John Quincy Adams Digital Diary

165 Quincy Wednesday 8th. September 1847—

8— VI—

Lunt. Rev Wm. P— Comstock Mr. Comstock Mrs Mills Mrs. Rogers Mr.

A quiet night and Sleep till daylight— at twelve oclock, noon Mr. Lunt took an early dinner with me, immediately after which, we went together in my Carriage to the Church of the Mount Pleasant Congregational Society at Roxbury where we attended the ordination of the Reverend Wm. Alger— We found the Council assembled, and the . . . of the Delegates invited to the ceremony calling over by the Rev John Pierce D.D. Pastor of the Church at Brookline acting as Scribe— The Churches invited were more numerous than usual; and there were in attendance as many as forty Pastors, each with one lay Delegate— When they were all called over Dr. Pierce observed that before proceeding to the ordination it was usual for the person to be ordained to produce some testimonials of his 166qualifications for the Office of the Ministry, but Mr. Alger observing that he was known to many of the gentlemen in attendance, he had not thought it necessary to obtain any testimonials to his qualifications. No objection however was made to proceeding— Dr. Pierce then observed that it was also usual, for the person about to be Ordained to give some account of his opinions and the Doctrines of his Faith, and he enquired if any person desired this of Mr. Alger. A motion was accordingly made that he should be requested to give such an account. An Amendment was proposed to the Motion to substitute the word required instead of requested. And upon taking the vote the word requested was retained— And upon the vote with the word requested the answers in the affirmative and negative were so nearly equal that the moderator declared he was unable to determine on which side the decision had been— He then proposed that those who were for requesting the candidate, to declare his opinions should show their sense by rising in their seats whereupon twenty two members rose. after which the members against making the request rose and they were nine in number. Whereupon Dr. Pierce declared the majority were in favor of making the request which he accordingly did Mr. Alger then summed up his Faith in the belief of the existence of a God, the immortality of the Soul, and the responsibility of Man to his Maker in a future World. No further inquiries were made and the vote was immediately taken to proceed to the Ordination. They began with an Anthem, followed by an introductory Prayer by the Revd. F. D. Huntington of Boston whose Ordination I attended as Delegate from the Church some three or four years since. In the order of exercises it was said that selections from Scriptures should be read by the Rev Nathl. 167Hall, but this part was omitted— A Hymn by the Rev Henry Ware Junior was then sung, and a Sermon was preached by the Rev Samuel. K. Lothrop Pastor of the Brattle Street Church in Boston. His text was from 2 Corinthians 2–16. “Who is sufficient for these things”—and his argument was that a minister of the Gospel to be fitted for his Office, should be sufficient for all things— The Sermon was succeeded by the Prayer of Ordination by the Rev Horatio Alger an uncle of the candidate— Then came the Charge, by the Rev Ephraim Peabody, then the right hand of Fellowship by the Rev Edward Everett Hale, then a Hymn by Charles Sprague Esqr. then an Address to the Society by Revd. George Putnam D.D. then a concluding prayer by the Revd. N. G. Thomas then a closing Hymn a Doxology from

“From All that dwell below the skies”—

then the Benediction by the Pastor himself, according to Custom. The solemnities had commenced at 1/2 past two oclock, it was near six when they closed. The Church was very crowded and the weather oppressively warm. I had been part of the time apprehensive of fainting, but made out to get through and immediately to return home, in the Carriage which took Mr. Lunt home. There had been several strangers here visitors from the State of Michigan and in the evening my Son and his wife were here.