Backus' Appeal to American Baptists

       In my last post, we saw Isaac Backus lay out his belief that the Scriptures taught that a true church is comprised of born-again believers in the Lord Jesus Christ.  Not only did Backus contend for the rights of King Jesus to rule over His church, he also had to contend against the propensity of the state in his day to meddle into the sphere of the church’s sovereignty.  The Massachusetts Baptists made their appeals to the Massachusetts Assembly, the Continental Congress, and finally to the colonies as a whole.  Here is an excerpt of their appeal:

       The [Warren Baptist] association which met this year, 1775, at Warren, 'agreed that our agent and committee be desired to draw up a letter to all the Baptist societies on this continent, stating the true nature and importance of religious liberty, and signifying that we think that a general meeting of delegates from our societies in every colony is expedient, as soon as may be, to consult upon the best means and methods of obtaining deliverance from various encroachments which have been made upon that liberty, and to promote the general welfare of our churches, and of all God's people throughout the land; and to desire that our friends in each Colony would communicate their sentiments concerning the design, and time and place of meeting, with all convenient speed.'  In accordance with this direction the agent prepared an address, portions of which are subjoined:

"To all Christian people in the American Colonies, and especially to those who are of the Baptist denomination: —

       "While the united inhabitants of this vast continent are appealing to heaven against the open attempts that have been made against their liberties, it is surely of great importance that we all regard that law of heaven: Make straight paths for your feet.  And can we do so, if we are not as earnest for the removal of oppression from among ourselves, as we are to repel its encroachments from abroad?  An ingenious author well observes, —' That the power of decreeing rites and ceremonies is a power absolutely indefinite, and of the very same kind with those claims which in things of a civil nature always give the greatest alarm.  A tax of a penny is a trifle; but the power of imposing that tax, is never considered as a trifle, because it may imply absolute servitude in all who submit to it.  Our ancestors, the old Puritans, had the same merit in opposing the imposition of the Surplice that Hampden had in opposing the levying of ship-money.   In neither case was it the thing itself they objected to, so much as the authority that enjoined it, and the danger of the precedent.   And it appears to us that the man who is as tenacious of his religious as he is of his civil liberty, will oppose them both with equal firmness."  And is not the power of levying money for religious ministers as dangerous to liberty, as the power of decreeing rites and ceremonies?  Yea, more so; for they who can command the purse, either in Church or State, can usually carry the day in other affairs. * * * As the Baptist churches in the Massachusetts Colony have been brought to view things in this light, many of their elders and brethren at a meeting in Warren, September 13, 1776, desired us, the subscribers, to write to all the societies of our denomination in the American Colonies upon the subject of religious liberty, and to signify to them that a general meeting of delegates from our societies in each colony, we think, is very expedient, as soon as may be, to consult upon the best means and methods for obtaining and establishing full and equal religious liberty throughout this continent, and to promote the general welfare of all; so that truth and peace may prevail, and glory dwell in our land.  And to request our friends in each colony to communicate their sentiments of the design and of the time and place of meeting, with all convenient speed. * * * Our Lord and Saviour has let us know as plainly as words can express, that his kingdom is not of this world; but that it is founded in and supported by the truth.  And he says: 'Every one that is of the truth, heareth my voice.'  Neither can anything be true religion that is not a voluntary obedience to him.  The evident design of civil government is, to arm particular men with the sword, enforced by the power of the whole politic body, to restrain and punish such as violate the rules of justice and equity, to guard the civil peace; and so to be ministers of God for good to all the community.  But for them to empower the majority of any town or place, to judge for their neighbors, who shall be teachers and guides to their souls, and to force those who do not choose them to support them, is going as much out of their jurisdiction as ever the Parliament of Britain did in taxing America.  And how can we answer it, either to posterity or to our great and impartial Judge, if we do not exert ourselves as honestly and earnestly for the defence and establishment of religious liberty as we do for that which is only of a civil and worldly nature?  We say, as honestly and earnestly; but not with the same weapons.  For Jesus says: 'If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would fight that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now is my kingdom not from hence.  To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth.'

"That we may all in our stations bear our proper witness unto the truth, and against the corruptions and oppressions of the present day, is the hearty desire and prayer of your servants for Jesus' sake.

