Elisabeth Elliot is a
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
authorAn author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and speaker. Her first husband,
Jim ElliotPhilip James Elliot was an evangelical Christian who was one of five missionaries killed while participating in Operation Auca, an attempt to evangelize the Waodani people of Ecuador.-Early life:...
, was killed in 1956 while attempting to make missionary contact with the Auca (now known as
HuaoraniThe Huaorani, Waorani or Waodani, also known as the Waos, are native Amerindians from the Amazonian Region of Ecuador who have marked differences from other ethnic groups from Ecuador. The alternate name Auca is a pejorative exonym used by the neighboring Quechua Indians, and commonly adopted by...
) of eastern
EcuadorEcuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
. She later spent two years as a missionary to the tribe members who killed her husband. Returning to the United States after many years in
South AmericaSouth America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, she became widely known as the author of over twenty books and as a speaker in constant demand. Elliot toured the country, sharing her knowledge and experience, well into her seventies.
Biography
She was born in
BelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, and her family included her missionary parents, four brothers and one sister. Elisabeth's brothers
Thomas HowardThomas Howard is a highly acclaimed writer and scholar. A convert to Roman Catholicism, he is known for his studies of C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams, as well as for books such as his Christ the Tiger and Evangelical is Not Enough ....
and
David HowardDavid M. Howard Sr. is an author and Christian missionary to Colombia. He is the brother of Elisabeth Elliot, brother-in-law of Jim Elliot, and brother of author Thomas Howard ....
are also authors.
The family moved to Pennsylvania when she was a few months old. She has lived in
Franconia, New HampshireFranconia is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,104 at the 2010 census. Set in the White Mountains, Franconia is home to the northern half of Franconia Notch State Park. Parts of the White Mountain National Forest are in the eastern and southern portions...
;
Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
; and
Moorestown, New Jersey-Demographics:At the 2000 census, there were 19,017 people, 6,971 households, and 5,270 families residing in the township. The population density was 1,287.3 per square mile . There were 7,211 housing units at an average density of 488.1 per square mile...
. She studied Classical Greek at
Wheaton CollegeWheaton College is a private, evangelical Protestant liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago in the United States...
, believing that it was the best tool to help her with the calling of ultimately translating the New Testament into an unknown language. It was here that she met Jim Elliot. Prior to their marriage, Elisabeth took a post-graduate year of specialized studies at Prairie Bible Institute in
AlbertaAlberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
,
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, where a campus prayer chapel is named in her honor. Jim Elliot and Elisabeth Howard went individually to Ecuador to work with the Quichua Indians; they married in 1953 in the city of
QuitoSan Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
,
EcuadorEcuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
. Their daughter, Valerie (born 1955), was 10 months old when her father was killed. Elisabeth continued her work with the Quechua for two more years.
Two Huaorani women living among the Quichua, including one named
DayumaDayuma is a member of the Huaorani tribe and a citizen of Ecuador. She is a central figure in the Operation Auca saga, in that she was the first Huao convert to Christianity, as well as the missionaries' key to unlocking the Huaorani language, a language that had not been previously studied...
, taught the Huao language to Mrs. Elliott and fellow missionary
Rachel Saint. When Dayuma returned to the Huaorani, she created an opening for contact by the missionaries. In October 1958, Mrs. Elliot went to live with the Huaorani with her three-year-old daughter Valerie and Rachel Saint.
The Auca/Huaorani gave Elisabeth the tribal name
Gikari, Huao for "Woodpecker." She later returned to the Quichua and worked with them until 1963, when she and Valerie returned to the US (Franconia, New Hampshire).
In 1969, Elisabeth married Addison Leitch,
professorA professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of
theologyTheology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
at
Gordon-Conwell Theological SeminaryGordon–Conwell Theological Seminary is an evangelical theological seminary whose main campus is based in South Hamilton, Massachusetts, with three other campuses in Boston, Charlotte, North Carolina and Jacksonville. The current president of Gordon-Conwell is Dennis Hollinger...
in
MassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. Leitch died in 1973. In 1977, she married Lars Gren, a seminary student who had been boarding at her house. The Grens later worked and traveled together.
