James Wyly Jackson journal, 1928-1951; (bulk, 1947-1951).

ArchivalResource

Jackson, James Wyly, 1893-1963. James Wyly Jackson journal, 1928-1951; (bulk, 1947-1951).

James Wyly Jackson journal, 1928-1951; (bulk, 1947-1951).

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/70200810

Journal entries, 14 May - 5 Aug. 1947; minutes of the Heptagon Club (Columbia, S.C.), 2 Dec. 1947 - 27 Apr. 1951; along with sermons, 1928, 1954, and undated, of the long-time pastor of First Presbyterian Church (Columbia, S.C.) Journal entries, 14 May 1947 - 5 Aug. 1947, re thoughts on local and national events, weather, and travel, including a visit to Montreat, N.C., 2 July 1947, to attend the Christian Education Conference, during which the group passed a resolution to "go on record as opposing peace time universal military conscription. The motion carried and I voted for it. Most of the people felt the pessimism of these times.... One feels that he is watching the disintegration of society and the dissolution of the 'modern world'... This will be part of the theme of my morning sermon on Sunday." Other diary entries discuss issues facing the Presbyterian Church of Jackson's day, 4 July 1947, reporting a newspaper article re political factions among the Presbyterians, "the Federal Council of Churches [was] voted against by our Presbytery at its meeting on July 1st.... the vote was 13 to 12. If I had been there the vote would have been tied...." This divisive issue prompted Jackson to record harsh criticisms of some of his fellow pastors, whom he deemed "simply parasites on the Presbytery [who] have done more harm to the church than the most outlandish sinners." Entry, 10 July 1947, discusses an offer from old friends to relocate to a church in Missouri, and Jackson's reasons for wishing to remain in S.C., and mention of his wife, "Alice and I have had a wonderful married life. She has been an ideal minister's wife...." Minutes, 2 Dec. 1947 - 27 Apr. 1951, of the Heptagon Club, a group composed of seven men who worked as ministers in Columbia, S.C., who met periodically in one another's homes for a meal and presentation of an essay, such as that delivered 2 Dec. 1947, titled, "The church and organized movements." This organization drew its seven members from pastors drawn from various Protestant denominations; entry dated, 26 Jan. 1948, lists names of clergy and churches served by Jackson and his colleagues; in addition to Jackson, whose church was aligned with the Presbyterian Church in the United States, the group included two Baptists, one Lutheran, one Episcopalian, one Associate Reformed Presbyterian, and the Methodist chaplain of U.S.C. Sermons, 1928, 1954, and undated include text of a sermon, The Insipid Church, preached by Jackson in Greenwood, S.C., on 12 Aug. 1928.

1 v. (unbound)

University of South Carolina, System Library Service, University Libraries