Historical Writings

Death of St. Francis of Assisi, mystic and founder of the Franciscan order.

The remains of St. Clare of Assisi are transferred from the church of St. George in Assisi to the St. Chiara, specially built to receive her relics. Those who shift her corpse are awed to find that it is "incorrupt," which they take as proof of her sanctity.

Zwingli and Luther part at Marburg. Zwingli offers his hand, but Luther rejects it. The two had agreed on every issue except the theology of the Lord's supper.

Death of Robert Barclay, a Scot who systematized Quaker theology in his Apology for the True Christian Divinity. He argued that worship that lacks Christ's presence is a sham and that the Bible can only be understood if the Holy Spirit illuminates a person from within. He had been imprisoned several times for his faith.

The Treaty of Limerick is signed, making King William III of England the ruler of Ireland. The defenders of Limerick had fought so courageously that the treaty grants them the right to march out with honors and promises Catholics free exercise of their religion in Ireland.

In Massachusetts, Increase Mather published his "Cases of Conscience Concerning Evil Spirits," which effectively brought an end to the Salem Witch Trials which had begun earlier this year.

Anglican clergyman and hymnwriter John Newton wrote in a letter: 'A real conviction of our weakness we cannot learn merely from books or preachers. The providence of God concurs ... in making us acquainted with ourselves.'

Jean-Louis Anne Madelain Lefebvre de Cheverus settles in Boston, Massachusetts, where he will become the first bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Boston. He will labor among Indians, learning their language, and work hard ministering to Catholics and victims of yellow fever.

Birth of Carolina (aka Lina Sandell) Berg, hymnwriter. Known as the "Fanny Crosby of Sweden," her most enduring songs which survive today are: "Day by Day (And With Each Passing Moment)" and "Children of the Heavenly Father."

Hebrew Union College was founded in Cincinnati, Ohio under Jewish auspices. It was the first Jewish college in America to train men for the rabbinate.

The Union Church of Christ is organized in Japan.

Death of Daniel B. Towner, American music evangelist, who had worked with Dwight L. Moody and been head of the Music Department of Moody Bible Institute. He had composed more than 2,000 songs, including MOODY ("Marvelous Grace of Our Loving Lord"), CALVARY ("Years I Spent in Vanity and Pride"), and TRUST AND OBEY ("When We Walk with the Lord").

The Church of Scotland merged with the United Free Church of Scotland, retaining the name Church of Scotland. Though it maintains an official state connection, its ecclesiastical government is presbyterian (elder-led) in nature.

Death of Kuang Fuzhou, the first Chinese in the world raised to staff level in the Salvation Army.

Lutheran pastor Kjeldgaard Jensen in Gilleleje, Denmark, reads a letter from his nation's bishops, instructing Danes to assist in the rescue of Jews from impending Nazi deportation to death camps. The bishops remind their flocks that Jesus was a Jew, that persecution violates the command to love one's neighbor, and that it is contrary to Danish conceptions of justice. This will inspire the town to hide over 1,300 Jews and transport most of them to neutral Sweden.

Death of Orthodox deacon Ieronymos of Aegina. On account of his zealous, holy, and prayerful life he will be considered a candidate for formal sainthood.