 It
was on his mother's birthday that Moody was born on a small New England
farm. He was only four when his father, Edwin, a bricklayer and an
alcoholic, died suddenly at 41. His mother gave birth to a twin one month after the death of the
father bringing a total of 9 children. Their uncle and the local Unitarian
pastor came to their aid at this time. The pastor also baptized Moody (age
five) in 1842. This was undoubtedly sprinkling and his only
"baptism" experience.
He became successful in business in Chicago, where he settled in 1856. His activities there as a Sunday-school teacher and superintendent were so successful that in 1861 he withdrew from business to devote himself to city missionary work. He married Emma Charlotte Revell in 1862 when he was 25 and she nineteen. The three Moody children were Emma, William Revell and Paul Dwight. In 1867, primarily due to his wife's asthma, the couple went to England. In 1870 he met Ira Sankey, who for a number of years thereafter was associated with him in evangelistic campaigns. They made two extended evangelical tours of Great Britain. In 1875, Moody began his crusade in America. Large crowds were also attracted to their meetings in the United States, and their collections of gospel hymns were received with great enthusiasm. Moody’s preaching was simple, colorful, and direct; he stressed God’s love and mercy rather than retribution and hellfire. His interest in religious education led him to found the Northfield Seminary for girls (1879) and the Mt. Hermon School for boys (1881), both in Northfield, Mass; in 1971 the two schools merged and became the Northfield Mt. Hermon School. In 1889 his Bible Institute for Home and Foreign Missions (now the Moody Bible Institute) opened in Chicago. The conferences for Christian workers that Moody inaugurated at Northfield, Mass., were annual gatherings.
|
