Memorials of the Independent Churches in Northamptonshire Part 9

In the history of this Church, we cannot but observe the very interesting fact which it presents, of 75 years having been already filled up by the ministry of the father and the son (and we trust that there is a probability of years of useful service being added in the case of the latter to the period that has pa.s.sed), during which a Christian society and a numerous congregation have been preserved in peace, with the interests of vital religion advancing. While such a fact speaks well for the spirit and continued improvement of the people, it says much also for the Christian temper, the consummate prudence, the able and successful labours of the pastors, while to G.o.d they would unitedly ascribe all the glory.

At Warkton, about two miles from Kettering, occasional services are held. In this village Mr. Thomas Stone, another of the Puritan ministers, was rector--"a person of good learning," it is said, "and great worth: a zealous Puritan, and a member of the cla.s.ses." "He died, an old man and full of days, in the year 1617." Bridges observes, "that he was inducted into the living of Warkton in the year 1553." If this statement be correct, he must have been rector of that place 64 years.

He was a learned man, of great uprightness, and uncommon plainness of spirit, minding not the things of this world; yet, according to Wood, "a stiff Nonconformist, and a zealous Presbyterian." At Geddington, the birth-place of Mr. Maidwell, the first pastor of the Independent Church at Kettering, there is a Chapel regularly supplied on the Sabbath evenings. This place of worship was provided by Mr. Nathaniel Collis, for many years a respectable bookseller in Kettering, and a deacon of the Church--Geddington was his native place.

Services are also conducted on Sabbath evenings at Great Oakley, five miles from Kettering; occasionally at Orlingbury, five miles in another direction; also at Thorpe and Loddington.

BROUGHTON.

The Dissenters of Kettering have conducted occasional services in the village of Broughton, about three miles distant on the road for Northampton, for many years past. But rather more than five years ago, there were four or five young men in this village who began to think of the things which belonged to their everlasting peace; they formed themselves into a little band, and resolved that they would meet weekly and study the holy Scriptures, and encourage each other in the ways of G.o.d. They subsequently joined a Christian Church at Kettering. Becoming anxious for the welfare of those around them, they had a cottage licensed for preaching; that was found too small for those who wished to attend. In the meantime several other Christian friends came to the village, and at length, in the year 1850, a Chapel was erected; it is a neat structure, capable of containing about 200 hearers. In January, 1851, a Christian Church was formed, consisting of 19 persons; Mr.

Toller and Mr. Robinson, of Kettering, being present, and conducting the services. This village Church is formed on the broad principle of Christian union, designated simply a Christian Church, without denominational distinction; its present number of communicants is 22.

There is preaching here on the afternoon and evening of the Sabbath, by friends from Kettering and other places. An interesting Sabbath-school is conducted, numbering more than 60 children. The teachers express the earnest desire that many of them may be gathered into the fold of Christ, and become useful in their generation.

This place was once noted as the residence of the eminent Puritan divine, Robert Bolton, B.D. He was presented to the rectory in the year 1609, and continued until his death, in 1631. It is stated concerning him, that "he was a most authoritative and awakening preacher, being endowed with the most masculine and oratorical style of any in his time;" that "he was so deeply engaged in his work, that he never delivered a sermon to his people in public till he had preached it to himself in private."

"His remains were interred in the chancel of Broughton Church, where there is a half-length figure of him with his hands erected in the att.i.tude of prayer, resting on a book lying open before him; and underneath is a monumental inscription in black marble, of which the following is a translation:"--

Here lies, peaceably sleeping in the Lord, the body of Robert Bolton, who died December the seventeenth, in the year 1631.

He was one of the first and most learned of our Church.

His other excellencies all England knoweth, lamenting the day of his death.

Mr. Bolton published a number of works; those most known in the present day are his 'Directions for Walking with G.o.d,' and his 'Four Lost Things.'

CHAPTER IV.

