Archives for October 18, 2019

Next we traveled to Newburyport, Massachusetts to see the home where George Whitefield delivered his last moving sermon (first picture above) as well as his burial site under the pulpit of Old South First Presbyterian Church (second picture below).

Did you know that 80% of Americans heard Whitefield preach at one point or another in the mid-18th century on at least one of his 13 trips across the ocean? Two guides led us through the history and I also gave a short lecture on Whitefield’s death and burial. This was a very moving, unforgettable visit.

Thursday was a full day of sights and travel for our PRTS New England tour. We first traveled to Salem, Massachusetts to visit Tabernacle Congregational Church (first picture below) where Adoniram Judson and five other men were commissioned as the first American missionaries in 1812.

Dr. Michael Haykin gave us a great lecture on Adoniram and his remarkable wife Ann. After that we visited a historic room of memorabilia related to Judson. In the second picture below, my right-hand helper on this trip, PRTS student Kenneth Kiambati, is kneeling beside the famous bench on which the six missionaries were ordained in 1812.

We then went to see the historic waterfront where a ship replica like the one used by Adoniram Judson when he traveled to Burma (now Myanmar) is located. After that we went through downtown Salem, where we saw the first meeting house erected in Salem, where Roger Williams and Hugh Peters preached (third picture below).

Salem needs our prayers today. I talked at some length with a local policeman who said that some of its inhabitants despise all the attention given to its witchcraft history, others are indifferent to it, and still others feel that various places in the city are haunted. Liberalism is rampant.

After visiting Harvard University, our PRTS tour group spent considerable time at the Old South Church in Boston (interior picture above), where Thomas Paine pastored for forty years, as well as the historic Old North Church (second interior picture above) where Charles Wesley and George Whitefield preached. This is also the oldest standing church in Boston that was made famous as the starting point of Paul Revere’ s midnight ride.

In the courtyard afterward, Dr. Haykin gave us a delightful lecture on Charles Wesley and his relationship with his brother John (third picture above).