Historical Writings

Pope Gregory VII bans Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV and all his adherents, deprives him of his kingdoms of Germany and Italy, forbids the faithful to obey him, and bestows the crown of Germany on Rudolf. Authority for the date: Schaff, Philip. History of the Christian Church.

Death in the monastery of Fossanova of Thomas Aquinas, possibly the most famous Dominican theologian, author of the Summa Theologica and Summa contra Gentiles. Authority for the date: Standard encyclopedias.

Zurich council decrees death by drowning to all Anabaptists. Authority for the date: Shelly, Bruce. Church History in Plain Language. Thomas Nelson, 1996.

Peter Richer and William Chartier, two ministers appointed by the City of Geneva to plant the Reformed faith in Brazil, arrive at Rio Janeiro. They will celebrate the first Reformed service in South America, but leave the continent before accomplishing a lasting work. Authority for the date: Leben 1 #3 (2005).

Controversial colonial churchwoman Anne Hutchinson, 47, and nineteen other exiles from the Massachusetts Bay Colony settled in Rhode Island, at the site of modern Portsmouth.

Death on the Isle of Man of Bishop Thomas Wilson, beloved for his purity of life, kindness to the poor, and tolerance toward sects such as the Quakers. He had rebuilt his diocese and established libraries that included works in the Manx language spoken there. His charitable efforts included improvement of farming, amelioration of harsh laws, and support of English missions. Authority for the date: Dictionary of National Biography

Ohio Territory militiamen began a two-day massacre of the Moravian Indian town of Gnadenhutten (modern New Philadelphia, Ohio). In all, 96 Christian Indians of the Delaware tribe were slaughtered, in retaliation for Indian raids made elsewhere in the Ohio Territory.

Death in London of Thomas Olivers, an itinerant Methodist minister, editor, and hymnwriter. His best-known hymn was “The God of Abraham Praise.” Authority for the date: Nutter, Charles S. Hymns and Hymn Writers of the Church. Nashville: Smith & Lamar, 1915.

In Washington, D.C., the first Baptist church was organized with six charter members. Their first pastor Obadiah Brown was hired five years later, and Brown remained in that pulpit while involving himself in every important local Baptist program for the next 43 years!

Death in Calcutta of William Ward, mission printer and co-worker of William Carey. Authority for the date: Standard encyclopedias.

Birth of Alfred Edersheim, English biblical scholar. Converted to Christianity from Judaism before age 20, Edersheim later published "The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah" (1883A90), a Christian classic still in print!

Trembling and homesick, young Fanny Crosby arrives at a blind school in New York. There she will receive the training that will enable her become an outstanding hymnwriter after her conversion. Authority for the date: Ruffin, Bernard. Fanny Crosby. Pilgrim Press, 1976.

Birth of Peter Cameron Scott, founder of the Africa Inland Mission. In 1895, Scott led the first band of missionaries to reach Kenya. He died in Africa the following year, at 29, of blackwater fever. Over 700 AIM missionaries have since followed in Scott's footsteps.

The Reverend Carl McIntire begins broadcasting "The Twentieth Century Reformation Hour." Authority for the date: Biographical Dictionary of Evangelicals.

Death of Zhao Maijia, who had suffered greatly in an effort to "bring the gospel back to Jerusalem" from China, working and preaching among Muslims on China's western border and establishing the first church in the southern Xinjiang region. Authority for the date: Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Christianity.