![]() He lived to witness the British enactment of the Slave Trade Act in 1807 and authored a pamphlet in support of the cause that depicted the horrors of the slave trade. Later in life, Newton fought alongside William Wilberforce, who spearheaded the legislative effort to put an end to the trade of African slaves. He went on to be ordained in the Church of England in 1764 and became the curate of Olney, Buckinghamshire, where he started writing hymns with poet William Cowper. ![]() He studied Latin Greek and theology and later became an abolitionist. At the age of thirty, Newton collapsed and never sailed again.Īs from 1756, Newton started working as a customs agent in Liverpool. He married Polly in 1750 in between voyages and it increasingly became difficult to leave her for voyages. He continued in the slave trade now as a captain. ![]() On this ship, the only immorality he had freed himself from was profanity.Īfter a severe illness, his resolve was renewed but he retained the same attitude toward slavery. Newton found a place on a slave ship bound for Africa. He had begun to submit to authority only because of his intention to marry Polly, a family friend whom he had deserted the navy to go meet. Newton’s conversion was, however, not immediate. He had not only neglected his faith but directly opposed it and mocked those who showed theirs, deriding and denouncing God as a myth. The memory of his own “Lord have mercy upon us!” uttered when He was desperate stayed with him he wondered if he was redeemable and worthy of God’s mercy. The battered ship and starving crew landed in Lough Swilly, Ireland two weeks later. He briefly rested before returning to the deck to steer for the next eleven hours. If this will not do, then Lord have mercy upon us! After proposing measures to the captain, Newton turned and said, Newton’s turnaround began In March 1748, when the Greyhound was caught in a storm that almost killed him. He would use and come up with the most obscene words that exceed the limits of verbal debauchery. He was released to a new ship, the Greyhound after the intervention of his father where once again Newton gained notoriety for his profanity. While a slave trader, newton was locked up and almost starved to death for his stubbornness and insubordination and later on became enslaved by the Sherbro in Sierra Leone. This marked the beginning of his slave trading career. This was after he had been humiliated for deserting the navy. He went on to desert the navy and was traded as a crew member in a slave ship. His disobedience led to him being pressed into the Royal Navy. Like an unwary sailor who quits his port just before a rising storm, I renounced the hopes and comforts of the Gospel at the very time when every other comfort was about to fail me. He eventually renounced his faith under the influence of a shipmate. Young Newton would often come close to death, re-examine his relationship with God, then relapse into bad habits. His apprenticeship was marked by headstrong disobedience. When Newton was 11, he became an apprentice on a ship with his father. He was also sent to boarding school, where he was mistreated. His mother who wanted Him to be a clergyman died of tuberculosis when he was 6, leaving him to be raised by his emotionally distant stepmother while his father was at sea. Newton was born into a Christian family in 1725. While the words of the hymn are deeply moving, the story of the life of the author makes it more fascinating and inspiring. ![]() It is primarily a religious song but is also widely used secularly. ![]() It was written in 1772 by English poet, John Newton (1725–1807). “Amazing Grace” is probably the most popular hymn ever written. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |