[This is an excellent and relevant article on religious liberty published over 100 years ago by Elder Thomas Barton, pastor of the London Tract Old School Baptist Church, a sister church to Welsh Tract Church. This is an excerpt from our upcoming eBook, "The Works of Elder Thomas Barton. - ed]
Everyone who has paid general attention to these subjects knows that they are entirely distinct in their nature and ultimate bearing. The former embraces our obligation to God, the latter has relation to our connection with man, and Our obligations purely as citizens. The former has relation to eternity, and eternal things, while the latter is limited to time, and time things, exclusively. But though entirely distinct in their nature, yet I know of nothing in the laws of Christ that goes to deprive the real subjects of his spiritual Kingdom from enjoying whatever political privileges may be granted to them by the government under which they may live, yet I cannot think it becoming them to throw themselves into the Whirlpool of party strife and contention. Notwithstanding, however, the evident distinction between the two subjects, human legislators, whether from ignorance or arrogance, have invaded the prerogative of God, as well as the rights of conscience by blending them together, and informing certain creeds, and forms of religion, by penal sanction. This unholy alliance has connected the history of the church with the political operations of the world, and that to her sorrow. I say, this unholy alliance has produced that connection of the church with the political operations of the world “for my Kingdom,” said Christ, “is not of this world,” and, in fact, there is nothing in the nature of this Kingdom to connect it with the world, provided human legislators would mind their own business, and not meddle with things too high for them. Of this we have an illustration in our happy country. Our constitution knows nothing about religion; it is a silent on the subject as if such a thing did not exist, and that is just as it should be common and just what we old school Baptists ask of human legislators, and that is nothing at all. All we ask of them is to mind their own business, and let us alone, and if our religion will not stand without their aid, it can in no way, and the sooner it falls the better, for that religion that depends on human legislation for sustenance, is not worth having.
Owing to the negative position of our glorious constitution, in reference to religion, the church has been unconnected with the political operation of the nation. She has not been required, under penal sanction, to subscribe to creeds and forms. In view of this constitutional privilege, many of our brethren conclude that there is no danger of our religious rights ever being infringed upon. But this depends upon circumstances. If the preservation of our political virtue depends upon the constitution, then we are safe, and may lie down in perfect security on the subject; but if the preservation of the constitution in its present form, and the perpetuation of the privileges it guarantees to us, depends on the political virtues of the people, it alters the case materially. And that the latter is the case, there can be no reasonable doubt. The constitution emanated from the people, and is justly denominated the people's constitution, and, on this subject, expressed the will of the people at the time of its formation. But let us suppose a change in the people on this subject, and that the impression becomes general that religion requires legislative action to give it extension and permanence, and where is our constitutional security? It would soon be numbered with the things that were. And is there no danger on this head? Let history answer this question. Add a very early days after the revolution, an attempt was made in Virginia to obtain what was called the general bill, that was, to make a general provision for the support of religious teachers. This attempt brought out a number of petitions from the good old fashioned Baptists of Virginia, whose backs were still smarting from the effects of other infernal scourges. It elicited also a remonstrance from that eminent statesman, James Madison, which will continue as a monument to his fame, as the defender of civil and religious liberty.
A similar attempt was made in Maryland, within the recollection of the writer, but failed. It has not been long since the general government was tempted to legislate on the subject of religion. I refer to the Sunday Mail petitions. We cannot suppose that the suppression of the Sunday Mail was the ultimate object of the wire workers in the scheme; It was only intended as an entering wedge. Had they succeeded, it would have been a prelude to a course of legislation upon the subject of religion. But that failure has not dismayed them; they declared, at the time, that they had nailed their flag to the mast head, and they have acted accordingly; and have been straining every nerve to carry out their wicked schemes of monopoly. Efforts are making to obtain a control over all the fountains of education, from the college down to the primary school; and if these things continue to increase for a few years to come, in the same ratio they have for a few years past, it will not be long before the genius of liberty will lay gasping at the feet of clerical cupidity. And with all these things in view, can we coolly come to the conclusion that there is no danger? I, for one, cannot; and the great danger lies in the idea of no danger. If the people saw and felt the danger hanging over them, those incendiaries of their liberty would soon meet their reward. But this fatal apathy of the people, furnishes the most powerful auxiliary that these inflexible enemies of our rights could wish. Had the same attempts at religious monopoly been made 40 years ago, the people would have risen, en masse, and put it down; but now they are inclined to treat with contempt those who have independence enough to sound the alarm; but this should not discourage them, it is honorable even to die in a good cause.
