Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1903-07-11

millions of MethOdistS recently cele-
brated. was born and bred in the
Episcopal or established church of
England, whose ministry he entered
in early life. He never failed to in
c1ude her name in his prayers and he
died in her full communion. OF Yves
ley the late Dean Farrar of Canter-
bury said: He loved the church
which hated him. He saved the
church of England, although at first
she so angrily and CONTEMPORARY re-
jected him."
John Wesley was born in the rec
tory at Epworth, Eng, June II. 1903,
o. S. When John was but s, the
duke of Buckingham, lord chamberlain
to Queen Anne, gave him a free schol
arship in the famous school of the
Charterhouse in London
While at the Charterhouse school,
in May, 1716, an explosion destroyed a
witch the proprietor moved to Wool
witch and established the royal ar
senal. This shattered foundry, TWEEN
ty-three years afterward, Wesley re-
stored and converted into the mother
church of the whole family of Method
list churches on every continent AL
though it would seat 1900 persons,
it often became so crowded that adj
journnent was necessary to the open
fields, and in 177S Wesley completed
and opened, Nov. /, the Wesley chap
ell, on City road, London This has
been many times renovated, but the
present shell of the building, the gal
Ieries and rail are all of Wesley's
time, and the place. filled with me-
mentoes, is still a Mecca for all low
ers of Methodist history.
In 1920 Wesley left the Charter
house for Christ Church college, Ok
ford, taking with him a school ex-
hibition prize of 5000 a year, but he
never lost his veneration and love for
his first school
Wesley's mind turned to asceticism,
with high church beliefs, strong ritu-
alistic tendencies and mystical bias,
from which, however, he emerged in
1725, to the doctrine of present saliva
ton from guilt and fear through the
indwelling of Christ" a belief opposed
alike to high Guardianship and to
Calvinism. In the same year Wesley
and his mother renowned the doc
trine of predestination.
+, Wesley was ordained deacon by
Bishop John Potter of Oxford, Sept.
10, 1725, and priest Sept. %, 1928.
His first sermon was at South Leigh
in Oxfordshire in 172k.
On his 23d birthday he was elected
a fellow of Lincoln college. His faith
er then had but $50 to keep his family
until after the harvest, but he wrote
in high spirits, what will be my own
fate God knows, but wherever / am
my Jack is a fellow of Lincoln
Lincoln college, within whose walls
Methodism was Graded, was founded
in the fifteenth century by two bish-
ops of Lincoln, in order to counterfeit
heresies dangerous to the church, but
John Wesley, the revolutionist, was
connected with it more than a quar-
ter of century, and it's name appears
on the title pages of all his works.
He became Greek lecturer, and from
then to the close of his life was a
hard and wide student, Hebrew,
Greek, Arabic, Latin, logic, ethics,
metaphysics, natural philosophy, po-
etry and divinity entering into his
weekly plan of study. In 1927, only "a
years old, he obtained the degree of
master of arts His financial struggles
were over and by strict economy he
was thenceforth able to help his faith
Gl anu LIS 1dlAlly-
His father was now 65 years old,
and to fill the small living of Moote
in addition to that of Epworth he
needed a curate. So, although John
was offered a school at good income
he acted on his own judgment, prompt
ed by his filial devotion and his moth
er's advice, went to his fathers aid in
Lincolnshire, and there remained more
than two years. This was his only
parochial work
The name of Methodist was first
bestowed upon Charles Wesley, Johns
older brother and his friends, because
of their strict conformity to the meth
cd of study prescribed by the uni
versity, but John Wesley became the
father of Methodism, which he gave
a new Interpretation in his English
dictionary, "One who lives accord
ing to the method laid down in the
Bfble.'
John Wesley returned to Oxford as
q tutor in 1929. and there found The
Holy club which had been started
by his brother Charles two years be-
fore. He almost Immediately became
its leader, and so continued until 1875.
This movement was spiritual, humani
tartan and scriptural, its first and con-
slant work being the study of the BIZ
BILE. Among it's members was George
Whitefield, who, until he was Is years
old. drew ale for customers at his
fathers inn in Gloucester He was
converted in 1895, in his 21st year,
and at once became a member of the
club