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George Fox ( July 1624– January 13 1691), an English Dissenter, was the founder of the Society of Friends, commonly known as the Quakers. Living in a time of great social upheaval, he rebelled against the religious and political consensus by proposing an unusual and uncompromising approach to the Christian faith. His journal is a text popular even among non-Quakers for its vivid account of his personal journey.1 Early life
George Fox was born during July 1624 at Drayton-in-the-Clay, Leicestershire, England (now known as Fenny Drayton), 15 miles south-west of Leicester. His father, Christopher Fox, was a weaver, called "righteous Christer" by his neighbors; his mother, Mary Lago, was, he tells us, "of the stock of the Martyrs". From childhood, Fox was of a serious, religious disposition. His education was based around the faith and practice of the Church of England, of which his parents were members; he had no formal schooling, but was able to read and write. Even at a young age, he was fascinated by the Bible, which he studied continually. "When I came to eleven years of age," he said, "I knew pureness and righteousness; for, while I was a child, I was taught how to walk to be kept pure. The Lord taught me to be faithful, in all things, and to act faithfully two ways; viz., inwardly to God, and outwardly to man." [1]
As he grew up, his relations "thought to have made him a priest", but he was instead made an apprentice to a shoemaker and grazier.This suited his contemplative temperament, and he became well-known for his diligence among the wool traders who had dealings with his master. A constant obsession for Fox was the pursuit of "simplicity" in life, meaning humility and the abandonment of luxury, and the short time he spent as a shepherd was important to the formation of this view. Towards the end of his life, he wrote a letter for general circulation pointing out that Abel, Noah, Abraham, JacobAngel Gustave Dore, 1855 Jacob or Ya'akov "Holder of the heel", Standard Hebrew Yaaqov Tiberian Hebrew Yaaqo Arabic Yaqub , later known as Israel "Prince with God", Standard Hebrew Yisrael Tiberian Hebrew Yisrel Arabic Isril is a biblical patriarch. His s, MosesSee also Exodus Moses or Moshe "Drawn", Standard Hebrew Moše Tiberian Hebrew Mošeh , son of Amram and his wife, Jochebed, a Levite. Legendary Hebrew liberator, leader, lawgiver, prophet, and historian. If he is a historical figure, he may have and DavidThis page is about the Biblical king David. For other uses see: David (disambiguation David "Beloved", Standard Hebrew David Tiberian Hebrew Dwi Arabic Dud "Beloved") was one of the most well known kings of ancient Israel, as well as the most-mentioned ma were all keepers of sheep or cattle, and that a learned education should not therefore be seen as a qualification for ministry. [ Marsh p364]
Even so, he felt no shame in friendship with educated people. He frequently visited Nathaniel Stephens, the clergyman of his hometown, for long discussions on religious matters. Stephens considered Fox to be a gifted young man, but the two disagreed on so many issues that he later called Fox a madman, and spoke against him in his subsequent career. George Fox also had friends who were "professors" (followers of the standard religion) but by the age of nineteen he had begun to look down on their behaviour, in particular their drinking of alcohol. He records that in prayer one night he heard an inner voice saying, "Thou seest how young people go together into vanity, and old people into the earth; and thou must forsake all, both young and old, and keep out of all, and be as a stranger unto all." [2]
1.1 First travels
For this reason, he left Drayton-in-the-Clay in September 1643, wandering in a state of mental torment and confusion. While in BarnetThis article is about the town in London. For the city in Vermont, USA, see Barnet, Vermont''. High Barnet or Chipping Barnet is a place in the London Borough of Barnet in Greater London, England. It lay on the border of the traditional counties of Hertfo, Fox would alternately shut himself in his room for days at a time, or go out alone into the countryside. He thought intensely about JesusImages of Jesus in which a halo is used to represent divinity. 6 4 BCE to c. 29 33 CE) is the central figure in Christianity, in which context he is known as Jesus Christ (from the Hebrew Yehošua , and Greek Chi;ριστ&sigmaf Chris' temptation in the desertAlternate meaning: Satan is also the name of a genus of catfish. See: Satan eurystomus. Satan Standard Hebrew Satan Tiberian Hebrew Sn Aramaic Sin both words mean "Adversary; accuser") is an angel, demon, or minor god in many religions. Satan plays variou, which he compared to his own spiritual condition, but drew strength from his conviction that God would support and preserve him. At times, he attracted the attention of various religious scholars, but he rejected them because he did not feel they lived up to the doctrines they taught. Fox did actively seek out the company of clergy, but "found no comfort from them", as they too seemed unable to help with the matters that were troubling him. One clergyman in WorcestershireWorcestershire (pronounced wustashur or wustasheer abbreviated Worcs is a county, located in the West Midlands region of central England. It borders Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, West Midlands, Warwickshire, and Gloucestershire. To the west, t advised him to take tobaccoacuminata N. alata N. attenuata N. bigelovil N. clevelandii N. debneyi N. excelsior N. exigua N. forgetiana N. glutinosa N. kawakamii N. knightiana N. langsdorffii N. longiflora N. obtusifolia N. otephora N. paniculata N. plumbagifolia N. quadrivalvis N. (which Fox detested) and sing psalms; another, in Coventry, was helpful at first but lost his temper when Fox accidentally stood on a flower in his garden; a third suggested that bloodletting would cure the "mind diseased". [3]
Disillusioned and dejected, he returned home in June 1644. But there was no help to be found there either: Fox's family and friends offered either marriage or military service as a solution to his troubles. He soon decided that he would have to go travelling again, but this time with a more questioning approach towards the religious figures he would encounter. Fox was determined to challenge those he disagreed with, rather than shrink away from them. [ Marsh p31–32]
