Effects of the American Revolution. 219 they were now about to enter upon an entirely new phase of existence.
The new Government wisely declined the responsibility of establishing a national religion: and hence the Anglican Church ceased to retain its peculiar privileges, and was placed on a level with all others. Its revenues, like those of the nonconforming churches generally, were limited to the voluntary contributions of its flocks. Such a position was a most unenviable one for the clergy ; and, with such uncertain prospects before them, the greater part judged it prudent to retire: their flight became, in fact, a general sawve-qui-peut. The fall of the Anglican
Church, notwithstanding its great name, was an event full of significance. In Virginia, before the revolution, it counted ninety-one pastors: of these, at the close of the war, there only remained twenty-eight, the rest having returned to England. In the other parts of the country, the Established Church had never been strong, and the march of events had led to its dissolution. The way, therefore, was open for a successor, and that successor must be whichever of the Churches might prove itself worthy of the post.
The crisis was one of the highest moment, and demanded heroic resolution.
Wesley understood the situation. If hitherto he had wished Transatlantic Methodism to retain the position of a parasitical plant, growing up under the doubtful protection of a mighty overshadowing oak, God Himself had abased the monarch of the forest, that the sapling might henceforth live a life of its own.
Wesley was not slow to perceive that the American Societies needed to be placed upon an independent basis.
For along time they too had demanded the administration of the sacraments by their own preachers : in many places the children were growing up without baptism, and the members of the Societies met without partaking of the Lord's
220 Organization of the American Methodist Church.
Supper. The demand became so urgent and was backed by arguments so powerful that there was considerable danger of a schism, if the wants of the people remained longer unsupplied. The Southern preachers, seeing that the question was not advancing toward a settlement, met together in the year 1779, and resolved that the three oldest of the brethren should lay hands upon the rest.
This was accordingly done, and for a year the Societies in those parts received the sacraments from the hands of their preachers. This bold step must have plunged American
Methodism into great confusion and led to a lamentable schism, had not Asbury, by a policy of conciliation, succeeded in effecting a compromise, which practically suspended the operation of this measure until Wesley had been consulted. :
The gravity of these indications could not be mistaken.
Wesley had to choose between two alternatives, either to sacrifice a work evidently destined for a great future, by making himself the obstinate champion of ecclesiastical prejudices, or to break loose from such prejudices altogether, and so secure the future development and prosperity of these new-born churches. As soon as the problem assumed this definite form, both his conscience and his reason concurred in his decision.. As to the steps which were to be adopted, he wished to avoid unnecessary haste; and, above all, he resolved to make advances first to the Anglican episcopate. Hence, he addressed two several letters to the Bishop of London, earnestly requesting ordination for one of his preachers, in order that he might visit the Societies for the purpose of administering the sacraments, and thus provide for the most pressing necessities of the case. 'I mourn," says he to the prelate, "for poor America, for the sheep scattered up and down therein,—part of them have no shepherds at all, particularly in the northern colonies; and the case of Preference for Episcopacy. 221 the rest is little better, for their own shepherds pity them not." The bishop having refused to grant him this request, Wesley felt that nothing more was to be expected from that quarter, and decided to cut the Gordian knot.
Strongly attached as he was to the Established Church, of which he ever considered himself a minister, it was natural that Wesley's sympathies should be in favour of Episcopacy. This preference did not blind him, however, to the shocking abuses which the Anglican hierarchy inherited from Roman Catholicism. His _ ecclesiastical prejudices fell one by one: the apostolical succession he saw to be a mere fable: Episcopacy itself lost much of its prestige when the study of antiquity discovered to him that the terms "bishop" and "elder" originally denoted the same office. These were not casual impressions, derived from the necessities of the passing moment : they were the legitimate fruits of his entire religious development.
Wehave seen how, forty years before, viz.,in 1746, hedeclared that, after a thorough examination of the subject, he had come to the conclusion that in the primitive Church
"bishops and presbyters were essentially one and the same order." This conviction he records a few years later in his Notes on the New Testament, where he declares that, in his opinion, the names of bishop and presbyter, or elder, were promiscuously used in the first ages.* In 1760, he states in a letter to a friend, that he does not share in "the error of those who hold that the episcopal order alone is valid." So far from believing in the Divine right of Episcopacy, he affirms, in 1756, that this system is nowhere " prescribed in Scripture," and sums up the whole subject by asserting his belief that neither Christ nor His Apostles prescribed any particular form of Church government.
* Note on Philippians i. 1.
222 Organization of the American Methodist Church.
These quotations, which might be easily multiplied, show that Wesley had at an early period manifested a spirit of independent thinking which was exceedingly rare in those days ; and that the organization of the Methodist
Church in America was not, as has been said, an error to be set down to the account of old age, but the natural result of his entire previous development. It was fully in accordance with this that he should write, in 1785, "I firmly believe, I am a Scriptural episcopos, as much as any man in England or in Europe. For the uninterrupted succession | know to be a fable which no man ever did or can prove."
Being free from all prejudice on these points, and possessed of clear convictions, he only delayed the emancipation of his Societies in obedience to the ruling principle of his ministerial course, viz., that of watching the openings of Providence before entering on any new path.
Such an opening now presented itself, and he obeyed, the signal to advance.
The task that lay before him was to organize his American Societies into a Church capable of self-government, and Wesley did not hesitate to choose the Episcopal form of administration, as better calculated than any other to maintain the unity and stability of the various portions of the work, a principle which he accounted of the highest importance. Fully convinced of his duty in this matter, and taking little thought as to the opposition he might arouse, he communicated his intentions to several friends ; and, although his brother Charles was too strongly wedded to his ecclesiastical prejudices to look with favour upon the scheme, he was pleased to find that Fletcher, gave it his hearty approbation. In February,
1784, he broached the subject to the man to whom: he wished to entrust the task of founding and organizing the Methodist Church in the 'United States. Dr. Coke was,
Mission of Dr. Coke. 223 indeed, the man best fitted to conduct this delicate business to a successful issue, uniting in himself all the qualities of an administrator as well as of a missionary.
Wesley reminded him of the exceptional position of the American Societies and of the dangers to which they would be exposed if left to themselves: he laid before him his plans for their organization into a Church, and asked whether he would consent to carry them into execution. If so, he felt called upon, as the general superintendent of the whole work, to lay hands on him and so delegate to him the power to organize the new
Church. He recalled the example of the ancient Church of Alexandria, in which the elders, on the death of a bishop, met for the purpose of laying hands on one of themselves, who was thus called to occupy the vacant office as a primus inter pares, first among equals.
Dr. Coke, who did not expect such a proposition, requested time to consider the subject. For two months he gave it his serious attention, and at the end of that time he communicated his decision to Wesley. He admitted the legitimacy of such a step, but thought it prudent to delay taking it a little longer.
