MODERN CHURCH HISTORY

PEOPLE PROFILES 2

1

APPIAHFINNEY/ BOOTH/ MURRAY

INTRODUCTION:

CHARLES GRANDISON FINNEYCharles G. Finney according to history made great impact. He is

regarded as one of the greatest evangelist and theologian since the days of the apostles. It is estimated that during the year 1857-58 over a hundred thousand persons were led to Christ as a result of his labour while five hundred thousand persons professed conversion to Christ in the great revival which began in his meetings.

Research shows that over eighty-five in every hundred persons professing conversion to Christ in Finney's meetings remained true to God. This remarkable step made by Finney also revealed to me that, Finney might have had the power of impressing the consciences of men with the necessity of holy living in such a manner as to procure the most lasting results. No wonder he had great impact during his crusades.

My main interest in Finney’s life is the wonderful anointing of God's Spirit, combined with his remarkable reasoning powers and legal training. This aspect of his life enabled him to present clearer views of Christian doctrine than has any other theologian since the days of early Christianity.

WILLIAM BOOTHWilliam Booth an English religious and influential leader began

his evangelistic career at a very tender age and subsequently traveled through England. Booth as a matter of fact was not only the founder of the Salvation Army, but spearhead various Christian movements. He was

2

deeply involved in the propagation of the Christian faith and furnishing of spiritual and material aid to needy persons.

Booth also became author of several books which changed the lives of many. His eagerness to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ attracted my attention to take a second look into his life since there are a lot to learn from this great man’s evangelical spirit and leadership qualities.

JOHN COURTNEY MURRAYJohn Courtney Murray was a man of academic excellence. He was

also notable for his reconciliation moves. This powerful side of his life was noticed as a result of his efforts to reconcile Catholicism and religious pluralism, religious freedom and the American political order.

He played a fundamental role in persuading the Church to positively endorse religious freedom in the ground-breaking Second Vatican Council Declaration (Dignitatis Humanae). This was an impressive move because he realized that if the Church is not able to overcome this setback, it will jeopardize the positive impact they’ve target to make in the society.

SUMMARYMy observation about the lives of the three personalities above is

that they had a very common agenda. That is evangelism or propagation of the gospel of Christ. The other similar aspect is their educational background. I believe they realized they could not achieve their aim without been properly educated. Therefore despite the rough beginning of some of them as far as their childhood education is concerned, they were able achieve their goal through hard work.

CHARLES G. FINNEY

Introduction (Early Life)Charles Grandison Finney was a descendant of the New England

Protestants who believed in strict religious discipline. Finney was born in Connecticut, United States of America in 1792.1 Almost all the writers

1 Wessel, Helen. The autobiography of Charles G. Finney. Minnesota, Bethany Fellowship, Inc. 1977, pg. 5

3

who wrote about him have agreed on his birth date. Finney moved with his parents to Western New York when two years of age. Due to the nature of the place at that time,2 there were few educational or religious privileges. Finney had a good common school education, at age of 20 he went to New England to attend high school, but soon afterward went to New Jersey to teach and to continue his studies. He became quite gifted in languages especially Latin, Greek, and Hebrew.

Education and CareerHe began practicing law in the office of a well known law

practitioner, Squire Wright of a city called Adams, near Finney’s old home in Western New York in 1818. During the three years he taught in New Jersey, but unfortunately the only preaching in his neighborhood was in German, and the preaching he heard while at high school in New England was not of a kind which could arrest his attention. The aged preacher he heard there read old manuscript which actually had no impact on him. Finney's parents were not professing Christians, in his childhood days in Western New York the only preaching he heard was during an occasional visit from some roaming preacher. One person who preached to catch the attention was the Rev. George W. Gale, a Presbyterian pastor. He was an able and highly educated man, though of the Old School Calvinistic type of preaching. Finney, as a result of his study in law became interested in Bible study. He found so many references to the Scriptures in his law books. However, he decided to buy himself a Bible, and soon became deeply absorbed in studying it. He hated slavery with a passion and became a champion of many social reform issues of the 18th century. His fervors were born in the fires of revival and shaped by a dedicated lawyer's mind committed to the full authority of the Bible.

Conversion

He had several conversations with Rev. Gale which sometimes results to a very heated argument. I believe this fact perhaps led Finney to study the Scriptures much more diligently. He however, became more and more concerned about his own soul but wouldn’t allow pride to leave his life. Therefore, accepting Christ as his Saviour was a big hindrance. He remained in a skeptical yet troubled frame of mind for almost two to three years. At last he came to a decision that the Bible was the true Word of

2 Ibid., pg. 6

4

God. One fine morning, on the way to the office, he had a vision. According to Finney, he saw a picture of Christ hanging on the cross. The vision was so clear that almost unconsciously he stopped in the middle of the street for several minutes. At last he decided to have a word of prayer in a wood along the way. After having sometime in prayer, there was now a great calm in his soul, and the burden of sin had completely rolled away, yet he was tempted to believe that he was not yet born of God. On the evening of the same day, he received a mighty overwhelming baptism of the Holy Spirit which motivated him right away to preach the gospel. He continued to preach the gospel, with increasing power and results, in many of the leading cities of America and Great Britain.3 Mission Work

Finney’s influence in shaping evangelicalism in the nineteenth century, and thus indirectly shaping it today, is immeasurable. As a revivalist and a pastor in New York City and as a professor at Oberlin College in Ohio, Finney emphasized the necessity of bringing sinners to conversion. But many in the church are not at all pleased about his influence. He is depicted4 as a man who carelessly pushed people into “accepting Christ” when they were spiritually unready, a man who produced an enormous number of spurious converts, and a man who so thoroughly devastated the already “burned over district” with his so-called “revivals” that there has never been a spiritual awakening in that region again. To them, it was just a waste of time.

