James Allanson Picton
James Allanson Picton | |
---|---|
Born | 8 August 1832 |
Died | 4 February 1910 |
Occupation(s) | Independent minister, liberal politician |
James Allanson Picton (8 August 1832 – 4 February 1910) was a British independent minister, author, philosopher and Liberal politician. Picton promoted a philosophy known as Christian pantheism.[1]
Life
Picton was born at
In spite of allegations of heresy, in 1856, he was appointed to
Picton started to take an active part in public life as an uncompromising radical. He represented Hackney on the London School Board from 1870 to 1879 and was chairman of the school management committee for three years. In 1883 he was chosen as a radical candidate for Tower Hamlets but in June 1884 he stood instead at a by-election for Leicester. He was elected Member of Parliament to succeed Peter Alfred Taylor, most of whose opinions he shared. He retained the seat in the following elections and resigned from the House of Commons in 1894. He was very small in stature, but possessing good oratorical powers, and retaining the manner of the pulpit, he always won the ear of the House of Commons, where he was known as a sincere advocate of extreme views.
After his retirement, Picton built Caerlyr Hall at Penmaenmawr, North Wales in about 1896 (the name Caerlyr means City of Leicester in Welsh). William Ewart Gladstone was said to have been a friend of Picton and visited the area frequently.[4] Picton died at Caerlyr Hall aged 77.
Picton married firstly Margaret Beauont, daughter of John Beaumont of Manchester; and secondly Jessie Carr Williams, daughter of Sydney Williams a publisher. He had four sons.
Pantheism
Picton was a disciple of
Publications
From 1879 to 1884 he wrote leaders in the
His books included :
- A Catechism of the Gospels, 1866.
- New Theories and the Old Faith, 1870
- The Mystery of Matter, 1873
- The Religion of Jesus, 1876
- Pulpit Discourses, 1879
- Oliver Cromwell: the Man and his Mission, 1882
- Lessons from the English Commonwealth, 1884
- The Conflict of Oligarchy and Democracy, 1885 James Allanson Picton The Conflict of Oligarchy and Democracy
- Sir James A. Picton: a Biography, 1891
- The Bible in School, 1901
- The Religion of the Universe, 1904
- Pantheism: Its Story and Significance, 1905
- Spinoza: A Handbook to the Ethics, 1907
- Man and the Bible, 1909
References
- ^ Upton, C. B. (1873). "Christian Pantheism". The Theological Review. 10: 575–598.
- ^ John Morrison Davidson Eminent English liberals in and out of Parliament
- ^ John Morrison Davidson Eminent English liberals in and out of Parliament
- ^ "Caerlyr Hall Hotel". Archived from the original on 25 July 2009. Retrieved 13 March 2009.
- ISBN 978-0-415-66017-4
- ISBN 978-1-107-62357-6
- ^ Shields, Charles. (1888). Philosophia Ultima, Volume 1. Applewood Books. p. 197
- Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "L" (part 2)
- Jincheng Shi. (2018). "Pantheism and Science in Victorian Britain". University of Leeds.