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| All photos from WikiPedia "John Wesley" |
This month, we’ll take a look at a well-known figure in history and in Christendom—John Wesley. Born in 1703, he was the 15th child of Samuel Wesley (a rector) and Susanna Annesley Wesley, herself the 25th child of her parents. Sadly, only John and eight other siblings survived past infancy.
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| Samuel Wesley |
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| Susanna Annesley Wesley |
At the age of five, his family’s home caught on fire. All the family escaped except John, who was miraculously rescued by a neighbor standing on another’s shoulders. Later, Wesley referred to this event as being “plucked out of the fire”, a reference to Zechariah 3:2, and added the story to his “legend”, using it as evidence of his special destiny for extraordinary work.
John's rescue from their burning house
He was educated at home until the age of 17, when he entered Christ Church, Oxford, graduating in 1724 and staying on to study for his master’s degree. Ordained as a deacon in 1725 at the age of 21, he next was elected as a fellow and tutor of Lincoln College, Oxford. He returned hom after receiving his master’s degree on his father’s request to assist serving the surrounding community. Wesley returned to Oxford two years later.
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| Entry to Christ Church, Oxford |
During his absence, his brother Charles formed a group which became derisively known as the “Holy Club”, meant to set an example for prayer, study, and the pursuit of a devout Christian life. Because spirituality was of little interest in Oxford at that time, the group met with a negative reaction. It was around this time that John Wesley adopted a more complimentary name, “Methodist”.
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| John preaching to Native Americans |
In 1735, John and Charles sailed for Savannah, Georgia, in the American colonies, in response to a request from the governor to attend to the spiritual needs of that community. They arrived in February, 1736, meeting with resistance because of the attitude of the locals that these men were “high church”. Although their initial assignment was to serve as missionaries to the Native American people living in the area, they found a shortage of clergy to the white people, to whom they addressed most of their time and energy.
While later assessment of this ministry work concluded their efforts proved unfruitful when compared to John’s later successes, he gathered a group of devoted Christians, and attendance at Communion services increased.
A most significant accomplishment during this time was publication of Collection of Psalms and Hymn, the first hymnal published in America. It included five hymns translated from German.
He returned to England in December 1737, fleeing from legal proceedings hinging on a love affair that conflicted with his desire to serve God first.
While later assessment of this ministry work concluded their efforts proved unfruitful when compared to John’s later successes, he gathered a group of devoted Christians, and attendance at Communion services increased.
A most significant accomplishment during this time was publication of Collection of Psalms and Hymn, the first hymnal published in America. It included five hymns translated from German.
He returned to England in December 1737, fleeing from legal proceedings hinging on a love affair that conflicted with his desire to serve God first.
However, John struggled with depression at the notion of his failure to handle the matter well, and he became dissatisfied with his soundness to preach or lead. A Moravian minister, Peter Boehler, encouraged him to preach faith until he had it.
Still not convinced of his worthiness to minister to others, John attended a reading of Martin Luther’s preface to the Epistle of Romans, and his life—and mind—were changed. As he wrote: “…I felt my heart strangely warmed…I did trust in…Christ along for salvation…He had taken away my sins…”
Still not convinced of his worthiness to minister to others, John attended a reading of Martin Luther’s preface to the Epistle of Romans, and his life—and mind—were changed. As he wrote: “…I felt my heart strangely warmed…I did trust in…Christ along for salvation…He had taken away my sins…”
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| John preaching in City Chapel |
He later preached a sermon on the doctrine of personal salvation by faith, followed by another on God’s grace. This time is recognized as his “evangelical conversion”, celebrated on May 24th in Methodist churches.
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| John preaching on his father's grave |
Around this time, churches resisted Wesley’s notions and practices, and so he was forced to preach in fields, arenas, or wherever he could garner space. However, he felt uncomfortable, so accustomed was he to the formality and order of church buildings. He did recognize that he reached people who would never otherwise enter a church, so he forsook his discomfort, instead preaching wherever an assembly would gather.
Later in life, John Wesley supported the abolition of slavery, speaking out and writing against the trade. He wrote a tract, Thoughts Upon Slavery in 1774, and mentored William Wilberforce, another influencer in the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. A young African American, Richard Allen, converted to Christianity in 1777, later founding the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME) following the Methodist traditions.
John Wesley traveled widely, usually on horseback, preaching several times each day. Some biographers conjecture that he rode a quarter of a million miles, gave away a fortune, and preached more than 40,000 sermons. He formed societies, planted churches, approved preachers, helped the destitute and ill, built a machine to be used in the treatment of illness, supported orphanages and school, wrote books and tracts, and translated hymns from primarily German for use in English services.
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| A sample of John Wesley's shorthand |
In his personal life, he also attended music concerts, enjoying in particular Charles Avison. A believer in celibacy, he did marry a widow with four children in 1751. While this union was primarily unhappy, their separation came at his wife’s initiative. He never had children of his own.
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| John Wesley death mask |
He enjoyed good health all of his life, a fact he attributed to not eating meat or consuming alcohol. However, in 1790, at the age of 86, he noted that his health “suddenly” deteriorated, primarily in diminishing vision and lack of strength. He died March 2, 1791, at the age of 87, dying poor but leaving a church of 135,000 members; 541 preachers; 400 publications about theology, music, marriage, slavery, politics, physics, medicine, and prayer.
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| Electric device designed by John Wesley to aid in treatment of illness |
Question for readers: What would you like to be remembered for?
About Donna:
A hybrid author, Donna writes squeaky clean historical and contemporary suspense. She has been published more than 60 times in books; is a member of several writers' groups; facilitates a critique group; teaches writing classes; and judges in writing contests. She loves history and research, traveling extensively for both, and is an avid oil painter. She is taking all the information she’s learned along the way about the writing and publishing process, and is coaching committed writers eager to tell their story. Learn more at https://www.donnaschlachter.com/the-purpose-full-writer-coaching-programs Check out her coaching group on FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/604220861766651
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Resources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wesley
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