Thanksgiving became an official federal holiday in 1863 by declaration of then-president Abraham Lincoln, pictured here with one of our newest members, Eve Howe. And while it is considered a national, secular holiday, since becoming a Congregationalist, I find myself becoming slightly possessive of it. After all, it was created to commemorate the landing of the Mayflower in 1620. And who was on the Mayflower, well, along with 62 folks with commercial and social interests in the so-called “New World”, there were 40 Separatists. These Separatists, early ancestors of modern-day Congregationalists, started as part of a wider movement in England to “purify” the Anglican Church. These folks were known as Puritans. However, as time progressed, Puritans would generally remain within the Anglican Church, attempting to purify it from within. Separatists, while they may have been Puritans at one time, are the folks who decided to go one step further and separate themselves from the Church of England, just as their name implies.[1] After separating from the church, these believers were persecuted for their beliefs and many of them met in secret places to worship, one of the most notable being in the town of Scrooby, England. This is why we have fellowship groups here called Scrooby groups. But, our Scrooby groups do not meet in secret, or at least if they do, I don’t know about it.
So now that we have a grasp on the difference between Puritans-who, for the most part, stayed in the Church of England to try and purify it, and Separatists-who separated themselves from the Church of England, let’s pick up on the story line of the Separatists and the first Thanksgiving, using this nifty little video I found on the website of The History Channel. The lyrics of the song can be found attached to the copy of today’s sermon for those whose hearing is impaired.
And so there you have it. The Thanksgiving holiday is compliments of the Separatists, early Congregationalists who would go on to establish the Plymouth Colony and play an integral role in the development of our nation. “You’re welcome, America!”
But wait, there’s more. So much more. In an interesting turn of events this week I discovered another reason why America, and indeed the rest of the whole world, might consider adding early Congregationalists to their list of blessings this year. Now let me just say that I did not grow up a Congregationalist. In fact, there are few of us who did. Will those of you who are so-called “Cradle Congregationalists” please raise your hands? See. There really aren’t many and we have become quite the mix of people around here, thanks be to God. But, not growing up in this tradition and going through the ordination process as a member of the United Church of Christ, my studies of the Reformation have been firmly rooted in how the Reformation unfolded on the continent of Europe. It wasn’t until just this last week that I sat down and really put my mind to discovering more concrete connections between Congregationalism and the Reformation. And I was surprised by what I found. Indeed, Congregationalism does not have direct ties to those we consider to be the holy trinity of the Protestant Reformers-Martin Luther, Uldrich Zwingli, and John Calvin. At first I was kind of sad about that. BUT THEN, I found this graph that helps us understand that Congregationalism is an off shoot of the Anglican Church, a product of the Reformation via Henry the 8th who wanted to be the head of the church instead of having the pope be the head of the church and all wrapped up in his affairs . . . literally. Now for those of you with ties to Anglicanism, this tidbit may strike you as being both ironic, because the Anglicans have such a strong hierarchy and we have none, and strangely comforting, because the Anglicans have such a strong hierarchy and we have none.
And, while Congregationalism is considered an off-shoot of Anglicanism, the true roots of the free-church movement, of which Congregationalism is a part, date further back than even the reign of King Henry the Eighth. Indeed, they go all the way back to the 1300s to an English theologian named John Wycliffe. “English theologian, philosopher, church reformer, and promoter of the first complete translation of the Bible into English. He was one of the forerunners of the Protestant Reformation . . . Most of Wycliffe’s post-Reformation Protestant biographers see him as the first Reformer, fighting almost alone the hosts of medieval wickedness.[2]
THAT’S RIGHT. The man considered to be the FIRST Protestant reformer was NOT Martin Luther. Rather, it was John Wycliffe who lived well-over a century before Luther. And yet, these two men had myriad in common. They both promoted the reform of the Catholic Church by eliminating the greed and corruption in the hierarchy. They both articulated alternative views of Holy Communion. And they were both proponents of translating the Bible from Latin, which only the most learned members of society could read, into the vernacular, or common, language of the people. So, if Wycliffe was really the first of the Protestant Reformers, why do so few people know his name and why is Martin Luther so often given that title.
