The Early Methodists
Wesleyscholar provides source materials to facilitate research on the Wesleys and early Methodism. This page offers writings from early Methodist theologians and leaders of the 18th century. The year posted represents the year of publication. There are several links to websites, including Southern Methodist University’s free online resources on bible, history, theology, and Methodism. The New Room at Bristol is the oldest Methodist preaching house. The website offers plenty of pictures. The Oxford Centre for Methodism also offers resource materials.
New materials are being added on a regular basis. To receive periodic updates on upcoming articles and new materials added to the site, sign up for the wesleyscholar newsletter.
SMU Resources on Methodism, etc.
Early Methodist Conversion
In 1739 Charles Wesley began to collect testimonies of those converted under his and John’s ministries. These narratives are part of a larger collection known as the Early Methodist Volume, which is housed at John Rylands Library in Manchester, UK. In total there are 64 conversion testimonies with most of them dated from 1738 through the 1740s. The stories recorded in this collection are fascinating to read. They reveal so much about the religious climate of the 18th century and the spiritual hunger these people felt and what conversion meant to them personally. The collection of testimonies here attached was transcribed by Tom Albin.
Early Methodist Conversion Accounts
To learn more about conversion in early evangelicalism, watch the following podcast:
Podcast: John Wesley and Aldersgate – What Happened?
The Lives of the Early Methodist Preachers
John Wesley included short autobiographies and conversion narratives of his Methodist preachers in the Arminian Magazine, which he began to publish in 1778. Thomas Jackson later took these bios and published them in a six volume set. These testimonies offer insights into the religious milieu of early Methodism:
Lives of Early Methodist Preachers vol 1 1865
Lives of Early Methodist Preachers vol 2 1837
Lives of Early Methodist Preachers vol 3 1872
Lives of Early Methodist Preachers vol 4 1872
Lives of Early Methodist Preachers vol 5 1873
Lives of Early Methodist Preachers vol 6 1873
Charles Atmore and J.B. Wakeley also published short sketches of early Methodists:
The Methodist Memorial 1801
Heroes of Methodism 1857
Luke Tyerman
Tyerman’s biographies set the standard for 19th century scholarship on early Methodism and remain valuable to our day:
Life of Samuel Wesley, Sr 1866
Life of J. Wesley Vol I 1870
Life of J. Wesley Vol II 1870
Life of J. Wesley Vol III 1871
The Oxford Methodists 1873
Life of G. Whitefield Vol I 1877
Life of G. Whitefield Vol II 1877
JWs Designated Successor – J. Fletcher 1882
Early Methodist Women
Historians have long recognized the important role that women played in early Methodism. Paul Chilcote states that “there is no question that women helped make the Wesleyan revival one of the most dynamic Christian movements in the history of Protestantism.” He adds, “The vitality and continuing significance of Methodism is due, in large measure, to their presence and influence and to the depth of their spirituality.” A full list of the women who left an indelible mark on early Methodism cannot be made here, but include the likes of Susanna Wesley (d. 1742), Mary Fletcher (Bosanquet) (d. 1815), Elizabeth Ritchie (d. 1836), Sarah Crosby (d. 1794), Sarah Ryan (d. 1768), Hester Ann Rogers (d. 1794), Hannah Ball (d. 1792), and Jane Cooper (d. 1762). But there were many others. They served as lay preachers, small group leaders, prayer warriors, and other capacities. They also produced many works. Below is a sample:
Conversion Account of Hannah Richardson 1748
Experience & Letters of Hester Rogers 1841
Extract Journal of Elizabeth Harper 1796
Letters by Jane Cooper 3rd ed 1778
Letters of Agnes Bulmer 1842
Letters of Mrs Lefevre 1792
Life of Barbara Heck 1895
Memoirs of Jane Pallister 1834
Memoirs of Elizabeth Mortimer (Ritchie) 1836
Memoirs of Hannah Ball 1796
Memoirs of Mary Tatham 1838
Poems of Phillis Wheatley 1909
Bosanquet Jesus Altogether Lovely 1st ed 1766
Bosanquet Jesus Altogether Lovely 2nd ed 1766
Brunton Discipline A Novel 1837
Here are 19th century histories on early Methodist women:
Buoy Representative Women of Methodism 1893
Keeling Eminent Methodist Women 1889
Stevens Women of Methodism 1866
Winthrow Worthies of Early Methodism 1878
William Grimshaw 1708-1763
Grimshaw was an Anglican clergyman and experienced evangelical conversion in 1742, the year he began his curacy at Haworth in Yorkshire. A gifted preacher, he did not meet the Wesleys until 1746. By 1747 he was evangelizing outside his parish boundaries and in 1750 John Wesley designated Grimshaw as next in authority to the Wesley brothers. In 1749 Grimshaw published a response to a sermon that attacked the Methodists. John Newton later published Grimshaw’s memiors in six letters:
Newton Memoirs of W Grimshaw 1832
Answer to a Sermon Against Methodists 1749
Walter Sellon 1715-1792
Sellon was the first classics master at the Methodist Kingwood school in Bristol and was later ordained in the Church of England. He served as curate in Smisby and Breedon on the Hill after his ordination and was active in the Methodist movement. Sellon was a gifted preacher with a successful ministry and was known for his intellectual abilities. As a personal friend of John Wesley and John Fletcher, Sellon came to Wesley’s aide by responding to the Calvinism of August Toplady (see the Minutes Controversy page). The first was The Doctrine of General Redemption Considered and Arguments Against It Answered in 1769 and the second one was The Church of England Vindicated from the Charge of Absolute Predestination in 1771.
