PROFILE OF ROBERT MOFFAT
Formal Education and Previous Occupations
Robert Moffat was born in Scotland to a family of humble means. With their limited
resources they could afford very little education and no formal biblical training. His parents were
devout Christians and did their best to train him in biblical matters at home. His mother even read
stories to him of various Moravian missionaries on a regular basis. As a boy, this was the extent
of his religious learning. He did have a tutor early on; he was known as, “Wully Mitchell,” but
Robert did not do well with books and “ran off to sea” instead of continuing his schooling. He
spent some time at sea and learned the coastal trade, then returned home to his parents.
At the age of eleven, Robert Moffat, along with his brother Alexander, had the chance to
go to a school for writing and book keeping. After school his brother stayed for astronomy and
geography classes and, although not a student, Robert had the chance to sit in and learn along
with the class. This would be the last school that Robert would attend. At the age of fourteen he
became the apprentice of a gardener and at seventeen he moved to Cheshire, England to begin his
own career. It was while working as a gardener that he applied to be a missionary. Moffat was
rejected due to his lack of education, but was determined and took a gardening job in Manchester
near the Rev. William Roby, the director of the London Missionary Society (LMS). Here,
studying theology privately under Roby, he received the only theological training of his career.
Missionary Recruit
At the age of nineteen, while living in Cheshire, Moffat joined a small Methodist society
where he was finally converted. At the age of twenty he saw a placard hanging in town for a
meeting held by the London Missionary Society. The meeting would feature a missionary
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message by the society’s director, Rev. William Roby. Some sources say that Moffat attended the
meeting and was influenced greatly by what Roby had to say; however, others insist that the
meeting had already passed, but the placard itself was enough to stir up memories of his mothers
stories of mission work and to influence him to make a decision toward missions. Either way, he
went to Manchester to meet Roby, who in turn sent a letter to the LMS on his behalf. Although
Moffat was originally turned away by the LMS, he went on to train with Roby and reapply. This
time he was accepted. During a farewell service held for Moffat in Manchester, the speaker
reminded Moffat that it was during his time with Roby, “where the spark of missionary zeal in
your breast was first fanned into a flame, where the desire to devote yourself to missionary labour
was first cherished and directed, and from whence you were sent forth with the prayers and
affections of many Christians as an ambassador to the heathen” 1
Departure to the mission field
Moffat was officially commissioned as a missionary of the LMS on the 30th of September
1816 at Surrey Chapel in London, England. On the 18th of the following month he set off on his
eighty-five day sea voyage and arrived in Cape Town, South Africa on the 13th of January 1817,
shortly after his twenty-first birthday. There was very little time between Moffat’s recruitment (or
his conversion, for that matter) and the time he actually left for South Africa. Besides his
involvement in the Methodist society in Cheshire and the preparation for his mission, Moffat did
not participate in any significant ministry before his mission into Africa.
Financial Support of the Mission Work
Moffat’s work was financed largely by the London Missionary Society. This support was
the only foreign income that the missionaries received, and it was not much. The fact that this
income was minimal meant that they had to apply themselves to all they did. Moffat explains that
the local people “supposed that as we were supported by resources not drawn from the country,
John Campbell and Robert Moffat, The Farewell Services Of Robert Moffat, In Edinburgh,
Manchester And London (London: John Snow, 1843), 33.
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we had only to call for riches and they would come.” 2 This meant that they could not hire people
to help with the work because they expected higher pay than they could afford. The problem, he
confesses, was that “at the same time we had the greatest difficulty in making both ends meet.” 3
Whatever they set out to accomplish would be achieved by their own hard labor, making it
possible for the mission to make it financially. A further way by which the team managed to
make up for their lack of funds was to start their own business. The missionary wives opened and
ran a store to sell clothing and supplies to the natives in the area.
As for Moffat’s work, after returning to England, a number of friends presented him with
more than £5,000. This was enough for him to live off of for the remainder of his life and he no
longer needed to receive support from the LMS.
