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Rev. Andrew Fuller D.D.

(1754-1815)

Rev. Andrew Fuller D.D. Courtesy 'The Centre for the Study of the Life and Work of William Carey D.D., 1761 - 1834'.

Andrew Fuller was born at Wicken, Cambridgeshire on 5th February, 1754. In his boyhood he was deeply exercised with religious questions and joined the Particular Baptist Church at Soham, Cambridgeshire, at the age of 16. He had no formal training for the ministry but his powers of exposition and exhortation commended him to that Church. There was a ministerial vacancy in the spring of 1775, and, at the age of 21 he was called to be their minister. He remained at Soham for several years until he received an earnest call from the Particular Baptist Church at Kettering, Northamptonshire. After some hesitation he accepted the call and moved to Kettering in 1782, where he remained until his death.

He was the publisher of many pamphlets, sermons and essays. He contributed to the De Coetlogon's 'Theological Miscellany', the 'Evangelical Magazine', the 'Quarterly Magazine', the 'Protestant Dissenter's Magazine' and the 'Biblical Magazine'. Dr. Rylands, in his 'Life of Fuller' lists 167 articles contributed to these journals.

His work promoting the missionary enterprises of the Baptist Church began about 1784 with a published sermon entitled 'The Nature and Importance of Walking by Faith'. Though not bearing expressly on foreign missions it helped to stimulate the spirit out of which the enterprise sprang. William Carey had been greatly impressed by Fuller's work 'The Gospel Worthy of all Acceptation'.

The two first met at a minister's meeting in Northampton in 1787. Carey had been invited to preach. On descending from the pulpit Fuller greeted him with an outstretched hand expressing delight that their views were so alike, and insisted that they become more acquainted. Fuller was one of the group of Northamptonshire ministers to whom Carey turned repeatedly in his promotion of Missions. Although not persuaded by the practicalities of Carey's proposals they suggested he prepare his pamphlet 'The Enquiry on Missions' for publication.

Fuller attended the minister's meeting at Friar Lane Particular Baptist Chapel, Nottingham, on Wednesday, 30th May 1792, at which Carey delivered his celebrated missionary sermon on the subject: "Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God." They were about to leave the meeting when Carey, in an agony of distress, seized Fuller's hand and enquired whether 'they were again going away without doing anything?' His intervention was successful, and to his delight he saw recorded in the Minutes: ­ "That a plan be prepared against the next ministers' meeting at Kettering for the establishment of a Society for the propagation of the Gospel among the heathen."

On the 2nd October, 1792, at Kettering, the historic meeting took place at which the Particular Baptist Missionary Society was formed. Andrew Fuller was nominated Secretary of the new Society.

Carey became the first missionary and Fuller's role was to direct and maintain the work at home. Fuller compared them to miners. Carey had said "I will go down if you will hold the rope", while Fuller replied "Before he went down we engaged that while he lived we would never let go the rope". The care and concerns of the Society lay far more on Fuller than any other man and he spared no effort in advancing its interests.

Fuller was a man of great force and energy of character. His turn of mind, according to one of his biographers (J. W. Morris), led him to cultivate the intellectual and practical parts of religion rather than the devotional. His want of fervour and unction in preaching and in prayer was remarked on by several of his friends, who attributed to this cause the want of adequate success in his ministerial work. A friend once stopped him with the remark, "Brother Fuller, you can never administer a reproof to a mistaken friend but you must take up a sledge-hammer and knock his brains out." A missionary in India, whom he had sharply admonished, thus replied, "Thank you Brother Fuller; your sledge-hammer is a harmless thing at this distance! Samson, too, is sometimes meek as other men." He was aware of this tendency and he sometimes lamented it, but when he tried to apologise he seemed to make things worse. All who knew him bore testimony to his sterling integrity, the nobility of the objects to which he devoted his life, and the spirit of self-denial in which he prosecuted them. He has been compared to John Knox, both respecting his excellencies, and his defects.

Fuller received the degree of D.D. from Princeton College and from Yale University, but he never used it. He died on 7th May 1815, at the age of 61. His loss was particularly sharply felt in Serampore.

Sources: 'Dictionary of National Biography' London, 1889; 'The Life and Times of Carey, Marshman and Ward', 1859, by John Clark Marshman; 'A History of Friar Lane Baptist Church',by Godfrey and Ward, 1903).

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