Harvard University. Corporation. Records of Grants for Work among the Indians, 1720-1812. Letter from Stephen Badger to the Harvard Corporation, February 20, 1753. UAI 20.720 Box 1, Folder 12, Harvard University Archives.

To the Honourable and Reverend Corporation of Harvard College in Cambridge N.E.

Honourable & Reverend Gentlemen

By the votes pass'd at your Meetings bearing Date {January} 9th & {February} 7th together with the personal, & private conversation which most of you have had with me, I easily perceive that you are desirious if my settling in the work of the Gospel Ministry at Natick; & further, that as the congregation of Brookline have unanimously voted, & made Proposals for my settling among them, so most of the honourable & reverend Fellows of the Corporation have been very active & instrumental in bringing matters to their present scituation with Respect to the conditions of my comfortable settlement & support at Natick.

I have therefore taken your desires & proposals, together with the Disposition & votes of the honourable Commissioners at Boston, & also the Inclinations & Engagements of both the Indian & English Inhabitants of Natick, into my serious Thoughts, & Consideration:

And, after asking the Influence & Direction of the great Head of the Church; after advising with serious & judicious Friends; at the same time, consulting my own Disposition, together with the destitute circumstances of the Indians & English for want of a minister, I have, upon the whole, concluded to accept of your InvitationS, & Proposals upon the conditions, & with the Limitation therein expressly mention'd, at the same Time, bearing in mind, my own insufficiency, I rely upon the divine assistance to carry me through this important undertaking; & this now waits upon you, to acquaint you with the Result of my Thoughts, in this weighty & momentious affair. And now, Honourable & Reverend Gentlemen; as you are all sensible, & some of you experimentally sensible of the Difficulties that attend the Discharge of the ministerial Function, so I hope you will pray for me, & also afford me all that assistance, & Direction, by your

Cautions, Advice, & Information, which my youthfull Age & Inexperience, together with my want of a larger extent of knowledge both in Men & Things, may many times make them needfull & advantageous to me. And as I have Reason to think, & conclude, that those People who now appear against & declare their now concurrence & Dissatisfaction with the present Scituation of the Meeting House will, in a short time, commence my personal enemies as they have already manifested to my face, their Disaffection, & Disregard to me as a Minister in Natick, & by their Insinuations have threaten'd to disturb my Peace. So I humbly hope, & expect, & presume, you will not leave me alone to combat with them, if they shou'd become troublesome, & if your Interposition & Influence will be in any Degree serviceable & beneficial to me.

Honourable & Reverend Gentlemen, I take this opportunity to offer my humble & gratefull acknowledgements to God, & to you, for the candid, & favourable Sentiments which you conceive & express concerning me, & hope I shall be better qualified to deserve them than, at present I can presume to be: And as several of you have exerted yourselves in my Behalf to procure a comfortable Maintenance for me whereby I have been freed from the Imputation of being mercenary & of being too much under the government of worldy & unworthy motives, which undiscerning & undistinguishing minds are apt to affix to a minister, who is sometimes oblig'd to urge even [illegible] a bare competency; so I acknowledge myself to be greatly indebted to you in point of gratitude & Respect therefor, & shall be very ready to manifest it upon every Occasion -- I now commit myself to God in this difficult & important service of Preaching the Gospel to the poor Indians, & of taking the Oversight, & charge of them, & to you, the Prospect of whose Suffrage & Protection, together with that of the honourable Commissioners, (next to the first Motives of serving God, & my Generation) were the strongest inducements that I cou'd be urg'd & determin'd by; & so without engrossing your attention any longer, I subscribe, [illegible] with great Gratitude, & Respect,

Honourable & {Reverend} Gentlemen yr most humble Servant, In the Gospel of Jesus Christ --

Stephen Badger {Harvard} {College} 20th {February} 1753

Reverend Mr. Badger's Letter to the Corporation {February} 20 1753