d

THE

Evangelical Magazine,

FOR JUNE, 1798.

BIOGRAPHY.

MEMOIRS OF THE LATE REV, H. VENN, A. M.

HIS excellent man was defcended from ancestors who

line, from the time of the Reformation; and one of them fuffered much from his attachment to the royal party during the civil wars. The father of Mr. V. was rector of St. Antholin's in London, a man of learning, found in orthodoxy, and high in principles. He made himfelf confpicuous, and fuffered fome obloquy from the world by the part he took with good Bishop Gibfon, in oppofition to the promotion of Dr. Rundle, who had rendered himfelf fufpected of Deiftical opinions. After his death in 1740, a volume of his fermons was published by his widow, the daughter of a Mr. Afton, who died for his adlierence to the cause of the unfortunate King James.

Mr. Henry Venn, the fubject of this memoir, was born at Barnes, in 1725, and being early defigned for the gown, received his education, partly under Dr. Pittman, and partly under Mr. Catcott, a celebrated Hutchinfonian writer.

In 1742 he was admitted of Jefus College, Cambridge, where he received his Univerfity honours; but there being no vacancy of a fellowship, he was unanimoufly elected to one in Queen's College, of which he continued a member till his marriage. Studious, acute, and inquifitive, his turn of mind was lefs diffipated than that of youth in general; but his knowledge of divine truth, darkness like that which might be felt around him. His ambition was to be a scholar, which in his view, included all clerical quaJifications. VOL. VI

Hh

Whne

When of age, his fellowship being a title, he subscribed, as too many others do, what he had never well confidered, and neither believed nor taught. This himself afterwards publicly acknowledged in Waderhoe pulpit, where he had preached for a few months after his ordination.

Yet he had always fome notions of clerical duty, and his life was strictly moral. About this time meeting with Mr. Law's Serious Call, it made a deep and lafting impreffion on his mind. He read and read again this pleafing and moft unanswerable advocate for the reasonablenefs and dignity of a life of holiness; and fet himfelf diligently to conform to his prefcriptions, in rigid weekly faftings and prayer, and kept a daily journal of his thoughts, words and deeds. His mind being now folemnized, he began to gain fome clearer views of Jefus Chrift and his redemption, when he removed to Clapham, and with two or three lectureships in London, had his hands full of minifterial bufinefs. His love for Mr. Law, had filled him with the highest longing for his works, and he expected his Spirit of Prayer, with an avidity equal to what a mifer could feel, on expecting the receipt of a legacy. He feized and read it with eagernefs; but his difappointment was equal to his ardour, when he found the atonement of Chrift, of which he had now begun to feel his need, was degraded into annihilation; and a fomething crucified within, reprefented as the only fatisfaction due for fin. Thus unable to quit his hope in a vicarious facrifice, Mr. Law loofened the fhackles his former works had impofed, and Mr. Venn, continued to grow more evangelical in his views of Gospel Salvation. Yet he was very far from clear difcoveries of the doctrines of grace; he firmly held, and ftoutly difputed for the abfolute freedom of the human will; and equal application of the facrifice of Chrift to all men, with the other doctrines that generally prevail in all unawakened confciences, and in too many truly awakened, which have adopted the name and fentiments of Arminius, as did the late Meffrs. Weftley and their followers. With thefe was Mr. Venn moft congenial, when a friend from Oxford, whom he had preffed to fpend fome time with him at Clapham, vifited him, and commenced a friendship and correfpondence that ceafed only with his life. As this friend was a convert of that revered name, Mr. Walker, of Truro, he was firmly eftablithed in the principles of Free Grace, now generally termed Calviniftic. Hence naturally arofe much candid investigation of the fubject: both were confcipus they fincerely meant the glory of God, and the falva

