AUSTRALIA'S DESTINY IN GOD
Chapter 2
A
fascinating look at Australia's origins by Dr . Barry Chant, House of Tabor,
Adelaide S.A.
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A fascinating look at
Australia's origins by Dr . Barry Chant, House of Tabor, Adelaide S.A. What were we celebrating in 1988? The
arrival of a bunch of convict rejects from the overcrowded jails in England?
The attempt by a thousand ill-equipped Europeans to establish a small segment
of civilisation on the under-side of the earth? Perhaps. But Christians have special reasons for
celebration. It is now over 200 years since the gospel of Jesus Christ first
came to our shores. On 6 January 1788, a 31-year old Anglican
clergyman named Richard Johnson sat with his wife of a few months in the cold
and cramped cabin of the Sirius , a small sailing vessel of just
600 tons somewhere off the coast of Tasmania - or as it was known then, Van
Diemen's Land. It wasn't much of a ship. It had been burned out
while still in the shipyards, sold cheaply to the government and refitted
even more cheaply! The Sirius was the flag ship of a convoy
of 11 ships _ * the Supply _ another convoy ship * Six convict ships * Three supply ships On board were 729 convicts _ 565 males, 153
females, and eleven children. Plus 253 officers, crewmen and their families.
There were about 1000 in all. (There is some uncertainty about the exact
numbers.) Johnson was almost boyish in looks, with full
fleshy lips and soft hair. He was obviously a man of delicate sensibilities
who was in some ways unfitted for the rigours and harshness of his role. He
would not go down into the convict holds, for instance, as their condition
distressed him too much. On one ship, convicts were tortured by the use
of the thumbscrew, by iron fetters and by shaving the heads of women
prisoners - although flogging them naked had been given up for 'reasons not
of humanity but of decorum' (Barnard, 39). On occasions, food supplies were very low indeed
- only three pints of water being allowed for all purposes each day for each
person, soldier and convict alike. For weeks, a cold wind had been blowing from the
south - 'it being so cold,' wrote another ship's officer, 'that I have been
obliged to put on a flannel waistcoat and... two pair (of stockings) and
obliged to keep my great coat on constantly all day' (Barnard, 48). The
weather continued very cold and bleak and the ships were often awash. On one
ship, convict On New Year's Day there was a severe gale which
lasted 24 hours. 'Never did I see such an awfully grand night before in
my whole life,' Johnson wrote later (Letter to Henry Fricker, 10 Feb 1788).
However, the Johnsons still managed to enjoy a meal of roast pig (taken on board
in Captetown) and plum pudding to mark the occasion in spite of having
difficulty even in keeping their seats. Each Sunday, Johnson conducted services on
board, and in Rio and Capetown, he moved to other ships to do so. He was
gratified to note the decline in the degree of swearing after he preached
against it one Sunday. On 7 January, they caught their first glimpse of
Australia. It was the coast of Van Diemen's Land. Two weeks later they were anchored off Botany
Bay in New South Wales. 1. The Sovereign
Purpose of God It is interesting to imagine what might have
been going through Richard Johnson's mind as he contemplated what he would do
when he stepped on that Eastern Australian shore. He had a great conviction
of the sovereignty of God - did he feel himself part of destiny? Or was
hejust pleased to have arrived! Judging by his early letters, he doesn't seem to
have had any great pretensions! He was apparently more taken up with the
unusual flora and fauna than anything else! In fact, he probably never saw any potential
greatness in what he did - he was not that kind of man. If he was familiar with the writings of the
scholarly Augustine, as he probably was, he might have thought with some
amusement about the fact that he was now treading in a place that the great
theologian had claimed could not possibly exist! In the City of God
Augustine wrote that 'as to the fable that there are antipodes, that is to
say, men on the other side of the earth, where the sun rises when it sets to
us, men who walk with their feet opposite ours, that is on no ground
believable'! But he was there in the purposes of God. There
is no question in my mind that it was providential that Johnson was the first
religious figure to come to this land. Professor Manning Clark's definitive A History
of Australia begins by describing the various nations and peoples who
for centuries headed in the direction of what was to them an unknown southern
continent - but who never found it! (Vol I, 1985, pp. 5ff). The Hindus and Buddhists came only to the spice
islands of the East Indies; the Chinese also stopped short; the followers of
Islam reached Indonesia, but not Australia. The Portuguese, the Spanish, the
