Dear bdarracq,
The saying "There but for the grace of God go I" derives from "There
but for the grace of God goes John Bradford".
This quotation, expressing that someone's misfortune could easily have
happened to oneself or anyone at all, is commonly traced back to the
British Protestant reformer John Bradford (b. 1510 - d. 1555). He is
said to have made this remark upon seeing criminals on their way to
execution. However, it is absolutely impossible to determine when and
by whom the quotation has been first attributed to Bradford and if he
really ever said this or something resembling that phrase. All
endeavours to definitely find proof for this attribution have failed
for the lack of written sources.
Though the exact origin of the quotation is uncertain for these
reasons, John Bradford's authorship is widely considered acceptable.
Also, there is no other person who could be credited as the original
creator of the quotation.
In case you are interested in learning more about John Bradford, here
is a biography:
Britannia Biographies: John Bradford
http://www.britannia.com/bios/bradford.html
Sources:
Britannia Biographies: John Bradford
http://www.britannia.com/bios/bradford.html
Calvin College: Life of Master John Bradford
http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/ipb-e/epl-10/web/bradford_life.html
Calvin College: Writings of the Rev. John Bradford
http://www.ccel.org/b/bradford/writings/index.html
Scorpio Tales: Expressions & Sayings - T
http://users.tinyonline.co.uk/gswithenbank/sayingst.htm
Our Inheritance Magazine: John Bradford
http://www.bible-christian-heritage.co.uk/Johnbradford.htm
Search terms used:
"There but for the grace of God go I."
://www.google.de/search?hl=de&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&newwindow=1&q=%22There+but+for+the+grace+of+God+go+I.%22+origin&meta=
"There but for the grace of God" "John Bradford"
://www.google.de/search?q=%22There+but+for+the+grace+of+God%22+%22John+Bradford%22&hl=de&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&newwindow=1&start=0&sa=N
"John Bradford" "for the grace of god" writings
://www.google.de/search?q=%22John+Bradford%22+%22for+the+grace+of+god%22+writings&hl=de&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&newwindow=1&start=0&sa=N
"John Bradford" "for the grace of god"
://www.google.de/search?hl=de&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&newwindow=1&q=%22John+Bradford%22+%22for+the+grace+of+god%22&meta=
" john bradford" "writings "
://www.google.de/search?q=%22+john+bradford%22+%22writings+%22&hl=de&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&newwindow=1&start=0&sa=N
"John Bradford" "grace of god"
://www.google.de/search?hl=de&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&newwindow=1&q=%22John+Bradford%22+%22grace+of+god%22&sa=N&tab=gw
Regards,
Scriptor |
