Negro Haves younelves,
or juflify it in others, are guilty of the most solemn
mockery. By your prayers and addrefles to God
you declare that to be an evil, which you entirely
juftify in your practice. You pray against a thing
MOND AY, November 28, 1774. T H & (NU^nER 518. ]
CONNECTICUT C O U R A N T,
A N D HART F ORD
WEE K L Y INTELLIGENCER.
Containing the Frefteft~A D V I C E S, both FOREIGN and DOMESTIC./
*-** —_ .„_ T — — ■- -. . . - - _ - T
Open to all PARTIES not under the influence of ANT
as evil, you.-pray that God I / his Almighty power
would prevent it, and at th very fame time are
endeavour .g tc promote it to your utmost by your
practice. You aie afting juh as absurdly, as Said
the persecutor would have done, if while he was
breathingout (laughter and’bloodlhed against the
chriftian church, he had kept a day of falling and
prayer, to intercede with God for the enlargement
of that church,and for the propagaribn of thegofpel.
You are this day falling for ftrife and debate, and
to finite with the lift of wickedness. But God hath
ftri&ly forbidden you to fail in this manner : T~e Jhedl
not faft as ye do this day, faith my text.,' And accord
ing to the context, “ this is not the fail which God
hath chosen, nor can it be called an acceptable day
to the Lord.” But the fail which he hath chosen,
and which alone he will accept, “ is to Icqfe the
bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens,
and to let the oppreifed go five, and that ye break
every yoke.”
You will doubtless acknowledge that it was just
with God topunifh the Jews, who praclifed violence
and oppreflion, with the like violence and oppression;
brought upon them by their enemies. Why is it
not then as just, since we praft.ee injustice and ep
preflion towards the Negroes, tha£ we should be made
to fuffer the fame things as a punishment ? Let me
tell you, brethren, I fully believe God esteems it to
be just, and that he is now in puniihing us for
ourwickednefs in this very inllance. We arc a peo
ple who have delighted greatly in slavery, have grown
rich by .it, and have loaded ourselves with the spoils
which in this way we have plundered from our fel
low creatures. Now it seems that God in his righ
teous providence is about to make us eat the fruit of
our own ways, and to let us taste a little of the sweets
of that slavery, in which we have so long holden
many thousands of poor Africans. Our injullice to
wards them, I conceive the present instances of op
preflioh, of which we so justly complain, are brought
upofi us by the righteous judgment of God.
It is certainly agreeable to God’s manner of deal
ing with men, to punilh them by bringing upon
them the fame evils, as they unright.eoufly bring
upon others. Many instances of this there are in
scripture ; with feme few of which I will refrefli
your memories.—-The inllance recorded in our text
and context I need not further enlarge upon. I
proceed therefore to refer you to Judges j. 5, &c.
“ And they found Adoni-Bezeck m Bezcck; and
'they feught against him. But Adoni-bezeck fled,
and they pursued after him, and caught him, and
cut off his thumbs and great toes. And Adoni-be
zeck laid, Threcfcore and ten kings, having their
thumbs and their great toes cut oft, gathered, their
meat under my table : as 1 have done Jo God hath- re^
fruited me.”-— Pharaoh and the Egyptians call the
male children of the Hebrews into the river and
drowned them. As a just judgment upon them for
this, God drowned them by thousands in the red sea.
The Jews in our Lord’s time Ihed the blood of the
prophets, wife meh and scribes whom our Lord sent
unto them ; and therefore they were threatened that
upon them flionld come all the righteous blood Ihed
upon the earth, from Abel to Zacharias ; which was
accordingly fulfilled in that most awful and terrible
dellruftioh brought upon them by the Romans.
And particularly as they crucified Christ, God in his
providence ordered it so that there were vast numbers
of them crucified by the Romans at the last dcflruc
tion of Jerusalem. I (hall mention but oneinllance
more of this kind, which is that recorded in Rev.
xvi. 6. “ And I heard the angel of the waters
fav, thou art righteous, O Lord, because thou hall
indued thus : fcV they have Ihed the blood of faints
and"prophets, and thou haft given them blood to
drink ; for they are worthy.”