ConclusionFortunately, Finney left behind a permanent record not only of his

life, but also of his struggles to adjust the truths of Christianity into such a harmonious system of thought that no violence should be done to the dictates of reason. This, as he often said, is the great aim of his life. In attempting the work, he had the important advantage of viewing everything from his own deep spiritual experience, and from wide practical contact with the world. The tribute which Prof. Charles Hodge, in his review of the volumes on "Systematic Theology," paid to Finney's intellect, is striking, and to a good degree just, though the evident purpose of the praise was to establish a solid ground from which to demonstrate

3 Ibid., pg. 1134 Eds., Carry, W. Patrick and Lienhard, T. Joseph, Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians, Massachusetts, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2002, pg. 193

5

the absurdity of the positions maintained by the New School Calvinists of his time. By exalting the logical consistency of Finney, Hodge skillfully aimed to commit the unwilling men to Finney's conclusions, and so to lead them to disavow his premises and give up their whole system. This aim, however, did not prevent the Princeton professor, Charles Grandison Finney who was called to eternity on the 16th of August, 1875 from speaking the truth when he was alive.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Wessel, Helen. The autobiography of Charles G. Finney, Minnesota, Bethany Fellowship, Inc. 1977Winkie, Pratney. Revival, Whitaker House, Springdale, PA, 1983Charles G. Finney, Revival Lectures, Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell, 1993Eds., Carry, W. Patrick and Lienhard, T. Joseph, Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians, Massachusetts, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2002.Hambrick-Stowe, Charles E., Charles G. Finney and the Spirit of American Evangelicalism, Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1996.Source: Internet, http://www.gospeltruth.netSource: Microsoft Encarta Dictionary Software, 2006/7. Microsoft Corporation. Source: Internet, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_G._Finney Source: Internet, http://truthinheart.com/EarlyOberlincd/cd/Finney/Biography/finneybi.htm

WILLIAM BOOTH

Introduction (Birth)

6

William Booth, an English boy who became not just a religious leader but he also founded one of the World’s respected Christian Organization known as the Salvation Army. He was born in 1829 in Nottingham, England. His father was wealthy by the standards of the time, but the sad thing was that poverty struck the family as a result of his father’s poor investment. In 1842, Samuel Booth, who by then was bankrupt, could no longer afford his son's school fees, and 13 year-old William Booth was apprenticed to a pawnbroker. Sadly enough the father died Later that same he started his apprenticeship. When his training ended in 1848, Booth spent a year looking in vain for more suitable work than pawn-broking, which he disliked.

Early life and EducationWilliam as a matter of fact went trough a very difficult time in his

childhood days because of lack of proper support. A few years into his apprenticeship Booth was converted to Christianity. When he realized that there was no hope else where, he decided to work hard on his own to make something good out of his life. He however read extensively and trained himself privately in writing and in speech. William was three years older than Charles G. Finney when he began his evangelistic career. He subsequently traveled through England as a lay preacher of the Methodist New Connection Church. He tried to continue lay preaching in London, but the small amount of preaching work that came his way frustrated him, and so he resigned as a lay preacher in 1861.5 He continued his ministry independently and started to organize open-air crusades in the streets of London.

The Christian Mission (The Salvation Army)In of 1855 he got married to Catherine Mumford who later

became a very vibrant preacher and an advocate of Female ministry.6

Booth and his wife, as response to the great commission in the gospel of Mark 16:15, in 1865, they decided to focus on the agenda of propagating the Christian faith and to furnish spiritual and material aid to needy persons. They strategically came out with this idea to draw the attention of the masses to the message of the gospel of Christ. It is inline with this

5 Eds., Carry, W. Patrick and Lienhard, T. Joseph, Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians, Massachusetts, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2002, pg. 86 6 Ibid., 86

7

aim that they founded the Christian Mission in London, which in 1878 became known as the Salvation Army. Booth’s eagerness to do something to change the life of the poor people attracted the attention of Mr. Samuel Morley who was not even a relation to promise William £100 a year towards his projects. The Organization was greeted with riotous demonstrations on their first appearances in the streets and members were repeatedly arrested for disturbing the peace. Notwithstanding the obstacles they faced, work progressed and branches were established in all parts of the world, with the international headquarters in London. The Organization became known worldwide for being one of the largest distributors of humanitarian aid.

In 1891 Booth published a controversial book about the plight of the poor in England called ‘In Darkest England and the Way Out’. In it he outlined a programme to help the poor and needy, something he termed ‘The Cab Horse Charter’, claiming that in England, cab horses were better cared for than millions of the poorest people. He faced a very serious opposition to this move but he went ahead to put his program into action. His ideas had caught the mind's eye of several leading businessmen; and they helped to finance the project. The first thing to be set up was a labour bureau to help people find work. He purchased a farm where the long term unemployed could be retrained for work; a bank was set up to make small loans for workers to buy tools; and a missing persons bureau was started. It will like to emphasize categorically that Booth was a man of vision. He knew what he wanted to achieve and therefore worked his heart out to achieve it. It is no wonder that his book sold 200,000 copies in the first year it came out of print.

