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George Whitefield (; 30 September 1770), also known as George Whitfield, was an English
Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
minister and preacher who was one of the founders of Methodism and the evangelical movement. Born in Gloucester, he matriculated at
Pembroke College, Oxford Pembroke College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is located at Pembroke Square, Oxford. The college was founded in 1624 by King James I of England, using in part the endowment of merchant Thomas Tesdale, and was named after ...
in 1732. There, he joined the " Holy Club" and was introduced to John and Charles Wesley, with whom he would work closely in his later ministry. Unlike the Wesleys, he embraced Calvinism. Whitefield was ordained after receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree. He immediately began preaching, but he did not settle as the minister of any Church of England parish; rather, he became an itinerant preacher and
evangelist Evangelist may refer to: Religion * Four Evangelists, the authors of the canonical Christian Gospels * Evangelism, publicly preaching the Gospel with the intention of spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ * Evangelist (Anglican Church), a c ...
. In 1740, Whitefield traveled to British North America where he preached a series of
Christian revival Christian revivalism is increased spiritual interest or renewal in the life of a church congregation or society, with a local, national or global effect. This should be distinguished from the use of the term "revival" to refer to an evangelis ...
s that became part of the First Great Awakening. His methods were controversial, and he engaged in numerous debates and disputes with other clergymen. Whitefield received widespread recognition during his ministry; he preached at least 18,000 times to perhaps ten million listeners in the British Empire. Whitefield could enthrall large audiences through a potent combination of drama, religious eloquence, and
patriotism Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings, language relating to one's own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or histor ...
. He used the technique of evoking strong emotion, then using the vulnerability of his enthralled audience to preach.


Early life

Whitefield was born on at the Bell Inn, Southgate Street, Gloucester. Whitefield was the fifth son (seventh and last child) of Thomas Whitefield and Elizabeth Edwards, who kept an inn at Gloucester. His father died when he was only two years old, and he helped his mother with the inn. At an early age, he found that he had a passion and talent for acting in the theatre, a passion that he would carry on with the very theatrical re-enactments of Bible stories he told during his sermons. He was educated at
The Crypt School The Crypt School is a grammar school with academy status for boys and girls located in the city of Gloucester. Founded in the 16th century, it was originally an all-boys school, but it made its sixth form co-educational in the 1980s, and moved ...
in Gloucester and at
Pembroke College, Oxford Pembroke College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is located at Pembroke Square, Oxford. The college was founded in 1624 by King James I of England, using in part the endowment of merchant Thomas Tesdale, and was named after ...
. Because business at the inn had diminished, Whitefield did not have the means to pay for his tuition. He therefore came up to the University of Oxford as a servitor, the lowest rank of undergraduates. Granted free tuition, he acted as a servant to fellows and fellow-commoners; duties including teaching them in the morning, helping them bathe, cleaning their rooms, carrying their books, and assisting them with work. But, Whitfield would later confess that though he did good works and tried to obey the law of God, he was not yet truly converted to Christ. It was
Henry Scougal Henry Scougal (1650–1678) was a Scottish theologian, minister and author. Henry Scougal was the second son of Patrick Scougal and Margaret Wemys. His father was Bishop of Aberdeen for more than 20 years. From his infancy, Scougal was raised ...
's book, The Life of God in the Soul of Man, that Whitfield says opened his eyes to the Gospel and led to his conversion. It was that book he says, that God used to show him that he was still lost despite all his attempts to gain the favor of God by means of good works. Only by God's grace can a person realize they have offended God and their need for Jesus Christ, God's Son, and His righteousness imputed to them by faith. Henry Scougal's book showed him the need for a man to be born of God from above, and that this is a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit creating a new heart and a new nature within that wants to serve God, not in order to be saved, but because one has been graciously and undeservedly saved. In 1736, after Whitfield's conversion, the Bishop of Gloucester ordained him a deacon of the Church of England.


