394 XXV. THE FRENCH AND DUTCH CHURCHES. CHAP. from the French church there into communion with us. Also the wife of Francis Cooke,' being a Walloon, holds communion with the church at Plymouth, as she came from the French, to this day, by virtue of communion of churches. There is also one Philip Delanoy, born of French parents, came to us from Leyden to New Plymouth, who coming to age of discerning, demanded also communion with us; and proving himself to be come of such parents as were in full communion with the French churches, was hereupon admitted by the church of Plymouth; and after, upon his removal of habitation to Duxburrow, where Mr. Ralph Partridge pastor of the church, and upon letters of recommen is 1 Francis Cooke came in the Mayflower, and his wife Hester and children in the Anne. See note on page 39. De la Noye came in the Fortune. This name has become corrupted into Delano. The church in Duxbury was formed in 1632. "Those that lived on their lots on the other side of the bay, (called Duxburrow,) could no longer bring their wives and child ren to the public worship and church meetings here (at Plymouth,) but with such burthen, as growing to some competent number, they sued to be dismissed and become a body of themselves; and so they were dismissed about this time, (though very unwillingly,) and some time after being united into one entire body, they procured Reverend Mr. Ralph Partrich to be their pastor." MS. Records Plym. Ch. p. 36. "So that Duxbury seems to be the second town and church in Plymouth Colony, and the next town settled after Newton, that is, Cambridge, in New England." Prince, p. 411. See note on page 126. Ralph Partridge, "a gracious man of great abilities," arrived at Boston in 1636. He had been a clergyman of the church of England, but "being hunted, by the ecclesiastical setters, like a partridge on the mountains, he had no defence, neither of beak nor claw, but a flight over the ocean." He was a member of the Cambridge Synod, in 1647, and was associated with John Cotton and Increase Mather, in drawing up the Platform of church government and discipline. He continued in the ministry at Duxbury till his death in 1658. Cotton Mather, after playing upon his name through a whole page, concludes his Life of him thus; "Mr. Partridge was, notwithstanding the paucity and poverty of his congregation, so afraid of being any thing that looked like a bird wandering from his nest, that he remained with his poor people, till he took wing to become a bird of paradise, along with the winged seraphim of heaven. Epitaphium AVOLAVIT!"" See Morton's Memorial, p. 276; Mather's Magnalia, i. 365; Mitchell's Bridgewater, p. 383. COMMUNION WITH THE SCOTCH. XXV. 395 dation from the church at Plymouth, he was also ad- CHAP. mitted into fellowship with the church at Duxburrow, being six miles distant from Plymouth; and so, I dare say, if his occasions lead him, may from church to church throughout New England. For the truth is, the Dutch and French churches, either of them being a people distinct from the world, and gathered into a holy communion, and not national churches, nay so far from it as I verily believe the sixth person is not of the church, the difference is so small (if moderately pondered between them and us) as we dare not for the world deny communion with them. And for the Church of Scotland, however we have had least occasion offered to hold communion with them, yet thus much I can and do affirm, that a godly divine coming over to Leyden in Holland, where a book was printed anno 1619, as I take it, showing the nullity of Perth Assembly,' whom we judged to be the author of it, and hidden in Holland for a season to avoid the rage of those evil times, (whose name I have forgotten,) this man being very conversant with our pastor, Mr. Robinson, and using to come to hear him on the sabbath, after sermon ended, the church being 1619. to partake in the Lord's Supper, this minister stood up and desired he might, without offence, stay and see the manner of his administration and our participation in that ordinance. To whom our pastor answered in these very words, or to this effect, "Reverend Sir, you 'Sir Dudley Carleton, in a letter to Secretary Naunton, dated at the Hague, July 17, 1619, writes, "I have seen, within these two days, a certain Scottish book, called Perth Assembly, written with much scorn and reproach of the proceeding in that kingdom concerning the affairs of the church. It is without name 1 396 XXV. ROBINSON'S FAREWELL ADVICE. CHAP. may not only stay to behold us, but partake with us, if you please; for we acknowledge the churches of Scot1619. land to be the churches of Christ," &c. The minister also replied to this purpose, if not also in the same words, "that for his part he could comfortably partake with the church, and willingly would, but that it is possible some of his brethren of Scotland might take offence at his act; which he desired to avoid in regard of the opinion the English churches, which they held communion