The Conference that met at Leeds in July of the same year did not concur in this opinion, and warmly approved of the measures proposed by Wesley. Fletcher took an active part in the deliberations, and his advice exerted a decisive influence on the result. In view of the general unanimity of his brethren, Coke could hesitate no longer; and on the 2d of September, 1784, at Bristol,
Wesley, assisted by the Rev. James Creighton, solemnly laid hands upon him and set him apart to the office of Superintendent : these are the very terms employed in the document which Wesley delivered to him. He purposely avoided the term bishop, in order to show that the commission he had laid upon him had nothing
224 Organization of the American Methodist Church. in common with the pompous forms of the Anglican Episcopacy, and that the true type of this imposition of — hands was not to be sought in the Anglican hierarchy but in the Church of the primitive age.
Ata later period, the American Church did give this scriptural title to those who were in truth performing the duties of the office; and this course was perfectly justifiable. After laying hands on Coke, Wesley ordained two of his preachers, Vasey and Whatcoat, to accompany him, ag presbyters, to America.
Doubtless, from the Anglican point of view, such ordinations were mere niullities That of Coke, in particular, excited strong animadversion: Wesley, it was said, did not possess episcopal power, and therefore could not confer it. In strict canon law, that could not be disputed for a moment: and the clamours that arose were loud and strong. For our part, not sharing the prejudices of Anglicanism, we cannot espouse her quarrel. The sole blame that we should be disposed to attach to Wesley is that of having so long delayed to yield to the imperious necessities of the work. Let ecclesiastical formalism condemn Wesley: both conscience and common sense acquit him, On the 3d of November, 1784, Coke, accompanied by his two colleagues, reached America, and shortly after conferred episcopal ordination on Francis Asbury, whose talents and virtues had made him for many years the real leader of American Methodism. Toward the close of the year, a Conference was held at Baltimore, attended by sixty preachers, who then laid the foundations of the Methodist Kpiscopal Church. Neither these preachers nor Wesley himself could have had the least suspicion that the Church whose foundations they then laid, amid opposition and contradiction of every kind, was to become the largest and most influential of the Churches of the New
Ordinations at Home. 225
World. Its magnificent success jhas furnished a sufficient reply to the objections made to Wesley's line of action.
If Methodist Episcopacy cannot boast of having sprung from a so-called apostolical succession, its history abounds in proofs of the Divine approbation ; and while, in our days, Anglicanism has to contend with the combined evils of Rationalism and Ritualism, the Methodist Episcopal
Church increases and multiplies, proving by its rapid progress that the ecclesiastical system adopted by Wesley was best fitted to satisfy the wants of the American people and the exigencies of an essentially missionary work.
After what he had done for America, Wesley must have found it difficult to decline the same offices for his Societies at home. But he believed it to be his duty not to make too great haste: the circumstances were widely different, and he acted with the greatest cireumspection, wishing to be guided by the course of events.
The necessities of the work and the prospect of approaching death decided him, however, to take some steps in this direction : in 1786 he laid hands on six or seven preachers destined for Scotland and the West Indies. Three years later, in deference to the loudly-expressed wishes of the Societies in England, he ordained several more. Some twenty preachers in all thus received imposition of hands, it being a principle with him not to break with the existing order of things beyond what was strictly necessary. Methodism, however, had now taken an important step in advance of its former position: an enormous difficulty had been removed out of its path: the way was already open, and Wesley's successors had but to wait the hour when the Societies should arrive at that full and complete independence which was their undoubted right.
The later Conferences presided over by Wesley made farther advances in the same direction. In 1786, the rule against holding public services in church-hours was
226 Deed of Declaration. rescinded in the following cases, viz. wherever the clergy were notoriously wicked or dangerously heretical ; where there were not churches enough in the town to accommodate half the people ; and lastly, where there was no church within two or three miles. In 1788, the wishes of the Societies were still further acceded to by the decision that services might be held in church-hours except on Communion days, and that if a majority of the members desired it, the Liturgy might be used in the chapels on Sunday mornings.
The year 1784, which gave birth to the organization of the American Church, witnessed also the adoption of measures designed to secure the legal existence of Methodism after the death of its Founder. Up to this time, the deeds of the chapels had conveyed them to trustees, for the use of such preachers as might be appointed by Wesley, or, after his death, by the Conference. Several eminent lawyers were consulted as to the validity of these trusts, and they declared that they would be nullified by Wesley's death, inasmuch as the existence of the Conference was not recognized by the law, and it had no power to acquire or possess property. This was a serious difficulty, and one that threatened the future existence of the whole
Connexion. In order to remedy this, Wesley had a deed enrolled in the Court of Chancery, entitled a Deed of Declaration, which gave the Conference a legal existence, and conferred upon it the necessary powers.
According to this document, the legal Conference was to consist of one hundred preachers mentioned by name, who were to meet once a year, to fill up the gaps made in their ranks by death, and to appoint a president and secretary.
Various rules were laid down respecting the election of members of the Legal Hundred, and their principal business. That business included the admission of preachers on trial, and into "full connexion" with the Legalization of the Conference. 227
Conference, the expulsion of unworthy members, and the stationing of the preachers, whose stay in each Cireuit was not to exceed three years. The Deed also provided that the legal Conference should be at liberty to admit to their sessions any other preachers that might be in "full connexion." It also declared in what circumstances the Conference should be dissolved, viz, if at any time it should number less than forty members, or cease to meet
This settlement tended greatly to ensure the unity and perpetuity of the Connexion. Without such a fundamental bond the Societies would soon have lost the peculiar organization which constituted their strength, as for example the itinerancy, and would have become a heterogeneous assemblage of independent churches. On the other hand, it is to be regretted that with respect to some details of organization the Deed should have limited the action of the Conference, and so barred the introduction of such improvements as time might show to be needful. Of such drawbacks, doubtless, Wesley made little account: he saw the incontestable advantages which this arrangement afforded in reference to the cohesion of the Societies and the work of evangelization, and congratulated himself on the guarantee thus furnished that the work of his life should not terminate in inextricable confusion or total collapse.
In the joy of his heart he describes this Deed as "such a foundation as is likely to stand as long as the sun and moon endure."
WESLEY'S LAST LABOURS.—HIS DEATH.
On the first of January, 1790, Wesley wrote in his journal : "I am now an old man, decayed from head to foot. My eyes are dim; my right hand shakes much ; my mouth is hot and dry every morning; I have a lingering fever almost every day ; my motion is weak and slow.
However, blessed be God, I do not slack my labour: I can preach and write still" He did, in fact, pursue his ordinary labours to the end, notwithstanding the increasing infirmities of age.
London and its vicinity always received his special attention, and he still bestowed his best energies as a pastor and missionary upon this important field of labour.
His sermons, though no longer delivered with the startling vigour of former days, were always listened to by immense audiences with sympathy and profound respect. A few brief extracts from his journal will best portray these last scenes.
