November 01, 2012

The Search For Fort Caroline, America’s First Haven of Religious Freedom . . .

I was recently heartened by an article on www.Jacksonville.com that explained how a group of intrepid “Indiana Joneses” have again begun to search for the French Protestant outpost of Fort Caroline near Jacksonville, Florida. To those not historically or religiously-inclined, it might seem a tedious job . . . sifting through mounds of dirt in the desperate hopes of finding a button or a cup handle or anything that would mark a particular area as having been settled by the French. Yet, if I could manage it, I would be right out there with this dedicated team, gladly searching for a place that has always been close to my heart.

Fort Caroline is more than a place. It is an icon. It is a symbol of the first Protestant settlement in America (save for Charlesfort, which lasted only a short while) and the first haven of religious freedom built for those who desperately needed it. (See my posts of September 20 and March 29 for a quick overview on Fort Caroline and her fate). If there was ever a place for a Protestant pilgrimage in America, this would be it. Also, for those of us with Huguenot ancestry, the knowledge that our ancestors or at least relatives might have settled in this fort, might have died here for their faith, is a powerful motivator.

It has been said that some day after a gigantic storm, the remains of those French Protestant men who were martyred south of here at Matanzas might be found. The same theory stands for Fort Caroline. And though “Superstorm Sandy” yielded no trace of these sites (as far as I know) that great disaster was a reminder that such a storm might very well be the catalyst for discovering the truth. (And please remember to pray for those affected by Sandy and for those who have lost loved ones. I will be praying as well!)

As long as there are enthusiasts who have made it a personal goal to search for Fort Caroline and her forgotten colonists, there is the chance that someone, someday (hopefully soon!) will find the pivotal artifact that will tell all. I’m waiting and praying for that day!

(c) 2012 Joyously Saved

October 31, 2012

October 31, 1517 - October 31, 2012 . . .

Happy Reformation Day!

If there is one truly Protestant holiday, it is Reformation Day. But Reformation Day is about more than just “hammering the theses to the church door” and dressing up like Martin Luther. For those of us with Protestant ancestors and who still practice one of the “Reformation faiths” ourselves, it is a day of liberation, separation, new beginnings, and, of course, grace. It is more than just a silly alternative to Halloween. Many of our contemporaries might not be so keen on watching us celebrate a day of breaking from the norm, but we understand what it meant and means . . .

Freedom of conscience.

I am sure there were always those who did not feel quite right about the established order of the day. Perhaps they were scholars. Perhaps they were common men who for some reason had been given the rare gift of literacy. They did not condemn Catholic belief in others, but rather trekked along for lack of another option. Then suddenly, everything exploded all at once, and the Bible became available in German and in many other languages. Many people said, “This is it! This is what I believe! We are doing something that has never been done before!” Or perhaps they had believed in the ancient Church and had their minds changed by something, whatever it might have been, that became known to them throughout the Reformation.

I often imagine that era. I would not have wanted to live then . . . being Protestant, I doubtless would have anticipated some inglorious fate . . . but to somehow have seen those moments when people were affected by the Gospel and were able to choose their faith for themselves would be incredible. Many people do not give Reformation Day its due. They mourn it as a day of schism, or they attribute the evils that would come in the future to that sudden breaking point. But we should all be proud. Martin Luther’s 95 Theses did not fix things. They did not guarantee that everyone would respect these newfound Protestants, nor that every Protestant would be a model Christian. They did not safeguard against men and women of both sides ignoring the “better angels of their natures” and going haywire in the name of personal faith.

What they did do was introduce the five solas to the world: Faith alone, grace alone, for the glory of God alone, Christ alone, and Scripture alone. They gave people the freedom to choose. They brought a life of personal interpretation, a possibility of something new and daring and beautiful and stunning, into a world that knew only one interpretation. They produced martyrs --- and while the way in which these Protestant witnesses died was horrific, their steadfastness, grace, and love of God inspired all, even to this day. The Protestant work ethic was born. The quiet and sturdy heritage for which the Reformation is so well-known was propelled onto America’s shores and became the bedrock of our spiritual history.

Reformation Day is our heritage, our legacy. Our moment of understanding. Our moment of standing up for Scripture and saying, “This is how I will serve the Lord.” Our breaking away from the established orthodoxy and blazing a new path toward God. Happy Reformation Day!

