WILLIAM CAREY

(1761-1834)
The humble cobbler who desired to be known as
“God’s Plodder” is remembered as the
“Father of
Modern Missions”
“Expect Great Things from God
Attempt Great Things for God”
VER MET ANYONE whose love is so great that they would
E pay any price, make any sacrifice, undergo any hardship, to
bring the Gospel of Christ to as many people as possible?
William Carey was like that. The young man of us cause to turn back. A few examples:
from Paulerspury became pastor to the Baptist Lack of Formal Training
meeting house in Moulton in 1785, working as a
Carey did not go to school beyond the age of 12
cobbler and teaching to support his family. He
and became a cobbler’s apprentice at 14. He was
became deeply burdened with the conviction that
educationally unqualified. Yet he knew God had
God’s Word must be taken to every nation.
given him a great gift for languages (Latin, Greek,
At this time few Protestants were active in Hebrew, French and Dutch), and this must be used to
missionary activity. One great exception was the share Christ with other cultures.
little Moravian community at Herrnhut, Saxony (the
Early Rejection
“hidden seed” of Bohemian Brethren who traced
their spiritual ancestry to Comenius and John Hus), When Carey was preparing for ordination in
living in the haven of Count Zinzendorf. Between 1785, he was rejected when he gave his first sermon
1732 and 1760, from a community of not more than as a candidate. It took two more years for him to be
600, no fewer than 226 missionaries were sent out to eventually ordained to the ministry.
such places as: the West Indies, Greenland, Lapland, Indifference of Colleagues at First
Georgia, Africa, American Indians, Ceylon, and Carey’s missionary concern was ignored until in
Romania. In 1748 they became the first church to 1792 he produced one of the most influential books
give serious priority to Jews with their outreach to in all of the history of Christianity: An Enquiry into
Amsterdam. Their example was to have a profound the Obligations of Christians. In it he argued that
influence on the Methodists, Baptists, and other Christ’s “Great Commission” in Matthew 28:19-20
Christian groups in England. was not just to the apostles but to Christians of all
Carey kept urging his fellow pastors to set up a periods. It proved to be a kind of charter for the
missionary agency, but they always seemed to have modern Protestant missionary movement. Carey
more urgent problems closer to home. At one declared that if Christians want to claim the comforts
meeting an elder pastor reportedly snapped at him: and promises of the New Testament, they must also
“Young man, sit down. When God pleases to accept the commands and instructions given there.
convert the heathen, he’ll do it without consulting Soon after the publication, he delivered a famous
you or me.” sermon in which he admonished Christian leaders to
But Carey simply would not let anything stand in “Expect great things from God; attempt great things
the way. The obstacles he faced were many and for God.” His colleagues formed the Baptist
menacing, any one of which would have given most Missionary Society in the house of widow Wallis at

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Kettering in October 1792, and sent Carey as their Carey’s translation work. There were repeated
first missionary the following year. The phrase attacks of malaria and cholera, impoverished living
“Hold the ropes” has its origin in Carey’s appeal to conditions, insufficient funds to eke out even a
the home mission board to support him in prayer. minimal existence. Carey had to take up secular
Family Tragedy employment just to survive.
Carey and his wife Dorothy lost three small All For What?
children. In India Dorothy progressively lost her Was it worth it? Beyond a doubt. Carey formed
sanity and could not cope with the strain of living at a team of colleagues (the Serampore Trio) whose
a subsistence level in India. They had three other accomplishments elevated them to first magnitude in
young children to raise. No one would have blamed all missions history. Carey’s team translated the
them if they had decided to pack it in and sail back Bible in 34 Asian languages, compiled dictionaries
home to more familiar and comfortable of Sanskrit, Marathi, Panjabi, and Telegu—respected
surroundings, but they stayed on. even today as authoritative; started the still
Slow Results influential Serampore College; began churches and
established 19 mission stations; formed 100 rural
Carey spent seven years in India before seeing
schools encouraging the education of girls; started
his first convert. There was the intense problem of
the Horticultural Society of India; served as a
the persecution of anyone who became a Christian
professor at Fort William College, Calcutta; began
because it meant breaking caste.
the weekly publication “The Friend of India,”
Cultural Barriers (continued today as “The Statesman”); printed the
Carey had practices to oppose as a Christian: first Indian newspaper; introduced the concept of the
children were sacrificed to the gods; widows were savings bank to assist poor farmers. His fight
burned alive on their husband’s funeral pyres. against the burning of widows (“sati”) helped lead to
The Obstacle List Goes On its ban in 1829. He served forty years in India
without a furlough! Equally important is the vision
There was official opposition from the British
that Carey raised for missions. His life inspired tens
East India Company which did not want missionaries
of thousands to give themselves for the spread of the
in India. There was the disastrous fire in 1812 at the
Gospel.
mission printing plant that destroyed years of

Gratefully Remembered
“I was privileged to retrace the steps of Carey in India recently to do
location scouting for a film on his life. I was amazed to find Carey’s
name still held in the highest esteem in India. At the Serampore train
station there were statues of Ghandi and Carey. Children told me
that they learned about Carey in school. Government officials spoke
of his contribution to India with the highest respect. While the U.S.
Postal service was making a big fuss over issuance of their stamp
honoring Elvis Presley, the Indian Department of Posts celebrated the
life and ministry of William Carey with a 6-rupee stamp.”
— Ken Curtis, Editor
Adapted from GLIMPSES, Christian History Institute, Issue #45, 1993.

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