MEMORIALS OF THE INDEPENDENT CHURCH AT MARKET HARBOROUGH.[3]

If a stranger were pa.s.sing through the small but respectable town of Market Harborough, on the road to Leicester, with the intention of observing what was most worthy of notice, he would see on the right of the princ.i.p.al street, in the upper part of the town, a handsome structure, of considerable dimensions for the size of the place. On the front of the building he might notice the inscription--"Independent Chapel." If an intelligent traveller, he would think, Surely this was not the first origin of Independency here! This must have been erected for a body of some standing in the town. On inquiry, he would find that there had been an old Meeting House, which had stood at the top of the lane leading for Great Bowden for more than 150 years, during the whole of which period a numerous and respectable body of Dissenters had a.s.sembled in it; but that the building, with its plain walls, its high pews, its deep galleries, its antique pillars, and irregular form, had been entirely taken down; and this Chapel, in a more eligible position, had been raised by the present congregation. And he might be informed that it was n.o.bly done; for after the most liberal subscriptions, amounting to 1600, a moiety of which was lost by the failure of the bank in which they were deposited: (in consequence of this, an appeal was made to the public, the result of which about made up the loss sustained:) the whole amount that remained to complete the cost was raised on the day of opening; the sum expended in the erection of the Chapel exceeding 3000.

[3] Market Harborough is in the county of Leicester; but being just on the verge of Northamptonshire, it has always been connected with the a.s.sociation in that county, and hence has a place in these 'Memorials.'

From this introductory statement, we shall lead the reader back to the early history of this cause.

In looking backward for 190 years, we find that by the "Act of Uniformity," pa.s.sed in the year 1662, Mr. Thomas Lowry was ejected from the Church in this place. Though we have no record of his life or his labours, beyond the statement "that he was a native of Scotland, and had a living in Ess.e.x before he came to Harborough," yet by his Nonconformity he teaches us that he had embraced principles which led him to refuse to bow to the dictates of men in the things of G.o.d, and which prompted him rather to sacrifice his worldly interests than what related to truth and a good conscience.

The probability is, that some of the people to whom he had ministered would become Nonconformists with their pastor; but whether he obtained any opportunities of preaching to them after his ejectment is not known.

Subsequent events lead us to the conclusion that the principles of Nonconformity must have obtained a number of adherents in Harborough and its vicinity; because we find that, eleven years after the pa.s.sing of the "Act of Uniformity" (_i.e._, in the year 1673), Mr. Matthew Clarke became the stated pastor of an Independent congregation here. This brings before us the first clear and certain information relative to the early history of this cause in Harborough.

A short distance from Leicester lies the village of Narborough, where, at the restoration of Charles II., Mr. Matthew Clarke was the rector; the living being worth at that time about 120 per annum. His father and grandfather had both been ministers in the Church. He was educated, under the best masters, with a view to the profession--first, in the Charter House, in London; afterwards, under Dr. Busby, at Westminster; and under Dr. Temple, at Trinity College, Cambridge. He was a diligent student; became eminent for his scholarship: but what was still more important, he became early devoted to G.o.d; a.s.sociated himself with some students who were remarkable for piety, and who engaged in such exercises as tended to prepare for the work of the Christian ministry, for which they were designed. He obtained the degree of M.A.

He was presented to the living of Narborough in 1657. After pursuing his labours there for five years, he was ejected as a Nonconformist. He was earnestly pressed to conformity by Mr. Stratford, the patron of the living, but could not by any means bring his conscience to a compliance with what the law required. For conscience' sake he was a sufferer.

Devoted to his work, he took every opportunity of preaching the Gospel in Leicestershire and parts adjacent. He was watched narrowly by some furious justices of the peace; and though he had the happiness often to escape, yet he was three times a prisoner in Leicester Gaol, for the crime of preaching the Gospel! After dwelling for a time in a lone house in Leicester Forest, and being driven from thence by the "Five Mile Act" to Stoke Golding, he was invited to Harborough, where he came and settled in 1673; and had a large congregation. This appears to have been the first and the permanent settlement of Protestant Nonconformists of congregational principles in this place.

In connexion with Harborough, Mr. Clarke also took the charge of a congregation meeting at Ashley, a village about five miles from the former place; and during the whole course of his subsequent ministry he regularly preached at Ashley in the morning, and at Harborough in the afternoon, every Lord's-day. His ministry appears to have been highly valued, and to have been eminently successful; at the close of it the Church numbered 202 members, a very large proportion of them living in the villages surrounding Harborough--some of them a number of miles distant. In the character of Mr. Clarke were combined unbending integrity and conscientiousness, with great kindness of spirit and manner. Of the first we have proof in his decided Nonconformity--in his willingness to suffer rather than to sin--in his following the path of duty, whatever might be the dangers to which it exposed him--in his steady pursuit of all the labours of his calling until laid aside by his last affliction--in his firm resistance of acts of injustice and oppression, as shown when, being convinced that the King's tax on his salary was unjust, he firmly and successfully refused payment: of the latter we have proof in his affectionate regard to the truly pious wherever he beheld them--in the peaceful temper which he breathed--in the kind and profitable intercourse he promoted between his brethren--and in the conciliatory spirit he manifested towards those who were the enemies of the Gospel, or of the cause he supported.

