3. THREE TREES
As well as the agricultural, industrial, scientific and intellectual revolutions happening in the eighteenth century, a profound change happened in spiritual life. Although various groups such as the religious societies, the Latitudinarians and the dissenting groups attempted to reverse the moral decline and deal with the disturbing changes in society, it was the Great Awakening more than anything else that altered the quality of English life.
The Revival was not a single coherent event. Three large oaks stand out in it, and other smaller saplings cluster around them.
The first stirrings of new life appeared not in England but in America. In 1734 the revival began in Northampton, Massachusetts, under the preaching of Jonathan Edwards. By the end of 1735 more than three hundred had been converted in the small town and the revival was spreading to other parts of the colonies.
3.1 Whitfield and the Welsh
In Britain the first flickers appeared in Wales. Although Griffith Jones, the Rector of Llandowror had preached an evangelical message since 1712, the fire broke out in Talgarth. The schoolmaster, Howell Harris, had been reading books published by SPCK. From March to June 1735 Harris struggled with his relationship with God and his guilt. At the Pentecost communion service he came to accept that Christ had died for his sins, and that he was truly a child of God. On June 18th "being in secret prayer, I felt suddenly my heart melting within me, like wax before the fire, with love to God my Saviour. I felt not only love and peace, but longing to be dissolved and to be with Christ. Then was a cry in my inmost soul, which I was totally unacquainted with before. 'Abba Father!' I could not help calling God, 'my Father'. I knew that I was his child, and that he loved me, and heard me." (Harris 16)
Harris, although not ordained, began to preach around the district and many were converted. Around the same time Daniel Rowland curate at Llangeitho and Llandewi Brefi had been affected by the preaching of Griffith Jones. His earnest preaching in turn touched off a revival in his own parish. In 1737 Rowland and Harris began to work together in South Wales.
Meanwhile in 1735 George Whitfield was converted while a student at Oxford. He had joined the Methodist's "Holy Club" and struggled to find faith through self-denial and intense religious devotion. Finally with his health damaged and at the end of his resources God revealed his grace to him. He wrote later, "God was pleased to remove the heavy load, to enable me to lay hold of his dear Son by a living faith, and by giving me the Spirit of adoption, to seal me even to the day of everlasting redemption." (Dallimore 1:77)
He was ordained by Bishop Benson in Gloucester Cathedral at the age of 21. Whitfield was the great orator of the Revival. His first sermon provoked protests that he had driven fifteen people mad. The bishop's response was that he hoped their madness would not be forgotten before the next Sunday. (Dallimore 1:97).
Whitfield soon began to preach to enormous crowds in the open air. His field preaching was due partly to the large crowds which were too big for any building, and also because increasingly churchmen would not allow him the use of their churches.
He regularly preached to crowds of up to 20,000. In fact many estimates are much higher. It is likely that some of Whitfield's estimates may be exaggerated. Even allowing for crowds half the size of those recorded, the numbers are still huge, in the order of 20,000 to 30,000.
Benjamin Franklin, the great American scientist and diplomat, was impressed both by the quality of Whitfield's oration and the strength of his voice. Franklin on one occasion measured the area reached by his voice and wrote, "I computed that he might well be heard by more than thirty thousand." Dallimore (1:296).
About his speech, Franklin wrote, " ... every accent, every emphasis, every modulation of voice, was so perfectly well turned and well placed, that, without being interested in the subject, one could not help being pleased with the discourse; a pleasure of much the same kind with that received from an excellent piece of musick." (Dallimore 1:116)
There is no doubt that Whitfield possessed a remarkable voice as well as an amazing ability to capture the imagination with his words.
He persuaded the Wesley brothers to preach in the open air, and like them he often preached two or three times a day. He did this from soon after his ordination until his death at 55.
He preached many times in nearly all the counties of England, made seven trips to America, fifteen to Scotland and many visits to Wales. He established two large churches in London.
He had an important ministry to Lady Huntingdon who became a patron of evangelical ministry and provided openings for Whitfield and others to minister to the nobility.
Whitfield, like Wesley, organised his followers into "societies" and was regarded as the leader and founder of Methodism during his lifetime. At that stage "methodism" was a general, disapproving, term for the "enthusiasts", and the various groups were not distinguished.
Such distinctions developed over time. One of the most important was the difference in theology between Wesley and Whitfield. Whitfield had a Calvinist theology of salvation, whereas Wesley was an Arminian. This led to a parting of the ways after Wesley preached a strong sermon against predestination. After reconciliation proved difficult, Whitfield pulled back from the leadership of the movement preferring to let Wesley have first place. In response to his supporters who urged him against such a move, he said, "Let the name of Whitfield perish, but Christ be glorified!" (NDT 721). The two men remained friends and Wesley preached at Whitfield's funeral.
