Frank Mason North, a minister in the Methodist Episcopal Church, was born in New York in 1850. He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1872 and entered the ministry that same year. After serving in various posts for twenty years, he became, in 1892, corresponding secretary of the New York City Church Extension and Missionary Society, a role he filled until his death. He contributed various hymns to the periodical Christian City.
John Newton was born in London in 1725. His mother, a pious woman, died when he was only seven years of age. His only “schooling” was from his eighth to his tenth year. He was engaged in the African slave trade for several years and was even himself held as a slave at one time in Sierra Leone. He bragged of his sinful nature but was converted in a storm at sea while returning from Africa. He married a devout Christian in 1750 and became a minister in the Established Church in 1758, preaching at a church in Olney, near Cambridge.
John Henry Newman, a cardinal in the Roman Catholic Church, was born in London in 1801. He graduated from Oxford in 1820 and for several years was a tutor at that college. He was a leader of the High Church party in the Church of England and had great influence among the young men at Oxford.
John Mason Neale, an English clergyman and author, was born in London in 1818. He graduated from Cambridge in 1840 and the following year entered the ministry. He was appointed warden of Sackville College, Sussex, an institution for aged women, in 1846; an office he continued to fill until his death in 1866. He was the author of numerous published works including 15 volumes of hymns and translations.
Gerard Moultrie, a clergyman in the Church of England, was born in 1829 in Rugby, England. Among his published volumes were Hymns and Lyrics for the Seasons and Saints’ Days of the Church, 1867. His hymns include translations from Latin, Greek, and German.
Edward Mote, an English Baptist minister, was born in London in 1797. He was a cabinetmaker for some years but eventually entered the ministry. From 1852 until his death in 1874 he was pastor of the Baptist Church in Essex. He wrote more than 100 hymns.
Thomas Moore, the noted Irish poet, was born in Dublin in 1779. He graduated from Trinity College, in his native city, in 1798, and the following year moved to London and began the study of law. From 1800 until his death in 1852, he published works in prose and poetry including Sacred Songs, 1816.
James Montgomery, the son of a Moravian minister; was born in Ayrshire, Scotland in 1771. He became a renowned poet and abandoned the Christian faith. At the age of 43, he repented of his sinful condition and joined the Moravian congregation at Fulneck.
John Samuel Bewley Monsell, a clergyman in the Church of England, was born in Londonderry, Ireland in 1811. He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He took holy orders in 1834 and served in several offices of the Church of England. His death in 1875 was caused by his falling from the roof of his church, which was at the time under construction.