Benjamin Bennet (Presbyterian minister)
Encyclopedia
Benjamin Bennet was an English
Presbyterian
minister.
in Shropshire
, under John Woodhouse who ran a dissenting academy.
Bennet began his public ministry as a preacher-evangelist at Temple Hall
, a village near his native place. He immediately succeeded John Sheffield on his move to Southwark
in 1697. He was not formally ordained until 30 May 1699. This was done in Oldbury chapel in Shropshire by some of the surviving ejected ministers, along with three others, one of whom was John Reynolds of Shrewsbury. He became noted for his eloquence in the pulpit.
In 1703 he accepted an invitation to go to Newcastle-on-Tyne as colleague to Richard Gilpin
. The congregation had been weakened by a temporary secession under one of Gilpin's assistants, Thomas Bradbury
. Ben Bennet used to spend sixty hours a week in his study, and days were consecrated to intercessory prayer and fasting.
Never robust, Bennet had, for twelve years before his death, an assistant, Samuel Lawrence. It was during their joint ministry that the congregation erected their second church in Hanover Square, Westgate Street. Bennet did not live to see it opened; he died of a fever in his fifty-second year, on 1 September 1726. Bennet baptised the poet Mark Akenside
in 1721.
His ‘Irenicum, or a Review of some late controversies about the Trinity, Private Judgment … and the Rights of Conscience from the Misrepresentations of the Dean of Winchester [Francis Hare] in his “Scripture vindicated from the Misrepresentations of the Lord Bishop of Bangor”’ (1722), is measured in its tone; but it was still attacked by John Atkinson of Stainton, an ultra-orthodox nonconformist. In 1714, on the death of Queen Anne
and the accession of King George I
, Bennet had published some sermons under the title Several Discourses Against Popery, in view of the dangers of a restoration of the Catholic House of Stuart. His ‘Christian's Oratory, or the Devotion of the Closet,’ went through many editions (a sixth edition was published in 1760, and a seventh in 1776). Bennet's manuscripts yielded a number of posthumous publications, among them being a second part of his ‘Christian's Oratory’ (1728); ‘Truth, Importance, and Usefulness of Scripture’ (1730); ‘View of the whole System of Popery’ (1781).
In 1717 he published A Memorial of the Reformation, growing out of a sermon preached on George I's coronation; it was a Protestant view of the Reformation
. It preserved anecdotes from original sources not to be found elsewhere, as, for instance, of Judge Jeffreys's visit to Newcastle in 1683. A second, updated edition (dedicated to Lord Barrington
) appeared in 1721 covering further episodes in English history such as the Civil War
. This work led to a disagreement with Zachary Grey, with Bennet defending himself in his Defence of the 'Memorial of the Reformation (1723).
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism refers to a number of Christian churches adhering to the Calvinist theological tradition within Protestantism, which are organized according to a characteristic Presbyterian polity. Presbyterian theology typically emphasizes the sovereignty of God, the authority of the Scriptures,...
minister.
Life
Bennet was born in Wellsborough, in Sibson, Leicestershire. He received his elementary education in his parish school. He went next to Sheriff HalesSheriff Hales
Sheriffhales is a scattered village in Shropshire, England, north-east of Telford, north of Shifnal and south of Newport....
in Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
, under John Woodhouse who ran a dissenting academy.
Bennet began his public ministry as a preacher-evangelist at Temple Hall
Temple Hall
Temple Hall is an early 19th-century Federal-style mansion and working farm near the Potomac River north of Leesburg in Loudoun County, Virginia.-History:...
, a village near his native place. He immediately succeeded John Sheffield on his move to Southwark
Southwark
Southwark is a district of south London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Southwark. Situated east of Charing Cross, it forms one of the oldest parts of London and fronts the River Thames to the north...
in 1697. He was not formally ordained until 30 May 1699. This was done in Oldbury chapel in Shropshire by some of the surviving ejected ministers, along with three others, one of whom was John Reynolds of Shrewsbury. He became noted for his eloquence in the pulpit.
In 1703 he accepted an invitation to go to Newcastle-on-Tyne as colleague to Richard Gilpin
Richard Gilpin
Richard Gilpin M.D. was an English nonconformist minister and physician, prominent in the northern region.-Life:The second son of Isaac Gilpin of Strickland Ketel, in the parish of Kendal, Westmorland, and Ann, daughter of Ralph Tonstall of Coatham-Mundeville, County Durham, he was born at...
. The congregation had been weakened by a temporary secession under one of Gilpin's assistants, Thomas Bradbury
Thomas Bradbury
-Life:Bradbury was born in Yorkshire, and was educated for the congregational ministry Attercliffe Academy; Oliver Heywood gave him books. He preached his first sermon on 14 June 1696, and went to reside as assistant and domestic tutor with Thomas Whitaker, minister of the independent congregation,...
. Ben Bennet used to spend sixty hours a week in his study, and days were consecrated to intercessory prayer and fasting.
Never robust, Bennet had, for twelve years before his death, an assistant, Samuel Lawrence. It was during their joint ministry that the congregation erected their second church in Hanover Square, Westgate Street. Bennet did not live to see it opened; he died of a fever in his fifty-second year, on 1 September 1726. Bennet baptised the poet Mark Akenside
Mark Akenside
Mark Akenside was an English poet and physician.Akenside was born at Newcastle upon Tyne, England, the son of a butcher. He was slightly lame all his life from a wound he received as a child from his father's cleaver...
in 1721.
Works
Besides hymns, he wrote a number of religious and historical works.His ‘Irenicum, or a Review of some late controversies about the Trinity, Private Judgment … and the Rights of Conscience from the Misrepresentations of the Dean of Winchester [Francis Hare] in his “Scripture vindicated from the Misrepresentations of the Lord Bishop of Bangor”’ (1722), is measured in its tone; but it was still attacked by John Atkinson of Stainton, an ultra-orthodox nonconformist. In 1714, on the death of Queen Anne
Anne of Great Britain
Anne ascended the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. On 1 May 1707, under the Act of Union, two of her realms, England and Scotland, were united as a single sovereign state, the Kingdom of Great Britain.Anne's Catholic father, James II and VII, was deposed during the...
and the accession of King George I
George I of Great Britain
George I was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 until his death, and ruler of the Duchy and Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the Holy Roman Empire from 1698....
, Bennet had published some sermons under the title Several Discourses Against Popery, in view of the dangers of a restoration of the Catholic House of Stuart. His ‘Christian's Oratory, or the Devotion of the Closet,’ went through many editions (a sixth edition was published in 1760, and a seventh in 1776). Bennet's manuscripts yielded a number of posthumous publications, among them being a second part of his ‘Christian's Oratory’ (1728); ‘Truth, Importance, and Usefulness of Scripture’ (1730); ‘View of the whole System of Popery’ (1781).
In 1717 he published A Memorial of the Reformation, growing out of a sermon preached on George I's coronation; it was a Protestant view of the Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
. It preserved anecdotes from original sources not to be found elsewhere, as, for instance, of Judge Jeffreys's visit to Newcastle in 1683. A second, updated edition (dedicated to Lord Barrington
John Shute Barrington, 1st Viscount Barrington
John Shute Barrington, 1st Viscount Barrington was an English lawyer and theologian-Background and education:Born at Theobalds House, near Cheshunt in Hertfordshire, he was the son of the merchant, Benjamin Shute...
) appeared in 1721 covering further episodes in English history such as the Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. This work led to a disagreement with Zachary Grey, with Bennet defending himself in his Defence of the 'Memorial of the Reformation (1723).