tion

tion of men's fouls, both were active labourers in the vineyard, and both efteemed the religion of the heart, as only fundamental: yet both being well informed, their friendly difputes entered deep into the confideration of all the fcrip tures on the subject, without any immediate contiderable change of fentiment. "Allow me, my dear H." faid Mr. Venn, "to be fomething more than a ftone." The manner in which he canvaffed the fubject in debate, manifefted no averfion to receive the Divine truth as far as he discovered it. He fearched the Scriptures daily, if these things were fo, and every day grew more difpofed to acknowledge the impotence and guilt of man, and the fovereignty of the grace of God. He fat himfelf vigorously to preach, what he believed, which he did four or five times a week at his cure and lectureships, befides his private exhortations among his friends. His miniftry was much attended and greatly bleffed, many calling him FATHER, as being begotten by him in the Gospel. Though he generally preached written fermons, yet he, firft perhaps of any of the Church minifters of that day, began to leave his notes, and to addre's his audience extempore. In this he preceded Mr. Romaine, whofe name and miniftry about the fame time attracted more general notice.

While at Clapham in 1757, Mr. Venn married the daugh ter of Dr. Bithop, of Ipfwich,. This Divine was long remembered for an excellent act, which he kept for his Doctor's degree at Cambridge, and is ftill known as the Author of eight fermons, preached at Lady Moyer's lecture, in 1724. But this Gentleman is moftly celebrated for his extraordinary memory, which was fo great, that once, after walking from Temple-bar to St. Paul's, he enumerated all the figns, which were then as numerous as the houtes, in their exact order. By this Lady he had a fon, the prefent amiable rector of Clapham.

While here alfo, he contracted a lafting friendship, with feveral characters of great refpectability, among whom, Sir John Barnard, and the late John Thornton, Etq: were the moft diftinguished. Of the former, he publifhed a very pleafing and interefting memoir. In gratitude to the gentleman of Clapham, from whom he had received many tokens of respect, he published, and dedicated to them, a volume of fermons, about the time he left them, in 1759; when a promotion to the vicarage of Huddersfield, drew him into Yorkihire. This his Oxford friend, among many others, much regretted; wishing him still to have remained

where

where his field of ufefulness was fo great, and his services fo acceptable. But having a family and only a curacy and lectureships, a fettled living of his own was defirable, and the parifh to which he was prefented, being large and populous, with the patronage of feveral chapels annexed, he yielded to the opinion of other of his friends, and removed thither. There, with the affiftance of curates of a like fpirit with himself, he laboured with fingular bleffing and fuccefs, and multitudes were witneffes of the power with which he fpake, being turned from darkness unto light, and from the power of Satan unto God.

From thence he fometimes made preaching excurfions, particularly labouring for the late excellent Countess of Huntingdon, at Bath and Brighthelmftone, and every where from houfe to houfe in his peregrinations, ceafing not to teach and preach Jefus Chrift. As a companion he was the moft agreeable man imaginable; he had a flow of converfation, which never ceafed to delight and edify, and out of a ftore of anecdotes treafured up in his memory, produced a fund of entertainment, as well as usefulness, that those who were his favoured companions, will long remember. It would be foreign to introduce many, let two fuffice among innumerable, alike fingular, and entertaining. Paffing thro Towcefter in one of his journeys, he afked the innkeeper where he put up, it being Saturday evening, who was the rector, and as he should stay the next day, whether he would be glad of affiftance. "Oh yes," faid the landlord, “I dare fay, Sir, he will be glad to have his duty done;"" then carry my compliments, and fay a clergyman out of Yorkfhire is paffing, and will stay to-morrow at the inn, and iş ready to read or preach for him if he needs affistance.” Away posts the inn-keeper with what he thought welcome intelligence to the parfon. "Gladly," fays the Vicar, but Mr. S. what fort of man is this Yorkshire clergyman? There are Methodist vagrants, you know; hah!" The innkeeper laughed and fhook his head, "Ah, Sir, look only at his face and nofe, and you'll fee he is not one of that fort." In truth a rubicundity of face, and a rotundity of form gave Mr. Venn no very methodistical appearance. "Well," faid the Vicar, "let him come to me in the morning, and then I fhall fee, whether I like him to preach or pray." The landlord returned with the meffage, and the next morning Mr. Venn waited on his reverend Brother. "Sir, fays he, after the first bows, you are from Yorkshire?" "I am." -"Will you drink a dram this morning?" "I have no objection,"