Well, chances are pretty good the answer to the question lies in their audience. Wycliffe’s audience was a small group of learned students and clergy in his classes at Oxford University and the parishes he served. Luther’s audience, thanks to the invention of the printing press about one hundred years before the time of his ministry, Luther’s audience was all of the German-speaking people in Europe. His translation of the Bible spread across the continent like wild fire. There are those who suggest that, had the printing press not been invented when it was, Luther would be as unknown a character as our spiritual ancestor John Wycliffe. But, that doesn’t mean that Wycliffe’s legacy died with him. The small group who knew about his writings were excited about them and Wycliffe’s fervor for a church free of corruption and governmental interruption would trickle down through the generations and eventually influence the thoughts of those who would come to be known as Separatists. And so, not only can we say, “You’re welcome America” about Thanksgiving, but we can say, “You’re welcome Protestants around the globe!” for the gift of the free-church and the democratization of Christian belief.
And what, pray tell, does any of this have to do with any of us. Well, it has a lot to do with us. Perhaps that’s why you made learning more about Congregationalism one of the goals of our most recent vision statement. You want to know what this tradition you’ve become a part of has to do with how you live your life on a daily basis. Well, Congregationalism is, in part, about being brave. We come from this long line of spiritual ancestors who were brave and refused to bow to powers of greed and corruption. Congregationalism is, in part, about being faithful. We come from this long line of spiritual ancestors who teach us that God, not the government, not the almighty dollar, not the status quo, but GOD is “our refuge and our strength, a very present help in trouble.” Congregationalism is, in part, about equality because we believe that God created all people equal. We come from this long line of spiritual ancestors who seek to return to the equality and egalitarianism of the early church as we find it described in the Book of Acts. And finally, Congregationalism is about being as the Separatists were, bound together by love, not law. Folks who gather together, not because we must, but because we may. And thanks be to God that we may. For though we are far from perfect and there is much work yet to be done, at least we have each other and the love that binds us together as brothers and sisters in Christ and as such “the Lord Almighty is with us.” Thanks be to God.
Lyrics to Song:
In the year of 1600 North America had seen
20,000 years of native peoples and just a handful of Europeans.
Even in 1607 British Virginia was a flop
Barely worth investor’s money before they had tobacco crops.
Meanwhile back in Britain folks were getting jailed and fined for practicing religion
Different from the official kind.
These separatists moved to Holland in 1609 but it was tough there, too and they knew they’d have to go somewhere else some time.
So a deal was struck in 19 with the London Company the Separatists could join some workers to form a New England colony.
They hired two ships for the voyage
The Mayflower big and the Speedwell small but the Speedwell had a problem so the Mayflower had to fit them all.
One hundred and two passengers
Including kids and wives
Some seeking religious freedom
Some wanting work and better lives.
Left England on the Mayflower in September 1620
For that journey where the space was tight
And the dangers were so many.
Half way the main beam fractured.
There were awful winds and storms.
On the 66 day journey two folks died and one was born.
They reached land in November too far north in winter weather.
They wrote the Mayflower Compact, an agreement to stick together.
They called the new place Plymouth and they planned to make it home.
They stole corn from the natives and lived on their boat alone.
But the winter time brought sickness
on that Mayflower afloat
When spring arrived only half of them survived to leave the boat.
And these folks we call the pilgrims
built the Plymouth colony
While Captain Jones sailed the Mayflower back to its home across the sea.
Where they took the boat apart
it never saw the colony grow.
But that became the start of the
United States we now know.
And now every November there’s a Thanksgiving holiday.
Where we eat foods and remember the dudes who rode the Mayflower this way.
But let’s reflect on the 1600s when North America had seen 20,000 native peoples and just a handful of Europeans.
[1] https://thehistoricpresent.com/2008/05/12/pilgrims-v-puritans-who-landed-in-plymouth/
It Wonders Me 