Huguenot Cross

Last year, I read St. Bartholomew's Eve: A Tale of the Huguenot Wars by G.A. Henty.  I really enjoyed the book (in fact I REALLY need to read another Henty novel...though I'll wait till after I'm done writing this) and spent some time afterwards learning more about the Huguenots and the religious persecution that resulted in so many Protestants fleeing France from the late 16th century through the early 18th century. 

My wife is a descendant of John Robinson, the separatist pastor of the Pilgrims, who during this same time period was fleeing England for religious freedom in Holland.  It has been very meaningful for us as we learn about our family roots to know that we come from families that are committed to personal purity and the purity of Christ's church.  However, I have felt like it's been Pamela's story to tell, not my own.

Well, coming back to the Huguenots, while cleaning out the basement for our remodeling project, I rediscovered some family history documents from my Grandma Butler (Livona Skinner); documents that I had never really read carefully before.  In this packet was an excerpt of a letter that mentions the Moyser (Mosher) family fleeing Alsace Loraine, France, for London around 1580 (about 20 years after the Edict of Orleans and 8 years after the St. Bartholomew Massacre).  There is no mention whether or not they were Huguenots, but the circumstantial evidence is strong.

The Mosher and Skinner lines meet in 1871 with the marriage of Martha Mosher and Andrew Skinner, who had a number of children--including my great grandfather Floyd Skinner.  The Mosher line goes back to the early days of the American Colonies.  So I have quite a bit of work to do to learn more about this side of the family tree, but I am excited about the possibility of having ancestors with a connection to the French Huguenots.

From James 4:

7 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.