The preaching of Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887)

This dissertation is a study in the preaching of Henry Ward Beecher, a prominent preacher during one of the most crucial periods in American history. To study the preaching of one so skilful in his art is always a humbling experience. Perhaps, no other preacher has been such an illustrious example of the American pulpit. Beecher was distinctively American in his qualities, and undoubtedly for this reason has contributed more than any other single preacher in the producing of the modern type of American preaching. He characterises both its strength and its weaknesses. Hence, to study Beecher»s preaching is actually a study in miniature of American preaching.The purpose of this work is two-fold. First, through the analysis of Beecher's preaching theory and practice, it is an effort to discover the principles which he believed were involved in effective preaching. Second, it is an attempt to determine and evaluate his contribution to the field of preaching. The study includes both the mechanics and the message of Beecher*s preaching. However, special emphasis has been given to the former, the art of his preaching; for if Beecher has made a contribution, it is in this phase of his pulpit work.The discussion of the subject is developed in five parts. The initial chapter is, by its very nature, introductory, but it is essential as a religious and biographical background for examining Beecher's preaching in its proper context. The second and third chapters are an attempt to get behind the scene and discover the genius of Beecher's preaching by analysing his theory and practice according to technique and style. The fourth section is a survey of the message of Beecher's voluminous sermons. It includes an examination of the theological background of his preaching and an analysis of its main emphases. In the final division, a summary of the results of the study is made and an evaluation of the significance of Beecher's preaching for his own and succeeding generations is set forth