the life of rev william tennent

7/27/2019 The Life of Rev William Tennent

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aa^nLIFE

OF THE

REV. WILLIAM TENNENT,FORMERLY PASTOR OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

AT FREEHOLD, IN NEW JERSEY. IN WHICHIS CONTAINED, AMONO OTHER INTE-

RESTING PARTICULARS,

AN ACCOUNT OF HIS BEING

THREE DAYS IN A TRANCE,AND APPARENTLY LIFELESS.

NEW YORK:ROBERT CARTER. 58 CANAL STREET,AND PITTSBURG, 56 MARKET ST.

]847.

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LIFE/' OF THE

REV. WILLIAM TENNENT.

CHAPTER I.Among the duties which every gen-

eration owes to those which are tosucceed it, we may reckon the carefuldehneation of the characters of those

whose example deserves, and may in-vite, imitation. Example speaks louderthan precept ; and living, practical re-ligion has a much greater effect onmankind than argument or eloquence.Hence, the lives of pious men becomethe most important sources of instruc-tion and warning to posterity; while


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4 LIFE OF THEtheir exemplary conduct affords thebest commentary on the rehgion theyprofessed. But when such men havebeen remarkably favored of God, withan unusual degree of light and know-ledge, and have been honored by thespecial and extraordinary influences ofhis Spirit, and by the most manifestand wonderful interpositions of DivineProvidence in their behalf, it becomesa duty of more than common obhga-tion, to hand down to posterity theprincipal events of their lives, togetherwith such useful inferences as theynaturally suggest. A neglect of thisduty, even by persons who may be con-scious of the want of abilities neces-sary for the complete biographer, is

greatly culpable ; for if the strictest


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REV. W. TENNENT. 5attention be paid to the truth of thefacts related, and all exaggeration orpartial representationbe carefully avoid-ed, the want of other furniture can beno excuse for burying in oblivion thatconduct, v^rhich, if known, might edifyand benefit the world.The writer of these memoirs has

difficulties of a peculiar kind to en-counter, in attempting to sketch thelife of that modest, humble, and worthyman, whose actions, exercises, and sen-timents he wishes to record. Worldlymen, who are emulous to transmit theirnames to following ages, take care toleave such materials for the future his-torian, as may secure the celebritywhich they seek. But the humblefollower of the meek and lowly Jesus,


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6 LIFE OF THEwhose sole aim is the glory of God, inthe welfare of immortal souls, goes on,from day to day, "as seeing Him whois invisible," careful to approve himselfonly to the Searcher of hearts, regard-less of worldly fame or distinction, andleaving it to his heavenly Father to re-ward him openly, in the day of finalaccount. The writer of such a man'slife must principally rely on a personalacquaintance with him, and the com-munications of his intimate friends, forthe information which shall be impart-ed to the public. In these circum-stances, it is peculiarly embarrassingif some of the facts to be recorded areof such a nature, that it is most desira-

j ble to have their authenticity so fully' established, that incredulity shall be


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REV. W. TENNENT. ^confounded, and the sneer of the scep-tical and profane lose its effect. Butthe writer of the following narrative,though placed in these circumstances,and having such facts to detail, hasnevertheless determined to proceed.He has refreshed and corrected hisown recollection, by the most carefulinquiries that he could possibly make ofothers, until he is well assured thatwhat he shall state is incontestable truth.From the very nature of several thingsof which an account will be given, theydo not, indeed, admit of any other di-rect testimony than that of the remark-able man to whom they relate. Butif there ever was a person who deserv-ed to be believed unreservedly on hisown word, it was he. He possessed


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8 LIFE OF THEan integrity of soul, and a soundness ofjudgment, which did actually secure himan unlimited confidence from all whoknew him. Every species of decep-tion, falsehood, and exaggeration he ab-horred and scorned. He was an Israel-ite, indeed, in whom there was no guile.With such materials, then, as have beenmentioned, and for a work of such acharacter as has been hinted, the wri-ter has undertaken his task. He hasundertaken what he would most gladlyhave resigned to an abler hand; butfrom which, as no other offered, hedared not withhold his own. He couldwish that speculative and even unbe-lieving minds might be instructed andconvinced by these memoirs. But hisprincipal object, and that in which he


