John Wesley’s Birthday
John Wesley was born on June 17, 1703 in Epworth, England to Rev. Samuel and Susanna Wesley. Samuel was the pastor of St. Andrew Church. John was the sixteenth of nineteen children born to Susanna. Samuel served as rector of St. Andrew Church for 39 years. In the mid-18th century the calendar was changed in England. Ten days were dropped off the calendar. This was to bring England into uniformity with the rest of the world who had made the change to the Gregorian calendar in 1582. This changed John Wesley’s birth date to June 28. John Wesley died in 1791.
I found an interesting article about John Wesley that contained ten facts about John Wesley on his birthday.
1) John Wesley wrote one of the best-selling medical texts. The book had home remedies and went through 32 editions, making it one of the most read books in England.
2) John Wesley coined the term “agree to disagree”. This was Wesley’s way of holding to his convictions while remaining in connection with those whom he disagreed.
3) John Wesley rode far enough on horseback to circle the earth 10 times. Wesley rode 250,000 miles. He was convinced that it was important for him personally to spread the gospel through relationships and continue to grow closer to God in those relationships.
4) Wesley had serious doubts about his faith and thought that doubts were essential in making any belief system one’s own.
5) “Methodist” was originally a derogatory term. It was originally used by outsiders to mock John Wesley because of the dedication to follow a method of growing closer to God.
6) Wesley counseled people to “eat a little less than you desire.” Wesley weighed in at 128 pounds and instructed others to not be ruled by their natural desires.
7) Wesley never intended to split from the Church of England. Wesley ordained the ministers sent to America so they could distribute the sacraments and this began the separation. The Methodist Church in England did not officially form until after Wesley’s death.
8) Wesley never said this famous quote attributed to him. The quote – “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, as long as you can.” This quote is consistent with Wesley’s beliefs, but there is no record of Wesley ever saying that.
9) Wesley believed you could not be a Christian on your own. Wesley thought that we could only grow as Christians in community.
10) Methodism grew from four to 132,000 during Wesley’s lifetime. The movement started with only four who called themselves “the holy club”. When he died he left 72,000 members in the British Isles and 60,000 in America.
Monday, June 28, 1703 is John Wesley’s birthday. John Wesley started a world-wide movement of those wanting to be closer to God!
Prayer – As we celebrate John Wesley’s birthday, we are reminded that we all need to be closer to God. We need to gather in our own “holy clubs” as we seek to be followers of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Author: Tommy Herndon
