Henry Scudder (d. 1659?) was an English minister of

presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

views, known as a devotional writer, and member of the

Westminster Assembly The Westminster Assembly of Divines was a council of divines (theologians) and members of the English Parliament appointed from 1643 to 1653 to restructure the Church of England. Several Scots also attended, and the Assembly's work was adopt ...

Life

He was a graduate of Christ's College, Cambridge, with a Cambridge Master of Arts (MA Cantab) from 1606. He was minister at Drayton in Oxfordshire 1607–19, and in 1633 was presented by the king to the living of Collingbourne-Ducis, near

Marlborough, Wiltshire Marlborough ( , ) is a market town and civil parish in the English county of Wiltshire on the Old Bath Road, the old main road from London to Bath. The town is on the River Kennet, 24 miles (39 km) north of Salisbury and 10 miles (16& ...

. In June 1643 he was summoned to the Westminster Assembly of divines. When in June 1645 an order came from the House of Commons to pray for the forces, Scudder was one of the four preachers assigned to

Aldgate Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. It gives its name to Aldgate High Street, the first stretch of the A11 road, which included the site of the former gate. The area of Aldgate, the most common use of ...

. He was minister at the

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

church of St Mildred Poultry in 1645–6. On 6 April 1647 he reported on some of the proofs of the

Westminster Confession of Faith The Westminster Confession of Faith is a Reformed confession of faith. Drawn up by the 1646 Westminster Assembly as part of the Westminster Standards to be a confession of the Church of England, it became and remains the "subordinate standard" ...

, and on 9 February 1648 his name was added to the Assembly's committee for the scriptures. Scudder preached before the House of Commons in October 1644, on a fast day, at

St. Margaret's, Westminster The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey, is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Palace of Westminster ...

, and his sermon was printed by request of the house. He died before the

Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

, and his successor at Collingbourne-Ducis was instituted in 1660. He was buried in the church there, in a tomb that has been removed. He married Elizabeth, daughter of George Hunt, for fifty years rector of Collingbourne-Ducis. She died when little over twenty. Her sister married William Whately, Scudder's fellow student at Christ's College, and subsequently vicar of Banbury, whose life Scudder wrote in 1639–40. A daughter married John Grayle in 1645.

Works

Scudder was author of a devotional work entitled ''The Christian's Daily Walke in Holy Securitie and Peace.'' The sixth edition, issued in 1635, has an 'Epistle to the Reader,' by John Davenport, dated from Coleman Street, 25 April 1627. The title-page describes it as first intended for private use. A German translation by

Theodore Haak Theodore Haak (1605 in – 1690 in London) was a German Calvinist scholar, resident in England in later life. Haak's communications abilities and interests in the new science provided the backdrop for convening the " 1645 Group", a precursor of ...

appeared at Frankfurt in 1636. The book was frequently reissued, The editions of 1690 and 1761 have commendations by John Owen and

Richard Baxter Richard Baxter (12 November 1615 – 8 December 1691) was an English Puritan church leader, poet, hymnodist, theologian, and controversialist. Dean Stanley called him "the chief of English Protestant Schoolmen". After some false starts, he ...

. A fifteenth edition was issued in 1813. The edition of 1820, containing Davenport's epistle and Owen and Baxter's recommendations, has an introductory essay by

Thomas Chalmers Thomas Chalmers (17 March 178031 May 1847), was a Scottish minister, professor of theology, political economist, and a leader of both the Church of Scotland and of the Free Church of Scotland. He has been called "Scotland's greatest nine ...

. Scudder also published: * 'A Key of Heaven: the Lord's Prayer opened and applied,' 1682; dedicated to 'Mr. Thomas Crew, and to all his hopeful children,' and has a preface by

Richard Sibbes Richard Sibbes (or Sibbs) (1577–1635) was an Anglican theologian. He is known as a Biblical exegete, and as a representative, with William Perkins and John Preston, of what has been called "main-line" Puritanism because he always remained in ...

. * 'Prototypes, or the Primarie Precedent Presidents out of the Booke of Genesis. With Mr. Whatelye's Life and Death,' 1640, fol., and 1647. Scudder had the assistance of

Edward Leigh Sir Edward Julian Egerton Leigh (born 20 July 1950) is a British Conservative Party politician who has served as a Member of Parliament (MP) since 1983. Leigh has represented Gainsborough, Lincolnshire in the House of Commons since 1983 (re ...

, like himself one of Whately's executors.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Scudder, Henry Year of birth missing 1659 deaths 17th-century English Anglican priests Westminster Divines English Presbyterian ministers of the Interregnum (England) Early modern Christian devotional writers Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge