James Russell Miller (20 March 1840 – 2 July 1912) was a popular Christian author, Editorial Superintendent of the

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

Board of Publication, and

pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

of several churches in Pennsylvania and Illinois.

Early years

James Russell Miller was born near

Frankfort Springs, Pennsylvania Frankfort Springs is a borough in southern Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 116 at the 2020 census. It is a part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. Surrounding neighborhoods Frankfort Springs has two borders, wit ...

, on the banks of the

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, which according to his biographer,

John T. Faris John Thomson Faris (23 January 1871 – 13 April 1949) was an American editor, author, and clergyman. Faris was born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, son of William Wallace Faris, D.D. and Isabella Hardy Thomson. He was married twice: first to Cla ...

, is a merry little mill stream which drains one of the most beautiful valleys in the southern part of Beaver County. His parents were James Alexander Miller and Eleanor Creswell who were of Irish and

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origin. Miller was the second child of ten, but his older sister died before he was born. James and his sisters attended the district school in

Hanover Township, Beaver County, Pennsylvania Hanover Township is a township in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,339 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. History Two historic sites in Hanover Township are listed on the Nationa ...

until, when James was about fourteen, his father moved to a farm near

Calcutta, Ohio Calcutta is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in St. Clair Township, Columbiana County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,941 at the 2020 census. Historically a rural town, Calcutta developed in the late 20th centur ...

. The children then went to the district school during the short winters and worked on the farm during summer. In 1857, James entered

Parsonsfield Seminary Parsonsfield Seminary, which operated from 1832 to 1949, was a Free Will Baptist school in North Parsonsfield, Maine, in the United States. Also known as the North Parsonsfield Seminary, its preserved campus of four buildings is located on State ...

and in 1862 he progressed to

Westminster College, Pennsylvania Westminster College is a private liberal arts college in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1852, it is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). The student population includes approximately 1,300 undergraduate and gra ...

, from which he was graduated in June 1862. Then in the autumn of that year he entered the

theological seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and Christian theology, theology, generally to prepare them for ordinatio ...

of the United Presbyterian Church at

Allegheny, Pennsylvania Allegheny City was a municipality that existed in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania from 1788 until it was annexed by Pittsburgh in 1907. It was located north across the Allegheny River from downtown Pittsburgh, with its southwest border formed by ...

The Christian Commission

The Christian Commission was created in response to the disastrous

First Battle of Bull Run The First Battle of Bull Run, called the Battle of First Manassas
. by Confederate States ...

. On 14 November 1861, the National Committee of the Young Men's Christian Association (

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) called a convention which met in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. The work of the United States Christian Commission was outlined and the organization completed the next day. In March 1863, Miller promised to serve for six weeks as a delegate of the

United States Christian Commission The United States Christian Commission (USCC) was an organization that furnished supplies, medical services, and religious literature to Union troops during the American Civil War. It combined religious support with social services and recreationa ...

, but at the end of this time he was persuaded to become an Assistant Field Agent and later he was promoted to General Field Agent. He left the Commission on 15 July 1865.

The Pastorate

Miller resumed his interrupted studies at the Allegheny Theological Seminary in the fall of 1865 and completed them in the spring of 1867. That summer he accepted a call from the First United Presbyterian Church of

New Wilmington, Pennsylvania New Wilmington is a borough in northern Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, United States, first platted in 1824 and established as a borough on April 9, 1863. The population was 2,097 at the 2020 census. It is home to Westminster College and serves ...

. He was ordained and installed on 11 September 1867. Miller held firmly to the great body of truth professed by the United Presbyterian Church, in which he had been reared, but he did not like the rule requiring the exclusive singing of the

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of B ...

, and he felt that it was not honest for him to profess this as one of the articles of his Christian belief. He therefore resigned from his pastorate to seek membership in the

Presbyterian Church (USA) The Presbyterian Church (USA), abbreviated PCUSA, is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination in the Religion in the United States, United States. It is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States too. Its th ...

