Henry Clay Morrison (March 10, 1857 — March 24, 1942) was a Methodist evangelist, editor, and president of Asbury College. He is not to be confused with Henry Clay Morrison (b. May 30, 1842), a Methodist bishop from Tennessee.

Family

Morrison was born in

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

, Trimble County, Kentucky. His parents died when he was very young, and he was reared by his paternal grandfather in

Barren County Barren County is a county located in the south-central portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,485. Its county seat is Glasgow. The county was founded on December 20, 1798, from parts of Warren and G ...

Evangelist

Morrison was converted at the age of 13 in a Methodist revival at the Boyd's Creek Meetinghouse near

Glasgow, Kentucky Glasgow is a home rule-class city in Barren County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. Glasgow is the principal city of the Glasgow micropolitan area, which comprises Barren and Metcalfe counties. The population was 14,028 ...

. Soon after he felt a call to the ministry. He was licensed to preach at the age of 19 and began his work as circuit rider and station pastor. In 1890 Morrison left the pastorate and moved into evangelism. He also began editing a religious publication called ''The Old Methodist'', which later became the widely read ''Pentecostal Herald''. Morrison's reputation as a Methodist evangelist grew rapidly from his home state of Kentucky to most other states and many foreign countries. The camp meeting became one of his favorite evangelistic venues, and throughout the rest of his life Morrison gave much time and effective leadership to this religious movement.

William Jennings Bryan William Jennings Bryan (March 19, 1860 – July 26, 1925) was an American lawyer, orator and politician. Beginning in 1896, he emerged as a dominant force in the History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, running ...

regarded Morrison to be "the greatest pulpit orator on the American continent."

Asbury College

In 1910 Asbury College, a holiness school founded by

John Wesley Hughes John Wesley Hughes (May 16, 1852 - February 22, 1932) was an American minister. He was born in Owen County, Kentucky and was converted at the age of sixteen in a Methodist revival meeting in an old schoolhouse. Hughes attended Kentucky Wesleyan ...

Wilmore, Kentucky Wilmore is a home rule-class city in Jessamine County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 3,686 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Lexington–Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. According to the United States Census Bureau ...

hired Morrison as its president. With the help of Morrison's ''Pentecostal Herald'' readers and his nationwide reputation as a holiness preacher, Morrison was able to pay off large debts owed by the college, saving it from financial ruin and increasing its reputation and student body in the process. Morrison was instrumental in founding

Asbury Theological Seminary Asbury Theological Seminary is a Christian Wesleyan seminary in the historical Methodist tradition located in Wilmore, Kentucky. It is the largest seminary of the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. It is known for its advocacy of egalitarianism, giving ...

in 1923.The Seminary, originally part of Asbury College, became a separate institution in 1940. After stepping down as president of Asbury College in 1925, Morrison was asked once again to assume the presidency in 1933 during another financial crisis, serving until 1940.

Works

Morrison published 25 books (all directed toward laymen), including: * ''The Presence of God and Other Sermons'' (undated) * ''The Two Lawyers: A Story for the Times'' (1898) * ''Baptism with the Holy Ghost'' (1900) * ''Life Sketches and Sermons'' (1903) * ''World Tour of Evangelism'' (1911) * ''Thoughts for the Thoughtful'' (1912) * ''Romanism and Ruin'' (1914) * ''The Second Coming of Christ'' (1914) * ''Commencement Sermons Delivered in Asbury College Chapel'' (1915) * ''Lectures on Prophecy'' (1915) * ''The World War in Prophecy: The Downfall of the Kaiser and the End of the Dispensation'' (1917) * ''Will a Man Rob God?'' (192-) * ''Sermons for the Times'' (1921) * ''Remarkable Conversions, Interesting Incidents, and Striking Illustrations'' (1925) * ''The Christ of the Gospels'' (1926) * ''The Optimism of Pre-Millennialism'' (1927) * ''The Confessions of a Backslider'' (193-) * ''Crossing the Dead Line'' (1932) * ''Is the World Growing Better or Is the World Growing Worse'' (1932) * ''Will God Set up a Visible Kingdom on Earth?'' (1934) * ''Five Great Needs'' (194-) * ''Some Chapters of My Life Story'' (1941) * ''From Sinai to Calvary: Condensed Sermons on Salvation Themes'' (1942)

Death

Morrison died in the home of a pastor for whom he was conducting revival meetings in

Elizabethton, Tennessee Elizabethton is a city in, and the county seat of Carter County, Tennessee, United States. Elizabethton is the historical site of the first independent American government (known as the Watauga Association, created in 1772) located west of both th ...

Footnotes

Sources

* ''Some Chapters of My Life Story'', by Henry Clay Morrison (Pentecostal Publishing Co., 1941) * ''Asbury College: Vision and Miracle'', by Joseph A. Thacker, Jr. (Evangel Press, 1990) * "Henry Clay Morrison", http://www.believersweb.org/view.cfm?ID=97 * "Dr. H.C. Morrison's Last Moments", by Rev. Solon McNeese

External links

Asbury College Home Page

Asbury Theological Seminary Home Page

Morrison Bio at Asbury College Archives

Recollections of H. C. Morrison

Highway to Heaven by Henry Clay Morrison

First Fruits Publishing that contains many of Morrison's works
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrison, Henry Clay Evangelists Presidents of Asbury University 1857 births 1942 deaths