Death and Life FulfillmentBooth lived to the ripe age of 83. He was a Christian activist who

saw his twin objectives as the saving of lost souls and righting the social injustices of his time. He never lost his zeal for the Gospel, his love of his Lord or his genuine compassion for the poor. This was clearly shown during one of his last public address given on May 9th 1912, I quote “While women weep as they do now, I’ll fight; while little children go hungry as they do now, I’ll fight; while men go to prison, in and out, in and out, as they do now, I’ll fight; while there is a drunkard left, while there is a poor lost girl on the streets, while there remains one dark soul

8

without the light of God, I’ll fight – I’ll fight to the very end”. It is also on record that, nine years after its publication The Salvation Army had served 27 million cheap meals, lodged 11 million homeless people, traced 18,000 missing persons and found jobs for 9,000 unemployed people.

ConclusionThis is a perfect evidence of a man who had a very poor beginning

but rose to achieve a lot just because he did not allow his poor childhood circumstances to deter him from making it in life. Looking at the number of people who got saved through the work of William Booth who had a very rough beginning, then I personally can’t blame anybody if I’m not able to go beyond Booth’s level.

. BIBLIOGRAPHYWinkie, Pratney. Revival, Whitaker House, Springdale, PA, 1983Eds., Carry, W. Patrick and Lienhard, T. Joseph, Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians, Massachusetts, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2002.Source: Internet, http://www.stpetersnottingham.org/heroes/booth.htmSource: Internet, http://www.gospeltruth.netSource: Internet, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_BoothSource: Microsoft Encarta Dictionary, 2006/7. Microsoft Corporation. Source: Internet, http://www.acton.org/publicat/randl/liberal.php.

JOHN COURTNEY MURRAY

Introduction(Childhood and Education)John Courtney (J.C), a Jesuit theologian, had a very good

beginning, unlike Charles Finney and William Booth who really struggled right from their childhood. He was born in New York City in September 19047 to Michael John Murray, a lawyer, and Margaret Courtney. Murray.

7 Eds., Carry, W. Patrick and Lienhard, T. Joseph, Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians, Massachusetts, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2002, pg. 372

9

J.C. joined the New York province of the Society of Jesus in 1920. After completing courses in philosophical and classical studies, he was awarded a B.A. and M.A honors in 1926, and 27 respectively at Boston College. He was appointed as a lecturer in the field of Latin and English literature at the Ateneo de Manila, Philippines. J.C. returned to the United States to pursue a theological course at the Woodstock College, Maryland from 1930 to1934.

CareerHe was ordained a Roman Catholic priest in 1933. At this point in

John’s life most of his friends thought that everything concerning education is over. But the die hard educational minded John Courtney pursued further studies at the Gregorian University, Rome. In 1937 he completed a doctorate in sacred theology with a specialization in the doctrines of grace and the Trinity. Returning to Woodstock, he taught Catholic Trinitarian theology. John’s higher level of education and Management skill he exhibited, he assumed editorship of the Jesuit journal, Theological Studies in1941.            Despite the heavily theoretical bent of his training and teaching, Murray was drawn into the complex religious tensions of American public life. As a representative of the U.S. Catholic bishops, he helped draft and promote the 1943 “Declaration on World Peace,” an interfaith statement of principles for postwar reconstruction, which led to his study of lay religious education and social action. In 1950, as a consultant to the religious affairs section of the Allied High, Murray successfully recommended a close constitutional arrangement between the restored German state and churches. He collaborated with Robert M. MacIver of Columbia University in a project on academic freedom and religious education in public universities, during which he deepened his own understanding of American Constitutional law, arguing for tax aid to private schools and for ultimately sympathetic exposure to the faiths of the American people within public schools.

Throughout his public life, several bishops consulted Murray on legal issues such as censorship and birth control, leading him to recommend against coercive Catholic boycotts of pornographic literature and against Catholic opposition to the repeal of a Massachusetts law that had outlawed the sale or use of artificial contraceptives. In each case, Murray argued that participation in substantive public arguments offered

10

better a school of public virtue than did simple appeals to civic coercion. In the submitting of moral opinions to public argument, he maintained, Americans might both deepen their moral commitments and preserve the ‘genius’ of American freedoms.

Encounter with the Catholicism Two sets of Catholic doctrines complicated Murray’s public

involvement. First, Catholics claimed that there was no salvation outside the church and that Catholic teaching was socially necessary. In 1940 Murray himself had argued that America could "rescue from its deep abasement the essential idea upon which a democratic culture must be erected—the idea of the dignity of human nature and of man's spiritual freedom” only by adopting the doctrines of the incarnation, the Trinity, and the cross.

By 1944, however, he allowed that agreement on philosophical premises and natural theism would be sufficient for cooperation in the immense task of postwar reconstruction. His endorsement of full cooperation with other religious sects led to Catholic complaints that he was endangering American Catholic faith. This is just because many Catholics recommended minimal cooperation with non-Catholics for fear that lay Catholic faith would be weakened.

