Yorkshire Oddities, Incidents, and Strange EventsBaring-Gould, S. (Sabine)
History
Yorkshire Oddities, Incidents, and Strange Events
Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine)
Legends -- England -- Yorkshire; Yorkshire (England) -- Miscellanea
After having visited Jews at Liverpool and London without success, on
April 27th he embarked in the brig _Doris_ at Liverpool for Gibraltar,
in company of Robert Harling, of Thornhill, and reached there on the
20th of May. But there Harling's heart failed, whether at the sight of
the "abominable idolatries" of the people, or because his faith was
shaken in Wroe, does not transpire. On the day following their landing
Harling returned to England in a vessel that was ready to sail; but
John, having visited and converted the local Methodist preacher,
remained with him two months. This preacher, Cooke, was greatly
exercised in spirit on the arrival of the Prophet; but having prayed
earnestly to the Lord, as he tells us, "The Lord opened my eyes to see,"
and he became an enthusiastic believer.
On Saturday, the 31st, Wroe appeared in the synagogue of the Jews and
delivered his testimony. The Governor of Gibraltar declined to permit
him to preach in public; consequently Wroe departed, having been offered
a free passage to England. Before he did so he had been turned out of
the synagogue, and had invaded the Roman Catholic Churches, where he
deposited his prophecies on the altar in Spanish. This is one of them:--
"I, Jesus from heaven, command thee, John Wroe, to warn the kingdom
of Spain that if they return not from their wicked ways of
worshipping images made with men's hands, and bowing before them, I
will draw my two-edged sword against them, and it shall turn every
way till I have destroyed them. But who is this that has caused
them to err? They have hearkened unto their priests instead of
hearkening unto me. Now, I will tell you what I will do unto your
priests: I will chase them as hounds chase a fox, until I utterly
destroy them, and the remnant that is left shall slay your king,
and they shall know that I have sent this unto them by my servant."
He began to address the Irish Roman Catholic soldiers on the Rock, but
the adjutant turned him out. In the two months he was at Gibraltar he
had succeeded in making many enemies. A woman threw a pitcher out of a
window at his head, but fortunately missed him, and he was several times
threatened with a pistol. One day that he was creating disorder in the
cathedral the priests took him by the shoulders, thrust him out, and
locked the doors behind him.
Wroe reached Liverpool on August 23rd, and then visited Ashton and
Birmingham. On October 12th he again sailed for the Continent, and
reaching Paris on the 16th, he began to preach his mission to the Jews
in the Palais Royal.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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