Thus it seems Ged is now giving us the fame cup
to drink, which we have given to others ; and he
will teach us by the briars and thorns of the wilder
ness the gross iniquity of our treatment of the poor
Those states or conditions of life I call Lan: y, in
which the pleasing sensations predominate over the
painful ; ahd they may be divided into three difler
ent claEe -, according as the motions of the body,the
mind, and the heart, are most prevalent.
If we were desirous to bring together a number of
happy mortals, we fhould' in vain look out for them
amidil the high and brilliant Rations of life ; but
cur fcarch would be more fucceftful amongst those
\yko subsist by moderate labour, and earn thereby a
fulHcientcompetence for themselves and their fami
lies, Of these we should find many whose life is free
from all the torment of anxiety and chagrin, and
who inwardly poflcß a secret fund of joy, which is
always ready to expand itfelf. If their days are not
brightened with gaiety and fplendour they are calm
and unclouded. Theypafsaway in a fucccfiion of
mild and pleasing sensations, which equally exclude
all intemperate pleasure and every poignant grief.
The exercise of the body is not so agreeable as that
of the mind. A course of life, therefore, devoted to
the sciences will be more susceptible of happiness,
than if employed in mechanical operations. What
can be more pleasing than to be able to enjoy all
seasons, and places, and' universal nature ? This^
pleasure, however, foexquifite, falls to the lot only
[See last page.]
Negroes. For my part, I confefs, I have little ex
pectation that our prayers will be heard, or cur fafl -
mgs regarded, until they are attended with a reform
ation. And if we continue to shut our eyfes against
the plained dictates of reason, and the firft principle?/
cf justice, or if although we fee and know these
things, we refufe to praCtife them ; have we net the
greatest reason to fear, that God would continue ana*
redoublehis judgments upon us, until he shall, (if I
may so fay) in the literal sense, have dragooned us in
to the knowledge and practice of so plain a duty.
So long as we persevere in this iniquitous praCtirf,
v/e can not hope for the divine acceptance of our
prayers, fadings and humiliations; for ‘‘ God will
have mercy and not facrifice.” “And hath the Lord
as great delight in burnt offerings and facrilices, as
in obeying the voice of the Lord ? Behold, to obey
is better than facrifice ; and to hearken, than the fat
of rams.’’---But if on the other hand, we will repent
every one of his wickedness, and henceforth “ du
that which is lawful and rightparticularly, if we
will “ give unto our servants that which is j ust and
equal, knowing that we also have’ftjnSftcr in hea
ven;” we have reason to hopg- that gur iniquity
shall not prove our ruin ;” tbA w& shall not die, but
shall live.” Wherefore let the counfei cf God be
acceptable unto us, and let us br^ak oft qur fins by
righteoufnejs, and our iniquities by jhevoing mercy to
the.poor, if it may be a .lengthening of our tranquili
ty. Otnerwile “ with what measures are mete, it
shall be measured to us again?’
From the LONDON MAGAZINE.
Considerations on the important Question,
What Kind of Life is the most happy?
{From the Theory of Agreeable Sensations.)
r T 5 HE greatest part of mankind make their
X happiness to depend upon others, and even
when arrived atthe summit of grandeur, they often
aspire to felicity under the title of suppliants ; but
it is almoll impofliblc that rhofe,'who havcit in their
power to gratify their desires, should comply with
them. The heart of ev.-ry man to use a Cartesian
expreflion is a kind of vortex, and the centre of its
motions is its own personal happiness. To expeCt
that our felicity should become the centre of the mo
tions of others, would be to desire a change in their
nature ; It would be indeed, to wish that our hap
piness should depend upon a maricle. Let us there
fore accommodate ourselves, in the best manner we
are able, to the obje&s that surround us, but let us
r.ot fpndly hope to attain any solid happiness, by any
other means than ,by the exertion of our own facul
ties.