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REV. W. TENNENT. 9trusts he shall not be entirely disap-pointed, is to direct, assist, and comfortpious souls, groaning under the pres-sure of the calamities which they oftenhave to endure in their pilgrimagethrough the wilderness of this world


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10 LIFE OF THE

CHAPTER II.The late Rev. William Tennent,

of Freehold, in the county of Mon-mouth, in the State of New Jersey, ofwhom we write, was the second sonof the Rev. William Tennent, ministerof the Gospel at Neshaminy, in Buckscounty, in the State of Pennsylvania.This last gentleman was originally aminister of the Church of England, inthe then kingdom of Ireland, where hewas born and received his education.He was chaplain to an Irish nobleman,

( but being conscientiously scrupulousof conforming to the terms imposed on


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REV. W. TENNENT. 11the clergy of that kingdom, he was de-prived of his living. He now becameacquainted with the famous GilbertKennedy, of , a Presbyterian min-ister, who had also been persecutedfor his religious principles, and soonafter married his daughter. Finding itdifficult to continue at home with anysatisfactory degree of usefulness, andhis family increasing, after a few yearshe determined to emigrate to America,where he was encouraged to hope for \a greater liberty of conscience, as wellas the prospect of being employed inextending the Redeemer's kingdom inthat new world. He arrived at Phila-delphia in the summer of 1718, with his wife, four sons, and one daughter.His sons were, Gilbert, who was after-

'


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12 LIFE OF THEward the pastor of the second Presby-terian church in Philadelphia ; Wil-liam, the subject of these memoirs ;John, who became pastor of the churchat Freehold, and died at the age oftwenty-five years ; and Charles, after-ward minister of the Presbyterianchurch at Whiteclay Creek, whence heremoved to Buckingham, in Mary-land.

William Tennent, the father, on hisfirst comTng to America, settled atEast Chester, in the then province ofNew York, and afterward removed toBedford. In a short time he wascalled to Bucks county, in Pennsylva-nia, and preached at Bensalem andSmithfield : but soon after settled per-manently at Neshaminy, in the same


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REV. W. TENNENT. 13county. Being skilled in the Latinlanguage, so as to speak and write it


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REV. W. TENNENT. 15body in an elegant Latin oration, whichadded greatly to his celebrity, and in-creased the hopes of his friends as tothe success of the institution he hadfounded. To erect and support suchan important seminary of learning, outof his own private purse, at that earlyperiod,

in a new country just risingfrom a savage wilderness, and to de-vote himself to so severe a service inaddition to his pastoral charge, was aboon to his generation, that, at thisday, cannot be easily nor sufficientlyappreciated.

His expectations, in a few years,were more than realized. In this m-stitution, the principal men of the day,and many of the Presbyterian clergywere educated, and added greatly to


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16 LIFE OF THE- the increase and usefulness of their

churches. The late Rev. Messrs. Row-^ land, Campbell, Lawrence, Beatty,

Robinson, and Sam'l. Blair, with many-others, were among the number of hispupils, and thought themselves hon-ored by being considered as sons of thishumble seminary. Here also his ownfour sons received their education, andwere prepared for their important ser-vices. Had these been the only fruits

\of that infant academy, America wouldhave reason to rejoice, and to renderthanks to that God who directed thisgentleman to visit her shores.

