Francis Edward Clark

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Francis Edward Clark

Francis Edward Clark (born September 12, 1851 in Aylmer ( Québec ), † May 26, 1927 in Auburndale (Massachusetts) ) was an American pastor and the founder of the international Christian youth organization Christian Endeavor (CE) .

Life

Clark's ancestors came from New England . After the death of his father Charles C. Symmes in 1853, at the age of eight, he was adopted by his uncle, Pastor EW Clark, whose last name he took.

He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1873 and from Andover Theological Seminary in 1876. After his ordination in a congregational church he worked from 1876 to 1883 as a pastor at the "Williston Congregational Church" in Portland (Maine) and from 1883 to 1887 at the "Phillips Congregational church" in Boston .

On February 2, 1881, he founded the Young People's Society of Christian Endeavor in Portland with the aim of integrating young people into his church. In response to his efforts, 57 young people signed a pledge to lead a sincere life by Christian standards and to be involved in their church. Initially a small group in a single church in New England, CE quickly evolved into an interdenominational organization. As early as 1908, there were 70,761 branches with more than 3.5 million members in the United States , Canada , the United Kingdom , Australia , South Africa , India , Japan and China .

After 1887, Clerk devoted himself exclusively to expanding the work he had founded, which he led as managing director of the “United Societies of Christian Endeavor”, an umbrella organization. In 1895 Clerk founded the "World's Christian Endeavor Union", which was internationally active. He was also the editor of the organization's own magazine Christian Endeavor World , which was initially published under the title The Golden Rule .

His home at 379 Central Street in Auburndale, Massachusetts is on the National Register of Historic Places .

Works

  • The Children and the Church. 1882
  • Looking Out on Life. 1883
  • Young Peoples Prayer Meetings. 1884
  • Some Christian Endeavor Saints. 1889
  • World Wide Endeavor. 1895
  • A New Way Round an Old World. 1900 (Note: the work is a travel report with the newly opened Trans-Siberian Railway)
  • Memories of Many Men in Many Lands. To Autobiography. United Society of Christian Endeavor, Boston / Chicago 1922

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c J. Gordon Melton: Clark, Francis (E) dward (1851-1921) . In: Encyclopedia of World Religions . Encyclopedia of Protestantism, No. 6 . Facts of File, New York 2005, ISBN 0-8160-5456-8 , pp. 174 (English).
  2. ^ E. Brooks Holifield: Christian Endeavor . In: Hans Dieter Betz u. a. (Ed.): Religion in the past and present . Concise dictionary for theology and religious studies. 4th edition. tape 8 , no. 2 . UTB, Stuttgart 2008, ISBN 978-3-8252-8401-5 , Sp. 257 .
personal data
SURNAME Clark, Francis Edward
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American pastor, founder of Christian Endeavor (CE)
DATE OF BIRTH September 12, 1851
PLACE OF BIRTH Aylmer ( Quebec )
DATE OF DEATH May 26, 1927
Place of death Auburndale, Massachusetts