J. Edwin Orr

James Edwin Orr (January 15, 1912 – April 22, 1987)^[1] was a Baptist minister, lecturer and author.^[2]

At the time of his death, J. Edwin Orr was professor emeritus of the history of awakenings at Fuller Theological Seminary's School of World Missions. He had been born in the North of Ireland of American-British parentage. He had a Ph. D. in history from Oxford. He traveled to 150 countries in a ministry promoting church revival and renewal.^[3]

Of him, Billy Graham wrote: "Dr. J. Edwin Orr, in my opinion, is one of the greatest authorities on the history of religious revivals in the Protestant world.^[4]

He was influential in the Campus Crusade for Christ and was one of the five original board members of that organization.^[5]

He wrote numerous books—many of them histories of evangelical revivals—and authored a number of hymns. One of them—"Cleanse Me"—was selected for inclusion in Amazing Grace: 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions^[6] and The One Year Great Songs of Faith.^[7] The words of "Cleanse Me" are based on Psalm 139; it is set to the Maori folk tune PO ATA RAU (translated as "Now Is the Hour"). It was written in 1936 when Orr was at an Easter revival meeting in Ngaruawahia, New Zealand, where he heard and was enchanted by the Maori Song of Farewell.^[8] "Cleanse Me" has been recorded numerous times, with performances by Bill and Gloria Gaither, Irene Bridger, Kenon D. Renfrow, Lloyd Williams, the El Paso Wind Symphony, and Nick Reynolds and Tom Parsons available from one online music store.^[9] Nowadays "Cleanse Me" is commonly rendered to "Search Me, O God" and the PO ATA RAU tune named MAORI in hymnals.^[10]

Orr was a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, the American Geographical Society, the Royal Historical Society, and the Royal Society of Literature.^[2]

Works

• The Inside Story of the Hollywood Christian Group (1955) Zondervan

References

1. ^ Newsletter of the American Scientific Affiliation-Canadian Scientific & Christian Affiliation, Volume 30 Number 1, February/March 1988-retrieved 2009-08-15
2. ^ ^{a b} Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, 2004, document H1000075036
3. ^ Newsletter of the American Scientific Affiliation-Canadian Scientific & Christian Affiliation, Volume 30 Number 1, February/March 1988-retrieved 2009-08-15
4. ^ Orr, J. Edwin (1951). Full Surrender. Edinburgh: Marshall, Morgan, and Scott. ; introduction by "William Frankland[sic] Graham," p. 3, subscribed "Billy Graham" at end, p. 4 Online pdf
5. ^ "The Original Five". http://www.seekgod.ca/fuller1.htm.  (The other board members were Henrietta Mears, Billy Graham, Dawson Trotman, and Dan Fuller)^{[self-published source?]}
6. ^ Kenneth W. Osbeck (2002). Amazing Grace: 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions. Kregel Publications. ISBN 0825434483. 
7. ^ Robert Kevin Brown; Mark R. Norton, William J. Petersen, Randy Petersen (2005). The One Year Great Songs of Faith. Tyndale House Publishers. ISBN 0842350721.  p. 271
8. ^ Kenneth W. Osbeck (1985). 101 More Hymn Stories. Kregel Publications. ISBN 0825434203. , p. 59
9. ^ The Apple iTunes Store.
10. ^ “Search Me, O God” at the Cyber Hymnal. The “Search Me” wording ties the hymn more closely to the biblical reference, Psalm 139:23 (“Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts”).

Can God? 1934. Prove Me Now. 1935. The Promise Is To You. 1935. Times of Refreshing. 1936. All Your Need. 1936. If Ye Abide. 1936. Such Things Happen. (Combined volume.) Telling Australia. (with other Authors.) The Church Must First Repent. 1937. Always Abounding. (biography of Oswald J. Smith.) The Second Evangelical Awakening in Britain. 1949. Full Surrender. 1951. The Second Evangelical Awakening in America. 1952. Through Blood and Fire in China. Good News in Bad Times. 1953. The Inside Story of the Hollywood Christian Group. 1955. Faith That Makes Sense. 1960.

The Eager Feet. Evangelical Awakenings. 1790 - 1830. 1975. The Fervent Prayer. The Great Awakening of 1858, and its Worldwide Impact. 1974. The Flaming Tongue. Evangelical Awakenings in the Early 20th Century. 1973.

Evangelical Awakenings in Southern Asia. 1975. Evangelical Awakenings in Eastern Asia. 1975. Evangelical Awakenings in Latin America. 1978. Evangelical Awakenings in Africa. 1975. Evangelical Awakenings in the South Seas. 1976. The Re-study of Revival and Revivalism. 1981.

Posthumous publications:- My All - His All. (an upgrading of "Full Surrender.") 1989. The Event of the Century. (The 1857 - 1864 Revival in the U.S.A.) 1989. Campus Aflame. (revised edition.) 1994.

External links

• Presenting the Ministry of J. Edwin Orr, website with much material about Orr, including audio and video clips.

Persondata
Name	Orr, J. Edwin
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	January 15, 1912
Place of birth
Date of death	April 22, 1987
Place of death