. In his two years as pastor, nearly two hundred names were added to the church roll. The Old and New School Presbyterian Churches were reunited as the Presbyterian Church (USA) on 12 November 1869, and Miller became pastor of the Bethany Presbyterian Church of

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

just nine days later. When he became pastor at Bethany the membership was seventy five and when he resigned in 1878 Bethany was the largest Presbyterian church in Philadelphia, having about twelve hundred members. Miller then accepted the pastorate of the New Broadway Presbyterian Church of

Rock Island, Illinois Rock Island is a city in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. The population was 37,108 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located at the confluence of the Rock River (Mississippi River tributary), Rock a ...

. In 1880, Westminster College, his

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conferred on him the degree of

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (DD or DDiv; ) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity (academic discipline), divinity (i.e., Christian theology and Christian ministry, ministry or other theologies. The term is more common in the Englis ...

and later in the same year came the invitation to undertake editorial work for the

Presbyterian Board of Publication Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pres ...

in Philadelphia. Hence, Miller had to resign the Rock Island, Illinois pastorate. In Philadelphia, Miller became interested in the

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and eventually became its pastor. During the sixteen months of the pastorate the church membership grew from 259 to 1,164 and Sunday School membership climbed from 1,024 to 1,475. On 29 October 1899, St. Paul Church in West Philadelphia was organized with sixty-six members. Miller was chosen temporary supply and became pastor in 1906. Miller remained pastor until the year of his death, 1912. The church at that time had 1,397 members.

Family

On 22 June 1870, Miller married Miss Louise E. King of

Argyle, New York Argyle is a town in Washington County, New York, United States. It is part of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town population was 3,644 at the 2020 census. The town was named by its many early settlers from Scotland after Ar ...

, whom he had met two years earlier. They had three children, * William King, * Russel King, a fairly well known music teacher and composer, and * Mary Wannamker Miller who married W.B. Mount.

Editor and author

Miller began contributing articles to religious papers while at Allegheny Seminary. This continued while he was at the First United, Bethany, and New Broadway churches. In 1875, Miller took over from Henry C. McCook, D.D. when the latter discontinued his weekly articles in ''

The Presbyterian The ''Presbyterian Record'' was a monthly periodical published by Presbyterian Record Inc. primarily for members of the Presbyterian Church in Canada. The magazine was published between January 1876 and January 2017. History and profile It was pu ...

'', which was published in Philadelphia. Five years later, in 1880, Miller became assistant to the Editorial Secretary at the Presbyterian Board of Publication, also in Philadelphia. When Dr. Miller joined the Board its only periodicals were *''The Westminster Teacher'' *''The Westminster Lesson Leaf'' *''The Senior Quarterly'' *''The Sabbath School Visitor'' *''The Sunbeam'' *''The Presbyterian Monthly Record'' During his tenure at the board the following periodicals were added: *''The Junior Lesson Leaf'' in 1881 *''The German Lesson Leaf'' in 1881 *''Forward'' in 1882 *''The Morning Star'' in 1883 *''The Junior Quarterly'' in 1885 *''The Lesson Card'' circa in 1894 *''The Intermediate Quarterly'' circa 1895 *''The Question Leaf'' circa 1996 *''The Blackboard'' circa 1898 *''The Home Department Quarterly'' in 1899 *''The Primary Quarterly'' in 1901 *''The Normal Quarterly'' in 1902 *''The Bible Roll'' in 1902 *''The Beginners Lessons'' (forerunner of ''The Graded Lessons'') in 1903 *''The Primary Teacher'' in 1906 *''The Graded Lessons'' from 1909 to 1912 **for Beginners **Primary **Junior **Intermediate **Senior *''The Westminster Adult Bible Class'' in 1909 ''The Sabbath School Visitor'' — the Board's oldest periodical — became ''The Comrade'' in 1909. From 1880, when Miller first joined the Board to 1911, when he effectively retired because of ill health, the total annual circulation grew from 9,256,386 copies to 66,248,215 copies. Miller's first book, ''Week Day Religion'', was published by the board in 1880, the year he joined the Board.