On the 3rd of January, he writes : "I suppose near two thousand met at the New Chapel to renew their covenant with God ; a scriptural means of grace which is now almost everywhere forgotten, except among the Methodists."
On the 14th of February: "I preached a sermon to the children at West-Street Chapel. They flocked together from every quarter ; and truly God was in the midst of them, applying those words, 'Come, ye little children; hearken unto Me, and I will teach you the fear of the Lord.'"
Last Journey to the North. 229
'On the 27th: "In the evening I had such a congregation at Snowfields, as has not been seen there for many years. Afterwards, I met the penitents for the last time.
They quite filled the room ; and God was in the midst of them."
On the 28th: "We have not had such a congregation at the New Chapel since the renewal of the covenant, nor such a blessing ; the hearts of the people were like melting wax. Most of them were in tears ; and I trust they will not soon forget the exhortation which was then given them.
In the afternoon, I preached at West-Street Chapel, on Eph. v. 1, 2. The chapel would not near contain the congregation. All that could squeeze in seemed much affected, and it was with difficulty I broke through and took chaise for Brentford, where I came before six o'clock.
The congregation here also was by far the largest I ever saw here, so that it seems our labour even here will not be in vain."
In the spring he commenced his last great missionary journey. Early in the year, his friends in London had sent a circular letter to all the Societies, announcing his intention to visit them, and indicating the route he was to take, and the places at which he was to preach, from Stroud to Aberdeen: it concludes in the following terms :
"We earnestly recommend that Mr. Wesley be remembered in prayer, especially at the next Quarterly Fast, that his strength may be sustained and even increased, if it be the will of God."
This journey occupied three whole months, and Wesley endured the extraordinary fatigue as courageously as ever.
A narrative so interesting claims more than a cursory glance.
At Bath, he addressed a congregation, " serious as death."
"Indeed," he adds, "the work of God seems to flourish here, deepening as well as widening." At Bristol, he 230 Wesley's Last Labours.
"found a people ready prepared for the Lord. The preachers are in earnest, the fruit of which plainly appears in the congregations." Among the Kingswood -colliers, who revered him as a father, his visits were always hailed with delight ; and now, he says, "'I preached to such a congregation as I have not seen there on a week-day for forty years, unless it was at a watch-night." At Stroud,
Painswick, Gloucester, Tewkesbury, and Stourport, the congregations were too large for the chapels, and multitudes went away, unable to obtain even standing room.
At Birmingham, we see him entering the district in which Methodism had had its greatest conflicts, and achieved some of its most brilliant victories. The Society in this town delighted him greatly. On the evening of his arrival, an immense congregation of people of all classes assembled to hear him. "The behaviour of the rich and poor is such as does honour to their profession : so decent, so serious, so devout, from the beginning to the end."
On the Sunday, he preached again at the ' new house," which he describes as 'admirably well constructed."
Hundreds of persons "could not get in." But he says, "1 think all who did, found that God was there."
Wednesbury, the scene of one of his most fearful persecutions, had now become one of the strongholds of Methodism. 'The work of God greatly revives. Business has exceedingly decreased, and most of our old friends have left the town. So much the more have the poor grown in grace, and laid up treasure in heaven. But we were at a great loss in the evening. I could not preach abroad after sunset, and the house would not near contain the people. However, as many as possibly could, squeezed in, and their labour was not in vain."
At Dudley, he preached in the "new house, one of the neatest in England. It was a profitable season, where two persons, they informed me, found peace with God."
The Midland Counties. 934
' At Madeley, he no longer found his excellent colleague Fletcher, now gone to his rest, but he found a living memorial of him in the state of the work, which still continued to increase. The rain "did not hinder the church from being throughly filled, and I believe all who had spiritual discernment perceived that it was filled with the presence of God." He adds,—two days after,—" I finished my sermon on the Wedding Garment, perhaps the last that I shall write. |My eyes are now waxed dim, my natural force is abated. However, while I can, I would fain do a little for God, before I drop into the dust."
After spending three days in the parish of his late friend, Wesley resumed his journey northward, with a Spirit even greater than his strength. At Newcastle-underLyme and at Burslem, regardless of the additional labour thus imposed upon him, he preached in' the open air. At Tunstall, he "preached in the new chapel, the most elegant," he says, "I have seen since I left Bath. My text was,
'Let us go on unto perfection ; and the people seemed to devour the word." At Congleton, the principal clergyman, . with the mayor and all the heads of the town, were present at his preaching. On Good Friday he reached Manchester, where he spent several days with his excellent friends.
On Easter Sunday he preached twice, without fatigue, and administered the Lord's Supper to sixteen hundred communicants. The following day, he tells us, "calling at Altringham, I was desired to speak a few words to the people in the new chapel; but almost as soon as I got thither, the house was filled, and soon after, more than filled. So I preached on | Peter i. 3; and many praised
God with joyful lips. About twelve I preached in the chapel at Northwich, to a large and very lively congregation, and in the evening met once more with our old affectionate friends at Chester. I have never seen this chapel more crowded than to-night ; but still it could not near contain
232 Wesley's Last Labours. the congregation." At Liverpool, his presence created quite as great a sensation as at Manchester. Wigan is no longer
"wicked Wigan," as it was "for many years proverbially called :" the "inhabitants in general have taken a softer mould." The Society at Bolton, one of the liveliest in England, "by patient continuance in well-doing, have turned scorn and hatred into general esteem and goodwill."
A note is here inserted in the printed copies of the journal, stating that "part of the manuscript having been lost, causes a chasm here." This chasm extends from April 10th to May 24th. An interesting part of his labours during this period we can fortunately supply from another source. On leaving Bolton he proceeded into Yorkshire, and, though he did not actually visit Halifax, he preached in the chapel at Bradshaw, on a Monday morning. The announcement having been made at Halifax the day preceding, a congregation more than sufficient to fill the chapel assembled at the hour of ten. But, owing to his increasing infirmities, Wesley was unable to reach the chapel till one o'clock, during which interval the congregation remained in the chapel with the greatest possible patience. When he arrived, the scene was truly affecting.
As the venerable saint, accompanied by Mr. Bradford and Mr. Thompson, ascended the pulpit stairs, the congregation, fully sensible that they were looking on one they should see no more in the flesh, burst into tears. Wesley himself wasaffected ; and the feelings of every one were afresh excited when they beheld him who had been "mighty in words" now requiring the aid of a friend to whisper in his ear the heads of his discourse. Such were his infirmities that he was obliged to be supported by the two ministers in the pulpit, and more than once his memory entirely failed him, so that their help was necessary to enable him to continue his discourse.*
Having traversed the northern counties, Wesley reached * Smith's History of Methodism, vol. i., p. 598.
Scotland. Newcastle-onTyne. 233
Scotland, where he preached in all the principal towns visited by his preachers. He was' generally very well received, and fully delivered his soul, employing his remaining strength in faithfully declaring the way of salvation to a people in whom religion seemed almost natural, but whose piety, to his view, was wanting in depth.
