Had the Church of England's evangelism operation been the nation's royalty, Henry Venn would have been a king. His eponymous grandfather was one of the most influential evangelicals of his day (known largely for his shaping of Charles Simeon). His father, John, was rector of Clapham during its emphasis on moral renewal (antislavery crusader William Wilberforce was among his parishioners) and one of the founders of the Church Missionary Society (CMS).

But Henry Venn was no elitist—especially where race was concerned. Though Venn spent his life as a missions administrator, rather than as a missionary (in fact, he rarely spoke publicly, and never visited the mission field), he befriended Africans throughout his life.

One of his earliest memories was of playing with Africans sent to England for education. And he later recalled the words of an African merchant he had met. "Treat us like men, and we will behave like men," the merchant had told him. "Treat us as children and we shall behave like ...

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