Christmas Evans & Sandemanianism 5: The Church and Sandemanianism

The character of Christmas Evans' preaching changed markedly. Appeals to the awakened consciences of hearers were dropped in the belief that this promoted works. John Jones, Ramoth held that:‘[…] Christianity was a minority religion and in order to retain its purity it had to abstain from appealing to the indifferent multitude.’[1] All manifestation of emotion was suppressed and sermons became dry discourses, reasoning gravely replaced revivalism.

“Very well,” it may be objected, “but reasoning is good, is it not? Indeed, do not your Reformed services involve reason?” Well, we shall agree with this. However, the Sandemanian preaching had a deadening effect, as zeal to make converts for Christ was replaced with zeal to make converts to Sandeman. As to its effects on the churches in general, I leave that to Christmas Evans:

‘Its first effect was to send away the hearers of the gospel; for this it prepared the way by alleging that the mass of hearers were ‘of Babylon.’ I lost in Anglesey almost all my old hearers; many of them attended the ministry with other denominations, and became united with them. There they had rest from the new condemning spirit among us. […]

Much distraction in the churches followed; a spirit of infallibility and worldly wisdom fell upon the people and on many of the preachers, until the weakest felt himself qualified to govern the church and the world.’[2]


[1] Tim Shenton, Christmas Evans: The Life and Times of the one-eyed Preacher of Wales (Darlington, 2001), pp.160-1.
[2] Quoted in B. A. Ramsbottom, Christmas Evans (Harpenden, 1985), p.51.