Friday, October 14, 2022

*** This is a rough transcript of today’s show ***

It is the 14th of October, 2022. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

We start today’s show- an examination of the life and legacy of William Penn with two reminders.

The “on this day” format is handy for me; it’s kind of like a lectionary in that it bounces me around and keeps me from constantly picking the same topics and regions. But, the calendar is a funny thing- and most of the history of the Christian church took place on the Julian calendar. This is the calendar that the Eastern Orthodox Church uses for ecclesiastical purposes and why Orthodox Christians don’t celebrate Easter on the same day as Western Protestants and Roman Catholics- the calendar change began in the 1500s and slowly took over Western countries over the next two centuries. So- this causes some confusion. If you asked William Penn when he was born, he would respond- the “14th of October,” but some later historians would place him on the 24th. It’s a glitch we’ve always worked with, and nobody has been seriously harmed. We will recognize Willy’s birthday today.

Secondly- while the Protestant Reformation can take some credit for the development of religious toleration in the West, it is by and large the smaller radical groups that, especially in America, are to get the credit. This means Baptists and Quakers, like Penn, who we will see in this role today.

Ok. Here we go.

William Penn was born on the 14th of October in 1644. He was a junior, and William Penn Sr was an Admiral with a considerable reputation and had loaned King Charles II a good amount after the Restoration. This part becomes important later on. Sr. was displeased that when he moved his family to Ireland, his son took to the preaching of the Quaker Thomas Loe.

Junior went to Oxford in 1660 but 2 years later was expelled for his Quaker views. (Remember, it was 1660 when the monarch, Charles II, was restored after the Cromwell business. Part of the Restoration was putting the Anglican Church back in its place of supremacy).

He was arrested in 1668 for a tract called “the Sandy Foundation Shaken.” He was accused of denying the Trinity and thus thrown in the Tower of London. Anti-trinitarian thought was popular amongst some radicals as precise Trinitarian doctrine seems to rely on church tradition as much as any specific bible verses and is thus seen as suspect. Penn would later write a tract confirming his belief in the divinity of Jesus and the “threeness” of the Godhead.

In 1670 he was arrested again for public preaching and breaching the conventicle act. That is, conventicles or small groups/house churches were illegal. Bible study and religious instructions were to come from the Church of England. Penn and a colleague were arrested and put on trial for inciting a riot. The jury returned and ruled him not guilty, to the chagrin of the judge, who then imprinted the jury. Once all was settled, English law recognized the importance of a free Jury.

His father would die the same year, having reconciled with his son.

William spent the 1670s preaching and writing pamphlets on religious freedom and politics. He had heard that some Quakers had settled in the American colonies- the opportunity for religious and political reform was enough to Penn engage as a trustee for land in west New Jersey in 1681. Charles II seemed pleased with the idea that the troublemakers would immigrate, and he sought to pay off William on behalf of his father's debts by giving him a large tract of land west of the Delaware. Penn Jr named it at first “Sylvania” (Latin for woods) and then later “Pennsylvania” in honor of his father.

Penn would only live in the colonies for a few years as he was called back to England because of his finances and controversy with the man charged with managing his estate. Penn would, however, continue to write for the colony and the world- arguing for free elections, trial by an independent jury, freedom of speech, and a then-novel idea of writing a constitution that would have written into itself the ability to amend itself by subsequent generations.

The final years of William Penn’s life were tragic; he was hampered by those who would take advantage of his absence in England and Pennsylvania. The ascension of William And Mary made him suspected as a friend of James II, and he suffered a stroke in 1712, which caused the last six years of his life to be lived as an invalid. He was buried in a quaker cemetery in Buckinghamshire. Born on the 14th of October in 1644, he was 73 years old.

The Last Word for today comes from the lectionary from 2 Timothy.

14 Keep reminding God’s people of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. 15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 16 Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 14th of October 2022, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man whose favorite contributions from Pennsylvania include the cheesesteak, Hershey’s, and the Amish- he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man who thinks the cheesesteak is among America’s most overrated food. I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.