But if it was for contempt of Authority, as Peter Pratt asserts, then I think those that inflicted such a punishment were more guilty of contempt against God than John Rogers was of contempt against the Authority; for God in his holy law has strictly commanded Judges not to exceed forty stripes on any account, as may be seen, Deut. xxv, 3, “So that for Judges to exceed forty stripes is high contempt against God.”
In the next place, he adds that “his sitting on the gallows was for blasphemous words.”
Reply:—
Here again he ought to have informed the reader what the words were, which doubtless would have been more satisfaction to the reader than for Peter Pratt to make himself both witness and judge, and so leave nothing for the reader to do but to remain as ignorant as before they saw his book.
And he might as well have said of the Martyr Stephen that his suffering was for blasphemous words, as what he says of John Rogers, for it was but the judgment of John Roger’s persecutors that the words were blasphemous, and so it was the judgment of the Martyr Stephen’s persecutors that he was guilty of speaking blasphemous words, as may be seen, Acts vi, 13, “This man ceaseth not to speak blasphemous words,” etc. Whereupon they put him to death.
In the next place, I shall give the reader an account of what these words were for which John Rogers was charged with blasphemy; the account of which here follows:—
He being at a house in New London where there were many persons present, was giving a description of the state of an unregenerate person, and also of the state of a sanctified person; wherein he alleged that the body of an unregenerate person was a body of sin, and that Satan had his habitation there. And, on the contrary, that the body of a sanctified person was Christ’s body, and that Christ dwelt in such a body.
Whereupon, one of the company asked him whether he intended the humane body, to which he replied that he did intend the humane body. Whereupon, the person replied again, “Will you say that your humane body is Christ’s body?” to which he replied, clapping his hand on his breast, “Yes, I do affirm that this humane body is Christ’s body; for Christ has purchased it with His precious blood; and I am not my own, for I am bought with a price.”
Whereupon, two of the persons present gave their testimony as follows: “We being present, saw John Rogers clap his hand on his breast and say, ‘This is Christ’s humane body.’” But they omitted the other words which John Rogers joined with it.
And because I was very desirous to have given those testimonies out of the Secretary’s Office, I took a journey to Hartford on purpose but the Secretary could not find them; yet, forasmuch as myself was present, both when the words were spoken, and also at the trial at Hartford, I am very confident that I have given them verbatim. And whether or no this was blasphemy, I desire not to be the judge, but am willing to leave the judgment to every unprejudiced reader.