The Sun.
London, England, 1835-12-04 00:00:00

Since John Wesley's death, his successors of the Conference have
endeavoured to root themselves as " a spiritually secular power" in
the land—to rival, to outstrip, and then to cast under them' all
other modes or forms of faith whatever. They have, for near half
• a century, been underworking the rights and freedoms of mankind;
the same outside show of doctrine and of discipline, which their
Father left them, being uniformly presented to the beguiled and
beblinded eye of their unsuspecting adherents. The last meshes of
their net have lately been knotted, and upwards of one million of
our fellow-countrymen, of their classes and congregations, in Great
Britain alone, now find themselves enclosed within the toils of an
ecclesiastical economy, which asserts the divine right of an irrespon-
, Bible priesthood to legislate in all matters of doctrine, whilst it
maintains the legal right ONE HUNDRED self-chosen elders of that
priesthood to have and to hold, to open and to shut, several thousand
houses for worship, all raised by voluntary subscripti on ,for the reli-
gious instruction and benefit of the respective neighbourhoods, in
which they have been built. Besides which appalling fact, it is
openly, unblushingly asserted, that, while this priesthood can deal
as they list with the souls of men and the things pertaining to God
----the members of their numerous societies and congregations have
no right whatever, human or divine, so much as to deliberate, much
less to decide upon, any of the great principles which associate
them together as a religious or a corporate body. Certain opinions,
held indiscriminately, amongst all classes of the community, civil
and religions, have been declared irreeoncileable with the con-
aezional existence of the parties holding them ; certain proceed-
ings, sanctioned every where else in the churches of Christ, have
been denounced as unmethodistical, and, have entailed the sum-
mary excommunication of all who have hitherto dared to iden-
tify themselves therewith. Thus, within a few short months (the
Machinations of these lords over God's heritage being completed),
several preachers, with thousands of the members of the body
have been solemnly expelled. These men are now unwillingly
obliged to renounce all connexion with their brethren—all claim
. and title to the temples they have assisted in rearing, in which
themselves and their children, and their neighbours, have toge-
• par worshipped the Lord God of their fathers. Since the in-
amoui Act of Uniformity was proclaimed, the consequences of
which, are matters of notorious history, so frightful, so dar-',
inl; a stretch of priestly prerogative, has never been exhibited'
in the United Kingdom. Of the real state of things in this
hotly, the country at large has but little knowledge—nor are
our fellow-countrymen at all aware of the dangers with which they
In common with themselves, are menaced by these overt acts of an
ecclesiastical tyranny. The concentration, the organisation, the
secrecy, the ease, with which, at the nod of one man, the most
complicated, yet most efficient machinery in the world is now
1, brought to bear upon the people of England, as one means of
checking the progress of salutary reforms ; and, under the mask of
religion at home, and missions abroad, of overtopping all other
churches, and upon their ruins causing a second grisly papacy to
arise. These religious and political features of Wesleyan Metho-
dism, as at present administered, are now disclosing themselves in
tt Way that, unhappily, leaves no room for doubt, whilst it must fill
the mind of the generous philanthropist with serious apprehension,
if not with dismay.
To counteract this influence, anti, if possible, to subvert this
ower—to find out what is the freedom wherewith Christ has made
Ills people free, and then—having attained unto the truth of God
(whether Wesley, or Calvin, or Luther, may have aided us in our
search after it), to hand down the clustering blessings that grow
out of it, to our children after us : this great idea has led to the for-
trillion of the Wesleyan Methodist Association. 'Whetherlit shall
succeed or not, it is for God—for time—for the friends of truth—
everywhere to determine. On this one thing the members of this
Association have set their hearts, and they hereby again pledge
themselves, never to grow weary, so long as they have any hope from
steaven—any help from their brethren, whatever may be their creed.
