Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the GospelYeardley, John
Religion
Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the Gospel
Yeardley, John
Clergy -- United States -- Biography; Quakers -- Biography; Yeardley, John, 1786-1858
6 _mo._ 23.--Last evening we arrived at Prague. Our heart sunk on
approaching this great city. The twenty-eight statues of saints, &c. on
the bridge, with the many lamps devoted to these images, the crucifixes,
&c., all indicated that superstition rages rampant.
We lost no time in sending to the Protestant pastors, one of whom kindly
came to us in the evening, and we conversed till late. I showed him my
little _Spiritual Bread for Christian Workmen_, with which he was
much pleased. I told him I wanted it translated into the Bohemian
language. This afternoon he paid us another visit, and brought his wife to
see my M.Y. He produced the translation of the introduction to the little
tract. We are to have 2000 printed. Most of the poor people read only the
Bohemian language. I have promised to place 1000 at the disposal of the
pastor; he is delighted with the opportunity of having anything of the
kind _printed in Prague_.
Much, adds J.Y. in a letter, as I have suffered in the long prospect of a
visit to this place, I feel a peculiar satisfaction that it has been
deferred until there is liberty to print and circulate gospel tracts.
Small as such a privilege may appear, until very recently such
distribution of books would have been visited with a very inconvenient
imprisonment on the individual transgressing the law.--(6 _mo_. 23.)
24_th_.--I gave Pastor Bennisch for perusal, and choice for
translation, William. Allen's _Thoughts on the Importance of
Religion_, and our tracts on the _Fall, Regeneration and Redemption,
True Faith, and the Voice of Conscience_. There is a great movement
among the Catholics; they have need to be instructed in the first
principles of Christianity, and it is very important that the doctrine of
faith in Christ should be combined with that of the practical working of
the Spirit as set forth in many of our tracts. On this account, I am glad
they are likely to take precedence of others in their circulation; for I
do not hear that any tracts decidedly religious have yet been printed in
Prague.
During their stay in the city, and after they left, there were printed
12,000 copies of the tracts in Bohemian, and 1000 in German.
At Toeplitz, which they revisited before leaving Bohemia, occurred the
interesting incident of the Bohemian soldier, which is related under that
title in John Yeardley's series of tracts, No. 4.
When they finally quitted the country, they took the nearest road to
Kreuznach. On the way, they distributed tracts in the villages, at one of
which, where they were detained for want of horses, the inhabitants
flocked so eagerly to them to receive these little messengers, that they
had difficulty in satisfying them. Notwithstanding this circumstance, the
reflection with which John Yeardley concludes his account of their travels
in Bohemia was, "It will require a power more than human to make the
_dry bones of Bohemia_ live."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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