William Fenner (1600–1640) was an English
Puritan divine.
Life
Fenner was educated at
Pembroke College, Cambridge
Pembroke College (officially "The Master, Fellows and Scholars of the College or Hall of Valence-Mary") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college is the third-oldest college of the university and has over 700 ...
, where he took the degree of B.A. in 1618, and that of M.A. in the following year. In 1622 he was incorporated a member of
Oxford University. He also took holy orders, and is believed to have been for a time chaplain to the
Earl of Warwick, and to have ministered at
Sedgley, Staffordshire, where "his labours were greatly blessed". He was forced to leave this cure on account of his religious principles about 1626–7, and travelled about for some months, preaching from place to place, and
Benjamin Brook states that he was consulted as a
casuist, and admired by some of the nobility.
In 1627 he proceeded
B.D., and two years later was presented to the living of
Rochford, Essex
Rochford is a town in Essex, England, north of Southend-on-Sea, from London and from Chelmsford, the county town. At the 2011 census, the civil parish, which includes the town and London Southend Airport, had a population of 8,471.
History
T ...
, where he was until his death in 1640. Fenner was appreciated as a preacher, one of his sermons being quoted by
Edward Williams,
[''Christian Preacher'', p. 454,] and his writings enjoyed popularity for some time, as plain in manner while zealous in tone.
Works
Fenner wrote:
* ''The Soul's Looking Glass, with a treatise of Conscience'', 1640 (edited by
Edmund Calamy).
* ''Riches of Grace'', 1641.
* ''A Treatise of Affections, or the Soul's Pulse'', 1641.
* ''Christ's Alarm to drowsie Sinners, or Christ's Epistles to his Churches'', 1646.
* ''A Divine Message to the Elect Souls'' (eight sermons), 1646.
* ''The Sacrifice of the Faithful; or a treatise showing the Nature, Property and Efficacy of zealous Prayer''.
* ''The Spiritual Man's Directorie'', 1648.
* ''Practicall Divinitie, or Gospel Light shining forth in several choice Sermons'', 1650.
* ''Hidden Manna, or the Mystery of Saving Grace'', 1652.
* ''The Danger of deferred Repentance discovered'', 1654.
* ''Four profitable Treatises very useful for Christian Practice'', 1657.
Collected editions of his works were published in 1651 and 1657.
References
;Attribution
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fenner, William
1600 births
1640 deaths
Alumni of Pembroke College, Cambridge
Alumni of the University of Oxford
English Christian religious leaders
English chaplains
Christian chaplains
17th-century English writers
17th-century English male writers
English religious writers