Methodism at the Crossroads

Abstract

Abstract The year 1784 represents a landmark in Methodist history as John Wesley established the Conference as his successor and ordained preachers for the United States. These events, which established de facto Methodist institutional independence from the Church of England, were foreshadowed by developments during the 1770s and early 1780s as separatists and Church‐Methodists agitated in support of conflicting visions of the Methodist future. These conflicts and the events of 1784 illustrate several important but understated themes of early Methodist history, such as the political nature of the Wesley brothers, the strong support for the Church of England within the ranks of laity and preachers, and how 19th century Methodist scholarship sanitized and distorted the movement's early history.