blackforest
Well-known member
That’s all I was wondering . . .
Methodism began as an attempt to revive or renew the Church of England in the 18th century. Its founders were John Wesley, his brother Charles Wesley, and their friend George Whitefield. All three were Anglican clergymen, but they were evangelicals. By that I mean they were influenced by Pietist, Puritan and even some Catholic spirituality (Wesley read Thomas a Kempis’ The Imitation of Christ) that emphasized an experiential piety or “heart religion.” All three eventually had a conversion experience or what they would have termed the “new birth.”I am a Methodist, and my understanding is that Methodism came from Anglicanism/Episcopalianism.
Can someone who understands both explain what the major differences are?
I should perhaps add to this that the Church of England and the Methodist Church of Great Britain are in serious discussions about achieving unity. The Methodists have agreed to accept bishops into their polity (bishops in what Anglicans believe would be apostolic succession) and for future Methodist ministers to be episcopally ordained.While the United Methodists have bishops, these don’t have historic succession. In England, the Methodist Church never had bishops to begin with