DOCSLIB.ORG

The Awakenings

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Awakenings Church History: reformation to the present the awakenings In the 1700s and 1800s, Christian revivals deeply affected individuals and society. any Christians put great emphasis on correct doctrine, believing that “rightly dividing the word of truth” is the most important aspect of Christian faith. Others put the emphasis on proper worship, that M everything “be done decently and in order.” But most of us would agree that faith is more than doctrine or worship. Jesus commands us to love God with mind and strength, but he also says we must love with the heart. In the 1700s in America and Britain, preachers began to emphasize the “new birth,” preaching and teaching that genuine conversion is usually accompanied by emotion: great sorrow for sin, great joy at forgiveness. This had an electric effect on both nations and led to the beginning of modern evangelicalism. This study looks at the 18th-century Great Awakening in Britain and America, and briefly at the 19th-century American frontier revivals. During these “awakenings,” Christians discussed and debated the place of emotions in the walk of faith—a question that still faces believers today. Scripture: Psalm 51:1–12; Matthew 3:8; 7:16; 15:8; 22:37; Acts 2:14–21; 1 Corinthians 1:18–25 Based on: The CHRISTIAN HISTORY issue “George Whitefield,” including the articles “The Gallery: Leaders of the Awakening Army” and “Faith and Feelings” ©2011 Christianity Today International | ChristianBibleStudies.com 36 Christian History: reformation to the present The Awakenings Part 1 IDENTIFY THE CURRENT ISSUE Note to leader: Provide each person with the articles included at the end of this study. The Puritan settlers came to New England to establish a “holy commonwealth.” They brought with them a vibrant faith and orthodox theology. Descendants of the original settlers, though, had less enthusiasm for their parents’ vision. In comparison, the faith of the following generations seemed lifeless and formal. In addition, the intellectual skepticism coming from Europe’s Enlightenment began to make inroads in the colonies, which encouraged many to equate Christian faith with reasonable thinking. Between 1725 and 1760, the colonies and Britain experienced major revivals; collectively, these are known as the Great Awakening. Preachers like George Whitefield tried to help listeners feel convicted of sin, by vividly describing human lostness and passionately preaching the good news. As a result, thousands of people experienced a “new birth.” Most denominations—Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists, and Congregationalists—grew as a result of the awakenings, though Anglicans (Episcopalians) generally did not. England, Scotland, and Wales experienced similar awakenings through the work of Whitefield and John and Charles Wesley, among others. Some Christians belittled the revivals. In America in the mid-1700s, “Old Light” theologians such as Charles Chauncey of Boston sneered at the “enthusiasm” of revivals. Critics claimed revivals were emotional froth, pandering to the lower classes’ need for excitement. Jonathan Edwards (1703–58), New England theologian and revivalist, eloquently defended the awakenings. In his Treatise on Religious Affections, he admitted that some of the excitement was passing, and some was excessive. But some had its origins in the Holy Spirit. Edwards argued that a truly converted person would show it in a life of good works, and an emotional faith without works was dead; still, in true conversion, since all of a person is converted, the emotions would be engaged. Around 1800, a series of revivals began in America, which some historians have dubbed the Second Great Awakening. Its preachers were flamboyant, extemporaneous, and in touch with the common person. As they preached, people convicted of sin sometimes did things unthinkable in standard church services—fainting, rolling, falling, dancing, jerking, and so on. These frontier preachers made use of outdoor camp meetings, which became a permanent fixture in American religion. The meetings drew people from a vast area and were social as well as spiritual happenings. Itinerant preachers known as circuit riders ©2011 Christianity Today International | ChristianBibleStudies.com 37 Christian History: reformation to the present The Awakenings played an important role in frontier regions where settlements were widely dispersed. Singing was a key component in the meetings, leading to many new songs that tended to