Ecclesiastical Characteristics: Or, the Arcana of Church Policy. ... Wherein Is Shewn a Plain and Easy Way of Attaining to the Character of a Moderate ... in the Church of Scotland. the Fifth Edition.

by John Witherspoon

The 18th century was a wealth of knowledge, exploration and rapidly growing technology and expanding record-keeping made possible by advances in the printing press. In its determination to preserve the century of revolution, Gale initiated a revolution of its digitization of epic proportions to preserve these invaluable works in the largest archive of its kind. Now for the first time these high-quality digital copies of original 18th century manuscripts are available in print, making them highly accessible to libraries, undergraduate students, and independent scholars.
The Age of Enlightenment profoundly enriched religious and philosophical understanding and continues to influence present-day thinking. Works collected here include masterpieces by David Hume, Immanuel Kant, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, as well as religious sermons and moral debates on the issues of the day, such as the slave trade. The Age of Reason saw conflict between Protestantism and Catholicism transformed into one between faith and logic -- a debate that continues in the twenty-first century.
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British Library

T067803

Anonymous. By John Witherspoon.

printed in the year, 1763. xii, [1],18-68p.; 8

72 pages, Paperback

First published May 28, 2010

About the author

John Knox Witherspoon was a Scottish-American Presbyterian minister and a Founding Father of the United States. Witherspoon embraced the concepts of Scottish common sense realism, and while president of the College of New Jersey (1768 – 1794; now Princeton University), became an influential figure in the development of the United States' national character. Politically active, Witherspoon was a delegate from New Jersey to the Second Continental Congress and a signatory to the July 4, 1776, Declaration of Independence. He was the only active clergyman and the only college president to sign the Declaration. Later, he signed the Articles of Confederation and supported ratification of the Constitution. In 1789 he was convening moderator of the First General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America.

Reviews

[Kristopher Swinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alackaday that time rarely permits me to organize an adequate review! I couldn't wait to receive my copy, and I wasn't disappointed. Picture me reading exact reproductions of its original edition, with all the peculiarities of typesetting, and chuckling over this 18th century fellow well met. He has qualities I recently described as those I choose for heroes: holy men who combine wit and wisdom. Essentially, a fifth star is only wanting because some of the contemporary issues are now digressive.

First I'll hastily copy what I wrote upon first ordering the book:

I formed an early affection for this influential Founding Father upon reading one excerpt from this book, which in its entirety satirically took to task the “moderates” in the pulpits of his day, as this vividly portrays the risibility of their teaching: “I believe that there is no ill in the universe, nor any such thing as virtue absolutely considered; that those things vulgarly called sins, are only errors in the judgment, and foils to set off the beauty of Nature, or patches to adorn her face; that the whole race of intelligent beings, even the devils themselves (if there are any) shall finally be happy; so that Judas Iscariot is by this time a glorified saint, and it is good for him that he hath been born.” I see that in one of the prefaces he pokes fun at how the moderates conceive it their task to offset orthodoxy by rushing to the aid and defense of heresy. This isn’t all that unlike Lorenzo Snow’s observation of a mob sympathizer: “In our conversation with him, our spirits and his did not intermingle, and he seemed utterly blind in relation to the condition of things and the spirit of the times. He expressed unbounded charity for our enemies—said he did not think they intended us much harm—they were not naturally inclined to wickedness, etc. It is a noticeable feature in those who cherish a spirit of apostacy from the light of the Gospel, that they adopt the doctrine of Universalism and think none too wicked for a complete and unconditional salvation.” All this to sustain a picture of seeing things as they really are, and really will be, unless thorough repentance should ensue. Much has been said of his influence on Madison’s provision that sound government proceed from concern for virtue and offer checks to the unperfected nature of man, as he elaborated in one passage: “all the disorders in human society and the greatest part of our unhappiness . . . arise from the envy, malice, covetousness and other lusts of man.”

At the very end, he says of his skillful gibes: "I have so framed the whole of my book, that it is really intelligible only to persons duly qualified; and to every such person, it is transparent as the spring water. I have given only moderate reasons for moderate principles, so that however strongly they may convince some, viz. those of our own kidney, others they will be so far from convincing, that they will be thought to operate quite a contrary way. I have managed this so carefully, that I could venture to lay a wager, of all that I am worth, that this treatise shall be taken, by very many, to be the work of an orthodox pen, and to be intended as a banter upon moderate men, and their way."

I'll skim through his maxims and then go to bed. For starters, it's a hoot that he says he will use little scripture, as that opposes the system he's trying to establish (8, 11, 18). He also notes, like Elder Maxwell's wondering why relativists aren't merely relatively indignant when opposed in morality, the curious thing of those "fierce for moderation" (viii). (This is all the funnier as I just saw someone referring to a man apostatizing from the public teaching of the Church as sensible to "moderates." What a marvel, that it's moderate to ardently push for what never has been and never can be!)

