John
Bunyan was a Baptist preacher, a pious man, and a man well-beloved by all who
knew him. John Bunyan was incarcerated in the Bedford jail in England. The
following account is taken directly from a transcript of the trial on October 3,
1660, that led to his imprisonment at Bedford:
Judge
Wingate: “Mr. Bunyan, you stand before this Court accused of persistent and
willful transgression of the Conventicle Act, which prohibits all British
subjects from absenting themselves from worship in the Church of England, and
from conducting worship services apart from our Church.
You come, presumably, with no legal training, and yet without counsel. I
must warn you, sir, of the gravity of the charge, the harshness of the penalty,
in the event of your conviction, and the foolhardiness of acting as your own
counsel in so serious a matter. I hold in my hand the depositions of the
witnesses against you. In each case, they have testified that, to their
knowledge, you have never, in your adult life, attended services in the Church
of this parish. Each further testifies that he has observed you, on numerous
occasions, conducting religious exercises in and near Bedford.”
John
Bunyan: “The depositions speak the truth. I have never attended services in
the Church of England, nor do I intend ever to do so. Secondly, it is no secret
that I preach the Word of God whenever, wherever, and to whomever He pleases to
grant me opportunity to do so. I have no choice but to acknowledge my awareness
of the law which I am accused of transgressing. Likewise, I have no choice but
to confess my guilt in my transgression of it. As true as these things are, I
must affirm that I neither regret breaking the law, nor repent of having broken
it. Further, I must warn you that I have no intention in the future of
conforming to it.”
Judge
Wingate: “It is obvious, sir, that you are a victim of deranged thinking. If
my ears deceive me not, I must infer from your words that you believe the State
to have no interest in the religious life of its subjects.”
John
Bunyan: “The State, M lord, may have an interest in anything in which it
wishes to have an interest. But the State has no right whatever to interfere in
the religious life of its citizens.”
Judge
Wingate: “The evidence I hold in my hand, even apart from your own admission
of guilt, is sufficient to convict you, and the Court is within its rights to
have you committed to prison for a considerably long time. I do not wish to send
you to prison, Mr. Bunyan. I am aware of the poverty of your family, and I
believe you have a little daughter who, unfortunately, was born blind. Is this
not so?”
John
Bunyan: “It is, M’lord.”
Judge
Wingate: “Very well. The decision of the Court is this: In as much as the
accused has confessed his guilt, we shall follow a merciful and compassionate
course of action. We shall release him on the condition that he swear solemnly
to discontinue the convening of religious meetings, and that he affix his
signature to such an oath prior to quitting the Courtroom. That will be all, Mr.
Bunyan. I hope not to see you here again. May we hear the next case?”
John
Bunyan: “M’lord, if I may have another moment of the Court’s time?”
Judge
Wingate: “Yes, but you must be quick about it.
We
have other matters to attend to. What is it?”
John
Bunyan: “I cannot do what you ask of me, M’lord.
I cannot place my signature upon any document in which I promise
henceforth not to preach. My calling to preach the Gospel is from God, and He
alone can make me discontinue what He has appointed me to do. As I have had no
word from Him to that effect, I must continue to preach, and I shall continue to
preach.”
Judge
Wingate: “I warn you, sir, the Court has gone the second mile to be lenient
with you, out of concern for your family’s difficult straits. Truth to tell,
it would appear that the Court’s concern for your family far exceeds your own.
Do you wish to go to prison?”
John
Bunyan: “No, M’lord. Few things there are that I would wish less.”
Judge
Wingate: “Very well, then, Mr. Bunyan. This Court will make one further
attempt in good faith to accommodate what appears to be strongly held
convictions on your part. In his compassion and beneficence, our Sovereign,
Charles II, has made provision for dissenting preachers to hold some limited
meetings. All that is required is that such ministers procure licenses
(author’s note: Please re-read the explanation on license versus liberty found
on page 79 of this book.) authorizing them to convene these gatherings.”You
will not find the procedure burdensome (author’s note: It is always less
burdensome to comply and compromise than it is take a stand.), and even you, Mr.
Bunyan, must surely grant the legitimacy of the State’s interest in ensuring
that any fool with a Bible does not simply gather a group of people together and
begin to preach to them. Imagine the implications were that to happen! (Yeah,
people might even begin to get saved and get right with God! -
authors) Can you comply with this condition, Mr. Bunyan?
“Before
you answer, mark you this: should you refuse, the Court will have no alternative
but to sentence you to a prison term. Think, sir, of your poor wife. Think of
your children, and particularly of your pitiful, sightless little girl.
Think of your flock, who can hear you to their hearts’ content when you
have secured your licenses. Think on these things, and give us your answer,
sir!”
John
Bunyan: “M’lord, I appreciate the Court’s efforts to be as you have put it
- accommodating. But again, I must refuse your terms. I must repeat that it is
God who constrains me to preach, and no man or company of men may grant or deny
me leave to preach. These licenses of which you speak, M’lord, are symbols not
of a right, but of a privilege. Implied therein is the principle that a mere man
can extend or withhold them according to his whim. I speak not of privileges,
but of rights. Privileges (licenses) granted by men may be denied by men. Rights
are granted by God, and can be legitimately denied by no man. I must therefore,
refuse to comply.”
Judge
Wingate: “Very well, Mr. Bunyan. Since you persist in your intractability, and
since you reject this Court’s honest effort at compromise, you leave us no
choice but to commit you to Bedford jail for a period of six years (which
ultimately proved to cost Bunyan twelve years of his life behind bars).”If you
manage to survive, I should think that your experience will correct your
thinking. If you fail to survive, that will be unfortunate. In any event, I
strongly suspect that we have heard the last we shall ever hear from Mr. John
Bunyan. Now, may we hear the next
case?”
Of
course, neither Judge Wingate nor the world had heard the last of John Bunyan,
for during his lengthy incarceration in the old Bedford jail, with his Bible as
his constant companion and guide, Bunyan gave to the world the epic Pilgrim’s
Progress, arguably the greatest literary work in the history of the world next
to the Bible. Bunyan was denied pen and paper, and Pilgrim’s Progress was
written with pieces of charcoal from the fire that kept his body warm on the
paper wads used as stoppers in the milk bottles from which he drank.
From
the book, Purified Seven Time, by Evangelist Bill Brady, p.
89- 92