In 1627, the College arranged for him to be appointed
vicar of
St Mary's, the
parish church of
Ware, Hertfordshire. In 1633, he left Ware to become vicar of
Marston St. Lawrence,
Northamptonshire. At both parishes he faced disciplinary procedures for his
Puritan views which included opposition to
communion rails. He emigrated to
America in 1637. Besides a number of sermons, Chauncy published
The Doctrine of the Sacrament, with the Right Use Thereof (1642);
The Plain Doctrine of the Justification of a Sinner in the Sight of God (1659), a collection of 26 sermons; and
Antisynodalia Scripta Americana (1662). During his time at Plymouth and Scituate, Chauncy got into a heated debate with the religious and secular leaders of the Plymouth Colony over the issue of
baptism. Chauncy taught that only baptism by full immersion was valid, while the Separatist Elders taught that sprinkling water over the body was just as valid. The sprinkling method of baptism was much preferred in
New England due to its cooler and harsher climate. The religious leaders of the
Plymouth Colony held public debates, trying to convince Chauncy to change his views. When Chauncy still did not change his views, the Pilgrim leaders wrote to congregations in
Boston and
New Haven soliciting their views, and all the congregations wrote back that both forms of baptism were valid. Still, Chauncy did not change his teachings. It was because of this issue that Chauncy left Plymouth for Scituate in 1641. A year after arriving in Scituate, Chauncy had a chance to practice what he preached, when he publicly baptized his twin sons by full immersion. The plan backfired when one of his sons passed out due to being dunked in the water. The mother of the child who was supposed be baptized at the same event refused to let it happen, and according to
John Winthrop, got a hold of Chauncy and "near pulled him into the water". When Chauncy was hired to be President of Harvard, he had to promise the leaders in Boston that he would keep his views on baptism quiet. ==Death==