Wesley and the Anglicans: Political Division in Early Evangelicalism

Why did the Wesleyan Methodists and the Anglican evangelicals divide during the middle third of the eighteenth century? Many would argue that the division between was based narrowly on theological matters, especially predestination and perfection. Danker suggests, however, that politics was a major factor throughout driving the Wesleyan Methodists and Anglican evangelicals apart. Methodism was perceived to be linked with the radical and seditious politics of the Cromwellian period. This was a charged claim in a post-Restoration England. Likewise he explores the political force of resurgent Tory influence under George III which exerted more pressure on evangelicals to prove their loyalty to the Establishment. These political realities made it hard for evangelicals in the Church of England to cooperate with Wesley and meant that all their theological debates were politically infected. Rich in detail, this book traces the personalities involved along with the relative importance of canon law ("regularity"), public criticism and episcopal censure, parochial boundaries, lay ordination and sacramental administration, and alternative theological visions related to the Church of England. Here is a book for all who seek deeper insight into a critical juncture in the development of evangelicalism and early Methodism.