Dutch and the French all sailed around it, touched it at places but never
settled it. Quiros (1605), Torres (1607), Janz (1605), Hartog (1616), Pelsart
(1629), Tasman (1642) and La Perouse (1788) are names well-known today - but
all as navigators or explorers - not as pioneer settlers. They all sailed
around the continent, but none of them settled it! Brief mention must be made of Pedro Ferdandez de
Quiros, a Portuguese navigator who actually did most of his sailing for
Spain. "He was one of the flowers of the Catholic Reformation, part of
that movement of religious idealism and of missionary fervour which
strengthened the church after the disasters of Luther and Calvin... He began
to believe that he had been singled out by God as the vessel through whom the
inhabitants of 'terra australia' would be received into the true church, and
that 'terra australia' would be Austrialia del Espiritu Santo - a land
dedicated to the Holy Spirit.' (Clark, I, 1985, 14f). Nowadays, we like to talk about the 'great'
South Land of the Holy Spirit. Somehow, the word 'great' has been
slipped in. It was never part of the original title. It must also be
remembered that Quiros saw this name as an expression of his dream of
bringing the south land under the sway of Rome. Quiros made a pilgrimage to Rome, received from
Pope Clement VIII 'a genuine pice of the true cross' together with
indulgences for those who sailed with him. In 1605, he set out with a statue
of Peter standing on the world on the prow of each of his ships. He was
particularly anxious to win the race against the Protestants to confound the
powers of false doctrine. On the eve of his journey, he visited the shrine of
the Virgin at Loreto. He was a gentle man, however, and apparently
lacked the will to follow the enterprise through. He reached the New
Hebrides, named one of the islands Austrialia del Espiritu Santo and sailed
for Mexico. (It has often been claimed that Quiros actually reached
Australia, but it is clear that he didn't - and that he himself knew that he
didn't - Clark, I, 1985, 16). To look at the map of explorers prior to Cook,
it is almost uncanny to see how they all seemed to head straight for the
great south land but then sailed right round it! There are some natural
explanations - prevailing winds and currents and the like. But there seems to
be more to it than this. It almost looks as though an unseen hand redirected
those little vessels to other waters and other lands. It cannot be
co-incidence. I believe God had a sovereign purpose for Australia and
that even through a convict settlement it was simple evangelical gospel that
He intended to be proclaimed in this land! I say this with no disrespect to any other
nation or people. But the truth is that the message young Richard Johnson
brought to Port Jackson was the nearest to the New Testament that anyone of
his day is likely to have proclaimed. 2. The Chaplain's
role Johnson was a chaplain and therefore subject to
whatever the authorities told him to do. Officially Governor Arthur Philip
was to enforce an appropriate observance of religion and good order among the
inhabitants and to take such steps for the due celebration of public worship
as circumstances would permit. He was to take care that the Book of Common
Prayer was read every Sunday and Holy Day. He was to execute laws against
sabbath breaking, swearing, stealing and profanity (Clark, I, 80). Obviously, Johnson was expected to be the agent
for all this. Philip himself, while a good man, seemed much more interested
in acceptable manners than in salvation - a point which Johnson himself
recorded - "Those in authority want me to preach goodness and not
salvation, obedience not submission." As chaplain, Johnson had to officiate at
hangings (Time, 91) and was at times expected to act as
magistrate - a task he loathed and one which seemed to line him up with the
authorities and hence with the establishment. Clearly, this also put him
off-side with the convicts. He had other tasks as well. Within two weeks of
the first settlement, he had officiated at 14 weddings. In the first five
years he conducted 226 baptisms, 220 marriages and, depressingly, 851 burials
(Address, p.vi). 3. The first
service On 3 February 1788, Johnson conducted the first
Christian service ever to be held in this land. People gathered under a gum
tree somewhere in the centre of modern Sydney. He took as his text Psalm 116:12: 'How can
I repay the Lord for all His goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of
salvation and call on the name of the Lord.' At first glance this seems a rather
inappropriate passage. Here were a group of rejected and deprived men and
women in a strange land where 'the biggest rats they had ever seen (were)
bounding about on their hind legs (and) giant birds with long scrawny necks
and bald heads crashed through the scrub and yet another bird.... looked down
at them and seemed to kill itself laughing at their predicament. It was as if