The Host Country
Robert Moffat was received in different ways while in South Africa. His relationship with
his host country varied depending on the people involved, the place where he was, and the time in
his ministry. On his arrival he found that the English and Dutch colonies were prejudice toward
missionaries. The government officials even went as far as to stand in the way of evangelizing the
interior of South Africa. This attitude changed some after converting a rebel named Africaner;
but, as will be seen, more difficulties with the Europeans will follow.
As Moffat began his work with the Bechuanas in Kuruman, he found them to be very
unreceptive. He was blamed for bringing drought and was often the victim of theft. Times at
Kuruman became turbulent; however, and Moffat changed his status in the community by
stepping in as a diplomat. Many tribes were threatening the existence of the Bechuanas and
Moffat made efforts at peace and formed military alliances with other tribes. When peace failed
he became a “civilian general of sorts,” 4 helping the tribe to survive. From this point on he
Robert Moffat, Missionary Labours and Scenes in Southern Africa (New York: Robert Carter
and Brothers, 1850), 200.
3
Ibid.
2
4
Ruth A. Tucker, From Jerusalem to Iran Jaya (Grand Rapids, MI: Academie Books, 1983), 153.
4
maintained a position of leadership among the Bechuanas and received great respect. Still, the
European powers in South Africa were not entirely supportive of his ministry. After translating
the Bible into Tswana, he could not find a printer who was willing to print the Bible in a native
language for fear of it equalizing the races.
Social Background
Little is known about Robert Moffat’s early family life, but as mentioned above, he was
brought up in a “humble” family. His father held an appointment in the Custom House at Portsoy.
Significant Family Influences
Although much time went by before he became a Christian, the Christian upbringing that
Moffat’s parents gave him made a significant impact on him. His father’s consistent example and
his mother’s fireside stories about Moravian missionaries had a special influence on him as a boy.
Robert’s wife, Mary, also impacted him as his closest partner throughout the years in Africa. She
worked alongside him, ran the home, and ran the mission while he was away. They were essential
to each other’s ministry and were said to have been “one in thought, feeling, purpose, and aim.” 5
Furthermore, his children also influenced Moffat and his mission; both positively, as most of
them continued on in missions, and negatively, through the discouragement suffered at the loss of
two children. Perhaps their son John Moffat had the greatest impact, stepping in to help his father
during his later years on the mission field. Another significant family relationship was that of his
son-in-law, Dr. David Livingstone, who he recruited as a missionary to Africa.
Influence from Personal Experience
Moffat had a conversion experience that warmed his heart while at the Methodist society
in Cheshire. This brought him into a relationship with Christ and put him on the path that would
eventually lead him to his decision for missions. This decision took place when he saw the
placard for the LMS event with Rev. Roby. William Walters describes this experience:
William Walters, Life and Labours of Robert Moffat, Missionary in South Africa (London:
Walter Scott, 1885), 70.
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But thoughts had been awakened in his mind that could no longer sleep, and he had
already started on a new career. The sight of the placard alone had, to use his own
expression, “made him another man;” and between the few hours of his coming to
Warrington… “an entire revolution had taken place in his views and prospects.” 6
The End of Moffat’s Work
In the second half of the 19th century the Moffat’s went through a rough stretch in their
personal life, and in 1862 they suffered through the deaths of their two oldest children. After
serving in Africa for fifty-three years, the Moffats retired. Robert preached at Kuruman for the
last time in 1870 and the couple returned to England shortly thereafter. Mary, struggling to cope
with the stress of returning to Europe, died a few months later in 1871. Robert Moffat lived out
the rest of his life touring the British Isles and promoting African missionary work.
Lasting Effects
Even after leaving the field, Robert Moffat’s influence was carried on throughout the
world in many ways. The first of these was realized by the positive influence he had on his
children and through the work that they carried out themselves. He and his wife, Mary, had seven
children who survived to adulthood; of these, five committed themselves to African missions.
The most notable of these would be his daughter, Mary, and her husband Dr. David Livingstone.
