John Newton

John Newton

John Henry Newton (July 24, 1725 – December 21, 1807) was a British sailor and Anglican clergyman. Starting his career at sea, at a young age, he became involved with the slave trade for a few years, and was himself enslaved for a period. After experiencing a religious conversion, he became a minister, hymn-writer, and later a prominent supporter of the abolition of slavery. He was the author of many hymns, including "Amazing Grace" and "Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken."

Read more about John Newton:  Early Life, Spiritual Conversion, Anglican Priest, Abolitionist, Writer and Hymnist, Final Years, Commemoration, Portrayals in Literature, Movies and Other Media

Famous quotes containing the words john and/or newton:

    Oh for some honest lover’s ghost,
    Some kind unbodied post
    Sent from the shades below!
    I strangely long to know
    Whether the nobler chaplets wear
    Those that their mistress’ scorn did bear,
    Or those that were used kindly.
    —Sir John Suckling (1609–1642)

    Where the statue stood
    Of Newton with his prism and silent face,
    The marble index of a mind for ever
    Voyaging through strange seas of thought, alone.
    William Wordsworth (1770–1850)