RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA
Methodists
edged natural depravity, yet held that the Spirit of God so counteracts its effects that every man is capable of surrendering himself to him through Christ by faith. He taught Christian perfection as the consummation of the work of salvation; and that it is subsequent to regeneration, so that, while believers may grow in grace daily, perfection is reached by faith. By subtle distinctions he met successfully the current attacks upon his view. Upon this subject his writings were voluminous, and have occasioned controversy within as well as without Methodist circles.
Until 1784 Methodism in America was under the
control of Wesley; it was in fact the extension of
his societies. In that year it devolved
3. American upon him to superintend its transfor-
Position. mation into a church. Before his plan had fully matured or any American had anticipated it, the American conferences asked, and by vote answered, a peculiar question.
Q. " How shall we conduct ourselves toward European preachers? " Answer: " If they are recommended by Mr. Wesley, will be subject to the American conference, preach the doctrine taught in the four volumes of Sermons, and Notes on the New Testament, we will receive them;
but if they walk contrary to the above directions, no ancient right or appointment shall prevent their being excluded from our connection."
Wesley sent to America a series of articles of religion, selected from the Thirty-nine of the Church of England. The following were adopted, with slight verbal changes and minor omissions: " Of Faith in the Holy Trinity," " Of the Word, or the Son of God, who was made very Man," " Of the Resurrection of Christ," " Of the Holy Ghost," " Of the Old Testament," " Of Free Will," " Of the Justification of Man," " Of Good Works," " Of Works of Supererogation," " Of Sin after Justification," " Of the Church," " Of Purgatory," " Of Speaking in the Congregation in such tongue as the People understand," " Of the Sacraments," " Of the Lord's Supper," " Of both Kinds," " Of the one Oblation of Christ, finished upon the Cross," " Of the Marriage of Ministers," " Of the Rites and Ceremonies of Churches," " Of Christian Men's Goods " and " Of a Christian Man's Oath." The following were retained with important omissions: " The Sufficiency of the Holy Scriptures for Salvation," " Of Original or Birth Sin," " Of the Church," and " Of Baptism." The following were rejected: " Of the Going down of Christ into Hell," " Of the Three Creeds," " Of Works before Justification," " Of Christ alone without Sin," " Of Predestination and Election," " Of Obtaining Eternal Salvation only by the Name of Christ," " Of the Authority of the Church," " Of the Authority of General Councils," " Of Ministering in the Congregation," " Of the Unworthiness of the Ministers which Hinders not the effect of the Sacrament," " Of the Wicked which eat not the Body of Christ in the Use of the Lord's Supper," " Of Excommunicate Persons, how they are to be avoided," " Of the Homilies," " Of Consecration of Bishops and Ministers," " Of the Civil Magistrates."
A comparison between the English Articles as they were originally and as they were transmitted
to the American conference reveals that the guiding purpose of Wesley, in altering and omitting, was to expurgate the leaven of ritual- 4. Purpose ism, Calvinism, and Romanism. These and Results, articles, however, do not contain special reference to some of the most precious doctrines held by the founder of .Methodism and by the churches that derived preaching, teaching, and example from those whom he instructed. But Wesley knew that the American Methodists had incorporated in their standards all that he had imposed upon English Methodism. Episcopal Methodist Churches, including the Canadian Methodist Church, accepted the articles sent by Wesley. The Methodist Episcopal Church of America is in harmony with these facts. The rule on the subject is as follows:
" The General Conference shall not revoke, alter or change our Articles of Religion, nor establish any new standard or rules of doctrine contrary to our present, existing, and established standards of doctrine."
The unparalleled unity in belief among the various Methodist bodies is the fruit of Wesley's method of conserving doctrines. Had he expressed them in confessions or even creeds, they would have been centers of controversy. His followers in every land concur with the Canadian Methodist theologian, Burwash:
"It is to the spirit and type of this preaching that our obligations bind us. There may be in the Notes and Sermons things incidental, accidental and personal, to which no Methodist minister or layman would feel bound to profess assent; but Methodism demands that in all its pulpita we should preach this Gospel and expound the word of God according to this analogy of Faith."
The Calvinistic Methodists signify their doctrines by their name. In Evangelical spirit they are similar, but in the doctrines on which Wesley took the Arminian position they adhere to the Calvinist standards. J. M. Buckley.
Bibliography: The fundamental sources are the Works of John Wesley, the best ed. for this purpose being that issued as standard by the Methodist Book Concern, New York, in 7 vols., including in vols, i.— ii. his Sermons, in vols, iii.— iv. his Journals, and in vols, v.— vii. his miscellaneous works; his Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament, issued by the same house as a standard (the recently deciphered diaries from which the Journals were written, containing a considerable amount of new material, are in course of publication in London, and will be available at the principal repositories for Methodist literature in the United States); the Lives and other literature given under the articles on the Wesleys in the last volume of this work; the Books of Discipline of the various Methodist bodies; the Journals of the Methodist Episcopal Church and of the Methodist Episcopal Church South; the Minutes of the annual conferences; the Proceedings of the Ecumenical Methodist Conferences, held in London, 1881, Washington, 1891, and London, 1901; the Records of the Centennial Convention in Baltimore, 1884; the Year Books of the various bodies; and the early periodicals to which reference ia made in the text. Consult also the numerous sketches of Methodist worthies in this work, and the literature given there.
Treatises of a general character are: A. Stevens, Hist, of the Religious Movement . Called Methodism, 3 vols., New York, 1858-61 ; H. S. Skeats, Hist, of the Free Churches of England, 1688-1861, London, 1859; G. Smith, Hist, of Wesleyan Methodism, 3 vols., ib. 1865; L. S. Jacoby, Geschichte des Methodismus, seiner Entstehung und Ausbreitung, 2 vols., Bremen, 1870; W. H. Daniels, Illustrated Hist, of Methodism in Great Britain and America from the Wesleys to the Present Time, New York, 1880; J. Atkinson, Centennial Hist, of American Methodism, ib. 1884; idem, Beginnings of the Wesleyan Movement in
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