ASMI 34

The Customs of Primitive Churches; or A Set of Propositions Relative to the Name, Matterials, Constitution, Power, Officers, Ordinances, Rites, Business, Worship, Discipline, Government, &c. of a Church; to which are added their proofs from scripture; and historical narratives of the manner in which most of them have been reduced to practice.

This Jesus of Nazareth shall change the customs which Moses delivred &c. Act. vi. 14. These men teach customs &c. Act, xvi. 20, 22. Customs of the churches of God,

1 Cor. xi. 16. These things write I that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church, 1 Tim. iii. 14, 15-

110p, 61.22.5 x 17 cm. Music on p. 11, 20, 23, [28], 31, 32, 36, 40, 52, 89, 92, 98.p. [25]-[28] are misnumbered as follows: 29, unnumbered, 31, 32.

Evans & Shipton-Mooney give date of 1768 without documentation. p. [1], t-p.; p. [2], 'Advertisement, & also an inserted errata list; p. 3-110, 'Propositions' I-LIV; p. 110, "Contents'; 1. 1, recto, 'The Original State of Thirty Baptist Churches Whose Messengers Annually Meet in Association At Philadelphia' [folding table); verso blank; 1. 2-6, rectos, "The State of the baptist churches, which belonged to the philadelphian association' in the years 1761, 1762, 1763, 1764, 1765, each on a different page; versos blank. "The publisher of the following piece... intends to print but a few copies, and to let none go out of his hands but to the ministers of the philadelphian association; and some others; with an earnest request that each of them will consider the plan; mend it; or propose a better; correct what is wrong; retrench superfluities; supply defects and after all meet in a body to compare their thoughts together." (Extract from 'Advertisement.")

     11 monophonic compositions; full text, w. extra stanzas supplied for each tune. Attribs. to Mr. Arne, Mr. Broad, Mr. Dodsley, Dr. Green, Mr. Holmes, Mr. Playford, Mr. Stanley, Mr. Worgan. to tst Am. prs. identified (all except 'Go preach my gospel'). No American compositions, 8 non-American, 3 unidentified ['Chearful be our disposition,' 'Go preach my gospel,' 'Sitting around our Father's board'] (9 attrib, non-Americans, 1 perhaps wrongly: 'Go preach my gospel attrib. Dr. Green, is MORNING HYMN, which has not been traced to any English source). 

1 Core Repertory.

E10891 (composite copy; t-p. from PHi; the rest from MWA). MWA".

NOTE: Each tune is recommended for a particular event in Baptist denominational life: the constitution of a Baptist church (p. 11, 'Arise, o king of grace'); the election of a person to the ministry (p. 20, "The ministry! a noble scheme', and p. 23, 'Go preach my gospel'); the ordination of a minister (p. 32 [recte, 28], 'A solemn fast was set'); the installation of a minister (p. 31-32, 'Girded with truth'); the ordination of ruling elders (p. 36, 'In Patmos it was shown'); the ordination of deacons (p. 40, 'The temple of the Lord are we'); the ceremony in which a church member is publicly rebuked (p. 52, 'But if thy saints deserve rebuke'); the celebration of communion (p. 89, 'Sitting around our Father's board'); the celebration of a 'love feast' (p. 92, 'Chearful be our disposition') and the conducting of a funeral (p. 98, 'Why do we mourn departing friends?" sung to 'the dead march in the opera of Saul'). The type font from which the tunes are printed resembles the one used for No. 500, Tunes in Three Parts (Philadelphia: Anthony Armbruster, 1763). Evans gives the imprint of this item as 'Philadelphia: Printed by Andrew Steuart, 1768.'

ASMI pp. 105-106