Evangelism

Whitefield preached his first sermon at St Mary de Crypt Church in his home town of Gloucester, a week after his ordination as deacon. The Church of England did not assign him a church, so he began preaching in parks and fields in England on his own, reaching out to people who normally did not attend church. In 1738 he went to Christ Church in
Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...
, Province of Georgia, in the
American colonies The Thirteen Colonies, also known as the Thirteen British Colonies, the Thirteen American Colonies, or later as the United Colonies, were a group of British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America. Founded in the 17th and 18th centur ...
which had been founded by John Wesley while he was in Savannah. While there Whitefield decided that one of the great needs of the area was an orphan house. He decided this would be his life's work. In 1739 he returned to England to raise funds, as well as to receive priest's
orders Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...
. While preparing for his return, he preached to large congregations. At the suggestion of friends he preached to the miners of Kingswood, outside Bristol, in the open air. Because he was returning to Georgia he invited John Wesley to take over his Bristol congregations and to preach in the open air for the first time at Kingswood and then at Blackheath, London. Whitefield, like many other 18th century Anglican
evangelicals Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...
such as Augustus Toplady, John Newton, and William Romaine, accepted a plain reading of Article 17—the Church of England's doctrine of predestination—and disagreed with the Wesley brothers'
Arminian Arminianism is a branch of Protestantism based on the theological ideas of the Dutch Reformed theologian Jacobus Arminius (1560–1609) and his historic supporters known as Remonstrants. Dutch Arminianism was originally articulated in the ''Re ...
views on the doctrine of the atonement. However, Whitefield finally did what his friends hoped he would not do—hand over the entire ministry to John Wesley. Whitefield formed and was the president of the first Methodist conference, but he soon relinquished the position to concentrate on evangelical work. Three churches were established in England in his name—one in Penn Street, Bristol, and two in London, in Moorfields and in Tottenham Court Road—all three of which became known by the name of "Whitefield's Tabernacle". The society meeting at the second Kingswood School at Kingswood was eventually also named Whitefield's Tabernacle. Whitefield acted as
chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...
to Selina, Countess of Huntingdon, and some of his followers joined the Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion, whose chapels were built by Selina, where a form of
Calvinistic Methodism The Presbyterian Church of Wales ( cy, Eglwys Bresbyteraidd Cymru), also known as Calvinistic Methodist Church (), is a denomination of Protestant Christianity in Wales. History The church was born out of the Welsh Methodist revival and the ...
similar to Whitefield's was taught. Many of Selina's chapels were built in the English and Welsh counties, and one,
Spa Fields Chapel Spa Fields is a park and its surrounding area in the London Borough of Islington, bordering Finsbury and Clerkenwell. Historically it is known for the Spa Fields riots of 1816 and an Owenite community which existed there between 1821 and 1824. Th ...
, was erected in London.


Bethesda Orphanage

Whitefield's endeavour to build an orphanage in Georgia was central to his preaching. The
Bethesda Orphanage Bethesda Academy (previously known as Bethesda Home for Boys) is a boys' school and former orphanage located in unincorporated Chatham County, Georgia, in the United States, near Savannah. Its historic building was listed on the National Registe ...
and his preaching comprised the "two-fold task" that occupied the rest of his life. On 25 March 1740, construction began. Whitefield wanted the orphanage to be a place of strong Gospel influence, with a wholesome atmosphere and strong discipline. Having raised the money by his preaching, Whitefield "insisted on sole control of the orphanage". He refused to give the trustees a financial accounting. The trustees also objected to Whitefield's using "a wrong method" to control the children, who "are often kept praying and crying all the night". In 1740 he engaged Moravian Brethren from Georgia to build an orphanage for negro children on land he had bought in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania. Following a theological disagreement, he dismissed them and was unable to complete the building, which the Moravians subsequently bought and completed. This now is the Whitefield House in the center of the Moravian borough of Nazareth, Pennsylvania.


Revival meetings

Beginning in 1740, Whitefield preached nearly every day for months to large crowds as large as eighty thousand people as he travelled throughout the colonies, especially New England. His journey on horseback from New York City to
Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...
, was at that time the longest in North America ever documented. Like
Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards may refer to: Musicians *Jonathan and Darlene Edwards, pseudonym of bandleader Paul Weston and his wife, singer Jo Stafford *Jonathan Edwards (musician) (born 1946), American musician ** ''Jonathan Edwards'' (album), debut album ...
, he developed a style of preaching that elicited emotional responses from his audiences. But Whitefield had charisma, and his loud voice, his small stature, and even his cross-eyed appearance (which some people took as a mark of divine favor) all served to help make him one of the first celebrities in the American colonies. Like Edwards, Whitefield preached staunchly Calvinist theology that was in line with the "moderate Calvinism" of the Thirty-nine Articles. While explicitly affirming God's sole agency in salvation, Whitefield freely offered the Gospel, saying at the end of his sermons: "Come poor, lost, undone sinner, come just as you are to Christ." To Whitefield "the gospel message was so critically important that he felt compelled to use all earthly means to get the word out." Thanks to widespread dissemination of print media, perhaps half of all colonists eventually heard about, read about, or read something written by Whitefield. He employed print systematically, sending advance men to put up
broadside Broadside or broadsides may refer to: Naval * Broadside (naval), terminology for the side of a ship, the battery of cannon on one side of a warship, or their near simultaneous fire on naval warfare Printing and literature * Broadside (comic ...
s and distribute handbills announcing his sermons. He also arranged to have his sermons published. Much of Whitefield's publicity was the work of William Seward, a wealthy layman who accompanied Whitefield. Seward acted as Whitefield's "fund-raiser, business co-ordinator, and publicist". He furnished newspapers and booksellers with material, including copies of Whitefield's writings. When Whitefield returned to England in 1742, an estimated crowd of 20–30,000 met him. One such open-air congregation took place on
Minchinhampton Common Minchinhampton Common () is a biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1972. The site is owned and managed by the National Trust. The common is one of the largest grassland commons in the ...
, Gloucestershire. Whitefield preached to the " Rodborough congregation"—a gathering of 10,000 people—at a place now known as "Whitefield's tump". Whitefield sought to influence the colonies after he returned to England. He contracted to have his autobiographical ''Journals'' published throughout America. These ''Journals'' have been characterized as "the ideal vehicle for crafting a public image that could work in his absence." They depicted Whitefield in the "best possible light". When he returned to America for his third tour in 1745, he was better known than when he had left.


