Christian Herald
The Christian Herald was an American weekly newspaper reporting on topics relevant to Evangelical Christianity, with an emphasis on engaging with humanitarian causes at home and abroad.[1]
| Type | Weekly newspaper |
|---|---|
| Founder(s) | Joseph Spurgeon |
| Founded | 1878 |
| Language | English |
| Ceased publication | 1992 |
| Country | United States |
| |
A take on the London-based newspaper of the same name, the American Herald was started in 1878 in New York City by business manager Joseph Spurgeon (a cousin of Charles H. Spurgeon) and editor Dr. B. J. Fernie[2] after they conceived the idea with Rev. Michael P. Baxter, the founder of the original London-based paper. Along with the newspaper, Spurgeon also ran a charity under the same auspices devoted to poor relief and evangelizing. Thomas De Witt Talmage served as editor from 1890 to 1902. In 1898, the Herald was purchased by Louis Klopsch, who further expanded the charitable operations and spread the publication to overseas locations. The magazine dealt with domestic inequality, Christian–Muslim encounters abroad, and Americans’ ambivalent attitudes about the suffering of distant others. Klopsch also operated a summer camp in the New York suburbs for Christian youth activities.
In 1927, Reverend Daniel A. Poling became the editor, a post he held until 1966. In 1948, the Herald started the "Family Bookshelf," a book subscription group of Christian-friendly literature. The summer camp was relocated to the Poconos in 1961 as suburban development encroached on the original location. Declining circulation forced the Herald to relocate from Manhattan to Chappaqua, New York, in 1971. By 1992, the newspaper ceased publication, but the charitable outreach arm still exists, having relocated back to Manhattan in 1998.
In the early months of 2006, The Christian Herald, having ceased any and all publications, was dissolved. Its continued impact on the Bowery Mission in New York City has been cited as one of its "most significant and enduring effects" of its humanitarian commitments.[3]
Notes
- Conroy-Krutz, E. (2018), p. 1242.
- The Rev. Michael P. Baxter dead. (1910), p. 98. For another mention of B. J. Fernie's association with The Christian Herald, see Rusk, J. (1902). The Authentic Life of T. De Witt Talmage: The Greatly Beloved Divine (279). Cambridge, MA: Monarch Book Company.
- Conroy-Krutz, E. (2018), p. 1242.
References
- Conroy-Krutz, E. (2018, December 1). Review of Holy humanitarians: American Evangelicals and global aid. Church History, 87(4), 1241-1243. doi:10.1017/S0009640719000349
- The Rev. Michael P. Baxter dead. (1910, February 2). The Christian Herald, 33(5), 98.
Further reading
- Curtis, Heather D. Holy Humanitarians: American Evangelicals and Global Aid (2018), Focus on The Christian Herald 1890-1920s.
- Balmer, Randall Herbert, ed. (2004). "Christian Herald". Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism. Waco, Texas: Baylor University Press. p. 164. ISBN 1-932792-04-X.