Difficult Chapel

The membership which had begun at four in 1816, but rose to fifteen, was down again to seven when George Beard was appointed in 1826. Beard continued as minister until 1852 and the membership began to grow again.  In 1833, it stood at eleven.  And then it received an unexpected boost.  A group of people left “Top Chapel” and joined themselves to the despised “Difficult Chapel” fellowship.

They left Top Chapel in protest against the ministry of the Revd George Adamson.  Adamson had been appointed at Top Chapel twelve years earlier as a firm evangelical Calvinist with a conservative bent.  Shortly after coming, he published a pamphlet entitled “A Few Candid Reasons why Instruments of Music should not be used in the Worship of God”.  In an age when many ministers were turning to new-fangled methods, Adamson seemed willing to contend for historic reformed worship and doctrine.  But as Top Chapel grew and prospered, Adamson’s views began to change.  This is how a later historian (sympathetic to Adamson) described the change: “..in doctrines he was a Calvinist of a very rigid type.  His preaching therefore would be greatly relished by the good people of Charlesworth who had been trained in the old school and held most tenaciously to the old calvinistic theology and were prepared to resist any modifications of what they believed to be the faith once delivered to the saints; but as the years rolled by there came a change… growing experience brought to him a larger, wider, not to say truer conception of the purposes of God in redemption and the light of a larger hope began to dawn upon his soul.  His ministry lost much of that harsh, narrow exclusiveness that marked its earlier years… The change in Mr Adamson’s preaching was soon noticed by those who clung to the old form and would tolerate no modification in the direction of a larger gospel; who regarded all progress as dangerous to the faith once delivered to the saints.  Loud were the complaints raised against any attempt to set aside this conception of the gospel of Christ.  Attempts were made to set accuse him of being heterodox, of setting aside the trust deeds… Nothing remained for these defenders of the faith but to wash their hands of the whole affair, which they did…”

The historian says Adamson had “a larger, wider..conception of the purposes of God in redemption”.  Adamson had abandoned the old gospel of salvation by grace alone through faith alone. A large number of members seem to have left Top Chapel.  6 became members of the “Difficult Chapel”.  Others almost certainly joined themselves to the church without being baptised and becoming full members.

The enlarged membership could now think seriously about building their own chapel building.  They acquired 900 sq yards of land on the main road through Charlesworth.  The land was bought by one individual, and then transferred to another, but leased to the church for 99 years at a rent of £2 per year.

In 1835 the chapel building was erected. There is no account of what it cost to build but the records say that “The Chapel was built by a Company formed for that purpose, and shares were taken, and these were held by the principal part of the congregation.  By gifts and legacies these were eventually paid off, for we read the last presentation of the shares was made in November 1842, seven years after the date of building”.  The building was opened by William Gadsby.  So many people flocked to the service that the building could not hold them.  A platform was therefore erected against the middle window of the chapel and from there Gadsby preached.

The gospel of the Puritans, the gospel for which Bagshawe and Ashe had suffered, was to be preached in a new location.  The light that had burned at Top Chapel for nearly 200 years was not to be extinguished but moved. The old gospel was to shine out again in the village of Charlesworth…