Richard Coppin facts for kids

Richard Coppin was an English writer and preacher in the 1600s. He was known for his strong and sometimes unusual ideas about religion. He wrote many pamphlets and often found himself in trouble with the authorities because of his beliefs.

Early Life and Preaching

Richard Coppin started as a clergyman in the Church of England. Around 1648, he became a lay preacher, meaning he preached without being officially ordained. He was from Berkshire, a county in England.

Coppin was connected to another preacher named Abiezer Coppe. Some historians believe that Coppin's ideas greatly influenced Coppe. After the Church of England's old system was changed, Coppin briefly joined a group called the Presbyterians in London. Later, he became an Independent, another religious group that believed in self-governing churches.

Coppin felt a strong inner calling in 1648, which led him to start preaching in Berkshire.

Troubles with the Law

Richard Coppin often got into trouble because of his preaching. Many of his legal problems were written about in pamphlets at the time. These issues often came from the Blasphemy Act of 1650, a law against saying things considered disrespectful to God.

His first serious trouble began when he preached for four days in a row at a church in Evenlode, Worcestershire. Even though he was invited by the local people and the church leader, Ralph Nevil, Nevil later got a warrant for Coppin's arrest, accusing him of blasphemy.

Coppin was tried in Worcester in March 1652. The jury found him guilty of denying heaven and hell. However, the judge, John Wilde, disagreed with the verdict. He made Coppin promise to appear at the next court session. By then, new accusations came up about Coppin's actions in Enstone, Oxfordshire.

In 1651, Coppin had a debate in Burford, Oxfordshire. This debate was recorded by John Osborne, a church leader who disagreed with Coppin's views.

Coppin was tried again in Oxford in March 1653. The jury eventually found him guilty, but the judge later set him free. In March 1654, while preaching in Stow-on-the-Wold, Gloucestershire, Coppin was arrested again. He was brought to trial in Gloucester, but the judge refused to accept the accusations, and the case ended.

Rochester and Imprisonment

Around 1655, Coppin went to Rochester, Kent, to preach in Rochester Cathedral. He was invited by followers of Joseph Salmon, another preacher who had left the area. Coppin's ideas were seen as very radical by some.

In late 1655, Walter Rosewell, a church leader from Chatham, heard Coppin preach. Rosewell believed Coppin was saying that Jesus could make mistakes and that people's bodies would not rise from the dead. To counter Coppin's ideas, Rosewell and others started their own lectures in the cathedral.

A public debate was held in Rochester Cathedral in December 1655 between Coppin and Rosewell. During this debate, another person, Gaman, an Anabaptist, also joined in to argue with both sides.

Soon after, Coppin was given a warrant telling him not to preach. Even though soldiers guarded the cathedral, he preached in the college-yard and in nearby fields.

On December 24, 1655, Coppin was put in Maidstone Prison. He was called a "Ranter," a term for people with very free and sometimes extreme religious ideas at the time. He spent six months in jail. While imprisoned, he wrote a pamphlet called A Blow at the Serpent to defend himself. He was eventually set free in June 1656.

His work also led to arguments with other writers, like Edward Garland, who accused Coppin of having wrong ideas. Coppin replied to these accusations in his pamphlet Michael opposing the dragon in 1659.

His Ideas and Legacy

Richard Coppin believed in "universal salvation." This means he thought that everyone, in the end, would be saved by God, no matter what they had done. This idea was also shared by Gerrard Winstanley, another writer and preacher of that time.

Coppin also believed that people could return to a perfect state, like before the "Fall of Man" (a religious idea about humanity's first sin). He also believed in the equality of women. He saw stories like the Fall and the Last Judgment as allegories, meaning they were symbolic stories with deeper meanings rather than literal events. He also didn't think much of the official church or universities of his time.

Historians sometimes describe Coppin as a "moderate Ranter" or someone whose ideas were close to the Ranter movement.

Coppin's followers were sometimes called "Copinists." Later, some people admired his ideas, while others, like James Relly, disagreed with his specific type of universalism.

Works

• Divine Teachings (1649)
• The Exaltation of All Things in Christ (1649)
• Man's Righteousnesse Examined (1652)
• Saul Smitten for not Smiting Amalek (1653)
• A Man-Child Born (1654)
• Truths testimony and a testimony of truths (1655)
• A Blow at the Serpent (1656)
• Crux Christi (1657)
• Michael opposing the dragon (1659)

Views

Richard Coppin held several unique beliefs for his time:

• He believed in universal salvation, meaning everyone would eventually be saved.
• He thought it was possible for people to return to a perfect state, like before the Fall of Man.
• He believed in the equality of women.
• He saw the Fall and the Last Judgment as allegories, or symbolic stories, rather than literal events.
• He was critical of the established church and universities.

Historians often describe him as a "moderate Ranter" or someone whose ideas were very similar to the Ranter movement.