they had landed on another planet!' (Garvin, 1987, 20f). Then there was the unaccustomed heat and the
flies of which William Dampier had said years earlier 'they being so troublesome
here that no fanning will keep them from coming to one's face; and without
the assistance of both hands to keep them off, they will creep into one's
nostrils; and mouth too, if the lips are not shut very close' (Clark, I, 39).
To this day, Aussies are noted for not opening their mouths very far
when they speak! But when we look at the Psalm, it is
appropriate - The cords of death entangled
me, the anguish of the grave came When we read these words through convicts' eyes
they are very relevant indeed. They had suffered but the ships had not gone
down. Now they were out of the stuffy filth of the convict holds and at least
on dry land and breathing fresh air. For you, O Lord, have
delivered my soul from death, my eyes from At least those who gathered to hear Johnson's
message were alive! They had been delivered from death - which many who took
to sea in those days were not. Indeed, all the ships had arrived safely,
which itself was something to be grateful for in those uncertain times. How can I repay the Lord for
all His goodness to me? I will lift up So there was something to give thanks for - and
even here in this strange land they could do it! Many people during the Bicentenary were reading
that Psalm again. And for contemporary Australia, it is still relevant and
pertinent - what can we render to the Lord for all His benefits to us?
We live in a 'lucky country' - perhaps a blessed one? I will sacrifice a thank
offering to you and call on the name of So the Psalm concludes - with a vow of
dedication to the Lord. Not many of those who heard Richard Johnson made such
a vow - but there were, no doubt, some who did. And so the gospel was planted
in the south land of the Holy Spirit! 4. A man of courage
in face of hardship What kind of man was Richard Johnson? I believe
that he showed many qualities which provide a model for Australian
Christianity. Of course, he had his weaknesses. But he also displayed many
strengths. For instance, he showed dogged courage in the face of hardship. He was consistently frustrated by the lack of
support he received from the authorities. They expected him to serve their
interests, but did little for him. In 1798, he wrote a letter to the new Governor
Hunter bitterly complaining of Philip's failure to help him. On one occasion,
he had been instructed to hold services only at 6 am, but the soldiers all
walked out at 6.45. He had observed men gambling within sight of the meeting
place; soldiers actually prevented people from attending church; and so
on. Moreover, although he waited patiently for four
years, no chapel was built for him. Eventually, he built one with his
own hands (with convict help) at the cost of 67 pounds 12 shillings and 11
pence halfpenny. Five years later, it was demolished by convicts. His first
child was stillborn (Letter to Fricker, 9/4/1790). There was regular shortage
of food (which affected all, of course). He had to supplement his family's
diet with his own garden (Fricker, 4/10/91). He was not treated with the
respect his position deserved. In his journal, he lamented, 'I am yet in the
most miserable hut, and at times find it difficult where to read, pray or
write; cannot but think of myself as exceedingly injured and slighted. While
the governor has one grand mansion in Sydney and another at Rose Hill, I am
forced to live in a miserable hut, and that built at my own cost; and as for
any place of worship, that is the last thing thought of. Oh for more
Christian patience and fortitude.' (2/10/1790). He had to rise regularly at four and five in the
morning to go to preach at Rose Hill and Parramatta - and usually found it
necessary to stay in rough accommodation overnight. His biggest sorrow was the failure of his
ministry to touch many convicts. In his letter to Hunter he wrote, 'Gross
immoralities, depredations, drunkenness, riots, and even murders, (are) daily
committed;... becoming more open and flagrant;...' (Hunter, 1798). Of course, with such a disproportion between men
and women, drunkenness and fornication were rife. For example, on 7 February,
1788, Governor Philip inaugurated the State of New South Wales with a special
ceremony. The convicts were all told to be washed and tidily dressed. But the
night before, the women now having been landed, there were 'scenes of
debauchery and riot' and most were dishevelled and degraded (Barnard, 58f). Bigamy, too, was a problem, as convicts with
spouses in England married a second time, having given up hope of ever seeing
their partners again. Johnson preached against sexual immorality ('You
may frame excuses and plead necessity... but the word of God... admits of no
plea or excuse' - Address, 1792, p.57), but with little hope of success. Finally, the chaplain was beset by ill-health.