His second son, William, who is thesubject of these sketches, was born onthe third day of June, 1705, in thecounty of Antrim in Ireland, and was

I


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REV. W. TENNENT. 17just turned of thirteen years when hearrived in America. He appUed him-self with much zeal and industry to hisstudies, and made great proficiency inthe languages, particularly in the Latin.Being early impressed with a deepsense of divine things, he soon deter-mined to follow the example of hisfather and elder brother, by devotinghimself to the service of God, in theministry of the Gospel. His brotherGilbert being called to the pastoralcharge of the church at New Bruns-wick, in New Jersey, and making avery considerable figure as a useful andpopular preacher, William determined,as he had completed his course in thelanguages, to study divinity under hisbrother. Accordingly, he left his fa2


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18 LIFE OF THEther's house, with his consent and byhis advice, and went to New Bruns-wick. At his departure from home,

X which was considered as his' settingout in hfe, his father addressed him'with great affection, commending himto the favor and protection of that Godfrom whom he himself had received somuch mercy, and who had directedhim in all his migrations. He gavehim a small sum of money as theamount of all he could do for him, tell-ing him that if he behaved well anddid his duty, this was an ample pro-vision for him ; and if he should actotherwise, and prove ungrateful to akind and gracious God, it was toomuch, and more than he deserved.Thus, with a pittance, and the blessing


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REV. W. TENNENT. 19of a pious and affectionate parent, of ^more consequence than thousands ofpounds, the young student set out inthe world.


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20 LIFE OF THE

CHAPTER III.After a regular course of study in

theology, Mr. Tennent was preparingfor his examination by the Presbytery,as a candidate for the Gospel ministry.His intense application aifected hishealth, and brought on a pain in hisbreast, and a slight hectic. He soonbecame emaciated, and at length waslike a hving skeleton. His life wasnow threatened. He was attended by

/ a physician, a young man who wasattached to him by the strictest andwarmest friendship. He grew worseand worse, till little hopes of life wereleft. In this situation his spirits failed


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REV. W. TENNENT. 21 jhim, and he began to entertain douof his final happiness. He was con-versing one morning with his brother,m Latin, on the state of his soul, whenhe fainted and died away. After theusual time he was laid out on a board,according to the common practice ofthe country, and the neighborhood wereinvited to attend his funeral on thenext day. In the evening his physi-cian and friend returned from a rideinto the country, and was afflicted be-yond measure at the news of his death.He could not be persuaded that it wascertain; and, on being told that one ofthe persons who had assisted in layingout the body thought he had observeda httle tremor of the flesh under the arm,although the body was cold and stiff, he


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22 LIFE OF THBendeavored to ascertaii? ^ fact. Hefirst put his own hand intG warm water,to make it as sensible as possible, and

I then felt under the arm, and at the heart,and affirmed that he felt an unusualwarmth, though no one else could Hehad the body restored to a warm bed,and insisted that the people who hadbeen invited to the funeral, should brequested not to attend. To this thbrother objected as absurd, the eyes being sunk, the lips discolored, and thewhole body cold and stiff. However,the doctor finally prevailed, and all probable means were used to discover symptoms of returning life. But the thirdday arrived, and no hopes were enter-tained of success but by the doctor,who never left him night nor day. Th


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REV. W. TENNENT. 23people were again invited, and assem-bled to attend the funeral. The doctorstill objected, and at last confined hisrequest

for delayto one hour, then to

half an hour, and, finally, to a quarterof an hour. He had discovered thatthe tongue was much swollen, andthreatened to crack. He was endeav-oring to soften it by some emollientointment put upon it with a feather,when the brother came in, about theexpiration of the last period, and mis-taking what the doctor was doing foran attempt to feed him, manifestedsome resentment, and said, in a spiritedtone, "It is shameful to be feeding alifeless corpse ;" and insisted, with ear-nestness, that the funeral should iname-diately proceed. At this critical and


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24 LIFE OF THEimportant moment, the body, to thegreat alarm and astonishment of allpresent, opened its eyes, gave a dread-ful groan, and sunk again into apparent

^ death. This put an end to all thoughtsof burying him, and every effort wasagain employed, in hopes of bringingabout a speedy resuscitation. In aboutan hour, the eyes again opened, a heavygroan proceeded from the body, andagain all appearance of animation van-ished. In another hour, life seemed toreturn with more power, and a completerevival took place, to the great joy ofthe family and friends, and to the nosmall astonishment and conviction of

\ the very many who had been ridicuhngthe idea of restoring to life a dead body.