emphasize a person’s deep sorrow over sin and delight in walking with God. Later in the 1800s, urban evangelists like Charles G. Finney, a former attorney, made their own contributions to national awakening. Finney and likeminded preachers believed that emotion should turn people’s minds to higher things—the reasonableness of God’s claim on their lives and the loathsomeness of their sin. As a result of these awakenings in the 1700s and 1800s, churches grew, colleges were founded, and good works flourished. A contemporary observer wrote of revivals leading to “good order, tranquility, and happiness, as well as . the humble and sincere piety that reigns in many a heart.” America became indelibly stamped with an evangelical mindset. Discussion Starters: [Q] What place do emotions have in the Christian faith? [Q] George Whitefield said, “Before ever . you can speak peace to your hearts, you must be brought to see, brought to believe, what a dreadful thing it is to depart from the living God.” [Q] Do you agree that before you become a Christian, you have to feel lost? [Q] When you become a Christian, do you need to feel the joy of Christ’s forgiveness and presence? Why or why not? Part 2 DISCOVER THE ETERNAL PRINCIPLES Teaching Point One: Believers must worship God “in Spirit.” “He that has doctrinal knowledge and speculation only, without holy affection, never is engaged in the business of religion. True religion is a powerful thing . a vigorous engagedness of the heart.” —Jonathan Edwards Read Matthew 3:8; 7:16; 15:8; 22:37. [Q] Some revivalist preachers argued that it is impossible to be a Christian and not experience sorrow for sin or the love of God. Do you agree? Why or why not? ©2011 Christianity Today International | ChristianBibleStudies.com 38 Christian History: reformation to the present The Awakenings [Q] In what ways does your church encourage emotional demonstrations? Discourage them? Should churches encourage such? [Q] When have you had an emotional experience in worship or prayer and the result was good? When did you have such an experience and the result harmed your walk with Christ? What was the difference? [Q] What, in your opinion, are the greatest drawbacks to letting people express themselves more emotionally in worship or prayer? The greatest benefits? [Q] According to Acts 2:14–21, what did Peter quote Joel as saying would happen in the last days? Do you think that is a one-time event, or the norm for Christians? [Q] The psalmists freely expressed their emotions in prayer and song. Sometimes they were elated: “Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord” (Ps. 95:1); sometimes dejected: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me” (Ps. 22:1); sometimes angry: “Repay [the wicked] for their deeds” (Ps. 28:4). Does this mean that all emotional responses to God are justified? Why or why not? Teaching Point Two: Believers must worship God “in truth.” “Ecstasy is no guarantee of orthodoxy or that Christian fruit will result.” —Nathan O. Hatch, historian Read 1 Corinthians 1:18–25. [Q] Jonathan Edwards admitted that during the Great Awakening there was an excess of emotional display in some cases. Ultimately, do such excesses harm the reputation of Christianity? Why or why not? [Q] To what extent should Christians be encouraged to display their emotional response to the gospel? Does it make a difference whether they are in worship, in a prayer meeting, or in the privacy of their home? [Q] What to you are inappropriate ways of expressing Christian joy? Appropriate ways? [Q] What signs indicate a person’s Christian life is too rational or unemotional? [Q] Today, what attracts people to revivals? What about revivals repels people today? [Q] In order to evangelize our culture effectively, do you think people need to see a more rational presentation of the faith or a faith that obviously touches people deeply? ©2011 Christianity Today International | ChristianBibleStudies.com 39 Christian History: reformation to the present The Awakenings Optional Activity: Purpose: To explore the debate over intellect and emotion in expressing our faith. Activity: Divide the group in half: the Head-leys and the Heart-leys, two factions in a local church. The Head-leys want to donate $5,000 from the church treasury to an evangelical college. The Heart-leys want to use it to hold a gathering with contemporary worship and singing. The $5,000 cannot be divided. Have each side come up with reasons why its option is better stewardship. They can draw from the Bible and theology, their experiences and