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Edward Taylor
Edward Taylor (circa 1642 – June 29, 1729) was an English-born American preacher, poet, and physician whose ministry and writings made him a significant figure in colonial Puritanism. Born in Sketchley, Leicestershire, England, to William, a yeoman farmer, and Margaret Taylor, he grew up in a Nonconformist family during the Commonwealth period. After losing both parents—his mother in 1657 and father in 1658—he worked as a schoolmaster until the 1662 Act of Uniformity barred him from teaching due to his refusal to conform to the Church of England. In 1668, he emigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony, enrolling at Harvard College in 1671, where he graduated with a divinity degree. Taylor’s preaching career began when he accepted a call in 1671 to serve as minister in Westfield, Massachusetts, a frontier town he led for over 50 years. His sermons, over 60 of which survive, emphasized God’s grace and the believer’s relationship with Christ, reflecting his role in administering communion and defending orthodox Congregationalism against liberalizing trends like those of Solomon Stoddard. Alongside preaching, he wrote over 200 Preparatory Meditations, poetic reflections on Scripture, though he forbade their publication, and they remained unknown until 1937. Married twice—first to Elizabeth Fitch in 1674, who bore eight children before her death in 1689, then to Ruth Willys in 1692, with whom he had six—he died at age 87 in Westfield, leaving a legacy as a devoted pastor and one of America’s earliest literary voices.
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Edward Taylor preaches about the inner conflict of the soul, torn between decisions and indecision, urging the congregation to resolve to either stay or go, to fully commit and not be lukewarm. He uses vivid imagery of skies weeping showers and a heart like a Crabtree Cask, questioning the impact of wavering spirits. Taylor warns against being like a sparkling wildfire shop, where uncontrolled spirits can lead to destructive outcomes, emphasizing the need to avoid setting the house on fire with careless actions.
An Address to the Soul Occasioned by a Rain
Ye Flippering Soule, Why dost between the Nippers dwell? Not stay, nor goe. Not yea, nor yet Controle. Doth this doe well? Rise journy'ng when the skies fall weeping Showers, Not o're nor under th' Clouds and Cloudy Powers. Not yea, nor noe: On tiptoes thus? Why sit on thorns? Resolve the matter: Stay thyselfe or goe: Ben't both wayes born. Wager thyselfe against thy surplic'de see, And win thy Coate, or let thy Coate win thee. Is this th' Effect To leaven thus my Spirits all? To make my heart a Crabtree Cask direct? A Verjue'te Hall? As Bottle Ale, whose Spirits prison'd must When jogg'd, the bung with Violence doth burst? Shall I be made A sparkling Wildfire Shop, Where my dull Spirits at the Fireball trade Do frisk and hop? And while the Hammer doth the Anvill pay, The fire ball matter sparkles ev'ry way. One sorry fret, An anvill Sparke, rose higher, And in thy Temple falling, almost set The house on fire. Such fireballs dropping in the Temple Flame Burns up the building: Lord, forbid the same.
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Edward Taylor (circa 1642 – June 29, 1729) was an English-born American preacher, poet, and physician whose ministry and writings made him a significant figure in colonial Puritanism. Born in Sketchley, Leicestershire, England, to William, a yeoman farmer, and Margaret Taylor, he grew up in a Nonconformist family during the Commonwealth period. After losing both parents—his mother in 1657 and father in 1658—he worked as a schoolmaster until the 1662 Act of Uniformity barred him from teaching due to his refusal to conform to the Church of England. In 1668, he emigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony, enrolling at Harvard College in 1671, where he graduated with a divinity degree. Taylor’s preaching career began when he accepted a call in 1671 to serve as minister in Westfield, Massachusetts, a frontier town he led for over 50 years. His sermons, over 60 of which survive, emphasized God’s grace and the believer’s relationship with Christ, reflecting his role in administering communion and defending orthodox Congregationalism against liberalizing trends like those of Solomon Stoddard. Alongside preaching, he wrote over 200 Preparatory Meditations, poetic reflections on Scripture, though he forbade their publication, and they remained unknown until 1937. Married twice—first to Elizabeth Fitch in 1674, who bore eight children before her death in 1689, then to Ruth Willys in 1692, with whom he had six—he died at age 87 in Westfield, leaving a legacy as a devoted pastor and one of America’s earliest literary voices.