There used to be a New Year’s Day tradition at this church that would pack

the house. It was during the era of Jacob Little, who was the

longest-serving pastor of this congregation ever. He led this flock for

almost forty years, from 1827 – 1865. His tradition was to call out the

sins and misdemeanors of his congregation on New Year’s Day, in hopes of

spurring them to reformation. As you can imagine, it was the highlight of

the year. Everybody came, some in fear of having their name called out, and

some in hopes of hearing him dish the dirt on their neighbors. Lore has it

that he used to bribe the children of this town to be his informants.

 

So in the tradition of Jacob Little, I’ve made a few notes about you all…