                              Isaac Backus, Nathan Plimpton, Asaph Fletcher.  Per Order."  ¹

       Lord willing in my next post we will look once again at the works of God in the days of our fathers.

Christ, not man, is King!

Dale

1)      Alvah Hovey, A Memoir of the Life and Times of the Rev. Isaac Backus, A.M. (Boston, MA: Gould and Lincoln, 1859), p. 228-31.

Backus Defends Religious Liberty

        Not only was the 18^th century American Baptist minister Isaac Backus a great defender of Gospel truth, he was also a great defender of religious liberty in a free society.  He was appointed as a representative of the Warren Association to present the grievances of the non-Bostonian Baptists to the civil leadership of the colonies.  Here in this letter Backus brings a London friend up to speed on what was happening to those who opposed the Congregationalist majority tyranny in Massachusetts.  (Look for the mention of our missionary friend David Jones!)

       The following letter to the Rev. Dr. Stennett, of London, describes the immediate results of the circular just given:

"MIDDLEBORO', Oct. 9, 1773.

       "Rev. And Dear Sir: As our Association have chosen me to be their agent here, in the room of our beloved friend, Mr. John Davis, deceased, I am set down to write you some answer to yours of Aug. 6, 1772, addressed to him.  The ill state of his health had induced him to return to Pennsylvania before it arrived at Boston; it was sent after him, but I suppose never reached him.  For, with Mr. David Jones, he set out on a visit to the western Indians, but was taken sick near the Ohio, and after an illness of three weeks, died there, the 13th of last December, in the thirty-sixth year of his age.  A very just character was given him from Philadelphia, in which are these words:  'He was an entertaining companion, possessed of uncommon calmness of temper. In preaching, he endeavored to reach the understanding of his audience.  Educated in the genuine principles of liberty, born under one of the happiest of civil constitutions, he felt with the keenest sensibility for the oppressed, and when his duty called, with a manly and virtuous boldness he defended them.'  This is a true sketch of the character of that valuable friend we mourn the loss of.

       "Pennsylvania, his native colony, enjoys that religious liberty which he soon found the want of here.  Upon search, he found that our charter gives equal religious liberty as well as theirs, and that what is called the religious establishment in this Province stands only upon some laws made by the Congregationalists to support their way, which [laws] happened not to be timely discovered by the powers at home, but [which] are really in their nature contrary to our charter.  And when they tried to call a Provincial Synod in 1725, an express was sent from the British court against it, in which it was declared that their way was not established here.  Therefore Mr. Davis judged it to be our duty to strike more directly at the root of our oppressions than we had before done.

       "And though he is taken from us, yet the cause remains the same; and last May our committee were called together at Boston, when we had late accounts of the sufferings of our brethren in sundry places and in violation of the Pedobaptists' own laws; upon which we wrote to all our churches to consider and to give their mind upon the affair.  Accordingly, they sent in their thoughts to our association at Medfield, Tuesday, September 7th; and though we were agreed that our Legislature had no right to impose religious taxes upon us, yet some doubted the expediency of our now refusing any compliance with their laws in that respect; and since we were not all of a judgment in this case, they stood against our coming to any vote upon it, lest our want of union therein should give an advantage to our adversaries.  Thus matters labored all day Wednesday, until many of the brethren became very uneasy about being thus held back.  But on Thursday morning, Mr. Stillman, who had been against our coming to a vote, brought in the following paper, which was unanimously adopted:

       1. That the mind of the association respecting giving or not giving certificates, be taken by written vote, in order to confine the difference which subsists among us on this matter, in the association.

       2. That those churches that agree to neglect the law for the future, shall, in a spirit of meekness, plead as the reason, that they cannot, in conscience, countenance any human laws that interfere in the management of the kingdom of Christ, which is not of this world.

       3. That the churches which think it expedient to give certificates for the present, be advised by letter how many are of a contrary mind, and be desired to consider the matter against the next association, and to unite with their brethren if possible.

       4. That the churches allow each other entire liberty, without any hard thoughts one of another.

       5. That all the churches which shall be called to suffer through the year, shall transmit an account of such sufferings to their agent, to be made use of by him as may be thought best to subserve the common cause.

       6. That our true state, with what we have transacted at this association, be sent to our agents in England, and their opinion be requested by the next meeting of the churches.

