The Portland daily press., 1862-09-27

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in Holla n the deck of the May
Flowe1 about to enter upon
the pei the Atlantic, to Sc
cure in DIS, "a place of refuge
and res Robinson, addressed
them in faf( NJ 30 truly catholic and
apostolic, as TO hkve engaged the admiration
of all 'liberar men throughout the world
No man ever had exerted greater influence
over his brethren, than the amiable and devout
Robinson had over his little prosecuted, exiIed
flock. No church ever imbibed more fully
the spirit of their beloved pastor. And there.
on that deck, addressing them for the last
time, ne solemnly charged them, as about
to go forth to establish new empire in new
world, to call no man master-to stand forever
Independent of all Popes, and Bishops-to
think for themselves, and to act for themselves.
owning no ecclesiastical allegiance to any hut
man being, but to CHRIST alone. Hecharged
them to be bound by no human ereeds. but to
study, understand, and interpret the Scriptures
according to their own convictions of truth
and duty. He told them he was fully s.per-
suaded that God had yet many new truths to
bring out of His Word, of which neither they,
nor any other church were yet apprised; and
charged them to be ever ready to receive it,
let IL come from ,chence and from ,chom it
might
Did this look like sectarism? Was this H.
liberal? Was this Intolerance? The Courier
says, "the Pilgrims who came from Holland,
and landed on the Plymouth Rock in 1920,
were illiberal and selfish in their religious
views! Nothing-nothing-c be farther
from the fact. Never was there body of men
who went forth with purer ideas of relig-
ious liberty and independence 1t was
in accordance of the solemn charge of Robin
son, that after they left him in Holland, and
were upon the ocean, they formed that famous
compact which contained the very seed of all
the free institutions of this country that secure
TO every man the principles of civil and relig-
ious liberty, whereby all are free to worship
God according to the dictates of their o,rn con-
sciences.
And after they landed at Plymouth, did they
establish sectarian church like the Episco-
pal, which would allow no person to join it
unless he subscribed to their creed, and which
would excommunicate and prosecute all who
dissented from IL? No-no-they had no
written creed-they would allow no such iron
bedstead in their communion. The Bible, the
Bible only, was their creed, and every one was
at liberty to read and interpret it for himself.
Was this "illiberal and intolerant?' When.
even, did Mr.. Newman's "estdblished church,
practise such liberality? Never-never to
this day, neither at home, in England, nor
abroad, as it is or ought to be, in America
But then they hung the Quakers. This
is untrue,-there were no Quakers in their
whole colony. They banished Roger Williams,
the Baptist, to Rhode Island This too, is
false. 1t was the aristocratic members of the
established church" in another colony-the
Massachusetts-who drove Roger Williams
away from them; and it was "the English Pu-
ritans who came from Holland, and landed on
Plymouth Rock in 1920" who offered him an
asylum, invited him thither for security, and
actually employed him as their pastor! Inde-
pendents or Congregationalists as they were.
they even received Baptist as their pastor
for a season, until he should be able to make
w
scouting and banishing the Baptists? Did the
Episcopalians ever treat the Baptists or any
other dissenting denomination with like Iiber-
ality? Nay, to this day, would an Episcopal
clergyman or church allow a Baptist, a Con-
gregationalist, Methodist or any other min
lister than Roman Catholic andl English
Episcopalan, TO enter an Episcopal pulpit and
deliver a sermon? We ask the editor of the
Hallowell Courier who so much admres the
members Of the English Church in the time Of
Elizabeth; that drove our fathers from home,
because they were so "liberal In their views
and tolerant in their opinion" II, this very day,
Baptist clergyman should offer to preach in
the little Episcopal martin-house in Hallowell,
its priest or its yestry, of which Mr.. Newman
is one, would allow him to occupy its pulpit
for single service as Gospel minister? We
know they would not. Away, then, with such
mems admiration of liberalty and tolerance;
and away with their contempt Of the Pilgrims
for the want of those virtues.
1t should be known that the slandered Ply
mouth Colony was a very different thing from
the Massachusetts Colony. That was not sec
tarian-that was not aristocratic-that was not
bigotted-that was never intolerant. 1t was
a humble body Of religious brethren who came
here poor to enjoy freedom from the persecu-
ton of the English Church. On the quay of
Deft Haven, in the cabin of the May Flower,