Newton's Stubborn Kindness

In 1767, the poet William Cowper moved to Olney, England, already haunted by bouts of severe melancholy that had twice driven him to the brink of self-destruction. His new neighbor was John Newton, the former slave trader turned Anglican curate, who recognized in Cowper a brilliant but fragile soul. Newton did not lecture Cowper about weakness. He did not quote platitudes or keep a safe pastoral distance.…