Natick’s Eighteenth-Century Church: A Place of Spiritual and Political Agency, 1729-1745

Although Natick had a secular government when the “Church of Christ in Natick” was established in 1729, the church likely maintained some judicial role in the community. Church members accused of sinning lost their church membership. The accused were required to confess their sins before a congregation empowered to vote on whether or not to readmit them. The writings of Oliver Peabody contain details of confessions made by some Indigenous church members. Jacob Chalcom, for example, lost his church membership after being accused of the “sin” of “drunkenness.” He confessed his “sin” in front of the congregation multiple times after losing his membership once. After he repeatedly emphasized his desire to be part of the church, the congregation finally voted to readmit him. 

The deliberations of the congregation could also impact the children of accused members who confessed their sins. Patience Mossimee, for example, could not be baptized until the congregation restored her parents’ church membership. 

The church also punished the wrongdoings of English settlers, often in the interest of protecting the town’s land system and Indigenous property rights. In 1734, for example, Samuel Mills lost his church membership for forging a land deed. Church members later readmitted him after hearing his father confess on his behalf and holding a long series of debates. 

Natick residents also used the church to publicly accuse others of sins, or what we might today consider crimes. Leah Chalcom, the wife of Jacob Chalcom, appealed to the church to seek justice for a violent incident she experienced at the hands of a man.

Although the church sought to regulate congregants' behavior, the confessions also reveal that many used the church to find safety and security in their community. As church members, Indigenous residents retained their voting rights even after the Massachusetts General Court stripped them of their secular political rights in 1745. The church also offered a pathway to seek justice, as Leah Chalcom did. The location of the meeting house in South Natick remained especially important to Indigenous congregants as more and more English settlers moved to Natick, vying for Indigenous land and political influence. 

by Gail Coughlin

Read More About the Eighteenth-Century Church in Natick

Selected sources and additional reading:

Natick Historical Society collections.

English and Indian Church Records (Natick, Mass), Massachusetts Historical Society Collections

Morley, James W. From Many Backgrounds: The Heritage of the Eliot Church of South Natick. South Natick, MA: The Natick Historical Society, 2007.

O’Brien, Jean M. “Community Dynamics in the Indian-English Town of Natick, Massachusetts, 1650-1790.” PhD. diss. University of Chicago, 1990.

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