and whatever the name by which they are called. Tho object of
• this address is to call the attention of Christians, and of the public
lenerally, to the present position and aspects of the Wesleyan Con-
/erence, on the one hand, and of its reformers on the other—to
I°rewarn Englishmen of all classes of the danger that threatens
their municipal and national liberties, through the wily but stea-
alit
y progressing career of this now stupendous bod, more secret—
latther ramified--and more dangerous than any Orange Union that
"et' plotted against our freedom—to forearm all, thus forewarned,
that they may be ready to meet these men at every fresh develop-
ment of their deep-laid schemes, and to bespeak the counsel and
support of all who are willing to take any part in reforming this
treat people, and so, relatively, in reforming the entire Church of
"esus Christ,
, The friendly leaning of Wesleyanism towards the Church of Eng-
land so
,grandiloquently but gratuitously trumpeted forth by the
Conference of 1834, and so covertly made to bear upon the politico-
religious crisis of that period, together with some more recent at-
tempts to conciliate the influential Dissenters, whom y had
Previonsly most caeilierly- affected to despise, has happilythe opened
the eyes of both these great parties in the State to the Jesuitical
character of modern Methodism,—running with the hare, butbold-
ing, with the hound,—standing; aloof on the field of battle, and in
treaty with-eath of 'the contending host's, until the hour of hottest
fight should afford an opportunity to pour down with its mercenary
egions, and occasion their mutual discomfiture. This trickery with
the
.„ one party, and treachery with the other has disgusted them
both. Whig and Tory, Churchman and Dissenter, Conservative
And Reformer, Protestant and Papist, are all alike prepared for the
tortuous, though undeviating, policy of the best organised, and
most dangerous hierarchy, at present to be found in Christendom.
we seek not, as an Association, to mingle in this strife. We are
Inen, Britons, and followers of Christ; as such, we.would seek out
the truth, and, having found it, under whatever shape we care
Sot, we are willing to walk after it, and to abide by it. Whoever
HI like-minded with ourselves in this matter, or whoever should
think we are in this, followers of that which is good, he is the man
to whom we look at the present crisis of our ecclesiastical and na-
tional existence, for the kindly help he sees we need ; whilst,
at the same time, we trust we shall not be backward in doing
all that may be in our power to assist him in the furtherance
Of everything that shall be shown to be truly wise and good,
and strong and holy. Sure we are, that the times we live in,
are not times either for sleep or for sloth. The minds if men
_everywhere are athirst, we might almost say, agasp, for some better
thing than that they have hitherto been furnished with. We are
hating, the
are woe, when we look at the tearing, the biting, the
'ating, the worrying of one another, that has been, and still is,
"50 visible in some of the sections of the professing church of
Christ. Men and brethren help—come up with us to the help of
Lord--to the help of the Lord against the mighty.
We call, then, most earnestly upon the free press, metropolitan
and provincial, to afford their powerful assistance in disabusing the
mind of the public, who know little or nothing comparatively of
the real itate'of this hierarchy ; we invite the notice of all parties
°l' politicians to the existence of a priestly power, that is ready for
the time and 'to 'the seeming, -to cooks° with any, whilst it is
the silently working its way over them all, and above them all, and to
destruction of them all. We solicit the assistance, pecuniary
arid every other, of the friends of truth and liberty—the wise—the
P'eal--tho good of all parties, who are bound to none, but God
io enable us to carry to successful termination a work which
^'e have midertaken, not with any private aim, but for the public
‘4. ckld_,- and in which we are resolved never to slacken, whatever the
vs' ‘.Lt rifles we may be called upon personally to make, until having
1"r‘l tight the subject before the whole British public in its courts of
',AV' and of equity, and of supreme legisktion ; and, lastly, before
itsm ost awful and all-determining tribunal—the tribunal of public
°P.lnis.on--it be seen what the truth '1,3 and whether that truth shall
'stand or fall.
In every principal town a Committee of the Wesleyan Me-
.`"-o(rist Association is to be found, to whom Donations and Sub-
a2jilitions can be transmitted; thence to be conveyed to the Man-
chester and Liverpool Central Committee, or to either of the fol-
. NMI"' gentlemen :—W. Smith, Esq., Reddish House, near Stock-
Istrt -13 Wood, Esq., Newton-street, Manchester ; 'Richard
Esq., St. Ann-street, Liverpool; or John Thurston, Esq.,
7,4therine-sileet, Strand, London.
Liverpool, Qct..24183, _