Great Awakening - Tracy - XXI - Chapter 17 (Opposition to the revival in Connecticut)

Required reading
The Great Awakening: A history of the revival of religion in the time of Edwards & Whitefield by Joseph Tracy (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Chapter 17 (Opposition to the revival in Connecticut).

My summary
This week we learn about the stir that the revival made in Connecticut.

Firstly we hear about the involvement of the civil government in preventing and punishing preachers who preached without permission from local pastors.

Secondly we are taught about the Separatist groups that emerged.  Tracy sums the Separatist movement at one point with the following: 'They were the ignorant and blundering, but zealous and conscientious advocates of some important truths, which they mixed with pernicious errors, but which their adversaries totally opposed. They denounced and separated from the churches, as made up, in part, of hypocrites ; meaning, not intentional deceivers, but persons who professed religion while destitute of true piety.'

What grabbed me
It was terrible to read of local American churches getting the civil authorities to punish their brothers.

For example: 'There was a church at Milford which declared itself Presbyterian, put itself under the care of the New Brunswick Presbytery, and applied to that body to send them a preacher. They sent the Rev. Samuel Finley, afterwards president of the college at Princeton. He came, but was sent out of the colony as a "vagrant." He afterwards returned, and preached to a Congregational church at New Haven ; probably, that which had been gathered after Davenport's first visit. He was arrested, and sentenced to be again transported from the colony ; but through the negligence, perhaps intentional, of some officer, the sentence was but partly executed, and he returned and preached a third time. Both these churches had been legally recognised as churches, under the laws of the colony. His preaching, it was said, "greatly disquieted and disturbed the people," and was the principle motive for an additional act, passed by the Assembly in October, 1743. This additional act required, that every person transported under the former, should pay the costs of his transportation ; and if he should return again and offend in the same way, it was made the duty of any assistant or justice of the peace, on information, to cause him to be arrested, and to give bonds in the penal sum of one hundred pounds, lawful money, for his peaceable and good behaviour till the next county court in that county, and that he would not thus offend again ; and the next county court might, if they should see cause, further bind him during their pleasure." The Association of New Haven county also took up the matter, and formally resolved that no member of the Presbytery of New Brunswick should be admitted into any of their pulpits, till satisfaction had been made for sending Mr. Finley to preach within their bounds.'

Such infighting is a terrible witness to the gospel.

Next week's reading
Commence Chapter 18 (The controversy in Massachusetts) by reading up to the paragraph beginning 'In such a state of things as these specimens indicate, Whitefield returned to New England'.

Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.