Gilbert Tennent (5 February 1703 – 23 July 1764) was a Presbyterian revivalist minister in Colonial America. Born into a Scotch-Irish family in County Armagh, Ireland, he migrated to America with his parents, studied theology, and along with Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield, became one of the leaders of the evangelical revival known as the First Great Awakening. His most famous sermon, On the Danger of an Unconverted Ministry, also known as the "Nottingham Sermon," compared "Old Side" ministers to the biblical Pharisees of the Gospels, triggering a schism in the Presbyterian Church which lasted for 17 years. A prolific writer, Tennent would later work towards reunification of the two synods involved.
Early life
Gilbert Tennent, the eldest son of William Tennent and Catherine Kennedy, was born at Vinecash, County Armagh, Ireland. Gilbert's father was a Church of Ireland minister who emigrated to the American colonies before 1718, when he successfully applied to the Synod of Philadelphia to be accepted as a Presbyterian minister. In 1721, the family moved from Westchester, New York to Pennsylvania where William served as pastor at Bensalem in Bucks County. Five years later he accepted a call to Neshaminy in what is now Warminster where he remained until his death in 1746.
Gilbert and his three younger brothers received a classical education from their father in Ireland and America. Gilbert briefly studied medicine but in 1723 switched his focus to theology. In May 1725, he was licensed to preach by the Presbytery of Philadelphia. The same year he received an honorary Master of Arts degree from Yale College in recognition of his educational achievements despite not having attended lectures.
Ministry
In December 1725, Tennent accepted a call to ministry in Newcastle, Delaware but left abruptly after a few weeks. He was consequently reprimanded by the Synod.
While at New Brunswick, Tennent became friends with Theodorus Frelinghuysen, a Dutch Reformed minister who greatly influenced Tennent and helped him develop his ministerial and preaching skills.
He was scornful of his critics among conservative or "Old Side" Presbyterians and in his 1740 sermon The Danger of an Unconverted Ministry, also known as the Nottingham Sermon, denounced his opponents, calling them Pharisees who had, "no experience of a special work of the Holy Ghost upon their own souls."
In 1738, several "New Side" ministers led by Tennent had split from the Presbytery of Philadelphia and formed the Presbytery of New Brunswick.
Scotch-Irish immigrants to Pennsylvania frequently squatted on indigenous territory. As a result they were the target of raids during the French and Indian War and Pontiac's War. In response, Reverend John Elder, a Presbyterian minister from Paxtang known as the "Fighting Parson," raised two companies of mounted associators. In December 1763, this group massacred 20 peaceable Susquehannock at Conestoga Town and Lancaster. In February 1764, the Paxton Boys led an armed march on Philadelphia with the intent of attacking the Moravian Lenape and Mohican who had been moved there for their protection.
The Paxton Boys halted their march in Germantown after learning about the sizable force that was prepared to meet them in Philadelphia. Following a day of negotiations, the marchers agreed to disperse after receiving assurances that their grievances would be presented to the Governor and Assembly.