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Christian History

Today in Christian History

November 12

November 12, 1035: Canute the Great, Danish king since 1016, dies at age 41. The often ruthless king had restored churches and monasteries throughout his kingdom and built several new ones (see issue 63: Conversion of the Vikings).

November 12, 1660: John Bunyan is arrested for unlicensed preaching and sentenced to prison. While incarcerated, he penned Pilgrim's Progess and Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, the greatest Puritan spiritual autobiography (see issue 11: John Bunyan).

November 12, 1836: Charles Simeon, the Church of England's most famous evangelical clergyman, dies.

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April 25, 1214: Louis IX, king of France and saint, is born. Leader of the Seventh and Eighth Crusades (he died on the latter), he was known for his humility: he wore hair shirts and visited hospitals—where he emptied the bedpans (see issue 40: The Crusades).

April 25, 1599: Oliver Cromwell, the Puritan lord protector of England, is born near Cambridge. As lord protector, he sought to allow more freedom of religion for Puritans but also introduced intrusive and unpopular authoritarian measures. ...

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