Collect for William Wilberforce

July 30, 2012

Collect for William Wilberforce

Let your continual mercy, O Lord, kindle in your Church the never-failing gift of love, that, following the example of your servant William Wilberforce, we may have grace to defend the poor, and maintain the cause of those who have no helper; for the sake of him who gave his life for us, your Son our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Comments

Bill Bynum said…

William Wilberforce is another of those interesting people whose names appear in the calendar of the Episcopal Church. After a religious conversion in 1785, he began working with his friends, William Pitt and William Grenville, in Parliament to abolish the slave trade, a task that occupied Wilberforce until he was forced to retire from Parliament in 1823 due to ill health. Unfortunately, he died in 1833, before the Slavery Abolition Act was finally passed in 1834. The film "Amazing Grace" made in 2006 by Michael Apted that I saw through my Netflix subscription acquainted me with the life of Wilberforce. The film's title comes from a meeting in the film between Wilberforce and John Newton, a former slaver who framed the words for the hymn. The meeting probably never happened, but it does add some dramatic intensity to Wilberforce's story, I suppose. An entertaining, but slightly inaccurate, film. (sorry for the long post -- I hope that wordy posts like mine don't penalize your blog in any way!)

July 30, 2012 at 11:46 AM

Jay Croft said…

Thank you for this--and to Bill Bynum too!

Wilberforce is one of my heroes. I was privileged to visit the church he founded in North London, a few years ago.

July 30, 2012 at 3:20 PM