At Glasgow, by way of exception, "the congregation was miserably small, verifying what I had often heard before, that the Scots dearly love the Word of the Lord—on the Lord's day. If I live to come again, I will take care to spend only the Lord's day at Glasgow." More than once, he exceeded the limits of his strength: at Brechin, for instance, he "was so faint and ill" that he " had to shorten his discourse." 'The journals prove that, even at this advanced age, he was alive to the beauties of Scotch scenery, and to the grandeur of its mountains.
On his homeward journey, he spent a few days in Newcastle, at the Orphan House, his favourite retreat.
"Tn this, and Kingswood House," he says, "were I to do my own will, I should chose to spend the short remainder of my days. But it cannot be: this is not my rest." In this town, the theatre of such activity and such sufferings in former times, he was received with profound veneration : he preached several times, not only to adults, but to children, and his sermons and visits produced a deep impression upon the minds of the people ; the proof of which may be seen in the following account, preserved to us by one of his own preachers. The reminiscences of this last missionary journey are too precious to be omitted.
"He appears very feeble," says Charles Atmore, "and no wonder, he being nearly eighty-eight years of age. His sight has failed so much that he cannot see to give out the hymn ; yet his voice is strong, and his spirits remarkably lively. Surely this great and good man is the prodigy of the present age....
234 Wesley's Last Labours.
"Saturday, May 8th: Mr. Wesley accompanied a small party of us to North Shields, where he preached at noon an excellent sermon from Phil. iii. 7. It was indeed a time of refreshing from the presence of the Lord.
Lord's Day : Mr. W. Thompson occupied the pulpit this morning at nine o'clock, [and preached] from ' Casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you.' At 2 p.m.,
Mr. Wesley went to Byker, and addressed several thousands of people in the open air, from Matt. vii. 24, and at 5 p.m. at the Orphan House, from Eph. ii. 8. The house was much crowded, many hundreds returned, not being able to obtain an entrance.
"Mr. Wesley was highly honoured in his ministry at Newcastle, particularly to one who had been in a state of great despair for many years. As soon as he arrived at the Orphan House, Mr. Wesley inquired after this individual, and I accompanied him in visiting him. As soon as he entered the room, he went up to him, and, as a messenger from God, said, 'Brother Reed, I have a word from God unto
Thee ; Jesus Christ maketh thee whole!' He then knelt down to pray, and such a season I have seldom experienced.
Hope instantly sprang up, and despair gave place; and, although he had not been out of his habitation, nor even from his wretched bed, for several years, he went that evening to hear Mr. Wesley preach, while God graciously confirmed the testimony of his servant in restoring him
to the 'light of His countenance.'" * Returning southwards, Wesley spent an evening at Weardale, where he observes, '' The same spirit was still in the congregation that has been for many years." At Stanhope, and again at Durham, he was obliged to preach in the open air. At Monkwearmouth, as elsewhere, he admires and encourages the formation of a Sunday School,
"' which has already cleared the streets of all the children * The Wesleyan-Methodist Magazine, for 1845, pp. 120, 121.
Last Visit to Epworth. 235 that used to play there on a Sunday from morning to evening." At Whitby, he makes the following note: "It was very providential that part of the adjoining mountain fell down and demolished our old preaching house, with many houses besides ; by which means we have one of the most beautiful chapels in Great Britain, finely situated on the steep side of the mountain." This new chapel was too small, however, to contain the people ; and their spirit is manifest from the following remark: "In all England I have not seen a more affectionate people than those at Whitby."
On the 28th of June, he is at Hull, and writes in his journal: "This day I enter into my eighty-eighth year.
For above eighty-six years I found none of the infirmities of old age ; my eyes did not wax dim, neither was my natural strength abated; but last August I found almost a sudden change. My eyes were so dim, that no glasses
would help me. My strength, likewise, now quite forsook me, and probably will not return in this world. But I feel no pain, from head to foot ;only it seems nature isexhausted; and, humanly speaking, will sink more and more, till
The weary springs of life stand still at last 1??
The following day, at Owstone he " passed a comfortable day with many of the preachers. This, which was one of the last Societies in the Circuit, is now become first, in grace as well as number." On Saturday, July 3rd, he reached Epworth, the place of his nativity, and "after preaching in the evening, met the Society, and reminded them of what they were some years ago, and what they are now ; scarce retaining the shadow of their former zeal and activity in all the ways of God." On the following day, at the close of the church service, he "began in the market-place to press that awful question, 'How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?' on such a congregation as was never seen at Epworth before."
236 Wesley's Last Labours.
This last tour terminated at Bristol, where he arrived in August, 1790, in time to preside over the forty-seventh Annual Conference. The delightful impressions produced upon his mind by his visits to the principal Societies were renewed by the tidings of spiritual progress which were brought by the preachers from all quarters. The work was everywhere in full prosperity. Of its numerical strength we shall givea detailed account in the next chapter.
A large number of Wesley's preachers attended the Bristol Conference, and all carried away with them the conviction that they should see his face no more. His physical debility was extreme : nevertheless he continued to preach twice or thrice a day. On the 27th of August, he held a watch-night at Bristol, and in his sermon laboured to counteract the influence of a book from which some of the members had learned the doctrine that the sufferings of this present life have an expiatory value. A few days later, 'being the first day of the fair," he "spoke strongly from the words of Solomon, 'Buy the truth, and sell it not.'" On another occasion, he conducted a three hours' service, including the prayers, sermon, and the Lord's Supper, without any assistance, and still was able to preach in the open air in the afternoon of the same day.
At Winchelsea, on the 7th of October, 1790, he preached under a tree from the words, ' The kingdom of heaven is at hand : repent, and believe the Gospel." That was his last open-air service, and he then bade adieu to a field of battle on which he had achieved so many victories. But, though his voice was no longer to be lifted up beneath the canopy of heaven, he continued to preach to the last. At Rye, he preached to "a loving, well-united people," and "the word did not fall to the ground ;"—-at Colchester, to "a wonderful congregation ; rich and poor, clergy and laity ;"—at Norwich, where "the tide is turned," and he is "become an honourable man ;"—at Yarmouth, where
Last Conference. 237 he says, "after supper a little company went to prayer, and the power of God fell upon us ;"—at Lynn, where he arrives "throughly chilled from head to foot ... for which the earnestness of the congregation made me large amends," and where the next day, "all the clergymen in the town, except one who was lame, were present."
Returning to London, he preached twice in one day in the pulpits of the Hstablishment. "Sunday, 24th: I explained, to a numerous congregation in Spitalfields church, 'the whole armour of God.' St. Paul's, Shadwell, was still more crowded in the afternoon, while I enforced that important truth, 'One thing is needful ; and I hope many, even then, resolved to choose the better part."
