Phoebe Palmer (December 17, 1807 – November 2, 1874) was an evangelist and writer who promoted the doctrine of Christian perfection. She is considered one of the founders of the Holiness movement in the United States of America and the Higher Life movement in the United Kingdom. December 17 is the 351st day of the year (352nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1807 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... November 2 is the 306th day of the year (307th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 59 days remaining. ... Events January - April January 1 - New York City annexes The Bronx January 23 - Marriage of the Duke of Edinburgh, second son of Queen Victoria, to Grand Duchess Marie Alexandrovna of Russia, only daughter of Emperor Alexander III of Russia. ... Christian Perfection is the belief that, after conversion but before death, a Christians soul may be cleansed from all stain of sin. ... The holiness movement is composed of people who believe and propagate the belief that the carnal nature/ original sin of the human can be cleansed through faith in the Holy Spirit. ...

Palmer was born Phoebe Worrall in New York City. Her father was a devout Methodist named Henry Worrall. He had experienced a religious conversion during the Wesleyan Revival in England before immigrating to the United States. Phoebe’s mother was Dorothea Wade Worrall, an American. Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the state of New York and the entire United States. ... The Methodist movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity. ...

In 1827 Phoebe Worall married Walter Palmer, a homeopathic physician, who was also a devout Methodist As Methodists the couple became interested in the writings of the founder of Methodism, John Wesley. They developed a particular interest in Wesley’s doctrine of Christian perfection, which is the belief that a Christian can live a life free of serious sin. At some point in the 1830’s the Palmers experienced what they called “entire sanctification.” They felt that they should teach others about that experience and teach them how to have it for themselves. John Wesley John Wesley was an 18th century preacher and the founder of the Methodist denomination of Protestant Christianity. ... Sanctification means literally to make holy or sacred (compare Latin sanctus holy). The concept of sanctification is widespread among religions, but is perhaps especially common among the various branches of the Christian religion. ...

In 1835 Palmer’s sister, Sarah Lankford, began having weekly prayer meetings with Methodist women. Two years later, Phoebe Palmer became the leader of the meetings, which were referred to as the Tuesday Meeting for the Promotion of Holiness. The meetings were held in the Palmer’s home. Beginning in 1839, men were allowed to attend the meetings. Among the men were Methodist bishops, theologians, and ministers. Some of the bishops who attended were Edmund S. James, Leonidas L. Hamline, Jesse T. Peck and Matthew Simpson. This renewed interest in Holiness eventually influenced the Methodist Church nationwide.

Phoebe Palmer, and her husband Walter became itinerant preachers as they received more and more invitations from churches, conferences, and camp meetings. Although Walter Palmer spoke at these meetings, it was Phoebe who was better known.

Palmer played a significant role in spreading the concept of Christian holiness throughout the United States and the rest of the world. She wrote several books, including The Way of Holiness, which was a foundational book in the Holiness movement. From the northeastern United States the movement spread. She and her husband visited other regions, then Canada in 1857, and then the United Kingdom in 1859. They stayed in the United Kingdom for several years.

The Palmers bought a monthly journal entitled The Guide to Holiness in 1864. It had been started by Timothy Merritt to promote the doctrine of Christian perfection. Phoebe Palmer edited the journal from that time until her death.

Some of the people that Palmer influenced through her speaking and writing were the temperance leader, Frances Willard; the co-founder of the Salvation Army, Catherine Booth; and the founder of the Christian Holiness Association, John Iskip. Frances Elizabeth Caroline Willard (1839-1898) was an American educator, temperance reformer, and women suffragist. ... The Salvation Army is a Christian denomination, a charity and a social services organization. ... Categories: Stub | 1829 births | 1890 deaths ...

In her book, The Promise of the Father, Palmer defended the idea of women in Christian ministry.

Palmer’s belief in holiness was not merely theoretical. She led the Methodist Ladies’ Home Missionary Society in founding the Five Points Mission in 1850. This mission was in a slum area in New York City.

Phoebe Palmer’s daughter, Phoebe Knapp, wrote several hymn-tunes, including the melody for Fanny Crosby’s “Blessed Assurance.” Frances Jane Crosby (March 24, 1820 - February 12, 1915) usually known as Fanny Crosby, was one of the most prolific hymnists in history. ...

Phoebe Palmer’s Writings

• The Way of Holiness (1843)
• Entire Devotion to God (1845)
• Faith and its Effects (1848)
• The Promise of the Father (1859)

Sources

• Raser, Harold E., "Phoebe Palmer, Her Life and Thought", Studies in Women and Religion, Volume 22, The Edwin Mellen Press, Lewiston/Queenston, 1947, p. 103.

• Reuther, Rosemary Radford and Rosemary Skinner Keller, Women and Religion in America: The Nineteenth Century. San Francisco, Harper and Row, 1981.

• White, Charles Edward. The Beauty of Holiness: Phoebe Palmer as Theologian, Revivalist, Feminist, and Humanitarian (Zondervan/Francis Asbury Press, 1986). (ISBN: 0310462509)

External links

• http://are.as.wvu.edu/phebe.htm
• http://www.messiah.edu/whwc/Articles/article26.htm
• http://wesley.nnu.edu/wesleyan_theology/theojrnl/21-25/23-13.htm