George Whitfield
Preachers are rarely called marvels. Most never have an impact beyond their own church. George Whitfield was different. In an era long before television or radio were invented, the Reverend George Whitfield preached to millions of souls on two continents, sparked the Great Awakening and became known as the “marvel of the age.” In a sense, he was America’s first celebrity and for a time Savannah was his home.
Early Life
George Whitfield was born into a large family in Gloucester in southwestern England in 1714. Growing up, young George became enamored with acting and took part in theatrical productions. It was in these formative years when he learned how to be dramatic and captivate an audience. Years later, Whitfield would comment “During the time of my being at school, I was very fond of reading plays, and have kept from school for days together to prepare myself for acting them.” His performances as a young boy would build in him a powerful oratory skill that would later convert sinners and save souls.
College and Conversion
In his college years, Whitfield experienced had a deep spiritual hunger which eventually led to a deep conversion. Soon after entering Pembroke College, Oxford University, he became acquainted with Charles and John Wesley. The brothers invited Whitefield to partake in their small fellowship group which met frequently for Bible study and prayer. One day, Charles Wesley gifted him the book, The Life of God in the Soul of Man by Henry Scougal, and in reading it put Whitfield on a path to seek a true conversion of the soul. Yes, meeting John and Charles Wesley had a profound impact on George Whitfield's life. What Whitfield took from reading Scougal's book was that his Christian life of being religious was insufficient. It revealed something. It revealed he needed a second birth. He needed salvation.
This new knowledge set Whitfield on a path of fasting and prayer that finally led him to what evangelicals today would call a "born again" spiritual experience. In going to college, and meeting Charles Wesley, Whitfield's life would never be the same again.
An Invitation to Missionary Work
Years after their days in college together, George Whitfield received a letter from John Wesley, who was now doing missionary work in the new Colony of Georgia. In his letter, Wesley invited Whitfield to join him and his brother in preaching the Gospel in the new colony.
At the time he received the letter, General James Edward Oglethorpe, who established the Colony of Georgia, was back in England. Whitfield met with Oglethorpe to discuss Wesley's invitation and it was decided he would make the journey to Savannah on Oglethorpe’s next transatlantic crossing.
In the meantime, Whitfield continued preaching to larger and larger crowds.
Eventually, Oglethorpe was ready to return to Savannah and they departed but, by this time, both John and Charles Wesley had left Savannah. Upon arrival, Whitfield was immediately needed at The Mother Church of Georgia. Christ Church had been in need of a new Rector since Wesley’s departure, so Whitfield succeeded his friend to lead the congregation, even though at the time he had only been ordained a Deacon by the Anglican Church.
He was warmly welcomed by the parishioners who found him less strict than Wesley.
One of the first things Whitfield learned after arriving in Savannah was the large number of orphans in the colony. Adverse heat and disease had killed many. Parents had died leaving orphans behind. Whitfield quickly resolved that on his return trip to England for his ordination to the priesthood, he would begin a fundraising effort to build an orphanage. And so he did. After returning across the Atlantic Ocean and receiving his priestly ordination, Whitfield petitioning the Georgia Trustees to grant land for the orphanage. Raising enough funds and having received the land from the Trustees, Whitfield returned to Savannah.
The land granted by the Trustees was located 12 miles outside of Savannah, near present-day Isle of Hope. With the blessing of the leaders of the colony and the land gifted, Whitfield proceeded to bring his vision for a Christian orphanage to reality. Construction began. He laid the first brick. In 1840, Bethesda Orphanage (Bethesada means house of mercy) opened. 40 young orphan boys, left without family when their parents died, finally had a home. Because of Whitfield's faithfulness to the New Testament admonition to look after orphans, Bethesda was born. Nearly 300 years since it was established, today Bethesda Academy is the oldest child care institution in continuous operation in America.
A few years after Bethesda opened, Whitfield's friend and future founding father Benjamin Franklin made a donation towards its operating expenses.
Savannah Remembers Whitfield
George Whitfield's contributions to life in Savannah were a great blessing to those who had embarked for a new life in a strange land. Today the city remember's Whitfield's contributions and his time in Savannah with a town square named after him. You can visit Whitfield Square on Habersham Street in Savannah's downtown district. Established in 1851, it was the last square created 118 years after General Oglethorpe established the first four squares. Today, Whitfield Square, surrounded by Victorian and Queen Anne Style Home with a white gazebo at its center, is a popular place for weddings in Savannah.
There's also a Historical Marker in front of Christ Church at Johnson Square which mentions Whitfield's time as Rector.
Legacy
Whitfield's mission and service to the people of Savannah is in many of the historical accounts of his life. But his greatest legacy is his career as an itenerant preacher. It's believed that during his lifetime, he preached 18,000 sermons in Great Britain and America and that up to 10,000,000 people attended one of his sermons. He was a powerful preacher. He made a marked impact in England and its colonies.
Shortly after his death in 1770, Augustus Montague Toplady, who had written the Christian hymn "Rock of Ages," thought of his many accomplishments and noted that the Reverend George Whitfield was the "Apostle to the English Empire."
And he was an effective one, at that.