Mr. Tennent continued in so weak


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REV. W. TENNENT. 25and low a state for six weeks, that greatdoubts were entertained of his final re-covery. However, after that period,he recovered much faster, but it wasabout twelve months before he wascompletely restored. After he wasable to walk the room, and to take no-tice of what passed around him, on aSunday afternoon, his sister, who hadstaid from church to attend him, wasreading in the Bible, when he took no-tice of it, and asked her what she hadin her hand. She answered that shewas reading the Bible. He replied," What is the Bible? I know not whatyou mean." This affected the sister somuch that she burst into tears, and in-formed him that he was once well ac-quainted with it. On her reporting this


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26 LIFE OF THEto the brother, when he returned, Mr.Tennent was found, upon examination,

f to be totally ignorant of every transac-l tion of his life previous to his sickness.He could not read a single word, neitherdid he seem to have an idea of whatit meant. As soon as he became ca-pable of attention, he was taught toread and write, as children are usuallytaught, and afterward began to learnthe Latin language, under the tuitionof his brother. One day, as he wasreciting a lesson in Cornelius Nepos,he suddenly started, clapped his handto his head as if something had hurthim, and made a pause. His brotherasked him what was the matter ; hesaid he felt a sudden shock in his head,and it now seemed to him as if he had


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REV. W. TENNENT. 27read that book before. By degrees hisrecollection was restored, and he couldspeak the Latin as fluently as beforehis sickness. His memory so com-pletely revived, that he gained a perfectknowledge of the past transactions of )his life, as if no difficulty had previouslyoccurred. This event, at the time,made a considerable noise, and affordednot only matter of serious contempla-tion to the devout Christian, especiallywhen connected with what follows inthis narration, but furnished a subjectof deep investigation and learned in-quiry to the real philosopher and cu-rious anatomist.The writer of these memoirs was

greatly interested by these uncommonevents ; and on a favorable occasion,

4


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28 LIFE OF THEearnestly pressed Mr. Tennent for aminute account of what his views andapprehensions were, while he lay inthis extraordinary state of suspendedanimation. He discovered great reluc-tance to enter into any explanation ofhis perceptions and feelings at thattime ; but being importunately urgedto do it, he at length consented, andproceeded with a solemnity not to bedescribed.

*' While I was conversing with mybrother," said he, " on the state of mysoul, and the fears I had entertained formy future welfare, I found myself, inan instant, in another state of existence,under the direction of a superior being,who ordered me to follow him. I wasaccordingly

wafted along, I know not


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REV. W. TENNENT. 29how, till I beheld at a distance an in-effable glory, the impression of whichon my mind it is impossible to commu-nicate to mortal man. I immediatelyreflected on my happy change, andthoughtWell, blessed be God ! I amsafe at last, notwithstanding all myfears. I saw an innumerable host ofhappy beings, surrounding the inex-pressible glory, in acts of adoration andjoyous worship; but I did not see anybodily shape or representation in theglorious appearance. I heard thingsunutterable. I heard their songs andhallelujahs of thanksgiving and praise,with unspeakable rapture. I felt joyunutterable and full of glory. I thenapplied to my conductor, and requestedleave to join the happy throng ; on


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REV. W. TENNENT. 31heard, and the very vyrords that wereuttered, were not out of my ears, whenawake, for at least three years. Allthe kingdoms of the earth were in mysight as nothing and vanity; and sogreat were my ideas of heavenly glory,that nothing which did not in somemeasure relate to it, could commandmy serious attention.*

* The author has been particularly solicitous toobtain every confirmation of this extraordinaryevent in the life of Mr. Tennent. He, according-ly, wrote to every person he could think of, likelyto have conversed with Mr. Tennent on the sub-ject. He received several answers : but the fol-lowing letter, from the worthy successor of Mr.Tennent in the pastoral charge of his church, willanswer for the author's purpose :

"Monmouth, N. J. Dec. 10, 1805."Dear Sir," Agreeably to your request, I now send you,in writing, this remarkable account which I some-time since gave you verbally, respecting your good


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32 LIFE OF THE

the life of rev william tennent

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