preferences, and the “Faith and Feelings” quotations. Then hold a brief debate. Afterward, discuss: Which arguments were based on Scripture and theology, and which on matters of taste? Which were most compelling? Why? Part 3 APPLY YOUR FINDINGS Summarize the discussion and close by reading Psalm 51:1–12 together as a prayer. Action Point: Over coffee with Christian friends this week, ask: “Do we err on the side of emotion or intellect in our faith? What would it look like to be more passionate? To be more rational?” Enjoy the conversation. — Study adapted by Kyle White ©2011 Christianity Today International | ChristianBibleStudies.com 40 Christian History: reformation to the present The Gallery: Leaders of the Awakening Army THE GALLERY: LEADERS OF THE AWAKENING ARMY Whitefield’s co-workers in the great eighteenth-century revival. By Mark Galli Jonathan Edwards (1703–1758) Passionate theologian At age 14, Jonathan Edwards, already a student at Yale University, read philosopher John Locke with more delight “than the most greedy miser finds when gathering up handfuls of silver and gold, from some newly discovered treasure.” He also treasured spiritual qualities.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • By Flichard William Evans
    Thn Elrhteanth Contury Walsh AwnIcaninR With Its Relationships To Tho Contemporary English EynnirelicalI Revtval by flichard William Evans A Thesis submitted to the ]Faculty of Divinity of the University of Edinburgh In partial fulfilment of the roquirements for tho Doctor of Philosophy degree. t41v 19.96 HELEN FY, Annwyl BrIod, Am ol aerch all chofronaoth "The linos are fallen unto me In pleasant places; yen# I have-a goodly heritage. " Psalm M6 "One of the most discreditable and discourteous things in life is contompt for that which we once loved. " Adam C. Welch. CONTENTS Chapter Pace Prefaco Introduction A Sketchi Religion In Wales Before The Methodist Awakening 24 .......... Beginnings Of An Epoch 42' Part 1 ..... Part 2 54 ..... o.,. o ... III. Early Relationships ................ 72 IV. Orpanising Against Porils. 102 e. oo.... ......... o V., Lower-Lovel Relationships.. 130 o. oo ........ ooo*o V1. The Separation 170 ......... ..... VII. The 197 APPRIMICES A Deciding Upqn A Name 22.5 ................. ******* The Groat B Association ...................... 226 John Jones 227 C .................................. D An Indirect Influence 20,28 ...................... E Trovecka Family Side-Lights 230 P Harris's Varied Interests 233 Contemporary Opinions 235 0 H The Two Trevacka Colleges 236 ............ Bibliography 23a ....... MAP Places Connected With the 18th Century Awakening Prontlapiece in Wales II. (Tho brokon lino indicates my route through the country of the revivalists) LIST OF ILLUSTRATICTIS Following page A Papo from tho Diary of Howell Harris 13 Tho Wolsh Revivalists 53 lowornois" 61 "Pantycelyn" 64 The Trovacka'Buildings (1042) 199 The map and illustrations have been made available through the courtosy of the National Library of Wales.
    [Show full text]
  • [See!\. and Q. No. 38R. PROCEEDINGS
    TROWBRIDGE AND BRADFORD-ON -AVON.] [See!\. and Q. No. 38r. PROCEEDINGS. AN ACCOUNT OF THE JV\.OST RE­ MARKABLE OCCURRENCES IN THE AWAKENINGS AT BRISTOL AND KINGSWOOD TILL THE BRETHREN'S LABOURS BEGAN THERE IN 1746. WRITTEN BY JOHN CENNICK IN APRIL, 1750, FoR THE ARCHIVES OF BRISTOL AND KINGSWOOD. Now PRINTED FROM A COPY IN THE PROVINCIAL ARCHIVES AT FETTER LANE. 1 Before the awakening began in Bristol there were three reli~ious societies 2 chiefly composed of young men, and all of I. Reprinted by permission from the Moravia~t Messenger, March to June, 190(). Annotated by H.J.F. 2. Of these, Baldwin Street and Nicholas Street are those for whose better accommodation the Room in the Horsefair, in its original and smaller form, was built by Wesley in 1739· (fournal, 9 May, 1739). The third may be one in Back Lane, to which Wesley went on 17 April, 1739; "where I had not been before," he tells his Fetter Lane friends in his weekly letter of 26 April: (Messenger; 1877, p. 96). Back Lane is, probably, now the Old Market Street end of Jacob Street. Heruy Durbin (Proc., II, 40-43) was a typical member of these C. of E. Societies, though he only joined that at Baldwin Street after the arrival ofWhitefield in Bristol. (See his letter, Arm. Mag., 1779, p. 487). Miss Elizabeth Ritchie gives a pleasant glimpse of his closing days.-( Bulmers Memoirs of Mrs. [Ritckie] Mortimer, p. 169-70. Letter, Bristol, 1799). "With good old Mr. Durbin I also spent some hours very pr~fitably.
