This week in Christian history: Dwight Moody dies, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Southern Africa

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Sunday, December 18, 2022

Dwight Moody dies – Dec. 22, 1899

A photo of nineteenth-century American evangelist Dwight L. Moody, (1837-1899). | Wikimedia Commons

This week marks the anniversary of when Dwight Moody, one of the most famous and influential American evangelists of the 19th century, died at the age of 62.

A native of Northfield, Massachusetts, Moody was a notable traveling evangelist who founded multiple ministries and schools, among them the influential Moody Bible Institute.

"Moody was a visionary who always seemed a step ahead of the status quo. From training women, to reaching out to lost children, to bridging the gap between denominations, he was unlike any other," explained the Institute.

“Moody was a man of great discernment. He had an innate ability to find capable, godly people to put into positions of leadership and bring his ideas to fruition. This enabled him to continue his evangelistic outreach while his ministries flourished.”

Reportedly, his final words were “God is calling me.”