Hercules Collins (died 1702), was an English Baptist minister, author of a revision of the

Heidelberg Catechism The Heidelberg Catechism (1563), one of the Three Forms of Unity, is a Protestant confessional document taking the form of a series of questions and answers, for use in teaching Calvinist Christian doctrine. It was published in 1563 in Heidelberg, ...

called the Orthodox Catechism.

Life

Collins had little education, but was religious at an early age. He appears to have officiated to a congregation at

Wapping Wapping () is a district in East London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Wapping's position, on the north bank of the River Thames, has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains through its riverside public houses and steps, ...

, and at one period he was imprisoned in

Newgate Prison Newgate Prison was a prison at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey Street just inside the City of London, England, originally at the site of Newgate, a gate in the Roman London Wall. Built in the 12th century and demolished in 1904, t ...

. He died on 4 October 1702, and his funeral sermon, by the Rev. John Piggott, was printed in the following year.

Works

His published material begins with ''An Orthodox Catechism'' (1680), an edited version of the 16th century Heidelberg Catechism. Collins revised the section on

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...

, as well as making a number of stylistic changes; he also added the text of the

Nicene Creed The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is a ...

and

Athanasian Creed The Athanasian Creed, also called the Pseudo-Athanasian Creed and sometimes known as ''Quicunque Vult'' (or ''Quicumque Vult''), which is both its Latin name and its opening words, meaning "Whosoever wishes", is a Christian statement of belief ...

. In the appendix Collins argues for the biblical duty of congregational singing. Over the next twenty-two years Collins produced eleven more works, mainly on issues of separation from the Church of England, and

believer's baptism Believer's baptism or adult baptism (occasionally called credobaptism, from the Latin word meaning "I believe") is the practice of baptizing those who are able to make a conscious profession of faith, as contrasted to the practice of baptizing ...

versus

infant baptism Infant baptism is the practice of baptising infants or young children. Infant baptism is also called christening by some faith traditions. Most Christians belong to denominations that practice infant baptism. Branches of Christianity that ...

. Other works come from his time in Newgate Prison during 1684. One of these was ''Counsel for the Living Occasioned from the Dead'' and was written on the death of two of his fellow prisoners; it contains pastoral instruction to those who were likewise experiencing persecution. The other, ''A Voice from Prison'', was alternatively titled: ''Meditations on Revelation 3:11 Tending to the Establishment of God’s Little Flock, in An Hour of Temptation''. A final work was ''The Temple Repair'd''. It includes instruction on preparing and preaching sermons for those in the ministry. Besides some single sermons, he wrote the following works, some of which occasioned a good deal of controversy: * ''An Orthodox Catechism, being the sum of Christian Religion contained in the Law and Gospel'', London, 1680, 12mo. * ''A Voice from the Prison, or Meditations on Revelations'', London, 1684, 4to. * ''Believers' Baptism from Heaven, and of Divine Institution Infants' Baptism from Earth, and Human Invention'', London, 1691, 8vo., revised and republished by John Bailey, London, 1803, 8vo. * ''The Antidote proved a Counterfeit, or Error detected, and Believers' Baptism vindicated, containing an answer to "An Antidote to prevent the Prevalency of Anabaptism,"'' London, 1693, 4to. * ''Three books, viz. I. The Scribe instructed unto the Kingdom of Heaven. II. Mountains of Brass, or a Discourse upon the Decrees of God. III. A poem on the Birth, Life, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus Christ''. 3 parts, London, 1696, 12mo. His collected Works are presently being edited by Mark Smith and Reagan Marsh for Hesed & Emet Publishers (H&E) under the oversight of Dr. Michael Haykin.

References

External links

* http://www.angelfire.com/tn/steveweaver/17th_Century_Baptist_Ministry.pdf * https://www.chapellibrary.org/book/mobr/ ;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Hercules Year of birth unknown 1702 deaths 17th-century English Baptist ministers 17th-century English writers 17th-century English male writers 18th-century English non-fiction writers 18th-century English male writers English religious writers