Review: The Wilberforce Story

Third Quarter 2003

by Jack Boeve

In the pragmatic, give-and-take world of conflictual politics, how does one courageously hold to conviction and yet forge relationships with strategic allies to seek the public welfare? How, particularly, does a convinced evangelical Christian give himself to the service of humanity without trying constantly to impose his faith on others?

Kevin Belmonte, author of Hero for Humanity: A Biography of William Wilberforce (NavPress, 2002), would answer these questions by saying: Look carefully at the life of Wilberforce (1759-1833). The book is an inspirational account of a remarkable British public servant who fought slavery till the end of his life, learning to tread a careful path between those who laude and those who vilify. Wilberforce held a seat in the British parliament for nearly fifty years, using his position to work for an end to the slave trade within the British empire and the emancipation of all slaves in British colonies. Ending the slave trade took 20 years (1787-1807); emancipation took another 26 (till 1833).

Mr. Belmonte directs the Wilberforce Project at Gordon College (Wenham, Massachusetts), an initiative that fosters scholarship relating to Wilberforce's life and legacy. He is also the editor of Wilberforce's classic apologetic work, A Practical View of Christianity (Hendrickson, 1996).

Persuaded of the power of the Christian faith to change people, Wilberforce took as his starting point the great biblical commandment: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and you shall love your neighbor as yourself." This, combined with the golden rule—"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"—gave Wilberforce all the evangelical guidance he needed to let his commitment to Christ direct his life of selfless service to humanity. In his view, Christianity is "peculiarly and powerfully adapted to promote the essential preservation and healthfulness of political communities" because it offers an antidote to a dangerous secularist worldview and to the vices of oppression, rapacity, cruelty, fraud, envy, malice, and selfishness. Wilberforce's impact was felt not only in the ending of slavery but also in a dramatic social renewal that came about through the reformation of manners.

Belmonte explains that Christianity taught Wilberforce "to follow peace with all men, looking upon them as members of the same family. As such, his fellow citizens were 'entitled not only to the debts of justice, but to the less definite and more liberal claims of fraternal kindness.' People who acted in this way, Christianity taught, would naturally be respected and beloved by others and be in themselves free from the annoyance of those bad passions (namely selfishness) by which those motivated by worldly principles are so commonly corroded."

While Hero for Humanity makes clear that Wilberforce's service flowed from his Christian faith, it also states that very little is actually known about the political philosophy that animated his 45-year career in parliament (1780-1825). One of his core principles was stewardship, which means that "each person was endowed by the Almighty with 'means and occasions . . . of improving ourselves, or of promoting the happiness of others." In accord with the Scriptures, Wilberforce believed that much is required of those to whom much has been given and that each individual will be called to give an account of the actions taken to relieve the wants and necessities of one's fellow creatures. Each person has a sacred duty, therefore, to use the gift of life well, striving to improve oneself and to promote the happiness of others.

Two other core principles for Wilberforce were respect for the rights of others and forwarding the views of others. Flowing from these two principles are the obligations to find some good aspect in every individual, to be fair-minded, and, when dissenting, to do so with tact and kindness. A fourth principle was promotion of the happiness of others. According to Belmonte, "Wilberforce believed that when individual citizens promote the happiness of others they are most truly promoting or pursuing their own. Every individual becomes a powerful agent of social change...." These principles did not represent utopian flights of fancy, says Belmonte; "they produced tangible results and ultimately the rich legacy of moral renewal and philanthropy associated with Wilberforce's name."

Wilberforce did not work alone or intend to be a loner. His reputation grew in part because of his association with, and nurturing of, close associates, who came to be known as the Clapham Sect, named after London's neighboring village where many of them lived. This diverse and talented group of Christians gave themselves to evangelization and the reform of society. Their efforts led to the founding of the Church Missionary Society and the British and Foreign Bible Society; to care for the sick, impoverished, and imprisoned; to education and labor reform; and to the establishment of a colony in Sierra Leone for ex-slaves and the end of the slavery.

Mr. Boeve is the communications manager of the Center for Public Justice.