We would probably say today that he was on the brink of a nervous breakdown.
Of his magistrate's duty he wrote; 'It is almost too much for my health and
spirits...' (Letter to Fricker). And again, 'My health is not so good nor my
constitution so strong as formerly and therefore I feel it impracticable and
impossible for me either to preach or to converse with you so freely as my
inclination and affection would prompt me to do' (Address, 1792, p. iv). On another occasion, he recorded, 'My feelings
almost overwhelmed to think of the hardships I meet with; at other times I
rejoice in the reflection that what I was doing, I was doing for the honour
of God and for the good of my fellow creatures. Hold out faith and patience!'
Johnson's persistence and dedication are a challenge
to all contemporary Australian Christians. There is still much to discourage
us today, but, Johnson's fortitude reminds us to be faithful to the Word of
God and to continue to proclaim it wherever and whenever we can. 5. He was an evangelist Johnson was clearly an
evangelical of strong biblical conviction. Most secular histories seem to
present him more as a religious moralist - as a melancholy vendor of God's
laws - than as a joyful purveyor of good news. This is an unfortunate image. Johnson was suggested for his task by the
renowned social reformer William Wilberforce and was numbered among the
Anglican evangicals of his day. This was the era of John Wesley (who died
just four years after the First Fleet reached our shores). As a result, Johnson
was nicknamed, 'Methody Dick' (Time, 108). He was not a Methodist, but he
certainly was an evangelical. In 1792, he wrote an Address to all the
inhabitants and especially to the unhappy prisoners and convicts in the
colonies at Port Jackson and Norfolk Island. The following extract from this small book,
Johnson's only published work, very clearly presents the gospel message: 'All these inestimable blessings are the fruits
and effects of the death and mediation of Jesus Christ. His great design in coming
into the world was to seek and to save those who are lost; he came from
heaven, that he might raise us to those holy and happy mansions; he endured
the curse, that we might inherit the blessing; he bore the cross, that
we might wear the crown; he died, that we might live; he died, the just for
the unjust, that he might bring us to God. These blessings become ours, only by believing,
or faith. Thus it is said, God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son - For what purpose? Why, That whosoever believeth in him should
not perish, but have everlasting life; he that believeth in him
who justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted to him for righteousness. My
friends, search the scriptures, and you will find that this is the tenor of the
whole Bible; I may add of our church also, in the Articles and Homilies. This
believing is sometimes called a coming to Christ, a looking unto Christ, a
trusting in him, a casting our burden upon him. And remember, that until we
do thus come to Christ, trust in him, cast our cares and The faith whereby a sinner receives Christ, and
becomes a partaker of all the blessings of the gospel, is the sole gift of
God, wrought in the heart by his Holy Spirit. This Holy Spirit produces
an inward change in the soul, called, in the scripture, the new birth,
regeneration, or conversion, and thus enables a sinner, convinced of his sin
and misery, to look to Jesus, and to believe on him. But though repentance and faith are the gifts of
God, which none can obtain by any endeavours of their own, yet we are
encouraged and commanded to pray for them. All who have thus, through grace,
believed, and are daily living a life of faith in the Son of God, shall be
saved; but such as carelessly neglect, or wilfully reject this gospel, must
be damned. Think, I beseech you, of this! Remember, that it is the solemn
declaration of the Lord Jesus Christ himself. Now is the time to obtain the blessings revealed
in the gospel, and which are set before you when it is preached. Many have
had these gracious declarations made to them before we were born, and they
will be repeated to many after we are dead. But this is our day.
Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation. Today - for
you and I may not live to see tomorrow. Today, if you will hear his voice,
harden not your hearts. My brethren, it is your duty, your wisdom, and will
finally prove to be your greatest happiness, to seek an interest in this
salvation for yourselves. It is your personal, and must be your heart
concern, to make your calling and election sure.' What a clear exposition of the gospel! There can
be no doubt of Johnson's commitment to the message of salvation through the
Lord Jesus Christ. As I have noted earlier, it seems clear that his
was the message that God, in His sovereignty, wanted proclaimed in this landd
from the very beginning. In his unassuming way, Richard Johnson laid a solid
foundation for all who would follow him. The pity is that so often we have
deviated from the simplicity of that unaffected proclamation of the Word of
God. 6. He was a lover
of the Bible The ship's manifesto for the
First Fleet included the following - 700 spades, 700 gimlets, 8000 fish
hooks, one Bible! (Dare, p.30). It is tempting to draw a contrast between our
first irreligious settlers and those Pilgrim Fathers who settled the United
States. But in fact, hundreds of copies of Scripture were landed here in 1788
- thanks to Richard Johnson. Through the good offices of the newly-formed
Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, he brought 100 Bibles, 400
Testaments and 500 Psalters! He also had with him - 100 Osterwald's Necessity for Reading the
Scriptures, 25 Plain Exhortations to Prisoners, 200 Sermons on the Mount, 200
Exercises against Lying, 50 Woodward's Caution to Swearers, 200 Christian
Soldiers, 100 Exhortations to Chastity, 100 Dixon's Spelling Books, 1 Set of
SPG tracts. Furthermore in his Address, the first of
his rules for Christian living is - 'Read and Study the Scriptures' (p
36). He tried to teach the illiterate to read and he
organised classes to this end. Unfortunately, some people sold the Bibles and
others used the paper for kindling or smoking. But the Word did go out. 7. He was a man of prayer Again, in his Address, he
urges his hearers to pray. First of all, they should pray alone, spending
special time in solitude with God. Then they should gather as families. And
finally, they should worship together with the congregation of believers. 'Be
constant and diligent in prayer to God,' he declares (p, 52). Richard Johnson himself spent time in communion
with the Lord. One of his major difficulties was the inadequacy of his
quarters and the lack of a place where he could be alone for prayer. On one of his letters he wrote, 'I have need of
wisdom and I hope my good friends will not cease daily to pray for me'
(Fricker, 4 Oct 1791). If any concept is fundamental to a healthy faith
it is that of vital and authentic prayer. Johnson understood that well. 8. He was a man of compassion He went on, in exhorting them to leave off
stealing, swearing and the like, to say, 'I do not mean, my friends, to
reflect hardly upon you for what is past and cannot be recalled. I pity your
past misconduct; I sympathise with you under your present sufferings.'
(Address, p.61). He loved to visit the convict labourers in their
own huts, even more than preaching. (Fricker, 4-10-91). This compassion was nowhere better displayed than
in his attitude to those of different denominations or different
nationalities. 9. He was an
unprejudiced man Johnson had friends in various
denominations, including Henry Fricker, a Baptist to whom he wrote regularly.
