Congregational, Doctrine or Confession of Faith

We have discussed at various times and in a number of different contexts the Congregational doctrines concerning Full Communion and the idea of Covenant. We would like to present here a complete collection of these documents as they appear in the opening pages of the church records. When a new Society was organized one of the first tasks was to obtain a ledger in which the business of the Society could be duly recorded. Among the first items in the ledger was the document usually titled, “The Doctrine or Confession of Faith”. The next document was titled, “The Covenant”. At some point the, “Articles of Faith” were added which were used both as a missionary tool and as a teaching tool in their Sunday Schools. These ledgers were then used to record the business of the Congregation. The ledgers are also a primary source for information on births, deaths, and baptisms. A major portion is dedicated to the minutes of the regular meetings of the Congregational leadership, the Minister and Deacons. Much of that material is, quite frankly, very mundane. Scattered among the minutes of these meeting you see described little bits of church business that we today may find a little unusual. A number of these items have been previously posted on the Blog. Sinners were called out in the belief that it was for their own good. Committees were appointed to help them with their repentance. Full Communion was suspended. If the parishioner was unrepentant we see the notation “watch and care withdrawn” and maybe even excommunication, i.e. Full Communion rescinded. We see notations on sinners being restored to Full Communion. We see members “dismissed” so they could go to another Society. We see notations on members being received “by letter” meaning they were offered Full Communion on their arrival from another Society. But the key sections of these ledgers were the notation on who had been accepted into Full Communion, which identified members who were in full faith and standing within the Society. These believers were eligible to receive all of Gods Sacraments and blessings starting with baptism for themselves and more importantly baptism for their children. The final act of moving into Full Communion was a public profession before man and God of The Covenant. Abraham Pierson, in his notebook, made note of the date on which members made their profession. Every Congregational Society had these two key documents. Some were written with a little more flourish than others but in core context they were all the same.------ The main document was “The Doctrine or Confession of Faith”. It starts, “We Believe, That there is only one, true living and Eternal God”. The remainder of the document defines the nature of their God and the Godhead. The essence of religion to them, and perhaps all religions, was to clearly understand the nature of and their relationship with the God they were to worship. Given the fact of their God they then entered into a “Covenant”, after the manner of the Biblical covenants, that bound them to him and required of them certain behaviors so that they may be in Full Communion and worthy to receive all of his Sacraments and blessings. The first paragraph of “The Covenant” starts with, “We that are sinful creatures”, acknowledging the need for redemption, and ends with, “do now in the presence of the Great God, his holy angels and this Assembly, Solemnly Covenant with the Lord and with one another”. The Covenant includes a profession that the God described in the Confession of Faith is, “to be our God”, professes that the Lord is our Prophet, Priest and King, includes a promise to obey the revealed will of God in all things, Piety towards God, Sobriety, Justice and Charity toward neighbors, Promote the welfare and union of the Church of Christ in “this place particularly”, and ends with “Amen”. It is interesting to contemplate the effects that the acceptance of the Confession of Faith and the making of a Covenant had on our ancestors and the communities they lived in. The last document is the heading for the section in the church ledger in which those found in Full Communion were recorded. Of note is the connection between Communion and the saving Sacrament of baptism. The issue of baptism was at the center of the debate in the First Great Awakening that began in the early 1700’s. With church membership on the wane the fear was that taking on the responsibly of Full Communion was too daunting for some. Without Communion the opportunity to have your children baptized was not available. The compromise was the “Half Covenant”. In the Half Covenant you were welcomed into the ‘watch and care’ of the Church before you made the commitment to Full Communion. More importantly the halfway covenant meant your children could receive the Sacrament of baptism. The hope was that you would eventually become a fully committed member of the Church of Christ. Click on documents to enlarge.