John Cumming

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

(10 November 1807 – 5 July 1881) was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

clergyman and religious author.

Life

He was born in

Fintray Hatton of Fintray, commonly referred to as Fintray, is a village on the River Don in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, in the parish of Fintray. It was a textile village and its church dates from 1821, and there used to be a nearby ferry crossing the ri ...

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire (; ) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Aberdeenshire (historic), Aberdeenshire, which had substantial ...

the eldest son of John Cumming (d.1835) and his wife, Anne Mutch of

Foveran Foveran is the name of both a parish and village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The village is located north of Aberdeen and southeast of Ellon; the main group of houses and the village school are located adjacent to the main A90 trunk road. T ...

. His mother died in 1827 giving birth to his youngest brother, Hercules Cumming. She is buried in St Nicholas Churchyard in Aberdeen.http://calms.abdn.ac.uk/DServe/dserve.exe?dsqIni=Dserve.ini&dsqApp=Archive&dsqDb=Catalog&dsqCmd=show.tcl&dsqSearch=(RefNo

%27MS%203761%2F8%27) He attended

Aberdeen Grammar School Aberdeen Grammar School is a state secondary school in Aberdeen, Scotland. It is one of thirteen secondary schools run by the Aberdeen City Council educational department. It is the oldest school in the city and one of the oldest schools in the ...

and then studied divinity at King's College in Aberdeen. In 1832, Cumming was appointed to the

Crown Court Church Crown Court Church is a Church of Scotland church in Central London. History A Scottish Presbyterian congregation was first established in London during the reign of King James I of England and VI of Scots, following the Union of the Crowns in ...

(the Scottish National Church) in

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

, London, a

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

congregation that catered for Scots living in London. At the time, the congregation had approximately 80 members, but Cumming was able to grow his congregation to around 900, and he regularly preached to congregations of 500–600 on Sundays. Cumming was a controversial figure in his day,

George Eliot Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wrot ...

being the most prominent figure to criticize him for his anti-Catholicism, obsession with the

End Times Eschatology (; ) concerns expectations of the end of present age, human history, or the world itself. The end of the world or end times is predicted by several world religions (both Abrahamic and non-Abrahamic), which teach that negative world ...

, and perceived

intellectual dishonesty Intellectual honesty is an applied method of problem solving characterised by a nonpartisan and honest attitude, which can be demonstrated in a number of different ways: * One's personal beliefs or politics do not interfere with the pursuit of trut ...

. In 1853 he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was establis ...

. His proposer was Sir John Archibald Murray. Cumming retired in 1879. In total, he published approximately 180 books during his lifetime. He died on 5 July 1881 in

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district in West London, split between the London Borough of Hounslow, London Boroughs of Hounslow and London Borough of Ealing, Ealing. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist Wi ...

near

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and was buried in

Kensal Green Cemetery Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of North Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in P ...

Family

In 1833 he married Elizabeth Nicholson (d.1879), daughter of James Nicholson of London, in a ceremony by Rev Dr Gordon at a house at 5 Annandale Street in Edinburgh. They had several children: Lettice Anne (b.1834); John (b.1835); Fanny (b.1837); Louisa Finch (b.1838); Nicholson (b.1840)' Elizabeth (b.1842); Martin Luther Cumming (1843–1911); James (b.1844); Hugh McNeil (b.1845); Francis (1842–1908); Edward Bishop Elliott Cumming (b.1848 died aged 6 months). Elizabeth died in 1879.

Views

Cumming was one of the most virulently

anti-Catholic Anti-Catholicism is hostility towards Catholics and opposition to the Catholic Church, its clergy, and its adherents. Scholars have identified four categories of anti-Catholicism: constitutional-national, theological, popular and socio-cul ...

preachers of his day. Several of his books attacked

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, including ''The Romish Church a Dumb Church'' (Arthur Hall, 1853) and ''Ritualism, the Highway to Rome'' (James Nisbet & Co., 1867). He gave public lectures denouncing

Cardinals Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

Nicholas Wiseman Nicholas Patrick Stephen Wiseman (3 August 1802 – 15 February 1865) was an English Roman Catholic prelate who served as the first Archbishop of Westminster upon the re-establishment of the Roman Catholic hierarchy in England and Wales in 1 ...

and

John Henry Newman John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890) was an English Catholic theologian, academic, philosopher, historian, writer, and poet. He was previously an Anglican priest and after his conversion became a cardinal. He was an ...

. ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' also frequently printed letters from Cumming in which he pointed to perceived misdeeds on the part of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. Cumming also took a deep interest in

Christian eschatology Christian eschatology is a minor branch of study within Christian theology which deals with the doctrine of the "last things", especially the Second Coming of Christ, or Parousia. The word eschatology derives from two Greek roots meaning "last ...

