Dawn of Tolerance in Massachusetts. Public Repentance of Judge Samuel Sewall for his Action in the witchcraft trials.
One of our country’s lesser known forebearers, Judge Samuel Sewall, is remembered for bringing both great harm and great healing to his community. Sewall, a Puritan, was one of several judges to preside over the Salem Witch Trials, which resulted in the execution of 20 citizens of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
Following the affair, Sewall spent years reflecting on his role in what he came to believe was a verdict founded on insubstantial evidence. Sewall was a businessman, a printer and a man of God. He returned time and again to a Bible passage, Matthew 12:7: “If ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless.”
This introspection prompted Sewall to do something novel for his time: he stood up at a public meeting house and repented. Reverend Samuel Willard read aloud his apology. The year was 1697.
Samuel Sewall, sensible of the reiterated strokes of God upon himself and family; and being sensible, that as to the Guilt contracted upon the opening of the late Commission of Oyer and Terminer at Salem (to which the order of this Day relates) he is, upon many accounts, more concerned than any that he knows of, Desires to take the Blame and shame of it, Asking pardon of men, And especially desiring prayers that God, who has an Unlimited Authority, would pardon that sin and all other his sins; personal and Relative: And according to his infinite Benignity and Sovereignty, Not Visit the sin of him, or of any other, upon himself or any of his, nor upon the Land: But that he would powerfully defend him against all Temptations to Sin, for the future; and vouchsafe him the efficacious, saving conduct of his Word and Spirit.
In what has since become known as Judge Sewall’s Apology, Sewall publicly acknowledged his role in the trial, appealed to sensibility and accepted “blame and shame” for his actions. He also called for a public day of prayer, fasting and reparations.
This singular act, says historian Richard Francis, was a formative moment for the early American colony. Here you had a public servant holding himself personally accountable for the repercussions of his actions and admitting that the system failed his community — truly remarkable. By publicly admitting the error of his ways, Sewall, Francis argues, rebuilt trust and helped form the beginnings of a public conscience in early America.
Fast forward 319 years, it’s evident that our republic is more divided than ever. It remains to be seen whether President Elect Trump’s actions as president will reflect the misogynistic, hateful and xenophobic things he has said during the campaign.
Not having clarity on this matter, a large portion of the American population is fearful and on edge. The sensible thing to do — the thing a true winner would do — is to apologize. Apologize to the Khan family for dishonoring their son and his selfless military service. Apologize to Alicia Machado, for demeaning her for the way she looks. Apologize to John McCain, who spent nearly six years as a prisoner of war only to have his service and competence questioned with juvenile, dismissive comments. And apologize directly to the segments of our communities he has broadly described as rapists, criminals and wholly unwelcome in America.
America is a country made possible by immigrants. We are strong because of our diversity, not in spite of it. Faced with all the tumult from this past week, I am hopeful that we need not revisit the ugliness and criminality of a witch hunt for our leaders to find the forthrightness to heal our divisions. While there is no literal, 1:1 comparison between the Salem Witch Trials and Trump’s 2016 campaign, the President Elect should assume personal accountability for the fear and unease he — and he alone — has created.
To the victors go the spoils — and with them, so too comes the great responsibility of sowing the seeds of unity and healing. The ball is in your court, Mr. Trump.