Although Whitfield established societies, he was not nearly as effective as Wesley and in time his branch of Calvinist Methodism did not continue like Wesleyan Methodism did.
3.2 Wesley and the Methodists
If Whitfield was the great orator of the movement, Wesley was its great organiser and writer.
Born as the fifteenth child of Samuel and Susannah Wesley in 1703, John grew up with his younger brother Charles (one of the revival's great hymn writers) in the rectory at Epworth where his father was rector. John took his BA at Oxford in 1724 and MA in 1727. It was not until 1725 that he decided to enter the ministry. This was his religious or moral conversion. He became a fellow of Lincoln College Oxford, and after a short time as his father's curate he returned to Lincoln in 1729.
On his return he became the leader of a small religious society Charles had formed. Dubbed the "Holy Club" by others, they were later called "methodists". They studied the Greek New Testament, read other ancient authors in Greek or Latin, fasted twice a week, took the sacrament weekly, and visited the sick and imprisoned. Habits which led to great ridicule in the predominantly clerical community of Oxford!
In 1735 John and Charles went to Georgia. John was a rigorist still not at peace with himself. His time in Georgia was marked by conflict and he was virtually driven out of the colony. The return journey was very frightening because of a massive storm that broke over the ship. Wesley wrote as he approached England, "I went to America to convert the Indians; but oh! who shall convert me? who, what is he that will deliver me from this evil heart of mischief? I have a fair summer religion. I can talk well; nay, and believe myself, while no danger is near; but let death look me in the face, and my spirit is troubled. Nor can I say, "To die is gain!" (Journal 53).
On the ship home he met some Moravian brethren. Another of them, Peter Bohler, continued to talk to Wesley after his return. Wesley was searching for real faith. He wrote, "All this time I conversed much with Peter Bohler, but I understood him not; least of all when he said, "MY brother, my brother, that philosophy of yours must be purged away." (Journal 57). Frustrated that he did not have true faith he resolved to give up preaching till he did. Bohler's advice was, "Preach faith till you have it; and then, because you have it, you will preach faith." (Journal 58).
The resolution of his difficulty happened on May 24, 1738. Wesley's account is, "In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street, where one was reading Luther's preface to the Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone, for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death." (Journal 64).
This personal experience of salvation was a new element in religious life of the time. Most clergy thought baptism was a sufficient mark of salvation. Wesley's experience changed his ministry dramatically. There was a new fire in his preaching and a new power. At last he was able to make an impact on the terrible moral state of English society. His preaching was a dramatic contrast to the Latitudinarian style which one commentator described as "a blank verse style of preaching" (EQ 53.3, 135).
As for the change in people, Wesley wrote, "Many persons in London, in Bristol, in York, and in various parts, both of England and Ireland, have experienced so deep and universal a change as it had not before entered into their hearts to conceive, After a deep conviction of inbred sin ..., they have been so filled with faith and love (and generally in a moment) that sin vanished, and they found from that time no pride, anger, desire, or unbelief. they could rejoice evermore, pray without ceasing and in everything give thanks. Now, whether we call this destruction or suspension of sin, it is a glorious work of God - such a work as, considering both the depth and extent of it, we never saw in these kingdoms before." (EQ 53.3, 147 ).
The experience of methodism was focussed on love. An experience of God's love and a consequent love for God and others. The care of the poor and needy was a dominant aspect of Wesley's life and the instructions he gave to his converts. He taught that justification was by faith, and accompanying this was also the gracious sanctifying of God. This sanctification was received by faith and could therefore also be instantaneous. However Wesley always denied any sort of static absolute perfectionism. He believed that although sanctification by grace was received by faith and therefore was complete in one sense, the work of changing the life of the believer was progressive and continued until death.
Wesley organised his followers into small groups, classes, which were united by a strong discipline. Lay led, and focussed on prayer and bible reading, the classes were also marked by mutual encouragement, the reporting of personal failures and an openness to scrutiny by others in the group. A highly developed organisation allowed these groups to multiply and to nurture new converts. Although Wesley stayed a loyal member of the Church of England all his days, his converts were not always welcomed in the churches. Thus the class groups formed the centre of spiritual life, and eventually, when they could no longer be nurtured in the Church of England, provided an infrastructure for a new denomination.
Wesley's work was awesome. It is estimated during his 52 years of ministry he travelled about 4,000 miles each year, and preached more than 40,000 sermons. He wrote tracts, published sermons, wrote materials for his classes - over 400 publications in his lifetime.
His contribution to English religious life is still being felt. Methodism as it developed had a strong concern for the poor and needy. The modern Pentecostal and charismatic movements can trace their heritage back to this evangelical revival . Wesley and the others brought a vital Christianity to all strata of eighteenth century Britain especially to the working classes.