Slaveholder

Whitefield was a plantation owner and slaveholder and viewed the work of slaves as essential for funding his orphanage's operations. John Wesley denounced slavery as "the sum of all villainies" and detailed its abuses. However, defenses of slavery were common among 18th-century Protestants, especially missionaries who used the institution to emphasize God's providence. Whitefield was at first conflicted about slaves. He believed that they were human and was angered that they were treated as "subordinate creatures". Nevertheless, Whitefield and his friend James Habersham played an important role in the reintroduction of slavery to Georgia. Slavery had been outlawed in the young colony of Georgia in 1735. In 1747, Whitefield attributed the financial woes of his Bethesda Orphanage to Georgia's prohibition of black people in the colony. He argued that "the constitution of that colony eorgiais very bad, and it is impossible for the inhabitants to subsist" while blacks were banned.


Advocate of slavery

Between 1748 and 1750, Whitefield campaigned for the legalisation of African-American emigration into the colony because the trustees of Georgia had banned slavery. Whitefield argued that the colony would never be prosperous unless slaves were allowed to farm the land. Whitefield wanted slavery legalized for the prosperity of the colony as well as for the financial viability of the Bethesda Orphanage. "Had Negroes been allowed" to live in Georgia, he said, "I should now have had a sufficiency to support a great many orphans without expending above half the sum that has been laid out." Whitefield's push for the legalization of slave emigration in to Georgia "cannot be explained solely on the basics of economics". It was also his hope for their adoption and for their eternal salvation. Black slaves were permitted to live in Georgia in 1751. Whitefield saw the "legalization of (black residency) as part personal victory and part divine will". Whitefield argued a scriptural justification for black residency as slaves. He increased the number of the black children at his orphanage, using his preaching to raise money to house them. Whitefield became "perhaps the most energetic, and conspicuous, evangelical defender and practitioner of the rights of black people". By propagating such "a theological defense for" black residency, Whitefield helped slaveholders prosper. Upon his death, Whitefield left everything in the orphanage to the Countess of Huntingdon. This included 4,000 acres of land and 49 black slaves.


On the Excesses of Slavery

In 1740, during his second visit to America, Whitefield published "an open letter to the planters of South Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland" chastising them for their cruelty to their slaves. He wrote, "I think God has a Quarrel with you for your Abuse of and Cruelty to the poor Negroes." Furthermore, Whitefield wrote: "Your dogs are caressed and fondled at your tables; but your slaves who are frequently styled dogs or beasts, have not an equal privilege." However, Whitefield "stopped short of rendering a moral judgment on slavery itself as an institution". Whitefield is remembered as one of the first to preach to slaves. Some have claimed that the Bethesda Orphanage "set an example of humane treatment" of black people. Phillis Wheatley (1753–1784), who was a slave, wrote a poem "On the Death of the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield" in 1770. The first line calls Whitefield a "happy saint".