In one of his letters to Fricker, he makes a light-hearted reference to the
fact that had his young wife Mary stayed longer in England, she would have
been converted to Fricker's ideas. As it is, he went on, 'she is about
half a Baptist and half a Methodist.' 'Brethren,' he wrote in his Address, 'I do
not ask you what religious persuasion or denomination you have espoused... I
do not address you as Churchmen or Dissenters, Roman Catholic or Protestants,
as Jews or Gentiles; I suppose, yea, I know that there are persons of every denomination
among you. But I speak to you as men and women, as intelligent creatures,
possessed of understanding and reason... And my sole aim and desire is, to be
instrumental in turning you from darkness to light, from sin to holiness,
from the power of Satan to the service and favour of God.' (Address,
1792, p.24). Clearly membership of the Kingdom was far more
vital to him than religious affiliation. His attitude to the aborigines was beautifully
expressed - not only in words, but also in actions. He took into his
own home a fifteen year old aborigine girl named Abaroo who had been
dreadfully afflicted with smallpox. He taught her to read and was hopeful of
her coming to faith in Christ. She lived there for months. One of his greatest frustrations was that the
aborigines would never be attracted to the gospel the way the Europeans were
living - 'I would rather plead with you for the sake of
the poor, unenlightened savages who daily visit us or who reside among us...
oh, beware of laying stumbling-blocks in the way of these blind people... But
consider what may be the happy effects were the natives to see, hear and
observe in you... a conduct answerable to the doctrine and precepts of the
gospel... This might, by the blessing of God, be one of the most effectual
means... to engage them to seek an interest in the blessing of the gospel for
themselves.' (Address, 1792, p.69). In this way Johnson showed a pattern which could
have been emulated by those who followed, rather than the cheating, cruelty
and slaughter which often occurred. Even other clergy later wrote off the
aborigines as being incapable of faith for salvation and even of being
debarred from the gospel. Johnson, however, put his faith into action and
tried to demonstrate the love of Christ to those unhappy people. If only more
white Australians had acted similarly over the years, there would not be the
anger and sense of injustice that is so rife among aborigines today. On the other hand, many Christians have, of
course, acted as Johnson did and as a result there is a vigorous, ongoing
demonstration of vital Christianity among thousands of aborigines today,
especially in the remote parts of the country. If no other benefit has
touched them, they are recipients of the greatest benefit of all - the
blessing of inclusion in Christ. 10. He was a man of great
hope In spite of all the
discouragements, Johnson never gave up hope. Two years after his arrival here, he wrote to
Henry Fricher, 'I wish to see the poor heathen brought to knowledge of
Christianity and hope in time to see or hear of the dawnings of that time
when these shall be given for our Lord's heritage and the uttermost parts of
the earth for His possession, (Fricker, 9-4-1790). And two years later again, in spite of all the
frustrations mentioned above, he concluded his Address like this
- 'Longing, hoping and waiting for the dawn of
that happy day when the heathen shall be given to the Lord Jesus for His
inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for His possession and when
all the ends of the earth shall see, believe and rejoice in the salvation of
God - Psalm 2:9; 98:3.' (Address, 1792, p.73). In spite of all, Richard Johnson had a firm
belief that the gospel would triumph in the earth and that all the heathen would
turn to the Lord! We cannot but help draw a parallel with
Australia now. At times, the task of reaching the nation for Christ may seem
hopeless. But like Johnson, we can see beyond the disappointment and believe
in the sovereign purpose of God. Jesus shall reign! And He shall reign in
Australia. From the very beginning, God's sovereign purpose
has been clear. There is a destiny for this nation. We are still young. Our history has hardly begun yet. The church in
this land is still finding its own identity. What will the next century hold? There is great
reason for hope. There are many signs of revival stirring everywhere. By the grace of God, the spirit of Richard Johnson will live on and the people of this south land will in spirit and truth become the people of God. |