Sermon on 1 Peter 4:14 1758
Doctrine of General Redemption Considered 1769/1807
Church of England Vindicated from Absolute Predestination 1771
Joseph Benson 1749-1821
Benson was an influential early Methodist leader, preacher, and author in the last quarter of the 18th century and first quarter of the 19th century. He served as President of the Methodist Conference in 1798 and 1810, and editor of the Methodist Magazine. He published numerous writings including a commentary on the entire bible. Given the task of publishing John Fletcher’s response to the Unitarian Joseph Priestley, Benson was one of the first early Methodists to publish an extended work on Christology and the doctrine of the Trinity:
Sermons on Sanctification 1782
Sermons on Second Coming 1787
Sermons on Gospel of Christ 1787
Sermon on Death of Wesley 1791
Sermons on Genuine Christianity 1802
Sermon for Opening Methodist Chapel 1812
Sermons Various Subjects 1814
Sermon Plans vol 1 1824
Sermon on Confirmation 1835
Defense of Methodists 1791
Apology for Methodists 1801
Inspector of Methodism Inspected 1802
Scriptural Essay Proof of Immortal Soul 1805
Benson Life of Fletcher 1817
Treffry Memoirs of Benson 1842
Bible Commentary OT vol 1 Gen-Num 1825
Bible Commentary OT vol 1 Deut-2 Sam 1825
Bible Commentary OT vol 2 1 Kings-Job 34 1846
Bible Commentary OT vol 2 Job 35-Prov 1846
Bible Commentary OT vol 3 Eccl-Jer 1846
Bible Commentary OT vol 3 Ezek-Mal 1846
Bible Commentary NT vol 1 Matt-LK 1846
Bible Commentary NT vol 1 John-Acts 1846
Bible Commentary NT vol 2 Rom-1 Thess 1847
Bible Commentary NT vol 2 2 Thess-Rev 1847
Early Methodist Christology
See article Early Methodist Christology
In late 1782, Unitarian minister and famous scientist Joseph Priestley – discoverer of oxygen and other gases – published a broadside against the Christian doctrines of the Trinity and Christ’s deity. The work was titled History of the Corruptions of Christianity and immediately gained widespread attention. In it Priestley argued that Christianity was originally a Jewish-Unitarian movement and the doctrine of Christ’s deity was a later innovation. Priestley championed the idea that Jesus Christ was a “mere man.” His work was critically assessed by Anglican Bishop Samuel Horsley in the summer of 1783. The debate between the two men went on for several years and after their deaths supporters claimed victory for both sides. In 1783 John Fletcher decided to write a full response to Priestley but unexpectedly died in August, 1785, before the work was finished. With the support of John Wesley, the papers were turned over by Mrs. Fletcher to Joseph Benson to prepare for publication. This confirms the importance that Wesley believed in a scholarly response to Priestley’s arguments. The finished work was in two parts, with Benson and Fletcher authoring different chapters in each work. The first was Vindication of the Catholic Faith (pub. 1788, 1790) and the second was Socinianism Unscriptural (pub. 1791). These two volumes represent the first full exposition on Methodist Christology and the doctrine of the Trinity by Methodist theologians. The first volume is a rational defense of the doctrine of Christ’s two natures – divine and human – in one person; the second a vindication of that doctrine by the biblical witness. The set is found in volume three of Fletcher’s Works, pp. 377-619. Here they are presented in the format of a separate tract, with Priestly and Horsley’s writings included:
Benson & Fletcher Vindication Catholic Faith & Christ’s Divinity 1788, 1790, 1791
Benson Remarks on Priestley’s Materialism 1788
Priestley History of Corruptions of Christianity vol 1 1782
Priestley History of Corruptions of Christianity vol 2 2nd ed 1783
Priestley Letters Controversy with Horsley 1815
Horsley Response to Priestley 1786
Horsley Tracts Against Priestley 1821
John William Fletcher 1729-1785
Fletcher was an Anglican priest. Educated at the University of Geneva, Fletcher became a prominent Methodist apologist and theologian during the Minutes Controversy with Calvinists in the 1770s (see Minutes Controversy page). His Checks to Antinomianism are an important source on early Methodist soteriology and served as the primary response to Calvinism in the 18th and 19th centuries. Besides his Checks and other miscellaneous writings, Fletcher stepped into politics when he came to the defense of John Wesley and his Calm Address to the American Colonies in 1775 (see John Wesley page). Fletcher was widely respected for his Christlike demeanor and character. He served as vicar of Madeley and was a fervent supporter of the Evangelical Revival and Methodism:
