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SEPTEMBER
 

24, 673 --England. At Hertford, the first English National Assembly convenes. Articles will be drawn up for the government of the Church. It is called by Theodore of Tarsus, the seventh archbishop, and "the first to whom the whole English Church made submission."

24, 1559 --Spain. In Seville, an auto da fe takes place and a house in which Evangelicals had frequently held meetings is torn down.

24, 1820 --Maryland. In Hagerstown, John Winebrenner is ordained a Baptist minister. His preaching will result in a revival that will oppose theatres, dancing gambling, lotteries and racing. His followers often called "Winebrennarians, are a gap-denomination known as the Church of God in North America.

25, 1643 --Scotland. It is Monday, and at St. Margaret's Church at Westminster, the Solemn League and Covenant is sworn to by two hundred and twenty members of the House of Commons and by ministers of the Westminster Assembly. Mr. Henry Hallem has said, "The Covenant consisted in an oath to be subscribed by all persons in both kingdoms whereby they bound themselves to preserve the Reformed religion in the Church of Scotland in doctrine, worship, discipline, and government according to the Word of God, and Practice of the best Reformed churches; to endeavor without respect of persons, the extirpation of Popery, Prelacy, and whatsoever should be found contrary to sound doctrine, and the power of godliness; to preserve the rights and privileges of the Parliaments, and the liberties of the kingdoms; and to endeavor to bring the churches of God in the three kingdoms to the nearest conjunction and uniformity in religion, confession of faith, form of church government, Directory for Worship and catechising; to endeavor to discovery of incendiaries and malignants who hinder the reformation of religion and divide the king from his people, that they may be brought to punishment; finally to assist and defend all such as should enter into this covenant and not suffer themselves to be withdrawn from it whether to revolt to the opposite party, or to give in to a detestable and indifference and neutrality."
     Those who sign this "Covenant" will become known as the "Covenanters."

25, 1714 --England. William Romaine is born. His father is one of the French Protestants who took refuge in England after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes and settled at Hartlepool as a corn merchant. "Mr. Whitefield," he will write, "used often to put me in mind how singularly favored I was. He had none of his family converted, while my father, another and three sisters were like those blessed people of whom it is written, ‘Jesus loved Martha and her sister, and Lazarus.' And as they loved Him again, so do we."

25, 1782 --England. John Wesley kindly takes Adam Clarke by the hand, "Well, brother Clarke, do you wish to devote yourself entirely to the Word of God?" "Sir," he answers, "I wish to do and be what God pleases!"

25, 1794 --France. Paul Rabaut dies at Nimes. Since he was sixteen years of age, he has been associated with the "Church in the Desert." He has been hunted as a beast of prey. Cornered again and again he has always managed to escape.

25, 1836 --South Carolina. At Edgefield, Luther Rice dies. He has served as missionary to India sailing with Adoniram Judson and his wife, and has turned from the Congregational Church to become a Baptist.

25, 1838 --Scotland. "How true is Psalm l! Yet observed in my heart a strange proneness to be entangled with the affairs of this life . . .." --Robert Murray M'Cheyne.

25, 1872 --Illinois. Near Pleasant Plains, Sangamon County, Peter Cartwright dies. Known as the "backwoods preacher," he has been willing to resort to physical force to quiet the rough characters with whom he has had to deal, if they would not acquiesce to moral persuasion. He was a Methodist circuit rider, and was defeated for Congress by Abraham Lincoln in 1846.


 

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