       7. That if any are called to suffer, their sister churches be applied to, to assist them in their trouble.

       "When we came to act upon the first of these articles, there appeared thirty-four elders and brethren against giving any more certificates, six for it, and three at a loss how to act.  Then it was voted by all that an appeal to the public, which I had read in part to them, should be examined by our committee and then published.  And our association was dismissed in a very comfortable and happy manner, and all seemed well pleased with what was done.  The following week our committee met at Boston and deliberately examined and approved of our appeal, a copy of which I now send you.  We were privately encouraged in this attempt for religious liberty by several members of both houses of our great General Court; and the state of people's minds of various ranks through New England is such that I cannot but hope to obtain our freedom without a necessity of appealing to his Majesty.  The use of force in religious affairs is become odious to great numbers besides our own denomination, and that is increasing very fast.

       "Thus, dear sir, I have given you as concise and just an account of our state as I can; and we request the best advice from yourself, Dr. Slewalen and Mr. Wallin, that you can give us.  We are greatly obliged to you all for the friendship and favors you have already shown us, especially concerning the case of Ashfield, for which we hope and pray that God may abundantly reward you.

       "By the printed minutes I send you, it appears that we have one thousand one hundred and sixty-one church members in our association, and I suppose there are full as many more within the Provinces of Massachusetts and New Hampshire only; which are but two of the four governments of New England; and full two-thirds of all those have been baptized within these seventeen years; and the abundant evidence I have that the pure doctrines of grace set home by the power of the divine Spirit, have been the cause of it, affords me unspeakable satisfaction.  Brother Hinds, who lives nine miles south of me, has been favored with a glorious visitation this year, and he has baptized four more since the meeting of the association.  In such a new state and rapid increase of churches, you, sir, must be sensible that we stand in great need of the best assistance that can be had.  I therefore hope for some from yourself and brethren to be communicated to

                                                    Your unworthy brother in gospel bonds,

                                                               Isaac Backus." 

       The "appeal" mentioned in this letter was a pamphlet of sixty-two pages.  After a preface designed to show that civil government is conducive and even necessary to individual freedom, it lays down the position "that God has appointed two kinds of government in the world, which are distinct in their nature and ought never to be confounded together; one of which is called civil, the other ecclesiastical government," and then proceeds in the first section to specify "some essential points of difference between them."  The next section shows how "civil and ecclesiastical affairs are blended together among us, to the depriving of many of God's people of that liberty of conscience which he has given them."  At the close of this section an injurious reproach is thus noticed: "Though many of us have expended ten or twenty times as much in setting up and supporting that worship which we believe to be right, as it would have cost us to have continued in the fashionable way, yet we are often accused of being covetous for dissenting from that way, and refusing to pay more money out of our little incomes, to uphold men from whom we receive no benefit but rather abuse."  Section third gives a brief account of what the Baptists had suffered under the existing laws and of their reasons for refusing any active compliance with them.  These reasons, directed chiefly against the giving of certificates, were substantially as follows:  1. "Because to give certificates implies an acknowledgment that civil rulers have a right to set up one religious sect above another; which they have not.  2. Because civil rulers are not representatives in religious matters, and therefore have no right to impose religious taxes.  3. Because such practice emboldens the actors therein to assume God's prerogative; and to judge the hearts of those who do not put into their mouths.  4. Because the church is to be presented as a chaste virgin to Christ; and to place her trust and love upon any other for temporal support, is playing the harlot, and so the way to destroy all religion.  5. Because the practice tends to envy, hypocrisy, and confusion, and so to the ruin of civil society."  ¹

       This put the Baptists in a difficult spot.  Their Congregationalist oppressors were infringing on their liberty of conscience by compelling them by force of civil law to provide financially for the state church with which they had some theological disagreement.  Yet they were hesitant to reach out to London for redress since they were also in agreement with their fellow countrymen in resisting the usurpations of the mother country.  What to do?  Lord willing in my next post we’ll begin to look at Backus’ efforts in defense of religious liberty.

Christ, not man, is King!

Dale

1)      Alvah Hovey, A Memoir of the Life and Times of the Rev. Isaac Backus, A.M. (Boston, MA: Gould and Lincoln, 1859), p. 190-5.