Forsyth was born of modest means at Aberdeen, SCOTLAND on May 12, 1848, the eldest of five children. After graduating from the University of Aberdeen (M.A., 1869) he pursued further studies in theology at the University of Göttingen and at New College, London. In 1876 he was ordained into the Congregational ministry, serving as pastor to five English churches in succession: Shipley, Yorkshire (1876–1880); St. Thomas’ Square, Hackney, London (1880–1885); Cheetam Hill, Manchester (1885–1889); Clarendon Park, Leicester (1888–1894); and Emmanuel Church, Cambridge (1894–1901). In 1877 he married Minna Magness (d. 1894), by whom he had one daughter, Jessie; in 1898 he married Bertha Ison.
In 1901 he was appointed principal of New College. Four years later he was elected chair of the Congregational Union of ENGLAND and WALES. He made two voyages to the UNITED STATES, in 1899 to address the Congregational assembly being held in Boston, and in 1907 to deliver the LYMAN BEECHER lectures at Yale. In 1910 he became dean of the faculty of theology of the University of London.
By nature Forsyth was practical, compassionate, and energetic, although his health was never robust. He was quick witted, a gifted conversationalist, and (not surprising, given his Celtic origins) deeply passionate and poetic. In many ways he remained something of a populist, disinclined to become involved in the more speculative forms of theology. This may help to explain why he never attained the level of academic fame achieved by less able colleagues. Exhausted by the demands of office, as well as by the moral failure associated with the First World War, Forsyth died on November 11, 1921—Armistice Day.
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