In the mid-1970s she served as one of the stylistic consultants for the committee of the
New International VersionThe New International Version is an English translation of the Christian Bible. Published by Zondervan in the United States and by Hodder & Stoughton in the UK, it has become one of the most popular modern translations in history.-History:...
of the Bible (NIV). She appears on the NIV's list of contributors.
From 1988 to 2001, Elisabeth could be heard on a daily radio program,
Gateway to Joy, produced by the Good News Broadcasting Association of Lincoln, Nebraska. She almost always opened the program with the phrase, "'You are loved with an everlasting love,' - that's what the Bible says - 'and underneath are the everlasting arms.' This is your friend, Elisabeth Elliot ..."
In the past few years, Mr. and Mrs. Gren have stopped traveling but continue to keep in touch with the public through mail and their website.
Books
- Shadow of the Almighty: The Life and Testament of Jim Elliot, 1958
- Through Gates of Splendor
Through Gates of Splendor is a 1957 best selling book written by Elisabeth Elliot. The book tells the story of Operation Auca, an attempt by five American missionaries - Jim Elliot , Pete Fleming, Ed McCully, Nate Saint, and Roger Youderian - to reach the Huaorani tribe of eastern Ecuador. All five...
(1957)
- These Strange Ashes
- Passion and Purity
Passion and Purity: Learning to Bring Your Love Life Under Christ's Control, published in 1984 and written by Elisabeth Elliot, is an evangelical Protestant book, part manifesto and part autobiography, on the subject of romantic relationships. The book recounts Elliot's friendship and romance with...
: Learning to Bring Your Love Life Under God's Control
- Let Me Be a Woman
- Quest for Love
- The Savage My Kinsman
- The Journals of Jim Elliot
- Discipline: The Glad Surrender
- Love Has a Price Tag
- The Mark of a Man
- Keep a Quiet Heart
- A Chance to Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael
Amy Wilson Carmichael was a Protestant Christian missionary in India, who opened an orphanage and founded a mission in Dohnavur...
- Furnace of the Lord: Reflections on the Redemption of The Holy City, 1969
- Path Through Suffering: Discovering the Relationship Between God's Mercy and Our Pain
- The Path of Loneliness: Finding Your Way Through the Wilderness to God
- No Graven Image
- Secure in the Everlasting Arms
- The Music of His Promises: Listening to God with Love, Trust, and Obedience
- The Shaping of a Christian Family
- God's Guidance: A Slow and Certain Light
- Taking Flight: Wisdom for Your Journey
Portrayals of Elisabeth Elliot
- In 1973, a readers theater production of Bridge of Blood
Bridge of Blood: Jim Elliot Takes Christ to the Aucas is a 1973 readers' theatre play based on the story of Operation Auca. It was written by David Robey, a former drama professor at Cedarville University, and produced by Lillenas Drama in 1988....
: Jim Elliot Takes Christ to the Aucas was first performed at Tennessee Temple UniversityTennessee Temple University is a four-year private Christian university, with its focus on liberal arts education, located in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Operating there, also, is Temple Baptist Seminary, the university's graduate school of Christian theology....
.
- In 2003, a musical based on the story of Jim and Elisabeth Elliot, entitled Love Above All, was staged at the Victoria Concert Hall in Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. This musical was staged a second time in 2007 at the University Cultural Centre, Singapore.
- In the 2006
- Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2006...
film, End of the SpearEnd of the Spear is a 2006 docudrama film that recounts the story of Operation Auca, in which five American Christian missionaries attempted to evangelize the Huaorani people of the jungle of Ecuador...
, she was portrayed by actress Beth BaileyBeth Bailey is a fictional character from the BBC espionage television series Spooks, which follows the exploits of Section D, a counter-terrorism division in MI5. She is portrayed by British actress Sophia Myles. Beth Bailey was introduced in Spooks's ninth series as a private contractor in her...
. In Beyond the Gates of Splendor, a documentary film released in 2002, she appears as herself. (The other wives of the missionaries killed, as well as several Indians, and others, also appear.)
External links