# George Morling

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'''George Henry Morling''' {{post-nom|AUS|OBE}} (21 Nov 1891 – 8 April 1974<ref name=Rogers>{{cite journal|last=Rogers |first=E. R. |title=MORLING, George Henry (1891-1974) |journal=Australian Dictionary of Evangelical Biography |year=2004 |url=http://webjournals.alphacrucis.edu.au/journals/adeb/m_/morling-george-henry-1891-1974/ |accessdate=6 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110902040824/http://webjournals.alphacrucis.edu.au/journals/adeb/m_/morling-george-henry-1891-1974/ |archivedate=2 September 2011 }}</ref>) was an Australian Baptist minister who was Principal of the [NSW Baptist College](/source/Morling_College) (which was later named in his honour) from 1921 to 1960.<ref name=about>{{cite web|title=About Morling|url=http://www.morling.nsw.edu.au/morling_college/about_morling/|publisher=Morling College|accessdate=7 April 2011|archive-date=7 April 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110407074944/http://morling.nsw.edu.au/morling_college/about_morling/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Morling also served as President General of the [Baptist Union of Australia](/source/Baptist_Union_of_Australia) from 1962 to 1964.<ref name=Rogers />

==Early life and education==
Morling was born in [Sydney](/source/Sydney) on 21 November 1891, the third child of Annie Hillman and Charles A. Morling. His father had been refused entry to [Charles Spurgeon](/source/Charles_Spurgeon)'s [Pastor's College](/source/Spurgeon's_College) because he was "[consumptive](/source/Consumption_(disease))" and come to Australia to recover.<ref name=Rogers/> Morling was baptised and joined [Ashfield](/source/Ashfield%2C_New_South_Wales) Baptist Church at age 17, before attending [Sydney University](/source/Sydney_University) where he graduated with a BA in 1913.<ref name=Rogers/> He applied to be trained as a Baptist minister and was sent to the [Victorian Baptist College](/source/Whitley_College) in 1915, before returning to Sydney the following year as one of the first batch of students at the new [Baptist College](/source/Morling_College) there.<ref name=Rogers/>

Morling completed an MA at Sydney University in 1925.<ref name=Rogers/>

==Career==
Morling had a brief stint in the country before taking up a pastorate in the city in 1919.<ref name=Rogers/> He became a visiting lecturer at the Baptist College around the same time, and was appointed acting principal in 1922 after the abrupt resignation of Alexander Gordon.<ref name=CH>{{cite web|url=https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/it-happened-today/4/8|title=George Morling, Beloved Principal|publisher=Christian History Institute}}</ref> Despite critics saying he was too young, he was appointed principal the following year.<ref name=Rogers/><ref name=CH/> He was appointed an honorary lecturer in Church History at Sydney University in 1938 and chairman of [Inter Varsity Fellowship](/source/Inter_Varsity_Fellowship) Australia in 1947.<ref name=Rogers/> He published a book on Christian spirituality called ''The Quest for Serenity'' in 1952.<ref name=CH/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/1045284|title=The Quest for Serenity|publisher=National Library of Australia}}</ref>

Morling retired as Principal of the College in 1960, and served as Vice President of the Baptist Union of NSW from 1960 to 1962 and then President General of the [Baptist Union of Australia](/source/Baptist_Union_of_Australia) from 1962 to 1964.<ref name=Rogers/> He was appointed an [OBE](/source/OBE) in the [1963 New Year Honours](/source/1963_New_Year_Honours) for "services to religion".<ref name=Rogers/>

==Personal life==
Morling married Gladys Rees on 28 April 1917.<ref name=Rogers/> He suffered from chronic ill health.<ref name=Rogers/>

==Death and legacy==
In early 1974, Morling developed [thrombosis](/source/thrombosis) in his left leg, eventually leading to its [amputation](/source/amputation). His health continued to decline and he died on 8 April 1974.<ref name=CH/>

[Rowland Croucher](/source/Rowland_Croucher) described Morling as one of the four most admired [Australian](/source/Australia) [Baptists](/source/Baptists), alongside [Geoffrey Blackburn](/source/Geoffrey_Blackburn), [F. W. Boreham](/source/F._W._Boreham), and [Noel Vose](/source/Noel_Vose).<ref name="jmm">[Rowland Croucher](/source/Rowland_Croucher), "[http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/2169.htm Review: Geoffrey Blackburn, ''Beyond Imagining''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070505022243/http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/2169.htm |date=5 May 2007 }}"</ref> In 1985, the NSW Baptist College was renamed [Morling College](/source/Morling_College) in his honour.<ref name=about /> A biography of Morling, sub-titled ''Our Beloved Principal'' was published in 2014.<ref name=beloved>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HLPGBgAAQBAJ|first=E. Ron|last=Rogers|title=George Henry Morling 'Our Beloved Principal'|publisher=Lulu.com|year=2014|isbn=9780987608413}}</ref>

== References ==
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Morling, George}}
Category:20th-century Australian Baptist ministers
Category:1891 births
Category:1974 deaths
Category:Seminary presidents
Category:University of Sydney alumni
Category:Officers_of_the_Order_of_the_British_Empire

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [George Morling](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Morling) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Morling?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.