withal, had of us." However, he rendered thanks to Mr. Robinson, and desired in that respect to be only a spectator of us. These things I was earnestly requested to publish to the world by some of the godly Presbyterian party, who apprehend the world to be ignorant of our proceedings, conceiving in charity that if they had been known, some late writers and preachers would never have written and spoke of us as they did, and still do as they have occasion. But what they ignorantly judge, write, or speak of us, I trust the Lord in mercy will pass by. In the next place, for the wholesome counsel Mr. Robinson gave that part of the church whereof he was 1620. pastor at their departure from him to begin the great work of plantation in New England, amongst other wholesome instructions and exhortations he used these expressions, or to the same purpose: "We are now ere long to part asunder, and the Lord knoweth whether ever he should live to see our faces again. But whether the Lord had appointed it ' Cotton, in his Way of Congregational Churches Cleared, page 8, says, "I have been given to understand, that when a reverend and godly Scottish minister came that way, (it seemeth to have been Mr. John Tarbes,) he offered him communion at the Lord's table; though the other, for fear of offence to the Scottish churches at home, excused himself." ROBINSON'S FAREWELL ADVICE. XXV. 397 or not, he charged us before God and his blessed an- CHAP. gels, to follow him no further than he followed Christ; and if God should reveal any thing to us by any other 1620. instrument of his, to be as ready to receive it as ever we were to receive any truth by his ministry; for he was very confident the Lord had more truth and light yet to break forth out of his holy word. He took occasion also miserably to bewail the state and condition of the Reformed Churches, who were come to a period in religion, and would go no further than the instruments of their Reformation. As, for example, the Lutherans, they could not be drawn to go beyond what Luther saw; for whatever part of God's will he had further imparted and revealed to Calvin, they will rather die than embrace it. And so also, saith he, you see the Calvinists, they stick where he left them; a misery much to be lamented; for though they were precious shining lights in their times, yet God had not revealed his whole will to them; and were they now living, saith he, they would be as ready and willing to embrace further light, as that they had received. Here also he put us in mind of our church covenant,' at least that part of it whereby we promise and covenant with God and one with another, to receive whatsoever light or truth shall be made known to us from his written word; but withal exhorted us to take heed what we received for truth, and well to examine and compare it and weigh it with other Scriptures of truth before we received it. For, saith he, it is not possible the Christian world should come so lately out of such 1 See on page 21, the terms of the covenant here alluded to, by which they agree "to walk in all the ways of the Lord, made known or to be 398 ROBINSON'S FAREWELL ADVICE. CHAP. thick antichristian darkness, and that full perfection of knowledge should break forth at once. XXV. 1620. "Another thing he commended to us, was that we should use all means to avoid and shake off the name of Brownist,' being a mere nickname and brand to make religion odious and the professors of it to the Christian world. And to that end, said he, I should be glad if some godly minister would go over with you before my coming; for, said he, there will be no difference between the unconformable 3 ministers and you, when they come to the practice of the ordinances out of the kingdom. And so advised us by all means 2 In his book on Religious Communion, printed in 1614, Robinson says, p. 45, "He miscalls us Brownists; "and on the title page of his Apology he speaks of certain Christians, contumeliously called Brownists." See this matter set right by Dr. Holmes, in his Annals, i. 572. Some account of Brown will be given hereafter. 2 They had engaged a minister to go with them. See page 85. That is, the nonconforming clergy, who had not separated from the church. This prediction was remarkably fulfilled in the case of the Mas sachusetts colonists. Higginson, in 1629, in taking his last look of his native land from the stern of his ship, exclaimed, "We will not say as the Separatists were wont to say at their leaving of England, Farewell, Babylon! Farewell, Rome! But we will say, Farewell, dear England! Farewell, the Church of God in England, and all the Christian friends there! We do not go to New England as separatists from the Church of England." Gov. Winthrop, too, and his company, on their departure in 1630, in their address "to the rest of their brethren in and of the Church of England," say, "We desire you We of tears for your everlasting welfare, when we shall be in our poor cottages in the wilderness, overshadowed with the spirit of supplication." |