Elizabeth Fry (1780-1845)
READ: Proverbs 31
The chapter in Proverbs describes
well some of the women in 18th and 19th C England, one in
particular being Elizabeth Fry. As a young woman, Elizabeth read the works of
Enlightenment writers and political philosophers and identified herself as
having no religion. However, when she met a certain Quaker man, she had a great
sense of God’s presence and returned to her Quaker roots, becoming serious in
her faith.
The prisons at this time were
overflowing. Many people were there for the simple “crimes” of poverty and
debt. Even women and children filled the prisons, with those who stole a loaf
of bread in a cell alongside hardened criminals. Prisons were there to punish,
not reform, and conditions were horrible. Elizabeth Fry, with her newfound
faith, was eager to bring the compassion of Christ to the imprisoned. She
married at age 20 and would go on to bear 11 children. But like the woman of
Proverbs 31, she balanced shrewdly her home and ministry, mothering her
children, taking care of her home, and working hard to improve prison conditions
in Newgate Prison. By 1817, Elizabeth had formed a team of women who would go
into the prisons and minister to the women there, reading the Bible to them,
educating them about hygiene, and teaching them practical tasks like sewing
that would later help them to earn a living. Through Elizabeth’s advocacy men
and women were housed separately, inmates were given pay for work, women were
guarded by female guards, and prisoners were housed according to their crimes.
Elizabeth fought for reform within prisons and as result, Newgate became a
model prison throughout Britain. Elizabeth’s testimony also helped to pass the
Prison Reform Act of 1823. She was a trailblazer for organizations who would
come after her, characterizing prisoner reform through social work and
evangelism.
JOURNALING AND PRAYER
1. Where do you feel weak in your faith?
2. Ask God how He wants to grow your faith this summer. What does He want to do in your heart?
3. Thank God for what He has shown you, and pray that it would become a reality in your life.
