wfn.org | At the Roots of Methodism: Early followers knew persecution

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.ORG>]

Feb. 12, 2002   News media contact: Tim Tanton7(615)742-54707Nashville,
Tenn.  10-71B{050}

NOTE: This is a regular feature on Methodist history by John Singleton
prepared especially for distribution by United Methodist News Service. An
artist's rendering of John Wesley is available.

A UMNS Feature
By John Singleton*

At a time when religious tolerance is a very sensitive issue and when
violence against people of faith is still a reality in parts of the world,
it is sobering to remind ourselves that the pioneers of the Methodist
movement were often at the receiving end of orchestrated intolerance. 

Preaching in the market squares, streets and fields of mid-18th century
England was undoubtedly an unheard-of and effective way of communicating the
Gospel to thousands of people, but it also made the preachers and their
supporters vulnerable to the prejudice and hatred of many - some in high
places - who felt threatened by this burgeoning movement among ordinary
people. As a result, many early Methodists felt the brunt of violent
persecution firsthand.   

During the early years of the rapid spread of the movement, the riotous
intervention of mobs was more or less a continuous feature in parts of
Britain. On numerous occasions, the meetings of the Wesley brothers, George
Whitefield and many itinerant preachers were attacked by drunken, brawling
rabbles armed with such formidable weapons as clubs, bricks, stones, stink
bombs and rotten eggs. On occasion, the mob would procure a bull and drive
the tormented beast into the middle of an open-air congregation, while
sometimes they contented themselves by making a noise with bells, horns,
drums and pans to drown out the preacher's voice. 

Frequently, when goaded by a violent leader, the people in the mob resorted
to every available means of attack. Sometimes they expended their fury in
burning or tearing down the houses and destroying or stealing the furniture
and possessions of Methodist followers. It is known that John Wesley himself
was in grave danger of being killed while at the hands of mobs in
Staffordshire and Cornwall. His brother Charles narrowly escaped with his
life in the town of Devizes, in Wiltshire, and Whitefield - said to be
"covered with blood and on the point of falling" - was rescued in the nick
of time from the brutal fury of an Irish crowd in Dublin. 

Often, it seemed to be the very people whose duty it was to protect these
law-abiding citizens that were actively encouraging the mobs, or giving
tacit approval to what was happening from a safe distance. John Wesley
traced the majority of mob-induced riots to the doors of magistrates,
squires and people of standing known as "gentlemen." And as one can gather
from the frequent caustic references in his journal about their
ungentlemanly conduct, Wesley had little time for them. 

While it is true that members of the privileged classes supported Methodism,
even among the more pious of local gentry Wesley commonly found little to
admire. "In most genteel religious people, there is so strange a mixture
that I have seldom much confidence in them," he wrote. 

He cuttingly referred to the ringleaders of violence as "the beasts of the
people," as in this extract from his journal in 1769, which is both amusing
and revealing: "The beasts of the people were tolerably quiet till I had
nearly finished my sermon," he wrote. "Then they lifted up their voice,
especially one, called a gentleman, who had filled his pockets with rotten
eggs: but a young man coming unawares, clapped his hands on each side, and
mashed them all at once. In an instant he was perfume all over; though it
was not so sweet as balsam." 

On another occasion, "a kind of gentleman ... hired a company of boys to
shout, and made a poor man exceeding drunk, who bawled out much ribaldry and
nonsense, while he himself played the French horn." Some gentlemen
magistrates went to the sinister length of advising the mobs to "do what you
will" and then washing their hands of the consequences. Others issued
general warrants for the arrest of itinerant preachers; while, more than
once, these so-called gentlemen contracted with mobs to drive "all that were
called Methodists" out of their districts. 

Wesley's journal in February 1744 is particularly illuminating. After months
of sporadic terrorism and looting, a mob of people "hired by their betters"
and "bound by an oath" to plunder all the Methodists in Wednesbury -
probably the place with the worst reputation for persecuting the followers
of Wesley - set out to complete their design. 

Assaulting the homes of those who were known to be associated with the
movement, they first broke all the windows. Then, all the furniture that was
not easily removable was "dashed to pieces." They looted clothes and items
that were of value, "every man loading himself with as much as he could well
carry, of whatever he liked best." 

Some of the gentlemen who had set the mob to work - and apparently
threatened to sack their workers who did not come and join in the attack -
drew up a paper for Methodist supporters to sign, declaring that they would
never invite or receive any Methodist preacher again. It was on this
condition, they said, that the attacks would stop. Most refused to sign,
saying they would rather lose their lives than disobey their consciences. 

With the encouragement of Wesley, the Methodists offered no violent
resistance to the Wednesbury attacks, which left a trail of devastation with
"some hundreds" of houses wrecked and many people injured. But Wesley was
not a leader who would pontificate from a distance - he was frequently
alongside his followers in these situations, putting himself on the line for
the right to worship and share the Word of God. His was a creative
resistance.

His courage, peace and composure in the midst of these frightening
situations must have been an inspiration, as revealed in this extract from
his journal in 1743: "In the evening, as I was preaching at St. Ives, Satan
began to fight for his kingdom," he wrote. "The mob of the town burst into
the room and created much disturbance; roaring and striking those that stood
in the way, as though Legion himself possessed them." 

Wesley wrote that he would have "persuaded our people to stand still, but
the zeal of some and the fear of others had no ears." As the uproar
increased, "I went into the midst and brought the head of the mob up with me
to the desk," he wrote. "I received but one blow on the side of the head;
after which we reasoned the case, till he grew milder and milder, and at
length undertook to quiet his companions." 

Maybe we need a person of Wesley's stature and commitment to help bring
peace to some of our troubled communities in the world today.
# # #
*Singleton is former assistant editor of the Methodist Recorder newspaper in
London, England and currently full-time administrator for the Methodist
churches and social projects in the Tower Hamlets area of East London. He
can be contacted by e-mail at: john@towerhamlets.org.

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