Historical Writings

Death of John Chrysostom, considered the greatest preacher of his era. He was being forced to march into remote exile despite severe illness.

Francis of Assisi has a vision of a Seraph. Filled with joy, he discovers wounds have appeared on his hands, feet, and side (the stigmata).

Death of Dante Alighieri, author of the greatest epic of medieval Christianity, The Divine Comedy.

German composer George Frederick Handel, 56, finished composing his oratorio, "The Messiah." He wrote the score, start-to-finish, in only 24 days, subsisting primarily on coffee.

Anglican clergyman and hymnwriter John Newton wrote in a letter: 'How unspeakable are our obligations to the grace of God.'

Francis Scott Key, an Episcopalian layman and cofounder of the American Sunday School Union, is inspired to write the song that becomes America's national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner," when he sees that Fort McHenry has not struck its colors after a night of heavy bombardment by British ships during the war of 1812.

Death in Ramsgate, Kent, of Augustin W. N. Pugin, influential in the nineteenth-century Gothic revival of ecclesiastical architecture. Among his designs was the beautiful St Augustine's Abbey Church in Ramsgate.

Death of hymnwriter Jane Fox Crewdson at Summerlands, England. Among her hymns (most of which were written during a long illness) was "I've Found a Joy in Sorrow."

The Evangelical Lutheran Joint Synod of Wisconsin, Ohio and Other States was formed from the merger of several smaller synods. In 1930 this denomination merged with two other synods to form the American Lutheran Church (ALC).

Bob Jones University opened in Greenville, South Carolina, and eighty-eight students registered for the first fall term.

(or the 15th) Death of composer Charles H. Gabriel, who had published numerous Gospel songbooks and anthems. His popular hymns included "More Like the Master," "Send the Light," "O That Will Be Glory," and "I Stand Amazed in the Presence."

(Mother) Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton (1774-1821) was canonized by Pope Paul VI, making her the first native-born American citizen to become a saint in the Roman Catholic Church.

Shi Lishi and Shi Wuting are executed in Henan Province on the pretext of having committed murder. Well-known as house church leaders, the Shi family had expected reprisals after they prayed over and cared for a terminally ill woman.

Funeral of Mrs. Joannah Mobola Ayorinde, at First Baptist Church, Broad Street, Lagos, Nigeria. She had been a holy and fearless Baptist leader of the Women's Missionary Union.