George Duffield Jr.

George Duffield Jr. D.D. (September 12, 1818 – July 6, 1888)[1] was an American Presbyterian minister and hymnodist.

George Duffield Jr.
BornGeorge Duffield, V
September 12, 1818
Carlisle, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, USA
DiedJuly 6, 1888 (age 69)
Bloomfield, Essex County, New Jersey, USA
Resting placeElmwood Cemetery, Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan, USA
OccupationPresbyterian Pastor
EducationYale College (1837), Union Theological Seminary (1840)
Notable works“Stand up, Stand up for Jesus”
RelativesParents: Rev George Duffield IV, Isabella Graham Bethune Duffield

He was born on September 12, 1818, the fifth such George Duffield. He was born to George Duffield IV(1794–1868), who was also a Presbyterian minister, and Isabella Graham Bethune Duffield.[1] His father, George Duffield IV (1794–1868), was also a Presbyterian minister. His grandfather was George A. Duffield III (1767–1827). His great-grandfather, George Duffield II, was chaplain to the Continental Congress. His great-grandfather George D. Dunfield was a native of Belfast.[2] His brother was Colonel William Duffield, commander of the 9th Michigan volunteer Infantry Regiment.[2]

He graduated from Yale College in 1837, the youngest in his graduating class,[3] and the Union Theological Seminary in New York. He was a pastor from 1840 to 1869 at numerous cities including Brooklyn, New York; Bloomfield, New Jersey; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Adrian, Michigan; Galesburg, Illinois; Saginaw City, Michigan; Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Lansing, Michigan.[4][5] He married and had a son, minister Samuel Willoughby Duffield. He died on July 6, 1888, and was buried at Elmwood Cemetery in Detroit.[3]

Biographical Information

George Duffield Jr. was born on September 12, 1818 in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. He grew up around his father and grandfather who were both preachers. At age thirteen, Duffield professed his complete devotion to the church. In 1834, at the age of sixteen, Duffield matriculated to Yale College. Despite his young age, he was known for his exceptional intellectual ability, particularly in the literary disciplines. He graduated from Yale in 1837, being the youngest out of the 104 members within the graduating class. Subsequently, he attended the Union Seminary in New York City where, in 1840, he received a doctorate in theology.[6]

Career

For the subsequent seven years following his graduation from Union Seminary in 1840, Duffield remained in New York where he extensively read, wrote, evangelized, and began to lay the foundations of his career in ministry. At the age of 28, he left his large church in New York to take charge of a rural church in Bloomfield, New Jersey. After six years in New Jersey, he accepted a new position in Philadelphia. His tenure in Philadelphia proved to be among the heights of his career as he was able to reach more people in need than ever before and had years of experience in ministry to guide him. While in Philadelphia, he was, alongside his work in the church, employed as an editor for the Christian Observer. During the height of the Civil War, he moved to Michigan, his final permanent residence. His residence in Michigan was only interrupted once by a brief appointment to lead a congregation in Illinois. While in Michigan, he served on the board of regents for the University of Michigan, where he greatly influenced religious life on campus by establishing a young men’s Christian association.[7]

Legacy

Duffield was known as a zealous advocate of abolition and Union causes during the U.S. Civil War. Upon the tragic death of another abolitionist and friend, he shared in a sermon, "I caught its inspiration from the dying words of that noble young clergyman, Rev. Dudley Atkins Tyng, rector of the Epiphany Church, Philadelphia, who died about 1854. His last words were, ‘Tell them to stand up for Jesus: now let us sing a hymn.’ As he had been much persecuted in those pro-slavery days for his persistent course in pleading the cause of the oppressed, it was thought that these words had a peculiar significance in his mind; as if he had said, ‘Stand up for Jesus in the person of the downtrodden slave.’ (Luke 4:18)"[8]

Role in the Civil War

Duffield was substantially involved in the American Civil War. His brother was Colonel William Duffield, commander of the 9th Michigan volunteer Infantry Regiment.[9]

During the American Civil War, Duffield frequently ministered to Union soldiers, which he periodically documented. In a Sailor’s magazine published during the war, he wrote in vivid detail his experience preaching to members of the navy:

“Agreeably to my appointment, at 10 o’clock a.m., I found myself on the deck of the double-turreted monitor Onondaga, Commodore Melauethou Smith of the Reformed Dutch Church. Half a mile back of us was now a battery of the enemy, eight guns already mounted, four more mounting, and ready at any moment to open fire upon us. Rather interesting and suggestive circumstances in which to preach! With the crew of the Onondaga and part of the crew of the Sangus, Captain Colbonen of the Alexander Church, Philadelphia, we had a full deck. I preached of Christ as at the hand of the kingdom of Providence as of the kingdom of Grace–as the Saviour of nations as well as individuals.” [10]

On April 21st, 1861, following the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter, Duffield preached a sermon entitled “Courage in a Good Cause” which spoke out against the Confederacy and called for fearlessness in standing up for what is right.[11]

In the Battle of Gettysburg, Duffield served as a Christian Commission Delegate for the Union Army.[12]

Hymns

His hymns include:

  • "Blessed Saviour, Thee I love"
  • "Parted for some anxious days"
  • "Praise to our heavenly Father, God"
  • "Slowly in sadness and in tears"
  • "Stand up, stand up for Jesus"

Criticism

While Duffield’s hymn, “Stand Up, Stand Up For Jesus” was very successful, it has not been without controversy due to its abrasively militant diction. One such controversy was in 1989 when the inclusion of the hymn in The United Methodist Hymnal was debated due to the militant diction of the hymn that many believed could be interpreted as a call to literal warfare, particularly when viewing it through the historical context of the Crusades that took place in the eleventh through thirteenth centuries.[13] Additionally, the hymn has received omission from a 1989 collection as not to exclude handicapped people.[14]

References
  1. Yale Obituary Record (PDF). 1889. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-10-21. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
  2. "George D. Duffield". 1690. Retrieved February 3, 2019.
  3. Log College Press
  4. Biography and hymns of George Duffield, Jr. at Hymnary.org
  5. Duffield, George in Hymn Writers of the Church at CCEL
  6. "Biographical sketch of Rev. George Duffield, Jr., D.D. with funeral sermon, preached by his appointment. By Jacob Cooper..." HathiTrust. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
  7. "Biographical sketch of Rev. George Duffield, Jr., D.D. with funeral sermon, preached by his appointment. By Jacob Cooper..." HathiTrust. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
  8. "Civil War Sermons". civilwarsermons.com. Retrieved 2014-05-09.
  9. "Preservation - Stand up for Jesus". www.fortduffield.com. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
  10. Duffield, George. “George Duffield in the Navy.” Sailors' Magazine & Seamen's Friend, 1 October 1864.
  11. "Biographical sketch of Rev. George Duffield, Jr., D.D. with funeral sermon, preached by his appointment. By Jacob Cooper..." HathiTrust. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
  12. "Preservation - Stand up for Jesus". www.fortduffield.com. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
  13. "History of Hymns: "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus"". Discipleship Ministries. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
  14. McClain, Kathleen (August 1, 1989). ""New Presbyterian hymnal curbs sexism and shuns militarism"". The Pittsburgh Press.

Further reading


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