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Smith Wigglesworth (1859 - 1947), was a British religious leader and an important figure in the early history of Pentecostalism.
Biography
Early life
Wigglesworth was born on 8 June, 1859, in Menton, Yorkshire, England in an impoverished family. The Wigglesworth's, including Smith, had to work diligently to make a living, and in his childhood, Smith labored by pulling up plants in the field.
Nominally a Methodist, he became a born-again Christian at the age of 8, and according to some reports, could help others do the same even at such a young age. Smith's parents, John and Martha, weren't Christians themselves. Though they took young Smith to a Methodist, and Episcopal church on regular occasions, the son was the first to get saved. Smith Wigglesworth's grandmother, on the other hand, was a devout Christian faithful to the teachings of John Wesley.
He married Polly Featherstone in 1882, and under her tutelage he learned to read. They had one daughter, Alice, and four sons, Seth, Harold, Ernest and George. Their marriage lasted for 31 years, until Polly's death in 1913.
Ministry
Smith Wigglesworth was an early Charismatic theologian and minister, who wrote a number of works on tongues and other gifts of the Holy Spirit. He is considered one of the most influential evangelists in the early history of Pentecostalism and is also credited with helping give it a large religious audience. He defended and gave arguments for many of his beliefs in his book Ever Increasing Faith.
Wigglesworth did not receive a hospitable welcome when he traveled to Sweden to minister and heal. The authorities ordered him not to lay hands on anyone. This was one of Wigglesworth's early examples of faith healing, and one of the most controversial at that, for his denunciation by the Swedes.
Aside from being a minister for much of his life, Wigglesworth was also a plumber.
Later life
Wigglesworth continued to minister up until the time of his death on 12 March 1947. His claims to heal the sick and "raise the dead" have "never been proven." If fact Wigglesworth's daughter had a serious hearing loss, which leds one to the question: either he did not have faith healing abilities or he did not care enough for his daughter to fix this. He continued to minister up until the time of his death on 12 March 1947.
Footnotes
Template:Fnb Little exists on the Internet regarding Wigglesworth's life, his death in particular. What does exist is overly filled with exploits of how he worked miracles rather than various facets and facts. For this reason we have only excluded the certain place of his death, England, which is where he grew up. If one seeks to know this and more in depth details, there exists quite a few published works about Smith Wigglesworth.
References
- Smith Wigglesworth, http://www.mklangl.com/wigglesworthrbio.html
- Wigglesworth, Smith. Ever Increasing Faith (Springfield, MO: Gospel Publishing House, 1924) 1.