Relationship with Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin attended a revival meeting in Philadelphia and was greatly impressed with Whitefield's ability to deliver a message to such a large group. Franklin had previously dismissed as exaggeration reports of Whitefield preaching to crowds of the order of tens of thousands in England. When listening to Whitefield preaching from the Philadelphia court house, Franklin walked away towards his shop in Market Street until he could no longer hear Whitefield distinctly—Whitefield could be heard over 500 feet. He then estimated his distance from Whitefield and calculated the area of a semicircle centred on Whitefield. Allowing two square feet per person he computed that Whitefield could be heard by over 30,000 people in the open air. After one of Whitefield's sermons, Franklin noted the: Franklin was an
ecumenist Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships among their churches and promote Christian unity. The adjec ...
and approved of Whitefield's appeal to members of many denominations but unlike Whitefield was not an evangelical. He admired Whitefield as a fellow intellectual, and published several of his tracts, but thought Whitefield's plan to run an orphanage in Georgia would lose money. A lifelong close friendship developed between the revivalist preacher and the worldly Franklin. True loyalty based on genuine affection, coupled with a high value placed on friendship, helped their association grow stronger over time. Letters exchanged between Franklin and Whitefield can be found at the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. These letters document the creation of an orphanage for boys named the Charity School. In 1749, Franklin chose the Whitefield meeting house, with its Charity School, to be purchased as the site of the newly-formed Academy of Philadelphia which opened in 1751, followed in 1755 with the College of Philadelphia, both the predecessors of the University of Pennsylvania. A
statue of George Whitefield ''The Reverend George Whitefield'' is a monumental statue which once stood on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Dedicated in 1919, it was designed by sculptor R. Tait McKenzie and hono ...
was located in the Dormitory Quadrangle, standing in front of the Morris and Bodine sections of the present Ware College House on the University of Pennsylvania campus. On 2 July 2020, the University of Pennsylvania announced they would be removing the statue because of Whitefield's connection to slavery.


Marriage

"I believe it is God's will that I should marry", George Whitefield wrote to a friend in 1740. But he was concerned: "I pray God that I may not have a wife till I can live as though I had none." That ambivalence—believing God willed a wife, yet wanting to live as if without one—brought Whitefield a disappointing love life and a largely unhappy marriage. On 14 November 1741 Whitefield married Elizabeth (née Gwynne), a widow previously known as Elizabeth James. After their 1744–1748 stay in America, she never accompanied him on his travels. Whitefield reflected that "none in America could bear her". His wife believed that she had been "but a load and burden" to him. In 1743 after four miscarriages, Elizabeth bore the couple's only child, a son. The baby died at four months old. Twenty-five years later, Elizabeth died of a fever on 9 August 1768 and was buried in a vault at the Tottenham Court Road Chapel. At the end of the 19th century the Chapel needed restoration and all those interred there, except Augustus Toplady, were moved to Chingford Mount cemetery in north London; her grave is unmarked in its new location.
Cornelius Winter Cornelius Winter (1742–1808) was an American Methodist preacher, an understudy of and assistant to George Whitefield, with whom he went to the American colony of Georgia as a catechist to Negro slaves, an educator who established two Dissentin ...
, who for a time lived with the Whitefields, observed of Whitefield, "He was not happy in his wife." And, "He did not intentionally make his wife unhappy. He always preserved great decency and decorum in his conduct towards her. Her death set his mind much at liberty." After Elizabeth's death, however, Whitfield said, “I feel the loss of my right hand daily.”


