Digital Commons Network^™

Is Protestantism In The Midst Of A Revolution?, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1919-1924

A short but succinct statement of the Christian options -- Catholic, Evangelical, and Liberal -- and the stance of the Liberal option. Davis states that "The purpose of life is not primarily to secure salvation in the world to come, but to so live and so labor that this world may become better for coming generations."

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item description based off writing and context provided by Davis Baird.

Why Cardinal O'Connell Is Wrong! [Three Bound Bundle], Earl Clement Davis

Manuscripts

A long essay responding to a talk by Cardinal O'Connell of Boston. Unfortunately, we are unable to identify which talk Earl Davis is responding to. The piece is Davis' most complete argument against authority religion and in favor of democracy and freedom in religious considerations. He discusses previous failures in "infallible" religion, including Coperincus/Galileo, Darwin, and the morality of earning interest. He states that we will never outgrow religion, but we will outgrow certain religious institutions -- including, in Davis' view, all authority religions.

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each …

The Bible As Literature [Three Bound Bundle], Earl Clement Davis

Manuscripts

Earl Davis surveys the Old Testament and discusses several kinds of literature to be found there. Including: Primative (Song of Deborah, Judges V; Song of Moses, Exodus 15); Folk legends or myths (Moses and the burning bush, Exodus 3:1-6; Jacob's Vision at Bethel, Genesis 28); Wisdom literature, proverbs (Folk song of good husbandry, Proverbs 27:23-27); Minor Prophets (The smiting prophet, Amos 8:4-14; The prophet of disciplined love, Hosea, 14); Poetry of Exile (Psalms 42,43,61,63,137-best); Psalms of Ascent; 120-134; Great Prophecy (Israel's destiny, Isaiah 52:13, 53:12); Lyric Poetry (Song of Songs); The Book of Job -- one of the great literary …

The Relation Of Public Schools To Life, Earl Clement Davis

Manuscripts

This manuscript is very likely a public high school commencement address. Earl Davis discusses three serious issues he finds with public education. (1) The tend to crush the child's innate desire for adventure, a desire Davis sees as seminal to the achievements of history. (2) They do not support a child's interest in doing real work -- because real factories are too dangerous and inhuman, and this undermines the emerging adults appreciation for labor. (3) They do not support the healthy idealism that young adults can bring to clean up the messes of their elders. Through all of this, there …

The Hope For A New Age [Notes], Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

This manuscript consists of six half-size pages held together with a straight pin. The contents appear to be early attempts to develop a sermon on “The Hope for a New Age.” Each page of the manuscript in individuated in this transcription between horizonal lines. On inspection, the pages as pinned together appeared to be out of order. The scan of the manuscript and the transcription presents the pages in a more sensible order with three parts: (1) an outline sketch (1 page); (2) A first version of the sketch of the sermon (2 pages); (3) A second version of the …

Reformation Without Tarrying For Any, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

The advances of history are made by men and women who do not tarry for any. They push forward for their ideals. Thus did Christianity supersede the Roman Empire (and thus did Octavius create the Roman Empire to begin with). But the danger of success comes when calcification and lower drives intercede.

This manuscript has no explicit date. However the reference at the end of the first paragraph to a “great war” suggests that this was written after the US entered World War I and before the conclusion of World War I, between April, 1917 and November, 1918. This is …

Can The Christian Churches Adjust Themselves To The Coming Age?, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

A concise statement of religion and science, of the historical trajectory towards knowledge and democracy, and how all the various Christian religions fit in, including Unitarianism. Davis states that "the Unitarian Church is an attempt to leave behind completely the idea of religion as a supernatural revelation, to organize a church without a creed, either stated or implied, and to work our way through into the Coming Age..."

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis …

What Is The Nature Of Worship And Will It Have A Place In The Coming Age?, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

Worship is based in understanding the truths about our world and using the constraints of these truths to figure out how to make a better life. Davis likens it to a garden:

"I have a plot of ground which I call a garden and I have a desire to develop a more beautiful garden than the one that I had last year. I study my garden; I study the laws of flower culture, and I select seeds that I want and then develop a plan for planting the seeds and plants that, during the season, are to constitute the changing …

The Ethical Significance Of The Changing Social Order In Its Bearing On The Institution Of Education, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

A sermon centered on the idea that education is fundamentally about learning how to live. It comes in informal ways over centuries -- eons -- the ten commandments were not "revealed" but were the result of "hundreds of thousands of years, and millions of human lives." He laments "some people seem to imagine that God is some kind of an expert head accountant, who spends all his time pouring over balance sheets of individuals and nations", reminding that "we talk and act as if we really imagined God were such a creature as that, but the rain falls upon the …

The Ethical Significance Of The Changing Social Order In Its Bearing On The Institution Of Government, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

Davis discusses how the forces of history continue pressing forward in all areas, including the government. Nothing is static or finished, and change is constant: "the impulse of an ever-expanding conception of democracy, have the best of their effort and thought. Today this same unseen spirit, working in the minds of men and women all of the land is changing, the form and broadening the scope of the common efforts of humanity. Through the change is coming greater freedom, higher development, and a sturdier, and nobler generation of men and women."