    [Show full text]
  • The Love of Lady Huntingdon's Life
    Whitworth Digital Commons Whitworth University History of Christianity II: TH 314 Honors Program 5-2016 The Love of Lady Huntingdon’s Life Elaine Harris Whitworth University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.whitworth.edu/th314h Part of the Christian Denominations and Sects Commons, Christianity Commons, History of Christianity Commons, and the History of Religions of Western Origin Commons Recommended Citation Harris, Elaine , "The Love of Lady Huntingdon’s Life" Whitworth University (2016). History of Christianity II: TH 314. Paper 10. https://digitalcommons.whitworth.edu/th314h/10 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License. This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Honors Program at Whitworth University. It has been accepted for inclusion in History of Christianity II: TH 314 by an authorized administrator of Whitworth University. Harris 1 Elaine Harris Dr. Beebe History of Christianity II 2 May 2016 The Love of Lady Huntingdon’s Life Wales appears a small, almost insignificant place to become the birthplace of a movement, yet it played an influential role in one of the many doctrinal disputes in Christianity. In the eighteenth century, a time when Calvinism and Arminianism were hotly debated, a sect of Methodism developed out of this place. Contrary to the popular teachings of the Wesley brothers, Calvinistic Methodism’s presence spread beyond the borders of Wales, influencing some who would cling tightly to predestination doctrines to the end of their lives. Among these was Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon. In the wake of her husband’s and sons’ deaths, Lady Huntingdon completely dedicated her life to overseeing and funding these Methodist teachings.
    [Show full text]
  • The Presentation of the Susanna Wesley Award of Excellence
    The presentation of the Susanna Wesley Award of Excellence Pastor or leader: Members of the household of God, we gather today to honor a woman who has given faithful service to the church and has lead others into a deeper understanding of the faith and service to Jesus Christ. The award we present this morning is called the Susanna Wesley Award of Excellence, named for the mother of John and Charles Wesley, the founders of the Methodist movement. Susanna married 26-year-old Samuel Wesley at age 19 and the couple had 19 children, nine of whom died in infancy. Susanna’s rectory home was burned down twice and Samuel once left her and the children for over a year because of a minor dispute. On two occasions, Samuel spent time in jail due to his inability to pay his bills. The lack of money was a continual struggle for Susanna. Yet, Susanna made certain her children were well educated and trained in the classics and the faith. At one point, while her husband was in London, some 250 people attended her afternoon Sunday school class. Susanna was a remarkable woman. The woman we honor this morning possesses many of the same characteristics of Susanna Wesley. She has a distinctive intellect, a nurturing sprit, unwavering devotion and perseverance in the faith. She has served Jesus Christ and the United Methodist Church in a manner similar to the mother of Methodism. <Name>, would you please come forward. <Name> on behalf of your friends and family and the entire congregation, I present you the Susanna Wesley Award of Excellence.