Death and legacy

In 1770, the 55-year-old Whitefield continued preaching in spite of poor health. He said, "I would rather wear out than rust out." His last sermon was preached in a field "atop a large barrel". The next morning, 30 September 1770, Whitefield died in the parsonage of Old South Presbyterian Church,
Newburyport, Massachusetts Newburyport is a coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, northeast of Boston. The population was 18,289 at the 2020 census. A historic seaport with vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes part of Plum Island. The mo ...
, and was buried, according to his wishes, in a
crypt A crypt (from Latin ''crypta'' "vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, sarcophagi, or religious relics. Originally, crypts were typically found below the main apse of a chur ...
under the
pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...
of this church. A bust of Whitefield is in the collection of the Gloucester City Museum & Art Gallery. It was John Wesley who preached his
funeral sermon A Christian funeral sermon is a formal religious oration or address given at a funeral ceremony, or sometimes a short time after, which may combine elements of eulogy with biographical comments and expository preaching. To qualify as a sermon, it sh ...
in London, at Whitefield's request. Whitefield left almost £1,500 () to friends and family. Furthermore, he had deposited £1,000 () for his wife if he predeceased her and had contributed £3,300 () to the Bethesda Orphanage. "Questions concerning the source of his personal wealth dogged his memory. His will stated that all this money had lately been left him 'in a most unexpected way and unthought of means.'" In an age when crossing the Atlantic Ocean was a long and hazardous adventure, he visited America seven times, making 13 ocean crossings in total. (He died in America.) It is estimated that throughout his life, he preached more than 18,000 formal sermons, of which 78 have been published. In addition to his work in North America and England, he made 15 journeys to Scotland—most famously to the "''Preaching Braes''" of
Cambuslang Cambuslang ( sco, Cammuslang, from gd, Camas Lang) is a town on the south-eastern outskirts of Greater Glasgow, Scotland. With approximately 30,000 residents, it is the 27th largest town in Scotland by population, although, never having had a ...
in 1742—two journeys to Ireland, and one each to Bermuda, Gibraltar, and the Netherlands. In England and Wales, Whitefield's itinerary included every county. Whitfield County, Georgia, is named after Whitefield. When the act by the Georgia General Assembly was written to create the county, the "e" was omitted from the spelling of the name to reflect the pronunciation of the name.
George Whitefield College George Whitefield College (abbrev GWC) is a Christian theological college in Muizenberg, Cape Town, South Africa. History The college is named after the 18th-century English evangelist George Whitefield. The inception of the George Whitfield ...
,
Whitefield College of the Bible Whitefield College of the Bible is an independent theological college located in Northern Ireland. It is operated by the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster. The college currently holds lectures in Martyrs Memorial Free Presbyterian Church in Be ...
, and
Whitefield Theological Seminary Whitefield Theological Seminary is an unaccredited distance education Reformed theological seminary in Lakeland, Florida, United States. A conservative confessional institution, it teaches from the Reformed perspective of Protestant Christian ...
are all named after him. The Banner of Truth Trust's logo depicts Whitefield preaching. summarizes Whitefield's legacy. #"Whitefield was the most influential Anglo-American evangelical leader of the eighteenth century." #"He also indelibly marked the character of evangelical Christianity." #He "was the first internationally famous itinerant preacher and the first modern transatlantic celebrity of any kind." #"Perhaps he was the greatest evangelical preacher that the world has ever seen."
Mark Galli Mark Galli (b. August 24, 1952) is an American Roman Catholic author and editor, and former Protestant minister. For seven years he was editor in chief of ''Christianity Today''. Biography Galli, a native of California, was raised as a Roman Cat ...
wrote of Whitefield's legacy:


Relation to other Methodist leaders

In terms of theology, Whitefield, unlike Wesley, was a supporter of Calvinism. The two differed on eternal election, final perseverance, and sanctification, but were reconciled as friends and co-workers, each going his own way. It is a prevailing misconception that Whitefield was not primarily an organizer like Wesley. However, as Luke Tyerman, a historian of Wesley, states, "It is notable that the first Calvinistic Methodist Association was held eighteen months before Wesley held his first Methodist Conference." He was a man of profound experience, which he communicated to audiences with clarity and passion. His patronization by Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon, reflected this emphasis on practice.


Opposition and controversy

Whitefield welcomed opposition because as he said, "the more I am opposed, the more joy I feel". He proved himself adept at creating controversy. In his 1740 visit to Charles Town, it "took Whitefield only four days to plunge Charles Town into religious and social controversy." Whitefield thought he might be martyred for his views. After he attacked the established church he predicted that he would "be set at nought by the Rabbies of our Church, and perhaps at last be killed by them".


