John_Mott

John Mott
John Raleigh Mott (May 25, 1865 – January 31,

1955) was an evangelist and long-serving leader John Raleigh Mott
of the Young Men's Christian Association
(YMCA) and the World Student Christian
Federation (WSCF). He received the Nobel Peace
Prize in 1946 for his work in establishing and
strengthening international Protestant Christian
student organizations that worked to promote
peace. He shared the prize with Emily Balch.
From 1895 until 1920 Mott was the General
Secretary of the WSCF. Intimately involved in the
formation of the World Council of Churches in
1948, that body elected him as a lifelong honorary
President. He helped found the World Student
Christian Federation in 1895, the 1910 World
Missionary Conference and the World Council of Mott circa 1946
Churches in 1948. His best-known book, The Born May 25, 1865
Evangelization of the World in this Generation, Livingston Manor, Sullivan County,
became a missionary slogan in the early 20th New York, U.S.
century.[2] Died January 31, 1955 (aged 89)
Orlando, Florida, U.S.
Alma mater Upper Iowa University[1]
Biography Cornell University (B.A.)
Mott was born in Livingston Manor, Sullivan Occupation Activist

County, New York, on May 25, 1865, and his Organization(s) YMCA, World Student Christian
family moved to Postville, Iowa, in September of Federation
the same year. He attended Upper Iowa Spouse Leila Ada White (m. 1891)
University, where he studied history and was an Parent(s)
John Mott Sr.
award-winning student debater. He transferred to Elmira (Dodge) Mott
Cornell University, where he received his
Awards Nobel Peace Prize (1946)
bachelor's degree in 1888. He was influenced by
Arthur Tappan Pierson one of the forces behind
the Student Volunteer Movement for Foreign Missions, which was founded in 1886.
In 1910, Mott, an American Methodist layperson, presided at the 1910 World Missionary Conference,
which was an important milestone in the modern Protestant missions movement and some say the modern
ecumenical movement.
Mott and a colleague were offered free passage on the Titanic in 1912 by a White Star Line official who
was interested in their work, but they declined and took the more humble liner the SS Lapland. According
to a biography by C. Howard Hopkins, in New York City the two men heard what happened to the
Titanic, looked at each other and remarked that, "The Good Lord
must have more work for us to do."[3]
After touring Europe and promoting ecumenism, Mott traveled to

Asia where, from October 1912 to May 1913, he held a series of
18 regional and national conferences, including in Ceylon, India,
Burma, Malaya, China, Korea and Japan.[4]
He also worked with Robert Hallowell Gardiner III to maintain

The United States - Mexico
relations with the Russian Orthodox Church and Archbishop
Commission. Standing from left to
Tikhon after the Russian Revolution.
right are: Stephen Bonsal, Attache
of the State Department and Advisor
From 1920 until 1928, Mott served as the WSCF Chairperson. For
to the American Commission;
his labors in both missions and ecumenism, as well as for peace, American Secretary of State Robert
some historians consider him to be "the most widely traveled and Lansing; Eliseo Arredondo, the
universally trusted Christian leader of his time".[5] Mexican ambassador designate,
and Leo Stanton Rowe, the
Secretary to the American
Personal life and legacy Commission. Sitting from left to right

