Funeral of Graham Harrison

I was in South Wales yesterday for the funeral of Graham Harrison at Emmanuel Church, Newport. I stayed at my sister's in Cwmbran the night before and she accompanied me to the funeral. She was a member of the congregation there for six months many years ago. I was surprised that Emmanuel was big enough to accommodate everyone but there is extra room available and so the 200-250 filled the place but not to overflowing. I was not able to stay for refreshments but it was good to be at the service in the church sat next to Mark Thomas and at the committal at St Woolo's cemetery. Bernard Lewis, the present minister, led the service. It was good to see him and his wife Linda and Ken Brownell and John Palmer present. We were all exact contemporaries at LTS. Robert Strivens read, Wyn Hughes prayed, Trevor McMillen, an elder, gave thanks and Stephen Clark preached. It was all very helpful. Geoff and Iola, my in-laws, gave us a lift to the grave, where, in the sunshine, Neville Rees read, Hywel Jones prayed and Bernard did the committal to the grave where Mr Harrison's father had been buried in 1989. There is something solemn and reassuring about a Christian burial.

There must have been around fifty ministers present all told. It was not possible to speak to everyone I would like to have. It was good to be reminded of Mr Harrison's faithfulness (he was referred to as Mr Harrison throughout). We were reminded of his lack of small talk, his preaching, his sense of humour, his pastoral abilities, his very practical bent and his solidity in a crisis. Digby Williams and John Edmonds, both ministers, grew up at different times in the church. John recalled the day when the old Alma Street was being knocked down and they were meeting in the YMCA. Great days they sounded.

I always find a trip to Newport strange. I was born there but I do not know my way around well. I noticed my Auntie Mavis's grave among the hundreds there in that cemetery. I don't know where the graves of other family members are found.

Graham Harrison Memories

When I was in LTS one of the things I remember Mr Harrison saying was that there are things in the Bible that you or I would not have put quite like that. I often recall that observation. One of my fellow students pointed out that Mr Harrison had a penchant for military and pugilistic metaphors. He even started writing the down I think. Having been alerted to this I noticed ever after that it was a pretty common trait. What caused it I do not know. Perhaps it was growing up in Grange Town, a rather challenging part of Cardiff in those days. Of course, I can't give you any obvious examples now, though I do remember expressions such as "going a few rounds with Warfield". I tried to look up examples form online sermons but all I could find was "You are knowing the strength of this temptation to try and show that you are of superior intelligence, that the gospel is something that can knock spots off these Greek philosophers, etc."

Tribute to the late Graham Harrison

When I was growing up as a young Christian in South Wales it was a rare time. There were four chief Lloyd-Jones churches in the Newport and Cwmbran area. The Baptist church I attended was pastored by the late Derek Garwood. Also in Cwmbran was Ebenezer Congregational Church where Phil Williams was the minister in my time. Down in Newport there was the late Hugh Morgan and in Emmanuel opposite the Royal Gwent Hospital, Graham Harrison. All four were godly men and faithful preachers.

When I came up to London Graham Harrison was one of four Welsh men who were the main teachers there at the time (Philip Eveson, Hywel Jones and Andrew Davies being the others). Again these were men of God of the highest calibre, full of Christ - awe inspiring to a young man in their holiness and discernment. Mr Harrison was my lecturer in doctrine and he it was who led in my ordination in Cwmbran in 1983. In subsequent years I knew him chiefly through the Westminster Fellowship and the Westminster Conference as well as on the LTS Board. As Guy mentions there was a certain shyness about Mr Harrison (I've never got out of addressing my LTS lectures by their surnames) and that made it difficult to approach him in some ways. He could also sound quite pessimistic and dour at times and was a Welshman to a fault, which I found a little difficult. We should be in no doubt, however, that a Prince in Israel has fallen, a stalwart of the faith indeed. See here for Guy's tribute.

Harrison on Engaging with Lloyd-Jones

The book of essays Engaging with Lloyd-Jones has been wanting a thorough review from a pro-Lloyd-Jones vantage point. One is now available by Graham Harrison. Originally given at the Wetsminster Fellowship it is available in a slightly modified form here. It is a thorough, fair, well informed, stimulating and trenchant piece.

Westminster Conference Papers 2007

The papers given at the 2007 Westminster conference are now available in printed form. A 131 page paperback the papers included are

The Clapham Sect and the Abolition of Slavery - Roger Fay; Charles Wesley and his Hymns - Graham Harrison; Preaching - “ex opere operato” - Robert Strivens; Turretin and the place of Systematic Theology - Maurice Roberts; Stephen Charnock and the Knowledge of God in Christ - Jeremy Walker; The Preaching of John Newton - John Harris.

The collected papers can be obtained from the secretary John Harris, 8 Back Knowl Rd, Mirfield, W Yorks WF14 9SA.

Hymn of the week 24

Mighty Christ from time eternal,
Mighty, He man's nature takes,
Mighty, when on Calv'ry dying
Mighty, death itself He breaks.
See His might,
Infinite,
King of heaven and earth by right!

Mighty was He in heaven's purpose,
Mighty, in the pledge to save,
Mighty, from His birth to Calv'ry,
Mighty, bursting from the grave.
Still will He
Mighty be
When things hidden now we see.

Great my Jesus in His Person,
Great as God and man is He,
Great His comeliness and beauty,
White and ruddy, fair to see.
Great that sight,
Sovereign Might,
Throned secure on heaven's height!

Translated from the Welsh of Titus Lewis and an anonymous writer (verse 2) by Graham Harrison.

Westminster 07 B

The second paper this year was on our old friend Charles Wesley who was born December 18, 1707. I chaired this session and Graham Harrison of Newport spoke. He spent the first 25 minutes on Wesley's life and then most of the rest of the time on his 5-9,000 (probably around 7,000 hymns). From the day he was converted he wrote an average of 10 verses a day on almost every subject under the sun and above it, words of the highest calibre.
Mr Harrison then spoke on his anti-Calvinism and his views on perfectionism and assurance as it comes out in his hymns. A tendentiousness against Calvinism seems to come in around 1740, about two years after his earliest sinner focused hymns. He can be quite belligerent, caustic and persistent in this. So we have eg

See, sinners, in the gospel glass,
The friend and Saviour of mankind!
Not one of all the apostate race
But may in him salvation find!
His thoughts, and words, and actions prove,
His life and death, - that God is love!

Behold the Lamb of God, who bears
The sins of all the world away!

The individual phrases are not so bad but the way it is done is often tendentious and sarcasm and similar devices creep in. Cf

God is unchangeable, and therefore so are you:
And therefore, they can never fail who once His goodness knew.
In part perhaps you may, You cannot wholly fall
Cannot become a castaway like non elected Paul.

He would deliberately and unfairly refer to the decretum horibile as the horrible decree (The horrible decree confound, Enlarge thy people’s heart!).
Some of CWs hymns we just can't sing some need to be edited, some we need to read differently.
More briefly we then looked negatively at his perfectionism, later moderated, and positively at his insistence on the inward witness of the Spirit. Cf

I cannot rest in sins forgiven;
Where is the earnest of my heaven?
Where the Indubitable Seal
That ascertains the kingdom mine?
The powerful stamp I long to feel,
The signature of love Divine:
O, shed it in my heart abroad,
Fullness of love, of heaven, of God!

Interestingly older brother John would often tone down what he disliked in Charles. It is said that he thought Love divine too sentimental and would change the 'dear's to 'great's (My great redeemer praise instead of my dear redeemer).

A useful enough discussion followed.

[Pic referred to in the talk is in Bristol]