Secondly, Catholic doctrine on church/state relations also encouraged public distrust of a growing American Catholic minority. During centuries of European religious conflict, the church urged Catholics, if they could, to establish Catholicism as their sole, state-sponsored religion and to suppress public expressions of non-Catholic and atheistic beliefs. However Murray was of a different opinion. He realized that if care is not taking, it will create tension among themselves which will finally result in political intolerance.  Murray and The Vatican

 John continued to submit religious liberty manuscripts privately to Rome, all of which were rejected.8 When finally invited to the second session of Vatican Council II in1963. He drafted the third and fourth versions of what eventually became the conciliar endorsement of religious freedom, Dignitatis humanae personae in1965. After the council 8 Eds., Carry, W. Patrick and Lienhard, T. Joseph, Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians, Massachusetts, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2002, pg. 373

11

he continued writing on the issue, stating that the arguments offered by the final decree were inadequate, though the affirmation of religious freedom was undeniable.             At that time Murray turned to questions of how his church might arrive at new theological doctrines. He argued that, if Catholics were to arrive at new truths about God, they would have to do so in conversation “on a footing of equality” with non-Catholics and atheists. He suggested restructuring his church, which over the last two centuries had developed its notion of authority at the expense of the bonds of love that more foundationally ought to define Christian living.  Conclusion

Since his death, writers have appealed to Murray's work for its theory of law and its insistence on a closer interplay between America's religious commitments and civic life. Amid fears of cultural anarchy, attention has focused on his mid-1960s claim that diverse religious communities can and must begin in appreciation of the good found in each community. That Murray drew from his own Catholic tradition a consistent basis for an appreciation of God's action beyond the Catholic community suggests to both Catholic and non-Catholic scholars the possibility of constructively bringing diverse, rich theological sources to public debates. This to me must be the goal of every believer. I stand to be corrected.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Eds., Carry, W. Patrick and Lienhard, T. Joseph, Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians, Massachusetts, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2002.Hooper, Leon, Eds., Garraty, A. John and Carnes, C. Mark, Murray Biography, S.J.. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999Source: Internet, http://www.stpetersnottingham.org/heroes/booth.htmSource: Internet, http://www.gospeltruth.netSource: Microsoft Encarta Dictionary, 2006/7. Microsoft Corporation. Source: Internet, http://www.acton.org/publicat/randl/liberal.php.Source: Internet, http://www.georgetown.edu/users/jlh3/Murray/MURBIO.4.htm

12

EMUZEBOOTH/ SEYMOUR/ WILBERFORCE

INTRODUCTION

In this essay on people profile in modern Christian history, I will look at three of them which includes William Booth: the founder of Salvation Army, William Seymour: the catalyst of Pentecost and pastor of Azusa street revival, and William Wilberforce: the man behind the Abolition of the slave Trade. We shall take a brief look into their biography, impact in their society and the resultant effect on the world today.

WILLIAM BOOTH AND THE SALVATION ARMY

William Booth, the

founder of the Salvation Army was born in April 10th 1829 in Nottingham. He married Catherine Mumford on 16 th June 1885 at Stockwell New Chapel, and the both had eight children.

13

He was converted to Christianity under the Methodist at the age of fifteen and he began street preaching and standing up for justice. He lost his job at a pawnbroker’s shop in Walworth for refusing to work on Sunday. Eventually in 1849, he moved to London to gain employment and there he began open-air preaching at kennington common. Booth developed strong views on the role of church ministers believing they should be loosing the chains of injustice, freeing the captive and oppressed, sharing food and home, clothing the naked and carrying out family responsibilities.His fire filled preaching was too much for his local Methodist church that withdrew his membership and kicked him out. He later served as a local Methodist pastor of a large church in Gateshead and was released afterward as an itinerant evangelist.

Booth and Catherine first ministered revival at Hayle in Cornwall, which lasted eighteen months and about 7,000 Cornishmen, were converted. He was invited to take some tent meetings in London and it was there he walked down London’s famous mile End road where he discovered his major calling in life as he saw the lives the poor were leading. Booth began to focus on pubs and gin shops, the engine rooms of London sin, of which there were over 100,000. As most of the established churches would not accept his converts, he kept them and discipled them himself.

In 1865, William and Catharine founded the Christian Mission in London East End. The mission was reorganized in 1878 along military lines with the preachers known as officers and Booth as general and the group name became Salvation Army. Persecution grew along with the Salvation Army’s success, as many were determined to intimidate the movement and crush it. Some of the opposition came from the Skeleton Army, launch directly to oppose and destroy the work of Booth and was funded by breweries and pub owners.

The Salvation Army not only preached the gospel to the poor, but also ministered to their social needs. Booth lobbied parliament and

14

in 1885, the Salvation Army won a victory causing legislation to be passed to stop trafficking of young ladies for prostitution and ruling that the age of consent for sexual intercourse was to be sixteen.Shelters were set up for homeless and destitute for sleeping and washing. Eating-houses were set up for the poor to have decent meals at low cost.Gradually opinion on William Booth’s activities changed. He was made a freeman of London and granted an honorary degree from Oxford University and in 1902 was invited to attend the coronation of Edward V11. He died in august 20 th, 1912 at the age of eighty-three. His eldest son Bramwell William became the leader of Salvation Army.