Clergy

Whitefield chastised other clergy for teaching only "the shell and shadow of religion" because they did not hold the necessity of a new birth, without which a person would be "thrust down into Hell". In his 1740–41 visit to North America (as he had done in England), he attacked other clergy (mostly Anglican) calling them "God's persecutors". He said that Edmund Gibson, Bishop of London with supervision over Anglican clergy in America, knew no "more of Christianity, than Mahaomet, or an Infidel". After Whitefield preached at St. Philip's Episcopal Church, Charleston, South Carolina, the Commissary, Alexander Garden, suspended him as a "vagabond clergyman." After being suspended, Whitefield attacked all South Carolina's Anglican clergy in print. Whitefield issued a blanket indictment of New England's Congregational ministers for their "lack of zeal". In 1740, Whitefield published attacks on "the works of two of Anglicanism's revered seventeenth-century authors". Whitefield wrote that John Tillotson, archbishop of Canterbury (1691–1694), had "no more been a true Christian than had Muhammad". He also attacked Richard Allestree's '' The Whole Duty of Man'', one of Anglicanism's most popular spiritual tracts. At least once Whitefield had his followers burn the tract "with great Detestation". In England and Scotland (1741–1744), Whitefield bitterly accused John Wesley of undermining his work. He preached against Wesley, arguing that Wesley's attacks on predestination had alienated "very many of my spiritual children". Wesley replied that Whitefield's attacks were "treacherous" and that Whitefield had made himself "odious and contemptible". However, the two reconciled in later life. Along with Wesley, Whitefield had been influenced by the Moravian Church, but in 1753 he condemned them and attacked their leader, Count Nicolaus Zinzendorf, and their practices. When Joseph Trapp criticized Whitefield's ''Journals'', Whitefield retorted that Trapp was "no Christian but a servant of Satan". English, Scottish, and American clergy attacked Whitefield, often in response to his attacks on them and Anglicanism. Early in his career, Whitefield criticized the Church of England. In response, clergy called Whitefield one of "the young quacks in divinity" who are "breaking the peace and unity" of the church. From 1738 to 1741, Whitefield issued seven ''Journals''. A sermon in St Paul's Cathedral depicted them as "a medley of vanity, and nonsense, and blasphemy jumbled together". Trapp called the ''Journals'' "blasphemous" and accused Whitefield of being "besotted either with pride or madness". In England, by 1739 when he was ordained priest, Whitefield wrote that "the spirit of the clergy began to be much embittered" and that "churches were gradually denied me". In response to Whitefield's ''Journals'', the bishop of London, Edmund Gibson, published a 1739 pastoral letter criticizing Whitefield. Whitefield responded by labelling Anglican clergy as "lazy, non-spiritual, and pleasure seeking". He rejected ecclesiastical authority claiming that 'the whole world is now my parish'. In 1740, Whitefield had attacked Tillotson and Richard Allestree's '' The Whole Duty of Man''. These attacks resulted in hostile responses and reduced attendance at his London open-air preaching. In 1741, Whitefield made his first visit to Scotland at the invitation of "Ralph and
Ebenezer Erskine Ebenezer Erskine (22 June 1680 – 2 June 1754) was a Scotland, Scottish minister whose actions led to the establishment of the First Secession, Secession Church (formed by dissenters from the Church of Scotland). Early life Ebenezer's father, ...
, leaders of the breakaway
Associate Presbytery The First Secession was an exodus of ministers and members from the Church of Scotland in 1733. Those who took part formed the Associate Presbytery and later the United Secession Church. They were often referred to as seceders. The underlying ...
. When they demanded and Whitefield refused that he preach only in their churches, they attacked him as a "sorcerer" and a "vain-glorious, self-seeking, puffed-up creature". In addition, Whitefield's collecting money for his Bethesda orphanage, combined with the hysteria evoked by his open-air sermons, resulted in bitter attacks in Edinburgh and Glasgow." Whitefield's itinerant preaching throughout the colonies was opposed by Bishop Benson who had ordained him for a settled ministry in Georgia. Whitefield replied that if bishops did not authorize his itinerant preaching, God would give him the authority. In 1740, Jonathan Edwards invited Whitefield to preach in his church in Northampton. Edwards was "deeply disturbed by his unqualified appeals to emotion, his openly judging those he considered unconverted, and his demand for instant conversions". Whitefield refused to discuss Edwards' misgivings with him. Later, Edwards delivered a series of sermons containing but "thinly veiled critiques" of Whitefield's preaching, "warning against over-dependence upon a preacher's eloquence and fervency". During Whitefield's 1744–1748 visit to America, ten critical
pamphlet A pamphlet is an unbound book (that is, without a hard cover or binding). Pamphlets may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths, called a ''leaflet'' or it may consist of a ...
s were published, two by officials of
Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
and Yale. This criticism was in part evoked by Whitefield's criticism of "their education and Christian commitment" in his Journal of 1741. Whitefield saw this opposition as "a conspiracy" against him. Whitefield would be derided with names such as "Dr. Squintum", mocking him for his esotropia.


Laity

When Whitefield preached in a dissenting church and "the congregation's response was dismal," he ascribed the response to "the people's being hardened" as were "Pharaoh and the Egyptians" in the Bible. Many New Englanders claimed that Whitefield destroyed "New England's orderly parish system, communities, and even families". The "Declaration of the Association of the County of New Haven, 1745" stated that after Whitefield's preaching "religion is now in a far worse state than it was". After Whitefield preached in Charlestown, a local newspaper article attacked him as "blasphemous, uncharitable, and unreasonable." After Whitefield condemned Moravians and their practices, his former London printer (a Moravian) called Whitefield "a Mahomet, a Caesar, an imposter, a Don Quixote, a devil, the beast, the man of sin, the Antichrist". In the open air in Dublin, Ireland (1757), Whitefield condemned
Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
, inciting an attack by "hundreds and hundreds of papists" who cursed and wounded him severely and smashed his portable pulpit. On various occasions, a woman assaulted Whitefield with "scissors and a pistol, and her teeth". "Stones and dead cats" were thrown at him. A man almost killed him with a brass-headed cane. "Another climbed a tree to urinate on him." In 1760, Whitefield was burlesqued by
Samuel Foote Samuel Foote (January 1720 – 21 October 1777) was a British dramatist, actor and theatre manager. He was known for his comedic acting and writing, and for turning the loss of a leg in a riding accident in 1766 to comedic opportunity. Early l ...
in '' The Minor''.