First Check to Antinomianism 1771
Second Check to Antinomianism 1771
Third Check to Antinomianism 1772
Fourth Check to Antinomianism 1772
Fourth Check to Antinomianism 4th ed 1790
Fifth Check to Antinomianism Part One 1774
Fifth Check to Antinomianism Part Two 1774
Fifth Check to Antinomianism Part Two 2nd ed 1774
Equal Check 1774
Equal Check 3rd ed 1795
Equal Check Scripture Scales 1st Pt 2nd ed 1775
Equal Check Scripture Scales 2nd Pt 1775
Last Check to Antinomianism (Ch. Perfection) 1775
Fictitious & Genuine Creed 1775
Answer to Toplady’s Vindication of Decrees 1788 (orig. 1775)
Answer to Toplady’s Vindication of Decrees 1797
Bible Arminianism & Bible Calvinism 1777
Letters on the Spiritual Manifestation of Christ 1767 reprint
Portrait of Saint Paul 1804
Christian Perfection 1855
Vindication of Catholic Faith 1790
Posthumous Pieces (Letters) 1791
The New Birth 3rd Ed 1805
Letters of J Fletcher 1849
Vindication of Wesley’s Calm Address 1776
American Patriotism Further Confronted 1776
Works of J Fletcher Vol 1 1833
Works of J Fletcher vol 2 1833
Works of J Fletcher Vol 3 1833
Works of J Fletcher Vol 4 1833
JW Short Account of the Life of Fletcher 1841 ed
Tyerman Wesleys Designated Successor-Fletcher 1882
Thomas Olivers 1725-1799
Olivers was a Welsh Methodist preacher and hymn writer. He translated the Hebrew hymn The God of Abraham Praise after hearing it chanted in the Great Synagogue of London. He played a role in the Minutes Controversy of the 1770s and later wrote a refutation of the Calvinist doctrine of eternal security.
Letter to Mr Toplady 1770
Letter to Toplady 1771
Letter to Mr Toplady 1771
Scourge to Calumny 1774
Full Refutation Unconditional Perseverance 1816 1790
Thomas Coke 1747-1814
Coke was educated at Oxford and earned his doctorate in 1775. Like the Wesleys, he was an ordained minister in the Church of England. Coke soon joined the Methodist ranks and became its first bishop in 1784. He served as Wesley’s assistant in the 1780s and was instrumental in the formation of the Deed of Declaration, which made the Methodist Conference (Legal 100) the authoritative body in early Methodism. Coke is recognized as the father of Methodist missions with his work in the West Indies. A capable preacher, his sermon on the deity of Christ was widely circulated in response to the rise of Unitarianism in the last quarter of the 18th century:
Extract of Coke’s Journals 1816
Life of Rev Thomas Coke by Read 1815
Life of Rev Thomas Coke by Drew 1817
Account of Rise & Progress of Missions 1804
History of West Indies vol 1 1808
History of West Indies vol 2 1810
History of West Indies vol 3 1811
Doctrine Discipline Methodist 10th ed 1798
Catechism for Children 1807
Series Letters to Methodist Connection 1810
Letters of John Wesley & Thomas Coke 2nd ed 1844
Poem – Life of Christ vol. 1 ed. by Coke 1809
Sermon Upon Education 1774
Sermon Godhead of Christ 1785
Sermon Death of Wesley 1791
Sermon Funeral Rogers 1795
OT Commentary Joshua-Job vol 1 1801
OT Commentary Joshua-Job vol 2 1801
OT Commentary Psalms – Isaiah vol 1 1802
OT Commentary Psalms – Isaiah vol 2 1802
OT Commentary Jeremiah – Malachi vol 1 1803
OT Commentary Jeremiah – Malachi vol 2 1803
NT Commentary Introduction & Matthew 1803
NT Commentary Mark & Luke 1803
NT Commentary John 1803
NT Commentary Acts 1803
NT Commentary Romans – 2 Corinthians 1803
NT Commentary Galatians – Hebrews 1803
NT Commentary James – Revelation & Appendix 1803
Annual American Conference Minutes
The following volume contains the minutes for the annual conferences in the Methodist Episcopal Church from 1773 to 1813:
American Conference Minutes 1813
Francis Asbury 1745-1816
Asbury is a household name in American Methodism. As one of the first two bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Asbury came to American in the early 1770s and spent the next four decades traveling on horseback and by carriage proclaiming the gospel to those living on the frontier and guiding the young denomination in its formative years:
Asbury Journal vol 1 1821
Asbury Journal vol 2 1821
Asbury Journal vol 3 1821
Samuel Bradburn 1751-1816