The Salvation Army is one of the most respected Christian organizations in the world today, operating in 102 countries worldwide. Booth lived his life a warrior against sin and it’s subsequent effects on society. Today most commendable charities try to deal with external social problem such as feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, protecting the children, rehabilitating prisoners. Booth also did these things, but never lost his main focus on the source of all social evil: the unconverted heart of man. Booth left a legacy for the church.

15

WILLIAM J. SEYMOUR “THE CATALYST OF PENTECOST”

William J. Seymour was the leader of the Azusa Street revival, a one-eyed Africa-American preacher born on may 2nd 1870 in Centerville in Louisiana to Sermon and Phyllis Seymour, who raised him as a Baptist. They had only been freed from slavery a few years earlier, so William was born into a world of horrible racial violence and segregation even in the church. He found his identity only in Jesus Christ and was said to be a very sensitive, high spirited youth and hungry for the truth of God’s word.At the age of twenty-five, he moved to Cincinnati, Ohio where he met holiness teaching through Martin Wells Knapp’s God Revivalist Movement and Daniel s Warner’s of the Evening Light Saint where he received the call into the ministry after a terrible illness that left him blindness in his left eye.He later moved to Houston where he met Mrs. Farrow who introduce him to study in Charles Perham bible school where student taught baptism in the holy spirit. In 1906 Seymour arrived in Los Angeles, where he pastured a church teaching the baptism of the holy spirit with evidence of speaking in tongues. Though the journey didn’t went as planned, he started a prayer meeting at the home of Richard and Ruth Asbury at 214 bonnie brae street. Soon several individual were baptized with the holy spirit including Seymour. The movement soon increased and services relocated to 312 Azusa street. During the peak of the Azusa street meeting he married Jennie Evans Moore in 1908.

16

The result was the Azusa street revival. Seymour not only rejected the existing racial barriers in favor of "unity in Christ", he also rejected the then almost-universal barriers to women in any form of church leadership. This revival meeting extended from 1906 until 1909, and became the subject of intense investigation by more mainstream Protestants. Some left feeling that Seymour's views were heresy, while others accepted his teachings and returned to their own congregations to expound them. The resulting movement became widely known as "Pentecostalism", likening it to the manifestations of the Holy Spirit recorded as occurring in the first two chapters of Acts as occurring from the day of the Feast of Pentecost onwards.

Most of the current charismatic groups can claim some lineage linking them to the Azusa Street Revival and William Seymour. While the movement was largely to fracture along racial lines within a decade, the splits were in some ways perhaps less deep than the vast divide that seems often to separate many white religious denominations from their black counterparts. Probably the deepest split in the Pentecostal movement today is not racial, but rather between Trinitarian and "Jesus only" theologies.The current worldwide Pentecostal and charismatic movements are generally agreed to have been in part outgrowths of Seymour's ministry and the Azusa Street Revival.William Seymour died of a heart attack in 1922. Like Seymour 100 years ago, we need to rediscover the power and potential of being in the Holy Spirit for the purpose of mission. The essential for Europe is a fresh primitive Pentecostal move that overcomes opposition through the demonstration of Holy Ghost power.

17

WILLIAM WILBERFORCE AND THE ABOLITION OF SLAVE TRADE

William Wilberforce, was born into a wealthy family in Hull in 1759. William's father died when he was 8 years old and for a time was brought up by an uncle and aunt, before being called home by his mother for nearly becoming a Methodist. Influenced by William Pitt (a future prime minister) he developed his career in politics.At the age of 21, Wilberforce gained a seat in the house as MP for Hull.

In 1784 Wilberforce was converted to the Christian faith, through his friend Isaac Milner. As a result of this conversion, Wilberforce became interested in social reform through the encouragement of John Newton, and was eventually approached by Sir and Lady Middleton, to use his power as an MP to bring an end to the slave trade. After months of planning, on 12 may 1789, he made his first major speech on the subject of abolition in the House of Commons, in which he reasoned that the trade was morally reprehensible and an issue of natural justice. Drawing on Clarkson’s evidence, he described in detail the appalling conditions in which slaves traveled from Africa in the middle passage, and argued that abolishing the trade would also bring an improvement to the conditions of existing

18

slaves in the West Indies. He put forward twelve propositions for abolition.

However, Wilberforce was opposed to extending the franchise to working class reformers. He also led the establishment of the Society for Suppression of vice and Encouragement of Religion to curb political aspiration and support for the French Revolution. In January 1790, Wilberforce succeeded in gaining approval for a Parliamentary select committee to consider the slave trade, and to examine the vast quantity of evidence, which he put forward.In April 1791, Wilberforce introduced the first parliamentary bill to abolish the slave trade, which was easily defeated by 163 votes to 88. Wilberforce tried many tactics, with the vision of total emancipation of slaves the ultimate goal. William Wilberforce was able to keep the cause before parliament. Finally, on 25 th march 1807, the bill for the Abolition of the slave trade became law, by a majority of 283 to 16.He was also particularly interested in Christian mission to India, his work made missions to India a part of the east India trading company charter.On the 26th of July 1833, he received news that Abolition of slavery had become law and he died three days later.