(c) 2012 Joyously Saved

October 30, 2012

In Defense of the Puritans

In my post of May 01, I mentioned the long-told tale of English Puritans banning Christmas. Today I decided to take a look at how the Puritans were perceived, why they did the things they did, and how others viewed their decisions. Christmas was not all the Puritans disliked. (And, of course, their dislike of the holiday had nothing to do with it being the birth of Christ but rather with the all-out merriment fest it had become). They also hated sports. But why? Think about it. Scantily-clad youths running around tackling each other, giving the women more of a show than they bargained for! And it got worse.

In 1618 King James published the “Declaration of Sports,” which cheered the practice of young men letting out pent-up energy by playing around on Sunday. Puritans had long been defenders of the Sabbath. Remembering the Sabbath and keeping it holy did not involve youngsters wrestling and screaming on the church lawn as they had done in the Middle Ages. One might be tempted to discredit the Puritans for decrying theater and dance as well. Many Christian communities still frown on dancing due to personal contact. And theater? In the 1600s, when the female populace had made a trend of dressing immodestly and carrying such fashions into theater, it would hardly have been Christian to support such a pastime.

The Anglicans and Lutherans who also called England home were not too pleased with these “troublemaking” Puritans and their strict laws. Whether or not they even considered them fellow Protestants, I have no idea. The Puritans viewed the Anglicans, at least, as not having gone far enough in the Reformation. Many people talk glowingly (and with great relief) about the time when somber Puritanism was banished as the law of the land and the partying style of the “English Restoration” went off again in full swing. “Normalcy” was cherished and Puritans were mocked and scorned as fun-hating, somberly-dressed wretches. I do not ascribe to Puritan beliefs, but I find this sad . . . and unfair. But, as the saying goes, “the victor writes the history”!

(c) 2012 Joyously Saved

October 29, 2012

Time for another trek through Cyber Hymnal. I’ve begun to dig a little deeper, to go beyond the title and really analyze the song for what it’s worth. I particularly enjoy the songs and poems of Fanny Crosby, but lately I have been studying Isaac Watts’ spectacular hymnody. The old-fashioned flavor only makes the lines more pleasing --- at least in my opinion --- and I was pleased to find Watts’ “My Shepherd Will Supply My Need,” drawn from Psalm 123. I can imagine my Protestant ancestors taking great comfort in these words. As the hymn was written in 1719 and was already in existence when the majority of my ancestral families arrived in America, it is entirely possible that many of them did so.

My Shepherd Will Supply My Need

Isaac Watts

My shepherd will supply my need:
Jehovah is His name;

In pastures fresh He makes me feed,

Beside the living stream.

He brings my wandering spirit back

When I forsake His ways,

And leads me, for His mercy’s sake,

In paths of truth and grace.

When I walk through the shades of death

Thy presence is my stay;

One word of Thy supporting breath

Drives all my fears away.

Thy hand, in sight of all my foes,

Doth still my table spread;

My cup with blessings overflows,

Thine oil anoints my head.

The sure provisions of my God

Attend me all my days;

O may Thy house be my abode,

And all my work be praise.

There would I find a settled rest,

While others go and come;

No more a stranger, nor a guest,

But like a child at home.

(c) 2012 Joyously Saved

October 28, 2012

Four Swiss Sisters

I often look to martyrologies and other online resources to find Protestant martyrs and sufferers, and usually a name (or names) jumps out at me and silently begs to be remembered. But who to choose? Often it’s a name where my eyes fall, or an ancestor surname, or something I notice out of the blue. Today there was a very compelling story --- very unique, one such as I had never seen before.

One might forget that the Anabaptists were persecuted not only throughout the 1500s but the 1600s as well (this is when my own ancestors suffered under Swiss authority) and many martyrs were created during this time. Even those who survived death were treated horrendously. The unusual part is the four names I saw: Barbara and Elizabeth Meylin, Barbara Kolbin, and Ottila (Ottilia?) Mulerin. I’m not sure why two sisters would both be named Barbara (unless, as in German custom, one might have been Barbara and then one Anna Barbara, or something like that) but their story was intriguing. How old were they? Did they have living relatives who would have been horrified to see almost an entire family suffer out in such a way?

Sources say these four sisters (who were likely all born around the year 1586 in Zurich, Switzerland) eventually escaped torture, though they spent an awful amount of time in prison in 1639. A family genealogy site lists a Barbara Meili (very similar to Meylin) and states that this particular woman married Felix Lambrecht. Her parents were Jacob Meili and Verena Schuepp.