"' His journals," says an American historian, '" containing the most extraordinary record of a human life in the possession of mankind, end on Sunday, the 24th of October,
1790, with a notice of his preaching one entire Sabbath in pulpits of the Establishment, of which he was at once the greatest honour and the greatest victim of the last century."
About the middle of 1790, failing sight compelled him to cease recording his receipts and expenditures in his cash-book. Its last sentence is striking, both by its sentiment and its appearance. "Jor upwards of eightysix years I have kept my accounts exactly: I will not attempt it any longer, being satisfied with the continual conviction that I save all I can, and give all I can; that is, all I have." It is scarcely legible, and the error in the number of years is a proof of the decline of his faculties.
Though the record of his labours ends, the labours themselves still go on for some months. He continues to preach in his chapels in London, usually meeting the Society after the sermon, giving them his farewell counsel to "love as brethren, fear God, and honour the king," and then singing with them his accustomed parting hymn. He even prepares to undertake, at the usual time of the year,
238 Wesley's Last Labours. another journey to Ireland and Scotland ; his chaise and horses are sent before him to Bristol, and seats engaged for himself and his travelling companion in the Bath coach ; but the energy of his mind can no longer sustain his sinking body, and the design is abandoned.
On the Ist of February, 1791, he writes his last letter to America :
"To the Rev. Ezekiel Cooper, of Philadelphia.
"Near London, February 1st, 1791.
"My pear Broruer, "Those that desire to write or say anything to me have no time to lose; for time has shaken me by the hand, and death is not far behind. But I have reason to be thankful for the time that is past : I felt few of the infirmities of old age, for fourscore and six years.
It was not till a year and a-half ago that my strength and my sight failed. And still I am enabled to scrawl a little, and to creep, though I cannot run. Probably I should not be able to do so much did not many of you assist me by your prayers. I have given a distinct account of the work of God which has been wrought in Britain and Ireland for more than half a century. We want some of you to give us a connected relation of what our Lord has been doing in America, from the time that Richard Boardman accepted the invitation, and left his country to serve you. See that you never give place to one thought of separating from your brethren in Europe. Lose no opportunity of declaring to all men, that the Methodists are one people in all the world, and that it is their full determination so to continue— Though mountains rise, and oceans roll, To sever us in vain.
"To the care of our common Lord I commit you, and am "Your affectionate friend and brother."
"Thursday, February 17th, 1791," says the Rey. Joseph Last Sermon. 239
Benson, "he preached at Lambeth ; but, on his return, seemed much indisposed, and said he had taken cold. The next day, however, he read and wrote as usual, and in the evening, preached at Chelsea, from 'The King's business requireth haste,' although with some difficulty, having a high degree of fever upon him. Indeed, he was obliged to stop once or twice, informing the people that his cold so affected his voice as to prevent his speaking without those necessary pauses. On Saturday he still persevered in his usual employments, though to those about him his complaints seemed evidently increasing. He dined at Islington, and at dinner desired a friend to read to him four chapters out of the Book of Job, namely, from the fourth to the seventh, inclusive. On Sunday he rose early, according to custom; but, quite unfit for any of his usual
Sabbath-day's exercises. At seven o'clock he was obliged to lie down, and slept between three and four hours.
When he awoke, he said, 'I have not had such a comfortable sleep this fortnight past.' In the afternoon he lay down again, and slept an hour or two. Afterwards, two of his own discourses on our Lord's Sermon on the Mount were read to him, and in the evening he came down to supper.
"Monday, 21st: he seemed much better, and, though his friends tried to dissuade him from it, he would keep an engagement, made some time before, to dine at Twickenham.
In his way thither he called on Lady Mary Fitzgerald.
The conversation was truly profitable, and well became a last visit. On Tuesday he went on with his usual work, preached in the evening in the chapel in the City-Road, and seemed much better than he had been for some days.
On Wednesday he went to Leatherhead, and preached to a small company on, 'Seek ye the Lord while He may be found ; call ye upon Him while He is near.' This proved to be his last sermon. Here ended the public labours of this great minister of Jesus Christ."
240 Wesley's Last Labours.
"On that day," (Wed. 23rd,) says the historian whom we have frequently quoted before, "fell from his dying grasp a trumpet of the truth, which had sounded the everlasting
Gospel oftener and more effectually than that of any other man for sixteen hundred years...Whitefield preached' eighteen thousand sermons, more than ten a week for his thirty-four years of ministerial life. Wesley preached forty-two thousand four hundred, after his return from Georgia, more than fifteen a week."
..."On Saturday, the 26th, he wrote his final letter. It was addressed to Wilberforce, and was an _ exhortation to perseverance in his Parliamentary labours against the African slave-trade. By his 'Thoughts upon Slavery,' he had pledged himself to that great reform at its beginning under Clarkson and Sharp." The letter is too interesting and does too much honour to both these great men to be omitted.
"London, February 26th, 1791.
" DEAR Sir, " Unless the Divine power has raised you up to be as Athanasius contra mundum,* I see not how youcan go through your glorious enterprise in opposing that execrable villany, which is the scandal of religion, of England, and of human nature. Unless God has raised you up for this very thing, you will be worn out by the opposition of men and devils. But, 'if God be for you, who can be against you?' Are all of them together stronger than God? O, 'be not weary in well doing!' Go on, in the name of God and in the power of His might, till even American slavery (the vilest that ever saw the sun) shall vanish away before it.
" Reading this morning a tract, wrote by a poor African, I was particularly struck by that cireumstance,—that a man who has a black skin, being wronged or outraged by * "Athanasius against the world."
Last Letter. _ 9AL a white man, can have no redress; it being a law in all our colonies, that the oath of a black against a white goes for nothing. What villany is this!
"That He who has guided you from your youth up, may continue to strengthen you in this and all things, is the prayer of, " Dear Sir, " Your affectionate servant, "Joun WESLEY."
The closing scenes of Wesley's life are thus described by the Rev. Joseph Benson :
"Sunday morning (February 27th) he seemed much better, got up and took a cup of tea. Sitting in his chair, he looked quite cheerful, and repeated the latter part of the verse, in his brother Charles's Scripture Hymns, on 'Forsake me not when my strength faileth,' namely :—
'Till glad I lay this body down, Thy servant, Lord, attend ; And, O! my life of mercy crown With a triumphant end.'
Soon after, in a most emphatical manner, he said, 'Our friend Lazarus sleepeth.' Exerting himself to converse with some friends, he was soon fatigued, and obliged to lie down. After lying quiet some time, he looked up, and said, 'Speak to me; I cannot speak.' On which, one of the company said, 'Shall we pray with you, Sir?' He earnestly replied, 'Yes.' And while they prayed, his whole soul seemed engaged with God for an answer, and his hearty Amen showed that he perfectly understood what was said. About half an hour after,-he said, 'There is no need of more: when at Bristol my words were,
'J the chief of sinners am, But Jesus died for me.' "* * At the Bristol Conference, in 1783, Mr. Wesley was taken very ill: neither he nor his friends thought he could recover. From the R 242 - Wesley's Last Words.
