Lewis Benson (1906–1986) was an expert on the scripts of

George Fox George Fox (July 1624 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S. – 13 January 1691 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) was an English Dissenters, English Dissenter, who was a founder of the Quakers, Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as t ...

, the founder of the

Quaker 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 ...

denomination of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

Early life

Lewis Benson was born in 1906 in his grandmother's house in

Sea Girt, New Jersey Sea Girt is a borough situated on the Jersey Shore, within Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 1,866, an increase of 38 (+2.1%) from the 2010 census count of 1,82 ...

, and grew up in

Weehawken, New Jersey Weehawken is a township in the northern part of Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located on the Hudson Waterfront and Hudson Palisades overlooking the Hudson River. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's po ...

. He was a birthright member of the Quaker Meeting at Manasquan, where his parents had been married. Most of the year, he attended a Scotch

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Christianity, Reformed Protestantism, Protestant tradition named for its form of ecclesiastical polity, church government by representative assemblies of Presbyterian polity#Elder, elders, known as ...

where his mother taught Sunday school. Each summer, he attended Manasquan Meeting, and he regularly attended New York Yearly Meeting and the Half Yearly Meeting that Manasquan belonged to. At the age of 16, he dropped out of school and became a messenger boy for the

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name as the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, also known as the "Pennsy," was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At its ...

. Soon after, he met

George Gurdjieff George Ivanovich Gurdjieff ( – 29 October 1949) was a philosopher, mystic, spiritual teacher, composer, and movements teacher. Born in the Russian Empire, he briefly became a citizen of the First Republic of Armenia after its formation in 1 ...

, who claimed to have studied in

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...

and have secret knowledge that would allow one to influence others. Benson joined Gurdjieff's movement, but after seven years became disillusioned and left. Benson and his mother moved to Manasquan. Borrowing money from relatives, he opened a

Studebaker Studebaker was an American wagon and automobile manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana, with a building at 1600 Broadway, Times Square, Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1852 and incorporated in 1868 as the Studebaker Brothers Man ...

agency, but the business quickly failed during the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

Research career

While reading old books in the Manasquan Meeting library, Bension read the journal of

which related Fox's rescue from despair through the voice of the Lord. Benson wished to find that experience for himself. He read all the Quaker classics, and began a lifelong collection of detailed notes about them. Benson spent 1933–34 at

Pendle Hill Pendle Hill is in the east of Lancashire, England, near the towns of Burnley, Nelson, Colne, Brierfield, Clitheroe and Padiham. Its summit is above mean sea level. It gives its name to the Borough of Pendle. It is an isolated hill in the Pe ...

, continuing his study of the early Quakers. The following summer, he moved to Shrewsbury, New Jersey, and helped restart the Shrewsbury Monthly Meeting. He then spent a year at Woodbrooke, England, studying modern Quaker authors, and concluded that their connection with the early Quakers was weak. Returning to the United States, Benson was invited to build up a library and be the first librarian at Pendle Hill. In the summer of 1938, Benson went to Evanston,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, to become the pastoral secretary of a new meeting. He spent four years there. For the rest of his life, he worked to deepen his understanding of and share the message of George Fox. He supported his family by working as a printer. Over the years, he spoke several times at prominent Quaker institutions such as Pendle Hill and

Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Fr ...

. His major work, ''Catholic Quakerism'' (now republished as ''A Universal Christian Faith''), based on a series of lectures given at Woodbrooke in the 1960s, was published by

Philadelphia Yearly Meeting The Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, or simply the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, or PYM, is the central organizing body for Quaker meetings in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States area, including parts of Pen ...

. During the last ten years of his life, he traveled and spoke throughout Britain, Ireland, the United States, Canada, and Japan.

Death

Benson died of

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

at his home on the Jersey shore in 1986. His library and papers now reside in a special collection at

Library.

Reaction

Wilmer Cooper, Founding Dean of the Earlham School of Religion, John Punshon, author of ''Encounter With Silence'', ''Portrait in Grey', and ''Reasons for Hope'', and T. Canby Jones, former Professor of Religion and Philosophy at Wilmington College have claimed to have been positively influenced by Benson. Dean Freiday, editor of ''Quaker Religious Thought'' and author of ''Nothing Without Christ'' said, "Lewis Benson has made the major contribution in recent years toward recovery of a Christian basis that is genuinely Quaker." The New Foundation Fellowship groups in Britain and the United States formed in the mid-1970s following lecture series of Benson's, and take their name from one of his talks. These groups have reprinted all of George Fox's published writings, have re-instituted the traveling ministry of the early Quakers, and keep many of Benson's writings in print.

Bibliography

*A Universal Christian Faith *The Quaker Vision *George Fox's message is Relevant for Today *Prophetic Quakerism *The Truth is Christ: Four Essays (New Foundation Publications, No. 5) *Strict Scholarly Experience *Cannon Fodder *What Did George Fox Teach About Christ?GoodReads website
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Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Benson, Lewis 1906 births 1986 deaths American Quakers People from Manasquan, New Jersey People from Sea Girt, New Jersey People from Weehawken, New Jersey Historians of Quakerism Quaker writers 20th-century American historians 20th-century Quakers