ber of members in connection with him in Europe, America, and the West Indian Islands, was 80,000. And at the last conference in 1831, the numbers returned were, in Great Britain, 249,119; in Ireland, 22,470; in the Foreign Missions, 42,743. Total 314,332. Exclusive of more than half a million of persons in the Societies in the States of America."* You are probably aware that, besides the public preaching, Wesley instituted among his people several kinds of private meetings. To the public prayer meetings, which were generally held in private houses, persons not of this sect were often invited, and on these occasions a hymn was first sung, then they all knelt, and the first who felt "moved” made an extempore prayer; when he had finished, another commenced, and so on for about two hours. These prayer meetings were held in such high esteem among the Methodists, that they asserted more were "born again" and "made free," as they termed it, "from all the remains of sin," than at any other meetings, public preachings, &c. There was much in this kind of meeting which was likely to lead to enthusiasm, which is universally found to be most easily awakened where numbers are congregated; and according to an author formerly of their persuasion,† the consequence was such as might have been expected. "It is impossible," says he, "to form any just idea of those assemblies except you had been present at them. One coaxes the Divine Being, another is amorous, and a third will tell the Deity, 'He must be a liar if he does not grant all they ask.' They thus go on working up each other's imagination until they become as it were spiritually intoxicated, and while in this state they sometimes recollect a text or two of Scripture, such as Thy sins are forgiven thee'-'Go and sin no more''Go in peace,' &c., and then declare themselves to be 'born again' or 'sanctified." " The love feast is also a private meeting of as many members of the community as choose to attend; and * Watson's Life of Wesley, page 484. they generally assemble from all parts within several miles of the place where the feast is held. They then alternately sing and pray, and some among them, who think that their experience, as they term it, is remarkable, stand up, and narrate all the transactions which they say have taken place between God, the devil, and their souls. There is a curious propensity to egotism in human nature which frequently shows itself in religious matters. Men love to talk of themselves: and the Romanist finds pleasure in the power of pouring forth all his feelings and thoughts to his father confessor, whenever he is strongly excited by passion: of this I have become aware from personal knowledge. Other enthusiasts enjoy no less satisfaction in talking of the interior conflicts they have sustained; for all ungoverned feeling loves to vent itself in speech, and the lover who talks of his mistress, or the penitent who talks of his sins, is for the time being in the same state of restless excitement. Governed feeling, on the contrary, as far as my experience goes, is silent. In these Love Feasts those present have buns to eat, which are mutually broken between each "Brother and Sister," and water to drink, which they hand from one to another. These meetings commence about seven o'clock, and last till nine or ten. Each society is divided into smaller companies called "classes," according to their respective places of abode. There are about twelve persons in every class, one of whom is styled "the Leader," whose business it is to see each person in his class, at least once a week, to advise, comfort, or exhort, as occasion may require, and to receive what each is willing to give towards the support of the Gospel. It is expected that every member should continue to evince his desire of salvation by abstaining from "the taking of the name of the Lord in vain;" "the profaning of the Lord's day, either by ordinary work thereon, or by buying and selling;" "drunkenness, buying or selling spirituous liquors, or drinking them, unless in cases of extreme necessity; fighting, quarreling, brawling; going to law with a brother; returning evil for evil, or railing for railing; the using many words in buying or selling.* The buying or selling uncustomed goods; the giving or taking things on usury, i e., unlawful interest; the putting on of gold or costly apparel; the taking such diversions as cannot be used in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ; the singing those songs or reading those books, that do not tend to the knowledge or love of God;-softness and needless self-indulgence, &c.† Among the duties expected and required of the members are all kinds of beneficence, diligence, frugality, self-denial, and attendance on all the ordinances of God, among which is specifically mentioned fasting. If any member habitually break any of these rules, he is admonished; and if he do not then repent, expulsion follows. "Marrying with unbelievers," and bankruptcy, if the party has not kept fair accounts, are also followed by expulsion. No one I think can doubt that much good was effected by the first preaching of Wesley and his disciples, for at that time our church was in a lethargic state, and the lower orders shamefully neglected in spiritual matters in many parts of England. Yet there are some things which excite one's regret in their practices, and of these none "Who does as he would be done by, in buying or selling? particularly selling horses? Write him a knave that does not, and the Methodist knave is the worst of all knaves."