Lectures
Creating a Better World: Lessons for Cultural Engagement from the Life of William Wilberforce
Synopsis
“Every school boy knows the name of William Wilberforce,” former president Abraham Lincoln had said a quarter-century after Wilberforce’s death in 1833. Until about a decade ago, the amazing story of Wilberforce was nearly forgotten. Today there is a renaissance of interest in the life and times of the British Parliamentarian, abolitionist, and social reformer - thanks in no small measure to work of Dr. Chuck Stetson. The 2007 release of the Hollywood movie Amazing Grace: The Story of William Wilberforce (Walden Media) and the recent release of the PBS film documentary The Better Hour: The Legacy of William Wilberforce (the idea for which Dr. Stetson developed, organized, and secured the funding to produce) are examples of renewed popular interest in this model Christian statesman and social activist. But what does Wilberforce’s story offer modern Christians seeking to engage their world for the better? How does one go about creating a better world? Doesn’t one need a lot of money and lots of people? In this lecture Dr. Stetson, author of a new book on Wilberforce, argues that Wilberforce’s highly successful model of Christian cultural engagement is still relevant and waiting for application by Christians today. How did Wilberforce and ten of his friends redirect the moral and social course of a 19th Century Superpower? How can their model be effectively applied to work in American public life today? These questions and others will be addressed in the lecture.