I have ventured to say, above, that the religion of Christ does not exempt its subjects from all the political privileges guaranteed to them by the government under which they may live. When those rights are denied them by the powers that be, it becomes them to submit with patience; but whenever those rights are invaded by human legislators, it is a usurpation on the part of such legislators for they have no right from the supreme legislator to do so; yet when it is his pleasure to suffer it, it becomes us to submit. Beloved, avenge not; Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. But when such usurpation is not assumed by the civil government, as in our country, and men among us are resorting to every intrigue in their power, and exerting an unhallowed influence to corrupt government, to such a course I believe it our privilege, and I will not say it is not our duty, to resort both to the right of speech and suffrage, to defeat them, and perpetuate those dear-bought rights. And before I can give up this opinion, I must be convinced that they have a right from higher authority than human to deprive us of them. But after all, should they succeed in fastening on us the galling chains of religious intolerance, it will then become us to submit to it as one among those dark dispensations of Providence, for a full solution of which we must wait his pleasure.
It was under this persuasion that your movements in reference to the school question in your state, as well as your editorials in regard to the Philadelphia riots, were prompted, not by party politics, but with regard to the religious intolerance of the age. I have taken a different view of the subject to some of your correspondence, who in administering reproof, were no doubt governed by the best of motives; but it may be that the difference arose from there not properly distinguishing party politics from the several politics that involve our civil and religious privileges, which are guaranteed to us by our constitution. I hope, however, those brethren will excuse the reference made to them, when I tell them that I do not mean it as a reflection, believing, as i do, that they were conscientious in their belief.
Yours as ever,
Elder Thomas Barton
1845
Owing to the negative position of our glorious constitution, in reference to religion, the church has been unconnected with the political operation of the nation. She has not been required, under penal sanction, to subscribe to creeds and forms. In view of this constitutional privilege, many of our brethren conclude that there is no danger of our religious rights ever being infringed upon. But this depends upon circumstances. If the preservation of our political virtue depends upon the constitution, then we are safe, and may lie down in perfect security on the subject; but if the preservation of the constitution in its present form, and the perpetuation of the privileges it guarantees to us, depends on the political virtues of the people, it alters the case materially. And that the latter is the case, there can be no reasonable doubt. The constitution emanated from the people, and is justly denominated the people's constitution, and, on this subject, expressed the will of the people at the time of its formation. But let us suppose a change in the people on this subject, and that the impression becomes general that religion requires legislative action to give it extension and permanence, and where is our constitutional security? It would soon be numbered with the things that were. And is there no danger on this head? Let history answer this question. Add a very early days after the revolution, an attempt was made in Virginia to obtain what was called the general bill, that was, to make a general provision for the support of religious teachers. This attempt brought out a number of petitions from the good old fashioned Baptists of Virginia, whose backs were still smarting from the effects of other infernal scourges. It elicited also a remonstrance from that eminent statesman, James Madison, which will continue as a monument to his fame, as the defender of civil and religious liberty.
A similar attempt was made in Maryland, within the recollection of the writer, but failed. It has not been long since the general government was tempted to legislate on the subject of religion. I refer to the Sunday Mail petitions. We cannot suppose that the suppression of the Sunday Mail was the ultimate object of the wire workers in the scheme; It was only intended as an entering wedge. Had they succeeded, it would have been a prelude to a course of legislation upon the subject of religion. But that failure has not dismayed them; they declared, at the time, that they had nailed their flag to the mast head, and they have acted accordingly; and have been straining every nerve to carry out their wicked schemes of monopoly. Efforts are making to obtain a control over all the fountains of education, from the college down to the primary school; and if these things continue to increase for a few years to come, in the same ratio they have for a few years past, it will not be long before the genius of liberty will lay gasping at the feet of clerical cupidity. And with all these things in view, can we coolly come to the conclusion that there is no danger? I, for one, cannot; and the great danger lies in the idea of no danger. If the people saw and felt the danger hanging over them, those incendiaries of their liberty would soon meet their reward. But this fatal apathy of the people, furnishes the most powerful auxiliary that these inflexible enemies of our rights could wish. Had the same attempts at religious monopoly been made 40 years ago, the people would have risen, en masse, and put it down; but now they are inclined to treat with contempt those who have independence enough to sound the alarm; but this should not discourage them, it is honorable even to die in a good cause.
I have ventured to say, above, that the religion of Christ does not exempt its subjects from all the political privileges guaranteed to them by the government under which they may live. When those rights are denied them by the powers that be, it becomes them to submit with patience; but whenever those rights are invaded by human legislators, it is a usurpation on the part of such legislators for they have no right from the supreme legislator to do so; yet when it is his pleasure to suffer it, it becomes us to submit. Beloved, avenge not; Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. But when such usurpation is not assumed by the civil government, as in our country, and men among us are resorting to every intrigue in their power, and exerting an unhallowed influence to corrupt government, to such a course I believe it our privilege, and I will not say it is not our duty, to resort both to the right of speech and suffrage, to defeat them, and perpetuate those dear-bought rights. And before I can give up this opinion, I must be convinced that they have a right from higher authority than human to deprive us of them. But after all, should they succeed in fastening on us the galling chains of religious intolerance, it will then become us to submit to it as one among those dark dispensations of Providence, for a full solution of which we must wait his pleasure.