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed …

The Thirst For A Living God, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

In this sermon, Davis discusses God not as a static thing to be worshiped but as a symbolic way of "expressing our conception of the totality and essence of things".

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item description based off writing and context provided by Davis Baird.

Sermon On Labor, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

A short and possibly incomplete sermon focusing on the need for "an abundant life," a life that provides for the necessities and speaks to our creative and adventurous impulses to discover more. Davis states that we must respond to those "knocked into the ditch of poverty," and coordinate labor with thought. He includes quotations from John Ruskin's Crown of Wild Olive and The Stones of Venice.

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item …

Liberty And Responsibilty In Religion, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

In some cases, Earl Davis bound together manuscripts in bundles. This manuscript is part of one such bundle of seven, held together by four brass fasteners. Six of the seven can be dated to 1918.

This is another in a series of reflections regarding the meaning of World War I and the change it will prompt. Davis regards Christianity as a way of living while alive, not as a counsel to count on the second coming. He states that though we have given up the idea of a "ready-made Heaven" coming down to earth from above, this false idea …

'Church Fairs And Suppers, Graft And Blackmail, Says Minister', Pittsfield Newspaper Article, Pittsfield Newspaper

Manuscripts

A report of Davis' unhappiness with Church fairs and suppers as fundraisers (for his salary). His issue was that they did not treat people according to need, claiming it was quite the opposite, particularly for the women who organized them. To help fight this, Davis gave up a significant portion of his salary.

The Compelling Power Of The Christ Like Life [Notes], Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

When Davis Baird was going through his grandfather's materials, he observed that many sermons were pinned together with a straight pin in the upper-left corner. This led him to expect another beginning-to-end sermon here, but it is clear that this sermon was never completed. Furthermore, the notes as they were pinned together are almost certainly out of order, with the last page of what we'll call “Version 3” out of place. We provide both the notes in the original order they were found, and the notes as Davis Baird reordered them. As always, there also a transcription of the reordered …

What Is Christianity? The Letter Killeth But The Spirit Giveth Power, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

In this sermon, Davis looks at various answers to this question. He rejects a supernatural answer, an "evolving, but continue with the old language" answer. He rests with the spirit of Jesus's life and these two commandments: "Thou shall love the Lord, thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and "Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself."

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item …

Why Does No One Go To Church?, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

Davis ponders what is the purpose of going to church? It appears to waste a productive day. Most of the contributions of churches in the past -- education, culture, philanthropy -- have been taken by other institutions. Davis "rejoices" in religion's success in prompting other institutions to take on these tasks. But still, then, why go to church? It is important for community making and it is important for prompting us to "see the bigger picture." Nice history of the sabbath in this sermon.

While this sermon is not dates, it is almost certainly from the 1905-1906 period when Earl …

Will A Belief In Immortality Survive?, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1919-1924

Davis argues for immortality of the personality. While psychical research is discussed as possible support, he fundamentally hangs this belief on his experience of the order and purpose of the universe.

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item description based off writing and context provided by Davis Baird.

The Fact Of God In Human Experience, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1919-1924

Not a full-text sermon, but an outline. Focuses on the main patterns of 19th century developments: experience and science. Davis asks that we sit humbly at nature's feet and learn. A violation of Christian spirit by political and social developments led to the World War.

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item description based off writing and context provided by Davis Baird.

Behold: A Man, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

A concise statement on the ongoing vitality of human thinking and seeking, and against the "mindless" recitation of earlier thinking, particularly in religious matters. Davis says to forget miracles and instead look to current human experience and how to best understand it. He concludes that "God is much more the unborn future than he is the sealed past."

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item description based off writing and context provided by …

The Democratization Of Industry I, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

There are two versions of this sermon. An earlier incomplete version, with a slightly different title, “Making Democracy Safe In America: Democratization of Industry,” was one of the sermons in the “Four Fasteners Bundle.” That sermon was substantially expanded and worked over into “The Democratization of Industry.” Both manuscripts and their transcriptions are provided here, with the latter being the primary document featured.

