Charles Wesley has not been remembered or studied as well as his brother John. This unfortunate fact has skewed his memory. Charles was more than a poet.
Was Charles simply the hymnist of the Methodist movement? Certainly not! Charles was at the very least the co-founder of Methodism. Some biographers argue that he was the original Methodist. Either way, Charles’s role in forming the Methodists was absolutely foundational.
Despite Charles’s foundational role in forming the Methodists, it would be a mistake to equate Charles’s Methodism with the modern denomination(s) that bear the same name.
The Oxford Methodists
The term “Methodist” originated in the life of Charles Wesley. But it wasn’t a title Charles gave himself.
The next [year] I set myself to study. Diligence led me into serious thinking. I went to the weekly sacrament, and persuaded two or three young scholars to accompany me, and to observe the method of study prescribed by the University. This gained me the harmless nickname of Methodist.
-Charles Wesley (cited in Tyson, Assist Me To Proclaim, 10, bold added)
This wasn’t the only name they were called. Tyson records at least seven nicknames used to describe Charles Wesley and his friends at Oxford. These names were:
- The Sacramentarians
- Enthusiasts
- Supererogation-men
- Bible-moths
- Bible-bigots
- The Holy Club
- The sons of sorrow
The idea of meeting together in small groups to study Scripture, pray, fast, perform acts of charity, and encourage one another toward holy living was not invented by the Wesley brothers. But it was the seriousness of the Oxford Methodists that gained them their notoriety and reputation.
Charles and his friends intended to practice what they read in the pages of Scripture. They were hopeful that practicing these things would lead to the same quality of spiritual life recorded in the New Testament.
Other members of the Oxford Methodists included Benjamin Ingham, Robert Kirkham, John Gambold, and most-notably, George Whitefield.
The Methodist Societies
For Charles, Methodism began as a way of life. He practiced his faith methodically. He sought for others to do the same.
Others expressed interest in a serious and devout religious experience, too. They began to be organized into Societies for mutual edification and discipleship.
These Societies fell under the general leadership of both Charles and John. Due to both personality and skills – John was undoubtedly the more able and eager administrator – John’s leadership grew in prominence with the Methodists in general.
Charles Wesley’s Methodism
The term Methodist stuck with Charles. So did the negative connotations associated with the term.
After returning from America, Charles encountered some old acquaintances who “charged the Methodists with intrusion, schism, and bringing neglect upon the ministry” (Thursday, July 28, 1737 MS Journal entry). Charles disagreed completely with their assessment of the impact of the Methodists.
Charles records preaching Christ while riding in a coach to London:
Thursday, July 27 [1738]. In the coach to London I preached faith in Christ. A lady was extremely offended, avowed her own merits in plain terms, asked if I was not a Methodist, threatened to beat me.
-Charles Wesley (MS Journal, bold added)
Charles’s identity as a Methodist wasn’t a sign of honor to outsiders.
As Charles preached faith in Christ, doors continued to close. As an ordained minister in the Church of England, Charles was licensed to preach. Charles’s identity as a Methodist threatened to close those doors.
Thursday, December 21 [1738]. At St Antholin’s the clerk asked me my name, and said, “Dr Venn has forbidden any Methodist to preach. Do you call yourself a Methodist?” “I do not. The world may call me what they please.” “Well, sir,” said he, “it is pity the people should go away without preaching. You may preach.” I did so, on good works.
-Charles Wesley (MS Journal, bold added)
Charles considered himself first and foremost a Christian, not primarily as a Methodist. As the Methodist movement grew, this became a point of contention between Charles and his brother John.
Charles summarized the difference between him and John perfectly:
[John’s] first object was the Methodists and then the Church [of England]; mine was first the Church, and then the Methodists.
-Charles Wesley (cited from Newport, Sermons of Charles Wesley, 25)
Charles was committed to personal holiness in his walk of faith. This was a product of his prioritization first to Christ, then the Church of England, and thirdly to the Methodists as a group.
Charles was foundational in forming the Methodists with his brother John. The different aims of the brothers influenced how they would be remembered in subsequent generations of Methodism.
Modern Methodists
The Methodist family of denominations trace their roots to the movement that began with John and Charles Wesley. However, they are not identical.
Both John and Charles had a desire to maintain unity with the Church of England as long as the gospel remained unchanged in the Articles and Homilies. Charles was more committed to this goal than his brother.
As John sought to advance the Methodists, Charles cautioned that some of these steps would lead to the eventual separation from the Church of England.
