In the two millennia of Christian history, as well as the roughly 500 years of Protestant history, few preachers have had as large of an impact on the preaching profession as Charles Spurgeon. Sometimes referred to as "the Prince of Preachers", a copy of Spurgeon's sermons is on the shelf in most every pastor's study, particularly of Baptists.
One aspect of Spurgeon's life, if there are any left, that has gone unexamined is his marital life. While there have been biographies of both Spurgeon and his wife (Susannah) for over a century, their relationship in particular seems to have gone unexamined. Dr. Ray Rhodes has followed up his previous work on Susannah (Susie) with his 2021 book Yours, til Heaven. Rather than being biographical in nature, this book lets the reader become a fly on the wall of the Spurgeon estate, viewing the relationship of perhaps the greatest preacher of the 19th Century.
To begin, the book opens with an initiatory remark towards the odd formatting that has been chosen. While the book is not intended to be biographical, as it tells of a relationship, it is in a way a form of biography - simply for two people at the same time. Yet, Dr. Rhodes chooses to arrange the chapters of the book topically rather than chronologically, which necessitates that at the beginning of the book he give a series of events in a timeline so that the reader can put the rest of the book in its order as they read. It is a deconstructed story if ever there was one.
God himself united our hearts in indissoluble bonds of true affection and gave us to each other forever.
The first chapter is dedicated to developing a background of Charles and Susannah, highlighting the atmospheres that they were raised in as opposed to one another. Despite their great differences, they do seem to be a couple that melds well with one another as servants of God. Looking back, having completed the book, it would have been a very smart touch to note that at the end of the book (after the bibliography and epilogue) there is a collection of photographs, some very early photos of the couple - including some with Spurgeon absent his trademark beard! These could have been better incorporated into the book, but they truly should have been mentioned at the least - though they are not. They are a wonderful addition that Rhodes himself labored to add, and neglected to tell the reader of.
The rest of the book tells of their 30+ year marriage and co-work in the service of God. There is something that manifests itself throughout the book that does not show in the early chapters as much as the later ones. If someone is looking to read a book that makes them have a higher view of Charles Spurgeon, this is not the book to read. It is clear that Rhodes is a big fan of Spurgeon, but the information put forward is simply not conducive to admiration. While Spurgeon is attributed as having believed that "neglecting family worship" was "an evil", the book as a whole gives a view of him wherein such neglect is a regular practice. In fact, one quote from the same page says that he would have rather missed a meal than a time of prayer, but that is not at all the image that is portrayed of the preacher. Rhodes notes that many of Spurgeon's health problems were in no small part contributed to by the fact that he was at least 300 pounds, and although the book is supposed to follow the relationship of Charles and Susie (as she is called), the majority of the book depicts them as being apart most of Charles' life. It certainly seems that he missed more days of worship with his wife than meals.
In one subsection entitled "Susie's Loving Sacrifices" the story is told of an October 1875 preaching engagement wherein Spurgeon "left behind him in London a dearly-loved but greatly-suffering wife" whose "condition was not eminently critical" lying on a dying bed. Her condition worsened, and many thought she would die. Yet, Spurgeon did not so much as go home - continuing to preach at his engagement before continuing home to find that by the grace of God, his wife had not died while he was out. Rhodes admits, "it is fair to think that Charles should have returned home... from our side of history, it is hard to imagine a scenario where a loving husband would not move heaven and earth to get to his dying wife." He then goes on, however, to say, "we can use it to think through what our responses should be if found ourselves in a similar situation." This leads the reader to think that Rhodes agrees that Charles should have gone home, but the problem is that the book attempts to put off as though these two were the perfect Christian couple when Spurgeon is obviously a deeply flawed husband.
It was challenging for Susie to catch a moment alone with Charles - he had such little margin in his calendar... When Charles was in proximity to Susie, he was often so singularly focused on his work that he could pay her but little attention.
Over and over throughout the book we have notes like that given above. Charles spent most of his time in his work, preaching and traveling - and there can be no mistake made about it, although the author would try to disguise it such, much of Charles' work came with a great bit of pleasure. Who could avoid finding pleasure when "working" in Paris, Rome, Pompeii, or his private villa on the coast of France where he would regularly spend three or four months out of the year away from his wife? I have to say, as I read this book I came away chapter after chapter with the same thought, "Poor Susannah."
One chapter tries to make Charles out to be a better husband than facts would allow. Charles continually struggled with depression and frequently poor health due to battles with gout that occasionally crippled him. One such occasion left Charles in the care of his loving wife, who tended to his every need, as Rhodes says, "dabbing the tears from his eyes." However, when Susannah was left unable to care for herself, the author writes, "Charles saw to it that she was taken care of" by the servants that they employed.
Never shall I cease to bless God for His tender mercy in permitting me to be with my beloved, and to minister to his happiness and comfort during these three blessed months. How full of joy they were to us both!
In the final days of Charles' life, Susie accompanied him down to his private villa on the coast of France where he avoided the inhospitable English winters alone. Previously, it was said that she could never come because she was incapable of travelling, but somehow she managed it here. I truly hate to speak so lowly of such a truly faithful preacher and adamant defender of the Christian faith, but the portrayal of Spurgeon "the husband" is so piteous in this book, that it makes one wonder if he loved his wife at all. Her love for him is undeniable, and is shown through every act of her life, both in his presence and away from it. The same cannot be said of him.
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