John newton biography video theodore

Image credit: The Miriam and Ira D. His fight for an abolition of the slave trade, monumental. But none of this came quickly or easily. Read More…. John Newton — is a pivotal figure in the English evangelical revival or awakening. His is an early example of a settled evangelical ministry in the second half of the 18th century, involving pastoral work, hymn-writing, and even mentoring the likes of a William Wilberforce.

Once a slave trafficker, John Newton felt called to the ministry and wrote the most enduring hymn of all time—"Amazing Grace." He kept a copious diary of his.

Yet Newton began as an unconverted, rugged sailor, known for mocking authority and trading in slaves. His conversion to Christ, however, initiated a slow but steady transformation. As theepitaph for his gravestone reads, which he himself composed:. John Newton … once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa was by the rich mercy of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ preserved, restored, pardoned and appointed to preach the faith he had long laboured to destroy.

John Newton was born on July 24, , to John and Elizabeth. His mother was devout, his father regularly absent at sea. His mother died before his seventh birthday; his father remarried quickly. Newton himself was destined for a career at sea, and there were numerous ships and voyages, a press gang , and even a desertion. At age 21, he entered the employment of Amos Clow and thus began his direct involvement with the slave trade, through which he prospered.

Newton, attracted by a made-up story of a legacy and the not-made-up story of his love for Polly Catlett his eventual wife , joined the Greyhound and headed back across the Atlantic. He had never encountered anything like it, and he began to wonder if the Christian claims might be true.