"One said, 'Is this the present language of your heart?
And do you now feel as you did then?' He replied, "Yes." When the same person repeated, 'Bold I approach the' eternal throne, And claim the crown through Christ my own ;* and added, ''Tis enough ; He, our precious Emmanuel, has purchased, has promised all;' he earnestly replied, 'He is all! He is all!' After this the fever was very high, and, at times, affected his recollection ; but even then, though his head was subject to a temporary derangement, his heart seemed wholly engaged in his Master's work.
In the evening he got up again ; and, while sitting in his chair, he said, 'How necessary it is for every one to be on the right foundation !
'T the chief of sinners am, But Jesus died for me.'
"Monday, 28th: his weakness increased. He slept most of the day, and spoke but little; yet that little testified how much his whole heart was taken up in the care of the Societies, the glory of God, and the promotion of the things pertaining to that kingdom to which he was hastening. Once he said, in a low but distinct manner,
'There is no way into the holiest but by the blood of Jesus.'
He afterwards inquired what the words were from which he had preached a little before at Hampstead. Being told nature of his complaint, he supposed a spasm would seize his stomach, and probably occasion sudden death. Under these views of his situation, he said to Mr. Bradford, 'I have been reflecting on my past life: I have been wandering up and down between fifty and sixty years, endeavouring, in my poor way, to do a little good to my fellow-creatures: and now it is probable that there are but a few steps between me and death; and what have I to trust to for salvation? I can see nothing which I have done or suffered that will bear looking at. I have no other plea than this;
'I the chief of sinners am, But Jesus died for me.' "
" The best of all is, God is with us!" 243 they were these, 'Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich ; he replied, 'That is the foundation, the only foundation: there is no other.' This day, Dr. Whitehead desired he might be asked if he would have any other physician called in to attend him; but this he absolutely refused.
It is remarkable that he suffered very little pain, never complaining of any during his illness, but once of a pain in his left breast. This was a restless night.
"Tuesday morning: he sang two verses of a hymn: then, lying still, as if to recover strength, he called for pen and ink; but when they were brought, he could not write. A person said, 'Let me write for you, Sir: tell me what you would say.' He replied, 'Nothing, but that God is with us.' In the forenoon he said, 'I will get up.'
While they were preparing his clothes, he broke out in a manner which, considering his extreme weakness, astonished all present, in singing, 'll praise my Maker while I've breath ; And when my voice is lost in death, Praise shall employ my nobler powers :
My days of praise shall ne'er be past, While life, and thought, and being last, Or immortality endures,'
'Having got him into his chair, they observed him change for death. But he, regardless of his dying body, said, with a weak voice, 'Lord, Thou givest strength to those that can speak, and to those who cannot. Speak,
Lord, to all our hearts, and let them know that Thou loosest tongues.' He then sung, 'To Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, Who sweetly all agree, —'
Here his voice failed. After gasping for breath, he said, ' Now we have done all.' He was then laid in the bed R 2 244 Wesley's Last Words. from which he rose no more. After resting a little, he called to those who were with him to 'pray and praise.' They kneeled down, and the room seemed to be filled with the Divine presence. A little after, he said, 'Let me be buried in nothing but what is woollen, and let my corpse
- be carried into the chapel.' Then, as if he had done with all below, he again begged they would pray and praise. Several friends that were in the house being called up, they all kneeled down again to prayer, at which time his fervour of spirit was manifest to every one present.
But, in particular parts of the prayer, his whole soul seemed to be engaged in a manner which evidently showed how ardently he longed for the full accomplishment of their united desires. And when one of the preachers was praying in a very expressive manner, that if God were about to take away their father to his eternal rest, He would be pleased to continue and increase His blessing upon the doctrine and discipline which He had long made His servant the means of propagating and establishing in the world, such a degree of fervour accompanied his loud
'Amen,' as was every way expressive of his soul's being engaged in the answer of the petitions. On rising from their knees, he took hold of all their hands, and, with the utmost placidness, saluted them and said, 'Farewell, farewell.'
"A little after, a person coming in, he strove to speak, but could not. Finding they could not understand him, he paused a little, and then, with all the remaining strength he had, cried out, 'The best of all is, God is with us ;' and soon after, lifting up his dying arm in token of victory, and raising his feeble voice with a holy triumph not to be expressed, he again repeated the heart-reviving words, 'The best of all is, God is with us. Being told that his brother's widow was come, he said,
'He giveth his servants rest.' He thanked her, as she His Death. 245 pressed his hand, and affectionately endeavoured to kiss her. On his lips being wetted, he said, 'We thank Thee,
O Lord, for these and all Thy mercies: bless the Church and King, and grant us truth and peace, through Jesus Christ our Lord, for ever and ever!' Atanother time, he said, 'He causeth His servants to lie down in peace.'
Then, pausing a little, he cried, 'The clouds drop fatness !' and soon after, 'The Lord is with us ; the God of Jacob is our refuge.' He then called those present to prayer, and, though he was greatly exhausted, he appeared still more fervent in spirit. These exertions were, however, too much for his feeble frame ; and most of the night following, though he often attempted to repeat the Psalm before mentioned, he could only utter, 'I'll praise—I'll praise !
"On Wednesday morning, the closing scene drew near.
Mr. Bradford, his faithful friend, prayed with him, and the last word he was heard to articulate was, ' Farewell.'
A few minutes before ten, while several of his friends were kneeling around his bed, without a lingering groan, this man of God, this beloved Pastor of thousands, entered into the joy of his Lord."
His death took place on the 2nd of March, 1791, at a little before ten in the morning.
Mrs. Hester Ann Rogers, who was present throughout the last scene, writes, "The solemnity of the dying hour of that great and good man, I believe will ever be written on my heart. A cloud of the Divine presence rested on all ; and while he could hardly be said to be an inhabitant of earth, being now speechless, and his eyes fixed, victory and glory were written on his countenance, and quivering, as it were, on his dying lips. No language can paint what appeared in that face! The more we gazed upon it, the more we saw of heaven unspeakable."
He had requested in his will that his funeral should be celebrated without ceremony; no hearse, no coach, no '
246 Wesley's Character. escutcheon ; no pomp, except the tears of those who loved him, and were following him to heaven. These requests were strictly observed by his executors.
The day before his burial, his corpse was placed in the City-Road chapel, dressed in his gown, cassock, and band.
His countenance is described as singularly placid, wearing a "heavenly smile, a beauty which was admired by all who saw it." Multitudes flocked to see for the last time his venerable features, and it was deemed necessary to inter him before six o'clock in the morning, in order to prevent accidents from the crowd. Many spectators, however, were present ; and when the preacher who read the burial service reached the passage, '' Forasmuch as it hath pleased
Almighty God to take unto Himself the soul of our brother," and substituted the word father, the people were so deeply affected that from silent tears they broke out into loud weeping.