Mr. Clarke had one son, named after him, who for a time became an a.s.sistant to his father in the work of the ministry at Harborough. The venerable father contrived, amidst all that he suffered for conscience'

sake (and he drank largely of the bitter cup), to take peculiar care of the education of his son, whom he early instructed in the learned languages, together with several young persons who were studying under his tuition for the ministry.

The parent's wish to see his son a preacher of the same Gospel for which he was suffering was honourable to himself, but it seems to have led him to devote that son to the work without waiting to see whether G.o.d approved; which, but for the grace bestowed upon the youth, might have been a fatal injury to himself and thousands more. After revolving the question seriously in his mind, and reflecting on the sacrifices which the ministry would require, the son was at length animated to comply with the father's desire, by the consideration that they that "turn many to righteousness shall shine as the stars for ever and ever."

On examining his own religious character, he said that he had endured much distress because he could not discern that remarkable change which many had experienced; still, however, he dreaded above all things a hypocritical profession; and though at first he thought his abstinence from sin, as well as his attention to secret prayer and other duties, might have arisen from a fear of offending his parents, yet he trusted that at last they sprang from the principle of love to G.o.d.

After he had acquired, not only Latin and Greek, but also several of the Oriental languages, in which his father possessed uncommon skill, and had added to them a familiar acquaintance with Italian and French, he went to study for the ministry under Mr. Woodhouse, a celebrated teacher in Shropshire. From thence he removed to London; and having joined a Church there, and heard several of the most celebrated preachers, he returned to Leicestershire, where he began his ministry as a.s.sistant to his father, amidst the storm that raged in the year 1684. He was so useful that very large additions were made to his father's Church while he was with him. "When he was present," says Mr. Neal, "at the declaration which the new converts made of the powerful impressions received under his ministry, oh, how he would humble and abase himself before G.o.d in prayer, and set the crown of his success upon the head of free grace!" During the first three years of his ministry he also laid the foundation of several congregations in that country. He was in 1687 called to preach at Sandwich, in Kent, where he was detained by the importunity of those who derived benefit from his labours; but after two years was recalled by the equal solicitations of his father and the flock in Leicestershire. But though he then settled with them, they were compelled by a sense of duty to give him up almost immediately, for, having preached an occasional sermon in London, he was invited to a.s.sist Mr. Ford in Miles' Lane. This was his final removal from Harborough.

After Mr. Ford's death he became the sole pastor of the Church, was the means of changing a declining cause into one of the most prosperous Churches in London, and attained a very high degree of popularity and usefulness, which were maintained by the divine blessing even to the close of his life. With the inspiration of friendship added to that of genius, Dr. Walls composed a Latin epitaph, which was inscribed on his tomb in Bunhill-fields; and at the request of friends he gave an English translation, which would furnish an eloquent and spirited memoir of the deceased. This epitaph we insert here, because Harborough was the scene of his youthful days, his early education, his decided piety, and his first stated engagements in the ministry, which were so excellent and successful as to give promise of all the future eminence he attained. It may be found in the last volume of Watts's Works, page 439.

SACRED TO MEMORY.

In this sepulchre lies buried MATTHEW CLARKE, A son bearing the name Of his venerable father, Nor less venerable himself: Trained up from his youngest years in sacred and human learning: Very skilful in the languages: In the gift of preaching, excellent, laborious, and successful: In the pastoral office, faithful and vigilant: Among the controversies of divines, Moderate always, and pacific: Ever ready for all the duties of piety: Among husbands, brothers, fathers, friends, he had few equals: And his carriage toward all mankind was Eminently benevolent.

But what rich stores of grace lay hid behind The veil of modesty, no human mind Can search, no friend declare, nor fame reveal, Nor has this mournful marble power to tell.

