'Master biographer Jonathan Aitken is in fine form, sympathetic, insightful, scholarly and vivid, and his book, like its subject, must be rated unobtrusively spectacular.'
J. I. Packer
'...meticulously researched...[Aiken] writes beautifully and accessibly.'
Christianity
'This is a book to inform your mind, warm your heart and inspire your Christian walk. I cannot recommend it more highly.'
Evangelical Times
From Newton's rip-roaring adventures on the high seas to his emergence as a pivotal figure in the abolitionist and evangelical movements, this is a life of amazing achievement as well as of Amazing Grace.
John Newton is best known as the author of the hymn Amazing Grace but this brilliant new biography shows how he led one of the most colourful and influential lives of the 18th century. Using a wealth of unpublished material, Jonathan Aitken charts Newton's journey through slave-trading, best-selling authorship, ordination, church leadership, abolitionist campaigning and the spiritual mentoring of William Wilberforce and William Cowper.
Rezensionen / Stimmen
Using diaries and correspondence, this biography crosses the boundaries of history and religion, and should appeal to a wide audience. * The Bookseller * A rip-roaring adventure, a passionate romance, and astonishing journey of faith all in one. -- Os Guinness This fascinating and gripping book makes the life of John Newton come alive for the contemporary reader. There's no hedging on Newton's depravity, nor his utterly passionate devotion to his precious Savior. I highly recommend this excellent work, it's one that will transform not only minds but hearts! -- Joni Eareckson Tada Skilled and colorful biographer that he is, my friend Jonathan Aitken has brought to life one of eighteenth-century England's most influential Christians. * Charles Colson, Founder, Prison Fellowship * Master biographer Jonathan Aitken is in fine form, sympathetic, insightful, scholarly and vivid, and his book, like its subject, must be rated unobtrusively spectacular. -- J. I. Packer A fresh, insightful, and inspiring account of this great yet neglected figure. With that rare skill of a superb biographer, Aitken brings Newton to life for a new generation of admirers. -- Alister McGrath ...meticulously researched...[Aiken] writes beautifully and accessibly. * Christianity * Here is a useful account of a great figure of the Evangelical Revival. * Times Literary Supplement * Well before the end, I was conscious that I was reading another classic ... Aitken writes with real passion for his subject ... This is a book to inform your mind, warm your heart and inspire your Christian walk. I cannot recommend it more highly. * Evangelical Times * A thorough study, superbly written, and an excellent read. * Keswick Convention Handbook * A brilliantly written biography ... Like all good biographers, Jonathan Aitken leaves us with the imprint of the subject firmly in our minds rather than the image of the author, but the engaging style of his narrative displays a personal commitment not only to the subject but also to his reason for living. * Paul Woolley, The Difference * Mr Aitken's biography... provides a rare spiritual treat and leads us to praise God for His mercy in the reality and wonder of salvation. * Gordan Murray - Protestant Truth * The book captures superbly how one life can be transformed by God for the benefit of others. -- Tricia Neill, President Alpha International Jonathan Aitken has written a book that, enriched by fresh research into unpublished papers, will enhance his reputation as one of today's foremost biographers. Secular and religious readers will alike profit enormously from this book. -- Rev Dr Michael Green Jonathan Aitken as always writes with elegance, clarity, and sympathy in describing an extraordinary eighteeneth-century life. * Graham Tomlin, Principal, St Paul's Theological Centre, Holy Trinity Brompton, London * Jonathan Aitken brings to life one of the unsung heroes of the Evangelical Revival. -- Richard Turnbull, Principal, Wycliffe Hall, Oxford Aitken is well-qualified to serve an account of Newton for the modern reader. He is a renowned writer and biographer, a former businessman and politician, and, like Newton, a man whose heart has been changed through amazing grace. -- Ken Costa, Chairman of Alpha International, Vice-Chairman of USB Investment Bank This is an 'amazing' book which tells the story of an 'amazing' Christian life...This is a book to inspire and challenge us as to the true nature of Amazing Grace. -- Wendy Bray * Christianity *
Sprache
Verlagsort
Verlagsgruppe
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Produkt-Hinweis
Maße
Höhe: 231 mm
Breite: 154 mm
Dicke: 25 mm
Gewicht
ISBN-13
978-1-3994-1284-1 (9781399412841)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Klassifikation
Jonathan Aitken is a former MP and cabinet minister. He is now an author, biographer and broadcaster.
In 1995, the court found him guilty of perjury in a celebrated case against the Guardian newspaper and he spent 18 months in Belmarsh Prison. He subsequently studied theology at Oxford and in 2019, he was ordained an Anglican priest. He is now a full-time prison chaplain in London.
He is the author of an award-winning biography of President Richard Nixon and has written a number of critically acclaimed books for Bloomsbury Continuum - including a bestselling life of Margaret Thatcher (2013).
Acknowledgements
1 A Spiritual Upbringing
2 First Steps in Love and Seafaring
3 Press-ganged
4 Flogged and Degraded
5 Exchanged
6 Enslaved in Africa
7 Rescued by the Greyhound
8 Troublemaker and Blasphemer
9 In the Shadow of Death
10 False Dawns, More Storms and a Safe Landing
11 Londonderry, Love and a Liverpool Shipowner
12 Adventures on the Brownlow
13 Struggles of Books, Body and Soul
14 Marriage to Polly
15 Captain of the Duke of Argyle
16 First Voyage of the African
17 The End of a Seafaring Career
18 Unemployment, Inspiration and Prayer
19 Methodism and Materialism
20 Life in Liverpool
21 The Call to Ordination
22 The First Rejection
23 In Suspense
24 An Authentic Narrative
25 Ordained at Last
26 First Impressions of Olney
27 Parish Ministry
28 Pressure to Move: Praying with Polly
29 Prayer and Church History
30 Friendship with Cowper
31 Creativity and Crisis
32 Amazing Grace
33 What Happened to Amazing Grace
34 Winning Friends and Influencing People
35 Meddling in Politics
36 Family Life and Health Worries
37 Leaving Olney
38 Arriving in London
39 Family, Friends and Apologia
40 The Eclectic Society and the Messiah
41 Mentor to William Wilberforce
42 Correspondence with Wilberforce
43 Abolitionist Campaigner
44 Death of Polly
45 Declining Years and Continuing Influence
46 A Great Sinner and a Great Saviour
Epilogue
Source Notes
Bibliography
Index