MAXIM I. "All ecclesiastical persons, of whatever rank . . ., that are suspected of heresy, are to be esteemed men of great genius, vast learning, and uncommon worth, and are, by all means, to be supported and protected" (8-9)

However, he says, moderates are to disavow any charges of heresy if pressed on the point, much like one assemblyman: "Moderator, if that be heresy, I renounce it" (11).

MAXIM II introduces the notion that all charge of vice laid to heretics and the like are to be chalked up as "good-humoured" and flowing from benevolence, but "when the person, to whose charge any faults are laid, is reputed orthodox in his principles . . . they are all to be taken for granted as true, and the evil of them set forth in the liveliest colours. In consequence of this, he is to be prosecuted and torn to pieces on account of these crimes. But if it so happen, that he cannot be convicted upon a trial, then it is best to make use of things as they really are; that is, to express suspicions, to give ingenious and dubious hints, and, if possible, ruin him without any trial at all" (12). MAXIM XI repeats this somewhat: "The character which moderate men give their adversaries, of the orthodox party, must always be that of knaves or fools . . ." (43), remarking that "we cannot suppose, that such as are against us can be so from conscience. . . . [T]here is great ground to conclude, that they act from hypocrisy, but not so of us" (44). Method of elimination is cleverly elucidated (44-45) as presenting the orthodox as knaves to the learned, "them that hate much profession of religion, and are apt to call all strictness hypocrisy," and reserving charge of fools for those who are already "simple and credulous." This is wrapped up neatly with MAXIM XII (45), "As to the world in general, a moderate man is to have great charity for Atheists and Deists in principle, and for persons that are loose and virtuous in their practice, but none at all for those that have a high profession of religion, and a great pretence to strictness in their walk and conversation." He notes the reverse definition of charity as "to believe without evidence; it is no charity at all to believe good of a man when we see it, but when we do not see it. It is with charity in sentiment, as with charity in supplying the wants of the necessitous, we do not give alms to the rich but to the poor." So extreme is this that where there is justice and appearance of goodness, these are "improper objects of charity, it remains that we should hate them with perfect hatred, as in fact we do" (47).

MAXIM III. "It is a necessary part of the character of a moderate man, never to speak of the Confession of Faith but with a sneer, to give sly hints, that he does not thoroughly believe it, and to make the word orthodoxy a term of contempt and reproach" (12). Here, he begins to acclaim heathen authors, philosophers, and poets as more eminent than scripture and divines. As if resonating with my observation recently that I just didn't share one chap's constant fears he might be excommunicated, not finding it that difficult to "toe the line": "we are at a great deal of pains, usually to persuade the world that we do not believe what we sign, whereas the complaisant gentleman is very seldom at any pains about the matter" (14).

MAXIM IV is an exposition of what in later times has been termed "social gospel," reducing some of the greatest marvels to lectures on "morality," or transmuting sanctification to virtue, whilst omitting genuine faith and works (which, for example, George Albert Smith and Spencer W. Kimball specifically said totally misses the mark). On 17-18, Paul was supplanted again by heathen philosophers "as the great patterns and promoters," effusing that M. Antoninus' meditations "is the BEST book that ever was written for forming the heart." This reminded me of the perhaps harshly presented theme (with Kahlil Gibran, in particular) at http://www.zionsbest.com/twinkies.html, atop which is a useful extract from Elder Holland.

MAXIM V has to do with appearances. "How is it possible that a minister can understand wickedness, unless he either practises it himself, (but much of that will not yet pass in the world), or allows the wicked to be bold in his presence? To do otherwise, would be to do in practice what I have known narrow-minded bigotted students do as to speculation, viz. avoid reading their adversaries books because they were erroneous; whereas it is evident no error can be refuted till it be understood" (22). (And here my mind calls to witness thoughts from McKay and Cannon on not subjecting ourselves to trash, which were very timely in my school days.) His further remarks about assuming the full character of surroundings and men of whatever character are well addressed, for example, by President Packer's observing that one presidency lost its power over the youth by trying too hard to behave like them. It's imperative to grasp the principle often repeated, as given by Harold B. Lee: http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/11103....

MAXIM VI contained "the Athenian Creed," from which I quoted near the outset. (Remember the lament, "What has Athens to do with Jerusalem"?)

MAXIM VII. "A moderate man must endeavour, as much as he handsomly can, to put off any appearances of devotion, and avoid all unnecessary exercises of religious worship, whether public or private" (28). He jokingly notes that when one considers how visible religion went underground after the restoration of Charles II, they should "congratulate my reader upon the purity of the times." This recurs somewhat to Maxim V in saying the best way to hold the interest of those who find services tedious and tiresome is "to accommodate the worship . . . to their taste" (29).