    [Show full text]
  • 386 Gareth Lloyd, Charles Wesley and the Struggle for Methodist
    386 Book Reviews / Ecclesiology 5 (2009) 362–402 Gareth Lloyd, Charles Wesley and the Struggle for Methodist Identity (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007), xiv + 258 pp. £51.00. ISBN 978-0-19- 929574-6 (hbk). In the struggle for Methodist identity, Charles Wesley led the losing side. Th e history of that struggle was written by the victors and their heirs, and he still lacks a full and fair biography. Th is well-written book, though based mainly on published sources and avowedly ‘not a conventional biography’, brings Charles out of his brother’s shadow, explains what he stood for and documents his contribution to Methodism, which went far beyond the hymns for which he is justly famous. It also corrects the widespread misconception that Charles’ loyalty to the Church of England made him an isolated fi gure among eight- eenth-century Methodists. Th e short account of Methodism’s earliest years is not entirely satisfactory. Th e London Foundery Society was formed by the Wesleys in 1739 in prepara- tion for their separation from the Moravian-infl uenced Fetter Lane Society; it was not an Anglican religious society that placed itself under their supervision (as suggested on p. 33). Lloyd’s claim that after 1740 Charles’ alienation from the Moravians ‘kept pace with that of his brother’ (p. 49) ignores evidence that for several months in 1741 he was drawn to them to the extent of considering reunion. For many years Charles breached church discipline just as much as John. To his life’s end he preached in parishes without the incumbent’s agreement (and, it might be added, celebrated Holy Communion in unconsecrated buildings).
    [Show full text]
  • W H at Every T E Acher Needs to Know a B O U T
    WETNK UM Church-03r 2/27/06 11:13 AM Page 1 W H AT EVERY T E ACHER NEEDS TO KNOW A B O U T Developed by the Christian Education Staff of The General Board of Discipleship of The United Methodist Church WETNK UM Church-03r 2/27/06 11:13 AM Page 2 This booklet was developed by the Christian Educa- tion Staff of The General Board of Discipleship of The United Methodist Church. It is one in a series of booklets designed to provide essential knowledge for teachers. Members of the staff who helped write and develop this series are Te rry Cart y, Bill Cre n s h a w, Donna Gaither, Contents Rick Gentzler, Mary Alice Gran, Susan Hay, Betsey H e a v n e r, Diana Hynson, Carol Krau, MaryJane Pierc e N o rton, Deb Smith, Julia Wallace, and Linda Whited. Reprinted 2002, 2003 Introduction . 5 Cover and booklet design by Joey McNair History . 7 Edited by Debra D. Smith and Heidi L. Hewitt Mission . 21 ISBN 0-88177-363-8 Quotations from the Book of Discipline are from The Book of Discipline of The Connectional Structure . 27 United Methodist Church—2000. Copyright © 2000 by The United Methodist Some Interesting Details . 35 Publishing House. Used by permission. The Cross and Flame . 35 Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are from the New Revised The Circuit Rider . 36 Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Cokesbury . 36 Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA.
    [Show full text]
  • Anne Dutton As a Spiritual Director by Michael Sciretti
    30 Copyright 2009 The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University Anne Dutton as a Spiritual Director BY MICHAEL SCIRETTI During the Evangelical Revival, laypeople and clergy enthusiastically turned to Anne Dutton for spiritual counsel. Perceived by readers as remarkably wise, loving, and sensitive to the Spirit, she shared insights on watch- fulness for sin and the Christian journey toward joy. uring the early years of the great Evangelical Revival in eighteenth- century Britain, both laypeople and leading clergy enthusiastically Dturned to the letters of Anne Dutton (1692-1765) for their spiritual depth and counsel. Perceived by her readers to be remarkably experienced and wise, loving and sensitive to the Spirit, Dutton was generous with her spiritual direction: “Fear not troubling me, my dear Brother, with your Complaints, nor that any of the dear Children of God should do so,” she wrote to Reverend Jonathan Barber. “It is our Privilege, a Part of the Communion of Saints, to unbosom our Souls to each other, to bear each other’s Burdens, to see each other’s Good, to rejoice with them that rejoice, and to mourn with them that mourn. The more free you are with me, the more kindly I take it, the more my Spirit runs into yours, and interests itself in your Concerns. God grant me a Bosom large enough, to embrace all his Children, and to receive all their Cases with the greatest Sympathy!”1 As one of the earliest Calvinistic Baptists to support the burgeoning revival, Dutton held correspondence with men and women not only in her native England, but also in Wales, Holland, Scotland, and the American colonies.