Bibliography

Atkinson, Bruce. Land of Hope and Glory British Revival through the Ages. London: Dovewell Publication 2003.Hills, Jonathan. New Lion Handbook: the history of Christianity. (Oxford: lion Hudson plc)2007. www.spartacus. schoolnet .co.uk/Rebooth.htm l

Liardon, Roberts. God’s Generals (Tulsa: Albury Publishing) 1996.Revival Times. London and the world for Christ (London: Dovewell Publishing vol 8 issue 6 June 2006).www.ctlibrary.com/4398www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/william_seymour

Revival Times. London and the world for Christ (London: Dovewell Publishing vol 9 issue 3 March 2007).www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/REwilberforce.htm

19

S.LARIWHITEFIELD/ BOOTH/ JONATHAN EDWARDS

1 INTRODUCTIONIn this essay I am going to examine the life history of the above modern church fathers and their contribution to the propagation of the gospel as well as their impact to the people in their communities.

2 LIFE HISTORY GEORGE WHITEFIELD

20

George Whitefield was born on December 16th1714 at the Bell Inn, Gloucester. He was very young when his father died. “When George was a child of two, however, his father passed away”. i He was part of the Great Awakening movement of Christian revivals. He was initially educated at the mission school. “He attended a school…associated with Gloucester cathedral”ii. He was very bright and often asked to give speeches on behave of the school. “After the age of twelve he was enrolled at the school…to make speeches before the city council when it visited the school” iii At the point in time, he decided to stop schooling due to his mothers circumstance. “Accordingly, by the time George was fifteen, he felt his mother’s circumstance…and he told her he wanted to leave school and assist the Inn”iv Though he did not get it easily in terms of education. He manages to make it by the end of it. “He was educated at the crypt school, Gloucester, and Pembroke College, Oxford “B.A’. Pembroke Coll., Oxford Univ., 1736”v. Whitefield did not find it ease during his higher education because his mother was a widow. “Because Whitefield came from a poor background, he did not have the means to pay for his tuition. He therefore entered Oxford as a servitor, the lowest rank of students at Oxford. In return for free tuition, he was assigned as a servant to a number of higher ranked students. His duties would include waking them in the morning, polishing their shoes; carrying their books and even doing their coursework (see Dallimore)”vi.At the University, he joined a club called 'Holy Club’. “He was part of the brothers, John Wesley and Charles Wesley.’Holy Club' at Oxford University”vii.

3 WORK AND LASTING IMPACT OF GEORGE WHITEFIELD

i ARNOLD A. DALLIMORE, GEORGE WHITEFIELD, EVANGELIST OF THE 18-CENTURY WAKEMAN TRUST PUBLISHING 1990 P12ii IBID 12iii IBID 12iv IBID 12v PATRICK W. CAREY, BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS P 532vi http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Whitefield date visited: 23/3/07 15:30vii IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

21

Whitefield’s works and impacts can be grouped into two; ministerial and social worksThe passion George had for the lord developed from his childhood. “But when asked by one of the congregation what business he would undertake, he replied ‘A minister’. He still, however, held to the hope of attending Oxford…and he would be a minister, he composed sermons in the evening”viii. God lifted him up and he eventually became great evangelist in the eightieth century. “Whitefield was more an eighteenth-century evangelist than a theologian”ix

George carried out the activities of God in his home town and other countries as well. “Whitefield preached his first sermon in the Crypt Church in his home town of Gloucester. “ In 1738, he went to America, becoming parish priest of Savannah, Georgia. Returning home in the following year, he resumed his evangelistic activities, with open-air homilies when other denominations' churches refused to admit him”x

During his ministry, three churches were planted in England; Bristol ‘Moor fields Tabernacle’ and ‘Nottingham Court Road Chapel’. “Three churches were established in England in his name: one in Bristol and two others, the ‘Moor fields Tabernacle’ and the ‘Nottingham Court Road Chapel’, in London. He had also founded a school, commonly known as ‘The log college for the training of men for the ministry”xi.Whitefield became a chaplain to Salina. “Whitefield acted as chaplain to Salina… and many of these chapels were built in the English counties and Wales, and one was erected in London – the Spa Fields Chapel”xii George’s heart for the society can never over look. He established Orphanage house in Georgia for the poor in the community. He called the orphanage house Bethesda, biblically the term meaning viii ARNOLD A. DALLIMORE, GEORGE WHITEFIELD, EVANGELIST OF THE 18-CENTURY, WAKEMAN TRUST PUBLISHING 1990 P 15ix PATRICK W. CAREY, BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS ,HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS 2002 P531x ? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Whitefield date visited: 23/3/07 15:30? PATRICK W. CAREY, BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS P 532xi http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Whitefield date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xii IBID

22

a house of mercy. His aim was not only providing house for homeless or the poor but to give them good education and also train those that could not make it to school in different areas for them to make and meet in future. “The girls were to learn weaving and sewing, and the boy’s carpentry and farming”xiii. Whitefield also campaigned against slavery “the revival encourages a person for social justice. The campaign to abolish from British colonies led people of evangelical conversion. Whitefield abolished contributed to the abolishing of slave trade xivWhitfield was attempted to assist in further way. In his journal “he wrote …for the institution for those poor creatures. In those days its was frequently asked does the Negro have a soul? And Whitefield gave…. The black people were not different from others.”xv His effort really contributed positively to the abolishment of slave trade.