Bradburn was a Methodist preacher and remembered as a very gifted speaker. It was said that he was able to sway and fascinate vast masses of the people with his oratory. He was an associate of John Wesley and a follower of John Fletcher. He served as President of the Methodist Conference in 1799:
Bradburn’s Memoirs 1816
Bradburn Letter to Methodists on Slavery 4th ed 1792
Letter to Bradburn 1796
Blanshard Life of Samuel Bradburn 1870
Adam Clarke 1762-1832
Clarke was a Methodist theologian and a biblical scholar. He also served as president of the Methodist Conference in 1806-07. His critical and exegetical commentaries on the Bible need no introduction, for they remain popular even to this day. They took 40 years to produce, and reflect evangelical biblical scholarship in the early 19th century. He faithfully taught Methodist doctrine and believed the Bible to be a complete revelation of God’s will and nature. Clarke endorsed controversial views on Christ’s eternal sonship. He affirmed Christ’s full divinity yet held the title of “Son” proper belongs to his incarnation. His views brought a sharp reaction from Methodists and even from those outside of the Wesleyan tradition. Included below is a sample of writings, both in support and in opposition to Clarke’s views:
Commentary OT Gen-Esther Part I 1834
Commentary OT Gen-Esther Part II 1834
Commentary OT Gen-Esther Part III 1834
Commentary OT Gen-Esther Part IV 1834
Commentary OT Writings Part I 1836
Commentary OT Writings Part II 1836
Commentary OT Writings Part III 1836
Commentary OT Prophets Part I 1836
Commentary OT Prophets Part II 1836
Commentary OT Prophets Part III 1836
Commentary NT Gospels-Acts Part I 1832
Commentary NT Gospels-Acts Part II 1832
Commentary NT Gospels-Acts Part III 1832
Commentary NT Romans-Revelation Part I 1836
Commentary NT Romans-Revelation Part II 1836
Commentary NT Romans-Revelation Part III 1836
Being & Attributes of God vol 1 3rd ed 1830
Being & Attributes of God vol 2 3rd ed 1831
Being & Attributes of God vol 3 3rd ed 1831
Christian Theology 1835
Gospels Harmonized with Notes 1836
Memoirs of the Wesley Family 1848
Letter to a Preacher & Tract on Communion 1868
Etheridge Life of Adam Clarke 1858
Life of Adam Clarke & Sonship Controversy 1834
Support of Clarke’s views:
Exley Vindication of Adam Clarke 1817
Exley Reply to Mr Watson’s Remarks 1818
Opposition to Clarke’s views:
R Watson Remarks on Eternal Sonship 1818
Martin Doctrine of Christ’s Eternal Sonship 1821
Scott Dissertation on Christ’s Eternal Sonship 1828
Letter to Clarke on Christ’s Sonship 1830
Beauchamp Letters on Christ’s Eternal Sonship 1849
Thomas Maxfield d. 1784
Maxfield has a checkered history in early Methodism. Converted under John Wesley’s preaching in May 1739, by 1742 he served as one of the first lay preachers in Methodism. John Wesley supported Maxfield’s ordination after his service in the military. But by the early 1760s Maxfield was supporting George Bell’s eschatological perfectionism and the concept of an imputed holiness. In response Wesley published the tract A Blow at the Root. A schism developed in which Maxfield left with a couple hundred people. He soon became the pastor of a large congregation in Snowsfield. 1778 Maxfield published a pamphlet against the Wesleys in which John responded with A Letter to the Rev. Thomas Maxfield, occasioned by a late Publication. Attempts were made to reconcile and reunite but the reunion did not happen. Maxfield published several works, mostly testimonials, but included an Advent sermon:
Christ the Great Gift of God 1769
Life & Death of William Davies 1776
A Blow at the Root 1763
JW’s Letter to Maxfield 1778
The Oxford Methodists
Oxford Methodism began in 1729 with Charles Wesley meeting with Robert Kirkham and William Morgan. Soon John Wesley joined the group and mentored the group in a lifestyle of religious piety and observance. This lifestyle of “living by rule and method” became their distinctive approach (Heitzenrater, Mirror & Memory, 69). It involved study, prayer, religious conversation, self-denial, fasting, early rising, the disciplined use of time by keeping a diary, regular partaking of the Sacrament, setting firm resolutions, and participation in a variety of charitable ministries. They studied the Greek New Testament, the classics, the church fathers, and primitive Christian worship. As high churchmen of the Anglican Church, they drank deep into the holy living tradition and its authors.