Books

Miller's lasting fame is through his books. Many are still in publication.

provides the following Bibliography. * ''Week Day Religion'', 1880 * ''Home Making'', 1882 (currently published by

The Vision Forum ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The' ...

as ''The Family'') * ''In His Steps: For Those Beginning the Christian Life'', 1885 * ''The Wedded Life'', 1886 * ''Silent Times'', 1886 * ''Come Ye Apart'', 1887 * ''The Marriage Altar'', 1888 * ''Practical Religion'', 1888 * ''Bits of Pasture'', 1890 * ''Making the Most of Life'', 1891 * ''The Everyday of Life'', 1892 * ''Girls: Faults and Ideals'', 1892 * ''Young Men: Faults and Ideals'', 1893 * ''Glimpses Through Life's Windows'', 1893 * ''The Building of Character'', 1894 * ''Secrets of Happy Home Life'', 1894 * ''Life’s Byways and Waysides'', 1895 * ''For a Busy Day'', 1895 * ''Year Book'', 1895 * ''Family Prayers'', 1895 * ''The Hidden Life'', 1895 * ''The Blessing of Cheerfulness'', 1896 * ''Things to Live For'', 1896 * ''Story of A Busy Life'', 1896 * ''A Gentle Heart'', 1896 * ''Personal Friendships of Jesus'', 1897 * ''By the Still Waters'', 1897 * ''The Secret of Gladness'', 1898 * ''The Joy of Service'', 1898 * ''The Master’s Blessed'', 1898 * ''Young People’s Problems'', 1898 * ''Unto the Hill'', 1899 * ''Strength and Beauty'', 1899 * ''The Golden Gate of Prayer'', 1900 * ''Loving My Neighbour'', 1900 * ''The Ministry of Comfort'', 1901 * ''Summer Gathering'', 1901 * ''How? When? Where?'', 1901 * ''The Upper Currents'', 1902 * ''Today and Tomorrow'', 1902 * ''In Perfect Peace'', 1902 * ''The Lesson of Love'', 1903 * ''The Face of the Master'', 1903 * ''Our New Eden'', 1904 * ''Finding the Way'', 1904 * ''The Inner Life'', 1904 * ''Manual for Communicant Classes'', 1905 * ''The Beauty of Kindness'', 1905 * ''When the Song Begins'', 1905 * ''The Best Things'', 1907 * ''Glimpses of the Heavenly Life'', 1907 * ''Morning Thoughts for Every Day in The Year'', 1907 * ''Evening Thoughts'', 1908 * ''The Gate Beautiful'', 1909 * ''The Master's Friendships'', 1909 * ''The Beauty of Every Day'', 1910 * ''The Beauty of Self Control'', 1911 * ''Learning to Love'', 1911 * ''The Book of Comfort'', 1912 * ''The Joy of The Lord'', 1912 * ''Devotional Hours with the Bible'' (eight volumes), 1909-1913 This list is incomplete; it captures only a few of Miller pamphlets, of which there are several dozen. Some publications have alternative titles (e.g. one of Miller's best selling works, ''Bits of Pasture'' was renamed ''In Green Pastures''). Other books known to exist are: * ''The Garden of the Heart'' (

Hodder and Stoughton Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hachette.H ...

Archival collections

The

Presbyterian Historical Society The Presbyterian Historical Society (PHS) is the oldest continuous denominational historical society in the United States.Smylie, James H. 1996. ''A Brief History of the Presbyterians.'' Louisville, Kentucky: Geneva Press. Its mission is to coll ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, has J.R. Miller's papers including materials from the United States Christian Commission, sermons, and a scrapbook of his articles.

References

External links

Archive Miller has over thirty of JR Miller's full length books on line as well as ten of his shorter works. The numbers increase monthly
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, James Russell 1840 births 1912 deaths 19th-century American Presbyterian ministers 20th-century American Presbyterian ministers People from Beaver County, Pennsylvania Print editors Presbyterian Church (USA) teaching elders United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America ministers Westminster College (Pennsylvania) alumni Writers from Pennsylvania