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item description based off …

Obedience To The Will Of God, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

In this sermon, Davis considers the need for our obedience to God's will. He examines three aspects of Calvinism:
(1) Sovereignty of God (which Davis suggests is effectively the same as the sovereignty of natural law)
(2) Man's dependence on God -- again consistent with the idea that natural law covers the whole universe
(3) the doctrine of man's depravity and that of election by God. Davis calls this "obnoxious and revolting."

Obedience to the will of God includes "obeying the natural and moral laws." But it is more: it is a transcendent identification with God -- of all men …

The Richness Of The Religious Life, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

This sermon discusses three important elements to the religious life: (1) Evidence from nature of a powerful and ill-understood force behind the universe; (2) A realization that man is akin to God--both physically and more importantly mentally/morally; (3) A transcendent experience of being one with God and sharing God's purposes on earth. Davis is clearly motivated by his experiences in nature. He concludes that the religious life is not a sacrifice, but a "full complete, ever broadening life".

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary …

Growth And Salvation, Earl Clement Davis

Sermons, 1905-1919

Earl Davis approached this topic twice. While it is pretty clear that “Irrepressible Impulse to Growth” is the first attempt (it is short and does not really come to a conclusion), “Growth and Salvation” reads as a full completed sermon.

Here we provide both versions of the sermon. The primary downloadable document is for the combined text and translation of “Growth and Salvation". This is followed by the separate documents of the aforementioned, and then the corresponding three documents for “The Irrepressible Impulse to Growth.”

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of …

The Ethical Aspect Of Socialism, Earl Clement Davis

Manuscripts

This is an address supporting socialism, where Davis situates socialism as an obvious next move in the historical trajectory from feudalism to freedom; authority to democracy. Davis sees said historical trajectory as an ongoing movement away from monopolies of truth, state power, and industrial production and distribution.

Unfortunately, this essay, clearly written for a particular audience (“I assume that you have not come here to be entertained…”) has no definite date in the manuscript, or identification of the event where it was presented. There is ample textual evidence that it was written during the time Earl Davis was the Minister …

Charles Chauncy, Earl Clement Davis

A Series of Biographical Sketches of Important 17th and 18th century Congregational Preachers in New England

A brief introduction to Charles Chauncy (1705-1787) who took significant steps away from strict Calvinism and the Theocracy, towards a more liberal Arminian theology. He prepared the way for the Unitarian movement of the 19th century.

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item description based off writing and context provided by Davis Baird.

John Wise, Earl Clement Davis

A Series of Biographical Sketches of Important 17th and 18th century Congregational Preachers in New England

A brief introduction to John Wise (1652-1725). Referred to as "the first clear-headed Democrat", Davis' coverage includes Wise's work to move New England beyond the Theocracy and no taxation without representation.

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item description based off writing and context provided by Davis Baird.

Lecture Ten: Henry Ware And Harvard University, Earl Clement Davis

The Rise and Development of the Congregational Polity and Spirit in New England

The final lecture in this series covers the main catalysts prompting the separation and birth of Trinitarian Congregationalists and Unitarian Congregationalists These include: 1. The election of Henry Ware (a liberal) as the Hollis Professor of Divinity at Harvard (opposed by Jedediah Morse). 2. Jedediah Morse's attempt to resurrect the proposals of 1705, which was defeated at the congregational level. 3. The bitter dispute between Jedediah Morse and Hannah Adams over her claims that he plagiarized her history of New England 4. William Ellery Channing's 1819 "Baltimore Sermon" announcing the American Unitarian movement. 5. The 1820 decision concerning church property …

Lecture Nine: Thomas Paine And Theology Without The Church, Earl Clement Davis

The Rise and Development of the Congregational Polity and Spirit in New England

This lecture focuses on the religious writings of Thomas Paine -- famous for his political revolutionary pamphlet "Common Sense." His subsequent book, The Age of Reason, was very controversial upon release. But Davis argues that it accurately described the liberal tendencies emerging at this time.

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf for browsing.

Transcription by Davis Baird. Item description based off writing and context provided by Davis Baird.

Lecture Eight: John Murray And The Beginning Of The Universalist Movement, Earl Clement Davis

The Rise and Development of the Congregational Polity and Spirit in New England

In this lecture, Davis covers the beginning of the Universalist Movement. By the 1700s, two movements within the New England Congregational churches, one liberal (Charles Chauncy) and one conservative (Jonathan Edwards) had emerged. This created room for other movements, including Universalism, which believes that all persons are "elected" to heaven in the afterlife. This movement was advanced by John Murray, who arrived in New England after a difficult life in Ireland and England.

The primary downloadable document contains the original document followed by the transcription. The bottom of each item page also features the primary document as an embedded pdf …