Unknown County GaArchives Biographies.....Mercer, Silas 1745 - 1796 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ga/gafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 January 31, 2005, 3:25 pm Author: J. H. Campbell SILAS MERCER. We take the following sketch of this good man, so prominent in the history of Georgia Baptists, from “Benedict's History of the Baptists :" "Silas Mercer was born near Currituck bay, North Carolina, in February, 1745. His mother died while he was an infant; his father was a zealous member of the Church of England, and carefully instructed him in the catechism, rites and traditions of that communion. From early years young Silas was religiously inclined, but it was not until he arrived at manhood, that he was brought to the knowledge of salvation through a divine Redeemer. He was for a long time embarrassed and bewildered with that legal system which he had been taught in his mother church, and so deeply rooted were the prejudices of his education, that it took him long to learn that salvation is not of works. But he at length gained clear and consistent views of the gospel plan, and was through his long ministry a distinguished and powerful defender of the doctrine of free, unmerited grace. Until after his conversion, Mr. Mercer was most violently opposed to Dissenters in general, and to the Baptists in particular. He would on no account hear one preach, and endeavored to dissuade all others from attending their meetings. He most firmly believed what his father arid parson had taught him, that they were all a set of deceivers, that their heresies were dangerous if-not damnable, and that to hear one preach would be a crime of peculiar enormity. He knew, however, but little about them, only that they had separated from the church, and ought therefore to be opposed and avoided. For these reasons lie continued a violent opposer to them, and zealously to defend the church; but his ingenuous mind could not long be restrained by the shackles of tradition, without examining things for himself; he therefore began a course of inquiries, which gradually underminded his traditionary creed, and led on to the Baptist ground. He first resolved to follow strictly the rubric of the church, both in doctrine and discipline; and finding it enjoined immerson, unless the weakness of the child required a milder mode, he had two of his children dipped. The first a son, in a barrel of water at the priest's house, and the other a daughter, in a tub, which had been prepared for the purpose at the church. The son was named Jesse, who has been a worthy minister in Georgia; he was baptized again, on a profession of his faith, and is of course an ana-Baptist. Mr. Mercer was also struck with the neglect of discipline in the church; he saw with pain that persons grossly immoral in many respects were admitted to their communion, and became convinced that things ought not so to be. Hervey's Theron and Aspasio started him from the Arminian system and set him on a train of refiections which issued in a thorough conviction of the doctrine of the gospel. He labored for a time to reform the church, but finding the building was too far gone to be repaired, he receded from it with reluctant steps, and became a Baptist when ho was about thirty years of age, and continued from that time to the end of his life an ornament to their cause and a skillful defender of their distinguishing tenets. Few men, perhaps, have had more severe conflicts in renouncing the prejudices of education than Mr. Mercer. His kind but bigoted father threw in his way obstacles which he could not at first surmount; the church priest, and the whole Episcopal fraternity around him, used the most assiduous endeavors to prevent him from going amongst the heretical Baptists. The first of the denomination he ever heard preach was a Mr. Thomas, at that time a successful preacher in North Carolina. It was with much reluctance, and with many fearful apprehensions of the dangerous consequences, that he was induced to attend the meeting. But in spite of all his prejudices, the preacher drew his attention and led him to think that he was not such a dangerous deceiver as he had always before supposed. This was on Monday. The next Lord's day, the priest being absent, and his father being clerk, performed as usual the duties of his office. As yet none of the family knew that Silas had been to the Baptist meeting. After the service of the day was over, a person asked him, in the hearing of his father, how he liked the Baptist preacher? He was much confused and knew not what to answer; but his conscience obliged him to express some degree of approbation, at which the old gentleman burst into tears and exclaimed, "Silas, you are ruined!" and out he went, hastily home. Silas, alarmed, took hastily after him to soothe his grief and appease his resentment. The offended father and offending son were so deeply affected with the trifling affair, that they forgot their wives and left them to go home alone. The charm was now broken, and from this period Mr. Mercer began to entertain more favorable views of the people he had hitherto so much censured and despised. Not long after this he removed to Georgia, and settled in what is now Wilkes county, where, about 1775, he was baptized by Mr. Alexander Scott, and united with the church at Kiokee, by which he was almost immediately approbated to preach. At the commencement of the American war, he fled for shelter to Halifax county, in his native State, where he continued about six years, all of which time he was incessantly engaged in preaching as an itinerant in different places around; and it is found by his journal that, taking the whole six years together, he preached oftener than once a day, that is, more than two thousand sermons in the time. At the close of the war, he returned to his former residence in Georgia, where he continued to the end of his days. In this State he labored abundantly with good effect, and was the means of planting a number of churches in different parts of the country. He was justly esteemed one of the most exemplary and useful ministers in the Southern States. His learning was not great, but having a desire that his young brethren might obtain greater advantages than he enjoyed, he had set up a school at his house, procured an able teacher, and was in a promising way to promote the interests of learning in the churches around him; but in the midst of his benevolent plans and distinguished usefulness he was, after a short illness, removed from the scene of his employments, in 1796, in the fifty-second year of his age. The following portrait of Mr. Mercer's character is found in Mr. Semple's "History of the Virginia Baptists," page 82: "Mr. Mercer, both in countenance and manners, had considerably the appearance of sternness, and to feel quite free in his company it was necessary to be well acquainted with him. He seldom talked on any other subject except religion, and when in company with young preachers, or those who might question his doctrine or his opinions, his remarks chiefly turned on polemical points. He was indefatigable in striving to maintain his opinions, and for this purpose would hear any and all objections that could be raised, and would then labor assiduously to remove them. His arguments, however, neither in private or public life, were ever dressed with oratorical ornaments. He spoke and acted like one who felt himself surrounded by the impregnable bulwarks of truth, and therefore did not wish to parley." * *Mr. Mercer is here described as he appeared in Virginia, in 1791, in company with Jeremiah Walker, in the time of a great controversy respecting doctrinal points. He was more distinguished as a preacher than writer, but he devoted considerable time to study, and the following pieces were the productions of his leisure hours: 1st. "Tyranny Exposed and True Liberty Discovered," in a 12 mo. pamphlet of sixty-eight pages, the design of which was to show the rise, reign and downfall of anti-Christ. 2d. "The supposition of the Divine Right of Infants to Baptism, from their formerly having a right to circumcision, confuted," being a letter to a friend. This piece was not printed. 3d. "The History of Baptism," carried to some extent, but left unfinished. 4th. Two “Letters on Election," left unpublished. Additional Comments: From: GEORGIA BAPTISTS: HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL BY J. H. CAMPBELL, PERRY, GEORGIA. MACON, GA.: J. W. BURKE & COMPANY. 1874. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by J. H. CAMPBELL, In the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ga/unknown/bios/gbs691mercer.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/gafiles/ File size: 9.0 Kb