George Fox

George Fox (July 1624 – January 13 1691) was an English Dissenter and the founder of the Religious 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.

Death and legacy

George Fox died on January 13, 1691, and was interred in the Quaker Burying Ground at Bunhill Fields in London.

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January 13 - 1691 - Bunhill Fields - London

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His journal was first published in 1694, after editing by Thomas Ellwood — a friend of John Milton — and William Penn. As a religious autobiography, it has been compared to such works as Augustine's Confessions and John Bunyan's Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners — an intensely personal work that nevertheless succeeds in appealing to readers. It has also been used by historians because of its wealth of detail on ordinary life in the 17th century, and the many towns and villages which Fox visited.

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1694 - Thomas Ellwood - John Milton - William Penn - Augustine - Confessions - John Bunyan - 17th century

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Hundreds of Fox's letters — mostly epistles intended for wide circulation, along with a few private communications — have also been published. Written from the 1650s onwards, with such titles as Friends, seek the peace of all men or To Friends, to know one another in the light, the letters give enormous insight into the detail of Fox's beliefs, and show his determination to spread them. These writings have found an audience beyond Quakers, with many other church groups using them to illustrate principles of Christianity.

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Fox is described by Ellwood as "graceful in countenance, manly in personage, grave in gesture, courteous in conversation." Penn says he was "civil beyond all forms of breeding." We are told that he was "plain and powerful in preaching, fervent in prayer," "a discerner of other men's spirits, and very much master of his own," skilful to "speak a word in due season to the conditions and capacities of most, especially to them that were weary, and wanted soul's rest;" "valiant in asserting the truth, bold in defending it, patient in suffering for it, immovable as a rock."

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Fox's influence on the Society of Friends was of course tremendous, and his beliefs have largely been carried forward by that group. Not all of his beliefs were welcome to all Quakers, however; his Puritan-like opposition to the arts, and rejection of theological study, prevented the development of these practices among Quakers for some time. The name of George Fox is often invoked by traditionalist Friends who dislike liberal attitudes to the Society's Christian origins. At the same time, Quakers and others can relate to Fox's religious experience, and even those who disagree with him can regard him as a pioneer.

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Walt Whitman, who always felt close to the Quakers, later wrote: "George Fox stands for something too—a thought—the thought that wakes in silent hours—perhaps the deepest, most eternal thought latent in the human soul. This is the thought of God, merged in the thoughts of moral right and the immortality of identity. Great, great is this thought—aye, greater than all else." ]

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George Fox University in Oregon, founded as Pacific College in 1891, was renamed for him in 1949.

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George Fox University - Oregon

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