those who defend him.” Gov. Bradford’s statement regarding Williams is as reliable and correct probably as any that can be found. On the whole he thought well of Williams.
As found on the church records at Plymouth, Bradford says, “Roger Williams, a man godly and zealous, having many precious parts, but very unsettled in judgment, came over first to the Massachusetts, but upon some discontent, left the place and came hither (to Plymouth), when he was freely entertained according to our poor ability, and exercised his gifts among us, and after some time, was admitted a member of the church, and his teaching well approved, for the benefit whereof I still bless God, and am thankful to him even for his sharpest admonitions and reproofs, so far as they agree with the truth. He this year fell into some strange opinions, and from opinions to practice, which caused some controversy between the church and him, and in the end some discontent on his part, by occasion whereof he left them something abruptly; yet afterwards sued for his dismission to the church of Salem, which was granted with some caution to them concerning him; but he soon fell into more things there both to their and the government’s trouble and disturbance. I shall not need to name particulars, they are too well known now to all, though for a time the church here went under some hard censures by his occasion from some that afterwards smarted themselves, but he is to be pitied and prayed for, and so I shall leave the matter, and desire the Lord to show him his errors, and reduce him into the way of truth, and give him a settled judgment and constancy in the same, for I hope he belongs to the Lord.”
For further particulars of Williams, see Hutchinson’s Hist., vol. i., 40, 41, 113, 131; Winthrop’s Journal; Mass. Hist. Coll.; Callender’s Hist. R.I.; Felt’s Eccl. History of New England and Memoir, by Prof. Knowles.
1630.
This year it pleased God, of his rich grace, to transport over into the bay of the Massachusetts divers honourable personages, and many worthy Christians, whereby the Lord began in a manifest manner and way to make known the great thoughts which he had of planting the gospel in this remote and barbarous wilderness, and honouring his own way of instituted worship, causing such and so many to adhere thereunto, and fall upon the practice thereof; among the rest, a chief one amongst them was that famous pattern of piety and justice, Mr. John Winthrop, the first governor of the jurisdiction, accompanied with divers other precious sons of Sion, which might be compared to the most fine gold.11
Amongst whom, also, I might name that reverend and worthy man, Mr. John Wilson, eminent for love and zeal; he likewise came over this year, and bare a great share of the difficulties of these new beginnings, with great cheerfulness and alacrity of spirit. They came over with a fleet of ten ships, three of them arriving first at Salem, in which several of the chiefest of them came, who repaired, sundry of them, in some short time, into the bay of the Massachusetts; the other seven ships arrived at Charlestown, where it pleased the Lord to exercise them with much sickness, and being destitute of housing and shelter, and lying up and down in booths, some of them languished and died. Yea, it pleased God to take away amongst the rest that blessed servant of Christ, Mr. Isaac Johnson, with his lady, soon after their arrival, with sundry other precious saints.This sickness being heavy upon them, caused the principal of them to propose to the rest to set a day apart to seek the Lord, for the assuaging of his displeasure therein, as also for direction and guidance in the solemn enterprise of entering into church fellowship; which solemn day of humiliation was observed by all, not only of themselves, but also by their brethren at Plimouth in their behalf;12
and the Lord was entreated not only to assuage the sickness, but also encouraged their hearts to a beginning, and in some short time after to a further progress in the great work of erecting a way of worshipping of Christ in church fellowship, according to primitive institution. Those choice and eminent servants of Christ did not despise their poor leaders and fellow-soldiers that they found in the same work of the Lord with them, at Plimouth, but treated them as brethren, much pitying their great straits and hardships they had endured in the first beginning of planting this wilderness, promising all helpfulness even out of their own estates, according to their power; and their said brethren at Plimouth were persuaded they spake as they thought in their hearts; for, such was the simplicity of those times, as that divers faces were not carried under a hood; pride, covetousness, profaneness, and sinful self, were ashamed to be seen, except in| Previous chapter/page | Back | Home | Email this | Search | Discuss | Bookmark | Next chapter/page |