1533 HT: Diana Severance When the apostle Paul escaped Damascus by being lowered over the wall in a basket it was not the last time a Christian evangelist would dramatically flee from persecution. On this day, November 2, in 1533, John Calvin made a similar thrilling escape from Paris. A devout Catholic, Calvin studied law at the…
After a break of a few weeks, Paul James-Griffiths of Christian Heritage Edinburgh is back with his weekly inspirational and informative articles on influential Scots in Church History and Missions. In mission work some people are gifted at founding a ministry; others at developing that ministry. Such was the case with Revd John Anderson who pioneered…
1863 HT: Dan Graves Swiss-born Henry Dunant needed water rights for a business venture in French-controlled Algeria. The person who could get him those rights was Napoleon III. The only problem was, Napoleon III was on the battlefield in Italy. Dunant did not let that deter him, but set out for Napoleon’s headquarters at Solferino…
1787 HT: Christianity History Institute William Wilberforce is remembered as a vocal opponent of the slave trade, who worked tirelessly in the British parliament to end the trade. He also championed many good causes and spearheaded reform movements in England and elsewhere. He was twenty-seven years old when he recognized the desperate need to become that…
Eighteenth century England produced many excellent hymnwriters whose hymns are still sung today — Isaac Watts, Charles Wesley, and the Puritan Philip Doddridge, who died on this day, October 26, 1751. Philip Doddridge was born in London, England on June 26, 1702, the youngest of twenty children. His health was so poor when he was born…
1803 HT: Natalie Tunbridge Henry Martyn, later to become a remarkable missionary, is ordained and given charge of a church at Lolworth, Cambridgeshire, England. The missionary life of Henry Martyn is one of single-minded perseverance to obey the call of God, laborious allegiance to the Word of God, and most importantly, a passionate love for…
1856 HT: Christianity.com London was all astir with talk of the young preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon. He lacked the flowery, elaborate sentences of most preachers, but his simple directness spoke to the hearts of his audience. His passion for truth was as strong as the older Puritans he loved and studied, yet there was nothing stale…
1760 HT: Dan Graves TO OUTWARD APPEARANCES, John Fletcher was a godly young man. From his childhood days in Switzerland, he had been attentive to God’s word and tender of conscience. He had even won an award from his professors for an essay on godliness. Yet, when he was old enough to choose a profession,…
1555 HT: christianity.com Queen Mary ascended the throne of England in 1553. In subsequent years, she had at least two hundred people put to death (often by fire) for their religious convictions. To history she became known as “Bloody Mary,” although, in truth, she killed far fewer people per year than her brutal father. It…
1894 Rainisoalambo, a diviner on Madagascar, throws away all his amulets and apparatus of divination. The night before, wretched with ulcers, he had called out to the God of Norwegian missionaries and sensed he must get rid of his sorcerous props. Doing so today, he immediately feels a weight lift off him. He knows that…