The application of business experience and expertise to the administration on non-Wesleyan Methodism in the period 1797-1850

Anderson, John H

Abstract

A characteristic feature of Methodism in the post Wesley era was the high degree of lay participation in the administration of the new Methodist movements which came into being from the 1790s onwards. In some cases, this was the very reason for their separate existence from the parent body, Wesleyan Methodism suffering a series of divisive disputes and schisms until finally conceding fuller lay participation at the highest levels in 1878, when laymen were allowed to become representatives to the annual Conference. The object of this study is to examine the business and experience of the non- Wesleyan Methodist leadership and of the expertise and resources thereby gained to the administration and development of the newly emerging denominations. The contrast between Wesleyanism and Primitive Methodism, for instance, is, in this context, the contrast between John Wesley and Hugh Bourne. Wesley, the son of a parson whose social class was that of the minor gentry, was destined from the outset for Oxbridge and the ordained ministry, and whilst he did make money from writing and publishing, as did many clergymen of his day, he had no other career. Hugh Bourne, on the other hand, was in his thirties before he was engaged full time evangelism, and his background was in engineering and farming. This comparative study attempts to discover the extent to which the early careers and education, and the commercial, administrative and legal experience acquired affected the contribution that the Bourne family made to Primitive Methodism, the Thornes to the Bible Christians, and the Ridgways to the Methodist New Connexion, and the consequent effect on the development of these respective denominations and the formation of their Connexional polity. The career of Joseph Barker provides a sidelight a sidelight on some of the issues raised and the New Connexion in particular.

Citation

Anderson, J. H. (2000). The application of business experience and expertise to the administration on non-Wesleyan Methodism in the period 1797-1850. (Thesis). Keele University

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Nov 23, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 23, 2023
• Award Date: 2000-03