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Amazing Grace

Reviewed by Brian Bishop.

With the bi-centenary of the abolition of the slave trade in the UK in 2007, a number of books were published about this subject, and on William Wilberforce, the main architect of the movement. The approach of this book is to look at how Wilberforce found his own freedom in Jesus and the grace of God.

While some of details of Wilberforce’s family are covered in other books, this one weaves together the personal, political and Christian influences that fuelled his passion and life to bring about change in the UK and the world regarding slavery. It is good at showing the political context in Britain and the world at the time in relationship to slavery and other social and political changes in the world, such as the French and American revolutions. There is good and accurate recording of the Church, including Methodist and Anglican, as well as the influence of other evangelical’s movements, such as the Clapham sect, in the life of Wilberforce.

This is a very readable book that gives detail to the life of Wilberforce at the same time as a good overview of the social and political context of the abolition of slavery.