Author
William Allen
William Allen (1784–1868) was an American Congregationalist minister and theologian whose Election Sermon exemplified the evolving relationship between religious authority and democratic governance in early nineteenth-century New England. His theological work engaged with contemporary debates over predestination, moral agency, and the social responsibilities of the clergy during a period of significant religious and political transformation. Allen's contributions to American Protestant thought reflected the broader shift from Calvinist orthodoxy toward more moderate and socially engaged forms of evangelicalism.
From Election Sermon
' While the constitutions of most states are the edicts of triumphant ambition, or imperfect and mutilated charters a of freeflom, wrested from the hands of tyranny ; the foun- i ' dation of the empire of Christ was laid injustice. The great God, whose everlasting counsels will stand> and whtt will do all his pleasure, hath constituted his beloved Son the ruler of the world, " putting, all tMn^ in subjection under his feet," and requiring all men to receive him as their sovereign. Thus by the express designatio^i of the Father, he is made Lord of all, " angels, and authorities,, and powers being made subject unto him/' All the qualifications for empiire are also concentrated in his charactery such as perfect benevolence, and consummate wisdom,, and irresistible power ; so that on this account his claim to authority is very unlike the preteijsions of many of the…
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