This Sum of All Villainies

: Charles Haddon Spurgeon’s Theology of Slavery

摘要

Charles Haddon Spurgeon was the most well-known preacher of his era and has been referred to as ‘the Prince of Preachers’ by many admirers. Spurgeon belonged to the Baptist Union of Great Britian and Ireland and was the member of that fellowship of churches with the greatest renown worldwide from around 1855 until his death in 1892. He would preach more than 10,000 sermons throughout his lifetime and his sermons would be continuously published on a weekly basis for 63 years, only halting production in 1917 due to the paper rationing of the First World War. While Spurgeon would eventually reach the zenith of his chosen profession, he was of fairly modest origins. Born on June 19, 1834 in Kelvedon, Essex, England to John and Eliza Spurgeon, Spurgeon spent much of his early childhood under the care of his paternal grandparents in the nearby village of Stambourne. Both his grandfather and father were Congregationalist pastors and religion would be of central importance to Charles from a young age.
Six influences would have a monumental effect on the shaping of the religious views of young Charles. The first was the Authorised Version of the Christian Bible. Scripture was regularly read during the family prayers which took place every morning. His break with his Congregationalist ancestry to becoming a Baptist would come after reading the Bible for evidence of paedobaptism and finding no support for the practice after being challenged on the issue by a clergyman teaching at a school sponsored, ironically, by the paedobaptist Church of England. Spurgeon certainly followed Martin Luther’s belief in sola scriptura and was largely dismissive of the concept of bibliolatry as it relates to the worship or idolization of the Bible. To Spurgeon, the importance of Scripture truly could not be overstated. The significance of this first influence was closely connected with the second major influence: his grandfather, James Spurgeon. While both his grandfather and father were preachers who would have influenced the young Charles, James’s influence dwarfs that of John. Indeed, John was not even the most influential of Charles’ two parents as Spurgeon’s mother, his third influence, received far more credit for his religious upbringing than his father, with frequent credit being given to his mother’s prayers for him as a child. The stories Charles recounted of his childhood tend to revolve around the years he spent living with his grandfather rather than those spent under his father’s roof. Spurgeon would recall his time with his grandfather at Stambourne fondly, while also praising his grandmother and unmarried aunt for supporting him during those early years.

奖励日期	26 4月 2026
源语言	English
奖励机构	University of the Highlands and Islands
导师	Andrew McGowan (Supervisor)