Evangelist

Spiritual Longing.

Phoebe Palmer was among the best-known female evangelists of the mid nineteenth century. She was also a leading figure in the holiness movement, which was guided by the belief that Christians could obtain complete freedom from sin. Born Phoebe Warrall in New York City on 18 December 1807, she was raised in a devout Methodist family. She was deeply pious from an early age but was troubled by the fact that she had never experienced the kind of dramatic conversion experience that convinced most believers of their own sin and salvation. In 1827 she married Walter Palmer, a young Methodist physician with whom she felt a deep spiritual bond. During the early years of their marriage the couple struggled through the deaths of three young children. Although devastated by her loss, Phoebe Palmer retained her faith and continued to work as a private Bible teacher...