John Newton and the lost art of letter writing.
Photo by Art Lasovsky on Unsplash
Tell me anyone who doesn’t enjoy receiving a letter or a card from a friend? There is something joyful about a handwritten colourful envelope plopping onto the mat. But if it’s not your birthday or Christmas it may even take you by surprise. Yet, watch any period drama and you will see that this is where much of the action takes place; correspondence by letter fuels the plot!
We have of course found new and more sophisticated ways of communicating in our digital age. However, in these days of staying at home and screen fatigue, perhaps many of us are deliberately carving out time away from our phones and other devices. At the same time we long to connect with others.
I’m writing this blog on Valentine’s Day, a day when traditionally cards are exchanged and other tokens of love are given. Even if we do join in, and mark the day, what about the other 364 days of the year? With such limited ways of being with others, deprived of hugs and physical contact, it’s so much harder to experience love and affection these days…..
Having recently spent some time reading about the life of John Newton, the hymn writer and abolitionist of the slave trade, I discovered just how precious the art of letter writing was to him, both in his personal life and his pastoral ministry. Clearly it was a huge blessing to many, and it certainly inspired me.
When John was away at sea and courting Polly, who was to become his wife, he wrote over 200 letters to her. Often those letters would be transported by up to 5 different ships to reach their destination. John took the risk and his effort paid off. Not a single one was lost at sea. John also regularly wrote to his housekeeper and servants when he was away on preaching business, keeping in touch with them and showing concern for them. Most significantly he wrote to his parishioners who had pastoral questions on all kinds of matters and needed reassurance and encouragement. He even wrote to those who were hostile to the evangelical faith and who opposed him; with gentleness and humble engagement he even won a number of them over to the faith. He was a prolific letter writer. Alongside his hymn writing, sermons and other publications, his ministry of letter writing has to be a significant part of his legacy.
We may not be able to hug or be physically close to loved ones at the moment, and that is painful, but we can do much good to one another through the written word – words that can be read and re-read many times and that don’t get buried in inboxes. It might be that picking up a pen will bless us even more than those on the receiving end!