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John Clarke (October 1609 – 20 April 1676) was a physician, Baptist minister, co-founder of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, author of its influential charter, and a leading advocate of religious freedom in the Americas. Born in Westhorpe, Suffolk, England, Clarke received an extensive education, including a master's degree in England, followed by medical training in Leiden, Holland. He arrived in Boston in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1637 during the Antinomian Controversy, and decided to go to Rhode Island with many exiles from the conflict. As an original founder of Newport, Rhode Island, he established the second Baptist Church in America there. Because Baptists were considered heretics, and banned from Massachusetts, Clarke wanted to make inroads there, and spent time in the Boston jail after making a mission trip to the town of Lynn. Following his poor treatment in prison, he went to England where he published a book on the persecutions of the Baptists in Massachusetts, and on his theological beliefs. Since the fledgling Rhode Island colony needed an agent in England, Clarke remained there for over a decade, handling the colony's interests. All of the other New England colonies were hostile to Rhode Island, and both Massachusetts and Connecticut had made incursions into Rhode Island territory. After the restoration of the monarchy in England in 1660, it was imperative that Rhode Island receive a royal charter to protect its territorial integrity. It was Clarke's role to obtain such a document, and he saw this as an opportunity to include religious freedoms never seen before in any constitutional charter. After writing ten petitions and letters to King Charles II, and negotiating for months with Connecticut over territorial boundaries, Clarke drafted the Rhode Island Royal Charter and presented it to the king; it was approved with the king's seal on 8 July 1663. This charter, granting unprecedented freedom and religious liberty to Rhode Islanders, remained in effect for 180 years, making it the longest-lasting constitutional charter in history. Following his success at procuring a charter, Clarke returned to Rhode Island where he became very active in civil affairs, and continued to pastor his church in Newport until his death in 1676. He left an extensive will, setting up the first educational trust in America. He was an avid proponent of soul-liberty that was included in the Rhode Island charter, and later in the United States Constitution. == Early life == John Clarke was born at Westhorpe in the county of Suffolk, England and baptized there on 8 October 1609, the son of Thomas Clarke and Rose Kerrich (or Kerridge). He was one of seven children, six of whom left England and settled in New England. Other than the parish records of his baptism, and those of his siblings, no definitive record has been found concerning his life in England. That Clarke was highly educated is apparent from the fact that he arrived in New England at the age of 28 qualified as both a physician and a Baptist minister. A book that he wrote and published in 1652, his masterful authorship of the Rhode Island Royal Charter of 1663, and his will mentioning his Hebrew and Greek books and a Concordance and Lexicon that he wrote himself all point to many years of study. The difficulty with tracing Clarke's existence in England stems largely from his very common name. Rhode Island historical authority G. Andrews Moriarty wrote that Clarke was probably the one of his name who attended St Catharine's College, Cambridge, but he may also have received a bachelor's degree from Brasenose College, Oxford in 1628, and a masters from there in 1632. Another clue to his education comes from a catalog of students from Leiden University in Holland, one of Europe's primary medical schools at the time. The school's ledger of graduates includes, in Latin, "Johannes Clarcq, Anglus, 17 July 1635-273" (translated as John Clark, England, date as given). That Clarke earned a master's degree is apparent from the concordance that he wrote, where the authorship is given as "John Clarke, Master of Arts". 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「John Clarke (Baptist minister)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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