The Works of Jonathan Edwards, Volume 19: Sermons and Discourses 1734-1738

In the introduction to Yale's latest edition of The Works of Jonathan Edwards, there is no hint of how scholars or students of Edwards-be they literary, historical, theological, philosophical, or otherwise-might approach a critical examination of the enigmatic eighteenth-century preacher. The editors like it that way. In fact, one has a strong impression that the noticeable lack of any theoretical overtone is, if not antagonistically recalcitrant, then at least deliberately reticent. But then the sheer weight of the accumulated works of Edwards come to bear on the reader, and the fact that theory does not intrude into the volumes becomes secondary to the magnitude of raw material previously unavailable to eighteenth-century scholars.

When Yale has published the scheduled 27 volumes of The Works of Jonathan Edwards, about half of the preacher's surviving writings-some published, some previously unpublished, and many that are still in manuscript-will be in print. The remainder (along with the first 27 volumes) is scheduled to be published in electronic form. Thus far the project has taken four and a half decades, but it has taken more than two centuries for many of Edwards's works to be published at all. When they are all at last in print, scholars will-as they already have begun to do-need to reassess much of what has previously been written about Edwards, whom historian George Marsden has called "a kind of white whale of American religious history" and Mark Twain has called a "drunken lunatic" and a "resplendent intellect gone mad."The latest volume in the series, Sermons and Discourses: 1734-1738, gives a glimpse of Edwards as the young preacher (31 years old in 1734) comes into his own, sparking his first revival and developing the theological and philosophical system that will, in short order, produce works ranging from his affectionate "Personal Narrative" to the infamous "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." This present collection of his writings begins with "Heeding the Word, and Losing It" (Feb. 1733/4) and ends with "The Terms of Prayer" (May 1738).

Lesser's "Preface to the Period" provides a narrative that links these sermons and those in between by describing Edwards's writings as intimately involved with and naturally responding to his actual experiences as a pastor of a church. That is, Lesser emphasizes that Edwards is engaged with guiding his congregation through a program of salvation in the context of a society of believers who benefit mutually from one another: "Both his father and grandfather," notes Lesser, "followed the preparationist model, that is, that there are distinct steps to salvation rather than a sudden onset of it" (7). While Edwards's own notion of what these particular steps entailed changed as his theology developed, the sermons and discourses contained here are representative of the typical issues the pastor would have encountered and addressed while attempting to communicate the path of salvation to his congregation.

The preface, then, is largely an account of Edwards's biography from 1734-1738, illuminated by the sermon topics he chose to address, and vice versa. That is, Lesser communicates the sense that Edwards's sermons both addressed and contributed to the course of the particular society in which they were received. Not only were they responses to the successes and failures of his congregation, but they also expressed a hope for future improvement. In this sense, Lesser's characterization of Edwards' sermons evinces the influence of progressive theology, which has made its way into recent criticism dealing with the Puritans, notably Andrew Delbanco's The Real American Dream. Not merely an optimistic belief in the power of progress, progressive theology negotiates the balance between hope and despair, but ultimately puts its money on hope. Discussing Edwards' "The Justice of God in the Damnation of Sinners," Lesser notes: "Meted out measure for measure, God's just condemnation of man balances man's treatment of God, of Christ, of others, and of himself; still, Edwards cautions against despair" (18). Readers of "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" may have trouble with an Edwards who "cautions against despair," but hope is found even in that much-maligned sermon. Lesser's overview helps to place that thread of hope in relief against the difficult and more readily apparent overtones of Puritan despair.

Though interesting and indeed refreshing, Lesser's brief introduction does raise questions for scholars of Edwards and of the eighteenth-century. The nature of Yale's multi-volume series is such that the texts are presented in a way that a working knowledge of both Edwards and of eighteenth-century culture and literature are assumed; at least, neither is completely illuminated beyond the commentary on the works themselves (which is often quite thorough and pointed). The critical apparatus included in the volumes is focused like a laser beam on Edwards and the particular works contained in each volume, which means that a reader will see them presented in a rather narrow cultural, historical, and literary context. Appropriate for the serious scholar, this technique will probably not lend itself to a first-time encounter with Edwards-which perhaps goes without saying.

Nevertheless, it is worth noting that an already enigmatic and (often perceived as) antagonistic figure is not made less so by this presentation. A student encountering Edwards may have his or her worst fears confirmed by an approach that cuts Edwards off from the rest of the pre-Revolutionary world, of which Edwards's contemporary Benjamin Franklin is such a prominent figure. On the other hand, providing the serious eighteenth-century scholar with a great deal more than the frequently anthologized and unfortunately narrow view of Edwards can only expand the view of how Puritanism continued to thrive and to engage with issues in the pre-Republic era.

One issue scholars of Edwards may find even more problematic in this and other volumes of Edwards' Works is how to approach him from a disciplinary perspective. Literature courses have traditionally maintained Edwards's "canonical" status, yet there has been resistance to approaching his writings as literature-at least in a post-Perry Miller milieu. This volume does provide some mention of Edwards's writing style, under the hopeful heading of "The Elegance of Language." The final section in the preface, it comes almost as an afterthought, the way "Notes on the Text" are typically included, but it does provide some interesting insight into Edwards's use of language and his value to literary scholars. Lesser notes defensively, "So pervasive was the nineteenth-century view that his was one of 'the most remarkable specimens of bad writing' of his time that an editor of Religious Affections abridged the text to reduce its 'monstrous profusion of words,' and another rendered the whole of Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God in 'other language'" (34). Other authors and texts for which language and meaning are as closely bound have survived such editorial tampering only to be restored to their original condition, and Lesser notes that the restoration of Edwards's original language has literary significance, especially in his observation that the preacher's language "obviously did not want for care" (36). He discusses briefly some examples of Edwards's extensive revisions.

This volume, like others in the series, contains, besides the general preface, a one or two page introduction to each of Edwards' works. One appendix lists the dates of sermons Edwards preached from January 1734 to December 1738. Also, besides a general index, there is an index of biblical passages cited in the sermons in this volume, which, while useful and perhaps interesting to cross-reference with other of Edwards' sermons, has dubious usefulness for any other than theological scholars. Still, such apparatus is indicative of the care with which the Yale editors have gone over the texts. Also, carefully selected footnotes throughout the text illuminate textual issues, brief explanations or definitions, references to other works, and revisions; the lack of overbearing critical apparatus such as this again emphasizes the editors' wish to remain theoretically at arm's length.