, adhering to the

Historicist Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying the process or history by which they came about. The term is widely used in philosophy, ant ...

school of Christian eschatology. He believed that historical events such as the French Revolution and the Great Famine of Ireland had fulfilled

prophecies In religion, mythology, and fiction, a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a ''prophet'') by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain divi ...

contained in the

biblical The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...

Books of

Daniel Daniel commonly refers to: * Daniel (given name), a masculine given name and a surname * List of people named Daniel * List of people with surname Daniel * Daniel (biblical figure) * Book of Daniel, a biblical apocalypse, "an account of the acti ...

and

Revelation Revelation, or divine revelation, is the disclosing of some form of Religious views on truth, truth or Knowledge#Religion, knowledge through communication with a deity (god) or other supernatural entity or entities in the view of religion and t ...

. He preached that the sixth vial of judgment (discussed in Revelation 16) had been poured out in 1820. Cumming therefore taught that

Judgment Day The Last Judgment is a concept found across the Abrahamic religions and the '' Frashokereti'' of Zoroastrianism. Christianity considers the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to entail the final judgment by God of all people who have ever lived, res ...

would occur some time between 1848 and 1867.

Works

''Speech ... at the annual meeting of the Reformation society, 2d of May, 1839''

''A short statement of the origin and nature of the present divisions in the Church of Scotland''
1840.
''A preservative against popery, Volume I''
1848.
''God in history, or, Facts illustrative of the presence & providence of God in the Affairs of Men''
1852. *
Book of Genesis: Volume 1 of Sabbath Morning Readings on the Old Testament
' (1864)
''Apocalyptic Sketches: Lectures on the Book of Revelation''
1854.
''Sabbath evening readings on the New Testament''
1854.
''Voices of the Night''
1854.
''Lectures on Romanism: being illustrations and refutations of the errors of Romanism and Tractarianism''
1854.
''Prophetic studies: Lectures on the book of Daniel''
1854.
''Sabbath morning readings on the Old Testament: Book of Exodus''
1854.
''The church before the flood''
1854.
''Benedictions: or, The blessed life''
1854.
''The tent and the altar: or, Sketches from patriarchial life''
1854.
''Foreshadows: Lectures on our Lord's miracles''
1854.
''The comforter, or, Thoughts on the influence of the Holy Spirit''
1854.
''Voices of the dead''
1854
''The end: or, The proximate signs of the close of this dispensation''
1855.
''The daily life: or, Precepts and prescriptions for Christian living''
1855.
''Signs of the times: or, Present, past, and future''
1855.
''Twelve urgent questions: personal, practical, and pointed''
1855.
''Infant salvation: or, all saved that die in infancy''
1855.
''Foreshadows: Lecture's on Our Lord's Parables''
1856.
''The last of the patriarchs: or, Lessons chiefly from the life of Josep''
1856.
''Cumming's minor works''
1856.
''Apocalyptic sketches: Lectures on the seven churches of Asia Minor''
1858.
''Voices of the Day''
1858.
''Sabbath morning readings on the Old Testament. The first and second books of Samuel''
1859.
''Sabbath evening readings on the New Testament. Colossians and Thessalonians''
1859
''The Hammersmith Protestant Discussion :Being an Authenticated Report of the Controversial Discussion Between the Rev. John Cumming and Daniel French on the Differences Between Protestantism and Popery; Held at Hammersmith, during the months of April and May, 1839''
London: A. Hall, 1860.
''Sabbath morning readings on the Old Testament. The book of Daniel''
1860.
''The great tribulation: or, Things coming on the earth, Volume 1''
1860.
''Sabbath evening readings on the New Testament. Hebrews''
1861.
''Readings on the prophets. Isaiah''
1862.
''Moses Right and Bishop Colenso Wrong''
1863.
''Great tribulation: or, things coming on the earth''
1863.
''The great consummation: the millennial rest; or, The world as it will be''
1863.
''Driftwood, seaweed, and fallen leaves'', Volume II
1863. * ''The Destiny of Nations as Indicated in Prophecy.'' London: Hurst & Blackett, 1864.
''The great preparation; or Redemption draweth nigh''
1864.
''The last warning cry: with reasons for the hope that is in me''
1867.
''Is Christianity from God? Or, A manual of Christian evidence''
1871.
''"Our Father", a manual of short family prayers''
1871.
''When shall these things be? Or, Signs of the last times''
1878.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cumming, John 1807 births 1881 deaths 19th-century apocalypticists Critics of the Catholic Church Clergy from Aberdeenshire Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery 19th-century ministers of the Church of Scotland 19th-century Scottish Presbyterian ministers