William Henry Furness

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Reverend Doctor William Henry Furness , painted by Cecilia Beaux in 1886

William Henry Furness (born April 20, 1802 in Boston , Massachusetts , † January 30, 1896 in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania ) was an American Unitarian theologian , hymn poet and abolitionist .

Live and act

Furness was born in Boston in 1802 and later studied theology at the Unitarian Harvard College . He had a lifelong friendship with his classmate Ralph Waldo Emerson , who would later become the leading head of the transcendentalism movement . In 1825 he took over the pastorate of the First Unitarian Church in Philadelphia , which he would hold until his retirement in 1875. Under his influence, the community grew, so that several new larger church buildings were moved into.

In addition to his work as a preacher, he appeared primarily socio-politically as an opponent of slavery and showed solidarity with the abolitionist John Brown, who was sentenced to death . He also raised funds for the development of Morehouse College to give African Americans a theological education. As a Unitarian preacher, he also consciously sought contact with the Jewish community in Philadelphia. Theologically he worked, among other things, in the field of historical Jesus research . Here he rejected the idea of ​​the virgin birth of Jesus and looked for an emphatically rationalistic approach to the life of Jesus. Furness was also the author of numerous Christian hymns

In 1825 he married Annis P. Jenks from Salem , with whom he had four children. His son William Henry Furness later became a well-known portrait painter . Horace Howard Furness became a recognized Shakespeare expert. Frank Furness worked as an architect and designed, among other things, the church building of the First Unitarian Church and the synagogue in Philadelphia. His daughter Annis Lee Wister became a well-known writer and translator.

Works (selection)

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Individual evidence

  1. ↑ hymnary.org: William Henry Furness
personal data
SURNAME Furness, William Henry
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American Unitarian theologian, song poet, and abolitionist
DATE OF BIRTH April 20, 1802
PLACE OF BIRTH Boston
DATE OF DEATH January 30, 1896
Place of death Philadelphia