While Jacob and Verena did have daughters named Elizabeth and Barbara, there is no Ottila or second Barbara mentioned. This may or may not be the same family as the one mentioned in Martyrs’ Mirror. I also wondered if “sisters” might have been meant in the Christian way, such as “Christian sisters.” The article did not specify (though it seemed to mean “real” sisters) and I stand corrected if this is the case. Yet assuming they actually were related, did these “pious sisters” have husbands and children? Were their loved ones subjected to the same treatment? Some things will never be known.

Unfortunately.

(c) 2012 Joyously Saved

October 27, 2012

French Wars of Religion: Battle of Moncontour, 1569

One of my big interests has always been Huguenot history, and I’ve recently become more interested in the French Wars of Religion that lasted from 1562 to 1598. Unfortunately, I haven’t definitively traced my Huguenot ancestry back that far, so I couldn’t say if I have any ancestors who fought in these epic battles, but it is a pretty good guess that either ancestors or relatives would have done so. The battle in question today is the Battle of Moncontour, which took place in October 1569.

What made this particular battle interesting was that Huguenot Admiral Gaspard de Coligny, the hope of beleaguered French Protestants who needed a strong voice at court, turned to German Protestants to help in his quest against the enemy. Usually the French Wars of Religion were just that --- French --- and though many battles had foreign allies, they are seldom given credit. I find it odd that the Catholics’ allies, the Swiss, ended up inflicting heavy casualties on the Huguenots. Switzerland was known as a land of Reformed theology strongly associated with John Calvin and as a Protestant haven.

The Battle of Moncontour was a grueling one for French Protestants, and the Huguenots ended up surrendering before the enemy. One reason for their defeat was likely the crushing blow they had recently been dealt at the siege of Poitiers. Though Coligny was a practical man and had no desire to rush into things and incur more casualties, his men, likely fired up by stories of atrocities and perhaps having undergone injustice themselves, were ready to fight. This full-speed-ahead self-assurance would cost them the battle. And many lives. Germans Louis von Nassau and Wolrad von Mansfeld proved to be saviors in disguise, as it was partially due to their quick thinking that the remaining French Protestants were able to emerge in one piece and find safety.

                                                            

History does not record all the details of how the Huguenots were treated, but considering it was only three years before the horrendous St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre, one might guess there were ugly altercations on both sides. Admiral Coligny thankfully escaped. He determined not to give up the fight and he remained true to his word . . . soon the gates of Paris stood before him. But one thing was clear: If you were a Protestant in 16^th century Paris, you were extremely unwelcome. Of course, if you were a Protestant in the 16^th century, you were unwelcome nearly everywhere. We descendants can hardly study European history without being reminded of that sad, incomprehensible fact . . . 

(c) 2012 Joyously Saved

October 26, 2012

Massachusetts Natives and Christianity: The Church at Mashpee

Today I am thinking about churches. There is something ingrained in my spirit that I feel a swell of peace and excitement whenever I see a church of any denomination . . . I like to think it is that love of God and Scripture that was placed in my heart by my courageous Lutheran and Huguenot and Anabaptist ancestors. Whatever the case, I wanted to discover one of America’s oldest and most venerable churches. I came across a quite interesting structure called the “Old Indian Meeting House.” I’d never before seen anything like it . . . this church, located in Mashpee, Massachusetts, was actually built for Native Americans who had accepted Christianity. It has bravely stood the test of time.

The conversion of Native Indians is a story in itself. Unlike the Spanish Catholics further south, the predominately-Calvinist founding fathers did not establish mission systems, but they did encourage natives to come to Christianity of their own volition and to live as their white neighbors lived. Missionary efforts brought about such places as the Old Indian Meeting House. That church was constructed in the 1680s and dedicated by Deacon Hinckley.

The Wampanoags who used the church must have marveled at the distinct difference between these simple white frame English-style churches and the outdoors places of worship to which their own ancestors were accustomed. The church is still quite simple; two-story, with white siding, a pointed roof, and two windows on the second level, it also boasts two front doors. (One must wonder if the two doors were for men and women. Though I believe the colonial Quakers followed this practice, I have no idea if the New England Puritans did the same). A pair of simple windows on either side allowed sunlight to infiltrate the humble interior.

Hundreds of years ago the Old Indian Meeting House was found in a different part of town, but for some reason it became expedient to move it in the early 1700s. There is still a Wampanoag population attending this venerable old church. I found it interesting that the Wampanoags were closely associated with the landing of the Pilgrims. Corn-planting Squanto was a member of this tribe. As for particular denomination, it is indeed likely that Puritanism (Calvinism) was the original Christian faith of the Wampanoags, as most Europeans who settled in and around Mashpee held these tendencies.

(c) 2012 Joyously Saved