Harry Denman
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Harry Denman (26 September 1893 – 8 November 1976) was an evangelist within the United Methodist Church who emphasized the life taught by Jesus at the Sermon on the Mount. A charismatic personality, he strongly challenged modern materialism and prejudice, by exemplifying and teaching a simple life, and by personally relating to all people, regardless of race, gender, or economic means. His personal property was very limited; for example he usually had only one pair of shoes to his name. Articles that were given to him were generally given away to the needy.
He was born September 26, 1893 in Birmingham, Alabama of Hattie Leonard and William Harry Denman, who were English immigrants. He earned a bachelors degree from Birmingham-Southern College in 1921, and a masters degree in social work in 1930. In 1936 he received an honorary doctorate from Athens State University in Alabama.
In 1939 he was elected General Secretary of the Commission on Evangelism of the newly formed Methodist Church which had united three branches of Methodism. He held numerous other offices in the church as well as being editor of the denomination devotional magazine The Upper Room. In addition he traveled widely for evangelistic meetings and seminars, continuing in this work long after his official retirement in 1965.
He died November 8, 1976 in Birmingham.
He was once described by a bishop as the..."kind of man who could carry the flag at the head of the parade and, at the same time, beat the drum, setting the cadence for the march." One of his trademark introductions was to go up to persons and hold out his hand, saying, "Where do you preach?"
Late in life he was often described as "The St. Paul of the United Methodist Church." Many Annual Conferences of The United Methodist Church have established evangelism awards in his honor. He was a close friend of another well-known evangelist, Dr. Billy Graham.
He founded The Foundation for Evangelism in 1949.
[edit] References
- Love Abounds: A Profile of Harry Denman, A Modern Disciple by Asbury Smith and J. Manning Potts
- Denman's personal papers are archived at the Pitts Theology Library, Emory University
