About the John G. Jones Journal

For the first time, a transcription of the only known existent journal of Rev. John G Jones is available for purchase! The transcription is self-published by the transcriber, a descendant, the Rev. Sandy West, for only $20.

Rev. John Griffing Jones' life was virtually synonymous with the history of Methodism in Mississippi. Born in 1804 from parents married by the first Methodist missionary in Mississippi, he witnessed his world change dramatically as he lived through the split of the Methodist Episcopal Church, the Civil War, and Reconstruction. His experience of 84 years placed him in a unique position to write four volumes of history of Methodism in Mississippi.

This journal is unique from his history books, and even his three volume personal autobiography, in that it is an unfiltered, unedited and very personal glimpse into his life. The 65-page publication includes a transcription of the journal he kept, starting in March of 1835 at the age of 30 – 31, while serving as a traveling preacher north of Natchez and then a presiding elder north and east of Jackson. It gives insight into his personal thoughts, motivations, habits, and concerns. The original copy is held in the J.B. Cain Archives of Mississippi Methodism at Millsaps College.

The text includes a great number of names, and it documents the life of a traveling preacher and early Mississippi settler. It features his personal patterns of life in his faith tradition, the revival of the church, and his personal involvement with slavery.

Pastors will find inspiration as Jones’ struggles with his own call to ministry and places his next appointment in God’s hands. Historians will gain insight from his personal struggle with slavery, believing it to be evil yet unable to find a way to avoid it. The journal features multiple stories of interactions between people of different races – hosting Choctaws at his home, staying at the home of a black man, preaching to a free black community, and the like.

He records the examination of his own soul as he wrestles all night with his call to ministry. He misses his wife, Jane, but longs for quiet when he gets home to a house full of company and children. He is appointed to circuits near his place of birth, giving us a unique glimpse into the relationship he has with his extended family. When he is sent 140 miles away, he no longer mentions relatives, traveling mostly among strangers. After they move into their newly erected District Parsonage (the first in Mississippi), he writes “O how sweet is home. Our little cottage in the woods is like an earthly paradise.” 

Jones remains in conflict about the issue of slavery throughout, yet he is not able to avoid owning slaves as he seeks help for his wife while traveling. He is conflicted about preaching against slavery, but privately distributes Wesley’s Thoughts on Slavery to influence people to avoid its evils. He concludes that it is nothing but "barefaced Christian injustice." He gives his two slaves the choice of moving with him and gaining eventual freedom or remaining in the community and selecting who they would like to work for.

Converting lost souls was his passion and the focus of his ministry as he goes about his work laying the foundation for the Methodist church that stands today. He describes the perils circuit riding preachers faced. He writes of his experiences riding the circuit, being away from home for many days at a time, preaching at camp meetings, exhorting at worship, conducting love feasts, administering “the sacrament” (communion) and baptism, holding class meetings, praying with the sick and dying, and taking care of the business of the Methodist movement.

He records the names of each of his congregations, as well as the people who provide him with meals and lodging. He tells in detail of revivals, giving witness to “shouting” in worship and great increase in numbers. He writes a stirring tribute to his brother, a courageous and faithful minister until his last days, seemingly content to die of congestive fever on his circuit rather than to live not spreading the Gospel. Jones has a difficult time preaching in the Brandon courthouse with “hallooing”, talking and gunfire outside, but concluded the two days by starting a fund for Brandon’s first church building.

Throughout Rev. John G. Jones' journal, he conveys a commitment to Jesus Christ and preaching the Word of God, a passion for converting the lost, faithfulness to the work of the Methodist Episcopal Church, a camaraderie with the other Methodist preachers, and a constant reassessment of the state of his own soul.