    [Show full text]
  • 526 John Coffey
    526 book reviews John Coffey (Ed.) Heart Religion. Evangelical Piety in England and Ireland, 1690–1850. Oxford University Press, Oxford/New York 2016, xiii + 232 pp. isbn 9780198724155. £65; us$105. This impressive collection of essays had its genesis in the seventh and final one- day conference of the DrWilliams’s Centre for Dissenting Studies, which closed in 2015. John Coffey’s Introduction on ‘Sources and Trajectories in Evangelical Piety’ sets the context for the book and adds significant value to the volume. Coffey shows how the ‘introspective turn’ of early Puritan, Pietist, and evangel- ical spirituality along with stress on the necessity of the experience of conver- sion created a rich transconfessional movement centred on heart religion. Con- tinental and Anglican Pietists and early evangelicals were all indebted to the devotional literature of Puritanism with its emphasis on religious experience. The new evangelicals emerged within an established and widespread Euro- pean culture of heart religion that had been steadily disrupting confessional boundaries. Given the centrality of heart religion to the evangelical revival, unsurprisingly a trend can be observed in recent scholarship of viewing early evangelicalism as part of the wider Pietist movement that preached conver- sion from nominal or formal religion to heart religion. If polygenesis applies to the origins of Pietism, the same is true of evangelicalism. Inevitably, the diverse tributaries of evangelicalism (Lutheran, Calvinist, and Catholic; Puri- tan, Anglican, and Pietist) contributed to its pluralism (e.g. Wesleyan, Calvin- istic Methodist, and Moravian). The shared emphasis on religion of the heart was central to early evangelicals recognizing one another as participants in a transconfessional and transatlantic revival.
    [Show full text]
  • Moravian Moravian
    About five years ago, I had a wooden cabin built at the bottom of my garden, which houses my study and counselling room. It is a lovely FromFrom thethe mmoravianoravian place to work in, and it is the place in which I write these missals. I call it, 'The Sanctuary', as it is my SancSanctuarytuary MAY 2019 essengeressenger sanctuary. mm Once the workmen had erected the basic shed, it was left to me to decorate the interior to my taste, to add the preservative to the wood - and to put up the guttering. I am reasonably proficient at DIY, but I recognise that I am not quite up to beaks Consecration of Sr Jane Dixon 'professional' standard. So, I duly got the materials from a local at that DIY supplier, and set about the tasks. The decorating was OK, point in the as was painting on the wood preservative. However, the guttering gutter. So, what is was a little trickier. For that, I had to screw in brackets to hold an imperfection, has the gutters - but it has to have a slight angle so that the rain become a veritable oasis of water is able to run away with gravity into the down pipes, and water for the plants and animals that into the water butts, so that the garden can benefit from the live in my garden, on a dry summer's day. water when we have a dry summer. Needless to say, I thought I managed a good job. So it is with us. There is a story in Judges Ch 7 about how Gideon used broken jars to defeat the Midianites, and in 2 Corinthians However, my efforts were not perfect as I managed to achieve Ch 4, Paul talks about us as being like clay pots which contain a slight 'kink' in the guttering.
