Morning journal and courier., 1892-09-26
THREE HUNDRED YEARS AGO.
CONCLUDED FROM SECOND PAGE.

by their enemies, into whose
hands the captain of the ship had betrayed
them. Their goods were seized and they
were cast in prison. After q time
relief came: They again made q
Dutch vessel for transportation. Thew
were to embark in q quiet place distant
from any town. The women and children
were sent forward in small boat which.
arriving too soon for the ship, ran into a
creek for shelter where the outgoing tide
left it aground. The men came by land
and were taken by the ships boat on board;
but while they were waiting for the rising
tide, to enable them to reach the women,
company of horse and foot appeared to
arrest them. The Dutch captain set sail
without waiting for the women and chill
dren; storm drove them far north to the
coast of Norway; for fourteen days they
were tossed on the sea; and for seven days
they saw neither sun, moon nor stars.
Finally, eftsr many days, instead of sail
of few hours, they arrived in Holland.
AS 1t was useless to retain the women and
children who could not we'll be punished
for accompany their husbands and
fathers, they were set at liberty, and in
course of time all reached Holland, Thew
settled first in amsterdam, but subse-
quently removed to Leyden, which Brad
ford described as ga fair and beautiful
city, and of sweet situation, but med
more famous by the university with which
it was adorned" There they were min
istered to by the pious, learned
and liberal John Robinson. From
thence they came as Pilgrims to Plymouth
and became the original founders of New
England. The first settlers of Boston and
of New Haven seem to have belonged to
hn pr1rS ton o,Hrr \ l. \
the union of church end state which they
attempted here under a Congregational
form. The differences, however, between
Puritan and Pilgrim passed away, all be-
came blended in the congregational
churches, and all have propagated the
truth of the principles enunciated by Bar
rowe and Greenwood, adopted by the
church in Nicholas Lane, London in 1892
and by the church in tho house of Will
lam Brewster in Scrooby. From such
lowly beginnings have come the Congreea-
tional churches Of England and Wales and
the United States.
If the formation of that church in Mich
olas Lane, London, three hundred years
since, he'd been, what the formation of
many church and the beginning of many
denomination has been, Separation
merely for the maintenance of some theory
of doct. me not essentisl to salvation, or
merely for the observance of some mode of
worship, its formation would not be worth
concentrating. But the formation OF
that church was significant and memorable
because it was the visible embodiment
and the vocal expression of principles
contained in the gospel of Jesus Christ,
perceived and believed with more or less
clearness by Christian men in all the ages
clearly apprehended and stated by these
h. ,4;
erciss a radical and a far-reaching influ
| ence in the historic development of the
| church and the world
What then are the Principles embodied
in Congregationalism and expressed by it
They are these:
| ]. That Jesus Chi ist is the only head Of
the church and that the word Of God il
its only statute book.
2. That Visible churches are distinct
assemblies of godly men gathered out Of
the world for purely religious purposes
and not to be COMPOUNDED BY the world.
3. That these separate churches have
full power to choose their own officers anc
to maintain discipline.
| 4. That, in respect of their internal
management, they are each Independent
of all other churches and equally indie
pendent Of state control.
| These principles, which to US seem &c
simple and sensible, 300 years ago were
radical and revolu. ionary. Then the pops
or the king, one or both, claimed to be the
head of the church upon earth; then the
church, in most countries, was co-exensive
with the stat, and citizenship and
not chara 1t or was the condition of church
membership. Then traditions and the
| deere Is of councils had an authority equal
to that of the Bible in. matters Of faith and
practice; then the government of the
church was a control exercised over il
then the churches were united by obedi
| ence to an authority over them rather thar
by a fellowship of spirit. Congregational
ism, therefore, was the embodiment oil
principles which were desiine to be revo
lutionary in the world. 1t denied the au
thority of pope or king over the church; Il
| denied the autho--ty of councils of pas
ages to bind the minds and consciences OF
men; it assert I'D individual liberty and in
| tellectual freedom of men to study tn,
word of God and arrive at knowledge o
the truth; it afirme the spiritual broth
erhocd and the legel eq Iality in tn
which it was destins j to produce in tn
church were Seat. These changes wer
political in that the church was to be dem
ocratic, educational in that all the mem
bers of the church were to be taught, ant
social in that the church was to be broth
erhood.
But Congregations ';sm was destined t
produce radical changes in the world also
for as the NEE! of the world first covered
and concerted the leaveH of Christianity
and shaped largely the form of the churcl
so the leaven of Christianity is destined t.
penetra+ the mel of the world and t.
| ~ %1o 60, &C. he inc itpt Of N
world Demo 3racy in the church tends t,
produce democracy in the world. Educa
ton in the church tends to produce educa
ton of all men in the state. Brotherhood
of men in the church ,nds to produc
brotherhood of men out of the church.
Three hundred years ago there were II
England over 100000 of people. TIL
land was held by a few mobiles, politica
privileges were con6ne1 mainly to tn
nobility and to the superior clergy, an
education was limited to the children O
of affairs Congregationslism must necef
sarily change.
What has Congregationalism done in tn
worlda For like tre, Congregationalisn
must not be judged by its root and by it
rude beginnings, but by it's flowers and it
fruit. 1t secured, despit, bitter persecu
ton, a dwelling place for itself in the Ian
Of England. 1t won, after century c
trial, of revolution, of political t1:ump
and of patience, religious liberation i
England. It planted itself in
new world and breathed 1t
spirit into the institutions of q new gov
eminent, for the legal equality and the pc
litical right of eleoting men, and the doc
trine that public Office is public trust an
that rulers are servants of the people al
the principles of Congregationalism en-
bodied in civil gove1 hment. 1t has estat
lished popular education; that began i
New England. think it was Mas: achr
sets which enactsd the law, that "Ever
township, after the Lord hath increase
them to the fifty houssholders, shall ar
point one to teach all children to write an
read, and when any town shall increase
the number of hundred families, the
shall set up grammar school," We hav
in the United States a democratic govern
ment, popular education, civil equality {
the people and rulers who are appointed I
serve. We have absolute separation {
church and state, belief in person'
Christian character as condition {
church membership, large libsrty on til
part of churches which are not Congreg,
tional-governing themselves and in choo
ing their officers and ministers.
The leaven of pure Chi istianity whic
was in early Congregstiona'ismi is leave,
ing the church and the world. The praif
is due to God, through whose truth an
| anirit tho unrk hae haan wrouoht and 4