Wesley's remains were deposited in a vault which he had had prepared in the cemetery adjoining City-Road chapel.
There they repose, awaiting the resurrection of the just.
Westry's character might well demand a more profound and detailed examination than we-can here attempt. We must content ourselves with a brief outline of its principal features, regarding him as a man, a preacher, a writer, and an administrator.
In Wesley, the man is inseparable from the Christian.
Ilis whole life is only the visible embodiment of his faith Energy and Sincerity. 247 and his Christian experience, and the external was in perfect harmony with the internal. It was that long and painful course of preparation through which he was called to pass, and which was prolonged through the whole period of youth, that made him what he was. -A Christian life born amid such conflicts could not but be profound; a character formed in such a school could not but be energetic in the highest degree. Wesley was, in fact,eminent no less as a man than as a Christian. It only needs to study the sources of his life, in order to be convinced of that. Few men have lived so much in public.
His journals and his correspondence afford abundant evidence of his manner of life, and enable us to follow his course from day today. We find him perfectly frank in his dealings with himself as well as others. There is nothing to indicate the mere posture-master, who attitudinizes in the presence of the public. His transparent sincerity sometimes amounts to simplicity. He takes the public into his confidence, and relates incidents which an enemy might turn into a weapon against himself. He is absolutely wanting in that address by which some men know how to display their good qualities to the best advantage.
This perfect sincerity was displayed in the ardour and disinterestedness of his pursuit of truth. Warped by no influence of school or party, he interrogates facts simply in order that he may form his judgment by them. If he sometimes seems too uncritical in his selection of the facts by which he judges, if he too readily accepts the evidence of marvellous stories, let us remember that he lived in an age when such a man as Dr. Johnson believed in ghosts, and such a country as Scotland burned witches. Let us not forget, moreover, that the great movement of the eighteenth century could hardly fail to give birth to exceptional circumstances, such as could not then be coolly judged of, and cannot now be easily explained away.
248 Wesley's 'Character.
He records such facts in his journals generally without the slightest comment : and in this he gives no proof of the credulity with which he has been charged, but simply shows his regard for facts, and confesses that he has not yet extracted all its secrets from the invisible world. And further, it would be an injustice to Wesley to hold him responsible for any errors which may be discovered in the early period of his religious career, when he was not yet freed from the influence of the mystics.
This injustice has been committed by M. Taine and M. De Witt: they regard him from two widely-different stand-points, but they agree in reproaching him with having occasionally consulted the lot. But, besides that the example of the apostles authorizes the use of the lot in certain extraordinary cases, I am not aware that Wesley once had recourse to it after he had' reached the maturity of his religious life. And this remark applies to most of the instances of so-called enthusiasm with which he has been charged. Their date is a sufficient explanation.
Another accusation has been launched against him, which, if proved, would bea much more serious affair. According to Southey, one of Wesley's ruling motives was ambition.*
His whole existence appears to us to be a complete refutation of this statement. A rare and strange ambition that, truly, which prompts a man to renounce his most favourite tastes and pursuits, and turn field-preacher to the coarsest and most ungovernable rabble that the world ever saw!
To expect celebrity from such a fickle-minded mob, were as mere madness as it would be to write one's name upon * Southey's views on this point were very materially modified in his later days. In a letter to his publisher, dated 17th August, 1835,he says: " Mr. Alexander Knox has convinced me that I was mistaken in supposing ambition entered largely into Mr. Wesley's actuating impulses." Southey intended to make such alterations in his book as this statement required. Unfortunately, his death prevented this intention from being carried out.
Purity of his Motives. 249 the sands swept by the whirlwind in order to transmit it to posterity. True, Wesley wielded a vast sway over his
Societies and their preachers; but, on the one hand, such a superintendence was absolutely necessary, if the heterogeneous elements he had collected were not to be utterly dissolved ; and, on the other, it must be remembered that, though he retained the supreme control over his own work, he very early shared the responsibility with the Conference, and that more than once he endeavoured to devolve on others a burden which he found so oppressive.
This leads us to the observation that one of Wesley's most marked features was that perfect faith in the directions of Providence which we have so frequently met with in the course of his life, and which ill assorts with the theory of ambitious designs.
Besides, it is morally impossible for any one who has intimately studied his deep piety, to attribute to Wesley ambitious and selfish aims. If his whole outward life is a protest against such an imputation, his inward piety bears still stronger testimony. He possessed an humble and yet confident trust in the powerof Divine grace, and on that alone did he base his expectations of success. His works and writings breathe the fragrant odour of vital godliness : it is evident that he had completely thrown off the trammels of that mysticism which he had learned at Oxford, and which, if indulged in, would have been his ruin. Wesley was deeply indebted to the Moravians: not only had their influence brought about the decisive crisis of his spiritual history, but it had led him to assert strongly the reality of the internal operations of the Spirit of God.
Many facts related in this volume show Wesley to have _beena man of prayer. In this exercise he was mighty even to daring: he had continual recourse to it, and that in circumstances in which others would hardly have ventured
250 Wesley's Character. to do so. An account of the temporal and spiritual deliverances which Wesley notes in his journals as the result of prayer would be a most interesting record. It was more frequently under his prayers even than under his sermons that sinners were convinced of sin and obtained peace..
Wesley's piety was neither narrow nor intolerant. If it sometimes happens in the course of a polemical discussion that he is carried away by the ardour of the combat, he fully redeems such momentary failings by the largeness of his ideas and the catholic sentiments of his whole life.
His friendship with Whitefield continued, as we have seen, unbroken by the doctrinal controversies which arose between them. His sermon, '' Ona Catholic Spirit," shows that he was worthy to rank among the forerunners of the Evangelical Alliance. His heart was so large that he could not confine his sympathies within the limits of sect or party. Wherever he recognized the true spirit of Christianity, he did homage to it, however it might be alloyed by the admixture of error and infirmity. His liberality was so great that he edited for the use of his
Societies several works whose authors belonged to the Romish communion. He published also, in the pages of the Magazine and elsewhere, biographical notices of eminent
Catholic saints, such as Madame Guyon, the Marquis de Renty, Gregory Lopez, and others. This catholicity of spirit was often misunderstood by many sincere Christians, but it was one of those points on which he laid the greatest stress. The only limit he placed to freedom of thought among his Societies, was the respect due to the opinions of others. His sentiments on this head he explains in the following manner: "I have no more right to object to a man because he holds an opinion different from mine, than
Ihave a right to separate from a man because he wears a wig, while I wear none. But if he happen to take off flis Catholic Spirit. - «= 952 his wig, and shake the powder in my eyes, I shall consider it my duty to run away from him as soon as possible."
While Wesley's religious character was such as to gain the respect of all, it may be added that his natural and acquired abilities clothed it with an undefinable charm.
The internal peace he enjoyed seemed to shine forth in an amiability and serenity of disposition which won all hearts.
