Charles G. Finney (1792-1875) was a man with a message that
burned through the religious deadwood and secular darkness of his
time. He had the ability to shock both saint and sinner alike.
Because he was radical in both his methods and his message, Finney
was criticized for almost everything except being boring.
Born in Connecticut in 1792, Finney was nearly thirty years of age
when he turned from his skepticism regarding Christianity and
wholeheartedly embraced the Bible as the true Word of God. He gave
up his law profession in order to spread the gospel, and he soon
became the most noteworthy revivalist of the nineteenth century,
one of the leaders of the Second Great Awakening. It is estimated
that over 250,000 souls were converted as a result of his
preaching. While Finney carried his revivals to several middle and
eastern states, the bulk of his meetings were in New York towns,
especially Rome, Rochester, Utica, Clinton, Antwerp, Evans' Mills,
Western, and Gouverneur.
In 1832, Finney began pastoring Second Free Presbyterian Church in
New York City. In 1835, upon the request of Arthur Tappan, Finney
established the theology department at Oberlin Collegiate Institute
(today known as Oberlin College). He served there as a professor of
theology, as well as pastor of Oberlin's First Congregational
Church, until a few years before his death. He was also a member of
the Oberlin College Board of Trustees from 1846 until he was
elected president in 1851. During these years, he continued to
carry on his evangelism, even visiting Great Britain twice in
1849-50 and 1859-60.
Finney was married three times in his life, first to Lydia Root
Andrews (m. 1824), then to Elizabeth Ford Atkinson (m. 1848), and
then to Rebecca Allen Rayl (m. 1865). All three of these women
assisted Finney in his evangelistic efforts, accompanying him on
his revival tours during their lives. In August 1875, Finney died
in Oberlin due to a heart ailment.
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