In 1730 the group began to gain some notoriety around Oxford. Soon others began to join, including John Boyce, William Hayward, John Gambold, Westley Hall, Matthew Salmon, Benjamin Ingham, James Hervey, and John Clayton. Over time the various members scattered and became involved in different strands of evangelicalism and of the Anglican Church. Their writings offer a window into the religious landscape of early Methodism and the religious culture of the 18th century.
The Oxford Methodists
While Oxford Methodism never became a numerically large group, it did raise up several influential leaders. Everyone knows of the Wesleys and Whitefield, but fewer people know much about the other Oxford Methodists who became influential and effective ministers of the Gospel, like Clayton, Ingham, Gambold, Hervey, and Broughton. In 1873 the premiere biographer of early Methodism at the time, Luke Tyerman, published a bio of these five men for the public to gain a fuller understanding of these men and their contribution to the church at large.
Tyerman The Oxford Methodists 1873
John Gambold 1711-1771
Gambold entered Christ Church, Oxford, in 1730 and became friends with Charles Wesley who introduced him to John. He was ordained in 1733 and became vicar of Stanton Harcourt in 1735. The following year he wrote an account of his time as an Oxford Methodist. This account is found in Tyerman’s The Oxford Methodists and is located below. In 1738 John Wesley introduced Gambold to Peter Bohler and the Moravians. Gambold eventually joined the Moravian Church in 1742 and was ordained bishop in their church.
The Oxford Methodists 1736
Christianity Tidings of Joy 1741
Reasonableness & Extent Religious Reverence 1756
Martyrdom of Ignatius, A Tragedy 1773
Works of John Gambold 1789
Works of John Gambold 2nd ed 1823
Benjamin Ingham 1712-1772
Ingham was a member of the Oxford Methodists and served alongside the Wesleys in Georgia in the mid-1730s. He also traveled with John Wesley to Herrnhut in the summer of 1738. Having experienced evangelical conversion in 1737, Ingham became an effective evangelist and established more societies than he could manage. So, in 1742 he turned them over to the Moravian Brethren and joined the movement, though he retained an affinity toward Methodist principles. Later in life he was drawn toward Sandemanianism. In 1763 he published a work explaining his understanding of the gospel and where he differed from the Wesleys and Moravians.
Discourse on Faith & Hope of Gospel 1763
James Hervey 1714-1758
Hervey was tutored by John Wesley at Oxford in the 1730s and a member of the Oxford Methodists. Though he was Anglican, he thoroughly embraced the Calvinist creed and sought to promote that viewpoint in his writings. He became a popular and respected author, with his works filling six volumes. In 1755 he published Theron and Aspasio which espoused a Calvinist viewpoint on imputed righteousness. He had Wesley review it and received several criticisms that apparently hurt Hervey’s feelings. The fallout led to Hervey responding in a series of letters, which were publish posthumously.
Hervey Whole Works vol 1
Hervey Whole Works vol 2
Hervey Whole Works vol 3
Hervey Whole Works vol 4
Hervey Whole Works vol 5
Hervey Whole Works vol 6
John Wesley’s replies:
Letter to James Hervey 1756
Sufficient Answer to ‘Letters to Author Theron & Aspasio’ 1757
More materials added on a regular basis. To receive periodic updates sign up for the newsletter.