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Henry
Ward Beecher, the eighth son of the Rev. Lyman Beecher, was born
in Litchfield, Connecticut, on 24th June, 1813. The brother
of Harriet Beecher Stowe, he was educated at the Lane Theological
Seminary before becoming a Presbyterian minister in Lawrenceburg
(1837-39) and Indianapolis (1839-47). His pamphlet, "Seven
Lectures to Young Men," was published in 1844.
Beecher moved to Plymouth Church, Brooklyn in 1847. By this
time he had developed a national reputation for his oratorical
skills, and drew
crowds of 2,500 regularly every Sunday. He strongly opposed
slavery and favoured temperance and woman's suffrage.
Beecher condemned the passing of the Kansas-Nebraska bill from his
pulpit and helped to raise funds to supply weapons to those
willing to
oppose slavery in these territories. These rifles became
known as
Beecher's Bibles. John Brown and five of his sons, were some
of the
volunteers who headed for Kansas.
He supported the Free Soil Party in 1852 but switched to the
Republican
Party in 1860. During the Civil War Beecher's church raised
and equipped a volunteer regiment. However, after the war,
he advocated
reconciliation.
Beecher edited The Independent (1861-63) and the Christian
Union
(1870-78) and published several books including the Summer in
the Soul
(1858), Life of Jesus Christ (1871), Yale Lectures on
Preaching (1872)
and Evolution and Religion (1885). Henry Ward Beecher died
of a cerebral
hemorrhage on 8th March, 1887. |
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God asks
no person whether he or she will accept life.
That is not the
choice. You must take it.
The only choice is
how.
Henry Ward Beecher |
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