Horatio Spafford was born in 1828 in New York. He was a lawyer by profession and a real estate investor. He was married in 1861 and had four daughters.
The first of many tragedies to strike Horatio was the Great Fire of Chicago. It destroyed properties that Horatio owned, and he lost most of his investment.
Two years later, Horatio and his family had planned a trip to Europe to accompany an evangelist friend. Zoning issues arising from the aftermath of the fire prevented Horatio from accompanying his family.
Another ship struck the ship carrying Horatio’s family. All of Horatio’s children were killed. His wife survived. Horatio immediately boarded another ship to support his wife in her grief. As the ship carrying him to England passed near where his daughters had died, he was inspired to write a hymn It Is Well With My Soul. You can hear the hymn https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eg5O2y1UXw4. The hymn, whose words Horatio had written, was provided a melody by Philip Blass.
Horatio and his wife had three more children. It was the death of his only son that led Horatio to forgo material success for a spiritual journey.
Horatio and his family moved to Jerusalem to engage in philanthropic work. They supported the needs of the poor in Jerusalem regardless of their faith (Muslim, Jewish, Christian).
Horatio died of malaria at 59. His legacy continued well after his death. During World War I the colony that Horatio had created supported Muslim, Jewish, and Christian communities as Armenian and Assyrian people faced genocides.
How could one man whose own life was filled with tragedy give such hope to others? His faith in the goodness of all people is one that we desperately need today.
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When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul.–Horatio Spafford