SILHOUETTES AND SKELETONS
Charles Simeon of Cambridge
By John Benton, Julia Cameron & Michael Rees. Didasco Publishing. 48 pages. £6.99
ISBN 978 1 899 464 142
The aim of this attractively produced booklet is to introduce Charles Simeon to a generation of readers who may have little idea of his importance or of the extent of his influence 200 years on. It consists of a collection of brief writings.
Simeon went up to Cambridge in 1779 and found faith in Christ during his first term. He became curate-in-charge of Holy Trinity Church at a time when there were probably only a few dozen evangelical ministers in the Church of England, and from there exerted a remarkable influence upon undergraduates for 54 years. As a result, at his death, it was said that one third of Anglican clergy were evangelicals!
Preachers’ aid
Simeon’s aim in preaching was: ‘To humble the sinner, to exalt the Saviour, and to promote holiness’. In order to help young preachers, he published ‘skeletons’ or outlines of sermons (a sample of which is given in this booklet), together with very practical advice on sermon-preparation. The language may be somewhat quaint, but the principles are entirely relevant today. The ‘silhouettes’, by a famous French silhouettist, depict Simeon in eight typical preaching attitudes, and are included in a separate ‘concertina’ form.
Even in the depths of Surrey, in the reviewer’s small agricultural village of Cranleigh, the rector of the day sought Simeon’s advice. This illustrates the historian Lord Macaulay’s comment that Simeon’s ‘real sway in the church was far greater than that of any Primate’ and reached to the remotest parts.
The authors trace the way that Simeon’s influence led to the formation of the Christian Union in Cambridge (CICCU), and eventually to Christian Unions in universities throughout the country, to the Universities & Colleges Christian Fellowship and the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. The footnotes give fascinating insight into the extensive influence of the CICCU in particular to the present day.
Simeon Trust
To safeguard and extend evangelical ministry in the Church of England, Simeon founded a trust to appoint ‘gospel men’ to serve local churches. Today this has an active involvement with some 180 parishes, and the serious ‘charge’, drawn up by Simeon and still delivered to every new trustee, is printed here.
Also printed is Simeon’s advice to undergraduates on how to get a good degree, which may come as a surprise!
The hope is that readers’ appetites will be whetted and that they will turn to some of the biographies and websites listed for fuller accounts of this great man.
Joy Horn,
former UCCF staff worker, member of Cranleigh Baptist Church
