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Freedom of Worship
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John Henry
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Jun 23, 2007 17:06 PDT
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You Can Thank the Baptists for
Freedom of WorshipBy Pastor David F.
Reagan
THE PREPARATION OF THOMAS
HELWYS
Thomas
Helwys was
born in England around 1550. His father was a country gentleman, his
uncle, Geoffrey Helwys, was a merchant who had served as an alderman and
sheriff of London, and his cousin, Gervase Helwys was knighted by King
James in 1603 and later became lieutenant of the tower of London. Thomas
was educated at Gray’s Inn in London, a prestigious school of law and a
place of general education for the sons of gentlemen and nobles.
Helwys completed his study at Gray’s Inn in 1593 and returned to Broxtowe
Hall near Nottingham to live the life of a gentleman. In 1595, he married
Joan Ashmore and they had seven children over the next twelve years. The
family was actively involved in the Puritan community of the day and
their house became a place where visitors often came to discuss questions
of religion. Over time, Helwys became close friends with
John
Smyth and soon Thomas and Joan became members of Smyth’s congregation
in Gainsborough.
In 1607, the High Court of Ecclesiastical Commission took action against
the independent churches in Gainsborough and Scrooby. Thomas Helwys seems
to have escaped and made his way to Holland. He left his wife and
children in England, probably assuming that they would be safe. However,
Joan was under arrest early in 1608. When brought to the court, she would
not yield to take the oath demanded by the court and was returned to the
prison. No records have been found of her leaving prison, but the
standard judgment of the time would have been banishment after three
months of imprisonment.
Thomas Helwys settled in Amsterdam as part of the congregation led by
John Smyth. During these years in Holland, John Smyth became convinced
that scriptural baptism was for believers and not for infants. That is,
he became a Baptist. Helwys and the small congregation there agreed and
went along with Smyth. However, when Smyth began to move toward full
Mennonite doctrine, Helwys and about ten others refused to go along. In
1611, Thomas Helwys wrote the earliest of the modern Baptist confessions
of faith made up of 27 articles and called it A Declaration of Faith
of English people remaining at Amsterdam in Holland.
Helwys continued to write. In June of 1611, he wrote a 24 page pamphlet
entitled, A short and plain proof, by the word and works of God, that
God’s decree is not the cause of any man’s sin or condemnation: and that
all men are redeemed by Christ; as also that no infants are
condemned. A third book was written to address the differences
between himself and the Mennonites. The fourth and final book written by
Helwys was completed late in 1611 or early in 1612. It was called A
Short Declaration on the Mystery of Iniquity.
About this time, Helwys became convinced that he was wrong to run
from the persecution awaiting him in England. He sailed across the North
Sea with his manuscript on the Mystery of Iniquity in hand. He
returned to England not long after Edward Wightman, a Baptist, became the
last person in England to be burned at the stake for heresy (executed
April 11, 1611). Early in 1612, he found a publisher for his book and
dedicated a copy of it to King James in his own hand. This presentation
copy is still preserved in the Bodleian Library. It is one of four
surviving copies. It seems that King James’ response to his copy of the
book was to imprison Thomas Helwys and forget about him. Although nothing
much is known of Helwys beyond this imprisonment, records show that he
was deceased by 1616.
THE MYSTERY OF INIQUITYSo, what was
this Mystery of Iniquity that likely cost Thomas Helwys his life?
The title is taken from 2 Thessalonians 2:7, which states, “For the
mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let,
until he be taken out of the way.” In this book, Helwys dealt with
various prophetic passages. He identified the first beast of Revelation,
chapter 13, with the Roman Catholic Church. The “hierarchy of Rome
expounds the scriptures, makes laws, canons, and decrees, and binds all
men’s consciences to obey, forcing them thereunto by excommunication,
imprisonment, banishment, death, and none may examine the power,
authority or warrant thereof by the scriptures, but all must be received
for holy and good, because the hierarchy of Rome say in words they cannot
err.”
He then identified the second beast of Revelation with the Church of
England because it attempted to compel the people to worship the image of
the first beast. The ceremonies, the vestments, the surplice, the cross,
the ecclesiastical courts, the titles, and many other things were simply
a return back to the idolatry of the Roman church.
FREEDOM OF RELIGIONHelwys then turned
to the subject of the freedom of conscience. He recognized the proper
place of the state and its authority in an exposition of Romans, chapter
13. But this power has its limits. The king does not have “power to
command men’s consciences in the greatest things to be submitted to.”
The king may rule over “the people’s bodies and goods,” but he has
no right to “give his power to be exercised over the spirits of his
people.” The people of God are a “heavenly or spiritual people,
not of this world; and the King Jesus Christ, a heavenly spiritual king,
requiring spiritual obedience.” The king cannot have “any power
over this…people of God in respect of the religion to God, because our
lord the king’s kingdom is an earthly kingdom.”
The king should therefore not use his sword to force conformity in
religion. The people “should choose for themselves their religion,
seeing they only must stand themselves before the judgment seat of God to
answer for themselves, when it shall be no excuse for them to say, We
were commanded or compelled to be of this religion by the king or by them
that had authority over them.” When the king holds the sword against
those who live for God according to conscience, he smites “the
faithful, true, and loyal subjects of the king.”
But the freedom of religion proposed by Helwys went further. Of the Roman
Catholics, he stated, “For we do freely profess that our lord the king
has no more power over their consciences than over ours, and that is none
at all.” This was a truly radical concept in a time when the
Catholics were especially hated and feared. But Helwys did not quit here.
He added, “For men’s religion to God is between God and themselves.
The king shall not answer for it. Let them be heretics, Turks, Jews, or
whatsoever, it appertains not to the earthly power to punish them in the
least measure.”
CONCLUSIONThomas Helwys completed his
book with a plea to true believers to endure suffering and persecution
rather than flee from it. He strongly urged them to faithful endurance
even unto death. He encouraged those who had fled to “come and lay down
their lives in their own country for Christ and his truth.” Whatever we
believe of the wisdom of this course, we must certainly admire his
courage and note that Thomas Helwys faithfully practiced what he
preached.
The Mystery of Iniquity was
the first exposition in the English language to fully express the concept
of liberty of conscience. In it, Thomas Helwys did
not plead for partial liberty, but liberty for all. Mystery of
Iniquity became the first English treatise to declare the doctrine of
universal religious liberty. Yet, Helwys was not just any man. He was a
Baptist. Though these facts are heavily documented and are accepted by
scholars as true, they are practically unknown today. Even Baptists do
not know the significance of Thomas Helwys and the Mystery of
Iniquity. If we do not return to our history and proclaim its
significance, we will soon return to its trials and suffering. If we do
not learn from history, we will live in its shadows once again.
References:
A Short Declaration of the Mystery of Iniquity by Thomas
Helwys, edited by Richard Groves, published by Mercer University Press
(1998)
Smyth: The Se-Baptist and the Pilgrim Fathers by Walter H.
Burgess, published by James Clarke & Co. in London (1911)
A History of the Baptists by Robert G. Torbet, published by
Judson Press (1950)
A History of Anti-Pedobaptism by Albert Henry Newman,
published by American Baptist Publication Society (1897)
A History of the English Baptists by A. C. Underwood,
published by The Carey Kingsgate Press Limited (1947)
The History of the English Baptists by Thomas Crosby,
published in London (1738), republished by Church History Research &
Archives (1979)
http://www.learnthebible.org/history-thank-the-baptists-for-freedom-of-worship.htm
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