Nobility

Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon, made Whitefield her personal chaplain. In her chapel, it was noted that his preaching was "more Considered among persons of a Superior Rank" who attended the countess's services. Whitefield was humble before the countess saying that he cried when he was "thinking of your Ladyship's condescending to patronize such a dead dog as I am". He now said that he "highly esteemed bishops of the Church of England because of their sacred character". He confessed that in "many things" he had "judged and acted wrong" and had "been too bitter in my zeal". In 1763, in a defense of Methodism, Whitefield "repeated contrition for much contained in his ''Journals''". Among the nobility who heard Whitefield in the Countess of Huntingdon's home was Lady Townshend. Regarding the changes in Whitefield, someone asked Lady Townshend, "Pray, madam, is it true that Whitefield has ''recanted''?" She replied, "No, sir, he has only ''canted''." One meaning of cant is "to affect religious or pietistic phraseology, especially as a matter of fashion or profession; to talk unreally or hypocritically with an affectation of goodness or piety".


Religious innovation

In the First Great Awakening, rather than listening demurely to preachers, people groaned and roared in enthusiastic emotion. Whitefield was a "passionate preacher" who often "shed tears". Underlying this was his conviction that genuine religion "engaged the heart, not just the head". In his preaching, Whitefield used rhetorical ploys that were characteristic of theater, an artistic medium largely unknown in colonial America. Harry S. Stout refers to him as a "divine dramatist" and ascribes his success to the theatrical sermons which laid foundations to a new form of pulpit oratory. Whitefield's "Abraham Offering His Son Isaac" is an example of a sermon whose whole structure resembles a theatrical play. Divinity schools opened to challenge the hegemony of Yale and Harvard; personal experience became more important than formal education for preachers. Such concepts and habits formed a necessary foundation for the American Revolution. Whitefield's preaching bolstered "the evolving republican ideology that sought local democratic control of civil affairs and freedom from monarchial and parliamentary intrusion."


Works

Whitefield's sermons were widely reputed to inspire his audience's devotion. Many of them, as well as his letters and journals, were published during his lifetime. He was an excellent orator as well, strong in voice and adept at extemporaneity. His voice was so expressive that people are said to have wept just hearing him allude to "Mesopotamia". His journals, originally intended only for private circulation, were first published by Thomas Cooper. James Hutton then published a version with Whitefield's approval. His exuberant and "too apostolical" language were criticised; his journals were no longer published after 1741. Whitefield prepared a new installment in 1744–45, but it was not published until 1938. 19th-century biographies generally refer to his earlier work, ''A Short Account of God's Dealings with the Reverend George Whitefield'' (1740), which covered his life up to his ordination. In 1747 he published ''A Further Account of God's Dealings with the Reverend George Whitefield'', covering the period from his ordination to his first voyage to Georgia. In 1756, a vigorously edited version of his journals and autobiographical accounts was published. Whitefield was "profoundly image-conscious". His writings were "intended to convey Whitefield and his life as a model for biblical ethics ... , as humble and pious". After Whitefield's death,
John Gillies John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...
, a Glasgow friend, published a memoir and six volumes of works, comprising three volumes of letters, a volume of tracts, and two volumes of sermons. Another collection of sermons was published just before he left London for the last time in 1769. These were disowned by Whitefield and Gillies, who tried to buy all copies and pulp them. They had been taken down in shorthand, but Whitefield said that they made him say nonsense on occasion. These sermons were included in a 19th-century volume, ''Sermons on Important Subjects'', along with the "approved" sermons from the ''Works''. An edition of the journals, in one volume, was edited by William Wale in 1905. This was reprinted with additional material in 1960 by the Banner of Truth Trust. It lacks the Bermuda journal entries found in Gillies' biography and the quotes from manuscript journals found in 19th-century biographies. A comparison of this edition with the original 18th-century publications shows numerous omissions—some minor and a few major. Whitefield also wrote several hymns and revised one by Charles Wesley. Wesley composed a hymn in 1739, "Hark, how all the welkin rings"; Whitefield revised the opening couplet in 1758 for " Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"..