-Wesley's Large Minutes, Q. 13. + Snuff-taking and drams are expressly forbidden. In May, 1776, an order was made in the House of Lords, "That the Commissioners of His Majesty's Excise do write circular letters to all such persons whom they have reason to suspect to have plate, as also to those who have not paid regularly the duty on the same." In consequence of this order, the accountant-general for household plate, sent a copy of it to John Wesley. The answer was as follows: Sir, I have two silver teaspoons in London, and two at Bristol : this is all the plate which I have at present, and I shall not buy any more while so many round me want bread. I am, sir, your most humble servant, JOHN WESLEY. displeases me more than the familiar use of Scripture language, which when properly and judiciously applied is striking and solemn; but to hear every notion of enthusiastic ignorance, every rise and fall of the animal spirits, expressed in the language of the Apostles and Evangelists, and even of our Lord himself; to witness their familiarity with the Almighty, their full trust and confidence in the reality of small miracles wrought at their request; must always be painful to a soberly religious mind. In a book entitled "The Bank of Faith," the author asserts, that a dog brought him mutton to eat, that fish died at night in a pond on purpose to be eaten by him in the morning, and that money, clothes, &c., in short, everything he could desire, he attained by prayer.* An old woman of Wesley's society, named Mary Hubbard, would often wash her linen, hang it out to dry, and go away to work in the fields, or to Taunton Market, four miles from her house, and when blamed for thus leaving her linen unprotected, she would reply that "the Lord watched over her and all that she had, and that he would prevent any person from stealing her two old smocks, or if He permitted them to be stolen, He would send her two new ones in their stead." I seriously assure you, says the author who relates this tale, and who at one time went even greater lengths† than this old wo "I used my prayers," says the author of the Bank of Faith," as gunners do swivels; turning them every way as the cases required." Wesley relates in his Journal, that "By prayer he used to cure a violent pain in his head," &c. This writer, the celebrated Lackington the bookseller relates the following occurrence soon after he turned Methodist. "One Sunday morning at eight o'clock, my mistress seeing her sons set off, and knowing they were gone to a Methodist meeting, determined to prevent me from doing the same, by locking the door; on which, in a superstitious mood, I opened the Bible for direction what to do, and the first words I read were these, "He shall give his angels charge concerning thee, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone." This was enough for me, so without a moment's hesitation I ran up two pair of stairs to my own room, and out of the window I leapt to the great terror of my poor mistress. My feet and ankles were most in man, "that there are many thousand Mary Hubbards among the Methodists." It may be added, that their strict abstinence from the common amusements of the world, even where innocent in themselves, has its evils, as I have already noticed when speaking of the Quakers; for the mind cannot always be kept in a state of tension, and if we refuse ourselves recreation altogether, there is danger that we shall find the yoke of Christ a wearisome instead of an easy one, and cast it off in disgust; nay, I am afraid that if we were to inquire closely, we should find instances enough of this result to demonstrate, what indeed wants but little proof, i. e., that God knows better than we do "whereof we are made," and that it is not wisdom to bind a heavy burden on our shoulders when Christ himself has declared that his is light. Still, though tinged with a degree of enthusiasm which we may regret, the doctrine of the Wesleyan Methodists retains the fundamental parts of Christianity, and after reading the following extracts from Wesley's Sermons, I think you will hardly forbear asking, Why is this a separate sect? "Justifying Faith implies not only a Divine λEYXOS, evidence or conviction, that 'God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself,' but a sure trust and confidence that Christ died for my sins, that he loved me, and gave himself for me; and the moment a penitent sinner believes this, God pardons and absolves him."* "Chris tolerably bruised, so that I was obliged to be put to bed; and it was more than a month before I recovered the use of my limbs. I was then ignorant enough to think that the Lord had not used me very well; and I resolved not to put so much trust in him for the future. My rash adventure made a great noise in the town, and was talked of many miles round. Some few admired my prodigious strength of faith; but the major part pitied me as a poor ignorant, deluded, and infatuated boy." * Wesley's Works, vol. xii. p. 49. Some of Wesley's expressions, when confronted with each other, appear incompatible; in such cases the main drift of the writer must always be considered; for it is much more usual to fail in expressing our meaning, than to express contradictory opinions: since the latter implies a cerebral defect verging on insanity; the former |