Yet there's a hast'ning hour--it comes!--it comes!

To rouse the sleeping dead, to burst the tombs, And set the saint in view. All eyes behold, While the vast records of the skies, unrolled, Rehea.r.s.e his works, and spread his worth abroad; The Judge approves, and heaven and earth applaud.

Go, traveller; and whereso'er Thy wandering feet may rest In distant lands, thy ear shall hear His name p.r.o.nounced and blest.

He was born in Leicestershire, in the year 1664.

He died in London, March 27th, 1726, Aged 62 years, Much beloved and much lamented.

The elder Mr. Clarke continued his labours at Harborough and Ashley, until he was seized with palsy on one side; after which, perceiving that his work was done, and his end drawing nigh, he removed to his daughter's (Mrs. Allen, of Norwich), where he died, about 1708, nearly 80 years of age.

There is preserved, in the handwriting of Mr. Some, a copy of a Church covenant, that appears, from its early date, to have been adopted during Mr. Clarke's ministry. Being one of the oldest of the kind, and very concise, we think it deserves to be transcribed and inserted here.

We do solemnly, in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ, "who walks in the midst of the golden candlesticks; who hath his eyes like a flame of fire, and his feet like fine bra.s.s," declare, that by the grace of G.o.d we will henceforward endeavour to reform whatever is amiss amongst us, according to the best understanding we have of the holy Scriptures, which we believe to be the only rule of faith and worship; humbly avouching the Lord to be our G.o.d, and humbly hoping that he hath avouched us, though most unworthy, to be his people.

Subscribed May 30th, 1690.

The persevering labours, the consistent character, the extended efforts, and important influence of Mr. Clarke in this situation, appear in the members that composed the Church, as before stated, and 172 of whom were gathered from about 30 villages in the vicinity. The village Chapels being few in number in those days, the Nonconformists travelled from the places around to a.s.semble for worship at Harborough and Ashley, as the centres where, on the Lord's-day, they could meet together.

The next pastor of the Church is one concerning whom the language is verified, that "the memory of the just is blessed"; for though the modesty and deep humility of Mr. Some were such that he forbade any memorials being published of his life and character, and before his death destroyed all his papers that presented anything of this kind, yet his name is mentioned with great veneration and esteem to this day. It appears probable that he was a.s.sistant or co-pastor with Mr. Clarke a short time before the close of his labours; that he came to Harborough about the year 1706, as his name stands in the first trust deed of Ashley Meeting House about that time, as the recognized minister of both places. He took the sole pastoral charge in 1709, as he then entered the names of all the members of the Church in a book, which he preserved. He united the pastorate of Ashley with Harborough, and laboured at both places in the manner of his predecessor, connecting with them also a considerable extent of village itineracy, by which his character was much endeared and his ministry greatly blest.

Mr. Some had one son, who was training for the ministry, but who died before he fully entered on the work. He was for a time a fellow-student with Doddridge, and became his most intimate friend; so that, immediately after his death, Doddridge writes to Mr. Clarke, of St.

Albans--

It pleased G.o.d, in the afternoon of yesterday, to take away my dear companion and brother, Mr. Some. There was no person in the world of his age whom I respected more or loved so well. At the academy we were partners in study; and since I came to Harborough he would, when his health would permit it, take frequent journeys with me to Kibworth on the Lord's-day. And what sweet counsel have we taken together when "we went to the house of G.o.d in company!" I have been informed of some of his expressions of respect and tenderness for me, which affect me exceedingly. He has ordered me to preach his funeral sermon from Psalm lxxiii. 26: "My flesh and my heart fail me, but G.o.d is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever."

But my mind is so shattered with grief, and mine eyes filled with tears, that I hardly know how to read or write.

In another letter he says: "Mr. Some, though he appears to feel it like a parent, yet supports himself under it with a serenity and fort.i.tude worthy of so excellent a Christian and minister."

The eminence to which Mr. Some attained, and the success of his ministry, is partly attested by the fact that 270 persons were added to the Church during his pastoral labours.

Doddridge came to reside at Harborough while minister at Kibworth, to enjoy the society and friendship of Mr. Some. In the year 1729 he became his a.s.sistant, taking services alternately at Kibworth, Harborough, and Ashley; and by the earnest advice of Mr. Some he commenced his academy at Harborough.