Hannah Tatum Whitall Smith (February 7, 1832 – May 1, 1911) was a lay speaker and author in the Holiness movement in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and the

Higher Life movement The Higher Life movement, also known as the Keswick movement or Keswickianism, is a Protestant theological tradition within evangelical Christianity that espouses a distinct teaching on the doctrine of entire sanctification. Its name comes ...

in the

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was a sovereign state in the British Isles that existed between 1801 and 1922, when it included all of Ireland. It was established by the Acts of Union 1800, which merged the Kingdom of Grea ...

. She was also active in the

Women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

movement and the

Temperance movement The temperance movement is a social movement promoting temperance or complete abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and its leaders emph ...

Early years

Born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, Smith was from a long line of prominent and influential

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. Hannah Tatum Whitall was the daughter of

John Mickle Whitall John Mickle Whitall (November 4, 1800 – June 6, 1877) was a prominent US sea captain, businessman and philanthropist in New Jersey and Pennsylvania involved in the spice and silk trade, glass-making, and missionary work. Early years Whit ...

and Mary Tatum Whitall. Her most famous ancestor was

Ann Cooper Whitall Ann Cooper Whitall (1716–1797) was a prominent Quaker woman in early America. Cooper' was born in Woodbury, New Jersey on April 23, 1716. She married James Whitall in 1739 at age 23.Burstyn, Joan N. (1990). ''Past and Promise: Lives of New Jer ...

Career

On November 5, 1851 Hannah married

Robert Pearsall Smith Robert Pearsall Smith (1827–1898) was a lay leader in the Holiness movement in the United States and the Higher Life movement in Great Britain. His book ''Holiness Through Faith'' (1870) is one of the foundational works of the Holiness movemen ...

, a man who also descended from a long line of prominent Quakers in the region. The Smiths settled in Germantown, Pennsylvania. They disassociated themselves somewhat from the Quakers in 1858 after a conversion experience, but Mrs. Smith continued to believe a great deal of Quaker doctrine and gloried in her Quaker background and practices."Hannah Whitall Smith, Higher Life Writer," in ''The Doctrine of Sanctification,'' Thomas Ross, Ph. D. Diss, Great Plains Baptist Divinity School
/ref> The Smiths were highly influenced firstly by the Plymouth Brethren, and then by the

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

revivalists. Out of influence from the

Wesleyan Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan– Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charle ...

doctrine of sanctification, and in accordance with Quaker teaching and influences from spiritualism, Mrs. Smith and her husband formulated and promulgated the Keswick theology. They were also influenced by

William Boardman William Edwin Boardman (1810–1886) was an American pastor, teacher, and author. His 1858 book, ''The Higher Christian Life'', was a major international success and helped ignite the Higher Life movement. Boardman's work attracted international ...

, who wrote ''The Higher Christian Life'' (1858). From 1864 to 1868, Robert and Hannah Smith lived in

Millville, New Jersey Millville is a city in Cumberland County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the city's population was 28,400,Whitall, Tatum & Company glass factories. William Boardman apparently groomed Robert and Hannah Smith to join the Holiness movement as speakers. From 1873–1874 they spoke at various places in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, including

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, teaching on the subjects of the "higher life" and "holiness," after a foundational meeting at the Broadlands Conference sponsored by the spiritualists Lord and Lady Mount-Temple. In 1874 Hannah helped found the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU). That same year, the Smiths traveled to the German Empire and Switzerland, where they preached in several major cities. In 1875, they returned to England and conducted meetings in Brighton. Due to a sexual scandal involving Robert, their visit to England came to an abrupt halt. Their marriage came under serious strain through Robert Smith's persistent adultery and Mrs. Smith's advocacy of strong feminist views of the role of women that were contrary to the patriarchal ideas dominant in their time. She also served as the national superintendent of the WCTU Evangelistic Department, producing a network of activists across many countries. By this time, however, Hannah's work with the WCTU as well as her book
The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life
(1875), was well-known internationally. Mary Clement Leavitt, WCTU world missionary having just been in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

wrote to Hannah Smith in August 1885 to ask for contacts in England, stating: "I met a Rev. Mr. Hill, Anglican missionary in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

