Selected Sermons of Jonathan EdwardsEdwards, Jonathan
Religion
Selected Sermons of Jonathan Edwards
Edwards, Jonathan
Congregational churches -- Sermons; Edwards, Jonathan, 1703-1758; Sermons, American
introduced." Letter of July 1, 1751 to Rev. Thomas Gillespie. Cf.
Trumbull, _History of Northampton_, Vol. II, p. 36.
Footnotes:
[1] See J. A. Stoughton, _Windsor Farmes_, p. 39 and p. 69 n. Students of
heredity may perhaps here find a clew to the character of Edwards's
brilliant, wayward grandson, Aaron Burr.
[2] See H. N. Gardiner, _The Early Idealism of Edwards_ in Jonathan
Edwards: a Retrospect, pp. 115-160: Boston, 1901. Cf. J. H. MacCracken,
_The Sources of Jonathan Edwards's Idealism_, Philos. Rev., xi. 26 ff.
(Jan. 1902).
[3] That to the church at Bolton, Conn. But for some reason, not now
apparent, he was never installed there. See S. Simpson, _Jonathan
Edwards--a Historical Review_, Hartford Seminary Record. xiv. 11
(November, 1903).
[4] First printed by Dwight, _Life of President Edwards_, p. 114, and
frequently reproduced. It has been compared to Dante's description of
Beatrice, which in pure lyric quality it certainly equals, though it lacks
the latter's sensuous coloring and imaginative idealization. The
comparison is made by A. V. G. Allen, _The Place of Edwards in History_,
in Jonathan Edwards: a Retrospect, p. 7; the contrast is pointed out by
John De Witt, Stockbridge (1903), Oration, p. 45 (pub. by the Berkshire
Conference).
[5] Solomon Clark, _Historical Catalogue of the Northampton First Church_,
pp. 40-67 (Northampton, 1891), prints the list in full.
[6] See note, p. 179.
[7] It is impossible here to go into the history of this famous
controversy. Something concerning it will be found in the notes, pp. 172
ff.; Dwight, _op. cit._, pp. 298-448, prints the documents from Edwards's
Journal in full; the records of the church are silent. It should be
stated, perhaps, in fairness to the Northampton people, that the pastoral
relation was not then, as is sometimes supposed, regarded as indissoluble;
six clergymen were "dismissed" from neighboring churches between 1721 and
1755. Moreover, Edwards, eminent as he undoubtedly was as a preacher, was
to them only the parish minister; his great fame as a theologian was
established later. Cf. Trumbull, _History of Northampton_, II, 225. It is
also not unreasonable to suppose that the spiritual capacities of the
people had been overstimulated. The later repentance of Joseph Hawley (see
Dwight, _op. cit._, p. 421), Edwards's cousin, who had taken a leading
part in the movement against him, concerns only the spirit of the
opposition; it does not seriously question the wisdom, under the
circumstances, of the separation.
[8] Aaron Burr, the Vice-President of the United States, who killed
Alexander Hamilton in a duel, was their son.
[9] See, e.g., the incident recorded by Dwight, _op. cit._, p. 133, where
the rapture lasts for about an hour, accompanied for the greater part of
the time "with tears and weeping aloud."
[10] See F. B. Dexter, _The Manuscripts of Jonathan Edwards_, p. 7.
(Reprinted from the Proceedings of the Mass. Hist. Soc., March, 1901.)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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