3But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
It is unfortunate that when I was in school I felt like history was just a bunch of facts and dates to memorize. My history teachers did not make the topic interesting either. Now, however, I see the value in knowing and understanding our history. I cannot say I have mastered it, and I probably never will, but, I can say I am interested in it now, because so much of our history came straight out of the Bible.
Take William Penn, for example. He was the founder of Pennsylvania and my grandmother always said when we would go on road trips; ‘these are Penn’s Woods!’. I didn’t really know what that meant at the time, but now I say it myself as I look out at all our beautiful wooded areas this time of year. I think about the man who made these wooded areas into our commonwealth-Pennsylvania. While driving through some wooded areas and farm lands near us, I marveled at the beauty of it all. Green Deal? God already made it green and sustainable!
William Penn received much of ‘Penn’s Woods’ for payment of a debt that was owed to his father by King Charles II of England. All I can say is that was quite a debt! With the land in his possession, he envisioned a ‘holy experiment’, an opportunity almost without parallel in human history. He had a humanitarian plan, not a selfish plan for his woods.
Penn, being a Godly Quaker man, set out to set up his colony as a haven for religious freedom. He was advanced in his thinking for the times. When he set out the plan for the city of Philadelphia, he had open spaces, areas for fire protection, and of course areas that would be left wooded, undeveloped.
He treated the natives kindly, and he did not exploit them, but respected them. He and his fellow Quakers told them about Jesus but sought not to convert them to Christianity, but rather to learn from the culture and religious beliefs of the natives.
Many of Penn’s ideals were later found in the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. In fact, much of Penn’s practices are very well known. What is not so well known is that much of his life, and writings, are Scripture oriented!
William Penn, Founder of Pennsylvania, City Planner, Writer, Quaker and a friend to all. We can be proud to know that the commonwealth we live in today had it’s foundation in Word. Now that we know, we can pray that our leaders get back to the Truth of God’s Word, as they govern ‘Penn’s Woods’.
“I desire that I may not be unworthy of his love, but do that which may answer his kind providence, and serve his truth and people;that an example may be set up to the nations; there may be room there, though not here, for such an holy experiment.”
William Penn, Governor of Pennsylvania
So, here’s my question for today; Did you learn about William Penn being a Christian in school? What else do you know about him?
Leave a Reply