The brothers exchanged letters on this topic in August and September, 1785. The particular issue at the time was the ordination of ministers. John insisted upon his biblical rights. Charles counseled to lay down those rights for the sake of unity.
The Methodists would eventually separate from the Church of England after the death of Charles. This was exactly what Charles fought to resist while he was alive.
Charles showed amazing foresight in his criticisms of separation. He warned of the eventual effects. In an unpublished (during his lifetime) poem, Charles lamented on the effects of separation from the Church of England:
Who won for God the wandring Souls of men,
Subjecting multitudes to Christ’s command,
He shuts his eyes, & scatters them again,
And spreads a thous[an]d Sects throughout the land.
-Charles Wesley (Kimbrough and Beckerlegge, Unpublished Poetry of Charles Wesley, 3:87)
Charles was correct that John’s actions would eventually lead to separation. Charles was also correct that the seed of separation would yield the fruit of denominationalism and sectarianism throughout the land.
Denominations
At least two dozen official denominations have emerged from the Methodists and Wesleyan tradition. The following table presents the denominations listed in Frank Mead’s Handbook of Denominations in the United States, 12th edition (click link to buy the newest edition from Amazon).
| Methodist Denominations | Holiness Denominations |
| African Methodist Episcopal Church | Apostolic Christian Churches of America |
| African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church | Apostolic Faith Mission of Portland, Oregon |
| Christian Methodist Episcopal Church | Apostolic Overcoming Holy Church of God |
| Congregational Methodist Church | Christian and Missionary Alliance |
| Evangelical Church of North America | Church of Christ (Holiness) U.S.A. |
| Korean Methodist Church | Church of God (Anderson, Indiana) |
| Primitive Methodist Church, U.S.A. | Church of God (Holiness) |
| Salvation Army | Church of the Nazarene |
| Southern Methodist Church | Churches of Christ in Christian Union |
| United Methodist Church | Free Methodist Church of North America |
| Volunteers of America, Inc. | New Apostolic Church of North America |
| Windsor Village United Methodist Church | Wesleyan Church |
Each of these denominations find their roots in the original Methodist movement. It is uncertain whether the original Methodists would find much in common with their contemporary namesakes.
Reasons For Forgetting Charles
It is beyond dispute that Charles was foundational in the original Methodist movement. It is also impossible to deny that Charles is not remembered well for his role.
So, why has Charles been suppressed and John elevated in subsequent generations of Methodists and Wesleyan traditions? What has caused Charles to be remembered simply as the hymnist of the Methodist movement, when the Wesleyan leadership recorded in their Minutes for 1788 concerning the death of Charles: “His least praise was his talent for poetry”?
Many reasons have been suggested by biographers, historians, and students. These suggestions include the natural gifting of John for organization and administration, the personality differences between the brothers, and even the difference in the home lives of the brothers.
Each of these suggestions have merit. All certainly affected the relationship of John and Charles individually to the other Methodists. It is likely these all contributed in addition to other factors.
My opinion is that one factor overshadowed the rest. Charles was much harsher upon the next generation of leaders than his brother. Many examples could be given. This is my favorite one.
In a letter to John Bennet dated August 11, 1751, Charles writes:
A friend of ours [John Wesley] (without God’s counsel) made a preacher of a tailor. I with God’s help shall make a tailor of him again.
-Charles Wesley (from Tyson, Assist, 81-82)
Charles’s priority of the Church of England first, Methodists second caused friction. Not just with John. It also irritated many of the leaders who would remain after the death of both John and Charles.
Leaders that John promoted. Leaders Charles attempted to demote or otherwise dissuade.
These were the leaders of the next generation of Methodists. A generation that separated from the Church of England.
It comes as no surprise that this crop of leaders would highlight John to the neglect of Charles.
Related Questions
Was Methodism originally a denomination? No. The earliest Methodists were members of the Anglican Church. They desired to be a renewal movement within the Church of England. They were not separatists. The eventual decision to separate developed later.
Did Charles Wesley intend to start a denomination? No. Charles Wesley was an Anglican through and through. His entire ministry was performed as an ordained clergyman in the Church of England.
Did the original Methodists all hold to Arminian theology? No. The most famous and successful of the Methodist preachers was George Whitefield. Whitefield held to Calvinistic theological principles. This was a source of much debate between Whitefield and both John and Charles Wesley. The central thrust of the Methodist preaching was the gospel and holy living in obedience to the faith.
0 Comments