Benjamin Abbott

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Benjamin Abbott (born 1732 in the Province of Pennsylvania , † August 14, 1796 in Salem , New Jersey ) was an American Methodist preacher .

Life

Benjamin Abbott was a grandson of James Abbott, who traveled to America from Somersetshire, England , and settled in Long Island, and the son of a father of the same name who was a daughter of John Burroughs, Sheriff of Hunterdon County , New Jersey, married and then lived as a plantation owner in the Province of Pennsylvania. Abbott lost his mother, who was suffering from a nervous disorder, in childhood, and his father died of smallpox just a month and a half later . According to his father's last will, he apprenticed to a hat maker in Philadelphia . As a result, however, he did not complete his training in this trade, but worked on his brother's farm in New Jersey; When he got part of his father's estate, he rented a farm himself with this money. Already in Philadelphia he was addicted to alcohol, indulged in amusements such as playing cards and watching cockfights , and because of his sturdy stature, he liked to fight fights at fairs, and at times came into conflict with the authorities. Even after marrying a woman from the Presbyterian Church , he continued his self-indulgent life for a while, but was a loving husband and father and a regular churchgoer.

After experiencing intense mental struggles, in which he is said to have dreamed of going to hell , Abbott joined the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1772 under the influence of the sermons of Abraham Whitworth . His wife and children also joined this church. He then became an enthusiastic revival preacher with extraordinary persuasiveness, who initially worked in his local environment, shook his listeners inwardly and brought about various astonishing conversions. During the American Revolution , Methodists were suspected of disloyalty to Britain's aspirations for independence, and Abbott was attacked several times; but he was always able to dissuade those who were besetting him - once even a group of 100 soldiers - from their plan of attack with his warning speeches. From 1789 he worked as a traveling preacher and worked in this function successively in different church districts. In 1790 he was ordained a deacon , in 1793 an elder (pastor); he has now been sent out to attend a ward in Maryland . As a result of his religious activities, he was instrumental in spreading the Methodist faith in southern New Jersey. Despite his deteriorating health in the last years of his life, he carried out his pastoral duties until his death. He died on August 14, 1796 at the age of 64 in Salem, New Jersey, where he also found his final resting place.

literature

  • Abbott, Benjamin. In: Dictionary of American Biography , Vol. 1 (1928), p. 16.

Remarks

  1. ↑ So GA Raybold, Reminiscences of Methodism in West Jersey , 1849, p 15; in the Dictionary of American Biography (vol. 1, p. 16) it is stated that Long Island is also considered a possible birthplace of Benjamin Abbott.
  2. ↑ a b c Abbott, Benjamin. In: Dictionary of American Biography , Vol. 1 (1928), p. 16.
  3. ↑ Abbott, Benjamin , in: Encyclopedia Americana , Vol. 1 (1918), pp. 16 f.
personal data
SURNAME Abbott, Benjamin
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American Methodist preacher
DATE OF BIRTH 1732
PLACE OF BIRTH Province of Pennsylvania or Long Island
DATE OF DEATH August 14, 1796
Place of death Salem, New Jersey