4 LIFE HISTORY OF WILLIAM BOOTH

William Booth the founder of Salvation Army was born on 10th April, 1829 in England; Seaton, Nottingham currently known as number twelve not intone place. “William booth was born in Nottingham in 1829 in

xiii IBIDxivhtt.//www.stepersnothing.org/heroes/boothm.htm date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xv http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_booth date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

23

…, now preserved as No 12 Not intone place”xvi Samuel Booth and Catherine Booth were his parents.Due to financial difficulty, William dropped out from school and found himself in the apprenticeship with pawnbrokers. “In 1842, Samuel Booth who by then was bankrupt, could no longer afford his son’s school fees and…was apprenticed to a pawnbroker”xvii

William converted to Christianity during his apprenticeship. After his apprenticeship, he moved to London to look for a job. In London, he decided to continue with his ordinary Christian way of preaching but was further up with inadequately. “Booth tried to continue lay preaching in London, but the…and took to open air evangelising on the streets and on Kennington”xviii

Booth became part of the Reform Union in 1851 and stopped pawn broking work and became a full time pastor at Infield chapel in Clapham. “In 1851 Booth joined the Reformers (Wesleyan Reform Union), and …became full time preacher at their headquarters at Infield chapel in Clapham”xix He was also assigned to become the reformers’ minister at Spalding in Lincolnshire on 1853. Though he became a Methodist new connexion minister, he was unhappy because of his educational level. “His lack of education was preventing him form becoming Wesleyan one”xx

Booth resigned as the minister of the Methodist new connexion after the rejection of his request as a full time evangelist. He was worried and decided to give up preaching entirely. The support and encouragement from his wife and the two missionaries in east London supported him to carry on the work of God.5 WORKS AND LASTING IMPACT OF WILLIAM BOOTHThe work and the lasting impact of William Booth can be grouped into twoHis aim of spreading the gospelThe passion William Booth Had in spreading the gospel of God had compelled him and his wife to open Christian Revival Society in Eats End of London on 1865. That society became a fertile ground to propagate the gospel. They meet every evening and on xvi IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xvii IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xviii htt.//www.stepersnothing.org/heroes/booth.htm date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xix http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_booth date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xx htt.//www.stepersnothing.org/heroes/booth.htm date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

24

Sundays. Their main aims for the meetings were to offer repentance, salvation and Christian ethics to the poorest and the needy including the alcoholics, criminals and prostitutes. In the process of the meeting, they changed the name The Christian Revival Society to; The Christian mission. Booth and his participant did self sacrificial job. “Booth and his followers practiced what they preached and performed self sacrificing Christian and… for their Christian ministry work”xxi. In other to catch the attention of the public, the name Christian ministry work was changed to the Salvation Army in 1878.During that time, their colour, musical work etc sound military. William became the general “he became the “general” and his other ministers were given appropriate ranges as “officers”xxii. Their wonderful banner; red, blue and gold with a sun symbol portrays their motto “blood and fire” “a banner was devised in red, blue and gold with a sun symbol and the motto blood and fire (the blood is the blood of Christ and fire is the fire of the holy spirit)”xxiii The banner attracted people and that helped them in spreading the gospel

William spread his gospel to other countries. “In the early 1880s, operations were extended to other countries, notably the US, France, Switzerland, Sweden, and others, and to most of the countries of the British Empire: Australia, Canada, India, South Africa, New Zealand, Jamaica, etc”xxiv

His care for community/ society.William’s wonderful works and his published books really helped in England and other countries. “During his lifetime, William Booth established Army work in 58 countries and colonies, travelling extensively and holding “salvation meetings. His book In Darkest England and the Way Out not only became a bestseller after its 1890 release, it set the foundation for the Army’s modern social welfare schemes.”xxv

xxi http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_booth date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xxii IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xxiii IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xxiv IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xxv IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

25

Booth contributed tremendously to help the poor and the needy in the society. Solving their problems helped him to propagate his gospel effectively. “And he proposed a strategy to apply The Christian Gospel and work to the problems… so that urban poor can be trained in agriculture, training centres for perspective emigrants, and homes for fallen women and released prisoners, aid for the poor, help for alcoholic. He also lays down schemes for poor men’s lawyers, banks, clinics, industrial schools and even a seaside resort. He says that if the state fails to meet its social obligations it will be the task of each Christian to step into the breach”xxvi

6 LIFE HISTORIES OF JONATHANEDWARDS

xxvii

xxvi IBIN date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xxvii DR TIM DOWLEY,LIONHAND BOOB, THE HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY LION PUBLISHING, 1990 P 452

26

Jonathan Edwards the son of Timothy Edwards and Esther Stoddard was born on 5th of October 1703 at East Windsor Connecticut. Edwards was the fifth son of the eleven children.Jonathan had good education due to the initial training his father gave to him. In 1716 he entered Yale College to study natural science. He graduated in 1720 and spent two years studying theology. After that, Edwards became a Presbyterian minister in New York City and senior tutor at Yale College in 1224. The date in which Jonathan was ordained as a minister at the congregational church Northampton is not certain. “According to Lion Hand Book, the history and Christianity, Edwards became a pastor in congregational church Northampton in 1727xxviii”. “In 1727, too, he became the associate pastor of the congregational church at Northampton”xxix. Whiles the biographical dictionary of Christian Theologian also “explains that he became an ordained pastor of congregational church at Northampton in 1726”xxx. He also became xxxithe president in the college and New Jersey in 1758. Jonathan Edwards was a married man with three sons and eight daughters. He died on the 22nd march 1758.

