William Carey

author

William Carey

1761–1834

Best known as a pioneer of modern Protestant missions, he carried his work from rural England to India and paired religious conviction with an unusual gift for languages, translation, and education.

1 Audiobook

An Enquiry into the Obligations of Christians to Use Means for the Conversion of the Heathens In Which the Religious State of the Different Nations of the World, the Success of Former Undertakings, and the Practicability of Further Undertakings, Are Considered

An Enquiry into the Obligations of Christians to Use Means for the Conversion of the Heathens In Which the Religious State of the Different Nations of the World, the Success of Former Undertakings, and the Practicability of Further Undertakings, Are Considered

by William Carey

About the author

Born in Northamptonshire in 1761, William Carey began life far from the centers of power and scholarship. He was largely self-taught, worked as a shoemaker and schoolmaster, and became a Baptist minister before emerging as one of the most influential missionary figures of his age.

In 1792, he helped inspire the Baptist Missionary Society, and the following year he went to India. He is especially associated with Serampore, where he worked on Bible translation, printing, and education. Sources also credit him with helping found Serampore College, and his legacy reaches beyond ministry into linguistics and social reform.

Carey died in 1834, but he has remained a significant figure in church history because of the scale of his work and the example he set for later missionaries. Accounts of his life often highlight the same mix of qualities: persistence, intellectual curiosity, and a belief that learning and faith belonged together.