New Light Revival
[pages 41-47]
WE have now came to the period when the great "New Light Revival," sometimes called Kentucky revival, reached its highest stage in the Miami Country. It began in Kentucky, in 1800, first in the bounds of the Cumberland Presbytery, in the southern part of Kentucky, soon extended to Fayette, Scott, Bourbon, and other counties; but did not reach Ohio until the winter of 1801-2. It began in the Presbyterian Churches first, both in Kentucky and Ohio; but in its progress embraced, to some extent, individuals of other denominations. In the winter of 1801-2, Richard McNemar and John Thompson, both Presbyterian clergymen from Kentucky, visited the Miami Valley, and preached frequently, and with wonderful effect in different places, but more especially, at first, at Springfield, Hamilton County, now called Springdale, where Thompson soon
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after settled, and at the Turtle Creek Presbyterian Church, to which Richard McNemar soon after removed. This was the first Presbyterian Church within the bounds of Warren County. Their meeting-house was erected in 1798, on the ministerial section, a little south of the present site of Union Village, otherwise called Shakertown.
The effects of this Revival can only be glanced at here. Indeed the reality would hardly be credited now. New as the country was, congregations of one, two and even three thousand often collected at different points, and even evening meetings, at private houses, not unfrequently [sic] had such crowds that they were compelled to remain out of doors during the services. In cold weather, it was not uncommon to build large fires round the house, of logs, then very easily had, in order to the comfort of those outside of the house. At first the excitement was distinguished by the falling exercise. This was marked by loud breathing at first, and growing more and more rapid until the subject of it seemed to swoon, then fall, and lie apparently without breathing for some hours. Hundreds would thus be seen prostrated in a few moments, and, sometimes, nearly every adult in the meeting, preacher and all, would be down at once; some silent, with scarcely the appearance of life, others apparently recovering and either crying for mercy or praising God, with loud voices. Even wicked men who went
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to scoff, I have known to fall like others, wholly unable to control themselves, for a longer or shorter time. On the recovery of these they would be unable to account for the effect on them, and in some cases such persons thus fell without producing even seriousness, more than for a few minutes, or hours, at the furthest. In most instances, however, this falling was attended with strong convictions of sin, which resulted in permanent conversion. The falling exercise was succeeded by the rolling exercise which consisted in being cast down in a violent manner, and rolling over and over like a log. The next in time was the jerks. These were attended by violent twitchings of the muscles of the neck, arms, and, sometimes, of the whole body. The head would frequently be thrown from one side to another, backwards and forwards, so forcibly as to appear to threaten dislocation of the neck. A fourth exercise was what was called the barks. The individual affected by this would bark like a dog, and often move about on hands and feet as if imitating that animal in its motions as well as sounds. Another was the whirling exercise, spinning round like a top. These all had their day, and passed off in a few years, except the jerks, which continued with some for many years. These exercises were considered by the New Lights as supernatural and intended to humble their natural pride of heart, and debase, in their
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own estimation, the subjects of them. Though I give no opinion, these were sometimes difficult to account for on any known principles of psychology. There were instances, and many of them, where persons would lie as if dead, with scarce the slightest appearance of life, for days together, without motion, or any other signs of life, unless an almost imperceptible pulsation and breathing.
These people were called New Lights, because they taught "that the will of God was made manifest to each individual who honestly sought after it, by an inward light, which shone into his heart," and hence they received the name of New Lights.*
This revival carried off the great body of the Presbyterian Church in the Miami Valley, with a number of their preachers, as it did in Kentucky and Tennessee, Southwest Virginia and Northwest North Carolina. In 1803 they separated from all connection with the regular Presbyterian organizations -- formed new Presbyteries and protested against the doctrines and government of the old ecclesiastical organization. Rejecting all creeds, confessions, forms of worship, and rules of government as invented by men, they "held that all who received the true light of the Spirit in the inner man, and faithfully followed it, would naturally see eye to eye and understand the Spirit
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* Short History of Kentucky Revival, by Richard NcNemar, p. 29.
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alike, without any written tenet or learned expositor. That all who received this light would plainly see the purity of God -- the depravity of man -- and the necessity of a new birth, and of a sinless life and conversation to evidence it." The great mistake they made was, that they had no means of testing this true inward light. As each one judged for himself, every man was infallible, in his own eyes, and hence, instead of seeing eye to eye, they soon began to differ more and more widely. On the character of Christ, whether divine or angelic, and the nature of his atonement, there soon sprang up every shade of opinion, from orthodox Trinitarianism, to extreme Unitarianism. The largest number, however, adopted a medium course, holding to a subordinate divinity of Christ, inferior to God, the Father, but yet a Divine Being, and the only Savior of sinful men.
The Shakers, who had then had societies in Eastern New York and Connecticut for some twenty five years, learning some of the features of this New Light revival in the West, in 1804, sent three missionaries, who visited first Kentucky and then Ohio, and soon succeeded in building Shakerism on the foundation already prepared for it in the New Light views. In Kentucky and the Miami Valley many of them became Shakers. This breach in the New Light ranks, though by no means affecting the great body of
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them, yet embraced many and even most of their eminent preachers, and from this time their progress was checked. They still, however, continued their church organization, have had many truly pious and excellent preachers among them, and yet remain a distinct people, spread over all the eastern and western country, and, in many places, in considerable strength. At first, coming out of the Presbyterian Church, they were all Pedobaptists, but since about 1815, they have held and practiced believers' baptism alone, and that by immersion. They now hear the denominational title of Christians.
Baptists in the Miami Valley were very little, if any, affected by the New Light revival. I can find but one allusion to it, and no difficulty growing out of it in the records of the association. It is merely mentioned that in the Carpenter's Run Church there were some instances of the falling exercises. But two or three Baptists within my knowledge were carried away by this excitement. Further than this, I have no personal knowledge or authentic information of its interference with the Baptist Churches in the Miami Association.
It was in this revival that the Cumberland Presbyterians had their origin. Its first signs were seen, as before said within the bounds of the Cumberland Presbytery, and it rapidly embraced nearly the whole of the Presbyterian Churches in that section of Kentucky. They continued for some years afterward their connection with the
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regular Presbyterian Synod, but their practice of licensing young men to preach without the requisite learning first gave rise to remonstrances on the part of the Synod. As early as 1805, the late Dr. Joshua L. Wilson, of Cincinnati, was, with others, deputed to labor with them on this irregularity. But the Cumberland Presbytery continued to license unlearned men, on the ground that the destitution of the country required it, as others, with the necessary learning, could not be had. In doctrine, too, they gradually departed from the Presbyterian canons, especially in those termed Calvinistic. About 1806 they became an independent body, and still continue such. They are now quite strong in most of the Western and Southwestern States.================ [A. H. Dunlevy, History of the MIami Baptist Association, 1869, pp. 41-47. Transcribed and formatted by Jim Duvall.]
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