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Jonas Clark (1730-1805). A Sermon, Preached at Lexington, April 19, 1776. Boston: Powars and Willis, 1776. The text is accompanied by illustrations inserted at a later date.

This sermon, one of the boldest and most bitter of the Revolutionary War, memorializes the occasion of "the shot heard round the world." Sermons were one of the most powerful ways of bringing a message to an audience. They were often written for anniversary occasions and were frequently delivered outside the church. They were also lucrative publications for cash-starved printers.

Jonas Clark was appointed Pastor of the Congregational Church in Lexington, Massachusetts, in 1755, and remained in that position until his death. A staunch patriot, he became a renowned preacher and orator, urging his parishioners to seek liberty as a Christian duty. But it is his involvement in the momentous beginnings of our country that places his name among our "founding fathers." Clark's parsonage was on the green near the town of Lexington. On the 18th of April, 1776, John Hancock and Samuel Adams went to visit Clark, and knowing of their peril from British troops, Clark had his house guarded by militiamen. When they asked Clark whether his parishioners would be willing to fight for their country, Clark replied, "I have trained them for this very hour." Later that evening, Paul Revere warned them that troops were advancing from Boston. When they troops arrived, they encountered the town militiamen, who were at ease with their muskets down. No one really knows what happened, but after the first shot, 8 Lexington men, Clark's own parishioners, were lying dead and many more were wounded. A massacre had indeed occurred, but as Clark proclaimed after seeing the bodies on the field in front of his house, "From this day will be dated the liberty of the world."

The Book of the Month is curated by Kenneth Lavender, Rare Book Librarian.

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