Isaac Penington (1616–1679) was one of the early members of the

Religious Society of Friends Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

(Quakers) in England. He wrote about the Quaker movement and was an influential promoter and defender of it.

Life

He was the oldest son of Isaac Penington, a Puritan who had served as the Lord Mayor of London. He entered the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

in 1634, and matriculated at St Catharine's College, Cambridge in 1637. He was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in 1639. Convinced by the Quaker faith, Penington and his wife joined the Society of Friends in 1657 or 1658. He was imprisoned six times for his beliefs, starting in 1661. Sometimes the charge was refusal to take an oath, as this went against Quaker teachings (see testimony of integrity). Such action was prohibited by the Quakers Act 1662, which sought to control members of the group. At other times Penington was charged with attending a Quaker meeting, which was forbidden by the

Conventicle Act 1664 The Conventicle Act 1664 was an Act of Parliament (United Kingdom), act of the Parliament of England (16 Cha. 2. c. 4) that forbade conventicles, defined as religious assemblies of more than five people other than an immediate family, outside ...

Works

Penington became an influential promoter and defender of the Quaker movement, writing extensively on many topics, and published several books. His writings are prized for their exploration of

spiritual experience A religious experience (sometimes known as a spiritual experience, sacred experience, mystical experience) is a subjective experience which is interpreted within a religious framework. The concept originated in the 19th century, as a defense ag ...

, with his ''Letters'' being read continually within Quakerism for their spiritual counsel. His complete works were first published in 1681 and are still in print as of .

Family

Penington married a widow named Mary Springett, a notable woman in her own right, and they had five children."Mary Penington (1623 - 1682)"
; she is listed in The Orlando Project (Cambridge UP, online - much of the online record is available only to subscribers). One of her manuscripts is described on th

/ref> Her daughter Gulielma, from her first marriage to Sir William Springett (who died young), later married

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer, religious thinker, and influential Quakers, Quaker who founded the Province of Pennsylvania during the British colonization of the Americas, British colonial era. An advocate of democracy and religi ...

, founder of Pennsylvania, as his first wife.

Sources

*''The Works of Isaac Penington''. In four volumes. Glenside, PA: Quaker Heritage Press, 1995–97. * * Tod, Ruth, Exploring Isaac Pennington, Quaker Quicks , Christian Alternative Books, Winchester UK (2023) ISBN 978-1-80341-184-2

References

External links

*
Works of Penington Online
English Quakers Converts to Quakerism Quaker writers English Christian theologians Quaker theologians 1616 births 1679 deaths 17th-century Christian mystics Protestant mystics {{Christianity-bio-stub