    [Show full text]
  • The Welsh Hymn: Sacred Or Secular? Nathan Munday
    The Welsh Hymn: Sacred or Secular? Nathan Munday Cardiff University Abstract. Wales has long been stereotyped as a land of song. One of the reasons for this recurring image is its historic love for the hymn — a privileged entity within Wales’s unique choral tradition. Hymns are still sung in Wales; male voice choirs, rugby internationals, pubs, funerals, weddings, and the box-like chapels retain this ancient form like a spectral ghost dance. In light of this curious afterlife, we can ask: when does a hymn become secular and what can we learn from this process if it happens at all? This essay asks these questions by visiting three typical scenes from Welsh history. These imaginary vignettes show how the crucible of the hymn was also where they were sung as well. The first is the eighteenth-century Seiat or experience meeting; the second is a nineteenth-century North Walian square, where the Temperance Movement are singing one of their hymns; and the final destination is a large, early-twentieth-century Cymanfa Ganu (Singing Festival), where hundreds of people celebrate this kinetic form in a chapel. Arguably, Welsh hymns are no longer worship songs but cultural indicators; they are residues and echoes of a former spirituality to which only a small percentage in Wales now adhere. In an article on contemporary poetry and belief, Michael Symmons Roberts writes that a lexical ‘impoverishment’ has affected poets and readers in recent years.1 He recalls the Anglo-Welsh poet David Jones’s words when discussing dead, or dying, signs and symbols in the preface to The Anathemata.
    [Show full text]
  • Moravian Moravian
    From the Sanctuary mmoravianoravian Crossing the threshold of a New Year often brings with it experience, endure, and then transcend, the scrapes and bruises expectations of opportunity for change. There is a desire to create that life presents - much as a rock climber has to feel and overcome JANUARY 2018 essengeressenger new resolutions; a wish for something to be different in various mm the tiredness in arm and leg, and the pain of the scratching and aspects of our lives. We annually cross this threshold in hope. Yet, knocking of limbs against hard, sharp rock. Yet, it is through the reality is that often little, if anything, changes. New resolutions experiencing, enduring, and then transcending the pain, that are soon breached as we resort to familiar patterns of being and stronger glimpses of the light and the truth of God can be doing, in spite of our best intentions. Default positions kick-in as experienced as healing and growth-enhancing. Spiritual growth we unconsciously act out well-practiced attitudes and behaviours. and change requires discipline and effort: daily prayer; small acts Our hopes wither and deflate, and we chastise ourselves with of grace; little shifts in thinking such as gradually learning to see 'whatever happened to our New Year resolutions?' glimpses of Christ in all things and all people; reading scripture and Perhaps, our mistake is in thinking that something fundamental applying its wisdom to personal circumstance; conversing with can change simply because it is a New Year! The hope of a New fellow pilgrims. These all add to the gentle ploughing of new furrows Year message rarely emphasises the effort and discipline that is in spiritual well-being.
    [Show full text]
  • Spirituality and Hymns of Charles Wesley
    331 TRADITIONS OF SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE Spirituality and the Hymns of Charles Wesley HARLES WESLEY WAS A SPIRITUAL leader, a preacher and theologian, C of considerable character. Even so, in comparison to his elder brother, there has been a relative dearth of scholarship and interest directed to the analysis of his genius. People tend to know that he wrote hymns like 'Love divine, all loves excelling', 'Hark, the herald angels sing', and 'O thou who tamest from above'. If pressed, most people would know little more. Charles Wesley (1707-1788) was four years younger than his brother John. It is likely that he, rather than John, began the 'Holy Club' at Oxford which attracted the nickname 'Methodist' for its detailed and organized approach to building the spiritual life. This was in 1729. The overriding objective of those who gathered for study and prayer was the pursuit of holiness. Both brothers spent a short time in Georgia, helping James Oglethorpe to found a colony there. Their endeavours were disastrous, but forced both John and Charles into a re-examination of their spiritual life. On 21 May 1738, a few days before his brother, Charles underwent a dramatic conversion. There was a vision, a calling from the scriptures ('He hath put a new song in my mouth, even a thanksgiving unto our God. Many shall see it, and fear, and shall put their trust in the Lord'), and the gift of deep peace. There began the outpouring of hymns and poems to express the rapture of Charles's mystical experience. Some of them were intensely personal: Tis Love, 'tis love! Thou died'st for me I hear thy whisper in my heartl The morning breaks, the shadows flee: Pure universal love thou art .
    [Show full text]