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F.W. Boreham

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My Pilgrimage: An autobiography

by F.W. Boreham

5.0 of 5 stars 5.00 · rating details · 5 ratings · 2 reviews

Autobiography of a Baptist minister, evangelist, and popular author who was born in the UK and worked in New Zealand and Australia.

Hardcover , 253 pages

Published 1940 by Epworth Press

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Feb 14, 2011 Richard added it

This is an engaging and good-humoured memoir by a Baptist pastor, evangelist, and popular writer.

Boreham’s family background was Anglican, but just before his birth his parents made the temporary decision to withdraw from the Church of England in favour of Emmanuel Church on Mount Ephraim, a curiously-named part of Tunbridge Wells in Kent (UK). The Church belonged to the Countess of Huntingdon’s Connexion, and here he “listened to vigorous expositions of Free Church principles from men like Rev. This is an engaging and good-humoured memoir by a Baptist pastor, evangelist, and popular writer.

Boreham’s family background was Anglican, but just before his birth his parents made the temporary decision to withdraw from the Church of England in favour of Emmanuel Church on Mount Ephraim, a curiously-named part of Tunbridge Wells in Kent (UK). The Church belonged to the Countess of Huntingdon’s Connexion, and here he “listened to vigorous expositions of Free Church principles from men like Rev. JB Figgis of Brighton”, as well as from the church’s own ministers, Rev George Jones and Rev H Webb Smith. During boyhood, an aunt brought the choruses of Sankey to his household, and DL Moody came to the town. The young Boreham was also impressed by seeing the Salvation Army endure taunts and violence from the thugs of the Skeleton Army, while his mother was influenced by a visiting service by Prebendary HW Webb-Peploe.

However, there were also many other influences on Boreham’s development, and following a near-fatal accident at work soon after leaving school he headed for London, where he found work in the offices of the South London Tramways Company. The first part of the book brings to life the evangelical “scene” in late nineteenth-century London – I was put in mind of Clyde Binfield’s academic study of George Williams and the early YMCA. Boreham recalls the excitement of the "personal appearances" made by evangelical leaders at churches and at Exeter Hall: "Revs Newman Hall, Donald Fraser, Marcus Rainsford, and Archibald G. Brown”. He particularly recalls Richard Weaver, “one of the old school… I imagine that few men now living can remember hearing Richard Weaver”. However, he adds that “honesty compels me to confess, not without shame, that that Mr Spurgeon never really appealed to me… I would have passed Mr Spurgeon any day in order to hear Archibald Brown, John McNeil or FB Meyer”. He also regularly attended the Immanuel Church in Brixton, led by Rev C Aubrey Price – this was a schismatic Anglican church where “one might attend the services for months, even for years, without discovering that they were not under the jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Canterbury”. Price introduced Boreham to Reader Harris QC, “a brilliant barrister and a born leader of men”, who had also impressed RF Horton. Another acquaintance was AJ Leighton of the London City Mission, who offered Boreham early experiences of evangelical preaching; he was eventually introduced to Gawin Kirkham and joined the Open Air Mission. There’s a humorous account of how this led to a close encounter with the Plymouth Brethren – he was considered for membership, but the elders objected to temperance ribbon on his jacket as “a badge of the world”.

During this time Boreham wished to train as a missionary, but his accident had left him with a limp, and Hudson Taylor gently suggested that he wasn’t suitable and that he should concentrate on a Home ministry. Boreham’s potential had come to Spurgeon’s notice, and Boreham gradually formalised his association with the Baptists. A chance encounter brought him into contact with Rev GS Read of the Old Baptist Union, and Boreham was baptised by its founder, Rev HA Squire. However, rather than join an Old Baptist church, he joined Kenyon Baptist Church in Brixton, and the minister there, Rev James Douglas, facilitated his entry into Spurgeon’s college in Norwood. Here, many lectures were by AT Pierson (“we took the liberty of changing his initials [to] MR Pierson… The MR stood for Most Remarkable”, reflecting his constant use of “most remarkable” as a descriptive term), and his fellow-students included FW Jarry, who later worked in India. Boreham also took to studying the techniques of other preachers, particularly those of Meyer and of Joseph Parker of the City Temple.

While Boreham was at college, Spurgeon’s brother Thomas returned to London from New Zealand, and through him Boreham secured a position as minister to the Scottish colony of Mosgiel. Once settled, his fiancée Stella (whom he had met while working as a student pastor at Theydon Bois) came over and they were married by the Rev JJ Doke, who was later “intimately associated with Mr Gandhi, and, on one notable occasion, saved the Mahatma’s life”. Doke urged Boreham to read more books, recommending in particular Edward Gibbon.

The book continues with pastoral and family anecdotes relating to Mosgiel , followed by moves to Hobart in Tasmania and then to Melbourne. There’s also an account of his literary endeavours: pieces for newspapers at first, and eventually books, following a request from Rev FE Harry of Sydney that his articles be collected. Boreham’s books were published by the Epworth Press, encouraged by J. Alfred Sharp. At the invitation of FA Robinson of Toronto, Boreham went on to give a tour of Canada and the United States.

The book is written in a style that is easy-going and affectionate without tipping over into sentimentality. Boreham’s evangelicalism is not belaboured – although he sees various decisions as having been guided by God, his book is a human interest story which provides real insight into how an evangelist and minister develops in his or her craft. ...more

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Feb 23, 2015 Jason Harris rated it 5 of 5 stars

No writer, past or present, affects me more deeply than F.W. Boreham. If you have not encountered this thoroughly enchanting literary figure already, I hope you will do yourselves the favour of doing so.

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