are John Mott of New York City;
Judge George Gray of Wilmington,
Mott married twice. His first wife was a teacher, Leila Ada White. Delaware; Secretary of the Interior
They married in 1891 and had two sons and two daughters, Franklin Knight Lane; Luis Cabrera
including Irene Mott Bose, a social worker in India, and wife of Lobato, chairman of the Mexican
Indian Supreme Court justice Vivian Bose; John Livingstone Mott, delegation and Secretary of the
who received the Kaisar-i‐Hind silver medal in 1931, for his work Treasury of Mexico, Alberto J. Pani,
President of the National Railways
with the YMCA in India;[6] and Frederick Dodge Mott, who
of Mexico; and Ignacio Bonillas,
worked in healthcare planning in Canada, and was Canada's
Minister of Communications and
representative to the World Health Organization.[7] Public Works... The image was
taken at the Biltmore Hotel in New
After Leila Mott died in 1952, Mott remarried in 1953, to Agnes York City on September 9, 1916.
Peter, a descendant of Martha Custis Washington.[8] He died in
1955, in Orlando, Florida, aged 89 years. His papers are held at
the Yale Divinity School Library.[9]
Veneration
In 2022, John Raleigh Mott was officially added to the Episcopal Church liturgical calendar with a feast
day on October 3.[10]
The high school of the Postville Community School District in Postville, Iowa, is named after him.[11]
Writings
The Evangelization of the World in This Generation (1900)
The Decisive Hour of Christian Missions (1910)
World Student Christian Federation (1920)
Cooperation and the World Mission (1935)
Methodists United for Action (1939)
The Larger Evangelism (1945)
See also
1910 World Missionary Conference
Christian ecumenism
History of religion in the United States
International student ministry
List of peace activists
References
1. Jain, Chelsi. "Upper Iowa University" (https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1946/mott/bi
ographical/). John R. Mott Biographical.
2. Cracknell & White, 233.
3. Greg Daugherty (March 2012). "Seven Famous People Who Missed the Titanic" (https://ww
w.smithsonianmag.com/history/seven-famous-people-who-missed-the-titanic-101902418/).
Smithsonian Magazine.
4. A History of the Ecumenical Movement 1517-1848, 2d edition, p. 364.
5. Cracknell & White, 243.
6. "John Mott, Headed International Unit" (https://www.nytimes.com/1973/07/21/archives/john-
mott-headed-international-unit.html). The New York Times. 1973-07-21. ISSN 0362-4331 (ht
tps://search.worldcat.org/issn/0362-4331). Retrieved 2021-11-26.
7. Houston, C. Stuart. "Frederick Dodge Mott" (https://web.archive.org/web/20211126040032/h
ttps://esask.uregina.ca/entry/mott_frederick_dodge_1904-81.jsp). The Encyclopedia of
Saskatchewan. Archived from the original (https://esask.uregina.ca/entry/mott_frederick_do
dge_1904-81.jsp) on 2021-11-26. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
8. "Miss Agnes Peter, 73, marries Dr. John R Mott, 88" (https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2206
9110/miss-agnes-peter-73-marries-dr-john/). The Ithaca Journal. 1953-07-29. p. 4.
Retrieved 2021-11-26 – via Newspapers.com.
9. Yale University Divinity School Library (http://hdl.handle.net/10079/fa/divinity.045).
hdl.handle.net
10. "General Convention Virtual Binder" (https://web.archive.org/web/20220913143652/https://w
ww.vbinder.net/resolutions/24?house=HD&lang=en). www.vbinder.net. Archived from the
original (https://www.vbinder.net/resolutions/24?house=HD&lang=en) on 2022-09-13.
Retrieved 2022-07-22.
11. "High School" (https://web.archive.org/web/20010303075142/http://www.postville.k12.ia.us/
high/). Postville Community School District. 2001-03-03. Archived from the original (http://w
ww.postville.k12.ia.us/high/) on 2001-03-03. Retrieved 2020-04-07. - The link for Mott goes
to this page (https://web.archive.org/web/20000620121115/http://www.nobel.se/laureates/pe
ace-1946-2-bio.html)
Further reading
Cracknell, Kenneth and Susan J. White. An Introduction to World Methodism. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 2005. ISBN 0-521-81849-4.
Fisher, Galen Merriam. John R. Mott: Architect of Cooperation and Unity. New York:
Association Press, 1953.
Hopkins, Charles Howard. John R. Mott, 1865–1955. Eerdmans, 1979. ISBN 0-8028-3525-
2.
Hopkins, C. Howard. History of the Y.M.C.A. in North America (1951)
Mackie, Robert C. Layman Extraordinary: John R. Mott, 1865–1955. London, Hodder &
Stoughton, 1965.
Mathews, Basil Joseph. John R. Mott: World Citizen. New York, Harper, 1934.
Primary sources
Mott, John Raleigh. The Future Leadership of the Church (1909) online (https://books.googl
e.com/books?id=T10wAQAAMAAJ&dq=Mott,+John+R&pg=PA3).
Mott, John Raleigh. The Evangelization of the World in This Generation. Arno, 1972.
ISBN 0-405-04078-4.
Mott, John R. Five decades and a forward view (1939), autobiography.
External links
John Mott (https://www.nobelprize.org/laureate/507) on Nobelprize.org
World Student Christian Federation (https://www.wscf.ch/)
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_Mott&oldid=1259440128"

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John Mott

John Raleigh Mott (May 25, 1865 – January 31,

Mott was born in Livingston Manor, Sullivan Occupation Activist

After touring Europe and promoting ecumenism, Mott traveled to

He also worked with Robert Hallowell Gardiner III to maintain

Personal life and legacy Commission. Sitting from left to right

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_Mott&oldid=1259440128"

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