He carried into all his social intercourse so much ease and grace, he was so full of affection and cordiality, that the charm of his conversation was irresistible, and a brief interview was often enough to change his bitterest opponents into friends. Owing to his vast intellectual culture, together with his rare intelligence and incomparable fluency of expression, his society was courted by men of fortune and talents, and they esteemed it an honour to invite him to their tables: but he was not less at home with the poor country people among whom he was a frequent guest, forgetting himself, and enabling them to forget, the difference in their education. His correspondence, from which we have only been able to make brief extracts, places him in an amiable and friendly light, endowed with an exquisite and sympathetic sensibility.
Wesley's character, so interesting in private life, is only fully unfolded, however, in the vast theatre of his public activity, where it received its full development.
Having .studied the man, we must now contemplate the popular preacher. To speak the truth, his power resided chiefly in his preaching: by it he acted upon the masses, and by it he scattered broadcast over the face of the earth those imperishable seeds which contained the germs of such a future. In presence of the almost fabulous success that crowned his labours, a question occurs which seems at first sight an insoluble enigma. How did he, the Oxford graduate, who was all his life long a devoted student of the classical authors, and who read on horseback the 252 Wesley's Character. original of Homer and Virgil, how did he become the streetpreacher, the popular orator of the masses? Thirst for celebrity is no explanation, as we have already seen.
Love for souls, that pure and noble passion enkindled in the heart by the love of God, alone accounts for this otherwise incomprehensible phenomenon. 'This alone can explain, also, the indefatigable perseverance which prolonged such an apostleship beyond the bounds of half a century.
The conflicts of fifty years reveal great qualities in Wesley, of which a military commander might well have been proud. To speak the truth, the Anglo-Saxon race, with those practical qualities which constitute its distinguishing feature, never had a better representative than he. He knew how to yoke into the service of his religious principles the strong will and the unconquerable tenacity which have brought such success to English colonies. He vanquished the ill-will of the people by a perseverance which stood the test of all kinds of opposition.
What gave his preaching so much of originality was his perfect frankness: it may be truly said of Wesley that he '"'spoke as one having authority." He never flatters his audience : sometimes, indeed, as he tells us himself, he
"spoke strong, rough words :" he knows nothing of the art of disguising his thoughts, in order to render them more acceptable. His concise and expressive language aims directly at its object, and says exactly what he means. Many instances have been given of the almost magical effect produced on the minds of the people by his incisive utterance. Still more effectually, perhaps, did he wield this power over individuals. When he fixed his gaze on one of his hearers, it was a very rare thing if the heart did not quail beneath his glance. Sometimes a man would enter his congregation with his hat on his head, fully determined to put him to silence, but his countenance would change and his cheek pale as he encountered the Power of his Preaching. 253 keen eye that seemed to pierce to the depths of his being.
We must not, however, suppose that this influence of Wesley upon the masses in any degree resembled insolence or haughtiness. His authority was of a purely moral kind, and was attained through the slow but unerring operation of Christian faith and zeal.
It must be added that, in many respects, Wesley was admirably qualified for his mission as a popular preacher.
Besides that eagle glance and that flowing and flexible voice, he possessed qualities of mind most highly valued by the people, viz., clearness and precision. None knew better than he did how to familiarize the loftiest truths to the lowliest minds. None knew better how to employ a sprightly repartee ora happy expression, so that when a long harangue would have failed in its object, the '" witty proverb" penetrated like the point of a sword,
But let us endeavour to form a just idea of Wesley's oratorical ability. In the open street as in the pulpit of the University of Oxford, the style of this great preacher is simple and level to the understanding of every individual : his reasoning is logical and nervous; and, having once admitted his premises, you are carried away in spite of yourself, and compelled to accept the consequences he deduces from them. His argumentation flows in a full stream, but it is not circuitous, and does not overflow its proper channels. It is not overloaded with the vain and frivolous ornaments, by the use of which some seek to veil the poverty of their thoughts, nor with those» tangled digressions which hide from the hearer the principal aim of the discourse. His sole business is to produce conviction : hence he puts himself face to face with his opponent, and never neglects to answer his objections, generally showing how contrary they are to common sense. His aim is direct : he despises circumlocution, and never mistakes rhetorical artifice for argument.
254 Wesley's Character.
Though a profound logician, Wesley is far from being a wearisome dogmatist. Let any one be at the pains to compare him with Tillotson or Barrow, and he will understand the vast progress preaching has made through his influence, and the great revolution he has effected in a department that had remained stationary since the sixteenth century. He does not, like them, conduct an argument for argument's sake, straining himself to prove, by a grand array of syllogisms, some commonplace of doctrine or morality which nobody dreams of disputing. He daringly confronts those subjects which are the most strongly controverted, and at the same time, in his view, the most fundamental to Christianity. The subjects of which he treats are among the loftiest and gravest that can be brought into the Christian pulpit; yet they are stated with so much frankness, resolved with such admirable ease into their simplest forms, expounded and discussed with such marvellous lucidity, that the hearer, however uncultivated, is captivated and subdued, and with difficulty withstands the running fire of such powerful and burning eloquence. The rhetorical style of Tillotson and _ his imitators resembles those heavy batteries which, planted on the heights of some lofty citadel, await the approach of the enemy, and only prove their efficacy when he complacently advances within the range of their fire. Wesley, on the other hand, resembles the light artillery composed of fieldpieces, which follow the enemy to his farthest entrenchments. His sermons are generally short : his sprightly and compact diction always proceeds straight forward: his vivid thoughts come clearly before the eye of the mind, and frequently take the form of an aphorism which engraves itself upon the memory of the hearer.
Wesley has the great merit of having popularized, and, if I may venture to say so, humanized that austere divinity formerly known only to the initiated, and denominated
Style of his Sermons. 255 logic. He had a real respect for the people, which is utterly wanting to those preachers who talk to them as if they were children, giving them reasons that they do not want, or seeking to create a merely morbid sensibility on which no durable structure can be reared. The people insensibly rose to Wesley's level, because he knew how to come down to theirs.
As an orator, Wesley was certainly inferior to Whitefield.
But, besides this logical faculty of which we have just been speaking, he possessed an incisiveness of speech which was lacking in his friend, so that he sometimes carried conviction to hearts that had remained unmoved by the appeals of his eloquent friend. John Nelson tells us that he had often listened to Whitefield's sermons, and had been charmed by them, as by strains of incomparable music: he admired the preaching and loved the preacher, but no more.
Wesley's preaching produced a totally different effect. Let us hear the testimony of this eye-witness. " As soon ashe had mounted the platform," he says, "he stroked back his long hair, and turned toward the spot where I stood: I thought he fixed his eyes upon me. This single look filled me with inexpressible anguish : before he opened his mouth, my heart beat like the pendulum of a clock, and when he spoke, I thought his whole discourse was aimed at me."