7 WORKS AND LASTING IMPACT OF JONATHAN EDWORDS Edwards was known as a colonial American Congregational preacher, theologian missionary to his country. Jonathan was one of the greatest and prominent theologian and revivalist. He had a fantastic broad work. His publications such as sinners in the hands of an angry God, the distinguishing marks of the work of the Holy Spirit of God, reality of spiritual light and so on went a long way to the development of Christianity. He is often associated with his defence of Calvinist Theology and puritan heritage. He was also referred to as the important and creative American theologian in eighteenth century Christianity.xxviii IBID P 452 ? PATRICK W. CAREY, BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS ,HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS 2002 P 173? Jonathan Edwards_Wikipedia.the free encyclopedia date visited: 23/3/07 15:30xxix

xxx PATRICK W. CAREY, BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS ,HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS 2002 P 173xxxi Jonathan Edwards_Wikipedia.the free encyclopedia date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

27

Jonathan played a major role in the great awakening of the early 1740s. “Great Awakening, distinctively under the leadership of Edwards”xxxii. Edwards, being an evangelical pastor and theologian, defended Christianity by publishing a work on religious experience that really had influence on American thinkers and religious tradition. His aim was to fight the challenging coming from puritan tradition, not philosophical orientation from Scottish and British enlightenment in those days.“A Treatise Concerning Religious Affections (1746) was Edwards’ attempt to defend religious revivals and appeals to religious affections against the Armenian.

The treatise, however, was also critical of those within the Awakening whose enthusiasm for the revival produced an anti-intellectual form of spiritualism that tended to degrade the true religion. In the end, the Treatise was an attempt to define clearly the nature and biblical signs of an authentic religious experience”xxxiii.

ConclusionThese prominent modern church fathers did a good job for the lord. Their care for the society is what I think some ministers of today

xxxii IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

xxxiiiBIBILOGRAPHY CAREY W. BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS DALLIMORE A, GEORGE WHITEFIELD, EVANGELIST OF THE 18-CENTURY WAKEMAN TRUST PUBLISHING 1990DR TIM DOWLEY, LION HAND BOOK, THE HISTORY OF CHIRSTIANITY.LION PUBLISHING 1990 EDWARDS J ON REVIVAL,BANNER OF TRUTH 1999 NICHOLS J. JONATHAN EDWARDS, A GUILD FOUR OF HIS LIFE AND THOUGHT, P AND R PUBLISHING,2001, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Whitefield date visited: 23/3/07 15:30http://www.stpetersnottingham.org/heroes/booth.htm date visited: 23/3/07 15:30Jonathan Edwards_Wikipedia.the free encyclopedia date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_booth date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

28

must emulate. Most ministers of today do not care about the society and even members of their congregation, yet they use the resources of the church for their own interest. If these people and others would have thought of themselves only, there would not have been so many churches worldwide today. Therefore as men and women of God, let emulate what our early church fathers did and not thinking about our interest alone.

ENDNOTES ARNOLD A. DALLIMORE, GEORGE WHITEFIELD, EVANGELIST OF THE 18-CENTURY WAKEMAN TRUST PUBLISHING 1990 P12 IBID 12 IBID 12 IBID 12 PATRICK W. CAREY, BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS P 532 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Whitefield date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 ARNOLD A. DALLIMORE, GEORGE WHITEFIELD, EVANGELIST OF THE 18-CENTURY, WAKEMAN TRUST PUBLISHING 1990 P 15 PATRICK W. CAREY, BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS ,HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS 2002 P531 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Whitefield date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 PATRICK W. CAREY, BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS P 532 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Whitefield date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 IBID IBIDhtt.//www.stepersnothing.org/heroes/boothm.htm date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_booth date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 htt.//www.stepersnothing.org/heroes/booth.htm date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_booth date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 htt.//www.stepersnothing.org/heroes/booth.htm date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_booth date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30 IBIN date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

29

DR TIM DOWLEY,LIONHAND BOOB, THE HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY LION PUBLISHING, 1990 P 452 IBID P 452 PATRICK W. CAREY, BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS ,HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS 2002 P 173 Jonathan Edwards_Wikipedia.the free encyclopedia date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

PATRICK W. CAREY, BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS ,HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS 2002 P 173 Jonathan Edwards_Wikipedia.the free encyclopedia date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

IBID date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

BIBILOGRAPHY CAREY W. BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF CHRISTIAN THEOLOGIANS HENDRICKSON PUBLISHERS DALLIMORE A, GEORGE WHITEFIELD, EVANGELIST OF THE 18-CENTURY WAKEMAN TRUST PUBLISHING 1990DR TIM DOWLEY, LION HAND BOOK, THE HISTORY OF CHIRSTIANITY.LION PUBLISHING 1990 EDWARDS J ON REVIVAL, BANNER OF TRUTH 1999 NICHOLS J. JONATHAN EDWARDS, A GUILD FOUR OF HIS LIFE AND THOUGHT, P AND R PUBLISHING,2001, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Whitefield date visited: 23/3/07 15:30http://www.stpetersnottingham.org/heroes/booth.htm date visited: 23/3/07 15:30Jonathan Edwards_Wikipedia.the free encyclopedia date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_booth date visited: 23/3/07 15:30

30