William Irvine (Scottish evangelist)
| William Irvine | |
|---|---|
William Irvine (1930's)
|
|
| Born |
7 January 1863 Kilsyth, Scotland |
| Died | 9 March 1947 (aged 84) Jerusalem |
| Resting place | Mt. Zion Protestant Cemetery, Jerusalem (unmarked) |
| Occupation | Evangelist |
| Signature | |
 |
|
William Irvine (/ˈɜːrvᵻn/; 1863–1947), sometimes Irvin or Irwin in contemporary documents, was an evangelist from the late nineteenth century, and continuing through the first half of the twentieth century.
Irvine was born in Kilsyth, located in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, the third of eleven children of a miner. He was educated at Kilsyth Academy and worked as a quarry master before spending two years at John Anderson's Bible Training Institute, Glasgow (1893–1895). The town of Kilsyth claims Irvine as a "famous son."
For convenience, William Irvine's career as an evangelist may be divided into 3 periods, though they would have been seen as a continuous stream with considerable overlap during those years.
William Irvine joined the evangelical Faith Mission movement in Scotland in 1895. During the following year, he was sent to head the organization's missions in the south of Ireland and had enough success that he was named superintendent.
Irvine met John Long, a Methodist colporteur, in March 1897 in Kilrush, S. Ireland. "At this time, Irvine had a big reputation as a Faith Mission evangelist "remarkable for saying, 'Praise the Lord,' no matter what happened". John Long describes Irvine as "In either secular or religious matters, he was a born leader of men; he was a holy man, and practical. In personal dealing, he was preeminently the best conversationalist I ever met, and skilful in soul winning. He had a marvelous insight into the deep things of God's word, and like his Master, was an apt teacher of all who received the truth with pleasure. He always set forth the cross, and was a swift witness against all pride, vainglory and hypocrisy; he was severe on Christians, but merciful to sinners. In prayer, praise, and preaching he excelled in joy, liberty, and power. He was very much opposed and misunderstood by religious people; nevertheless, the common people liked him and heard him gladly." Other sources describe Irvine's style of speaking as hypnotic, "sweeter than honey in the honeycomb" and "ferocious" in its sincerity. He was also noted for making outrageous and inflammatory statements, even claiming "I am St. Paul II!"
...
Wikipedia