Where did methodism come from?

Answer 1

The Methodist Church is a direct offshoot from the Church of England or the Anglican Communion. The founders were John and Charles Wesley who were Anglican priests and stayed faithful to the church and never wanted the Methodists to become a new church. The Church of England back in the 18th century was looked upon with great disdain by ordinary Englishmen. They felt that the church was not interested in saving souls or reaching out to the poor and oppressed. They felt marginalized. John Wesley, took advantage of this situation, by preaching in the open fields as well as anywhere he could reach out to the common man and woman. The church was aghast and condemned John Wesley for doing this. Over time, John and Charles plus George Whitfield developed a huge following that couldn't be ignored by the Church of England and reforms were made. The Methodists have adopted most of the Articles of Religion from the Anglican Church and the liturgy is closely similar to the Church of England. The Methodists took their evangelical zeal to colonial America and found a fertile ground for new adherents. They used circuit riders who were not ordained to spread the Christian message and gained major foothold throughout colonial America. Eventually, this evangelical fervor would ebb and the Methodist Church would become complacent and rigid like the other liberal main-line denominations. Today, the United Methodist Church has lost many members to the evangelical churches and is now in full communion with the Lutheran and Episcopal Churches. The British Methodists and the Church of England are planning on reuniting within 10 years. John and Charles Wesley would be most approving of this merger!