Increase Mather

The increase Maser (June 21, 1639 - August 23, 1723) was an influential Puritan cleric in the Massachusetts Bay colony and was president of Harvard College for twenty years (1681-1701). He was influential in the administration of the colony for a time that coincided with the infamous witch trials in Salem. Mather was born in Dorchester, a gulf colony of Massachusetts, on June 21, 1639, with the Rev. Richard Mather and Katherine Holt Mather, after their participation in the Great Migration from England due to their inconsistency with the Church of England. The reason for his name was "... an unforgettable increase of any kind when God favored the country at the time of his birth." The name "Increase" is a literal translation of the Hebrew "Joseph" (Joseph). He was the youngest of six brothers, the others were Samuel, Nathanael, Eleazar, Joseph, and Timothy. Samuel, Nathanael, and Eleazar also became ministers. In 1651, Mather was admitted to Harvard College, where he lived and studied with Robert Messi. When he finished his undergraduate degree in 1656, at the age of 17, he began to prepare for service and delivered his first sermon on his 18th birthday. He quickly left Massachusetts and went to Ireland, where he studied at Trinity College Dublin for a master's degree. While working at Trinity College, he received a license from Oliver Cromwell as Minister of the Commonwealth to co-lead the Church of St. Tida (Ballyscullion) and St. Switan Church (Magherafelt). He completed his studies in 1658 and worked as chaplain under the garrison in the Channel Islands from 1659 to 1661, wherein 1660 he was a short visit to the church in Gloucester.