ABSTRACT
This chapter is not to rehearse the minutiae of Cennick’s ministry in Ireland, which has been covered elsewhere, but to reflect on its nature and significance for his personal development and his legacy within the eighteenth-century revivals. It begins by examining the nature of Cennick’s sense of calling to minister in Ireland, and outline the political, economic, religious, and social context in which he operated. The chapter explores the reception he received from the various groups that he encountered during the years 1746–55, both positive and negative. Cennick had begun his preaching ministry by following the advice of those whom he respected or by personal invitation. In a series of remarkable letters, housed in the Herrnhut archives, Cennick wrote to Count Zinzendorf between 1749 and 1754 on a range of issues which mostly relate to Ireland. John Cennick’s legacy in the revivals is secure and his contribution in seventeen years of evangelism was substantial.