, an exalted servant of the Lord, and my chief helper there who owes, he says, what he is spiritually to you, under the Lord. I find your writings in many households, and have met several persons who attended your meetings in England." In 1888, the Smith family moved to England because their daughter

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

married an English barrister, Frank Costelloe. They eventually divorced, and Mary then married the critic

Bernard Berenson Bernard Berenson (June 26, 1865 – October 6, 1959) was an American art historian specializing in the Renaissance. His book ''The Drawings of the Florentine Painters'' was an international success. His wife Mary is thought to have had a large ...

. It was in England that younger daughter

Alys Pearsall Smith Alyssa Whitall "Alys" Pearsall Smith (21 July 1867 – 22 January 1951) was an American-born British Quaker relief organiser and the first wife of Bertrand Russell. She chaired the society that created an innovative school for mothers in 1907. ...

met and married the philosopher

Bertrand Russell Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British mathematician, philosopher, logician, and public intellectual. He had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, ...

Logan Pearsall Smith Logan Pearsall Smith (18 October 1865 – 2 March 1946) was an American-born British essayist and critic. Harvard and Oxford educated, he was known for his aphorisms and epigrams, and was an expert on 17th Century divines. His ''Words and Idioms ...

became an essayist and critic. Hannah Whitall Smith had seven children in all, but only three—Mary, Alys Pearsall, and Logan Pearsall—survived to adulthood. Her niece, Martha Carey Thomas was the first female dean of any college in America and an active Suffragist. Hannah Whitall Smith died in

in 1911.

Writings and legacy

Hannah Whitall Smith’s book ''The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life'' (1875) is an extremely popular book of

Christian mysticism Christian mysticism is the tradition of mystical practices and mystical theology within Christianity which "concerns the preparation f the personfor, the consciousness of, and the effect of ..a direct and transformative presence of God" ...

and practical Holiness theology. It is still widely read today. She wrote her spiritual autobiography, ''The Unselfishness of God And How I Discovered It'', in 1903. Many publications of that book omit the three chapters which explain how she became a

Christian universalist Christian universalism is a school of Christian theology focused around the doctrine of universal reconciliation – the view that all human beings will ultimately be saved and restored to a right relationship with God. "Christian universalism" ...

.The Unselfishness of God and How I Discovered It (the missing chapters)
at www.tentmaker.org Hannah Whitall Smith wrote "The God of All Comfort" in 1906, five years before her death in 1911.

Notes

1. "In 1870 Hannah Whitall Smith wrote what has become a classic of joyous Christianity, ''The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life''. The title barely hints at the depths of that perceptive book. It is no shallow "four easy steps to successful living." Studiously, the writer defines the shape of a full and abundant life hid in God. Then she carefully reveals the difficulties to this way and finally charts the results of a life abandoned to God. What is the Christian's secret to a happy life? It is best summed up by her chapter entitled "The Joy of Obedience." Joy comes through obedience to Christ, and joy results from obedience to Christ. Without obedience joy is hollow and artificial." Foster, Richard J. Celebration Of Discipline, p.192. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988. Print.

References

External links

* * *

"Hannah Whitall Smith, Higher Life Writer," in ''The Doctrine of Sanctification,'' Thomas Ross, Ph. D. Diss, Great Plains Baptist Divinity School
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Hannah Whitall American evangelicals American women writers People from Millville, New Jersey Writers from Philadelphia American Quakers 1832 births 1911 deaths Members of the Universalist Church of America 19th-century Christian universalists 20th-century Christian universalists American suffragists American temperance activists Activists from Philadelphia Keswickianism Quaker feminists