Wednesday 30 November 2016

J R Broome Biography

You can read the first few pages of Broome's biography here.

Called A bruised reed it first appeared in 2007.

Anne Steele's health

You can find an interesting article on this here.

Particular Baptists Volume 3

In volume 3 of the three works on Particular Baptist biography the first chapter is on Anne Steele and is by Sharon James. These are the contents

Volume 3 contains:

Anne Steele (1717-1778) by Sharon James
John Sutcliff (1752-1814) by Michael Haykin
John Saffery (1763-1825) by Brian Talbot
Joseph Kinghorn (1766-1832) by Dean Olive
Joseph Ivimey (1773-1834) by J. C. Doggett
William Gadsby (1773-1844) by B. A. Ramsbottom
Alexander Carson (1776-1844) by Robert Briggs
Christopher Anderson (1782-1852) by Derek B. Murray
John Kershaw (1792-1870) by B. A. Ramsbottom
Joseph Charles Philpot (1802-1869) by B. A. Ramsbottom
William Knibb (1803-1845) by Gary W. Long
Alexander Maclaren (1826-1910) by Don Goertz
Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892) by Heinz Dschankilic
Susannah Spurgeon (1832-1903) by Don Theobald

New Book from Michael Haykin

Baptist historian Michael Haykin has a new book out on eight women, one of whom is Anne Steele. See more here.

Tuesday 29 November 2016

A brief biography

Sharon James has a brief biography of Anne Steele in

In Trouble and in Joy: Four Women Who Lived for God

Notes from Julian's hymnology

Miss Anne Steele, 1716-1778
Notes from Dr. Julian's Hymnology:

Miss Steele was the daughter of Mr. William Steele, a timber merchant, and pastor without salary of the Baptist Church at Broughton in Hampshire. At an early age she showed a taste for literature and would often entertain her friends by her poetical compositions. But it was not until 1760 that she could be prevailed upon to publish ... Among Baptist hymn-writers, Miss Steele stands at the head, if we regard either the number of her hymns which have found a place in the hymnals of the last 120 years or the frequency with which they have been sung. Although few of them can be placed in the first rank of literary compositions, they are almost uniformly simple in language, natural and pleasing in imagery and full of genuine Christian feeling. Miss Steele may not inappropriately be compared with Miss F.R. Havergal, our 'Theodosia' of the 19th century. In both there is the same evangelic fervour, in both the same intense personal devotion to the Lord Jesus. But while Miss Steele seems to think of Him more frequently as her 'bleeding, dying Lord' — dwelling on His sufferings in their physical aspect, Miss Havergal oftener refers to His living help and sympathy, recognises with gladness His present claims as Master and King, and anticipates almost with ecstasy His second coming. Looking at the whole of Miss Steele's hymns, we find in them a wider range of thought than in Miss Havergal's compositions. She treats of a greater variety of subjects. On the other hand, Miss Havergal, living in this age of missions and general philanthropy, has much more to say concerning Christian work and personal service for Christ and for humanity. Miss Steele suffered from delicacy of health and from a great sorrow which befell her in the death of her betrothed under peculiarly painful circumstances. In other respects her life was uneventful and occupied chiefly in the discharge of such domestic and social duties as usually fell to the lot of the eldest daughter of a village pastor. She was buried in Broughton Churchyard. Miss Steele's hymn in 'Spiritual Songs' is no. 432, "And did the Holy and the Just". An excellent Gospel message is contained in this hymn, and the assurance of salvation through the work of the Lord Jesus on Calvary's Cross.

This piece is found here

More on Anne Steele

Hymns

A list of Anne Steele's hymns can be fond here

Wikipedia Entry

Life

Steele was born at Broughton, Hampshire. It has often been written that the drowning of her betrothed, a Mr Elscourt, a few hours before the time fixed for her marriage deeply affected an otherwise quiet life. However, modern research refutes the details of this story. One man did ask for the hand of Anne Steele, in 1742. This was Benjamin Beddome but she turned him down, and remained unmarried.

Works

Steele's hymns, which were much used by Baptists, emphasise the less optimistic phases of Christian experience. In 1760 she published Poems on Subjects Chiefly Devotional under the name Theodosia. This book had a second edition (3 vols. Bristol, 1780), for which Caleb Evans wrote a preface. Her complete works were published in one volume by Daniel Sedgwick (London, 1863), as Hymns, Psalms, and Poems by Anne Steele, with a memoir by John Sheppard. It comprised 144 hymns, 34 metrical psalms and 40 moral poems. Some of them, eg "Father of mercies, in Thy word," have found their way into the collections of other churches. She has been called the Frances Ridley Havergal of the eighteent century. Several of her hymns appear in the Sacred Harp. A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, a hymn book compiled by William Gadsby and first published in 1814, includes 27 of the hymns by Anne Steele. This book is used mainly by some of the Calvinistic Strict Baptist churches in England.