His efforts also lasted in the work he carried out in South Africa in the areas of Kuruman
and Namaqualand. The areas where he labored are, “surrounded by a number of native towns and
villages, where native teachers, trained in the Moffat Institute, are located, and native Churches
have been formed.” 7 Not only did he begin a great number of works and lead many to Christ, but
he opened the doorway for missions throughout the interior of southern Africa. His work remains
today as “a beacon shedding its glorious rays around, dispelling the darkness, and bringing the
heathen to the knowledge of the Saviour, Jesus Christ.” 8
Ibid., 25.
David J. Deane, Robert Moffat (Charleston, NC: Bibliobazaar, 2008), 137.
8
Ibid.
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6
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Anderson, Gerald H. Bibliographical Dictionary of Christian Missions. Grand
Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1999.
Barlow, Fred M. Profiles in Evangelism. Murfreesboro, TN: Sword of the Lord
Publishers, 2000.
Campbell, John and Robert Moffat. The Farewell Services of Robert Moffat, in
Edinburgh, Manchester and London. London: John Snow, 1843.
Chidester, David. Savage Systems. Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press,
1996.
Deane, David J. Robert Moffat. Charleston, NC: Bibliobazaar, 2008.
Dedering, Tilman. Hate the Old and Follow the New: Khoekhoe and Missionaries in
Early Nineteenth-Century Namibia. Stuttgart, Germany: Franz Steiner Verlag Stuttgard,
1997.
Elphick, Richard. Christianity in South Africa: A Political, Social & Cultural History.
Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1997.
Howes, David, Cross-Cultural Consumption. Oxford: Routeledge, 1996.
Tucker, Ruth A. From Jerusalem to Iran Jaya. Grand Rapids, MI: Academie Books,
1983.
Lovett, Richard. The History of the London Missionary Society, 1795-1895. London:
Oxford university Press Warehouse, 1899.
Marrat, Jabez. Robert Moffat, African Missionary Oxford: Woolmer, 1884.
Moffat, Robert. Missionary Labours and Scenes in Southern Africa. New York:
Robert Carter and Brothers, 1850.
Morrison, James Horne. The Missionary Heroes of Africa. New York: George H.
Doran Company, 1922.
7
Naylor, Wilson Samuel. Daybreak in the Dark Continent. Cincinnati: Jennings and
Graham, 1905.
Neill, Stephen. A History of Christian Missions. London: Penguin Books, 1986.
Walters, William. Life and Labours of Robert Moffat, Missionary in South Africa.
London: Walter Scott, 1885.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Anderson, Gerald H. Bibliographical Dictionary of Christian Missions. Grand
Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1999.
Barlow, Fred M. Profiles in Evangelism. Murfreesboro, TN: Sword of the Lord
Publishers, 2000.
Campbell, John and Robert Moffat. The Farewell Services of Robert Moffat, in
Edinburgh, Manchester and London. London: John Snow, 1843.
Chidester, David. Savage Systems. Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press,
1996.
Deane, David J. Robert Moffat. Charleston, NC: Bibliobazaar, 2008.
Dedering, Tilman. Hate the Old and Follow the New: Khoekhoe and Missionaries in
Early Nineteenth-Century Namibia. Stuttgart, Germany: Franz Steiner Verlag Stuttgard,
1997.
Elphick, Richard. Christianity in South Africa: A Political, Social & Cultural History.
Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1997.
Howes, David, Cross-Cultural Consumption. Oxford: Routeledge, 1996.
Tucker, Ruth A. From Jerusalem to Iran Jaya. Grand Rapids, MI: Academie Books,
1983.
Lovett, Richard. The History of the London Missionary Society, 1795-1895. London:
Oxford university Press Warehouse, 1899.
Marrat, Jabez. Robert Moffat, African Missionary Oxford: Woolmer, 1884.
Moffat, Robert. Missionary Labours and Scenes in Southern Africa. New York:
Robert Carter and Brothers, 1850.
Morrison, James Horne. The Missionary Heroes of Africa. New York: George H.
Doran Company, 1922.
6
7
Naylor, Wilson Samuel. Daybreak in the Dark Continent. Cincinnati: Jennings and
Graham, 1905.
Neill, Stephen. A History of Christian Missions. London: Penguin Books, 1986.
Walters, William. Life and Labours of Robert Moffat, Missionary in South Africa.
London: Walter Scott, 1885.