It was under this persuasion that your movements in reference to the school question in your state, as well as your editorials in regard to the Philadelphia riots, were prompted, not by party politics, but with regard to the religious intolerance of the age. I have taken a different view of the subject to some of your correspondence, who in administering reproof, were no doubt governed by the best of motives; but it may be that the difference arose from there not properly distinguishing party politics from the several politics that involve our civil and religious privileges, which are guaranteed to us by our constitution. I hope, however, those brethren will excuse the reference made to them, when I tell them that I do not mean it as a reflection, believing, as i do, that they were conscientious in their belief.
Yours as ever,
Elder Thomas Barton
1845
THE COMPLETE DIGITAL SIGNS OF THE TIMES FROM 1832-2017
This is a very large file (10.11 gigabytes) If you don't have that much space, you may run it from the Flash Drive, but this will take more time. You need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader (a free download) program installed and open it from there. The PDF is searchable, but some of the older issues, are smudged thus affecting the software's ability to find the words. Copying and pasting will be difficult due to the quality of some of the older issues. The price is $25.
Please send me an email at gsantamaria685@gmail.com. We will accept payment in Zelle, Cash App, Venmo personal check, or postal money order. Please make sure you give your mailing address. I will not post my Zelle, CashApp, or Venmo information until you write me due to privacy concerns. For those mailing a check or money order, you may mail me at:
Guillermo Santamaria
45 Westons Mill Road
East Brunswick, NJ 08816 USA
Email: gsantamaria685@gmail.com
Until Welsh Tract Publications is reorganized as an LLC, I will handle the financial transactions. Understand that Welsh Tract Church does NOT have any affiliation with Welsh Tract Publications. Like the website and the YouTube channel, these websites were created by the friends of Welsh Tract Church. We do not believe in any extra-church organizations or "ministries". Flash Drives are now available.
The Lord Bless you!
Until Welsh Tract Publications is reorganized as an LLC, I will handle the financial transactions. Understand that Welsh Tract Church does NOT have any affiliation with Welsh Tract Publications. Like the website and the YouTube channel, these websites were created by the friends of Welsh Tract Church. We do not believe in any extra-church organizations or "ministries". Flash Drives are now available.
The Lord Bless you!
_______________________________________________________________
DIGITAL (POCKET) THOMPSON NOW AVAILABLE FROM WELSH TRACT PUBLICATIONS
DIGITAL (POCKET) THOMPSON NOW AVAILABLE FROM WELSH TRACT PUBLICATIONS
This flashcard contains all of the known articles written by Elder Wilson Thompson from 1832 until he died in 1866. It also contains Simple Truths, His Autobiography in a PDF file, an audiobook, and his work Triumphs of Truth. Also, these works will be fully searchable and will fit on your smartphone. It will also be suitable for printing. The cost will be $25 for the flash drive containing all this information. We accept Zelle, CashApp, Venmo, or personal checks. For more information write to gsantamaria685@gmail.com.
____________________________________________________________________
OLD SCHOOL PERIODICALS FLASH DRIVE
We are also announcing the shipment of the OSB Periodicals Flash Drive, containing all the Old School Baptist papers we can locate. Watch the video to know more.
TO ORDER you can send $25 to gsantamaria685@gmail.com. we accept Zelle, Cash App, personal check, or Venmo. Contact me for further information. the Lord Bless You!
_______________________________________________________________________
CIRCULAR LETTERS FLASH DRIVE
This Flash Drive contains just the bookmarks for all the Circular Letters in the Signs from 1833-1881 (when Beebe died). The price is $25. Contact information is the same for all our other products, as well as the same payment options.
________________________________________________________________________
WRITINGS OF OLF SCHOOL BAPTIST ELDERS VOLUME 1 - JF JOHNSON
This PDF file contains ALL the writings of John Foster Johnson MD and Old School Baptist Preacher. If you have the book version of the compiled writings of JF Johnson, it is incomplete. We have included all his writings in any Old School Baptist paper up until he died in 1881. His published book contains all that he had published up to 1872, thus it is incomplete. This is not images of a page, this has been completely retyped, being able to be copied, pasted, and searched completely, with a table of contents and bookmarks. The price is $25. We accept PayPal, Venmo, Cash App, Zelle, and personal checks. The contact email is gantamaria685@gmail.com. The address to send a check to is:
Guillermo Santamaria
45 Westons Mill Road
East Brunswick, NJ 08816
The Lord Bless You!
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for commenting. If an answer is needed, we will respond.