“And that this our Declaration, Protestation, and Testimony may come to the world’s view, we do appoint and ordain our emissaries, in our name, to pass upon the —— day of August, 1742, to the market-cross of ——, and other public places necessary, and there publish, and leave copies of the same, that none may pretend ignorance thereof.
“Given in Scotland, upon the —— day of August, 1742.
“Let King Jesus reign,
And let all His enemies be scattered.”
Worse and worse; and yet there is more to follow. About the same time, there was published, in Edinburgh, “A Letter from a Gentleman in Boston, to Mr. George Wishart, one of the Ministers of Edinburgh, concerning the state of Religion in New England.” (12mo. 24 pp.) Three extracts from this production must suffice.
“The minds of the people, in this part of the world, had been greatly prepossessed in favour of Mr. Whitefield, from the accounts transmitted of him, as a wonder of piety, and a man of God. Accordingly, when he came to Boston, about two years ago, he was received as though he had been an angel of God, yea, a god come down in the likeness of man. He was strangely flocked after by all sorts of persons, and much admired by the vulgar, both great and small. The ministers had him in veneration, and, as much as the people, encouraged his preaching, attending it themselves every day in the week, and mostly twice a day. The grand subject of conversation was Mr. Whitefield, and the whole business of the town was to run from place to place to hear him preach. His reception, as he passed through this and the neighbouring governments of Connecticut and New York, was after much the same manner, save only, that he met with no admirers among the clergy, unless here and there one, anywhere but in Boston. You ask, What was the great good this gentleman was the instrument of? I answer, Wherever he went, he generally moved the passions, especially of the younger people, and females; the effect whereof was a great talk about religion, together with a disposition to be perpetually hearing sermons, to the neglect of all other business. In these things chiefly consisted the goodness so much spoken of. I could not but discern, that there were the same pride and vanity, the same luxury and intemperance, the same lying and tricking and cheating, in the town, as there were before this gentleman came among us. There was also raised such a spirit of bitter, censorious, uncharitable judging, as was not known before; and the greatest friends of Mr. Whitefield were as much puffed up with conceit and pride as any of their neighbours.”
The writer then proceeds to say, that a number of imitators of Whitefield sprung up after his departure, and that one of the most famous of them was Gilbert Tennent,
“A man of no great parts or learning, and whose preaching was in theextemporaneous way, with much noise, and little connection. Under his preaching, scores cried out, fell down, swooned away, and were like persons in fits. Visions became common, and trances also. Laughing, loud, hearty laughing, was one of the ways in which the new converts almost everywhere expressed their joy at the conversion of others. Houses of worship were scarce emptied night or day for a week together, and unheard-of instances of supposed religion were carried on in them. In the same house, and at the same time, some would be praying, some exhorting, some singing, some clapping their hands, some laughing, some crying, some shrieking, and some roaring out.”
The gentleman in Boston concludes thus:—
“I am among those who are clearly of opinion, that, there never was such a spirit of superstition and enthusiasm reigning in the land before; never such gross disorders, and bare-faced affronts to common decency; never such scandalous reproaches on the blessed Spirit, making Him the author of the greatest irregularities and confusions. Yet, I am of opinion also, that the appearances among us have been the means of awakening the attention of many; and a good number, I hope, have settled into a truly Christian temper.”