Founding Fathers Who Were Ministers 6

Last week I gave you # 's 2 & 3 of 7 common occasions where in addition to regular Sunday morning sermons, pastors had other venues to educate Americans in the Biblical principles of liberty.

#4. Special Fasting and Thanksgiving Sermons. These coincided with government-issued calls to prayer from governors or presidents. By 1815, there had been more than 1,400 such calls to prayer, and in New England, there was usually a day of fasting in the spring and a day of thanksgiving in the fall, with both of these events being accompanied by a sermon. There were also sermons on national days of prayer, such as those called by President George Washington, John Adams, and James Madison. 

#5. Execution Sermons. Ministers would often address the community before public executions for capital crimes. In these sermons the guilty party would be called to repentance and citizens publicly warned of the consequences for criminal behavior. It was also a common practice for judges in the courtroom to deliver a spiritual challenge to the defendants to make themselves right with God if they had been found guilty of a capital crime and sentenced to death.

Content sourced from The American Story The Beginnings by David Barton and Tim Barton