Notes


References

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Primary sources

* . * . * Whitefield, George. ''Journals''. London: Banner of Truth Trust, 1978. * . * .


Further reading

* Armstrong, John H. ''Five Great Evangelists: Preachers of Real Revival''. Fearn (maybe Hill of Fearn),
Tain Tain ( Gaelic: ''Baile Dhubhthaich'') is a royal burgh and parish in the County of Ross, in the Highlands of Scotland. Etymology The name derives from the nearby River Tain, the name of which comes from an Indo-European root meaning 'flow'. The ...
: Christian Focus Publications, 1997. * . * Dallimore, Arnold A. ''George Whitefield: The Life and Times of the Great Evangelist of the Eighteenth-Century Revival'' (Volume I). Edinburgh or
Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...
: Banner of Truth Trust, 1970. . * Gibson, William and Morgan-Guy, John (eds), ''George Whitefield Tercentenary Essays''. Cardiff:
University of Wales Press The University of Wales Press ( cy, Gwasg Prifysgol Cymru) was founded in 1922 as a central service of the University of Wales. The press publishes academic journals and around seventy books a year in the English and Welsh languages on six general ...
2015 * Johnston, E.A. ''George Whitefield: A Definitive Biography'' (2 volumes).
Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement ...
: Tentmaker Publications, 2007. . * Hammond, Geordan and Jones, David Ceri(eds), ''George Whitefield: Life, Context, and Legacy''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, . * Kenney, William Howland, III. ″Alexander Garden and George Whitefield: The Significance of Revivalism in South Carolina 1738–1741″. ''The South Carolina Historical Magazine'', Vol. 71, No. 1 (January 1970), pp. 1–16. * Kidd, Thomas S. ''The Great Awakening: The Roots of Evangelical Christianity in Colonial America''. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2009. * * . * Mansfield, Stephen. ''Forgotten Founding Father: The Heroic Legacy of George Whitefield''.
Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
: Cumberland House Publishing (acquired by Sourcebooks), 2001. * . * Philip, Robert. ''The Life and Times of George Whitefield''. Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust, 2007 (reprint)
837 __NOTOC__ Year 837 ( DCCCXXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Byzantine–Arab War: Emperor Theophilos leads a massive Byzantine ...
* Pollock, John. ''George Whitefield and the Great Awakening''. Hodder & Stoughton, 1973 * Reisinger, Ernest. ''The Founder's Journal'', Issue 19/20, Winter/Spring 1995
"What Should We Think of Evangelism and Calvinism?"
. Coral Gables: Founders Ministries. * Schwenk, James L. ''Catholic Spirit: Wesley, Whitefield, and the Quest for Evangelical Unity in Eighteenth Century British Methodism'' (Scarecrow Press, 2008). * Smith, Timothy L. ''Whitefield and Wesley on the New Birth'' (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Francis Asbury Press of Zondervan Publishing House, 1986). * Streater, Davi
"Whitefield and the Revival" (''Crossway'', Autumn 1993. No. 50)
* Thompson, D. D. ''John Wesley and George Whitefield in Scotland: Or, the Influence of the Oxford Methodists on Scottish Religion'' (London: Blackwood and Sons, 1898).


External links


Bust of Whitefield
at Gloucester City Museum & Art Gallery.
Biographies, Articles, and Books on Whitefield
.
Lesson plan on George Whitefield and the First Great Awakening


– Project to publish a complete edition of Whitefield's Journals
George Whitefield at Old South Presbyterian Church, Newburyport, Massachusetts


* *
Open Library

Gutenberg
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitefield, George 1714 births 1770 deaths 18th-century English Anglican priests 18th-century English Christian theologians 18th-century evangelicals Alumni of Pembroke College, Oxford English proslavery activists Anglican writers Benjamin Franklin Burials in Massachusetts Calvinistic Methodists Christian revivalists English evangelicals English Anglican missionaries English Calvinist and Reformed Christians English evangelists English Methodist missionaries English sermon writers English Evangelical writers Evangelical Anglicans Evangelical Anglican clergy Founders of orphanages History of Methodism History of Methodism in the United States Methodist missionaries in Europe Methodist missionaries in the United States People educated at The Crypt School, Gloucester Clergy from Gloucester Protestant missionaries in Bermuda Protestant missionaries in England Protestant missionaries in Gibraltar Protestant missionaries in Ireland Protestant missionaries in Scotland Protestant missionaries in the Netherlands Protestant missionaries in Wales Whitfield County, Georgia 18th-century Anglican theologians English slave owners